Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Bisexuality, Biphobia, And Its Effects On Sexual Identity, Religious Identity And Mental Health: Examining Clinical Implications, Diana Ramirez

Dissertations

Bisexuality is a sexual orientation, sometimes known as “bi,” that includes sexuality in which certain people are attracted to more than one sex and gender. Bisexuality differs from other sexual- and gender-nonconforming experiences (McInnis et al., 2022). According to Ross et al. (2018), bisexuality is frequently described as an invisible sexual orientation, and only in the last 20 years has research on biphobia and bisexuality increased (McInnis et al., 2022). Experiences unique to bisexuality include bisexual invisibility from a societal level (Dyar et al., 2015), bisexuals are more prone to experience sexual orientation instability (Bostwick et al., 2014), and bisexual …

Recentering Psych Stats, Lynette Bikos

Faculty Open Access Books

To center a variable in regression means to set its value at zero and interpret all other values in relation to this reference point. Regarding race and gender, researchers often center male and White at zero. Further, it is typical that research vignettes in statistics textbooks are similarly seated in a White, Western (frequently U.S.), heteronormative, framework. ReCentering Psych Stats seeks provide statistics training for psychology students (undergraduate, graduate, and post-doctoral) in a socially and culturally responsive way. All lessons use the open-source statistics program, R (and its associated packages). Each lesson includes a chapter and screencasted lesson, features a …

Gender As An Environmental Stressor In Individuals Genetically Predisposed To Mood Disorders: A Preliminary Analysis, Kara West

Audre Lorde Writing Prize

Given the recent ‘epidemic’ of mental health disorders, we urgently need to better understand who is suffering and how. One aspect of this that research has come closer to identifying is where symptoms and diagnoses are missed in certain individuals, especially based on gender. However, if certain genders are actually more likely to deal with certain disorders we need to understand why and where that comes from. There is a general consensus in the medical field that some individuals are simply genetically predisposed to various disorders based on sex, but there is limited evidence that sex actually determines genetic predisposition. …

Social Exclusion And Negative Affect: The Impact Of Mentalized Affectivity, Anna Voicu

Honors Program Theses

Social exclusion has been widely associated with feelings of anxiety, depressed mood, anger, and hostility. Previous literature indicates that mentalized affectivity (MA), a sophisticated form of emotional regulation, may be effective in mitigating emotional experience after social exclusion. In light of this research, our study sought to examine the predictive value of mentalized affectivity and inclusion/exclusion on emotion. Participants (N = 170) completed measures of mentalized affectivity and positive and negative affect, in addition to playing a virtual ball-tossing game that would randomly assign them to an inclusion or exclusion condition. Multiple regression analyses revealed that mentalized affectivity predicted both …

Trauma Exposure And Transdiagnostic Distress: Examining Shared And Ptsd-Specific Associations, Michael L. Crowe, Sage E. Hawn, Erika J. Wolf, Terence M. Keane, Brian P. Marx

Psychology Faculty Publications

Dimensional models of psychopathology suggest that the causes and consequences of psychopathology are attributable to a combination of syndrome specific and transdiagnostic features. There is considerable evidence that trauma exposure confers risk for a wide range of psychiatric conditions, yet no previous work has specifically examined the higher-order effects of trauma exposure within a structural model. We examined transdiagnostic and PTSD-specific associations with multiple forms of trauma exposure within a nation-wide sample (N = 1,649; 50% female) of military Veterans over-selected for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). A higher-order Distress variable was estimated using PTSD, major depressive disorder (MDD), and generalized …

"I Just Want To Be Me, Authentically": Identity Shifting Among Racially And Ethnically Diverse Young Adults, Aerika Brittian Loyd, Dulce Wilkinson Westberg, Lenisha Williams, Marisha Humphries, Alan Meca, Julie Carmen Rodil

