Grant Awarded: MotionWatches
An UMCG grant application has been awarded to obtain 36 accelerometers, MotionWatches, for the iLab. These MotionWatches are updated versions of the current available accelerometers (ActiCals). The MotionWatches will, just like the ActiCals, become available to all researchers in the UCP and ICPE. The procedure to lend this equipment will be the same as for all other equipment, please contact Gerda Bloem (g.m.bloem@umcg.nl).
New iLab study: Sampling scheme for diary studies
A Delphi study will be performed to obtain more insight into choices for particular sampling schemes for diary studies. We hope you will complete our questionnaire if you have experience with performing diary studies, as explained in the following mail (which you will receive in your mailbox soon):
“Ecological momentary studies are increasingly being performed. However, consensus about the best way to design these kinds of studies is lacking. Moreover, the rationale of a chosen study design is often not given in scientific papers. This hampers possibilities for replication of study findings and improvement of the design of future diary studies.
Therefore, the aim of the current study is to generate a systematic overview of reasons for applying specific study designs in EMA studies, with a special focus on the rationale of choosing a particular sampling scheme. To come to such an overview, in the first round of our study we ask experts in diary research to answer questions about the design of their diary studies. In the second round (about March 2016), all participating experts will receive a summary of the rationale of diary study designs given by the other experts and will be asked to respond to this rationale.
We would like to ask you, as an expert, to participate in both parts of our study. Please provide your mail address below to enable us to contact you for participation in the second round of our study. Please note that all information will be treated confidentially and will only be processed anonymously. By participating, you will also get insight into other researchers’ reasons to choose for specific designs. The ultimate aim is to present the findings anonymously in a scientific paper.
Please click the following link for completing the questionnaire: http://goo.gl/forms/0vsNR1rYJK
Kind regards,
on behalf of the research group (dr. Elske Bos, dr. Jan Houtveen, dr. Harriëtte Riese, prof. Judith Rosmalen and prof. Marieke Wichers),
Karin Janssens (e-mail: iLAB@icpe.nl)”
We would also be happy if you will send this mail to experienced diary researchers in your network.
Results of an iLab study on the association between daily affective instability and connectomics in functional subnetworks (Michelle Servaas)
The aim of the study was to establish a coupling between daily affective instability and connectomics in functional subnetworks in remitted recurrent major depressive disorder (rrMDD). To this end, we used Experience Sampling Methodology (ESM) to monitor affect at ten time points per day for six days and calculated affective instability via the mean adjusted absolute successive difference. Furthermore, we collected rs-fMRI data and performed graph theory to obtain network measures of integration within and between functional subnetworks.
For the ESM analysis, we found increased affective instability in most negative mood and cognition variables in rrMDD patients compared to healthy controls. Notably, this was not the case for the positive mood and cognition variables, which merely showed an overall reduction in rrMDD patients compared to healthy controls.
For the graph analysis, we found that the default mode subnetwork, involved in self-reflection and rumination, has fewer connections with other subnetworks in rrMDD patients compared to healthy controls. Differences between the two groups seem to be specific to this subnetwork, since no significant results were found for the other subnetworks.
For the combined ESM-fMRI analysis, we observed highly specific associations between affective instability in certain negative mood variables and network measures calculated on subnetworks. This analysis was only performed in rrMDD patients, since healthy controls did not show substantial variation in affective instability. rrMDD patients, which showed more instability in feeling down, had less connections between the salience-reward subnetwork and other subnetworks. Furthermore, rrMDD patients, which showed more instability in feeling irritated and restless, had higher local efficiency coefficients in the cognitive control and somatosensory-motor subnetwork, respectively.
In conclusion, the study showed that rrMDD patients, compared to healthy controls, are less stable in their negative mood and that such dynamics are related to differences in the way information is integrated within and between specific functional subnetworks. This may facilitate a better understanding of how (altered) mood in real-life is represented in the brain, possibly providing insights for clinical starting points to prevent relapse in rrMDD.
The study was performed by Michelle N. Servaas, Harriëtte Riese, Remco J. Renken, Marieke Wichers, Jojanneke A. Bastiaansen, Caroline A. Figueroa, Hanneke Geugies, Roel J.T. Mocking, Linda Geerligs, Jan-Bernard C. Marsman, André Aleman, Aart H. Schene, Robert A. Schoevers, Henricus G. Ruhé
SAA conference and visit to Pennsylvania State University (Evelien Snippe)
In June 2015, I visited the conference of the Society for Ambulatory Assessments (SAA) in State College. The conference covered a broad variety of topics including new ambulatory assessment techniques (EEG, wrist wearable sensors), stress and coping, sleep, physical activity, analytic approaches to ambulatory data, mobile health interventions, and improving clinical care with ambulatory assessments. To my opinion, the conference was mainly of interest if you aim to learn more about different types of ambulatory assessments and in which fields these are currently applied. The presentations were of variable scientific quality.
