Mental and Social Health Commons^™

Treatment Of Co-Morbid Methamphetamine Substance Abuse And Borderline Personality Disorder Features Using Modified Dialectical Behavior Therapy, Jessica R. Schultz Fischer

Dissertations

The study investigated the effectiveness of a time-limited, skills-based treatment in a population of female substance abusers. This project implemented a pilot clinical trial to evaluate the effectiveness of a 12-session modified Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) protocol among a small sample of women, with co-morbid borderline personality disorder features, receiving concurrent outpatient treatment for methamphetamine abuse. A non-concurrent multiple baseline design was used. In addition to on-going assessment conducted during baseline and weekly over the course of treatment, a comprehensive assessment battery was administered pre-, and post-treatment as well as at 1 and 3 months following treatment. Findings suggest that …

An Examination Of The Role Of Anxiety And Obsessive-Compulsive Features In Muscle Dysmorphia Symptomatology, Christopher Chandler

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Although Muscle Dsymorphia (MD) has received more attention in recent years, it still lacks an official classification. The current study incorporates trait anxiety and obsessive-compulsive features into an etiological model of MD in the hopes of establishing them as reliable predictors of such MD symptomatology as drive for muscularity, social physique anxiety, and negative body attitude (self). This model was based upon previous research that has linked trait anxiety and obsessive-compulsive features to eating disorders (ED). In this model, it was predicted that trait anxiety and obsessive-compulsive features would predict overall MD symptomatology, drive for muscularity, social physique anxiety, and …

Efficacy Of Cognitive Therapy And Pharmacotherapy In Depression: A Meta-Analysis, Daniel B. Michel

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

A meta-analysis comparing the long-term effectiveness of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and pharmacotherapy in preventing relapse following treatment discontinuation was performed using published studies of depressed participants. Twenty-three articles met inclusionary criteria and were included in the analyses. Weighted effect sizes and moderators, treatment type, were calculated using statistical analysis software. Initially, fixed effects models were applied to the data, but due to significant between-group heterogeneity that could not be fully explained by treatment type, mixed effect models were used to account for the residual heterogeneity. Results indicated that overall, depressed individuals treated to remission with CBT evidence decreased relapse …

Diagnostic Classifications And Resource Utilization Of Decedents Served By The Department Of Veterans Affairs, Sonia A. Duffy, Laurel Copeland, Faith Hopp, Robert J. Zalenski

Social Work Faculty Publications

Background: Given the volume and cost of inpatient care during the last year of life, there is a critical need to identify patterns of dying as a means of planning end-of-life care services, especially for the growing number of older persons who receive services from the Veterans Health Administration (VHA).

Methods: A retrospective computerized record review was conducted of 20,933 VHA patients who died as inpatients between October 1, 2001 and September 30, 2002. Diagnoses were aggregated into one of five classification patterns of death and analyzed in terms of health care resource utilization (mean number of inpatient days and …

Massworks: Quality Employment Services: Where Research And Practice Meet, Rick Kugler, Cindy Thomas

MassWorks Series, Institute for Community Inclusion

Providing quality employment services to people with disabilities requires a substantial commitment of time, energy, and resources. Given this investment and our obligation to individuals with disabilities, we as providers must deliver the most effective services possible.

Adolescents And Marijuana Use: The Affects Of Peer And Parent Relationships And Substance Abuse Education., Samuel Joseph Cosimano

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to analyze gender, race, substance abuse programs such as Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D.A.R.E.), parents, and peers and their ability to influence or predict adolescents and their decisions to use marijuana. All of the variables used for this study came from secondhand data collected by Esbensen and Osgood (1999), Gang Resistance Education and Training (G.R.E.A.T.). The analysis revealed that males are more likely to have ever used marijuana, that mixed race adolescents have a higher rate than other races to have ever used marijuana, that when adolescents complete the substance abuse program, D.A.R.E. have …

Validity Of The Clinical Assessment Of Depression With The Brief Symptom Inventory, Carlie West

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Depression is a disorder frequently noted in college students that can affect multiple aspects of one's life, ranging from physical health issues to interpersonal relationship difficulties. Therefore, it is imperative that the depressive symptoms of college students be identified, evaluated, and treated. This investigation explored the validity of a newly published self-report narrow-band measure of depression, the Clinical Assessment of Depression (CAD; Bracken & Howell, 2004) with an existing broad-band measure, the Brief Symptom Inventory (Derogatis, 1993). College students 18 to 52 years of age (n = 280) enrolled in undergraduate courses in psychology at a south central Kentucky university …

A Model For Preventing Anorexia In College Students, Laura Ann Negin

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

The prevalence of anorexia nervosa in the general population is relatively low, but anorexia is at the forefront of health concerns because of its seriousness. Unhealthy weight loss has numerous physical, psychological, and social consequences. Most seriously, the mortality rate for people with eating disorders is the highest of all the major psychiatric disorders.

