Affect intensity measure in bipolar disorders: a multidimensional approach.

Area of Science:

• Psychiatry
• Clinical Psychology
• Affective Science

Background:

• Emotional dysregulation is a core feature of bipolar disorders (BD).
• The Affect Intensity Measure (AIM) assesses emotional reactivity in non-clinical populations.
• Validating the AIM for clinical BD samples is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze the factor structure of the French AIM translation in euthymic BD patients.
• To examine associations between AIM sub-scale scores and demographic/illness characteristics.

Main Methods:

• Principal Component Analysis of the AIM in 310 euthymic BD patients.
• Assessment of reliability and factor structure of the French AIM.
• Correlational analyses with demographic and clinical variables.

Main Results:

• A four-factor solution (Positive Affectivity, Unpeacefulness, Negative Reactivity, Negative Intensity) explained 47% of variance.
• Unpeacefulness associated with age, psychotic symptoms, and substance misuse.
• Negative Intensity linked to social phobia; gender associated with Negative Reactivity.

Conclusions:

• The AIM demonstrates good reliability and a valid factor structure in euthymic BD patients.
• AIM sub-scales correlate with specific demographic and clinical features of BD.
• The AIM is a potentially valuable tool for characterizing BD.