Calculating the Social Rhythm Metric (SRM) and Examining Its Use in Interpersonal Social Rhythm Therapy (IPSRT) in a Healthy Population Study.
In psychiatry, the social zeitgeber theory argues that social life provides important social cues that entrain circadian rhythms. Disturbance of these social cues might lead do dis-entrainment of circadian rhythms and evoke somatic symptoms that increase the risk of mood disorders. In preventing and treating patients with bipolar disorders, the Interpersonal and Social Rhythm Therapy (IPSRT) relies on the Social Rhythm Metric (SRM) to (re)establish patients' social cues and an re-entrain circadian rhythms. Since the SRM quantifies social rhythms that are derived from a patient's interaction with a social environment, this contribution (a) calculates the SRM of the social environment of a representative healthy population study (n = 1249), (b) evaluates the robustness of the SRM as a quantifier of social rhythms by matching the scores of the pilot study, revealing the near absence of variance across population characteristics and investigation months-circadian rhythms need to be entrained for every month and for everyone-and (c) examines its use in IPSRT by relating high SRM-scores to lower psychological distress (p = 0.004) and low SRM-scores to higher social and emotional dysfunction (p = 0.018).
Research Group TOR, Sociology Department, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050 Brussels, Belgium.
Theun Pieter
TP
Van Tienoven
Research Group TOR, Sociology Department, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050 Brussels, Belgium.
Joeri
J
Minnen
Research Group TOR, Sociology Department, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050 Brussels, Belgium.
Sarah
S
Daniels
Research Group TOR, Sociology Department, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050 Brussels, Belgium.
Djiwo
D
Weenas
Pediatrics Department, UZ Leuven, Herestraat 49, 3000 Leuven, Belgium.
Anke
0000-0001-8846-1650
A
Raaijmakers
Research Group TOR, Sociology Department, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050 Brussels, Belgium.
Ignace
I
Glorieux
GHQ-12; bipolar disorder; cognitive behavioral therapy; interpersonal psychotherapy; social rhythms; time-diary