Dataset for: Getting Back on Track: Intuitive Self-regulation as an Antidote to Freezing in Parkinson´s Disease

Due to the lack of curative approaches for Parkinson’s disease, patients’ self-regulatory abilities are an important resource in dealing with symptoms. According to action control theory, we differentiated intuitive self-regulation from conscious self-control and tested their effects on the progression of freezing of gait. In a sample of N = 37 patients with Parkinson’s disease, intuitive self-regulation predicted decreases in freezing of gait, whereas conscious self-control predicted increases over 2–3 months. Furthermore, patients with high explicit but low implicit achievement motives showed increases in freezing of gait. Finally, this incongruence between explicit and implicit achievement strivings acted as a hidden stressor that partially mediated the relationship between self-regulation and freezing of gait. Our findings show that psychological processes significantly predicted symptom progression in freezing. A purely biological view on freezing would miss this complexity. We propose action control theory as a guide for research and recommend promoting intuitive self-regulation as an antidote to freezing.

鉴于目前尚无针对帕金森病（Parkinson’s disease）的根治方案，患者的自我调节能力是应对疾病症状的重要支撑资源。基于行动控制理论（action control theory），本研究将直觉性自我调节与有意识自我控制加以区分，并检验了二者对步态冻结（freezing of gait）病情进展的影响。在纳入N=37名帕金森病患者的研究样本中，直觉性自我调节可预测步态冻结症状在2~3个月内出现缓解，而有意识自我控制则预示该症状会进一步加重。此外，外显成就动机水平较高但内隐成就动机水平较低的患者，其步态冻结症状出现加重的概率更高。最终，外显与内隐成就追求之间的不一致性作为一种潜在应激源，部分中介了自我调节与步态冻结之间的关联。本研究结果表明，心理过程可显著预测步态冻结的症状进展。若仅从纯生物学视角解读步态冻结，则会忽略其背后的复杂机制。本研究提出以行动控制理论作为研究的指导框架，并建议通过培育直觉性自我调节来作为缓解步态冻结的干预策略。