Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Exploring The Effects Of Christian Worldviews On Heart Rate, Stress, And Adjustment After Loss In Bereaved Individuals, Emma Radini Ratnavel

Honors Scholar Theses

The objective of this study is to investigate the correlation between Christian values, perceptions of God, and physiological stress, assessed through heart rate, among individuals who are experiencing grief due to the loss of a loved one. Previous studies have analyzed various physiological effects on the body. There are very few studies that examine the correlation between Christian values and heart rate in bereaved participants. To explore these topics further, this study analyzes 59 undergraduate students who have recently lost a loved one, identify as a Christian, and are at least 18 years old. The participants' perceptions of God and …

Conditioned Place Avoidance Is Associated With A Distinct Hippocampal Phenotype, Partly Preserved Pattern Separation, And Reduced Reactive Oxygen Species Production After Stress, D. Parker Kelley, Lucas Albrechet-Souza, Shealan Cruise, Rajani Maiya, Aspasia Destouni, Siva S.V.P. Sakamuri, Alexander Duplooy, Meghan Hibicke, Charles Nichols, Prasad V.G. Katakam, Nicholas W. Gilpin, Joseph Francis

School of Medicine Faculty Publications

Stress is associated with contextual memory deficits, which may mediate avoidance of trauma-associated contexts in posttraumatic stress disorder. These deficits may emerge from impaired pattern separation, the independent representation of similar experiences by the dentate gyrus-Cornu Ammonis 3 (DG-CA3) circuit of the dorsal hippocampus, which allows for appropriate behavioral responses to specific environmental stimuli. Neurogenesis in the DG is controlled by mitochondrial reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, and may contribute to pattern separation. In Experiment 1, we performed RNA sequencing of the dorsal hippocampus 16 days after stress in rats that either develop conditioned place avoidance to a predator urine-associated …

A Lifestyle Management Coaching Intervention For Fear Of Cancer Recurrence In Young Breast Cancer Survivors, Lisa R. Murphy

DNP Research Projects

Abstract

Objective: A significant challenge facing young breast cancer (BC) survivors is learning how to manage fear of cancer recurrence (FCR) during survivorship. Limited tailored FCR interventions and age-appropriate support exist. This Doctor of Nursing (DNP) project, based upon best practice guidelines, aimed to evaluate how a Lifestyle Management Coaching Intervention (LMCI) could help young female BC survivors learn how to decrease and manage their FCR more effectively and experience improved health outcomes.

Method: Eligible participants were female BC survivors aged 18-59 with Stage I-III BC demonstrating elevated baseline FCR screening scores during the extended survival period recruited from the …

Academic Stress And Anxiety In Nursing Students: An Aerobic Exercise Intervention, Mariko Danielle Aka

DNP Research Projects

Abstract

Background: The demands of rigorous nursing education programs often cause students to experience high levels of stress and anxiety during their schooling. Moderate to high academic stress and anxiety levels impact nursing students around the world. This is significant as academic stress and anxiety contribute to decreased academic success, program completion, and student health.

Local Problem: Students at Kettering College and Southern Adventist University were found to have moderate academic stress and anxiety using the SNSI and GAD-7.

Intervention: Participants (N = 24) engaged in a 4-week aerobic-exercise intervention. They were required to complete a minimum of 80 …

Interpersonal Psychotherapy’S Problem Areas As An Organizing Framework To Understand Depression And Sexual And Reproductive Health Needs Of Kenyan Pregnant And Parenting Adolescents: A Qualitative Study, Manasi Kumar, Obadia Yator, Vincent Nyongesa, Martha Kagoya, Shillah Mwaniga, Joseph Kathono, Isaiah Gitonga, Nancy Grote, Helena Verdeli, Keng Yen Huang

Brain and Mind Institute

Background: Peripartum adolescents experience signifcant interpersonal transitions in their lives. Depression and emotional distress are often exacerbated by adolescents’ responses to these interpersonal changes. Improved understanding of pregnancy-related social changes and maladaptive responses to these shifts may inform novel approaches to addressing the mental health needs of adolescents during the perinatal period. The paper aims to understand the sources of psychological distress in peripartum adolescents and map these to Interpersonal Psychotherapy’s (IPT) problem areas as a framework to understand depression.

