Digital Commons Network^™

Trauma Mediating The Severity Of Depressive Symptoms In Veterans With Ptsd, Meghan Curtin

Dissertations

Trauma serves as a risk factor for developing both posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression. The purpose of this study was to examine trauma type as a mediator in the relationship between gender and severity of depressive symptoms among veterans with PTSD. The literature shows trauma type plays a role in developing PTSD and depressive symptoms. The first hypothesis was that female veterans who met the diagnostic criteria for PTSD would report higher levels of depressive symptoms than their male counterparts. The second hypothesis was that this gender difference would be partly mediated by levels of interpersonal trauma experience. Self-report …

Risk Factors Of Cyberbullying Victimization: The Impact Of Developmental Trauma, Yuliya Mykytyn

Dissertations

Trauma has been considered as one of the significant causes of psychological distress, especially if the traumatic event occurred in the childhood. At the same time, due to wide popularity of social media as a source of communication, cyberbullying emerged as a new way to harass someone, with specific focus on adults and young adults. The area of focus of this research project is to investigate whether experienced trauma, specifically developmental trauma might serve as a risk factor for cyberbullying victimization. Additional focus was on the differences in traumatic experiences and their impact for people with diverse cultural and ethnic …

Trauma And Effects Of Being Raised By A Parent With Bipolar I Disorder: A Theoretical Approach Utilizing Internal Family Systems, Daniella Vasquez

Dissertations

Bipolar I disorder (BD) is a somewhat rare mental health disorder that impacts not only the person diagnosed but also their family (Chang et al., 2001; Cook et al., 2005; Wearden et al., 2008). Children of parents with BD may experience complex trauma as inconsistencies in parenting, conflict within the household, and possible neglect or abuse may be present (Chang et al., 2001; Rusner et al., 2009; Wearden et al., 2008). Multiple developmental areas can be impacted for individuals who have endured complex trauma to include attachment, somatic distress, affect regulation, biology, behaviors, cognition, and identity (Cook et al., 2005; …

First Responder Coping And Its Impact On Resilience, Ptsd Symptomology, And Hypervigilance, Bianca Bullock

Dissertations

The present study investigated coping strategies utilized by first responders and how those strategies relate to resilience, PTSD symptomology, and hypervigilance. The purpose of this study is to help provide more detailed information as to how first responders’ coping impacts their overall functioning. First responders (N = 181), including law enforcement officers, firefighters, paramedics, and emergency medical technicians, completed online surveys measuring whether engaged or disengaged coping strategies were used to manage stressful situations. Self-perceived resilience, PTSD symptoms, and hypervigilance were also measured. A one-way between-groups multivariate analysis of variance was performed to test the relationships between engaged versus disengaged …

Trauma-Informed Acceptance And Commitment Therapy For Substance Abuse, Whitney Nasse

Dissertations

The high co-morbidity of trauma and substance use disorders has prompted the need for more trauma-informed care within the available substance abuse treatments. The purpose of this research was to dissect and identify the strengths of two empirically studied treatment approaches for trauma and substance abuse. Furthermore, a suggested protocol was defined, showing the integration of these two models as a proposed treatment modality for trauma and substance abuse populations. Implications and recommendations for further research on this topic are also highlighted.

The Role Of Traumatic Experiences In Developing Nocturnal Panic Attacks, Nicole S. Smith

Dissertations

Nocturnal panic attacks refer to panic attacks that occur out of a sleeping state with no obvious cause, resulting in awakening at the peak of a panic attack. Nocturnal panic affects roughly half of patients with panic disorder as well as individuals with other psychological disorders such as PTSD. Prior research has suggested that experiencing a traumatic event may lead to the development of nocturnal panic attacks. The current study sought to expand upon the extant literature related to the role of trauma in nocturnal panic by collecting a comprehensive trauma and panic history in order to establish a timeline …

Trauma And Alcohol/Substance Use: The Role Of Self-Regulation Flexibility, Saankari Anusha Challa

