Digital Commons Network^™

Predictors Of Occupational Distress Of Catholic Priests On The Eastern Seaboard Of The United States, Michael D. Kostick, Xihe Zhu, Justin A. Haegele, Pete Baker

Human Movement Sciences & Special Education Faculty Publications

With ever-increasing demands placed upon active priests in the United States, insight into protecting their mental health may help strengthen vocational resilience for individual priests. The purpose of this study was to examine the association of individual variables, workplace characteristics, and physical activity participation with occupational distress levels among Catholic priests. A 22-question survey consisting of a demographic questionnaire, the Clergy Occupational Distress Index, and the International Physical Activity Questionnaire was employed to collect individual variables, workplace characteristics, physical activity participation, and occupational distress levels of Catholic priests from the Eastern seaboard of the United States. Regression analyses showed that …

Identifying Associations Between The Family Environment And Anxiety And Depression Among Children Ages 0-17 In The United States, Reagan A. Richardson, Nicole M. Holt

OUR Journal: ODU Undergraduate Research Journal

This study analyzes whether physical, emotional & neurological, family environment, or community-related factors display the strongest association with anxiety and depression among children ages 0-17 in the United States.

Using IBM SPSS v. 27, we conducted a univariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis on data from the 2017 National Survey of Children’s Health (NSCH) with a sample size of 21,599. Our independent variables included 30 questions from the NSCH which were compared to a mental health index score.

Our study shows that about 10.6% of children suffer from either anxiety, depression, or both, and the univariate model found that 19 …

Childhood Bullying Victimization, Emotion Regulation, Rumination, Distress Tolerance, And Depressive Symptoms: A Cross-National Examination Among Young Adults In Seven Countries, Madelyn H. Labella, Neelamberi D. Klein, Georgina Yeboah, Claire Bailey, Ashley N. Doane, Debra Kaminer, Adrian J. Bravo, Cross-Cultural Addictions Study Team

Psychology Faculty Publications

Existing research suggests a robust association between childhood bullying victimization and depressive symptoms in adulthood, but less is known about potential mediators of this link. Furthermore, there is limited cross-national research evaluating similarities and differences in bullying victimization and its associations with mental health. The current study addressed gaps in the literature by evaluating cognitive and affective responses to stress (i.e., emotion regulation, rumination, and distress tolerance) as potential mediators of the link between recalled bullying victimization and current depressive symptoms among 5909 (70.6% female) college students from seven countries. Results revealed specific indirect associations of bullying victimization through distress …

An Electrophysiological Examination Of Attentional Biases To Emotional Faces In Depression And Social Anxiety, Nathan M. Hager

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Cognitive theories have proposed that major depressive disorder (MDD) and social anxiety disorder (SAD) involve attentional biases toward and away from specific environmental stimuli. Research has often examined these biases in response to emotional facial expressions, but evidence of attentional biases is mixed. An event-related potential called the N2pc offers advantages over other measures of attentional bias and may clarify conflicting findings. Studies on the N2pc and social anxiety have found consistent results, but there is little work examining depression. Previous N2pc studies are limited by the types of emotional faces they use and by comparing attention for emotional faces …

Examining A Neural Measure Of Attentional Bias To Emotional Faces In Social Anxiety And Depression, Nathan M. Hager, Matt R. Judah, Alicia L. Milam, Hannah C. Hamrick, Catherine R. Glenn

College of Sciences Posters

Cognitive theories suggest that attentional biases may contribute to both social anxiety and depression, such that attention may be biased to focus on or away from certain information (e.g., rejecting or sad images; Clark & McManus, 2002; Lemoult & Gotlib, 2019). Although research is mixed, recent studies using a neural measure called the N2pc (an event-related potential) has indicated attentional biases in social anxiety. However, little N2pc research has examined depression or co-occurring depression and social anxiety.

The current study used electroencephalography to measure the N2pc during a dot-probe task in which images of faces with emotional or neutral expressions …

The Prevalence Of And Factors Associated With Anxiety And Depression Among Working-Age Adults In Mainland China At The Early Remission Stage Of The Coronavirus 2019 Pandemic, Haixia Xie, Xiaowei Huang, Qi Zhang, Yan Wei, Xuheng Zeng, Fengshui Chang, Shuyin Wu

Community & Environmental Health Faculty Publications

Background: The Coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak has led to a considerable proportion of adverse psychological symptoms in different subpopulations. This study aimed to investigate the status of anxiety and depression and their associated factors in the adult, working-age population in Mainland China at the early remission stage of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: An online study was conducted among 1,863 participants in 29 provinces in Mainland China from March 23 to 31, 2020. Their mental health was evaluated by the generalized anxiety disorder scale (GAD-7) and the patient health questionnaire (PHQ-9). Descriptive analysis, Chi-square, and multiple logistic regressions were applied.

