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Investment By Maternal Grandmother Buffers Children Against The Impacts Of Adverse Early Life Experiences, Samuli Helle, Antti O. Tanskanen, David A. Coall, Gretchen Perry, Martin Daly, Mirkka Danielsbacka

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Exogenous shocks during sensitive periods of development can have long-lasting effects on adult phenotypes including behavior, survival and reproduction. Cooperative breeding, such as grandparental care in humans and some other mammal species, is believed to have evolved partly in order to cope with challenging environments. Nevertheless, studies addressing whether grandparental investment can buffer the development of grandchildren from multiple adversities early in life are few and have provided mixed results, perhaps owing to difficulties drawing causal inferences from non-experimental data. Using population-based data of English and Welsh adolescents (sample size ranging from 817 to 1197), we examined whether grandparental investment …

Music Therapy As A Support Model In Massachusetts Special Education: A Literature Review, Bonnie Diamond

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

Mental health directly impacts student propensity for making academic progress in the public education system. For children with disabilities, it is especially vital to develop and implement techniques within special education that deliver personally tailored benefits. According to the United States Department of Education, music therapy offers highly effective support to a wide range of students within the school setting so that they may achieve academic success and be supported in their social/emotional development (U.S Department of Education, 2011; AMTA, 2021). In examining the multifaceted ways that music therapy can offer support within the structure of education and mental health, …

How Many Parents Regret Having Children?, Payton M. Wooster

Psychological Science Undergraduate Honors Theses

The present study experimentally investigates the number of parents who truly regret having their children. By using an unmatched count technique developed by Gervais and Njale (2020), participants (N = 751) were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: an experimental “yes/no” agreement condition, the “target statement present” counting condition, and the “target statement not present” counting condition. Participants were also asked different questions regarding marital status, whether they had a disorder diagnosis, had a history of their parents being divorced, and other suspected moderator variables. Regret of having children was reported significantly less compared to previous studies (Piotrowski et …

Child To Parent Violence By Adhd Children: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis Approach To The Experiences Of Parents In The Evangelical Church, Amber Hilton Stokes

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Child-to-parent violence (CPV) is a poorly understood and underreported phenomenon that involves physical, psychological, or financial damage by a child to gain control of a parent. There is a unique lack of literature on how a diagnosis of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) may contribute to CPV. Ecological elements such as cultural, social, family, and individual factors impact the expression of aggression by these children as well as preclude parents’ help-seeking behaviors. The local church, an important agent of social support, has thus far remained silent on the issue of CPV and has been shown to underrecognize other forms of domestic …

Communication Of Mental Health Diversity To The Early Childhood Age Group: “The Adventures Of Anxious Anderson, Distracted Daniel, And Organized Olive”, Jessica Gower

Honors Projects

In this project, I aim to explore various aspects of communication, cognitive ability, and mental health diversity in early child development. The three research questions guiding this project are: What cognitive and language abilities do children in the early childhood stage of development have? What are the most effective strategies for communicating information about mental health disorders to children ages 4 to 7 through storytelling? And lastly, how do anxiety, attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) manifest, particularly in children? The storybook's purpose is to create a sense of empathy and understanding of mental health diversity in children …

Interpersonal Violence And The Impact On Children’S Educational Outcomes, Samantha Hurst

Senior Capstone Papers

This capstone explores the complex topic of interpersonal violence which impacts children in the home and their school outcomes. Understanding children who are not getting their emotional or physical needs met could have a harder time focusing, staying awake, or being present in the classroom is incredibly important. This paper examines the pre-existing literature on the topic of how children react to interpersonal violence and how punishment in schools can affect academic outcomes. A solution is proposed for teachers to be taught trauma informed care to increase empathy towards students and decrease behavioral suspensions. Trauma informed care can mitigate partial …

Providing Incarcerated Youth With A Community Of Their Peers, Providing Resources, And Modeling Healthy Attachment May Lead To Prosocial Behaviors, Emilee Brnusak

University Honors Theses

This thesis examines the connection between gang activity and attachment style. A summary of literature suggests that childhood attachment injuries lead to antisocial, maladaptive relationships and neurological changes that impact executive functioning and emotional regulation. These factors leave youth at higher risk of gang membership. This thesis then explores how an outreach experience at the MacLaren Youth Correctional Facility inspired a large-scale intervention called Resources for Attachment-injured Youth (RAY) that could be implemented in youth prisons across the country.