Dissertations

Despite a high comorbidity rate between trauma/PTSD and problematic alcohol/substance use, there is only a small body of work investigating moderators and mediators in this relationship. Few studies have examined the role of self-regulation, composed of coping and emotion regulation, in the context of PTSD and problematic substance use. Prior work has generally measured self-regulation categorically, with strategies labeled as maladaptive or adaptive, and therefore failing to account for the adaptiveness of the strategy in particular contexts. The present study is the only one to date to examine self-regulation flexibility in the relationship between posttraumatic symptoms (PTSS) and problematic alcohol/substance …

Generations Of Pain: A Transgenerational Examination Of Trauma, Parenting Styles, And Attachment Of Black Women, Latoya Hampton

Dissertations

Historically, Black women have experienced horrendous acts of violence throughout the centuries and generations. The transmission of transgenerational trauma has impacted this community’s mental health, physical well-being, educational performance, and interpersonal interactions. Prior research has focused on general trauma and its effect on Black women; however, this review sought to explore transgenerational trauma and the implications of attachment and parenting styles of Black women. Previous studies have examined the majority population’s attachment, trauma, and parenting styles consecutively, though not simultaneously. With limitations found in the research of diverse populations, it is imperative that clinicians are culturally competent to implement effective …

Secondary Traumatic Stress In Intimate Partners And Children Of Service Members, Amber Foreman

Dissertations

This literature review addresses secondary traumatic stress (STS) in intimate partners and children of service members. More specifically, this literature review aims to explore if intimate partners and children of military service members are at risk for developing secondary traumatic stress. Secondly, this review aims to explore if there are specific risk factors associated with the development of secondary traumatic stress in intimate partners and children of service members. Finally, this review examines if there are other stressors and outcomes for intimate partners and children of service members. A systematic review of peer-reviewed research was explored to accomplish addressing the …

Assessing A Cognitive Model Of Trauma-Related Sleep Disturbance, Rebecca Chesher

Dissertations

Sleep disturbance is a symptom of many mental health disorders that may negatively affect cognition and mood. Trauma-related sleep disturbance is a core reaction of traumatic stress and PTSD, similar to symptoms experienced by individuals with insomnia or other sleep-wake disorders. Although the cause and symptom progression of trauma-related sleep disturbance may be very different, research and clinical practice assess and treat it with measures and interventions designed for general insomnia. Using a cognitive model of insomnia modified for trauma-related sleep disturbance, the current study assessed the relations between select trauma and sleep variables within the proposed constructs of: 1) …

Mindfulness And Technology: Evaluating An Online Mindfulness Intervention For Symptoms Related To Sexual Assault, Erica Catherine Johnson

Dissertations

Sexual assault has been found to increase the risk of distressing psychological symptoms including PTSD, depression, somatization, drug and substance use, lower quality of life and experiential avoidance. As such, interventions for reducing the distress and negative impacts of sexual assault are of importance. Mindfulness is of particular interest as it addresses one of the prominent factors known to maintain psychological distress after trauma, experiential avoidance (Polusny et al., 2004; Merwin et al., 2009). Furthermore, an online mindfulness-based intervention can increase the accessibility and reduce the barriers to treatment. A within subjects repeated measures open clinical trial design was used …

Natural Disasters And Attachment Quality: The Mediating Roles Of Self-Compassion And Positive Mental Health, Alexandra Teller

Dissertations

Emerging adults exposed to natural disasters may develop posttraumatic stress symptoms, mood disorders, and anxiety disorders. Attachment quality has been found to be negatively associated with psychopathology in emerging adult hurricane survivors; however, the mechanisms by which this occurs have not yet been explored fully. Self-compassion may act as a protective factor against developing psychopathology while potentially promoting positive mental health outcomes following hurricane exposure. Furthermore, positive mental health has been identified as a potential resilience resource and may be impacted by attachment quality and self-compassion. The present study investigated the relationships between attachment quality, self-compassion, positive mental health, posttraumatic …