Psychology Faculty Publications

Identity shifting represents a common but complex social, behavioral, and cognitive phenomenon. However, some forms of identity shifting originate in response to structural, institutional, and interpersonal marginalization enacted on lower status groups, such as people of color in the United States. The current study investigated ways young adults from diverse ethnic/racial groups discussed shifting to fit in with White Americans (a dominant group) in the United States and their own ethnic/racial group (a minoritized group) and elucidated self-reported motivations for shifting. Participants consisted of 764 young adults (ages = 18–23) recruited from two large public universities in the Southeast and …

Growing Therapeutic Horticulture In The Field Of Clinical Psychology, Kelli Woodson

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

The connection between nature and well-being has been recognized across cultures for centuries. One way in which people have facilitated this connection over the years has been through their interactions with plants and the practice of horticulture. Research over the years has further substantiated a connection between horticultural practices and overall well-being. However, a significantly disproportionate amount of this research has been conducted within the field of clinical psychology, despite the notable clinical implications. The current dissertation aims to address this gap in the current literature by exploring this connection from the lens of clinical psychology. More specifically, the current …

School Related Criminal Acts, Interpersonal Problems, And Classroom Behaviors As A Function Of The Proportion Of Black Students And Black Teachers, Leanne Zaire

Clinical Psychology Dissertations

This study’s purpose was to investigate school-level behavioral outcomes in relation to the proportion of Black teachers and students in U.S. schools. Negative school outcome and academic achievement gaps are well-documented. However, many of these studies utilized small, localized populations; my research used national data and focused on the problem behaviors in school. Drawing from Critical Race Theory, I hypothesized that a greater proportion of Black teachers would reduce school student problems and negative behaviors (e.g., student verbal abuse of teachers, widespread disorder in classrooms). After receiving a restricted-use license, I utilized data from 25,818 schools from the National Teacher …

Building Bridges: A Brief School Readiness Intervention Designed To Guide Families Transitioning From Early Head Start To Head Start, Katherine A. Zambrana

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The transition into the early school years is a salient developmental milestone, which lays the groundwork for later school success. Parent involvement in children’s development and early learning experiences has been widely examined and identified as a strong predictor of children’s school readiness. Therefore, promoting positive parent involvement during the early school years and during developmental transitions is key to children’s later school success. Recognizing the importance of early school success, several programs have been developed to support children and families in the transition to kindergarten. Yet, as early as preschool, a number of children display significant behavioral and academic …

The Deaf Community And Their Preferences In A Clinical Psychological Setting, Alexandra Alonso

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The focus of this study was to examine the Deaf community and their preferences for both a psychologist and the language utilized in a clinical psychological setting. The study gave each participant a mock profile for a psychologist and then asked participants to answer questions on their perceptions of the psychologist provided. A total of 22 participants who identified as Deaf, deaf, hard-of-hearing, or as an individual with hearing loss were surveyed. Results indicated that participants randomly assigned to the Deaf psychologist had higher rates of satisfaction and trust over participants who were assigned to other psychologists. The study also …

“It’S Right Below The Surface”: Clinicians’ Experiences Of Shame In Therapy Work With Adult Clients With Body Shame, Body Image Concerns, Or Eating Disorder(S), Tess Carroll Keeley

Graduate School of Professional Psychology: Doctoral Papers and Masters Projects

Shame–understood as a feeling in which one believes that they are inadequate, or wrong to their core–is a painful emotional experience that seems to be at the crux of many mental health concerns. Despite the pervasiveness of shame as an emotional experience, little research has demonstrated if shame is a clinical theme in therapy, and if so, how it is identified and treated. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore if, and how, shame manifests during therapy sessions with clients who are experiencing eating disorders and/or body image concerns. A secondary purpose was to discover how clinicians’ training …

Contributions Of Social Support To Mitigate The Impact Of The Covid-19 Pandemic On Pediatric Depressive And Irritability Symptoms, Alexandra Mactavish

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Prior research, including my initial research on the mental health of children inSouthwestern Ontario, highlighted the broad, widespread impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health of adults, children, and youth, globally, including the potential for social support to attenuate the harmful impact of the pandemic. Social support, one’s belief that others will help in times of need, may protect against the impact of myriad life stressors on the development of psychopathology. The present study examines the potential for social support to mitigate the longitudinal impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on children’s irritability and depressive symptoms. Families (N = …