The Development Of 4thekids: An Educational Support Group For Caregivers Of Individuals With Cerebral Palsy, Khrista E. Neville

Psychology Doctoral Specialization Projects

Raising a child can be challenging. Raising or caring for an individual with a disability can be even more challenging. Currently, groups exist to support these caregivers for individuals with disabilities. For example, caregivers of children diagnoses with Autism Spectrum Disorder often have groups designed to build community with others in similar positions while they support their loved one. However, there are few to no groups supporting caregivers of individuals with cerebral palsy. This doctoral specialization project aims to provide clinicians with a treatment manual to guide them through running a group that supports caregivers of individuals with cerebral palsy.

Development Of Bibliotherapy For Emetophobia In Children, Katerina Levy M.S.

Selected Full Text Dissertations, 2011-

Emetophobia has been cited in the literature as one of the least understood and largely understudied anxiety disorders and is estimated to impact 2-7% of the population (Boschen, 2007; Graziano et al., 2010; Hunter & Anthony, 2009; Marks, 1987; Veale & Lambrou, 2006). Even less is known about emetophobia in children, and research has primarily focused on case studies to highlight the phenomenology of emetophobia as well as the trajectory of treatment (Graziano et al., 2010). Given the limited knowledge on emetophobia, few resources exist to aid and facilitate treatment (i.e., children’s storybooks or treatment manuals). Including children’s books in …

Personal Values, Subjective Wellbeing, And The Effects Of Perceived Social Support In Childhood: A Pre-Registered Study, Patricia R. Collins, Joanne Sneddon, Julie A. Lee

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Personal values are broad motivational goals that have been found to have systematic relations with subjective wellbeing in adults. Values that promote higher subjective wellbeing are considered healthy while those that hamper it are considered unhealthy (Schwartz & Sortheix, 2018). However, little is known about these relations in children. This pre-registered study examined (1) whether the values of children (6 to 12 years of age) relate to their subjective wellbeing and (2) whether these relations are moderated or mediated by perceived social support from parents, teachers, classmates, and close friends. These research questions were examined with a sample of 738 …

Kids For A Happy Marriage? A Preliminary Study On Marriage Satisfaction And Presence Or Absence Of Children Among Married Individuals In Indonesia, Alftisya Victory Hutabarat, Karel Karsten Himawan

Makara Human Behavior Studies in Asia

Having children after marriage tends to be seen as a normative practice in Indonesia. As a result, individuals who do not have children could be at risk of experiencing a set of social stigmas. The study aims to explore whether having children is associated with one’s marital satisfaction. In particular, the present study aims to explore the differences in marital satisfaction among married individuals who have biological children, who are childfree (voluntarily childless), and who are childless (involuntarily childless). A cross-sectional survey was conducted to 210 married individuals (M age = 34.3; SD = 7.9). The result shows that …

Identifying Trauma Related Predictors Of Dissociation In Maltreated Youth, Amanda L. Mraz

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Maltreated youth who experience traumatic dissociation are at an increased risk for various psychopathological difficulties. Much is still unknown about the machinations behind experiences of dissociation post-trauma. This study aimed to identify variables that place maltreated youth at risk for experiencing traumatic dissociation (e.g., dissociative amnesia, absorption and imaginative involvement, passive influence, depersonalization and derealization, and total adolescent dissociative experiences symptoms (A-DES)). Investigatory variables included demographic (e.g., age, gender, and racial identity), cognitive (e.g., resiliency and posttraumatic cognitions), and psychological (e.g., posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms (PTSD) and anxiety) factors. Classification and regression tree (CART) analysis was utilized to observe the …