Adult Criminal Offenders Recollection Of Childhood Exposure To Trauma And Its Impact, Taneshia V. Sims

Dissertations

Trauma can occur at any age and occurs as a result of an individual experiencing or witnessing an event that threatens or has the potential to threaten their life, well-being, or psychological state of mind. The type, duration, and effect of the trauma varied per person and experiences were shared that had negative effects that could last for the duration of their lifetime. The identification of specific risk factors may help in the development of specialized treatment options that may provide an individual with a greater chance of learning skills that could teach them how to deal with the effects …

The Relationship Between Frequency Of Yoga And Meditation On Ptsd Symptoms In Individuals Who Have Experienced Intimate Partner Violence, Kimberly Polignani

Dissertations

Intimate partner violence (IPV) has become a growing phenomenon in the United States,

affecting nearly 13% of the population. The adverse mental health outcomes from people who experience IPV are prevalent and more than half have a diagnosis of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Therefore, therapeutic techniques for PTSD appear to be feasible for IPV survivors and their mental health issues. Complementary and alternative medicine has become a widely accepted approach for PTSD. Being two complementary and alternative medicine techniques, yoga and meditation are effective forms of therapy in many diagnoses, including PTSD. This study utilized a not-for-profit organization called the …

Examining The Gender- And Sexuality-Related Cognitive “Stuck Points” Of Men And Women With Experiences Of Adult Sexual Assault: Implications For Cognitive Processing Therapy, Marin Beagley

Dissertations

Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) is considered a gold-standard psychotherapy protocol for the treatment of posttraumatic stress symptoms secondary to a variety of traumatic events. Despite its demonstrated efficacy, there is research to suggest CPT may not be as effective in reducing PTSD symptoms for men with an adult sexual assault trauma as it is for their female counterparts. The purpose of the present study was to determine whether CPT treatment outcome discrepancies may be attributable to gender differences in posttraumatic cognitions, or “stuck points.” As the act of sexual victimization is incongruent with socially prescribed masculine gender norms, it was …

Treatment Considerations For Adoption-Related Complex Trauma, Jessica Reyka

Dissertations

The western culture holds many assumptions related to adoption; however, it is clear based on the research provided that adoption and the circumstances leading up to being adopted often leave the child traumatized. Many adopted individuals and adoptive families seek mental health services in order to help address some of the symptoms that have manifested through traumatic events. However, the services they are receiving are reportedly lacking in basic knowledge related to adoption and have, at times, done more harm than good. As clinicians, it is important to acknowledge one's scope of clinical competence and to only treat individuals that …

Understanding Comorbid Depression In The Context Of Ptsd Through Underlying Dimensions, Melissa Turkel

Dissertations

Depression co-occurs with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder at a high rate, resulting in numerous complications for pathology and treatment. More research is needed regarding variables that may explain this common comorbidity. One possible variable is that of underlying dimensions, latent factors that give rise to these manifestations of psychopathology. This study explored potential underlying mechanisms of comorbid PTSD and depression, including negative affect, rumination, emotion dysregulation, neuroticism, and behavioral inhibition. While previous studies have investigated these dimensions individually, there is a dearth of research that simultaneously investigates multiple dimensions or determines the relative contributions of underlying dimensions to psychopathology. Thus, the …

Examining The Relationship Between Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms And Posttraumatic Growth: Pathways To Thriving In The Face Of Adversity, David Strasshofer

Dissertations

Research has largely focused on the negative physical and psychological consequences of trauma exposure. In contrast, posttraumatic growth is a relatively recent addition to our understanding of people’s response to life’s struggles. Posttraumatic growth (PTG) is conceptualized as positive changes in a person’s life following a cognitive struggle in the aftermath of trauma. However, PTG research is a relatively nascent line of empirical inquiry and there are several major unanswered questions about the construct and its utility. Part of this is due to conflicting findings related to the relationship between PTG and psychological distress and adaptive significance. The current study …