Method: We conducted interviews in two Nairobi primary care clinics with peripartum adolescents ages 16–18 years (n=23) with …

Early Life Exposure To Unpredictable Parental Sensory Signals Shapes Cognitive Development Across Three Species, Elyssia Poggi Davis, Kari Mccormack, Hina Arora, Desiree Sharpe, Annabel K. Short, Jocelyne Bachevalier, Laura M. Glynn, Curt A. Sandman, Hal S. Stern, Mar Sanchez, Tallie Z. Baram

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Exposure to early life adversity has long term consequences on cognitive function. Most research has focused on understanding components of early life adversities that contribute to later risk, including poverty, trauma, maltreatment, and neglect. Whereas these factors, in the aggregate, explain a significant proportion of emotional and cognitive problems, there are serious gaps in our ability to identify potential mechanisms by which early life adversities might promote vulnerability or resilience. Here we discuss early life exposure to unpredictable signals from the caretaker as an understudied type of adversity that is amenable to prevention and intervention. We employ a translational approach …

“This Isn’T Just Busy, This Is Scary”: Stress, Social Support, And Coping Experiences Of Frontline Nurses During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Erin S. Craw, Tess M. Buckley, Michelle Miller-Day

Communication Faculty Articles and Research

Despite having previous experience and extensive trauma training, the COVID-19 pandemic presented unprecedented challenges for nurses working in hospital settings. During the pandemic, nurses struggle to care for patients and protect themselves from infection, while navigating ongoing organizational changes. Guided by prior literature on social support and coping, this study explores nurses’ experiences of coping with stress while treating COVID-19 patients during the pandemic. In-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted with 14 active staff nurses working in hospitals and one licensed practical nurse (LPN) at a rehabilitation center who treated COVID-19 patients during the pandemic. An inductive thematic analysis was employed …

Sex Differences In Cognitive Flexibility Are Driven By The Estrous Cycle And Stress-Dependent, Andrew T. Gargiulo, Jiayin Hu, Isabella C. Ravaglia, Annie Hawks, Xinyue Li, Katherine Sweasy, Laura A. Grafe

Psychology Faculty Research and Scholarship

Stress is associated with psychiatric disorders such as post-traumatic stress disorder, major depressive disorder, anxiety disorders, and panic disorders. Women are more likely to be diagnosed with these stress-related psychiatric disorders than men. A key phenotype in stress-related psychiatric disorders is impairment in cognitive flexibility, which is the ability to develop new strategies to respond to different patterns in the environment. Because gonadal hormones can contribute to sex differences in response to stress, it is important to consider where females are in their cycle when exposed to stress and cognitive flexibility testing. Moreover, identifying neural correlates involved in cognitive flexibility …

Cognitive Load Effect On Moral Decision Making, Elise Crause, Liz Eisenga, Caroline Hopper, Merry Bailey

Science University Research Symposium (SURS)

Cognitive Load Effect on Moral Decision Making

Elise Crause, Merry Bailey, Liz Eisenga, Caroline Hopper

Choices are made each day to determine the outcome of our lives. To better understand the human process of decision making, philosophers and psychologists have examined moral dilemmas. Cognitive load is a type of stress that alters decision-making and the likelihood of choosing a self-motivated behavior over a behavior that benefits another person or group. For this study, moral dilemmas were given in sets of two before and after a cognitive-load-inducing task. The cognitive-load-inducing task required participants to verbally answer subtraction problems until the answer …

Family Structure And Maternal Depressive Symptoms: A Cross-National Comparison Of Australia, The United Kingdom, And The United States, Kirsten Rasmussen, Elizabeth K. Sigler, Sadie A. Slighting, Jonathan A. Jarvis, Mikaela J. Dufur, Shana Pribesh

Educational Foundations & Leadership Faculty Publications

The purpose of this study is to understand the relationship between family structure and maternal depressive symptoms (MDS) in Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Family structures that involve transitions across life's course, such as divorce, can alter access to resources and introduce new stressors into family systems. Using the stress process model, we examine the links between family structure, stress, resources, and MDS. Using nationally representative data from Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States and cross-sectional models for each country, we find that family structure may influence MDS differently in the UK than it does …

Psychosocial Risk Factors And Cardiovascular Disease And Death In A Population-Based Cohort From 21 Low-, Middle-, And High-Income Countries, Ailiana Santosa, Annika Rosengren, Chinthanie Ramasundarahettige, Sumathy Rangarajan, Jephat Chifamba, Scott A. Lear, Paul Poirier, Karen E. Yeates, Rita Yusuf, Romaina Iqbal

Community Health Sciences

Importance: Stress may increase the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Most studies on stress and CVD have been conducted in high-income Western countries, but whether stress is associated with CVD in other settings has been less well studied.
Objective: To investigate the association of a composite measure of psychosocial stress and the development of CVD events and mortality in a large prospective study involving populations from 21 high-, middle-, and low-income countries across 5 continents.
Design, setting, and participants: This population-based cohort study used data from the Prospective Urban Rural Epidemiology study, collected between January 2003 and March 2021. Participants …