The Relationship Between Parental Trauma History And Perceptions Regarding Their Child’S Healthcare And Utilization Of Healthcare Services, Krishna Patel

Theses and Dissertations

Abstract

TITLE: The Relationship Between Parental Trauma History and Perceptions Regarding Their Child’s Healthcare and Utilization of Healthcare Services

Adverse child events (ACEs) have been associated with a number of physical and mental health problems and have also been linked to increased health care utilization. While parents who have an ACE history may tend to seek healthcare services for themselves, limited studies have examined the impact of their trauma history on seeking healthcare services for their child. Healthcare utilization may also depend on the parents’ level of health anxiety, as well as their anxiety about their child’s health status. This …

Services To Help Caregivers Of Children Diagnosed With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Stephanie Garcia

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a mental health disorder for which the cause is unknown and for which there is no cure. This only exacerbates the psychological distress placed on caregivers of children diagnosed with ASD. The purpose of this qualitative study, using the phenomenological approach was to describe the services and assistance that caregivers of children diagnosed with ASD identified as most beneficial to them. Twelve participants were interviewed via phone. Each interview was audio-recorded with participants reporting the services and assistance they identified as helpful or believed would be helpful, specifically to them. Interviews were transcribed and data …

The Relationships Among Number Of Service Member Deployments And Spousal Depression And Parental Attachment, Julia A. Priftis

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This research examined the relationship between the number of deployments and depression in military spouses, focusing on the correlations among service members' deployments, spousal mental health, and parenting attachment. A quantitative correlational study was conducted using 78 participants, of whom only 19 were veterans and 59 were spouses with no military background. The Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and the Protective Factors Survey (PFS) were used. It was found that military deployments do not negatively associate with parental attachment and spousal depression. It was found that military spouses who experience multiple deployments have less chance of experiencing depression and that deployment …

Nourishing Family Connections: Exploring The Impact Of Mealtime Dynamics On Child Depressive Symptoms, Kyra (Dee) Bekelja

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Literature reviews show that the frequency of family meals is associated with increased positive health outcomes in children. Our study looked to find the essential characteristics that family mealtimes should have in order to produce the most beneficial outcomes for children regarding depressive symptomology. One hundred twenty-four children and their parents participated in answering surveys about individual and family health behaviors. We hypothesized that a greater frequency of family meals lowers levels of depression in children, especially if the child enjoys family meals. A moderation analysis was used to assess the moderation effects and relationship with the frequency of family …

Identifying Challenges And Resiliency Of Adolescents Living With Parents Misusing Substances: A Mixed Methods Study, Alison Palmer

Educational Specialist, 2020-current

This study aimed to identify challenges, resiliency factors, and needs of adolescents living with parents misusing substances. Seven first-year students at James Madison University in PSYC 101 and PSYC 160 classes signed up to participant in this study to receive course credit. While supervised by a mental health provider, participants individually completed a Modified CAST-6 screener as well as a locally developed survey. A nonexperimental mixed-methods study was conducted including the convergent collection of quantitative and qualitative data. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and qualitative data were analyzed through Braun and Clarke’s (2006) model of thematic analysis. The …

Further Evaluation Of The Effects Of Music And Rird On Vocal Stereotypy, Keith Happel

Theses and Dissertations

Vocal stereotypy (VS), or vocalizations that are noncontexual or nonfunctional, is commonly exhibited in individuals on the autism spectrum. The nature of vocal stereotypy may pose an issue for some individuals, ranging from social ostracization to the inability to perform daily tasks. Previous research has shown that access to matched stimulation (e.g., music) and response interruption and redirection (RIRD), a form of punishment, are effective at decreasing vocal stereotypy (Gibbs et al., 2018). However, in the aforementioned study, researchers did not evaluate a less intrusive treatment in isolation prior to implementing punishment. The purpose of the current investigation is to …

The Effects Of Poly-Strengths On Psychological Wellbeing Amongst Young Adults With Childhood Poly-Victimization, Nakisa Asefnia