This dissertation presents a model for preventing anorexia nervosa in a population of college students that includes a comprehensive institutional approach, psychoeducational software, a high-risk population, a holistic approach that identifies an individual’s personal risk factors and protective factors, and individual therapy.

The model is built …

Religious Coping And Depression In Home Care Patients, Kirsten Ingheim

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

This study examined the impact of a medical illness in 36 elderly male and female home health care patients with a primary diagnosis of heart disease, cancer, diabetes, or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and how they coped with their medical condition. Relationships between depression and religious coping, functional status, quality of life, and depression, as well as relationship between functional status and quality of life were investigated. In addition, a moderating effect of the relationship between functional status and depression by religious coping was explored. The participants completed the Religious Problem-Solving Scale (RPSS) (Collaborative, Deferring, and Self-Directing), the SF-12 …

Behavioral Compliance And Verbal Intelligence In Children, Jared Jackson

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Compliance with parental requests is an important developmental task necessary in the socialization of children. The majority of research has focused on the relationship between child compliance and variables related to age, parental interactions, and child temperament. While these variables account for almost half of the variance related to compliance in children, there is still a large amount of variance unaccounted for. An area that has not been fully explored is the role of verbal intelligence in behavioral compliance of children. This study explored the contributions that verbal intelligence may play in the behavioral compliance of children. Results from this …

Does State Certification Or Licensure Influence Outpatient Substance Abuse Treatment Program Practices?, Jamie Chriqui, Yvonne Terry-Mcelrath, Duane C. Mcbride, S Eidson, Curtis Vanderwaal

Faculty Publications

In the United States, state governments legally authorize outpatient substance abuse treatment programs. In some states, programs are certified or accredited (ideal standards). Other states license programs (minimal standards). Additionally, some states authorize programs through "deemed status", which is afforded to programs attaining accreditation from a national accrediting body. Primary legal research and the National Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services' (N-SSATS) data were used to examine the relationships between state authorization type (certification/accreditation vs licensure with and without deemed status) and outpatient treatment program practices. Programs in certification/accreditation (vs licensure) states had significantly higher odds of offering wrap-around and …

Does State Certification Or Licensure Influence Outpatient Substance Abuse Treatment Program Practices?, Jamie Chriqui, Yvonne Terry-Mcelrath, Duane C. Mcbride, S Eidson, Curtis Vanderwaal

Duane McBride

In the United States, state governments legally authorize outpatient substance abuse treatment programs. In some states, programs are certified or accredited (ideal standards). Other states license programs (minimal standards). Additionally, some states authorize programs through "deemed status", which is afforded to programs attaining accreditation from a national accrediting body. Primary legal research and the National Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services' (N-SSATS) data were used to examine the relationships between state authorization type (certification/accreditation vs licensure with and without deemed status) and outpatient treatment program practices. Programs in certification/accreditation (vs licensure) states had significantly higher odds of offering wrap-around and …

Web Du Bois And The "Negro Problem": Thoughts On Violence In Philadelphia, Amy Hillier

Amy Hillier

This sermon, delivered at First Unitarian Church of Philadelphia, might also be called "Why a white girl from New Hampshire is studying The Philadelphia Negro." This essay/sermon connects Du Bois's 1896 survey of Philadelphia to the violence currently plaguing Philadelphia.

Examining The Ability Of The Halstead -Reitan Battery And The Wide Range Achievement Test To Utilize Severity In Discriminating Among Alzheimer's Dementia Patients, Gina Gibson-Beverly

Doctoral Dissertations

Measuring change in cognitive status is essential for the diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment of brain dysfunction. Psychological abilities are differentially affected by brain dysfunction severity, as some abilities are more vulnerable to brain dysfunction than others. Neuropsychological assessments can be viewed as a continuum of "hold" and "don't hold" tests. "Hold" tests assess abilities that remain stable in spite of brain dysfunction, while "don't hold" tests measure skills that are significantly compromised by brain impairment. The present study ranks the Halstead-Reitan Battery (HRB) and the Wide Range Achievement Test (WRAT) subtests based on their ability to discriminate between two levels …

