Background: Adjustment Disorder (AD) is a psychological condition that arises as a response to identifiable stressors, leading to emotional distress and functional impairment. This cross-sectional study, conducted within the context of compulsory military service in Turkey, aimed to investigate the association between early maladaptive schemas (EMS), coping strategies, and functional outcomes in individuals diagnosed with AD. The study population consisted of male conscripts who developed AD symptoms following relocation and psychosocial stressors specific to the military setting, such as loss of autonomy, limited support, and institutional pressure. EMS are deep-seated cognitive patterns that shape an individuals’ responses to stress and may contribute to the development of AD. However, the relationship between EMS, coping strategies, and functional outcomes in AD remains unclear.Methods: This cross-sectional study, included 113 male participants diagnosed with Adjustment Disorder and 75 healthy male controls, aged between 18 and 40 years. The clinical group consisted of male conscripts who developed AD symptoms during their mandatory military service. The participants completed self-report measures, including the Young Schema Questionnaire (YSQ-SF3), Coping Attitudes Inventory (CAI, a self-report instrument designed to assess coping strategies), and Functionality Assessment Short Test (FAST). The groups were compared and correlations between EMS, coping strategies, and functionality were examined using statistical tools.Results: Participants with AD scored significantly higher on maladaptive schemas, particularly in failure, enmeshment/dependence, and pessimism, showed greater use of avoidance-based coping strategies, and exhibited poorer overall functioning compared to healthy controls (p <.001, η² = .072–.384). Maladaptive schemas were negatively correlated with adaptive coping (r = –.389 to –.565) and positively associated with avoidance and functional impairment (r = .573 to.734, p <.01).Conclusions: Our findings suggest that maladaptive schemas may play a key role in how individuals with AD cope with stress, often leading to avoidance behaviors and functional decline. Addressing these schemas through schema-focused therapy may help individuals develop healthier coping strategies and improve overall functioning. Further research, including randomized controlled trials evaluating schema-focused interventions, is needed to explore long-term treatment outcomes, particularly in populations exposed to institutional or occupational stressors such as compulsory military service.

Background: The relationship between impulse control and premature ejaculation (PE), the most common sexual dysfunction in men, is not yet well understood. Aim: To assess the association between impulse control issues and the severity of PE in men with a lifelong diagnosis of this condition. Methods: A cross-sectional observational study was designed to evaluate patients who presented to the clinic with complaints of PE between March 2023 and March 2024. The final study sample comprised 40 men with lifelong PE and 40 healthy control subjects. Outcomes: Impulse control was evaluated with the UPPS Impulsive Behavior Scale and the Barratt Impulsivity Scale-11 (BIS-11), while depression and anxiety levels were measured using the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI). The severity of PE was assessed using the Arabic Index of PE (AIPE). Results: The mean AIPE score was 15.13 ± 3.33 in the PE group and 32.05 ± 2.06 in the control group (P ˂ 0.001). Compared to the control group, the PE group had significantly higher UPSS Impulsive Behavior Scale scores in all subscales (P ˂ 0.001 for planning, urgency, and lack of perseverance; P = 0. 001 for sensation seeking) and total scores (P ˂ 0.001). The BIS-11 scores were also significantly higher in the PE group compared to the control group for all subscales (P ˂ 0.001 for all). The patients in the PE group also had higher levels of anxiety and depression (P ˂ 0.001 for all). Clinical Implications: A clinician’s quantitative assessment of ejaculation time and the severity of PE among men presenting to the clinic with complaints of PE may reveal accompanying comorbid conditions more effectively. Strength and Limitations: The current study is a novel investigation that quantitatively evaluates PE in terms of intravaginal ejaculatory latency time and severity, aiming to identify comorbid conditions. As a limitation, the necessity for patients and their partners to measure the time to ejaculation limited the sample size, making it challenging to generalize the findings. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that impulse control plays a significant role in lifelong PE. It is important for clinicians to assess impulse control and consider therapeutic interventions for men presenting with PE complaints, particularly in those classified as severe.