Theses and Dissertations

The field of trauma and victimization has undergone many evolutions in its efforts to conceptualize the impacts of victimization and more recently poly-victimization. Poly-victimization refers to the experiencing of multiple types of victimization over the lifespan. This has led to an ever-growing base of literature highlighting the many deleterious effects of these experiences on individuals’ wellbeing, and the factors which may make a person more vulnerable to victimization. However, a growing movement in the field aims to take a more strengths-based perspective that highlights the resilience of individuals, rather than risk factors, in the hopes of better understanding the factors …

Parental Psychological Maltreatment In Egypt: Exploring Intergenerational Parenting Behavior And Identifying Protective Factors, Sylvia Said

Theses and Dissertations

Psychological maltreatment is an under-recognized problem, even though it is a widespread form of child maltreatment and has detrimental consequences, whether in the short or long term. This study aims to explore the intergenerational patterns of parenting behaviors, measure the difference in emotionally abusive behaviors between mothers and fathers, investigate the relationship between childhood emotional abuse and adopting different parenting styles, and identify the protective factors against parental psychological maltreatment. A mixed-methods approach was used to answer these research questions thoroughly. Online versions of the survey, in English and Arabic, were shared on social media platforms, and online interviews were …

The Intersection Of Internet Gaming Disorder And Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Among Children And Adolescents: A Review Of Literature, Paige Seymour, Tony Michael

Journal of Counseling and Psychology

The literature review aims to explore the relationship between Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD) and Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in children and adolescents. The paper is based on a literature search using PubMed, ResearchGate, MDPI, and Google Scholar. This review included examinations of IGD and ADHD among children and adolescents separately and bi-directionally. Considering current trends and data indicate a consistent increase in correlations between IGD and ADHD among children and adolescents, particularly in impulsivity and behavioral disturbance symptoms. While these results have implications for all professionals working with children and adolescents, special attention is given to clinical mental health professionals. The …

How Children Make Sense Of Fear Of The Dark: A Qualitative Study Of Russian Preschoolers, Maria Mccready

Psychology ETDs

Children’s fear of the dark—as well as its more extreme manifestation in the form of nyctophobia—is a major problem for many families with smaller children. Different treatments exist for nyctophobia, but no consensus has yet emerged on why these treatments work or on what facets of the treatments are more effective than others. Several methodologies and assessments allow for the quantitative measurement of children’s “normative,” or typically developing, fear of the dark, but most were created and conducted from an adult perspective. How children themselves explain what makes darkness scary remains largely unknown, in large part because children have traditionally …

Exploring Core Concepts And Uses Of Makeup In Expressive Arts Therapy And Mental Health: A Critical Review Of The Literature, Rhys Triolo-Rodriguez

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

According to Merriam Webster (2022) the definitions for Makeup are as follows; “Cosmetics (such as lipstick, mascara, and eye shadow) used to color and beautify the face”, “A cosmetic applied to other parts of the body”, and “Materials (such as wigs and cosmetics) used in making up or in special costuming (as for a play).” Many of the articles reviewed also discuss the importance of skin care and the rituals that one goes through when applying or removing facial products. For this research, a combination of all definitions above will be most beneficial. However one may define makeup, within the …

Addressing The Complexity Of Mental Health Care For Youth Experiencing Houselessness, Sarah Hamilton

Psychology Honors Projects

Children and youth experiencing houselessness have a unique set of mental health needs due to the traumatic experience of houselessness during childhood and the other adverse childhood experiences that often coincide with houselessness (van der Kolk, 2003; Wong et al., 2016). They face immense barriers in access to mental health care due to logistical factors as a result of their housing status and socio-structural factors (Krippel et al., 2020; Gallardo et al., 2020; Bradley et al., 2018). However, existing studies reveal a lack of evidence-based interventions for children and youth experiencing houselessness and a lack of insight from mental health …

Children's Beliefs About Hierarchical Structures And Relationships., Megan Norris