Tolerance To Psychostimulant Medication Among Children With Adhd, Fiona Macphee

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Medication is the most commonly received treatment for childhood Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) with 90% of children with ADHD having received it at some point in their lives (Danielson et al., 2018). Central Nervous System (CNS) stimulant medication is a well-established short-term treatment for childhood ADHD (Pliszka, 2007). However, there is little support in the literature for long-term benefit of psychostimulants. One possible explanation for this lack of sustained effect is the development of tolerance to the drug. The current study aimed to examine possible evidence of short-term tolerance to stimulant medication, methylphenidate (MPH). Additionally, we investigated previous stimulant medication treatment …

Information Seeking Behavior And Mental Health Service Utilization: Using Big Data Tools To Examine Temporal Trends And Geographic Variations In Adhd, Xin Zhao

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Persistently low rates of children’s mental health service utilization have inspired close examination of barriers to care that point to sociodemographic and geographic disparities. Information science points to socioeconomic disparities in health information seeking (access and need) that may decrease corresponding to increasing rates of online searching in underserved communities. Three specific aims were examined: Aim 1. Examine changes in information seeking over time; Aim 2. Examine geographical variations of online searches; Aim 3. Examine the connection between state-level information-seeking variations and individual diagnoses.

The dissertation uses publicly available data and big data methods (i.e., time series analyses, machine learning …

Signifiers Still Matter: The Relevance Of "On An Ex Post Facto Syllabary" For Therapy Today, Yael Goldman Baldwin

Middle Voices

No abstract provided.

The Integration Of Roman Catholic Traditions And Evidence-Based Psychological Services, Thomas G. Plante

Psychology

The Roman Catholic Church is the largest, and most enduring continuous organization, secular or religious, of any kind in the world with a 2,000-plus-year history. It currently includes well over a billion people. Regardless of its size, scope, history, and impact, the Roman Catholic Church is often greatly misunderstood and people frequently maintain stereotypic and even discriminatory views about Catholics and their clerical leaders. The purpose of this article is to present the integration of the Roman Catholic tradition into psychological assessment and therapy and to provide several examples of this integration. The article highlights how this integration can be …

Exploring Emotion Regulation And Altruism When Experiencing Compassion Fatigue From Humanitarian Crises, Including Covid- 19., Saniya Tabani

Theses and Dissertations

Despite knowledge of devastating statistics, it has been observed that when hundreds, or even millions are suffering in large-scale crises, including genocides, refugee crises, and more recently, the COVID-19 pandemic, humans seem unable to process and comprehend the magnitude of that suffering on an emotional level. While the expectation is that compassion should increase proportionally with the number of people suffering in catastrophes, prior research has shown a negative relationship such that as need increases, donations decrease. Some factors that may impact this include the identifiable victim effect, use of emotion regulation strategies, specific cognitive processing styles, and compassion fatigue. …

Assessment Of Psychological Functioning In Retired Firefighters, Jordana Simone Pepper

Theses and Dissertations

The past decade has witnessed a significant increase in clinical attention directed to mental health problems in firefighters. The basis for heightened activity in this area is the convergence of evidence indicating that firefighters demonstrate significantly high levels of psychological disorders such as depression and PTSD (Henderson et al., 2016). A previously unexplored risk factor for psychopathology in firefighters is active retirement. Retirement can lead to a decline in psychological functioning, as well as a decline in a person’s self-concept clarity through group loss (Slotter, Winter & Soto, 2015). This loss has the potential to cause, or enhance, feelings of …

The Availability Of Training Opportunities In Personality Disorders In American Psychological Association- And Psychological Clinical Science Accreditation System-Accredited Clinical And Counseling Psychology Doctoral Programs, K. N. Levy, William D. Ellison

