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Elementary Education Teachers' Experiences Teaching Students With Trauma To Learn How To Hope, Betsy Ann Brantner Jan 2023

Elementary Education Teachers' Experiences Teaching Students With Trauma To Learn How To Hope, Betsy Ann Brantner

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

The gap in the research this study sought to fill was concerned with elementary education teachers’ experiences teaching students with trauma to learn how to hope using children’s literature. It provided a needed opportunity for elementary teachers to reflect and to describe their social and emotional learning goals for those students as individuals, as well as for the collective classroom community. The theories that framed this investigation were John Dewey’s democratic classroom and Sarah Stitzlein’s theory of hope. A qualitative research study was designed to answer the following research questions: 1) How do elementary teachers describe their experiences using children’s …


Efficacy And Possible Mechanisms Of Change In Written Exposure Therapy In Undergraduates With Ptss: A Randomized Trial Of Wet Compared To Trauma-Focused Expressive Writing, Robyn Alyssa Ellis Jan 2022

Efficacy And Possible Mechanisms Of Change In Written Exposure Therapy In Undergraduates With Ptss: A Randomized Trial Of Wet Compared To Trauma-Focused Expressive Writing, Robyn Alyssa Ellis

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Trauma exposure is common, with a 90% lifetime endorsement rate in adults in the United States and a majority of first year students reporting exposure to trauma prior to college. A minority of individuals go on to develop PTSD, with higher rates on college campuses (9-12.4%) than lifetime estimates (7%). Existing evidence-based practices for PTSD have demonstrated efficacy in reducing PTSD symptoms (PTSS), but critiques of evidence-based psychotherapies (EBPs) for PTSD include high levels of drop-out and barriers to access. Written exposure therapy (WET) is a brief promising intervention for PTSS with a growing literature of evidence suggesting efficacy with …


The Impact Of Self-Compassion On Engagement During A Writing Exposure Session For Posttraumatic Stress, Jessica Rose Ellem Jan 2022

The Impact Of Self-Compassion On Engagement During A Writing Exposure Session For Posttraumatic Stress, Jessica Rose Ellem

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) affects 6-17% of college students in the United States, which can negatively impact academic achievement and is associated with other emotional difficulties. Exposure therapy, including written exposure therapy as been found to be efficacious for treating. However, concerns of treatment dropout and low symptom improvement are barriers to treatment success. Experiential avoidance in treatment has been problematic and may influence outcomes. The current study sought to reduce the use of experiential avoidance in exposure sessions through the promotion of self-compassion, an extension of kindness, humanity and mindfulness to the self. Furthermore, the current study also examined …


Adverse Childhood Experiences, Depressive Symptoms, And Binge Drinking: A Mediation Analysis, Nicole June Smalley Jan 2022

Adverse Childhood Experiences, Depressive Symptoms, And Binge Drinking: A Mediation Analysis, Nicole June Smalley

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Sixty-one percent of adults in a national CDC study reported experiencing at least one AdverseChildhood Experience (ACE), and 1 in 6 reported 4 or more ACEs. The purpose of this hierarchical regression analysis is to target gaps in research specific to examining the relationships between Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), depressive symptoms experienced in adolescence, and binge drinking behaviors in emerging adulthood using Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory. Longitudinal, secondary data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health dataset (Add Health) (Harris et al., 2009) was used in this study. Data was collected in four waves of surveys and …


The Role Of Affect In The Relationship Between Social Stress And Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Symptomology, Alyssa S. Mielock Jan 2021

The Role Of Affect In The Relationship Between Social Stress And Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Symptomology, Alyssa S. Mielock

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a psychological disorder that may develop following a traumatic event. Many factors have been shown to contribute to maintaining the distressing and impairing symptoms in response to the event. Internal factors, such as increased negative affect (NA), is positively associated with PTSD symptom severity (PTSS). External factors like social support have a negative relationship with PTSS; increased levels of social support are associated with decreased PTSS. Another external factor that may contribute to PTSS is increased stress. There are mixed findings as to how a psychosocial stressor impacts trauma-exposed samples physiologically. The current study addressed …


Writing And Well-Being: Comparing Varied Expressive Writing Tasks On Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms And Life Satisfaction, Zena Dadouch Jan 2020

Writing And Well-Being: Comparing Varied Expressive Writing Tasks On Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms And Life Satisfaction, Zena Dadouch

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Frontline treatments for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have been extensively researched, and there is significant support for their efficacy in decreasing PTSD symptomatology and improving life quality. However, the treatments seem to be burdensome, as a significant minority does not improve or drops out before the continuation of treatment. This pattern could be explained partially by the time commitment, cost of and access to treatment, and the resulting emotional overload. Therefore, it is useful to explore other avenues that could lead to improvements in symptomatology and well-being and that are more accessible and manageable. One possible direction is expressive writing …