Psychological Problems Among Patients With Chronic Medical Disorders During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Ali Akbar Asadi-Pooya, Seyed Ali Nabavizadeh, Saeid Sadeghian, Mina Shahisavandi, Zohreh Barzegar, Abdullah Nezafat, Nahid Ashjazadeh, Hamed Bazrafshan Drissi, Ali Sahraian

Department of Neurology Faculty Papers

The aim of the current study was to investigate the rates of stress, anxiety, and depression among people in south Iran (a group from the general population without a history of any chronic medical problems, and cohorts of patients were recruited from epilepsy, diabetes, and cardiac disease clinics). We surveyed a sample of people during September 2020: a group of the general population without a history of any chronic medical problems, people with epilepsy, people with diabetes mellitus (DM), and people with cardiac problems. The survey included four general questions and two COVID-19 specific questions [contracting COVID-19, relatives with COVID-19]. …

Examining Treatment Acceptability Of An Eight-Week Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Protocol, Blake William Palmer

Dissertations

The goal of this study is to examine whether levels of perceived stress, experiential avoidance, personality traits including openness to experience and agreeableness, and demographic variables will predict the treatment acceptability (indicated by responses on the Treatment Acceptability and Adherence Scale) of an eight-week Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) program. This study collected data in the Spring of 2019. The final number of participants in the study was 116 (40 females, 76 males, Mage = 36, age range: 22-69 years). Participants completed measures including the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), Acceptance and Action Questionnaire-II (AAQ-II), the agreeableness and openness to Experience domains …

The Disproportionate Impact Of Covid-19 On Women, Ava Stallone

Honors Scholar Theses

The impact of COVID-19 is placing a large strain on women. This can be seen through reports of mental health and financial concerns. Women are more vulnerable to COVID-19 related economic effects due to existing gender inequalities, which in turn may also have a negative effect on mental health. Through this study gender disproportion is looked at between mental health and COVID-19 financial concerns among women and men. The aim is to asses how COVID-19 financial concerns may be contributing to stress, anxiety, and depression. It is hypothesized that; women will report worse mental health and greater economic concerns than …

Oxytocin, Cortisol, And Cognitive Control During Acute And Naturalistic Stress, Shari Young Kuchenbecker, Sarah D. Pressman, Jared Celniker, Karen M. Grewen, Ken D. Sumida, Naveen Jonathan, Brendan Everett, George M. Slavich

Health Sciences and Kinesiology Faculty Articles

Although stress is a strong risk factor for poor health, especially for women, it remains unclear how stress affects the key neurohormones cortisol and oxytocin, which influence stress-related risk and resilience. Whereas cortisol mediates energy mobilization during stress, oxytocin has anti-inflammatory, anxiolytic, and analgesic effects that support social connection and survival across the lifespan. However, how these neurohormones interrelate and are associated with cognitive control of emotional information during stress remains unclear. To address these issues, we recruited 37 college-aged women (M_age = 19.19, SD = 1.58) and randomly assigned each to a one-hour experimental session consisting of …

Mental Health Impact Of The Covid-19 Pandemic On Parents In High-Risk, Low Income Communities, Dana Alonzo, Marciana Popescu, Pinar Zubaroglu Ioannides

Covid-19 Digital Research

COVID-19 has spread across the globe, resulting in significant changes in virtually every aspect of life. Mitigation efforts, like shelter-in-place orders, have taken a particular toll on parents who have had to navigate disruptions in work and/or school schedules. Research from high-income countries demonstrates increased parental anxiety, stress, depression, and burnout resulting from the pandemic. It is unclear if these outcomes are the same for parents in high-risk communities in low-income countries where pre-pandemic conditions were deleterious. This study addresses this gap and examines the mental health impact of the pandemic on parents in high-risk communities in Guatemala.

Prenatal Maternal Psychological Distress And Fetal Developmental Trajectories: Associations With Infant Temperament, Mariann A. Howland, Curt A. Sandman, Elyssia Poggi Davis, Laura M. Glynn

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Associations between prenatal maternal psychological distress and offspring developmental outcomes are well documented, yet relatively little research has examined links between maternal distress and development in utero, prior to postpartum influences. Fetal heart rate (FHR) parameters are established indices of central and autonomic nervous system maturation and function which demonstrate continuity with postnatal outcomes. This prospective, longitudinal study of 149 maternal–fetal pairs evaluated associations between prenatal maternal distress, FHR parameters, and dimensions of infant temperament. Women reported their symptoms of psychological distress at five prenatal visits, and FHR monitoring was conducted at the last three visits. Maternal report of infant …

A Predictable Home Environment May Protect Child Mental Health During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Laura M. Glynn, Elyssia Poggi Davis, Joan L. Luby, Tallie Z. Baram, Curt A. Sandman

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Objective

Information about the adverse effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on adolescent and adult mental health is growing, yet the impacts on preschool children are only emerging. Importantly, environmental factors that augment or protect from the multidimensional and stressful influences of the pandemic on emotional development of young children are poorly understood.

