Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Complex Trauma In Childhood And Its Relationship To Emotion Regulation And Distress Tolerance In College Students, Elizabeth Lombardo

USC Aiken Psychology Theses

Objective: The influence of childhood trauma has been found to be related to difficulties in emotion regulation and distress tolerance in young adulthood (Berenz et al., 2018a, 2018b). Research has shown that childhood abuse and adversities such as neglect or emotional abuse results in impaired processes related to the development of emotion regulation and efficient interpersonal skills, while also resulting in symptoms reflecting disordered affective self-regulation (Cloitre et al., 2009; Shipman, Edwards, Brown, Swisher, & Jennings, 2005; Shipman, Zeman, Penza, & Champion, 2000). Research has examined emotional regulation and distress tolerance in the context of childhood trauma but has not …

Intergenerational Continuity Of Abuse: The Relationship Between Childhood Sexual Abuse History In Adolescent Mothers And Children’S Experiences Of Maltreatment, Karli Kolsut

USC Aiken Psychology Theses

Introduction: Previous research has identified maternal history of child abuse as a predictor of their child’s experiences, otherwise known as an intergenerational continuity of abuse (ICA). Adolescent mothers have been identified as having a higher prevalence of childhood sexual, emotional, and physical abuse histories, placing their children at high risk. A prior study with the current sample found that 66% of adolescent mothers had been a victim of childhood sexual, physical, or emotional abuse and of these, 78.1% of their children reported having a history of abuse at age 18. Method: Utilizing data from the 18-year-long Notre Dame Adolescent Parenting …

Risk Factors Associated With Somatic Symptoms Following Military Sexual Trauma In Members Of The National Guard And Reserves, Chelsea J. Mcmahon

USC Aiken Psychology Theses

Objective: The purpose of the present study is to expand existing literature on risk factors that are associated with poorer physical health outcomes following incidents of Military Sexual Trauma (MST) to include both Military Sexual Harassment and Military Sexual Assault in members of the United States National Guard and Reserve.

Method: The current study used archival data collected by a research team at the Veteran Affairs Boston Healthcare System in order to identify potential factors such as gender, social support, immediate medical treatment, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, and Depression. Moderation and mediation analyses were performed to examine the association between experiences …

The Influence Of Childhood Trauma And Ptsd Symptoms On Attention And Adhd Symptoms In Adulthood: An Eeg Study, Kylie M. Jupp

USC Aiken Psychology Theses

Objective: The influence of childhood trauma on clinical and cognitive functioning, specifically attention, has a large research base. However, the majority of studies have examined response inhibition to measure attention, and very few studies have evaluated how childhood trauma influences attentional control behavior and brain activity. Additionally, I aimed to integrate the use of the Allostatic Load Theory (ALT) to examine the outcome of negative attentional outcomes through the input of traumatic stressors. I addressed the above limitation and incorporated the ALT by investigating the influence of childhood trauma, community violence, and PTSD symptoms on attention performance and brain activity …

Examining Entitlement And Antagonism As Distinguishing Features Of Narcissism, Zane M. Repp

USC Aiken Psychology Theses

Objective: In this study, I worked to examine possible core features in narcissism. Researchers largely accept that there are at least two main dimensions of narcissism, grandiosity and vulnerability. However, these two dimensions have very different presentations in individuals, with very different personality factors, interpersonal traits, and relationships to other psychopathology. This raises the question of whether grandiosity and vulnerability are two versions of the same disorder, or if they would be better understood as different pathologies. This study examines whether the features of entitlement and antagonism can be used to distinguish grandiosity and vulnerability as both unique versions of …

The Relationship Of Executive Function And Alpha Band Activity During The Eriksen Flanker Task: An Eeg Study, Destiny A. Willis

USC Aiken Psychology Theses

Objective: Neural frequencies, measured by electroencephalogram, can be indicative of certain cognitive states. One oscillation, called the alpha wave, has become a proxy for the cognitive ability related to attention. Research suggests that anxiety may result in atypical alpha oscillations when engaging in an attention task, thereby also resulting in potentially dysfunctional attentional abilities. The current study aimed to investigate the relationship between alpha wave frequency, executive function, trait anxiety symptoms, depressive symptoms, and response selection.

Method: The Eriksen flanker task was used to measure response selection, while an electroencephalogram recorded alpha brainwave activity (N = 47). This study incorporated …