Neurological soft signs, considered to be an endophenotype in schizophrenia patients, have also been investigated in patients with schizophrenia as a clinical correlate of violent/aggressive behavior. We aimed to establish a homogeneous group in the context of violent behavior by including patients with schizophrenia who were admitted to a forensic psychiatry service and who were under protection. The pre-criminal employment rate for the case group was lower than that for the control group, and the history of substance abuse was significantly higher in criminal schizophrenia patients. No statistically significant difference was found between the two groups when the neurological soft symptoms, PANSS scores, Stroop test scores, and other sociodemographic factors were compared.

Objective: The aim is to assess the severity of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) symptoms in adults with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in comparison to a control group and to examine the relationship between the symptom severities of adults with ADHD and IBS. Methods: This cross-sectional study included 40 adults with ADHD and 40 matched healthy controls. Adults with ADHD was diagnosed using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-5 Disorders, and symptom severity was assessed with the Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale. Irritable bowel syndrome severity was determined using Irritable Bowel Syndrome Severity Scoring System. Major psychiatric disorders, chronic gastrointestinal (GI) diseases, and recent use of GI medications were among the exclusion criteria. Statistical analyses used t-tests, chi-square tests, and Pearson’s correlation (P < .05). Results: The group with ADHD showed significantly higher IBS symptom severity scores (114.73 ± 125.16) than the control group (55.82 ± 85.51) (t=2.167, P=.016). A strong positive correlation was observed between ADHD symptom severity and IBS symptom severity (r=0.689, P < .001). Conclusion: Individuals with ADHD experience more severe IBS symptoms than healthy controls. The positive correlation between the severity of ADHD symptoms and IBS suggests a potential link requiring further investigation. Cite this article as: Sağlam T, Takım U. Comparative analysis of irritable bowel syndrome symptom severity in adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and healthy controls: A case-control study. Neuropsychiatr Invest. 2025, 63, 0031, doi:10.5152/NeuropsychiatricInvest.2025.25031.

Objective: Adjustment Disorder (AD) is a stress-related condition characterized by emotional and behavioral symptoms triggered by various identifiable stressors. Impulsivity, marked by difficulties in decision-making and control, and deficits in metacognition, which regulate cognitive awareness, are common in AD. This study explores potential associations between dimensions of impulsive behavior, as defined by the UPPS (Urgency, Premeditation, Perseverance, Sensation Seeking) model, and metacognitive beliefs in individuals with AD. Method: This cross-sectional study included 75 male individuals diagnosed with AD and 60 healthy male controls. Participants were recruited from a clinical setting and completed self-report measures, including the Metacognitions Questionnaire-30 (MCQ-30) and the UPPS Impulsive Behavior Scale, to assess metacognitive beliefs and impulsivity. Results: Individuals with AD had significantly higher scores on the MCQ-30 (F=50.559, p<0.001), particularly on the subscales of negative beliefs about worry (F=28.341, p<0.001), and need to control thoughts (F=57.427, p<0.001), as well as on total metacognitive beliefs (F=20.143, p<0.001). Regarding impulsivity, as measured by the UPPS Impulsive Behavior Scale, the AD group showed significantly elevated scores on lack of premeditation (F=15.952, p<0.001) and lack of perseverance (F=22.411, p0.05). Correlation analyses revealed that MCQ-30 negative beliefs about worry were positively associated with UPPS lack of premeditation (r=0.338, p<0.01) and lack of perseverance (r=0.234, p<0.01). The strongest correlations were found between the MCQ-30 need to control thoughts and impulsivity, particularly lack of perseverance (r=0.385, p<0.01) and total impulsivity (r=0.375, p<0.01), suggesting a strong link between dysfunctional metacognitive beliefs and impulsivity in individuals with AD. Conclusion: These findings may inform future clinical approaches targeting impulsivity and metacognitive beliefs in individuals with AD. Future research should investigate these factors longitudinally, evaluate the effectiveness of specific interventions, and explore sociodemographic influences on clinical outcomes.