Paula Vagos

Vagos, Paula

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Vagos

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Paula

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Paula Vagos

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Paula Vagos completed her Licenciatura in Psychology in 2006 by Universidade de Évora and PhD in Psychology in 2010 by Universidade de Aveiro. She is an Assistant Professor at Universidade de Aveiro, an integrated research member of the William James Center for Research and a collaborating research member of the CINEICC. She is also a certified psychologist with expertise in Clinical and Health Psychology by the Portuguese College of Psychology. She was part of the research team of 8 funded research projects, of which she was the principal investigator of two and the co-principal investigator of one; all were in the area of clinical psychology (or forensic clinical psychology) and are completed. She was co-supervisor of 2 completed doctoral dissertations and is supervisor or co-supervisor of 6 students with FCT doctoral scholarships. She supervised more than 60 master's theses, most of them in clinical psychology. She has authored/co-authored more than 60 articles in international scientific journals and 19 in national peer-reviewed scientific journals, as well as 9 books and book chapters. She is also the author/co-author of 10 structured intervention manuals, some of which have already been tested or are under investigation in various R&D projects. She has given more than 100 presentations at national and international conferences. She is a reviewer for several international scientific journals (75 reviews; https://publons.com/author/1215689/paula-vagos#profile). She mostly investigates social behaviors in adolescence, including social anxiety and avoidance, assertiveness, and aggression. She intends to address the psychological processes underlying psychopathology as well as develop, implement, and assess the efficacy of psychological interventions aimed at those processes, considering both second wave and third wave cognitive therapies. Her most recent interests concern mental health stigma and how to overcome it in diverse communities, and the principles of acceptance and commitment therapy as applied to parenthood.

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CINTESIS.UPT - Centro de Investigação em Tecnologias e Serviços de Saúde

Centro de Investigação em Tecnologias e Serviços de Saúde (CINTESIS.UPT), former I2P, is an R&D unit devoted to the study of cognition and behaviour in context. With an interdisciplinary focus, namely on Education, Translational and Applied Psychology

