The Relationships Between Personal Identity, Autobiographical Memory and Future Thinking in People With Multiple Sclerosis (SELFSEP)

Personal identity is composed of multiple facets of the self that are constructed and nourished through memories of past experiences (i.e., autobiographical memory) and the imagination of events that may occur in the future (i.e., future thinking) .

While our previous work has shown that people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (pwRRMS) have autobiographical memory and future thought disorders, their impact on personal identity has not yet been explored. Based on a cognitive and clinical neuropsychology approach, this research project aims to better understand the cognitive mechanisms involved in the relationship between identity, autobiographical memory and future thinking in pwRRMS. We will examine the extent to which pwRRMS manage to maintain and reshape their identity through life experiences, with a particular interest in the potential integration of the disease as a facet of their identity. In addition, we will explore the positive and/or negative consequences of disease-related identity changes on emotional well-being and quality of life, as well as their links with the duration and severity of the disease. Overall, this research project will contribute to identify new therapeutic levers that can be used for the development of adapted and personalized care.

Study Overview

• Status: Recruiting
• Conditions: Multiple Sclerosis, Relapsing-Remitting; Healthy Controls
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Neuropsychological tests and psychological questionnaires

• Study Type: Observational
• Enrollment (Estimated): 90

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Alexandra Ernst, PhD; Phone Number: +33628496210; Email: aernst@univ-paris8.fr

Study Locations

• France
  • Hauts De Seine
    • Garches, Hauts De Seine, France, 92380
      • Recruiting
      • Hopital Raymond Poincaré Garches
      • Contact: Lucine Sonnet; Phone Number: 01 47 10 46 14; Email: lucine.sonnet@aphp.fr

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 14 years to 51 years (Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

• Sampling Method: Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Primary care clinic

Description

For the clinical group:

Inclusion Criteria:

• Diagnosis of relapsing-remitting MS according to the McDonald's revised diagnostic criteria
• People aged between 18 and 55
• French native speaker
• Access to a computer or tablet, equipped with internet access, a camera and a microphone

Non-inclusion Criteria:

• MS relapse in the month prior to the inclusion
• Treatment with corticosteroids during the month preceding the inclusion
• Form of MS other than the relapsing-remitting form
• Neurological history (other than MS for patients), history or current presence of psychiatric disorders (e.g., depression, anxiety disorders, schizophrenia), substance abuse (e.g., alcohol, cannabis; past or present)
• Other diagnosed chronic pathology(ies) (other than MS for patients)
• Severe cognitive impairment
• Persons mentioned in Articles L1121-6 to L1121-8 in the French law (minors, persons deprived of liberty, adults subject to protective measures)

For the control group:

Inclusion Criteria:

• People aged between 18 and 55
• Matched in age, gender and level in education
• French native speaker
• Access to a computer or tablet, equipped with internet access, a camera and a microphone

Non-inclusion Criteria:

• Neurological history (other than MS for patients), history or current presence of psychiatric disorders (e.g., depression, anxiety disorders, schizophrenia), substance abuse (e.g., alcohol, cannabis; past or present)
• Other diagnosed chronic pathology(ies) (other than MS for patients)
• Severe cognitive impairment
• Persons mentioned in Articles L1121-6 to L1121-8 in the French law (minors, persons deprived of liberty, adults subject to protective measures)

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Observational Models: Case-Control
• Time Perspectives: Prospective

Number of groups / cohorts

2

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort	Intervention / Treatment
Clinical group; 45 individuals with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis	Behavioral: Neuropsychological tests and psychological questionnaires; The clinical group will complete:the BCcogSEP: a comprehensive neuropsychological examinationthe IAM and I WILL BE tasks; experimental neuropsychological tasks to assess autobiographical memory, future thinking and personal identityA series of questionnaires including the BRIEF COPE, the Connor Davidson Resilience Scale, the Satisfaction with Life Scale and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, which respectively assess coping strategies, resilience, life satisfaction and anxiety/depression; The control group will complete:the IAM and I WILL BE tasks; experimental neuropsychological tasks to assess autobiographical memory, future thinking and personal identityA series of questionnaires including the BRIEF COPE, the Connor Davidson Resilience Scale, the Satisfaction with Life Scale and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, which respectively assess coping strategies, resilience, life satisfaction and anxiety/depression
Control group; 45 individuals with no chronic disease, matched in age, gender and level of education	Behavioral: Neuropsychological tests and psychological questionnaires; The clinical group will complete:the BCcogSEP: a comprehensive neuropsychological examinationthe IAM and I WILL BE tasks; experimental neuropsychological tasks to assess autobiographical memory, future thinking and personal identityA series of questionnaires including the BRIEF COPE, the Connor Davidson Resilience Scale, the Satisfaction with Life Scale and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, which respectively assess coping strategies, resilience, life satisfaction and anxiety/depression; The control group will complete:the IAM and I WILL BE tasks; experimental neuropsychological tasks to assess autobiographical memory, future thinking and personal identityA series of questionnaires including the BRIEF COPE, the Connor Davidson Resilience Scale, the Satisfaction with Life Scale and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, which respectively assess coping strategies, resilience, life satisfaction and anxiety/depression

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Relationships between personal identity, autobiographical memory and future thinking	Scores obtained at the I AM and I WILL BE tasks assessing the access, qualitative properties of self-concepts, episodic richness and temporal organization of past and future events around self-concepts (between-group comparisons, pwRRMS versus control group)	15 days

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Relationships between personal identity, psychological functioning and clinical characteristics	Correlations between IAM and I WILL BE scores and scores obtained at the different questionnaires (BRIEF COPE, Connor Davidson Resilience Scale, Satisfaction with Life Scale, Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale) Correlations between IAM and I WILL BE scores and level of functional disability (Expanded Disability Status Scale) Correlations between IAM and I WILL BE scores and disease duration	15 days

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Centre d'Investigation Clinique et Technologique 805
• Collaborators: University Paris 8 Vincennes Saint Denis; ARSEP foundation
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Alexandra ERNST, PhD, Laboratoire DysCo - Université Paris 8

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): December 7, 2022
• Primary Completion (Estimated): December 7, 2024
• Study Completion (Estimated): June 7, 2025

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: December 5, 2022
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: December 5, 2022
• First Posted (Actual): December 13, 2022

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): September 6, 2023
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: September 5, 2023
• Last Verified: September 1, 2023

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Pathologic Processes; Nervous System Diseases; Immune System Diseases; Demyelinating Autoimmune Diseases, CNS; Autoimmune Diseases of the Nervous System; Demyelinating Diseases; Autoimmune Diseases; Multiple Sclerosis; Sclerosis; Multiple Sclerosis, Relapsing-Remitting
• Other Study ID Numbers: 2022-A00495-38

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No