Vulnerability, Trauma, And Testimony In American Women’S Literature: A Long History, Jennifer L. Fife Jan 2020

Vulnerability, Trauma, And Testimony In American Women’S Literature: A Long History, Jennifer L. Fife

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This study examines the effects of vulnerability and trauma in American women’s literature across the intersections of genre, race, and time. In this dissertation I have applied a feminist long history approach to examine women’s literature from the seventeenth through twenty-first centuries together inspired by Mary Beard’s theory that compartmentalizing women’s history ignores long-range patterns and contributions. I have assembled the beginnings of a canon of women’s trauma literature that allows women writers to form a multi-century discourse community wherein trauma and recovery may occur. This analysis applies twentieth century medical research about trauma and recovery, particularly that of Judith …


Assessment Of “Meaning Made”: An Empirical Examination Of Factorial Structure And Measure Validity, Andrea M. Despotes Jan 2019

Assessment Of “Meaning Made”: An Empirical Examination Of Factorial Structure And Measure Validity, Andrea M. Despotes

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Meaning-making theory posits that appraisal of a stressful event leads to distress if it is discrepant with one’s sense of “global meaning,” and such distress stimulates meaning-making processes aimed at eliminating the discrepancy. If meaning making leads to new meaning (i.e., “meaning made”), the stress-induced discrepancy is reduced, which generally is expected to result in positive adjustment. This study investigated the factorial structure of the meaning made construct using a sample (N = 372) of Amazon Mechanical Turk workers in the United States having “Masters” status and a minimum approval rating of 95%. Participants reported an average age of about …


Examining The Utility Of A Brief Self-Compassion Intervention For Emotion Regulation In Individuals With Exposure To Trauma, Sara Jean Himmerich Jan 2019

Examining The Utility Of A Brief Self-Compassion Intervention For Emotion Regulation In Individuals With Exposure To Trauma, Sara Jean Himmerich

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Research suggests that abilities to moderate and process trauma-related emotions may predict symptoms of posttraumatic stress, with the overuse of maladaptive emotion regulation strategies presenting a potential vulnerability to experiencing difficulties following trauma exposure. Self-compassion has been associated with the acceptance of negative emotions, with research finding evidence for positive associations between self-compassion and adaptive emotion regulation. Additionally, research suggests an inverse relationship between self-compassion and symptoms of posttraumatic stress. Self-compassion has been conceptualized and studied as a skill that can be learned, with studies finding support for improved abilities following targeted interventions. However, more research is needed to establish …


Impact Of Social Support During A Social Interaction On Post-Trauma Cognitions And Outcomes During A Trauma Analogue Design, Christy Elizabeth Allen Jan 2019

Impact Of Social Support During A Social Interaction On Post-Trauma Cognitions And Outcomes During A Trauma Analogue Design, Christy Elizabeth Allen

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This study utilized the trauma film paradigm to explore interpersonal processes in post-trauma social interactions and their relation to posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms within the framework of social-cognitive theory. Social support following a traumatic experience has been consistently linked with posttraumatic outcomes and PTSD symptoms, yet the exact mechanisms underlying this relationship remain unconfirmed. One theory is that when trauma survivors emotionally and cognitively process the traumatic experience within positive supportive conversations, these conversations can result in fewer negative posttraumatic cognitions, beliefs, and appraisals that have been linked to symptoms of PTSD. Likewise, negative support can create and reinforce …


Role Of Religion For Christian Couples Who Successfully Cope With Trauma, Bernadette Collins Jan 2019

Role Of Religion For Christian Couples Who Successfully Cope With Trauma, Bernadette Collins

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Most of the research concerning couples focuses on either couples and trauma or religion and couples. The current research investigated what role religion plays when Christian couples effectively navigated a trauma. Interviews were conducted with five Christian couples who experienced joint trauma more than eight years prior to the study. Interviews of the couples consisted of questions concerning what their trauma was, religious coping strategies utilized during and after their trauma, and the effect religious coping had on the couples’ ability to effectively navigate the traumatic event. Qualitative analysis found several major themes which included meaning making of the traumatic …


Trauma Memory: The Role Of Alexithymia And Emotion Regulation, Jennifer Milliken Jan 2019