Results: …

Mental Health, Bullying, And Victimization Among Chinese Adolescents, Yang Wen, Xihe Zhu, Justin A. Haegele, Fangliang Yu

Human Movement Sciences & Special Education Faculty Publications

The purpose of this study was to examine if adolescents who experience anxiety or depression have higher levels of reported bullying victimization or perpetration than those who do not. Based on the existing research, we hypothesized that those who experienced moderate or severe depression and anxiety would have higher rates of bullying victimization and perpetration when compared to those who experienced mild or no depression. This study used an observational design, and data were collected from a convenience sample of adolescents in a large regional high school in an Eastern province of China. The final sample included 1481 adolescents aged …

Family Structure And Maternal Depressive Symptoms: A Cross-National Comparison Of Australia, The United Kingdom, And The United States, Kirsten Rasmussen, Elizabeth K. Sigler, Sadie A. Slighting, Jonathan A. Jarvis, Mikaela J. Dufur, Shana Pribesh

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Faculty Publications

The purpose of this study is to understand the relationship between family structure and maternal depressive symptoms (MDS) in Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Family structures that involve transitions across life's course, such as divorce, can alter access to resources and introduce new stressors into family systems. Using the stress process model, we examine the links between family structure, stress, resources, and MDS. Using nationally representative data from Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States and cross-sectional models for each country, we find that family structure may influence MDS differently in the UK than it does …

Academic Stress, Physical Activity, Sleep, And Mental Health Among Chinese Adolescents, Xihe Zhu, Justin A. Haegele, Huarong Liu, Fangliang Yu

Human Movement Sciences & Special Education Faculty Publications

The purpose of this study was to examine the impacts of academic stress on physical activity and sleep, and subsequently their impacts on anxiety and depression. Methods: This cross-sectional study collected data from a convenience sample of 1533 adolescents in an eastern province in China. Surveys were used to collect data on academic stress, anxiety, depression, sleep, physical activity, and demographics. Descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, and path analysis were used to analyze data. Results: The participants reported about 6.77 ± 0.89 h of sleep per day and 1.62 ± 1.79 days of 60 min of physical activity each week. Academic …

The Effects Of Military Sexual Trauma And Depressive Symptoms On Reintegration, Rachel L. Davies

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Reintegration is a challenge for many veterans returning to civilian roles after military service. Difficulties range from an assortment of issues such as self-care to community participation. Military sexual trauma may be an experience that alters or changes veterans and result in difficulty in reintegration. Specifically, it was predicted that military sexual trauma would indirectly affect reintegration, via depressive symptoms. In addition, locus of control was predicted to play a role in how military sexual trauma impacts reintegration with external locus of control acting as a buffer. Participants were a cross-sectional community sample of both female veterans who reported having …

Preferences In Information Processing, Marginalized Identity, And Non-Monogamy: Understanding Factors In Suicide-Related Behavior Among Members Of The Alternative Sexuality Community, Robert J. Cramer, Jennifer Langhinrichsen-Rohling, Andrea R. Kaniuka, Corrine N. Wilsey, Annelise Mennicke, Susan Wright, Erika Montanaro, Jessamyn Bowling, Kristin E. Heron

Psychology Faculty Publications

Suicide-related behavior (SRB) is a mental health disparity experienced by the alternative sexuality community. We assessed mental health, relationship orientation, marginalized identities (i.e., sexual orientation minority, gender minority, racial minority, ethnic minority, and lower education), and preferences in information processing (PIP) as factors differentiating lifetime SRB groups. An online cross-sectional survey study was conducted in 2018. Members of the National Coalition for Sexual Freedom (NCSF; n = 334) took part. Bivariate analyses identified the following SRB risk factors: female and transgender/gender non-binary identity, sexual orientation minority identity, lower education, suicide attempt/death exposure, Need for Affect (NFA) Avoidance, depression, and anxiety. …

The Influence Of Neural Reward Processing On Memory In Depression, Nathan M. Hager

