Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Mental Health Professional Perceptions Of Barriers To Fidelity For Empirically- Supported Treatments, Chris Streidl

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

It is estimated that one in five adults in the United State of America experience mental illness in a given year. When mental health organizations implement empirically-supported treatments but fail to maintain them, it can result in individuals not being provided the services that they need. The purpose of this study was to identify perceived barriers to maintaining fidelity for empirically-supported mental health treatments. The study utilized a quantitative cross-sectional correlational research design (N = 154) and the Perception of Barriers Scale (PBS) was developed to measure perceived barriers to maintaining fidelity for empirically-supported treatments. Bandura’s social cognitive theory as …

Opioid Abuse In Rural Communities Among Adolescents With Bipolar Disorder, Sherlina Daishernai Holland

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Abstract

Low population density in rural areas makes it difficult to deliver services to people with mental health problems and nonmedical prescription opioid abuse remains a problem in the United States. The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to determine whether a parent's socioeconomic status affected care opportunities for children 12 to 17 years of age and whether bipolar disorder increased the likelihood of substance abuse in those children. The theory of reasoned action/planned behavior provided the framework for the study. Secondary data from the Interuniversity Consortium for Political and Social Research 36361 data system, specifically the National Survey on …

Social Workers' Experiences With Deaf And Hard Of Hearing People With Mental Illness, Makoto Ikegami

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The social work practice problem for this study was a lack of knowledge about social workers' experiences of working with deaf and hard of hearing people with mental illness. This study was needed to fill a practice gap by increasing an understanding of the experiences of social workers to inform best practices and address the needs of deaf and hard of hearing population through culturally and linguistically competent mental health services. The research questions focused on the experiences and challenges of social workers working with deaf and hard of hearing people and best practices identified by these social workers. Ecological …

Religious Coping And Ptsd Symptom Management Among African Americans: A Clergy Perspective, Barbra Talley

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Data indicated that although African Americans reported fewer occurrences of traumatic events than that of their racial/ethnic counterparts, however, the degree of traumatic events experienced by African Americans tends to be more serious and violent in nature. More so, lower recovery outcomes associated with PTSD among African Americans have been attributed to varying factors, such as financial restrictions, strained health care access, ineffective coping strategies as well as a mistrust of medical and clinical approaches, thus leading African Americans to seek faith-based approaches. This phenomenological study investigated clergy perspectives on religious coping constructs relative to the management of PTSD symptoms. …

Predictors Of Readmission To Youth Counseling Services Among Adolescents In Saskatoon Canada, Felicia Lawal

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Anxiety, depression, and substance use disorders are some of the frequently occurring mental illnesses among Canadian children and adolescents that can result in debilitating short and long terms outcomes. The rise in readmission rates for recipients of mental illness in Saskatchewan, coupled with the high incidences of suicide-related deaths, necessitates a patient outcome evaluation for predictors of readmission to youth counseling services among adolescents. The purpose of this secondary data analysis study was to explore the associations between anxiety, depression, substance use disorder, individual counseling, family counseling, group counseling, and the outcome of readmission within 1 year following discharge from …

A Comparative Analysis Of Family Therapies On Youth With A Co-Occurring Disorder, Rochelle Henderson-Clark

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

There are approximately 1.3 million youth who have been diagnosed with a co-occurring disorder. The purpose of this study was to analyze the relationship between the type of therapy (brief strategic family therapy or family functional therapy), demographic factors (age, race, type of drug used), and therapy discharge status (successful or unsuccessful) in male youth with a co-occurring disorder of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder and substance use disorder. A correlational research design of a cross-sectional nature was used for this study and secondary data were obtained from a mental health agency located in Hampton Roads Virginia. The theoretical basis for this …

Lgb Help-Seeking For Mental Health And Substance Abuse Services In Rural Northern Michigan, Jennifer Towns

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals are often exposed to stressors based on their nonheterosexual status; they may have unique needs related to help-seeking for mental health in a rural area where more people identify as religious or as politically conservative. To date, there have been no studies on the mental health help-seeking experiences of LGB individuals in rural Northern Michigan. This qualitative, single case study was completed to explore the help-seeking experiences of 10 LGB individuals who were recruited through criterion and snowball sampling. In-depth, semi structured interviews were conducted. Transcribed interview data were entered into Nvivo software for …

Etiological Perspectives Of Abdl Behavior From Members Of An Online Abdl Community, Jennie Marie Hilleren

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Atypical sexual behavior is often viewed from a perspective of pathology and non-clinical samples are not typically used in research. The current exploratory research is a qualitative study that examined the etiological perspectives of Adult Baby/ Diaper Lover (ABDL) behavior from members of an online ABDL community. Archival survey data from an online sample (N = 1,795) of ABDL participants were used. The theories informing this research included attachment theory and the sexual health model. Research questions included an examination of: (a) what we can be learn from the way an ABDL individual perceives the origin of ABDL behavior, (b) …

