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Navigating Mental Health During Covid-19: Considerations Of Childhood Adversity, Pandemic Stress, And Loneliness, Linnea Rose Swanson

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents from University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

The purpose of this dissertation study was twofold. First, to determine if the addition of bullying victimization to the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) Questionnaire (Felitti et al., 1998) would result in a stronger measure of childhood adversity; second to examine the interaction between ACEs, pandemic stress, loneliness, and internalizing symptoms in a sample of young adults living in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic. ACEs are linked to negative outcomes in adulthood including mental health problems, stress, and loneliness. During the pandemic, increased levels of stress and loneliness were associated with higher rates of internalizing disorders among young adults. …

Collaborative Decision Making Improves Interpersonal Psychotherapy Efficiency: A Randomized Clinical Trial With Postpartum Women, Scott Stuart, Rebecca L. Brock, Erin Ramsdell, Stephan Arndt, Michael W. O’Hara

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Background: Randomized controlled trials of Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT) and other psychotherapies for depression have required strict adherence to protocol and do not allow for clinical judgment in deciding frequency of sessions. To determine if such protocols were more effective than allowing therapists to use their clinical judgment, we compared “Clinician-Managed” IPT (CM-IPT), in which clinicians and patients with postpartum depression were allotted 12 sessions and determined collaboratively when to use them, to a once weekly 12 session protocol (“Standard IPT”). We hypothesized that CM-IPT would be more efficient, requiring fewer sessions to reach an equivalent acute outcome, and that …

Covid‑19‑Related Risk, Resilience, And Mental Health Among Mexican American Mothers Across The First Year Of The Pandemic, Amy L. Non, Elizabeth S. Clausing, Sandraluz Lara‑Cinisomo, Kimberly L. D’Anna Hernandez

Center for Brain, Biology, and Behavior: Faculty and Staff Publications

Background Latina mothers have been especially affected by the pandemic and historically exhibit high rates of depression and anxiety. However, few longitudinal studies have assessed the effect of the pandemic on this vulnerable population. We hypothesized that COVID-19-related stressors would associate with psychological distress among Latina mothers across the first year of the pandemic.

Methods We investigated COVID-19-related impact, stigma, and fears across two critical time points and changes in these measures in relation to changes in maternal anxiety and depression among mothers of Mexican descent living in Southern California (n=152). Surveys were administered within 5–16 weeks of …

Collaborative Decision Making Improves Interpersonal Psychotherapy Efficiency: A Randomized Clinical Trial With Postpartum Women, Scott Stuart, Rebecca L. Brock, Erin Ramsdell, Stephan Arndt, Michael W. O'Hara

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Background: Randomized controlled trials of Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT) and other psychotherapies for depression have required strict adherence to protocol and do not allow for clinical judgment in deciding frequency of sessions. To determine if such protocols were more effective than allowing therapists to use their clinical judgment, we compared “Clinician- Managed” IPT (CM-IPT), in which clinicians and patients with postpartum depression were allotted 12 sessions and determined collaboratively when to use them, to a once weekly 12 session protocol (“Standard IPT”). We hypothesized that CM-IPT would be more efficient, requiring fewer sessions to reach an equivalent acute outcome, and …

Self‑Objectification During The Perinatal Period: The Role Of Body Surveillance In Maternal And Infant Wellbeing, Lauren M. Laifer, Olivia R. Maras, Gemma Sáez, Sarah Gervais, Rebecca L. Brock

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Pregnancy represents a unique time during which women’s bodies undergo significant physical changes (e.g., expanding belly, larger breasts, weight gain) that can elicit increased objectification. Experiences of objectification set the stage for women to view themselves as sexual objects (i.e., self-objectification) and are associated with adverse mental health outcomes. Although women may experience heightened self-objectification and behavioral consequences (such as body surveillance) due to the objectification of pregnant bodies in Western cultures, there are remarkably few studies examining objectification theory among women during the perinatal period. The present study investigated the impact of body surveillance, a consequence of self-objectification, on …

Emotionally Concussed: The Impact Of Pre-Existing Anxiety On Concussion Recovery, Grace Szucs

Honors Theses

Recent advances in concussion research have shed light on numerous mental and physiological factors that may complicate concussion recovery. Systematic reviews of the existing literature have found that premorbid mental health conditions such as depression and anxiety may be a predictor of complicated concussion recovery, but studies have not had an appropriate design to isolate anxiety or depression as a predictor of lengthened recovery. This study investigated if athletes with a history of premorbid anxiety and/or depression would have a longer time of recovery than athletes without this history. Male and female athletes from a Division-1 athletic department treated for …