Trauma Memory: The Role Of Alexithymia And Emotion Regulation, Jennifer Milliken

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Alexithymia is a clinical term used to describe individuals who struggle to connect to their emotional experiences. Alexithymia is observed among individuals with a variety of mental health problems (Taylor, 2000; Taylor, Bagby, & Parker, 1997), and may characterize more severe clinical presentations (e.g., Frewen, Dozois, Neufeld, & Lanius, 2008). In addition, alexithymia seems to be related to adverse treatment outcomes (Kosten, Krystal, Giller, Frank, & Dan, 1992; Ogrodniczuk, Piper, & Joyce, 2011). This study adds to the current literature by examining the effect of alexithymia and emotion regulation (i.e., emotion suppression; emotion acceptance) on variables associated with trauma memory …


Gender Similarities And Differences In Military Sexual Trauma, Megan A. Boehning Dec 2018

Gender Similarities And Differences In Military Sexual Trauma, Megan A. Boehning

Honors Capstones

While treatment and knowledge of military sexual trauma has improved, there are still issues in understanding MST and how well victims adjust. There are various consequences that affect MST survivor’s lives, including health, psychological, and lifetime implications. Though men and women both face many of the same outcomes of MST, they also endure gender-specific sequela. This manuscript will examine the similarities and differences in barriers, symptoms, and treatment for men and women service members. Much of the research that is presented in this paper includes meta-analyses as well as singular studies. The main demographics in the studies tend to be …


Adult Syrian Refugees Resettled In The United States: Social Support, Personality, Somatic Complaints, And Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, Zena Dadouch Jan 2018

Adult Syrian Refugees Resettled In The United States: Social Support, Personality, Somatic Complaints, And Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, Zena Dadouch

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This study examined the relationships between perceived social support, personality traits, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in adult Syrian refugees resettled in the United States. Participants (N = 19) were recruited from resettlement organizations across the United States. To be eligible, participants had to be at least 18 years old, and had to have been resettled in the United States after 1/1/2015. After being screened for eligibility, participants completed a series of self-report questionnaires online, and were able to enroll in a drawing for 5 $50 Visa gift cards for their participation. The findings failed to lend support to …


Assessing Hormones In Response To Trauma, Corina E. Klein Jan 2011

Assessing Hormones In Response To Trauma, Corina E. Klein

Honors Capstones

Hormones produced in the body may be important in ameliorating the effects of traumatic stress. Previous research bas shown that the concentration of several hormones, such as cortisol, dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) and DHEA-sulfated (DHEAS) in a given individual who has been exposed to a traumatic event may be indicative of the likelihood that the individual will develop posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The current study assessed whether higher levels of cortisol in comparison to DHEA or DHEAS could indicate a predisposition toward future mental illness following an emotionally stressful event. Female students from Northern lllinois University provided salivary samples before and following …


Identity Lost: The Affects Of Trauma And Culture On Cambodian Refugees, John M. Targowski Jan 2004

Identity Lost: The Affects Of Trauma And Culture On Cambodian Refugees, John M. Targowski

Honors Capstones

This project analyzes the affects of trauma and culture change on Cambodian refugees. The horrors Cambodians experienced at the hands of Pol Pot had a dramatic impact on the 150,000 refugees who immigrated to America in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Extreme culture shock added to the difficulty these refugees had in adapting to life in America. Traditional Cambodian culture is discussed, highlighting how Cambodians practiced religion, education, and gender roles before the war and how life afterward has changed them. Due to the vast differences between American and Cambodian beliefs and the delicate nature of the refugee state …


Conceptualization Of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder : Differences By Trauma Type And Gender, Tracy Muklewicz Jan 2000

Conceptualization Of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder : Differences By Trauma Type And Gender, Tracy Muklewicz

Honors Capstones

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder has carried various implications for clinicians, particularly in the areas of gender and trauma type. Extensive literature review provides indication that individual research is fairly restricted to highly specific types of PTSD symptoms and presentations, which could limit the overall effectiveness of the disorder as a diagnostic tool. A history of PTSD as a diagnosis is presented. Three types of trauma are discussed in a research setting: Crime victims, military personnel, and gender non-specific traumas. Each study is reviewed in light of future directions for PTSD research to make the diagnostic category less ambiguous and more applicable …


Childhood Abuse, Assertiveness, And Date Rape : Uncovering Precursors To Future Victimization, Karen L. Wareham Jan 1988

Childhood Abuse, Assertiveness, And Date Rape : Uncovering Precursors To Future Victimization, Karen L. Wareham

Honors Capstones

One-hundred-seventy-one undergraduate females completed three questionnaires concerning childhood abuse, assertiveness, and date rape in an attempt to uncover precursors to recidivism of abuse. As predicted, significant positive correlations were found between child abuse before and after age 13. However, no significant correlation was found between childhood abuse and date rape. In examining lack of assertiveness as a precursor, the mean assertiveness scores of child abuse and date rape survivors after age 13 were lower than the overall mean; however, the combined score of those abused as children either before or after 13 and the score of those abused before 13 …