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Theories and research suggest that depression involves impaired reward sensitivity and a deficit in memory for rewarding stimuli. Some researchers propose that this memory deficit may result from reduced neural reward sensitivity, which impairs the encoding of reward-related memories, but few studies have directly probed this connection. Such research may benefit from examining the reward positivity (RewP), an event-related potential (ERP) previously linked to reduced reward sensitivity in depression. Undergraduates with high or low self-reported depression completed a task in which they chose one of three doors, revealing a neutral word written in a color which indicated an outcome of …

Testing The Efficacy Of Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (Tms) In Treating Depression In Patients With Cognitive Impairment, Daniel Robert Schaffer

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to (1) examine the efficacy of Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) in treating depression among individuals with cognitive impairment and (2) to examine if TMS is capable of facilitating cognitive improvements independent of mood improvements. Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is often seen as a pre-clinical stage to dementia, and depressive disorders are highly prevalent among both MCI and dementia. There is a large body of research that has linked depressive disorders as a prodromal symptom of MCI and the later development of dementia. While some researchers debate whether or not this link between depression and …

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder With Comorbid Anxiety/Depression In Adults: Impacts On Neuropsychological Functioning, Cristina Valdivieso Bain

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

ADHD comorbidity with other disorders is high in the adult population (over 44% of individuals carry a second diagnosis, 25% anxiety, 18.6% in depression). Separately, these disorders can impact scores on neuropsychological assessments. Little research has investigated how comorbidity among ADHD and other disorders impacts test scores collectively. Given high rates of comorbidity between ADHD and anxiety/depressive disorders and the potential impact on neuropsychological functioning, the current study examined how these comorbid disorders collectively impact cognition. Specifically, the present study investigated differences in full scale intelligence, general ability, and cognitive proficiency on the WAIS-IV between those diagnosed with ADHD only …

Risk Of Unintended Pregnancy In Latina Young Adults: The Effect Of Gender Role Beliefs, Acculturation, And Depression, Jessica Block

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

This study investigated the effect of Latina gender role beliefs, or marianismo beliefs, on risk for unintended pregnancy by examining contraceptive method use in Latina young adults. Acculturation and depression were also examined as moderators of the association between marianismo and contraceptive method choice, as well as separately for their effects on contraceptive use. Unmarried, nulliparous Latina women aged 18-24 (N = 142) were recruited through online social media platforms. Data were collected in the United States in July 2017. Logistic regression analyses were performed to distinguish between women who utilized more effective v. less effective contraceptive methods in the …

Affective Factors Explaining The Association Between Depressive Functioning And Alcohol Outcomes, Peter D. Preonas

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Depressive symptoms and alcohol use frequently coexist. In college students, the rates of depression and alcohol use are higher than in the general population, making this population at particular risk for co-occurrence of depressive symptoms and drinking. Though research has shown that depressive symptoms precede alcohol use and problems in non-clinical populations, it is unclear what mechanisms contribute to this relationship. Further exploration into how this relationship occurs could inform and improve intervention of depression and alcohol abuse on college campuses. This study sought to (1) assess three potential mediators (i.e., need for affect, distress tolerance, emotion regulation) to the …

Sense Of Belonging, Emotion Regulation, Perceived Social Support And Mental Health Among College Students, Sara Bock Davis

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Perceived social support (PSS) is linked to a range of beneficial effects, but the factors that influence the effectiveness of PSS are less well understood. In their Relational Regulation Theory (RRT), Lakey and Orehek (2011) emphasize the importance of distinguishing the role of individual factors from relational influences on PSS. This study tested the RRT by examining whether the association of PSS to three mental health outcomes (i.e., aggression, binge eating, depressive symptoms) varies by two individual factors: sense of belonging and emotion regulation. With a non-clinical college sample, a series of hierarchical regressions tested whether sense of belonging and …

Exploring The Relationship Between Depression And Resilience In Survivors Of Childhood Trauma, Marquis A. Norton

Counseling & Human Services Theses & Dissertations

Although experiences of trauma are common, reactions vary due to a host of biopsychosocial and cultural factors that influence the individual reaction to the trauma (Nakai et al., 2015). One such factor is resiliency, the capability to adapt in adverse environmental circumstances (Basim & Cetin, 2011). This study used hierarchical multiple regression to examine the relationships between childhood trauma, recent experiences of depression, and resilience in adult university students. This study also examined the possible moderating effects on depression by resilience. Participants completed the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, Connor-Davidson Resilience scale, and PROMIS Depression survey. Small significant relationships were found for …