Covid‑Specific Coercive Control Among Emerging Adults Attending College: A Brief Note, Heather Littleton, Katie Edwards, Kayla E. Sall, Stephanie Lim, Victoria Mauer

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

The COVID-19 pandemic represents a “perfect storm” with regards to risk for intimate partner violence (IPV). Abusive partners may engage in novel forms of coercive control, such as pressuring their partner to engage in activities associated with COVID-19 infection risk (e.g., attend a large gathering). However, no empirical research has focused on COVIDspecific coercive control. The current study sought to evaluate the prevalence of COVID-specific coercive control in a large sample of U.S. college students, as well as its association with other forms of IPV and depression and anxiety. A total of 2,289 undergraduate students attending eight U.S. universities who …

Coping Matters: An Examination Of Coping Among Black Americans During Covid-19, Caitlin M. Mercier, Dena M. Abbott, Michael S. Ternes

Department of Educational Psychology: Faculty Publications

Using a critical race theory framework and a convergent mixed-method design, this study examined the relationship between coping with stress and psychological distress among Black U.S. Americans (N = 155) during the COVID-19 pandemic in the context of race-based stressors (e.g., anti-Black racism). Path analysis revealed mixed support for hypotheses; avoidant coping was positively related to all measured facets of psychological distress, whereas socially supported coping was associated with none. Self-sufficient coping was negatively associated with only depressive symptoms. Qualitative analysis revealed four salient themes: (a) Race and the COVID-19 Pandemic, (b) Complex Pandemic Related Changes to Life, (c) …

Individual Differences In Social Responsiveness, Social Experiences, And Oxytocin System Genetic Variation In Depression Symptom Severity, Grace Sullivan

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Social experiences including discrimination, low social support, and interpersonal conflict are reliable predictors of depression symptom severity (Costello, 1982; Monroe, Rohde, Seeley, & Lewinsohn, 1999; Phifer & Murrell, 1986). However, individual differences may buffer against or exacerbate risk (Pluess & Belsky, 2015). A more holistic and dimensional approach, in line with modern perspectives on mental health (Kircanski, LeMoult, Ordaz, & Gotlib, 2017), requires an investigation of individual differences that moderate associations of positive and negative social experiences with depression symptom severity. This dissertation assesses relative contributions of social experiences (low social support, discrimination, childhood trauma, and sexual objectification) to variation …

A Comparison Of Self-Reported Anxiety And Depression Among Undergraduate Music Majors And Nonmusic Majors, Danni Gilbert

Glenn Korff School of Music: Faculty Publications

The purpose of this exploratory research study was to compare anxiety and depression levels reported by music majors and nonmajors at a small, private liberal arts university. Study participants completed the Burns Anxiety Inventory and Burns Depression Checklist. Anxiety and depression levels were significantly higher among music majors, and there was a strong, positive relationship between anxiety and depression. Regardless of major, self-reports were not affected by year in school. Implications for additional mental health resources and strategies for improving music major health and self-care are discussed, along with a need for increased music faculty awareness of perceived anxiety and …

An Integrated Relational Framework Of Depressed Mood And Anhedonia During Pregnancy, Rebecca L. Brock, Molly Franz, Erin L. Ramsdell

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Objective: The aim of the present study was to test a unified framework that integrates several theories into a cohesive model to explain the interplay between neuroticism and intimate relationship quality as risk factors for prenatal depression.

Background: There is a notable spike in risk for depression during pregnancy, and the processes unfolding in the interparental relationship during this important time in the family life cycle might serve to mitigate or enhance this risk. Yet there is a need for theory-driven research integrating multiple conceptual frameworks to explicate the role of intimate relationship quality in depression.

Method: In a sample …

Image Acquisition And Quality Assurance In The Boston Adolescent Neuroimaging Of Depression And Anxiety Study, Viviana Siless, N. A. Hubbard, Robert Jones, Jonathan Wang, Nicole Lo, Clemens C. C. Bauer, Mathias Goncalves, Isabelle Frosch, Daniel Norton, Genesis Vergara, Kristina Conroy, Flavia Vaz De Souza, Isabelle M. Rosso, Aleena Hay Wickham, Elizabeth Ann Cosby, Megan Pinaire, Dina Hirshfeld-Becker, Diego A. Pizzagalli, Aude Henin, Stefan G. Hofmann, Randy P. Auerbach, Satrajit Ghosh, John Gabrieli, Susan Whitfield-Gabrieli, Anastasia Yendiki