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Open Access
The Brief Peer Conflict Scale: Psychometric characterization across Portuguese adolescents and young adults
2023-03 - Pandeirada, Josefa N. S.; Rodrigues, Pedro F. S.; Vagos, Paula
Introduction/Aims: The Brief Peer Conflict Scale (Brief PCS) measures aggressive behavior as a multidimensional construct associated with diverse forms (i.e., overt and relational) and functions (i.e., reactive and proactive). Its psychometric properties have been assessed in adolescent and young adult samples, but these groups have not been compared before. This work aimed to investigate the psychometric properties of the Brief PCS across Portuguese community samples of adolescents and young adults. Methods: A sample of 891 participants (54.9%) aged 12 to 25 years old (M=16.69, SD=2.97) responded to the Brief PCS. Of those, 477 composed the adolescent sample (50.7% female) aged 12 to 17 years old (M=14.30, SD=1.43) and 414 constituted the young adult sample (67.1% female) aged 18 to 25 years old (M=19.43, SD=1.5). Results: Confirmatory factor analyses replicated the four-factor measurement model (i.e., proactive overt, reactive overt, proactive relational, and reactive relational aggression) as a good fit for the adolescent and the young adult samples taken separately, though using only 16 of the original 20 items. Acceptable internal consistency values were found for all four measures. Strong measurement invariance based on age-groups (i.e., adolescents and young adults) was found. Adolescents were overall more aggressive than young adults. Conclusions: This work provides psychometric properties of the Brief PCS to measure the combinations of the forms and functions of aggression invariantly across adolescents and young adults. The Brief PCS was sensitive to detect age-based differences in the practice of aggression. Its use to explore developmental trajectories of aggression seems justifiable.
Open Access
Dimensionality and gender-based measurement invariance of the Compassion Scale in a community sample
2017-10-17 - Sousa, Rúben; Castilho, Paula; Vieira, Cláudia; Rijo, Daniel; Vagos, Paula
Compassion has been proposed as relevant to psychological functioning and mental health, involving being compassionate and caring towards others in times of difficulty. The Compassion Scale (CS) proposes to assess compassion for others considering its different dimensions (Kindness; Common humanity; Mindfulness; Indifference; Separation, and Disengagement) and also offers a total score. The current work investigated the psychometric properties of the Portuguese version of this instrument in adults (N = 610). Results showed the acceptability of a two higher-order factor solution representing a negative and a positive valence of compassion (i.e., Compassion and Disconnectedness), with each higher-order factor comprising three different dimensions of compassion. Multi-group analyses established measurement invariance across gender; further mean comparison analyses showed that women presented higher levels of the positive dimensions of compassion, whereas men showed higher levels of the negative ones. The CS demonstrated good internal consistency, test-retest reliability, and limited validity in relation to external variables. Overall, these findings contribute to the validation of the CS in a non-clinical adult sample, supporting a new measurement model that partially concurs with the original one. It thus provides the user with a new way of assessing and interpreting compassion that may be useful both in research and clinical settings.
Open Access
The longitudinal impact of psychological flexibility and compassion on mother-baby bonding: Care4mmmies study protocol [comunicação oral]
2023-03-30 - Mateus, Vera; Palmeira, Lara; Xavier, Ana; Silva, Joana Ribeiro da; Vagos, Paula
Becoming a mother is a life-changing event that is often experienced in a positive way, but may also encompass great vulnerability and uncertainty, with the potential to hinder the mother’s well-being and foster disorganization, particularly for women with attachment difficulties dealing with a difficult infant. Risk factors to the quality of mother-infant emotional bonding are well documented, whereas research into the mothers’ protective and modifiable factors is scarcer. Psychological flexibility and compassion are adaptive emotional regulation strategies that have been linked to the wellbeing and mental health in diverse populations. The current work intends to present the Care4mommies project, which aims to examine whether prenatal maternal compassion (towards others and the self) and psychological flexibility play a protective role in the development of postpartum mother-infant bonding over time and whether this effect remains relevant regardless of mothers’ attachment style and infant temperament. Participants will be pregnant women to be assessed between 22 and 30 weeks of gestation (T0) and when the infant is three (T1) and nine months old (T2). Participants will respond to an online survey that includes sociodemographic information and questionnaires about their compassion and psychological flexibility to be completed at all three assessments. In addition, mothers’ own attachment style will be reported during pregnancy, and infant temperament and mother-infant bonding questionnaires will be administered at T1 and T2. Recruitment will take place through social media advertising, colleagues and acquaintances of the research team members, and family health units attending pregnant women. Data will be analysed using a structural equation modelling approach. Overall, we expect that higher levels of mother’s compassion and psychological flexibility will predict higher quality of mother-infant bonding. In addition, we expect that the impact of less adaptive maternal attachment styles and infant difficult temperament on mother-infant bonding will be moderated by mother’s compassion and/or psychological flexibility. Finally, we expect mother-infant bonding at T2 to be predicted by mothers’ attachment style, compassion and psychological flexibility, infant temperament, and mother-infant bonding previously assessed. The study findings will clarify whether mothers’ compassion and psychological flexibility may be protective for mother-infant bonding, which can inform future studies in designing and testing specific parental interventions to promote a secure mother-infant bond in the postpartum period.