Evaluation Of A Sleep Hygiene Program To Improve Inmate Sleep Quality, Jennifer F. Hodges-Crowder

Doctoral Dissertations

Research investigating the effectiveness of treatments for inmates with poor sleep quality appears minimal. Some difficulties related to poor sleep quality can be addressed effectively with little time and expense. Studies show that psychoeducational interventions are effective in reducing sleep complaints and improving sleep quality in a variety of populations including college students and adults. However, the effect of sleep hygiene interventions on inmate sleep complaints is unknown. Thus, the purpose of this study was to evaluate a psychoeducational intervention program aimed at improving prison inmate sleep habits, length, and quality.

Participants of this study were inmates at a department …

Effects Of Therapy Dogs On Anxiety In Children Participating In Sexual Abuse Forensic Interviews At Children's Advocacy Center, Andra K. Chamberlin

Graduate Theses

This study investigated the effect of therapy dogs on physiological and psychological measures of anxiety before and after a forensic interview in children who may have been sexually abused. A convenience sample consisted of 37 children ages 6 to 12 years who presented at a children’s advocacy center for sexual abuse forensic interviews. Twenty children had a therapy dog present during their time at the Center and 17 did not. Researchers measured systolic blood pressure (SBP) and heart rate (HR) using a Zelwa WS-TS Touch Screen Wrist Blood Pressure Monitor. State- anxiety was assessed using the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for …

The Health Implications Of Violence Against Women: Untangling The Complexities Of Actual And Chronic Effects: Part Two, Carol E. Jordan

Office for Policy Studies on Violence Against Women Publications

No abstract provided.

The Importance Of Gender And Readiness To Change In The Prediction Of Drinking And Negative Consequences Of First-Year Student Drinkers, Margot E. Ackermann

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

College drinking is widespread, and binge drinkers can experience serious consequences. The present study examined the effectiveness of two interventions, expressive writing and behavioral monitoring, as well a combined condition, in reducing drinking and negative consequences associated with drinking. Gender differences and differences in readiness to change binge drinking were also assessed. Participants (N = 97) completed a pretest, eight weekly intervention activities, and a posttest during their first semester of college. An ANOVA tested the hypothesis that individuals higher in readiness to change binge drinking participated in more of the weekly intervention activities; this hypothesis was not supported. A …

Female Patients’ Perspectives On The Stages Of Eating Disorder Recovery, Cherish C. Knoll

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Eating disorders are severe psychiatric disorders that most commonly begin in the female population during adolescence and across ethnicity (Lucas, 2004). However, the face of eating disorders is changing as they become more apparent across cultures and lifespan, impacting both young and aging women as well as males. In the past few decades progress has been made in the diagnostic, treatment, and recovery phases of eating disorders. These gains have contributed to a better understanding of eating disorders, assisting in the decrease of mortality and morbidity rates seen in eating disorder patients. Nevertheless, there are significant challenges that still remain …

Globalization And Drug And Alcohol Use In Rural Communities In Nigeria: A Case Study, Charles Fiki

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

This paper presents an exploratory study of alcohol and drug use in two rural communities in Plateau State, Nigeria. The aim is to raise awareness of the rural alcohol and drug problem. The paper examines the patterns of alcohol consumption and drug use, and their perceived functions for substance use among rural farmers in Nigeria. The study shows the common use of marijuana and alcohol in addition to prescription drugs. There is also evidence of multiple or combinational drug use. Pleasure and relaxation emerged as the major reasons for drug and alcohol use. Factors influencing alcohol and drug use are …

The Effects Of Communication On Adolescent Sexual Behavior In Eastern Europe, Sharon Mieras Perugini

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

HIV/AIDS rates have continued to rise in Eastern Europe where adolescents are particularly vulnerable. The theory of reasoned action (TRA) has successfully been applied to understanding adolescent sexual risk behavior and provides a theoretical framework for the prevention of HIV/AIDS. According to TRA, attitudes and subjective norms predict behaviors via the mediating role of intentions, and in order to have an impact on behavior, changes must occur at the attitude and subjective norm level. Because parents have been found to influence their children's attitudes, subjective norms, and intentions, the moderating effects of parent communication on sexual risk behavior of adolescents …

Assimilation Into A Therapeutic Community For Substance-Abusing Women, Joni Furlong