Relationship Satisfaction And Coparenting Over The Transition To Parenthood: Depression, Division Of Labor, And Child Temperament As Moderators, Jessica Block

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

The transition to parenthood is a uniquely important time in the human experience. New parents must reorganize their patterns of behavior and respective roles in order to include and care for a new child. Parents’ ability to navigate this process has great implications for child adjustment and healthy development. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the association of relationship satisfaction over the transition to parenthood and early coparenting interactions. The archival data utilized were collected as part of a longitudinal study of first time parents funded by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) …

Depressive Symptoms And Alcohol-Related Problems Among College Students: A Moderated-Mediated Model Of Mindfulness And Drinking To Cope, Adrian J. Bravo, Matthew R. Pearson, Leah E. Stevens, James M. Henson

Psychology Faculty Publications

Objective: In college student samples, the association between depressive symptoms and alcohol-related problems has been found to be mediated by drinking-to-cope motives. Mindfulness-based interventions suggest that mindfulness may attenuate the conditioned response of using substances in response to negative emotional states, and trait mindfulness has been shown to be a protective factor associated with experiencing fewer alcohol-related problems. In the present study, we examined trait mindfulness as a moderator of the indirect associations of depressive symptoms on alcohol-related problems via drinking-to-cope motives. Method: Participants were undergraduate students at a large, southeastern university in the United States who drank at least …

The Association Of Racial Identity And Locus Of Control With Eating Attitudes And Obesity In African American College Women, Jamie Grisham

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

African-American women have been disproportionately affected by the obesity epidemic in the United States, and studies have suggested that sociocultural factors may have a negative influence on weight and weight loss efforts. Relatedly, other studies have found that African-American women have reported feeling less motivated to lose weight than other ethnic groups. Previous research has also indicated that locus of control plays a role in some health outcomes for African America women. The current study aimed to examine the impact of Black identity, external locus of control, and exercise motivation on obesity in African-American college women. Uncontrolled eating and exercise …

Five Facets Of Mindfulness And Psychological Health: Evaluating A Psychological Model Of The Mechanisms Of Mindfulness, David B. Brown, Adrian J. Bravo, Corey R. Roos, Matthew R. Pearson

Psychology Faculty Publications

There has been an increasing focus on determining the psychological mechanisms underlying the broad effects of mindfulness on psychological health. Mindfulness has been posited to be related to the construct of reperceiving or decentering, defined as a shift in perspective associated with decreased attachment to one's thoughts and emotions. Decentering is proposed to be a meta-mechanism that mobilizes four psychological mechanisms (cognitive flexibility, values clarification, self-regulation, and exposure), which in turn are associated with positive health outcomes. Despite preliminary support for this model, extant studies testing this model have not examined distinct facets of mindfulness. The present study used a …

Modeling Risk For Child Abuse And Harsh Parenting In Families With Depressed And Substance-Abusing Parents, Michelle L. Kelley, Hannah R. Lawrence, Robert J. Milletich, Brittany F. Hollis, James M. Henson

Psychology Faculty Publications

Children with substance abusing parents are at considerable risk for child maltreatment. The current study applied an actor–partner interdependence model to examine how father only (n=52) and dual couple (n=33) substance use disorder, as well as their depressive symptomology influenced parents’ own (actor effects) and the partner's (partner effects) overreactivity in disciplinary interactions with their children, as well as their risk for child maltreatment. Parents completed the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D; Radloff, 1977), the overreactivity subscale from the Parenting Scale (Arnold, O’Leary, Wolff, & Acker, 1993), and the Brief Child Abuse Potential Inventory (Ondersma, Chaffin, Mullins, & …

Mindfulness And Emotional Outcomes: Identifying Subgroups Of College Students Using Latent Profile Analysis, Matthew R. Pearson, Adrienne K. Lawless, David B. Brown, Adrian J. Bravo

Psychology Faculty Publications

In non-meditating samples, distinct facets of mindfulness are found to be negatively correlated, preventing the meaningful creation of a total mindfulness score. The present study used person-centered analyses to distinguish subgroups of college students based on their mindfulness scores, which allows the examination of individuals who are high (or low) on all facets of mindfulness. Using the Lo-Mendell-Rubin Adjusted LRT test, we settled on a 4-class solution that included a high mindfulness group (high on all 5 facets, N = 245), low mindfulness group (moderately low on all 5 facets, N = 563), judgmentally observing group (high on observing, but …