Open Access
Reliability and factor structure of the 10-item Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K10) among Portuguese adults
2019 - Pereira, Anabela; Monteiro, Sara; Oliveira, Carla Andreia; Jardim, Jacinto; Bártolo, Ana; Vagos, Paula
The 10-item Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K10) has been presented as a valid measure to assess psychological distress levels in population surveys but its dimensional structure was not consensual. Our main objective was to provide a Portuguese version of the K10 exploring the reliability and factor structure of this measure. This cross-sectional study included 694 adults collecteda web-based survey and in training entities. Results showed that 37.9% of the individuals reported significant distress symptoms. A good internal consistency of the K10 scale (α=.91) and strong inter-item correlation (ranges350 to .659) were found in our study but the original one-dimensional structure was not confirmed. A two-factor model considering anxiety and depression as two latent, independent but correlated factors shows a good fit with the data even across two data collection methods. The K10 tool was sensitive to sociodemographic variables. Participants aged 40 or over and belonging to the general working class presented higher distress levels. Our data indicates the Portuguese version of K10 as a reliable tool with a factor structure to assess psychological distress.
Restricted Access
The Soft Skills Inventory: developmental procedures and psychometric analysis
2020 - Jardim, Jacinto; Pereira, Anabela; Direito, Inês; Galinha, Sónia; Vagos, Paula
When attending and participating in Higher Education, students face a multitude of personal, social, and work-related challenges, which may increase the risk of developing psychopathological symptomatology. To date, there is no instrument that grasps the non-technical skills that may help prepare students to respond to these challenges. This paper presents the development and psychometric properties of the Soft Skills Inventory (SSI). The inventory was developed based on theoretical and empirical findings on the skills associated with academic and professional success, and on students’ perception. The SSI was tested with 2030 Portuguese students (of which 77.1% were female) using a two-stage approach: item calibration and model generation (n = 1033), followed by model validation (n = 997). Item calibration analyses led to retaining 49 items that were organized into six-factors: self-determination, resilience, empathy, assertiveness, social support, and teamwork. This measurement model was further validated and proved to be an invariant, and thus credible, tool to compare male and female students on those relevant skills. All measures attained good internal consistency, with alphas ranging from .76 to .88. Female students scored significantly higher than males on self-determination, empathy, social support and teamwork. On the other hand, male students scored significantly higher on resilience. No significant differences were found between men and women for assertiveness. Psychometric analysis showed that the SSI is a reliable and valid instrument to evaluate students intra and interpersonal skills. The SSI may help identify gaps in soft skills and guide targeted interventions to support a more positive student experience in Higher Education.
Restricted Access
Cross-cultural validation of the young schema questionnaire for adolescents in Portuguese and Brazilian samples
2020-02 - Borges, Jeane Lessinger; Dell’Aglio, Débora Dalbosco; Rijo, Daniel; Vagos, Paula
This study aimed to examine the psychometric properties and to investigate the cross-cultural equivalence of the Brief Form of the Young Schema Questionnaire for Adolescents (B-YSQ-A) in a sample of Portuguese (n = 453) and Brazilian (n = 560) adolescents. A total of 1013 adolescents aged 14–19 years old (M = 16.61, SD = 1.18) completed the B-YSQ-A, the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale for Adolescents (DASS) and the Mental Health Inventory-5 (MHI-5). The factor structure of the B-YSQ-A was investigated using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA); moreover, measurement invariance across culture and sex was tested. Internal consistency and construct validity of the scale were also analyzed. In line with Young’s schema model, the CFA supported the existence of 18 early maladaptive schemas (EMSs) assessed via the B-YSQ-A, which achieved acceptable internal consistency values and validity evidence based on relations with other variables. Further evidence was found for the adequate model fitting across sex and culture. The B-YSQ-A seems a valid tool for assessing EMSs among adolescents across these Portuguese-speaking countries.
Restricted Access
The role of shame and shame coping strategies on internalizing/externalizing symptoms: Differences across gender in adolescents
2020 - Paulo, Marlene; Silva, Diana Ribeiro da; Rijo, Daniel; Vagos, Paula