Psychology Faculty Research

Personality disorders are relatively common, especially in clinical settings. A number of evidence-based treatments are now available, especially for borderline personality disorder. However, little is known about the relevant training available to doctoral students in clinical and counseling psychology. in the current study, data were extracted from 336 clinical and counseling Ph.D. and Psy.D. programs from the Insider’s Guide to Graduate Programs in Clinical and Counseling Psychology (Norcross & Sayette, 2020), including the number of programs with faculty with specific interests in personality disorders and the number of programs with clinical opportunities related to personality disorders. We found that formal …

Examining The Ecological Validity Of The Power Of Food Scale, Lindsay M. Howard, Kristin E. Heron, Kathryn E. Smith, Ross D. Crosby, Scott G. Engel, Stephen A. Wonderlich, Tyler B. Mason

Psychology Faculty Publications

Purpose

Appetite for palatable foods may impact eating-related behaviors in everyday life. The present study evaluated the real-world predictive validity of the Power of Food Scale (PFS) using ecological momentary assessment (EMA).

Methods

30 women who reported binge eating completed the PFS and related measures. Subsequently, during a 14-day assessment period, participants completed five daily EMA surveys of appetite and binge eating via text message and web.

Results

Results of generalized estimating equations showed that higher PFS scores were associated with higher momentary levels of hunger, eagerness to eat, and urge to eat but were unrelated to fullness, preoccupation with …

Psychological, Behavioral, And Interpersonal Effects And Clinical Implications For Health Systems Of The Coronavirus (Covid-19) Pandemic: A Call For Research, Gianluca Castelnuovo, Andrea De Giorgio, Gian Mauro Manzoni, Darren C. Treadway, Changiz Mohiyeddini

Articles & Book Chapters

The novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) emerged at the end of 2019 and was classified as a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO) on March 11, 2020. Both the COVID-19 emergency and the extraordinary measures to contain it have negatively affected the life of billions of people and have threatened individuals and nations. One of the main goals of clinical and health psychology during this pandemic is to investigate the behavioral, cognitive, emotional, and psychobiological responses to the COVID-19 emergency as well as to the preventive measures that have been imposed by governments to limit the contagion, such as social …

Taking It To Heart: Trauma And Cardiovascular Risk In Court-Involved People Of Color, Tanya Erazo

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Research supports that racial disparities in health persist in the United States, with cardiovascular risk and cardiovascular disease remaining particularly high in low-income, communities of color (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2013; Winkleby, Jatulis, Frank, & Fortmann, 1992). Public health literature often focuses on sociodemographic variables when assessing for health disparities without considering trauma or forensic populations. This dissertation provides an overview of literature that examines cardiovascular disease and its relationship to trauma, particularly in low-income, communities of color, and forensic populations. Although the dissertation culminates in providing results for an investigation …

Dark Tetrad Responses To Moral Dilemmas, Kayli Wrenn

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The Dark Tetrad consists of four socially malevolent personality traits: psychopathy, sadism, narcissism, and Machiavellianism. The current study assessed the relationships among each dimension of the Dark Tetrad and moral decision making using sacrificial moral dilemma vignettes. Participants (n = 212 undergraduates) completed two measures of each of the four Dark Tetrad constructs then read a series of 16 sacrificial moral dilemma vignettes. These dilemmas manipulated whether the participant would personally perform the sacrifice and described either the disgusting or sad emotional consequences of the sacrifice. After each vignette, participants rated the moral rightness/wrongness, moral permissibility, and behavioral intention to …

Building Resilience Through Culturally Grounded Practices In Clinical Psychology And Higher Education, Catarina Campbell, Phyu Pannu Khin

The Vermont Connection

There is no “one size fits all” approach when it comes to the process of healing, particularly for individuals who are continuously affected by the many barriers and impacts of systemic oppres- sion. This reality demands the sustained development of a praxis rooted in trauma-informed and culturally grounded care so that we may better serve our most-impacted communities (such as Black, Indigenous and People of Color [BIPOC], disability, queer, and survivor communities). As practitioners in the fields of Clinical Psychology and Higher Education, we engage in cross-disciplinary analysis so that we may amplify and share our tools for collective healing. …

Psychometric Analyses Of A Comprehensive Neuropsychological Battery For Retired Nfl Players, Kimberly Ethridge Fitzgibbon

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined psychometric properties of the NFL Concussion Battery used to examine neuropsychological functioning in retired NFL players who were part of the NFL’s concussion settlement. This battery assesses multiple areas of cognitive functioning; executive functioning, language, processing speed, attention and memory. The study included 117 participants who were male with at least 16 years of education. The sample was 75.9% African-American and average age was 47. All participants completed the entire battery and passed the majority of effort measures. Those that did not pass the majority of effort measures or complete the entire battery were excluded.

