Psychology Commons^™

Computer-Based Cognitive Training For Age-Related Cognitive Decline And Mild Cognitive Impairment, James Fortman

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Cognitive Training has been shown to be an effective tool in enhancing cognitive functioning. Research has also shown video game playing can improve certain aspects of visual attention and cognitive processing speed. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of both a specific computer-based cognitive training program and non-specific video game playing in improving cognitive functioning for individuals with age-related cognitive decline and mild cognitive impairment. Twenty-nine older adults were recruited into the study and randomly assigned to either the cognitive training group or video-game playing group. Nineteen participants completed the study, engaging in either cognitive training …

Passageworks: The Impact Of A Social-Emotional And Spiritual Learning Program Among Adolescents, Randi Hirschberg

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Adolescence is a crucial developmental period in one's life. Unfortunately, our nation's youth are afflicted by high rates of risky behavior and psychiatric disorders that impact their ability for a successful future. Research indicates that school-based preventative social-emotional learning (SEL) programs can play a large role in improving the lives of adolescents. Despite this, few documented SEL program evaluations have examined their applicability to the fast growing Latino population. Latinos have been identified as more vulnerable to the problems among our youth than any other group. Identifying SEL programs that hold potential for decreasing these vulnerabilities is critical. Additionally, SEL …

Clinical Implications Of Wearing A Scarlet Letter: Sex Offender Public Policy, Tracy E. Shannon

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This dissertation outlines a mixed methods research approach to evaluate the clinical implications of sex offender public policies. Background information is given regarding current public policy on sex offender civil commitment and community notification and registration, the development of public policy and the current ramifications of the Sex Offender Registration Act (SORNA), the etiology and construction of the definition of sex offenders, and a review of sex offender interventions and their impact on therapeutic outcomes. This study examines the therapeutic and anti-therapeutic effects of SORNA using a therapeutic jurisprudence framework. A discussion of the correlation between mental health symptoms and …

Is Suicide Training Sufficient For Psychology Trainees To Respond Appropriately To Suicidal Clients?, Nicole M. Bromley

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This study reports the frequency of suicide training for current psychology trainees. Additionally,the research uses the Suicide Intervention Response Inventory - Second Edition (SIRI-2) to assess psychology trainees' ability to respond appropriately to suicidal clients. This study compares scores on the SIRI-2 between participants who are in pre-internship years of training and those currently in internship or having completed internship training. Finally, this study compares SIRI-2 scores between high training, low training, and no-training groups, as well as the scores of no-training versus training groups. Findings indicate no statistically significant difference in SIRI-2 scores between participants early in their programs …

Youth And Community Development Through Rites Of Passage: A Pilot Evaluation Model, Jason R. Emery

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This project presents a pilot program evaluation model for measuring the effectiveness of rites of passage strategies for youth and community development. It begins by clarifying the key elements and meaning of modern day, community-based rites of passage experiences for youth transitioning into and through adolescence. An effective rite of passage for adolescence is an intentional and transformative process that increases the youth’s community status while supporting and challenging youth to adopt attitudes, behaviors, and skills for a healthy transition through this developmental period and beyond. Next, the project applies a systems-based program evaluation model (Wasserman, 2010) to a rite …

Therapeutic Riding: Effects On Emotional Well-Being In Adults, Jamie L. Lucas

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Therapeutic interventions with horses are increasing and utilized to treat a number of ailments, including psychological ones. Despite the growth of these interventions, there has been little research performed, particularly quantitative, to determine efficacy. One proposed benefit of therapeutic riding, a particular type of intervention involving horses, is that it enhances or improves emotional well-being. This construct has been poorly defined and operationalized in the literature. The current study sought to operationalize and measure emotional well-being using a multidimensional model. Three proposed sub-domains of emotional well-being: positive affect, life satisfaction, and self-esteem were measured in adults prior to and after …

The Other Child: Health Narratives Of Adults Raised With A Chronically Ill Sibling, Danielle Anna Hughes

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

The sibling relationship brings with it a powerful experience and unique effects on individual development. Within this paper the personal health narratives of adult siblings who grew up with a chronically ill brother or sister are explored in depth. Using a naturalistic, qualitative paradigm and approach to the research a small sample of participants (N=7) provided in depth, semi-structured interviews geared to explore their experiences growing up with their siblings, and later effects on the development of personal health narratives. Using thematic analysis, a number of themes were identified including: (a) at home: finding out, the early relationship, early environment, …

Exploring The Role Of Identity Development In Social Networking Web Pages, Jacqueline F. Stahl

