Fathers' “not just right experiences” predict obsessive–compulsive symptoms in their sons: Family study of a non-clinical Italian sample

• Some studies documented prevalence of NJREs ranged from 70% to 80% in OCD patients.
• Parents' NJREs correlated with offspring's levels of NJREs.
• Fathers' (but not mothers') NJREs predicted OC symptomatology in their sons.
• None of parents' psychological variables predicted OC symptoms in daughters.
• The possible role of NJREs as a marker of OCD is discussed.

The heart of the obsessional process may be considered the subject's underlying impression that “something is wrong”. Therefore, the phenomenon labeled “not just right experiences” (NJREs) has increasingly been receiving attention since it captures the subjective sense that “something isn't just as it should be”. In the present study we sought to add to the evidence that NJREs may be a putative psychological marker of OCD. To this aim, measures of NJREs, obsessive–compulsive (OC) symptoms and OC-related cognitions were completed by 382 undergraduates (43.2% females), 318 mothers and 288 fathers. NJREs correlations between parents and children were typically in the small-medium range of magnitude and comparable to correlations both for OC beliefs and symptoms. A series of hierarchical multiple regression analyses showed that fathers' (but not mothers') NJREs predicted OC symptomatology in their sons even when parents' anxiety symptoms and their level of OC-related beliefs were controlled. This relationship generally also held for single symptom dimensions such as washing, checking, ordering, and mental neutralizing symptoms. On the contrary, none of parents' psychological variables considered in the present study predicted OC symptoms in daughters. The possible role of NJREs as a marker of OCD is discussed.