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Therapeutic communities provide structure, support and a safe living environment for individuals attempting to recover from addiction. Using peer influence, counseling, education, self-help groups, and case management, they assist residents in conforming to social norms and developing effective coping mechanisms while remaining drug-free. Prior studies have consistently demonstrated the effectiveness of these programs. But, why are they effective for some and not others? This study explored the residents1 backgrounds and the methods employed by them to assimilate into the therapeutic community, the recovering community, and then society at large. The data confirmed my suspicion that the women's ability to conform …

The Effects Of Child Sexual Abuse And Posttraumatic Stress On Levels Of Self-Efficacy, Lary L. Anderson

Graduate Theses

Sexually abused children often develop posttraumatic stress disorder, a distressing and potentially debilitating condition that renders children to feelings of helplessness. Past studies have explored these effects in adults concerning sexual abuse, health issues, war, and natural disaster but not much research has been done for children. This study examined childhood sexual abuse, PTSD, and the relation that exists with self-efficacy. Thirty-nine children, 7 males and 32 females, participated in the study. The ages ranged from age eight through age eighteen, with a mean age of 12.5. Each participant was tested for levels of PTSD, using the Trauma Check list …

Asana To America: The Advent Of Yoga In The West, M. Popovic, Don Morrow

Donald Morrow

No abstract provided.

Caring And Treating Post – Traumatic Stress Disorder In Bosnia And Herzegovina, Colleen M. Boley

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder is a major issue whenever there is a war or natural disaster. From 1992 through 1995, Bosnia and Herzegovina was subject to one of the most destructive wars of the 20th century. The groups in Bosnia and Herzegovina that are working with posttraumatic stress disorder are investigated to see if they are truly helping people with posttraumatic stress disorder. This paper explores the ways in which posttraumatic stress disorder has affected individuals and the societies of Bosnia and Herzegovina as well as the organizations attempting to help people dealing with posttraumatic stress disorder.

Authoritarianism, Hostility Toward Women, Attitudes Toward Violence, Rape Myth Acceptance, And Sexual Aggression, Gina M. Bondi

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Almost one out of every five women has been, or will have been, the victim of sexual aggression and/or rape in their lives (National Institute of Justice, 2000). This staggering statistic exemplifies the importance of speculating which traits are related to, or are predictive of, sexually aggressive behavior. Based on previous research, the current study investigated relationships between authoritarianism, hostility toward women, attitudes toward violence, and rape myth acceptance, as related sexual aggression in undergraduate men It was projected that authoritarianism, hostility toward women, attitudes toward violence, and rape myth acceptance would significantly and positively predict all dimensions of sexual …

The Summit Series: Iconic Cornucopia Of Canadian Cultural Values, Don Morrow

Donald Morrow

No abstract provided.

Bereavement In The Modern Western World, David San Filippo Ph.D.

Faculty Publications

Bereavement is the process of suffering that follows the loss of a living being that is significant to someone. When one suffers, she or he has to endure an unpleasant experience, in the case of bereavement, the loss of something special to the person. This loss most often is a loved one but could also include the loss of a pet, relationship, or physical or mental capability. This state of suffering is called grief. In describing his grief, C. S. Lewis stated, after the loss of his wife, “No one ever told me that grief felt so much like fear. …

Bereavement In The Modern Western World, David San Filippo Ph.D.

David San Filippo Ph.D.

Bereavement is the process of suffering that follows the loss of a living being that is significant to someone. When one suffers, she or he has to endure an unpleasant experience, in the case of bereavement, the loss of something special to the person. This loss most often is a loved one but could also include the loss of a pet, relationship, or physical or mental capability. This state of suffering is called grief. In describing his grief, C. S. Lewis stated, after the loss of his wife, “No one ever told me that grief felt so much like fear. …

Dolphin-Assisted Therapy: More Flawed Data And More Flawed Conclusions, Lori Marino, Scott O. Lilienfeld

Animal-Assisted Therapy Collection

Dolphin-Assisted Therapy (DAT) is an increasingly popular choice of treatment for illness and developmental disabilities by providing participants with the opportunity to swim or interact with live captive dolphins. Two reviews of DAT (Marino and Lilienfeld [1998] and Humphries [2003]) concluded that there is no credible scientific evidence for the effectiveness of this intervention. In this paper, we offer an update of the methodological status of DAT by reviewing five peer-reviewed DAT studies published in the last eight years. We found that all five studies were methodologically flawed and plagued by several threats to both internal and construct validity. We …