Methods

Depressive symptoms in 169 preschool children (mean age 4.1 years) were assessed with the Preschool Feelings Checklist during a state-wide stay-at-home order in Southern California. Mothers (46% Latinx) also reported on externalizing behaviors with the Strengths & Difficulties Questionnaire. To assess the role of environmental factors in …

Sex Differences In Stress-Induced Sleep Deficits, Andrew T. Gargiulo, Varuna Jasodanand, Sandra Luz, Lauren O'Mara, Leszek Kubin, Richard J. Ross, Seema Bhatnagar, Laura A. Grafe

Psychology Faculty Research and Scholarship

Sleep disruptions are hallmarks in the pathophysiology of several stress-related disorders, including Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), both known to disproportionately affect female populations. Although previous studies have attempted to investigate disordered sleep in women, few studies have explored and compared how repeated stress affects sleep in both sexes in either human or animal models. We have previously shown that male rats exhibit behavioral and neuroendocrine habituation to 5 days of repeated restraint, whereas females do not; additional days of stress exposure are required to observe habituation in females. This study examined sex differences in sleep …

Stress, Coping, Resilience, And Sleep During The Covid-19 Pandemic: A Representative Survey Study Of Us Adults, Andrew T. Gargiulo, Laurel M. Peterson, Laura A. Grafe

Psychology Faculty Research and Scholarship

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic is a global health emergency resulting in widespread death and substantial disruption to daily life. Previous research has shown that novel disease outbreaks are associated with high stress levels and sleep impairments that lead to neuropsychiatric consequences. Therefore, it is vital to study both stress and protective factors such as coping and resilience that may hinder or help sleep quality during the COVID-19 pandemic. Further, as gender disparities exist in sleep quality, it is important to understand the relationship between pandemic-related stress, coping strategies, resilience, and sleep in bothgenders during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: Our study …

Stress In Groups: Lessons From Non-Traditional Rodent Species And Housing Models, Annaliese K. Beery, Melissa M. Holmes, Won Lee, James P. Curley

Neuroscience: Faculty Publications

A major feature of life in groups is that individuals experience social stressors of varying intensity and type. Social stress can have profound effects on health, social behavior, and ongoing relationships. Relationships can also buffer the experience of exogenous stressors. Social stress has most commonly been investigated in dyadic contexts in mice and rats that produce intense stress. Here we review findings from studies of diverse rodents and non-traditional group housing paradigms, focusing on laboratory studies of mice and rats housed in visible burrow systems, prairie and meadow voles, and mole-rats. We argue that the use of methods informed by …

Psychosocial Implications In Breast Cancer, Daniyal Aamir, Yamna Waseem, Mustafa Saleem Patel

Medical College Documents

No abstract provided.

Sleep And Stress In The Acute Phase Of Concussion In Youth, Arthur C. Maerlender, Caitlin Masterson, Jessica L. Calvi, Todd Caze, Ross Mathiasen, Dennis Molfese

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

This study sought to address the complex interplay between both biological and psychological perceptions of stress and sleep in the acute stages following a mild traumatic brain injury. A secondary goal was to identify potential targets for intervention. Eleven acutely injured youth (mean age 12 years) were studied at home with overnight actigraphy, salivary cortisol and melatonin assays, and subjective ratings of stress and fatigue (injured group). Nine matched control youth also were assessed (control group). Results suggested longer sleep latencies (time to fall asleep) and higher levels of fatigue in the injured group exist (p ¼ 0.025 and p …

An Inquiry Of The Effects Of Stress Management On Recovery For Hospitalized Patients, Clair Walters

Fall Showcase for Research and Creative Inquiry

The premise of this research is to analyze stress management strategies that were implemented across prevalent populations that had a significant impact on either physical or mental health. Ultimately, it is anticipated that this research will inspire Longwood to reduce stress for all the various populations that reside in the town of Farmville.