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Children are surrounded by social structures such as families, schools, and workplaces which are often arranged hierarchically with some people holding more power than others. This dissertation explores how children think about hierarchical relationships and more complex hierarchical structures. In Chapter 2, children were asked to evaluate the traits of people who hold hierarchically dominant and subordinate social roles. With age, 4- to 6-year-olds increasingly inferred that dominant individuals have social power and they deferred to their instructions (Chapter 2, Study 1). Furthermore, 5- and 6-year-olds attributed knowledgeability to individuals with dominant social roles but overall children did not prefer …

Female Perpetrators Of Ritually Motivated Pedicide And Mutilation Of Children, Chima Agazue

Dignity: A Journal of Analysis of Exploitation and Violence

Ritually motivated pedicide is among contemporary Africa’s most severe crimes against children. Most of these crimes involve brutal acts of violence or mutilation of the victim. While men are most often the perpetrators of violent crimes, ritually motivated pedicide and mutilation equally attract women. The role of women in these crimes is not restricted to the less violent aspects of the crimes; instead, they also extend to the most brutal elements, often involving mutilation, decapitation or outright murder of the victim. This article explored the involvement of women in these crimes that target children for mutilation and pedicide. The article …

Systematic Review Of Reflection Spectroscopy-Based Skin Carotenoid Assessment In Children, Saima Hasnin, Dipti Dev, Taren Swindle, Susan B. Sisson, Stephanie Jilcott Pitts, Tirna Purkait, Shari C. Clifton, Jocelyn Dixon, Virginia C. Stage

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

Assessing children’s skin carotenoid score (SCS) using reflection spectroscopy (RS) is a non-invasive, widely used method to approximate fruit and vegetable consumption (FVC). The aims for the current review were to (1) identify distributions of SCS across demographic groups, (2) identify potential non-dietary correlates for RS-based SCS, (3) summarize the validity and reliability of RSbased SCS assessment, and (4) conduct meta-analyses of studies examining the correlation between RS-based SCS with FVC. A literature search in eight databases in June 2021 resulted in 4880 citations and peer-reviewed publications written in English that investigated children’s (2–10 years old) SCS using RS. We …

The Association Between Covid-19 Exposure, Secondary Adversities, And Trauma Symptoms In Children, Maddi Gervasio

Theses and Dissertations

Natural disasters include direct exposure and secondary adversities (Chrisman & Dougherty, 2014). For youth, severity of disaster exposure and number of secondary adversities have been found to be positively associated with the severity of trauma-related psychopathology, including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression (Giannopoulou et al., 2006). Preliminary studies suggest an interaction between trauma exposure severity and number of secondary adversities in the prediction of psychopathology. Notably, youth who experienced secondary adversities without directly experiencing the trauma exhibited heightened psychopathology (Kar, 2019), yet these children tend to be excluded from studies and missed when identifying children in need of services. …

Psychologists' Experiences Providing Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (Cbt) To Children Via Telehealth, Carly Apar M.S.

Selected Full Text Dissertations, 2011-

Due to COVID-19, psychologists were forced to rapidly transition to telehealth. While about 1% of American Psychological Association (APA) clinicians used telehealth for most clients pre-pandemic, 92% used telehealth post-pandemic onset (APA, 2020). However, research has not yet thoroughly assessed psychologists’ experiences providing child teletherapy. This study fills that gap by exploring psychologists’ experiences providing virtual child cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). This study is important for teletherapy’s potential use for children lacking access to care. Eighteen clinical psychologists who provided CBT to children (ages 7-12) were recruited by sending a flyer to the researcher’s graduate program’s alumni and training sites, child …

Growing Up Ghanaian: The Well-Being Of Ghanaian Children In The United States And Ghana, Akua Bemma Opoku

Dissertations and Theses

Children’s subjective well-being is a child’s judgment of their well-being. Subjective well- being can have positive and negative indicators. Positive indicators include but are not limited to safety, feeling happy, and feeling excited. Negative indicators include but are not limited to lack of safety, lack of confidence, and sadness. Children’s ethnic background and their relation to their ethnic background may influence their subjective well-being. Research focusing on ethnic identity and child well-being has found positive associations. Research has also found a relationship between the context of family, school, peers, religion, community, and ethnic identity. This comparative phenomenological study aimed to …