T-test analyses …

The Effects Of Sleep Restriction On Biological, Psychological, And Neurocognitive Measures Of Health, Margaret S. Lorenzetti

Theses and Dissertations

Chronic sleep restriction impacts a significant proportion of the population, even though health is optimized following a minimum of seven hours of sleep. A preponderance of the literature examining the effects of sleep loss focuses on males and total sleep deprivation. Sleep restriction paradigms provide more ecological validity, as they are more consistent with sleep loss characterized in epidemiological studies. Moreover, enhancing the understanding of sleep loss among women, who are generally the gender most likely to encounter negative health as a result of poor sleep quality, is crucial. Thus, this investigation aimed to examine sleep restriction amongst a female …

Breaking Away: The Role Of Homeostatic Drive In Perpetuating Depression, Jonathan Tory Toole

Theses and Dissertations

The brain can be considered a complicated system of feedback mechanisms that maintain physiological homeostasis. Through psychological activity, neurochemicals act as homeostatic regulators. This study proposes that these components are part of a regulatory system that is capable of supporting multiple homeostatic regimes that, in turn, give rise to self-sustaining psychological behaviors. This project hypothesizes that such alternate regulatory programs may play a role in perpetuating psychological dysfunction. Interactions within and between components of the neurotransmitter network are represented as a set of discrete logic circuits. Neurotransmitter levels are linked to psychological constructs such as depression based on current literature. …

Uncovering The Depression Treatment Gap: The Role Of Motivation To Change, God Image, And Religious Affiliation, Cyrus Chiasson

Master's Theses

Research analyzing factors that are indicative of treatment seeking for depression is warranted. In the United States, approximately 70% of individuals with depression do not receive treatment. The aim of the current study is to evaluate motivation to change, God image, and religious affiliation as predictors of current treatment engagement for depression. Motivation to change has previously been evaluated as a predictor of treatment outcome for depression but not as a predictor of current treatment engagement. Additionally, previous research indicates religious involvement is associated with less depressive symptomology but is in turn related to negative views towards mental health treatment …

Examining The Use Of Hebephilia And Paraphilia Non-Consent In Sexually Violent Predator (Svp) Evaluations, Nicole Graham

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Sexually violent predator (SVP) legislation requires, in part, that an individual has a mental abnormality which causes difficulty in controlling sexual behavior. Previous research has found paraphilia not otherwise specified (NOS) to be one of the most prevalent diagnoses proffered in SVP evaluations. Since these studies, however, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) has updated the paraphilia NOS diagnosis in two ways. First, this diagnosis has been divided into two new diagnoses—other specified paraphilic disorder (OSPD) and unspecified paraphilic disorder. Second, OSPD requires an added specifier to indicate the individual’s source of sexual arousal. To date, no study has systematically …

Relationship Of Proximal Predictors Of Success In A Psyd Program On Alumni Distal Factors, Nicole Fontenot Ford

Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)

Due to the new Standards of Accreditation (SoA) by the American Psychological Association (APA), implemented in 2017, there is minimal research to evaluate how proximal competency factors within clinical psychology programs relate to distal outcomes of alumni. This study consisted of 65 doctoral psychology graduates who completed an APA alumni survey 2 and 5 years after graduation. Findings showed strong positive relationships between faculty mentoring, foundational knowledge, program support and clinical training. Results showed proximal factors of faculty mentoring significantly predicted graduates would be employed as psychologists, while program support (peers and faculty) significantly predicted lifelong learning of alumni. Career …