Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Identifying The Trauma Recovery Needs Of Maltreated Children: An Examination Of Child Welfare Workers' Effectiveness In Screening For Traumatic Stress, Adrienne Whitt-Woosley

Theses and Dissertations--Social Work

Children in the child welfare system comprise a group characterized by their exposure to trauma via experiences of maltreatment, under circumstances presenting multiple risk factors for traumatic stress. High rates of posttraumatic stress have been observed in this population. However, there is currently no standard for the universal screening of children in child welfare for trauma exposure and traumatic stress. The purpose of this study was to analyze the trauma experiences of a sample of maltreated children and examine whether child welfare workers are effective screeners of traumatic stress symptoms with children from their caseloads. Method: A sample of children …

Utility Of The Caars Validity Scales In Identifying Feigned Adhd, Random Responding, And Genuine Adhd In A College Sample, Brittany D. Walls

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Due to increased concern about malingered self-report of symptoms of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in college students, there is a need for instruments that can detect feigning. The present study provided further validation data for a recently developed validity scale for the Conners’ Adult ADHD Rating Scale (CAARS), the CAARS Infrequency Index (CII). The sample consisted of 139 undergraduate students; 21 individuals with diagnoses of ADHD, 29 individuals responding honestly, 54 individuals responding randomly (full or half), and 35 individuals assigned to malinger. The CII demonstrated modest sensitivity to malingering (.31-.46) and excellent specificity to ADHD (.91-.95). Sequential application of validity …

Validity Of Immediate Post-Concussion Assessment And Cognitive Testing (Impact), Lisa Mason Koehl

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Sports concussions have been recognized as significant injuries among young athletes with research demonstrating that return-to-play prior to becoming asymptomatic can have significant repercussions, including risk of sustaining cognitive deficits. In tracking and monitoring concussions during sports seasons, many programs have begun utilizing computerized testing rather than traditional neuropsychological tests to 1) determine baseline scores, 2) track symptoms, and 3) measure cognitive deficits following concussion.

Immediate Post-Concussion Assessment and Cognitive Testing (ImPACT) is one such instrument. The current study examined ImPACT’s convergent, discriminant, and diagnostic validity by comparing scores from post-concussion athletes (SPORT) to those from non-concussed controls (CONT). SPORT …

An Alternative Approach To The Singer's Breath: Method And Workshop, Bradley S. Williard

Theses and Dissertations--Music

This research endeavors to stretch the boundaries of vocal training, a field defined by its century-old techniques and teachings, to include the cultivation of a relationship with the breath, body, and Self. The paper reviews the contributions of Ilse Middendorf and Carl Stough’s work with the breath and body and outlines a new method, Unlock Your Breath (UYB) – Performance Breathwork, which integrates the greatest strengths of those methods. UYB Performance Breathwork teaches the singer’s breath as a way towards deeper embodiment of Self (mind-body-voice relationship), while creating a stronger breath-body-voice connection with minimum effort and maximum efficiency. This …

Deep Brain Stimulation For Parkinson's Disease: An Investigation Of Post-Surgical Self-Regulation And Executive Functioning, Hannah L. Combs

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Parkinson’s Disease (PD) is a common neurodegenerative disorder that attacks the basal ganglia and contributes to a range of motor, cognitive, and behavioral impairments (e.g., tremor, rigidity, and executive dysfunction). This dysfunction may contribute to self-regulatory impairment across several domains, including cognitive skills, thought processes, and emotion. Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) is a neurosurgical procedure that allows for direct and reversible manipulation of brain activity in patients with PD. The procedure is growing in popularity and is commonly used as an adjunct or in some instances an alternative to dopaminometic medications. Preliminary studies suggest mild executive dysfunction follows DBS but …

Understanding Alcohol Use Trajectories From Adolescence To Young Adulthood: A Bioecological Approach, Jacqueline A. Bonsu

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

The current study sought to better understand how alcohol use patterns develop over the transition to young adulthood by taking a bioecological approach in examining the joint influence of contextual and individual factors on drinking behaviors. Using a longitudinal design to include many factors that likely play key roles in this highly sensitive developmental period (e.g., peer norms, social activities, personality traits, access and exposure to substances), both mean levels of these variables and their change over time were considered in relation to alcohol use trajectories (AUTs). Participants were 525 students ages 18 to 25 recruited from the introductory psychology …

Ovarian Hormones, Adhd, Risk-Taking, & Impulsivity, Bethan A. Roberts

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a highly impairing disorder of inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity that is more frequently diagnosed in males versus females at a ratio of 3:1. However, females with the disorder become highly impaired during adolescence, perhaps due to the onset of cycling ovarian hormones at puberty. The present study empirically assessed the role of the major female sex hormones, estrogen and progesterone, in the presentation of ADHD symptoms, impulsivity, and associated risk-taking behaviors (e.g., risky sex, substance use and abuse) in a non-clinical sample of young adult women. 32 healthy young adult women who were screened for hormonal …

Decision-Making Processes, Driving Performance, And Acute Responses To Alcohol In Dui Offenders, Walter Roberts

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Alcohol-impaired driving is a major cause of motor vehicle accident and death in the United States. People who are arrested for DUI (Driving under the Influence) are at high risk to reoffend; approximately one in three of these individuals will commit another DUI offense in the three years following their first conviction (Nochajski & Stasiewicz, 2006). This high risk for recidivism in these individuals suggests that cognitive characteristics may contribute to a pattern of pathological decision making leading to impaired driving. Indeed, individuals with a history of DUI report higher rates of impulsiveness and behavioral dysregulation compared to their nonoffending …

Investigating The Role Of Social Support, Cardiovascular Reactivity, And Self-Regulation Skills Training In Response To Thermal Stimuli, Tracey Christine Kniffin

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Persistent pain conditions are a major health problem throughout the world and are one of the primary reasons that people seek medical treatment (Gureje, Von Korff, Simon, & Gater, 1998; Verhaak, Kerssens, Dekker, Sorbi, & Bensing, 1998). These conditions are characterized by complex interactions between cognitive, emotional, and physiological disturbances and are often associated with comorbid psychological disorders (Gatchel, 2004). Though previous studies have examined the effect of interventions targeting persistent pain, such as physical self-regulation interventions, few studies have examined the complex interaction between such interventions and other variables such as psychological and physiological …

How Therapists Use And Choose Mindfulness To Treat Trauma, Jessica M. King

Theses and Dissertations--Family Sciences

This qualitative study used the phenomenological method to examine how therapists use mindfulness therapies and interventions to address trauma-salient issues with their clients. Specifically, it explored therapists’ use of and choices about mindfulness-based treatments when addressing post-traumatic stress symptoms, and trauma-relevant emotion dysregulation and attachment injury. Informants were associate and fully-licensed local therapists, recruited using convenience sampling and snowball sampling by word-of-mouth referrals. Data was collected by semi-structured interviewing. Interview data was analyzed with Moustakas’ (1994) recommended procedures for analysis of phenomenological data. Results, Discussion, Limitations and Suggestions for Future Research are described at the end.