The conference also covered a pre-conference workshop on an innovative statistical technique for analyzing intensive longitudinal data: Time Varying Effect Modeling (TVEM). I visited the Methodology Center of the Pennsylvania State University for a longer period of time to learn and apply these analyses. TVEM is a kind of nonparametric regression that can test whether the relationship between two variables changes over time, and whether this change is linear or non-linear. I will use this technique to examine whether the relationship between stress during the day and negative affect in the evening would become weaker over the course of mindfulness-based treatment. For more information on TVEM, you can contact me. Also, I am planning to give a workshop on TVEM for anyone who is interested, probably in February 2016.
Workshop on Group Iterative Multiple Model Estimation (GIMME)
Mara Bouwmans has acquainted expertise on how to perform group iterative multiple model estimatation (GIMME), a statistical technique used to estimate patterns of relations (temporal dynamics) among time-series variables at the group- and individual-level simultaneously. GIMME enables to arrive at reliable group and individual structures even when the data are highly heterogeneous across individuals. She will give a workshop on the 28th of October (from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.) for everyone who is interested in this technique. She will explain how to use the software, how to perform the analyses, and how to interpret your results. If you are interested in this workshop or want more information, please contact Mara.
iLab research meetings
During the iLab meeting of last Monday (12th of October) the ambulant registration of heart rate, physical activity and sleep were discussed by Harriette Riese, Jan Houtveen, Thea Kooiman (Hanze Hogeschool) and Marijke Gordijn (Chronobiology). We believe the meeting was a fruitful encounter and thank the presenters for their contribution to this meeting. The presentations can be found on the internal iLab Google Drive. The results of the validation study of accelerometers presented by Thea Kooiman have been published last week. The next iLab research meeting will be on the 18th of April 2016 (3 p.m. to 5 p.m. in the Eriba Building). Suggestions for topics to discuss during this meeting are more than welcome (iLAB@icpe.nl).
Introduction to the iLab for new employees and students
During the iLab introduction meeting information will be provided about the goals of the iLab and the use of the internal Google Drive Platform. Further, procedures to lend equipment, or make use of test rooms or freezer storage will be explained.
Karin Janssens will be on pregnancy leave from 19 October 2015, and thus new iLab introduction meetings will start again in March 2016. The first will be on 8 March (1 p.m. to 1.30 p.m. in room K1.25, Triade building, entrance 24). In the meantime, employees or students who have questions about the iLab or need personal assistance with the use of its facilities can contact Gerda Bloem (g.m.bloem@umcg.nl) for help.
As a reminder, iLab test rooms are available to all researchers of the UCP and ICPE. These rooms are located on the ground floor of the Psychiatry building (entrance 32). Also equipment and freezer storage can be used free of charge by all researchers of the UCP and ICPE.
Please be aware that your study information (i.e. a study sheet and your METc protocol) should be uploaded on the internal Google Drive platform, before you can use the iLab facilities.
New publications:
- Bosman RC, Jung SE, Miloserdov K,Schoevers RA, Aan Het Rot M. Daily symptom ratings for studying premenstrual dysphoric disorder: A review. J Affect Disord. 2015;189:43-53. doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2015.08.063.
- Hosenfeld B, Bos EH, Wardenaar KJ, Conradi HJ, van der Maas HL, Visser I,de Jonge P. Major depressive disorder as a nonlinear dynamic system: bimodality in the frequency distribution of depressive symptoms over time. BMC Psychiatry. 2015; 15:222. doi: 10.1186/s12888-015-0596-5.
- Bos FM,Schoevers RA, Aan Het Rot M. Experience sampling and ecological momentary assessment studies in psychopharmacology: A systematic review. Eur Neuropsychopharmacol. 2015. pii: S0924-977X(15)00261-8. doi: 10.1016/j.euroneuro.2015.08.008.
- van Ockenburg SL, Booij SH,Riese H, Rosmalen JG, Janssens KA. How to assess stress biomarkers for idiographic research? Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2015; 62:189-199. doi: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2015.08.002.
- van der Krieke L, Emerencia AC, Bos EH,Rosmalen JG, Riese H, Aiello M, Sytema S, de Jonge P. Ecological Momentary Assessments and Automated Time Series Analysis to Promote Tailored Health Care: A Proof-of-Principle Study. JMIR Res Protoc. 2015 Aug 7;4(3):e100. doi: 10.2196/resprot.4000.
NB The link to the internal Google Drive platform only works after you have logged into the platform with your @rgoc.nl account