Objective: The purpose of this study is to investigate the validity and reliability of the Turkish version of Templer's “Death Anxiety Scale" by revising it with various groups in Turkish norms. Method: Participants were 356 people; 185 normal (doğrusu healthy) people and 171 patients: 25 cancer sufferers, 42 dialysis patients, 39 having had operations (doğrusu surgical patients), 55 outpatients. The Turkish version (Şenol; 1989) and the original version of the scale were evaluated by the experts, and the final form of the scale was applied to the people in separate sessions. The scale was applied to 142 healty university students twice at a two-week interval. Results: Similar to the original structure of the scale, 15 items were separated to four factors as; cognitive and sensitive, physical changes, time passed, illness and pain dimensions. As regards to the variable of gender, it was seen that women were more anxious about death (9,06) than men (6,90). In respect of the illness variable, the average point of the patient group (9.25) and was the normal group (6.96) were found. Test-retest reliability of the scale and KR-20 reliability were found. 79 and.75. respectively. Conclusion: Results supported the accuracy of the scale's psychometric features in the Turkish sample. Psychometric features of the scale's Turkish version were discussed in the light of related literature.

Objectives: Placing obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) among anxiety disorders in current diagnostic and classification systems has been an issue of discussion for many years. The purpose of this study is to compare OCD patients with panic disorder (PD) patients with regard to symptoms of eating disorders, which exist in so called "obsessive-compulsive spectrum". Method: 31 PD, 33 OCD patients were given sociodemographic information form, Eating Attitudes Test (EAT), Hospital Anxiety Scale (HAS), Hospital Depression Scale (HDS), Panic- Agorophobia Scale (PAS) and Maudsley Obsessive Compulsive Questionnaire (MOCQ), their heights and weights were evaluated and their body-mass index (BMI) was calculated, obtained data was compared by statistical analysis. Results: There was no statistically significant difference between two groups with regard to BMI, EAT, HAS, HDS. EAT scores of PD patients did not show any significant correlation with HAS, HDS, PAS (P>0.05). HAS, HDS and MS scores of OCD patients positively (r=.406,.392 ve.590) and significantly (p=0.000) correlated with EAT scores. Conclusion: These results show that, obsessive compulsive symptoms may be subclini- cally, but not clinically, related to eating attitudes pathology. A similar relation was not observed with panic symptoms, so it may be considered that OCD should be classified under a different subtype than PB and our results give further support to the concept of "obsessive- compulsive spectrum".

Objective: The aim of this study is to determine the prevalence of depression and related factors among elderly in residential home. Method: The sample of the study is composed of 141 elderly who volunteered and adjusted the conditions among 168 elderly living in residential home in Denizli. The sociodemographic characteristics of the elderly people were found after the scrutiny of their institutional files. Depression was diagnosed according to DSM-IV diagnosis criteria by a psychiatrist. Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE), Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS), Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAM-A), Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS), Multidimensional Observation Scale were used for Elderly Subjects. Results: Our study includes elderly people who are widow (53.2 %), homeless (52.5%), without any family support (71.6%), illiterate (53.2%), without social insurance (53.2%). Some 42.6 % (n: 60) of the subjects were depressed according to the cut-off point of GDS-Turkish Form. Prevalence of DSM-IV depressive disorder was 39.7 % (n: 56). Age, levels of education and duration of staying at nursing home were similar between the groups of depressive and non-depressive. Number of chronic physical disorder and the number of the drugs used were higher in depression group than in non-depressed group (p<0.05). Being female (p=0.001) and having chronic physical illness (p=0.044) are determined to be the risk factors for depressive disorders according to logistic regression analysis. Conclusion: The prevalence of depression is common among elderly people in nursing homes. Depression is associated with the gender female, chronic physical illness and multiple drug use. Careful examination of the elderly people with these characteristics will contribute to the healthy aging.

Objective: It has been suggested that to investigate complex relation between personality features and suicide, would provide information in prevention and treating suicide and its recurrence. In the present study, it was aimed that to advance the understanding of this controversial field by using Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI) which assess personality dimensionally on the depressive patients. Method: This study conducted in Gülhane Millitary Medical Academy Hospital between March 2005 and July 2006. The study sample consisted of 85 subjects who were fulfilled selection criteria and who were admitted our hospital because of suicide attempt. Patient who initially had submitted to another hospital and then referred our hospital also included in the study. Seventy patients who had been diagnosed and treated as depressive disorder at the same time interval enrolled in the control group. Results: It is also found that participants with suicidal behavior have low reward dependance scores which is one of the features of temperament (the hereditary characteristic of personality). They have also low score on self-directed ness and cooperativeness which are the features of character (effected by environmental and developmental process). Conclusion: The results of this study showed that low reward dependence scores in temperament dimension and low self-directed ness and cooperativeness in character dimension provide personal diathesis and if people with such diathesis faced with life events or depression, they present more hopeless, pessimistic and reactional attitude, and also they have more tendency to give harm themselves.

Adolescence which is important developmental process relate to many emotional and behavioral problems. There are both protective and risky effects of brain developmental process through adolescence. In this review, it is aimed to discus the structural and neuro-chemical changes of brain in adolescence. Literature related to development and changes of the brain through adolescence was searched and findings were discussed. Data include many factors which have effect on this process such as sex hormones were reviewed. Together with summary of literature, the relationship between brain development and changes in adolescence and psychiatric disorders or symptoms were discussed. Brain develops and changes through adolescence and it is much vulnerable than adults' brain. In Brain of adolescents, white mater increases and grey mater decreases through many processes including neurogenesis, apoptosis, synaptogenesis. Increasing basal ganglia volume causes susceptibility for drug addiction. GABA-ergic system is dominant inhibitor system through adolescence. Alcohol-drug use in adolescence causes increased risk of addiction in adulthood because of deterioration of GABA-ergic system. Hypotalamo-pituitary axe which triggered by sex hormones relates to stress responds against the negative life experience. To understand of this developmental process is important to examine, diagnosing and treatment of adolescence for clinicians.