The Effects Of Religious Coping And Drinking To Cope On The Relationship Between Depressive Symptoms And Alcohol-Related Problems, Adrian J. Bravo

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

The present research examined the moderating effect of religious coping (positive or negative) on the relationship between depressive symptoms and alcohol-related problems. Furthermore, the current study examined the moderating effects of positive and negative religious coping in the context of the confirmed mediation of drinking to cope on depression and alcohol related problems (i.e., moderated-mediation). The study consisted of 294 religious undergraduate student drinkers from a large southeastern university. The majority of participants identified themselves as Christian (n = 257, 87.4%), were female (n = 218, 74.1%), and reported a mean age of 21.85 (SD = 5.57) …

Effects Of Parental Alcoholism And Trauma Exposure On Depressive Symptoms: A Path Model With Resilience, Social Support, And Family Satisfaction, Erin Doty Kurtz

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

The goal of this study was to explore the different effects of parental alcoholism and history of trauma exposure on depressive symptoms in an emerging adult, college population. In particular, mediating effects of resilience, social support, and family satisfaction were evaluated for both parental alcoholism and previous interpersonal trauma exposure using structural equation modeling (SEM). Participants were 708 students (217 male, 491 female) attending a large mid-Atlantic state university. It was . anticipated that social support and family satisfaction would be key mediators between parental alcoholism and depressive symptoms, while resilience and social support would be significant mediators between interpersonal …

Depression, Social Anxiety, And Attachment As Predictors Of The Use And Quality Of Cyber Communication, Stefan E. Latulip

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

This study examined the influence of depression symptoms, social anxiety symptoms, and adult attachment style on the use and the perceptions of the quality of cyber communications with close friends, romantic partners, and family members. One hundred thirty-five individuals completed an initial survey, with sixty five of the original group completing a follow-up survey five weeks later. Results indicated that anxious attachment was associated with a greater reported usage of social networking sites, whereas avoidant attachment predicted less instant message use over time. Depression symptoms and avoidant attachment were generally associated with perceptions of higher negativity and lower positivity with …

Relations Of Self-Criticism And Dependency To Depressive Symptomatology: Tests Of Blatt's And Greenberg And Watson's Theories, David B. Canose

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Two competing sets of hypotheses about the relations of self-criticism and dependency to depressive symptomatology were tested. Blatt's theory (1974, 2004) states that self-criticism and dependency are separate and distinct personality traits that predispose individuals to depression. Hypotheses from Blatt's theory were that self-criticism and dependency each explain unique variance in depressive symptomatology beyond that explained by the other. In contrast, Greenberg and Watson (2006) theorize that dependency underlies self-criticism in predisposing individuals to depression. Hypotheses from Greenberg and Watson's theory were that self-criticism and dependency are both correlated with depressive symptomatology, that self-criticism is correlated with dependency, that self-criticism …

The Association Between Depressive Symptoms, Relationship Satisfaction, And Self- And Partner-Attributions, Amy Harrison Smith

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Attributions of partners have been examined in the depressive symptom-relationship satisfaction literature, while attributions of self have not been adequately addressed. In the present study, attributions of self and partner were investigated as mediators of the association between depressive symptoms and relationship satisfaction. A student and community sample of 270 adults in heterosexual romantic relationships completed an online survey consisting of depressive symptom, relationship satisfaction, and relationship attribution inventories. Pearson's product-moment correlation and multiple regression analyses were utilized to assess meditational pathways. Depressive symptoms were significantly negatively correlated with relationship satisfaction. Self- and partner-attributions were significantly positively correlated with relationship …

Experience And Regulation Of Positive Emotions As Predictors Of Anxiety And Depression In Adolescents And Children, Ann Schlegelmilch

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

The high rate of comorbidity between anxiety and depression in children and adults raises questions concerning whether these disorders are two distinct disorders or a broad, but unitary construct. Clark and Watson's (1991) tripartite model purports that these disorders can be differentiated by two factors, positive affect (PA) and physiological hyperarousal (PH), in which low PA is unique to depression and PH is specific to anxiety. However, little is known about how specific positive emotions or their various facets may be related to depression and anxiety in children. Using 162 elementary and 148 middle school children (49% male, 66% Caucasian), …