Increasing The Buy-In And Effectiveness Of A Social And Emotional Learning Class Program In A Single Sex, Urban And Charter High School: Social And Emotional Learning Specialists And Student Perceptions Of Its Implementation., Kizawanda A. Olowe

Dissertations

Social-emotional learning has yet to be implemented in many schools in America. Without adequate social and emotional skills, students struggle to navigate their academic and social environments. Students attending a single-sex, urban charter school participated in focus groups and completed surveys about their perceptions of a social-emotional learning program that was implemented during the 2015–2016 school year. Social-emotional learning facilitators completed surveys and participated in focus groups to ascertain the strengths and weaknesses of the program. Graphs and themes based on the information gathered from the surveys, open-ended questions, and focus groups were used to analyze the data. Both students …

Increasing School Social Worker Supports For Schools In Illinois: Policy Recommendations For Supporting Student Learning And Growth., Kizawanda A. Olowe

Dissertations

Administrators and board members at the Illinois State Board of Education recommended that schools with certain demographics hire one social worker for every 350 students. The policy has yet to be implemented despite high rates of student poverty, lagging test scores, school bullying, suspensions, and an increased number of school shootings. The Illinois State Board of Education’s social and emotional learning standards guide educators and policy makers to interact and educate each student. School social workers equipped with the necessary skill set provide services, implement district-wide social and emotional learning programs, and work with various stakeholders to monitor progress. A …

Evaluating The Effectiveness Of A Character Education Program In A Single-Sex, Urban Charter High School: Learning From Teacher And Student Perceptions Of Its Implementation., Kizawanda A. Olowe

Dissertations

Students who are taught the Illinois State Board of Education’s social and emotional learning standards are granted skills that help them make positive contributions to society. Well-rounded individuals have acquired abilities that allow them to make sound decisions, interact with others, and develop self-awareness skills. Adept individuals who have the skills to teach students strategies that help them to develop an emotional intelligence should implement character education programs using evidence-based strategies. Students who attended a single-sex charter school in an urban area participated in a program evaluation to determine if it was being implemented with fidelity. Students and program implementers …

Cultural Conceptualizations Of The Trauma Response: The Role Of Locus Of Control, Religiosity, And Religious Coping, Yu-Feng Emily Hu

Dissertations

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a relatively recent diagnosis that results in significant personal and societal costs. Given the diversity of American mental health consumers, a more thorough understanding of PTSD and its relation to cultural factors may have important implications for treatment implementation and refinement. Cultural factors such as locus of control, religiosity, and religious coping have been frequently overlooked in trauma research, yet show a clear link to PTSD risk and symptomatology. This study examined these cultural factors in more detail with relation to race and trauma type and their combined influence on PTSD symptomatology. A national sample …

The Relationship Between Posttraumatic Cognitions And Social Support In The Severity Of Ptsd Symptoms, Ellen Margaret Koucky

Dissertations

Posttraumatic cognitions (PC), perceived social support (PSS), and received social support (RSS) contribute to the development of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), but little is known about the way these variables may influence each other in this process. The current study tested the association between PSS and RSS and compared levels of these support types in PTSD-positive versus PTSD-negative subjects. An SEM model investigating the role of PC, PSS, and RSS in predicting PTSD symptom severity was also tested. Results indicate a significant difference in the strength of the association between support types based on diagnostic status and lower levels of …

Trauma And Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder In Therapeutic Day School Students: Prevalence In This Population And Effective Treatment Programs, Monica Roberts

Dissertations

This survey-based, comparative study investigated the percentage of students at a suburban Chicago therapeutic day school who meet criteria for clinically significant levels of PTSD as compared to students in a general education setting. The directional hypothesis was that students placed at therapeutic day schools have a higher prevalence of PTSD than a general population of students. The method used was a survey assessment called the Child PTSD Symptom Scale (CPSS) given to 16 students at a suburban Chicago therapeutic day school. These CPSS scores were analyzed and statistically compared to CPSS scores of an already published study with students …