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This study investigates young adults’ social networking web pages for aspects related to identity development. The study is primarily based on the theory of identity development presented by Berzonsky (1997). Raters assessed selected web pages for characteristics associated with different styles of identity development. A principal component analysis was used to determine that there are three components that relate to identity development that are manifested in the web pages. It was established that there were three main components that described aspects of identity within the social networking pages. These components were determined to be a “Self Focused Type,” an “Inconsistent …

Bracing For Idiopathic Scoliosis: Improving Adherence Through Psychological Intervention, Shoshana J. Fagen

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Poor treatment adherence is increasingly being recognized as a significant problem in pediatric medicine. For the condition Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis, poor adherence rates to the most non-surgical intervention, orthotic bracing, have become a well-established fact. This treatment modality has been correlated with multiple psychosocial areas of difficulty, including low self image, suicidal ideation, feelings of isolation, social discomfort, depression, an external locus of control, increasing risk taking behavior, high levels of stress, anger, fear, shame, and eating disorders. Since the orthotic bracing has been linked to both poor adherence and to psychosocial problems, an intervention is created to increase adherence …

Capp: A Comprehensive Preventative Program Model Addressing Alcohol Misuse Among College Freshmen, Laura Tsotsis

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Alcohol consumption by college students in the United States has increased in quantity and frequency over the past five years. With this increase, there has come evidence of a rise in negative consequences caused by alcohol misuse. To help reduce these problems, colleges and universities nationwide have begun implementing alcohol programs for their undergraduate students. The vast majority of these programs are intervention programs for students who have previously displayed dangerous drinking habits, often seen through campus judicial violations. Research shows that preventative program models, as compared to intervention programs, provide longer lasting changes in individuals and groups. Thus, a …

Assessing Numeracy In Oncology: The Role Of Patient Perception And Preferences, Jennifer Kilkus Poe

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Treatment decision making (TDM) in oncology is complex. Understanding treatment information is essential for shared TDM. Research suggests many patients have low numeracy. This mixed methods study explored numeracy and experience with numbers in a sample of individuals diagnosed with follicular lymphoma. Participants completed questionnaires (N = 32) and interviews (N = 20) assessing numeracy, decisional conflict and regret, and number preference. Results suggest that mean objective numeracy was relatively high, and most reported high confidence in numerical ability. Most participants preferred to receive numbers during the TDM process. There was no relationship between numeracy and decision outcomes. Future research …

Do High School Peer Crowd Affiliation And Peer Alcohol Use Predict Alcohol Use During College?, Jacqueline A. Bonsu

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Peer crowd affiliation (PCA) has been linked to alcohol use in adolescents, with patterns varying by crowd. However, a comprehensive examination of how peers influence college students’ behaviors, especially with regards to PCA, is lacking. The current study seeks to replicate and extend findings from Barber, Eccles, and Stone (2001) by examining whether high school PCA is associated with average weekly drinking and problematic drinking in a sample of college freshman, including friends’ drinking as a potential mediator and susceptibility to peer influence as a potential moderator. As existing research has found that close friends’ drinking predicts own drinking, peer …

Chronic Orofacial Pain Influences Self-Regulation In A Rodent Model, Tracey Christine Kniffin

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Self-regulation is the capacity to exert control over cognition, emotion, behavior, and physiology. Since chronic pain interferes with the ability to self-regulate, the primary goal of this study was to examine, in rodents, the effects of chronic pain on self-regulation processes. Sixteen male Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into two groups: (1) chronic constriction injury of the infraorbital nerve (CCI-ION) and (2) naïve. Testing confirmed that CCI-ION animals had significant mechanical allodynia compared to naïve animals (p<0.001). A two-part self-regulation behavioral paradigm consisting of a cued go/no-go task and a subsequent persistence task was developed based on human paradigms. In the cued task, both groups made fewer incorrect lever presses in post-surgery trials (p<0.001); naive animals had a greater decrease in number of incorrect presses than CCI-ION animals (p=0.06). Similarly, both groups had a larger correct to total lever presses ratio in post-surgery trials (p<0.001); naïve animals had a greater increase than CCI-ION animals (p=0.06). In the persistence task, naïve animals experienced a greater decrease in lever presses (p=0.08) than did CCI-ION animals (p=0.66). These results suggest that animals experiencing chronic pain were not able to learn as well as naïve animals, and may have difficulty responding to novel environmental demands.