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

The Connectomes Related to Human Diseases (CRHD) initiative was developed with the Human Connectome Project (HCP) to provide high-resolution, open-access, multi-modal MRI data to better understand the neural correlates of human disease. Here, we present an introduction to a CRHD project, the Boston Adolescent Neuroimaging of Depression and Anxiety (BANDA) study, which is collecting multimodal neuroimaging, clinical, and neuropsychological data from 225 adolescents (ages 14–17), 150 of whom are expected to have a diagnosis of depression and/or anxiety. Our transdiagnostic recruitment approach samples the full spectrum of depressed/anxious symptoms and their comorbidity, consistent with NIMH Research Domain Criteria (RDoC). We …

Population Demographics: Predictors Of The Relationship Between Alcohol Use Disorder And Major Depression, Mei Grace Behrendt

Honors Theses

This thesis examines both biological and social explanations of alcohol use disorder (AUD) and major depression (MD) through a thorough review of current literature. Using multiple logistic regression analyses exploring the sociodemographic and alcohol use factors that contribute to reporting of major depression symptoms with data from the 2017 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, this thesis demonstrates how there are health disparities that exist among different demographic populations. Specifically, certain demographic characteristics such as racial or ethnic identity, gender, and socioeconomic status may contribute to increased risk of developing and reporting episodes of lifetime and past year major …

The Protective Influence Of Self-Compassion Against Internalized Racism Among African Americans, Alexandra Emery

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Racist experiences and internalized racism may lead to poorer mental health outcomes for African Americans born and socialized in the United States (Graham, West, Martinez & Roemer, 2016; Mouzon & McLean, 2017). Self-compassion has been shown to protect against poor mental health outcomes, but limited research exists with respect to African Americans specifically (Lockard, Hayes, Neff and Locke, 2014). The present study explored whether self-compassion could serve as a protective factor between the relations of internalized racism and racist experiences, and the negative mental health outcomes of anxiety, depression, and stress among (N = 230) African American adults. To …

Weight Status, Bullying Involvement, And Internalizing Symptomology In Adolescents: Examining A Diathesis-Stress Model, Ana Damme

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Bullying is a pervasive societal issue that is consistently linked to negative outcomes that are emotionally, socially, behaviorally, and medically related. Most youth will encounter this negative life event in their childhood. The purpose of this dissertation was to use a diathesis-stress model perspective to assess the relations between the negative life event of bullying involvement, youths’ mental health, and youth weight status. Youth who have an unhealthy weight status are more likely to be involved in bullying than those with a healthy weight status (Browne, 2012; Puhl). Additionally, bullying and having an unhealthy weight status are related internalizing symptomology …

Examining The Coping Resources Of Polyvictimized Youth And Young Adults, Zachary Robert Myers

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Bullying represents a significant concern for many youth and young adults in the United States and abroad. However, the growth of technology has allowed for new platforms in which perpetrators can engage in bullying behaviors, such as text and video messaging, social media applications, and online gaming. In addition, research has suggested that the majority of cyberbullied individuals experience co-occurring in-person victimization as well. These trends are concerning, given that findings within both the traditional and cyberbullying literatures place victimized youth at-risk for a host of social and emotional concerns. However, research has yet to fully explore the unique experiences …

Depression Among Chinese Lbc: Understanding Depression In Context Of A Family-Oriented Culture, Lanyan Ding

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Background: Left-Behind Children (LBC) refers to children who are under 18 and must live separately from at least one of their parents for longer than six months because of parents’ labor migration (Zhou & Duan, 2006). The long-term family separation might greatly impair the family environment and increase the risk of developing depression among LBC. This research examined the relationships among family structure (left-behind status), caregiving, and child depression using archival data from the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS) in both cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses.

Methods: In Study 1, multilevel regression analyses investigated how contextual factors (family structure …

Anxiety And Depression During Childhood And Adolescence: Testing Theoretical Models Of Continuity And Discontinuity, Joseph R. Cohen, Arthur R. Andrews, Megan M. Davis, Karen D. Rudolph

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

The present study sought to clarify the trajectory (i.e., continuous vs. discontinuous) and expression (i.e., homotypic vs. heterotypic) of anxiety and depressive symptoms across childhood and adolescence. We utilized a state-of-the-science analytic approach to simultaneously test theoretical models that describe the development of internalizing symptoms in youth. In a sample of 636 children (53% female; M age = 7.04; SD age = 0.35) self-report measures of anxiety and depression were completed annually by youth through their freshman year of high school. For both anxiety and depression, a piecewise growth curve model provided the best fit for the data, with symptoms …

Life Expectancies With Depression By Age Of Migration And Gender Among Older Mexican Americans, Catherine García, Marc A. Garcia, Chi-Tsun Chiu, Fernando I. Rivera, Mukaila Raji

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Background and Objectives: Prior studies examining depression among older Mexican Americans suggest both women and immigrants are at higher risk of depressive symptomatology than males and U.S.-born Mexican Americans. We use data from the Hispanic Established Populations for the Epidemiologic Study of the Elderly to examine whether life expectancy with depression and without depression varies by nativity, age of migration, and gender.