Personal And Contextual Resilience Factors And Their Relations To Psychological Adjustment Outcomes Across The Lifespan: A Meta - Analysis, Kristen Lamp

Dissertations

Research concerning resilience following trauma and adversity indicates that resilient adaptation occurs more often than originally hypothesized. Correlational studies have identified resilience factors including social support, self-efficacy, self-esteem, spirituality, and optimism. However, these studies have evidenced mixed findings regarding the relationships between resilience factors and adjustment outcomes including adjustment to trauma, psychological adjustment, and posttraumatic growth. In the present study, definitions and concepts in resilience research were clarified, and findings from the past five decades of lifespan resilience research were reviewed. A meta-analysis designed to summarize the existing research and uncover the true nature of the relationships among resilience factors …

What Psychotherapists Have To Teach Us About Childhood Developmental Trauma: The Roles Of Attachment Orientation And Coping Strategy, Rebecca Klott

Dissertations

Psychotherapists have been found to have higher rates of childhood developmental trauma when compared to non-clinicians, yet they do not report more distress. The current study added to the literature regarding the experiences of psychotherapists and explored a theoretical model integrating attachment and coping as mediators for the relationship between childhood developmental trauma and psychological distress among psychotherapists.

A total of 130 masters' level psychologists participated in this study. These participants were asked to complete the following measures: The Child Abuse and Trauma Scale (Sanders& Becker-Lausen, 1995), the Ways of Coping-Revised (Folkman & Lazarus, 1985; Folkman, Lazarus, Denkel-Schetter, DeLongis, & …

Decision-Making Following Sexual Assault: Reporting Decisions And Exposure To The Criminal Justice System, Ryan Michael Walsh

Dissertations

Violent crimes represent significant costs to society and survivors; costs which include mental health conditions which may emerge afterward. Victims of sexual assault are at particularly heightened risk for developing posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (Breslau, Davis, Andreski, & Peterson, 1991). Although Crime Victims’ Compensation (CVC) is available to assist with healthcare costs for some individuals who report the event to police (NACVCB, 2009), many crimes are not reported. Theories of crime-reporting behavior suggest that victims decide whether to report crimes to police through the use of a “cost-benefit analysis” (Gottfredson & Gottfredson, 1988, p. 25). Little research, however, has been …

Maternal Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, Parenting, Family Functioning, And Child Outcome, Desiree Alana Sutherland

Dissertations

Although a good deal of research has been conducted examining the effects of parental psychopathology of various types (i.e. maternal and paternal depression and schizophrenia, paternal PTSD), very few studies have investigated the influence of maternal PTSD on mothers’ parenting and their children’s behavioral and psychological functioning. This paucity of research is in spite of the fact that women exhibit higher lifetime PTSD prevalence rates than men. The current study examined the influence of maternal PTSD and trauma on mothers’ parenting, family functioning, and children’s psychological well-being in a sample of 125 mothers and 34 mother-child dyads. Mothers provided self-report …

Trauma, Dissociation, And Traumatic Stress At A Trauma Center Serving Low-Income Children And Adolescents, Krista Kohl

Dissertations

Exposure to trauma continues to be a pervasive and detrimental experience in the lives of children and adolescents in impoverished, urban communities. This study explored the relationships among trauma, dissociation, and posttraumatic stress in a clinic-referred sample of children and adolescents living in urban poverty. Trauma was investigated broadly, including a range of traumatic experiences, with particular attention given to different types, chronicity, multiple exposures, and severity of trauma. Dissociation was investigated as a mediator, or mechanism of the relationships among trauma and posttraumatic stress symptoms, internalizing and externalizing behaviors. Moderators included gender, age, and adverse experiences. Results confirmed that …