Shame And Borderline Personality Features: The Potential Mediating Role Of Anger And Anger Rumination, Jessica R. Peters

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Two prominent emotions in borderline personality disorder (BPD) are anger and shame. Rumination has been demonstrated to occur in response to shame and to escalate anger, and rumination, particularly anger rumination, has been shown to predict BPD symptoms. The present study examined whether one way that shame leads to the features of BPD is via increased anger and anger rumination. A sample of 823 undergraduates completed self-report measures of global and situational shame, trait- level anger, anger'rumination, and BPD features. A structural equation model was constructed using these measures. The hypothesized model of shame to anger and anger rumination to …

Empirically Guided Case Conceptualization Of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder With The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 Restructured Form (Mmpi-2-Rf) In A Forensic Disability Evaluation, Lauren Vines, Roger Gervais, Dustin Wygant

Dustin B. Wygant

The following article discusses how the Restructured Form of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI -2-RF; Ben-Porath & Tellegen, 2008) can be used in case conceptualizations for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), particularly in compensation seeking settings. We review contemporary conceptualizations of PTSD, particularly emphasizing the role that affect and personality in regards to etiology of the disorder, as well as different manifestations of the disorder. We then review the case of an individual seeking compensation for trauma related disability performed by the third author. Particular emphasis is placed on examining how interpretation of the MMPI-2-RFprofile is guided by empirical findings.

Brushed-Off Testimony, Stanley Brodsky, Dustin Wygant

Dustin B. Wygant

In line with years of tradition, soldiers young and old come together at the local pub or hall to swap war stories of time in the trenches. For the forensic clinician, the trenches represent the hard-fought battles during expert testimony. As it turns out, our pub was a social gathering at the 2012 meeting of the American Psychology Law Society in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The University of Alabama Psychology Law Program hosted a social gathering for its faculty, graduate students, alumni, and friends to come together and share stories and camaraderie. It was in this setting that we launched …

Child Custody Evaluations: Ethical, Scientific, And Practice Considerations, Robert Archer, Dustin Wygant

Dustin B. Wygant

Child custody evaluations are among the most difficult of forensic evaluations. The current paper examines differences between custody evaluations and other types of psychological and forensic evaluations. We also discuss important ethical issues regarding these evaluations and review the typical components of a custody evaluation, with particular attention on psychological testing as a component of custody evaluations. We then discuss the role ofresearch in informing the interpretation of the evaluation data and provide a complete sample custody evaluation report to illustrate several points from the manuscript.

Racial/Ethnic Differences In Depressive Symptoms And Treatment Effect Among Patients With Myocardial Infarction From The Enhancing Recovery In Coronary Heart Disease (Enrichd) Trial, Hsin-Hua C. Lin

H. Cynthia Lin

No abstract provided.

Interpersonal Pathoplasticity In The Course Of Major Depression, Nicole M. Cain, Emily B. Ansell, Aidan G. C. Wright, Christopher J. Hopwood, Katherine M. Thomas, Anthony Pinto, John C. Markowitz, Charles A. Sanislow, Mary C. Zanarini, M. Tracie Shea, Leslie C. Morey, Thomas H. Mcglashan, Andrew E. Skodol, Carlos M. Grilo

Charles A. Sanislow, Ph.D.

Objective: The identification of reliable predictors of course in major depressive disorder (MDD) has been difficult. Evidence suggests that the co-occurrence of personality pathology is associated with longer time to MDD remission. Interpersonal pathoplasticity, the mutually influencing nonetiological relationship between psychopathology and interpersonal traits, offers an avenue for examining specific personality vulnerabilities that may be associated with depressive course. Method: This study examined 312 participants with and without a cooccurring personality disorder diagnosis who met criteria for a current MDD episode at baseline and who were followed for 10 years in the Collaborative Longitudinal Personality Disorders Study. Results: Latent profile …

26. “How Did You Feel?”: Increasing Child Sexual Abuse Witnesses’ Production Of Evaluative Information., Thomas D. Lyon, Nicholas Scurich, Karen Choi, Sally Handmaker, Rebecca Blank

Thomas D. Lyon

Ohio Student Social Skills Training Program Is Very Successful, David Volosin, Oscar T. Mcknight, John Sikula

Oscar T McKnight Ph.D.

This article reports on research conducted in the Parma City Schools, Ohio by The Society for Prevention of Violence (SPV). The SPV is dedicated to reducing the prevalence of violent acts and asocial behaviors of children and adults through education. It accomplishes this mission by teaching children and adults the use of the skills necessary to build their character. Findings suggest that the SPV program improves the ability of children within class to pay attention and be organized. The greatest improved social behaviors for participants were in helping others who are having trouble; increased ability to initiate positive interactions; and, …