Mental Health Stigma In College Students By Academic Major, Kristen Miller

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Stigma is best defined as the disapproval and shame felt by people who display characteristics not widely accepted in society. Although mental illness has become more prevalent in society through advocacy and awareness campaigns, it fails to be accepted and often individuals may feel shame that prevents them from seeking help (Dyrbye, Eacker, Durning, Brazeau, Moutier, Massie, S., et al, 2015; Givens & Tjia, 2002). Physicians in particular have been shown to have decreased help-seeking behaviors for psychological issues due to fear of professional repercussions (Dyrbye et al., 2015). Physicians also show increased levels of stress, anxiety, depression, and elevated …

Advancing Research On Psychological Stress And Aging With The Health And Retirement Study: Looking Back To Launch The Field Forward, Alexandra D. Crosswell, Madhuvanthi Suresh, Eli Puterman, Tara Gruenewald, Jinkook Lee, Elissa S. Epel

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Objectives

The Health and Retirement Study (HRS) was designed as an interdisciplinary study with a strong focus on health, retirement, and socioeconomic environment, to study their dynamic relationships over time in a sample of mid-life adults. The study includes validated self-report measures and individual items that capture the experiences of stressful events (stressor exposures) and subjective assessments of stress (perceived stress) within specific life domains.

Methods

This paper reviews and catalogs the peer-reviewed publications that have used the HRS to examine associations between psychological stress measures and psychological, physical health, and economic outcomes.

Results

We describe the research to date …

The Role Of Stress In The Pathogenesis And Maintenance Of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Thomas G. Adams, Benjamin Kelmendi, C. Alex Brake, Patricia Gruner, Christal L. Badour, Christopher Pittenger

Psychology Faculty Publications

Individuals with obsessive-compulsive disorder often identify psychosocial stress as a factor that exacerbates their symptoms, and many trace the onset of symptoms to a stressful period of life or a discrete traumatic incident. However, the pathophysiological relationship between stress and obsessive-compulsive disorder remains poorly characterized: it is unclear whether trauma or stress is an independent cause of obsessive-compulsive disorder symptoms, a triggering factor that interacts with a preexisting diathesis, or simply a nonspecific factor that can exacerbate obsessive-compulsive disorder along with other aspects of psychiatric symptomatology. Nonetheless, preclinical research has demonstrated that stress has conspicuous effects on corticostriatal and limbic …

Burnout-Depression Overlap: Nomological Network Examination And Factor-Analytic Approach, Renzo Bianchi, Irvin Sam Schonfeld

Publications and Research

Burnout has been defined as a condition in which individuals are left exhausted by a long-term confrontation with unmanageable job stressors. The question of whether burnout reflects anything other than depressive responses to unresolvable stress remains an object of debate. In this 911-participant study (83% female; mean age: 42.36), we further addressed the issue of burnout-depression overlap. Burnout was assessed with the exhaustion subscale of the Maslach Burnout Inventory-General Survey (MBI-GS) and depression with the PHQ-8. The relationships of burnout and depression with three jobrelated variables – illegitimate work tasks, work-nonwork interference, and job satisfaction – and three “context-free” variables …

Measuring Sexual Minority Stressors In Lesbians Women's Daily Lives: Initial Scale Development, Kristin Heron, Abby L. Braitman, Robin J. Lewis, Alexander T. Shappie, Phoebe T. Hitson

Psychology Faculty Publications

Lesbian women face unique sexual minority stressors (SMS) because of their stigmatized and marginalized status in society. Existing studies of SMS are primarily cross-sectional and use global measures of SMS. The goal of the present study was to develop a brief daily measure of SMS for use in daily diary or ecological momentary assessment studies. Existing retrospective measures of SMS were reviewed, resulting in an initial pool of 29 items. Thirty-eight lesbian women (Mage = 24.3 years, range: 19–30 years) completed a daily web-based survey including the SMS items for 12 days. Two response scales were tested; participants were randomized …

Persistent Stress-Induced Neuroplastic Changes In The Locus Coeruleus/Norepinephrine System, Olga Borodovitsyna, Neal Joshi, Daniel Chandler

Rowan-Virtua School of Osteopathic Medicine Faculty Scholarship

Neural plasticity plays a critical role in mediating short- and long-term brain responses to environmental stimuli. A major effector of plasticity throughout many regions of the brain is stress. Activation of the locus coeruleus (LC) is a critical step in mediating the neuroendocrine and behavioral limbs of the stress response. During stressor exposure, activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis promotes release of corticotropin-releasing factor in LC, where its signaling promotes a number of physiological and cellular changes. While the acute effects of stress on LC physiology have been described, its long-term effects are less clear. This review will describe how stress …