Research Design and Methods: Sullivan-based life tables were used to estimate depression life expectancies among Mexican Americans aged 65 years and older residing in the Southwestern United States. Depression is based on the 20-item Center for Epidemiological Studies …

Effects Of Environment On Depressive Symptoms On Chinese Left-Behind Children, Lanyan Ding, Eric S. Buhs

The Nebraska Educator: A Student-Led Journal

Estimates indicate that about 70 million children in China have been left behind in their hometowns by one or both parents as their parents migrate to other places for work opportunities. However, the potential impact of parental migration on the emotional well-being of left-behind children is still unclear. The purpose of this study was to examine depression levels in Chinese left-behind children and to identify potential risk factors contributing to depressive symptoms in this population. Using a nationally-representative, stratified sample from the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS) database (3019 children, ages 10-15), an HLM model was applied at 1) the …

Workforce Well-Being: Personal And Workplace Contributions To Early Educators' Depression Across Settings, Amy M. Roberts, Kathleen C. Gallagher, Alexandra Daro, Iheoma Iruka, Susan Sarver

Buffet Early Childhood Institute Reports and Publications

Building on research demonstrating the importance of teachers' well-being, this study examined personal and contextual factors related to early childhood educators' (n =1640) depressive symptoms across licensed child care homes, centers, and schools. Aspects of teachers' beliefs, economic status, and work-related stress were explored, and components of each emerged as significant in an OLS regression. After controlling for demographics and setting, teachers with more adult-centered beliefs, lower wages, multiple jobs, no health insurance, more workplace demands, and fewer work-related resources, had more depressive symptoms. Adult-centered beliefs were more closely associated with depression for teachers working in home-based settings compared …

Prevention Of Insulin Resistance In Adolescents At Risk For Type 2 Diabetes With Depressive Symptoms: 1-Year Follow-Up Of A Randomized Trial, Lauren B. Shomaker, Nichole R. Kelly, Rachel M. Radin, Omni L. Cassidy, Lisa M. Shank, Sheila M. Brady, Andrew P. Demidowich, Cara H. Olsen, Kong Y. Chen, Eric Stice, Marian Tanofsky-Kraff, Jack A. Yanovski

Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences

Background: Depression is associated with poor insulin sensitivity. We evaluated the long-term effects of a cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) program for prevention of depression on insulin sensitivity in adolescents at risk for type 2 diabetes (T2D) with depressive symptoms.

Methods: One-hundred nineteen adolescent females with overweight/obesity,T2Dfamily history, and mild-to-moderate depressive symptoms were randomized to a 6-week CBT group (n = 61) or 6-week health education (HE) control group (n = 58). At baseline, posttreatment, and 1 year, depressive symptoms were assessed, and whole body insulin sensitivity (WBISI) was estimated from oral glucose tolerance tests.Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry assessed fat mass …

Gender Differences In Social Support, Self-Salience, And Mental Health, Ee Shin (Emily) Hum, Christina Falci

UCARE Research Products

Men and women tend to manifest distinct mental health outcomes. Specifically, women report higher levels of internalizing symptoms, such as depression and anxiety, whereas men report higher levels externalizing symptoms, such as alcohol abuse (Rosenfield, S., Lennon, M. C., & White, H. R., 2005; Rosenfield, S., & Smith, D., 2010). However, it is unclear what mechanisms shape the gender differences in mental health outcomes. This research will explore two key possible mechanisms: social support and self-salience. Our aims in this study are to examine how and why mental health outcomes vary by gender? And also to what extent do social …

Current Directions In Military Health-Care Provider Resilience, Paul B. Lester, Lauren C. Taylor, Stacy Ann Hawkins, Lisa Landry

United States Army: Publications

After more than a decade of war, the US military continues to place significant emphasis on psychological health and resilience. While research and programs that focus on the broader military community’s resilience continue to emerge, less is known about and until recently little focus has been placed on military medical provider resilience. In this article, we review the literature on military medical provider resilience, provide an overview of the programmatic and technological advances designed to sustain and develop military medical provider resilience, and finally offer recommendations for future research.