Length Of Pretrial Detainment For Inmates With Mental Illness, Maria Pereira-Sosa

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

There has been an increase in the number of individuals with mental illness being housed in correctional facilities over the last 50 years. In this study, the length of pretrial detention was compared for inmates who have a mental illness and are compliant with psychiatric medications, inmates who have a mental illness and are noncompliant or not prescribed psychiatric medication, and inmates with no mental illness. I also examined if inmates who have a mental illness have less severe charges and if there was a difference in the classification of mental health diagnoses for inmates who are and are not …

Concept Of Self: Approach To Behaviors In Mental Health, The Tapout Program, Tina Goodrow

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Violence in mental health care continues to be a problem. The incidence of violent episodes in healthcare settings with aggressive behavior of patients aimed at staff members or other patients is almost four times greater in healthcare than in other industries. Reducing violent episodes enhances the quality of care and improves safety for staff members and for patients. The project focused on development of a staff education program exploring the practice-focused question: Will this program effectively guide staff member approaches to mental health patients with challenging behaviors? The purpose of this project was to address the identified gap in practice …

Professionals' Perspective On Mental Health Courts, Martha M. Amos

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In recent years, the percentage of incarcerated individuals with mental illness has dramatically increased. It is very hard to provide treatment and care for these defendants in jails or prisons. Currently, there are more mentally ill individuals incarcerated than in psychiatric hospitals. Furthermore, as budget cuts are being decided, urban and rural communities in America are looking at ways to help the mentally ill by initiating a mental health court (MHC) or continuing to fund an already existing MHC. Guided by the therapeutic jurisprudence theory, the purpose of this study was to elicit the opinions from MHC professionals regarding the …

African American Clergy's Attitude Toward Professional Mental Health Services, Ebony Gaffney

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Evaluating the attitude of African American clergy toward parishioners seeking professional mental health services for mental illness has important treatment implications. Religion and spirituality are equally important determinants of mental health and can affect African American clergy's attitudes toward professional care for mental illness. Utilizing the health belief model (HBM), this quantitative study examined the role of theological beliefs, education, and personal experience with mental illness as they correlated with clergy's attitudes toward seeking professional mental illness services. Approximately 98 African American Protestant Clergy in the states of Georgia and South Carolina participated in this study. Data were collected using …

High School Teachers' Perceptions Of Mental Health And Adolescent Depression, Christine Ann Breuer

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Adolescents have a high rate of untreated mental health issues, specifically related to depression. Current literature does not indicate the impact of teachers' attitudes toward mental health on their decisions to refer students for services. This study provides understanding specifically, how teachers' beliefs about mental health, as well as their age, gender, ethnicity, years of education, and years of teaching, were analyzed to determine the impact each these characteristics had on the decision to refer a student for services. 92 high school teachers participated in this quantitative study by completing a survey measuring their attitudes of mental health, and then …

Clergy Characteristics As Predictors Of Mental Health Literacy, Jodi Vermaas Vermaas

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The mental health literacy (MHL) rates of Christian clergy in the United States remains underinvestigated in the current literature. This gap of knowledge is problematic for the large numbers of individuals with mental illness who seek assistance from clergy and may receive inadequate care for their concerns. As theoretically designated by the behavioral models of health care and MHL research, denomination-type, educational variables, and demographic characteristics were investigated as potential predictors of MHL. A sample of 238 Christian clergy from throughout the United States completed the web-based Mental Health Literacy Scale and demographic questionnaire. Results of analysis of variance (ANOVA) …

The Perception Of African American Clergy Regarding Mental Health Services, Tamara White

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The rise in diagnosable mental illness disorders in the United States is a major concern. However, researchers indicate that African Americans are far less likely to seek mental health treatment than Caucasian Americans. This qualitative, phenomenological study addressed a research gap regarding the beliefs, perceptions, stigmas, and practices of African American clergy regarding their promotion of mental health services. Two conceptual frameworks consisting of the sociocultural theory and the social learning theory guided the study. There were two research questions used to guide the exploration of the purposive sampling of 6 African American clergy from major African American denominations across …

Planning A Smoking Cessation Program In A Mental Health Hospital, Victoria Omuson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The incidence of smoking among mentally ill people is very high. Smokers have a 50%, rate of mental illness diagnosis compared with 23% rate for general population. To address this problem, the purpose of this project was to plan a smoking cessation program for patients in a mental health facility. The theoretical foundation for this project was based on the theory of planned behavior, which identifies the predictive nature of smoking and the benefits that can be derived from implementing a systematic approach for change. The project question examined the effectiveness of smoking cessation program using educational support, pharmacological strategies, …