Shame plays a central role in social and self-development, particularly throughout childhood and adolescence. Nonetheless, shame can also be harmful if it involves unbearable and persistent feelings of being inferior, inadequate, and worthless. Gender differences in endorsing either internalizing/externalizing symptoms may reflect different ways of coping with shame rather than differences in the experience of shame per se. Using a community adolescent sample (n = 368; 65.8% female), this study investigated the role of external shame and shame coping strategies in the endorsement of externalizing and internalizing symptoms, looking at the moderator role of gender. Although gender differences were found in the endorsement of shame coping strategies and psychological symptoms, results indicated that gender had no impact on the pathways linking external shame and shame coping strategies to psychological symptoms. By clarifying the routes linking external shame to psychological symptoms, current findings may contribute to better define appropriate interventions for adolescents.
Restricted Access
Mother–infant bonding in the first nine months postpartum: the role of mother’s attachment style and psychological flexibility
2023-07-31 - Mateus, Vera; Araújo, Vânia; Xavier, Ana; Vagos, Paula; Palmeira, Lara; Silva, Joana Ribeiro da
Introduction Mother’s bond to the infant in the postpartum period plays an important role in the subsequent mother–infant relationship and the infant’s socio-emotional functioning. Several maternal characteristics, such as attachment style and psychological flexibility, may contribute to the quality of mother–infant bonding, though literature examining these variables is still scarce. The present study aimed to examine the impact of mother’s attachment on mother–infant bonding in the first month postpartum and the mediating role of psychological flexibility on that association. Methods Participants were 226 mothers of an infant up to 9 months old, who reported on their own attachment style (in terms of anxiety, comfort with proximity, trust in others), psychological flexibility (in terms of openness to experience, behavioural awareness, valued action) and mother–infant bonding. Results Results showed that mother’s attachment anxiety predicted a bond with the infant directly and indirectly via mother’s psychological flexibility, specifically through behavioural awareness and valued action. Trust in others had an impact on mother–infant bonding through behavioural awareness, whereas comfort with proximity influenced mother–infant bond indirectly, via valued action. Finally, mothers’ civil status, schooling and number of children were relevant to better understand the variance of our mediating and dependent variables. Discussion Our findings highlight the importance of mother’s attachment and psychological flexibility in promoting the quality of mother–infant bonding, which can inform future intervention programmes targeting modifiable factors, such as psychological flexibility, to promote early positive parent–infant relationships, particularly for single, first-time mothers, with higher levels of education.
Restricted Access
Online Externalizing Metaphor Therapy for Mild-to-Moderate Anxiety
2022-05-05 - Tavares, Lúcia; McGuinty, Everett; Silva, Joana Ribeiro da; Vagos, Paula
Anxiety has become more prevalent in recent years, exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic, although it remains largely unrecognized and untreated. Thus, there is a need for effective, short, and accessible forms of intervention. Externalizing Metaphor Therapy (EMT) is a post-modern brief treatment for mild to moderate anxiety. Its efficacy is herein analyzed by examining the process and outcomes of a four session online individual therapy with 4 young adults. Qualitative and quantitative data on individual change provides preliminary support for the efficacy of EMT at post-treatment and follow-up. Additionally, EMT therapist’s descriptions and participants’ perspectives on the process of change suggests putative mediators of EMT in the transformation process. Future randomized controlled trials using wider samples are needed to confirm these provisional results.
Open Access
A qualitative study of social anxiety and impairment amid the COVID-19 pandemic for adolescents and young adults in Portugal and the US
2022-11-24 - Coyle, Samantha; Masia, Carrie; Martin, Grace; Wimmer, Jessica; Kalvera, Avi; Jeyanayagam, Britney; Lekas, Helen-Maria; Ganho-Ávila, Ana; Lima, Luiza; Xavier, Ana; Vagos, Paula; Silva, Joana Ribeiro da
This qualitative investigation explored the social and academic experiences of socially anxious adolescents and young adults in Portugal and the US as they lived through the restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants were 10 Portuguese adolescents (mean age = 16.9 years; 50% female) and 7 young adults in the US (mean age = 19.67 years; 71% female; racially/ethnically diverse). Participants completed a semi-structured interview evaluating how the pandemic and social restrictions impacted social anxiety symptoms and associated functional impairment in social and academic domains. Thematic analysis was used to categorize responses across developmental stages and countries. Findings show consistent patterns across cultures, with symptoms of SAD extending to virtual contexts. Participants reported avoidance behaviors that were reinforced by social distancing mandates and declines in academic engagement during remote learning. Anticipatory anxiety about the return to normal social routines was also evident. Schools should be aware of the impact of social confinement on socially anxious students as they return to in person school schedules and social demands.

Vagos, Paula

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