Risk For Suicidal Behaviors Associated With Ptsd, Depression, And Their Comorbidity In The U.S. Army, Holly J. Ramsawh, Carol S. Fullerton, Holly B. Herberman Mash, Tsz Hin H. Ng, Ronald C. Kessler, Murray B. Stein, Robert J. Ursano

Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences

Background: Suicide rates have risen considerably in the United States Army in the past decade. Suicide risk is highest among those with past suicidality (suicidal ideation or attempts). The incidence of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depressive illnesses has risen concurrently in the u.s. Army. We examined the relationship of PTSD and depression, independently and in combination, and rates of pastyear suicidality in a representative sample of U.S. Army soldiers. Methods: This study used the 000 Survey of Health Related Behaviors Among Active Duty Military Personnel (000 HRB) (N=5927). Probable PTSD and depression were assessed with the PTSD Checklist (PCL) …

Depressive Symptoms And Observed Eating In Youth, Mira Mooreville, Lauren B. Shomaker, Samantha A. Reina, Louise M. Hannallah, L. Adelyn Cohen, Amber B. Courville, Merel Kozlosky, Sheila M. Brady, Tania Condarco, Susan Z. Yanovski, Marian Tanofsky-Kraff, Jack A. Yanovski

Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences

Depressive symptoms in youth may be a risk factor for obesity, with altered eating behaviors as one possible mechanism. We tested whether depressive symptoms were associated with observed eating patterns expected to promote excessive weight gain in two separate samples. In Study 1, 228 nontreatment- seeking youth, ages 12–17 y (15.3 ± 1.4 y; 54.7% female), self-reported depressive symptoms using the Beck Depression Inventory. Energy intake was measured as consumption from a 10,934-kcal buffet meal served at 11:00 am after an overnight fast. In Study 2, 204 non-treatment-seeking youth, ages 8–17 y (13.0 ± 2.8 y; 49.5% female), self-reported depressive …

Teacher Support Mediates Concurrent And Longitudinal Associations Between Temperament And Mild Depressive Symptoms In Sixth Grade, Kathleen Moritz Rudasill, Patrick Pössel, Stephanie Winkeljohn Black, Kate Niehaus

Department of Educational Psychology: Faculty Publications

The combination of changes occurring at the transition to middle school may be a catalyst for the onset of depressive symptoms, yet teacher support at this transition is protective. Research points to certain temperamental traits as risk factors for developing depressive symptoms. This study examines student reports of teacher support and teacher reports of student–teacher relationship (STR) quality as mediators of associations between child temperament (i.e. negative emotionality at age 4½ : and emotional reactivity in elementary grades) and depressive symptoms in sixth grade. Results indicate (a) negative emotionality predicted emotional reactivity and depressive symptoms; (b) emotional reactivity predicted depressive …

Peer Victimization, Social Support, And Internalizing Symptoms: The Role Of Organized Out-Of-School Activity Participation, Scott R. Frohn

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Peer victimization is associated with and predictive of internalizing symptoms, such as loneliness and depression. Social support has been found to moderate the relationship between victimization and internalizing symptoms, with increased levels of support related to lower levels of internalizing symptoms for victims of peer abuse. The current study examined if organized out-of-school activity participation was associated with lower levels of internalizing symptoms for adolescents in general and for those victimized by peers. Possible gender differences were also explored. Results indicated that participating in a broader range of activities (breadth of participation) was generally associated with higher levels of internalizing …

Perceptions Of Parental Awareness Of Emotional Responses To Stressful Life Events, Lisa Jobe-Shields, Gilbert R. Parra, Kelly E. Buckholdt

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

There is a need to better understand family processes related to recovery from past stressful life events. The present study aimed to investigate links between perceptions of parental awareness regarding stressful life events, continued event-related rumination, and current symptoms of depression. Students at a diverse, urban university completed a life events checklist and a semistructured interview regarding family processing of stressful life events, as well as self-report measures of event-related rumination and depression. Results indicated that perceptions of mothers’ and fathers’ awareness of sadness regarding stressful life events as well as mothers’ and fathers’ verbal event processing predicted symptoms of …

Depression And Diabetes Comorbidity: Psychotherapy Treatment Preferences Among A Predominantly Mexican Sample Of Primary Care Patients With Diabetes., Maria José Herrera

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Depression and diabetes are highly comorbid problems yet their conjoint treatment, particularly the use of evidence based psychological treatments among diabetics, warrants further research. Specifically, little is known about the treatment of depression among diabetic Latinos, one of the fastest growing populations with comorbid depression and diabetes. Because of this scarce research among Latino diabetics, the present study aims to test whether educating Latino diabetics about treatment options for depression would differentiate their choice of one treatment over the other. Secondary aims were to investigate the degree to which cultural, depression, and diabetic factors differentiated treatment choice. Thirty two participants …