Psychology Commons^™

Social Media & Mental Health: An Examination Of Tiktok & Mental Health Outcomes, Jessica Maddox

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The goal of this research study was to examine the relationship between amount of Tiktok use and the results of various mental health scales. The hypothesis was that increased Tiktok use would be correlated with a decrease in self-esteem, and an increase in depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, and overall loneliness. Participants were recruited on Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk) and paid a small monetary benefit in exchange for completion of the study. There were a total of 285 participants. Correlations and linear regression analysis were used to determine statistical significance; results showed no statistical significance and none of the hypotheses were …

Lifetime Cannabis Use Is Associated With Suicidal Ideation And Non-Suicidal Self Injury, Diamonde Mccollum, Katie Moskal, Jenni Teeters

Student Research Conference Select Presentations

Poster regarding cannabis use.

The current study hypothesized lifetime cannabis use frequency would be linked to greater risk of lifetime suicidal ideation, lifetime suicide attempts and lifetime non-suicidal self injury.

The Prevalence Of Mirror Gazing Behaviors In Men, Rutuja Pramod Chinchankar

Dissertations

Muscle Dysmorphia is when the individual is preoccupied with the idea that his or her body build is too small or insufficiently muscular. This study looked at the distinct criteria of MD, which is persistently and obsessively checking one’s appearance in the mirror and being dissatisfied with it. It studied the reasons behind these repetitive mirror-gazing behaviors. This study also attempted to understand the effect of an individual’s age, educational background, religious orientation, sexual orientation, and socio-economic status on his predisposition to MD via mirror-gazing behaviors. This study used a qualitative research design. Part I of the study included participants …

Investigating If Changes In Cannabis Expectancies Mediate Driving After Cannabis Use Intervention Outcomes, Sarah Nicole Elder

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Driving after cannabis use (DACU) has become an increasing public health concern specifically for the states that have legalized cannabis use. In a 2018 survey, 4.7% of U.S. residents reported driving while impaired by cannabis (Azofeifa et al., 2019). Previous research suggests that several skills are impaired following cannabis use, such as increased lane weaving, slowed reaction time, and distorted perceptions about external stimuli. This effect was seen to extend to frequent cannabis users who also demonstrated driving impairments despite heightened cannabis tolerance (Hartman & Huestis, 2013). With the increase in DACU it is crucial to understand the factors that …

Clinicians' Use Of Mhealth Applications In Interventions For Substance Use Disorders, James Daniel Bender

Dissertations

The purpose of the study was to examine how clinicians are identifying, evaluating, and utilizing mHealth apps as treatment adjuncts with their clients who have a substance use disorder. A sample of 93 participants (20 males, 72 females, and 1 not listed) completed measures of demographics and inquiries about their use and evaluation of mHealth apps in their practices. Clinicians who work at mental health centers and private practicing clinicians were recruited. The majority of the sample (71%) reported that they had not utilized mHealth apps with their clients who have a substance use disorder diagnosis. Participants who have attended …

Examining Treatment Acceptability Of An Eight-Week Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Protocol, Blake William Palmer

Dissertations

The goal of this study is to examine whether levels of perceived stress, experiential avoidance, personality traits including openness to experience and agreeableness, and demographic variables will predict the treatment acceptability (indicated by responses on the Treatment Acceptability and Adherence Scale) of an eight-week Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) program. This study collected data in the Spring of 2019. The final number of participants in the study was 116 (40 females, 76 males, Mage = 36, age range: 22-69 years). Participants completed measures including the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), Acceptance and Action Questionnaire-II (AAQ-II), the agreeableness and openness to Experience domains …

Investigating Social Support As A Moderator Of The Association Between Adverse Childhood Experiences And Alcohol Use And Problems, Sterling Mckenzie Hubbard

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Unresolved childhood trauma, known as adverse childhood experiences (ACES), have been found previously to lead to a plethora of health disparities and increase the risk for problematic substance use, particularly alcohol use. However, protective factors, such as social support have been found to buffer against these consequences. The goal of this study was to highlight the connection between ACES and problematic alcohol use. Additionally, the aim was to investigate perceived social support as a moderator between ACES and problematic alcohol use and to examine the domains of social support and how they individually moderate the association between ACES and social …

The Effect Of The Pura Vida Lifestyle On Mental Health In Costa Rica, Gabrielle Sledge

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Costa Rica’s unofficial slogan “Pura Vida” (“Pure Life”) encapsulates how its people, Ticos, live. Ticos are known as a peaceful, homogenous people but a lack of mental health research limits assessment of Tico mental health status. The purpose of this study is to evaluate Ticos’ personal experiences and opinions to understand better how Costa Rica’s “Pura Vida” culture affects Ticos’ mental health and wellness compared to the United States. A 33-question survey addressing mental health experiences and perceptions was administered to a Costa Rican sample (n = 56) and a United States sample (n = 331). Additionally, 6 interviews were …

The Role Of Protective Factors For Nonsuicidal Self-Injury In Sexual Minorities, Kendra Rigney

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Sexual minorities have been shown to have increased risk of suicide in comparison to their heterosexual counterparts. This demographic has also been shown to have decreased levels of protective factors, which function as a measure to protect an individual from attempting suicide. The goal of the present study was to examine how individuals with sexual minority status differ from heterosexual individuals on suicide attempts and the protective factors of resilience, life satisfaction, and subjective happiness within a sample who all have NSSI history. A sample of 2,130 undergraduate students completed an online survey assessing nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) and suicide behaviors, …

I Hear You: The Everyday Struggle Living With Misophonia, Ashton Jones

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

The term misophonia is derivated from the Greek words misos, (hate), and phónè, (voice); it translates as hatred of sound. It is the term used to describe people who are irregularly affected by everyday noises. The first scientific observations by Pawel J. Jastreboff regarding misophonia indicate “individuals with misophonia are sensitive to a specific set of trigger sounds, which are usually recognized since childhood.” These types of sounds tend to be trivial noises, such as chewing or crunching, sniffing, breathing, clicking, lip smacking, and tapping. The noises can trigger an onslaught of negative emotions and violent reactions.

This documentary film …

Parenting Stress And Child Disruptive Behaviors: The Mediating Role Of Parental Negative Talk, David Roehm

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

High parental stress and child disruptive behaviors tend to coexist. Furthermore, parental negative talk towards children cam impair child functioning later in life. In the present study, we sought to determine whether parental negative talk was a mediating variable between parenting stress and child disruptive behaviors. Fifty-two parent-child dyads from Eastern Kentucky participated in an analog Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) behavioral observation and parents were given self-report measures for parenting stress and child disruptive behaviors.

Bivariate and multiple regression analyses were used to predict variance in child disruptive behaviors based on parenting stress with parental negative talk as a mediating …

Psychometric Properties Of The College Athlete Psychological Screening Tool: Validation Of The Depression And Anxiety Subscales, Joseph C. Case

Dissertations

The aim of the present study was to gain a better understanding of the descriptive psychometric properties of the College Athlete Psychological Screening (CAPS) measure. The CAPS is a newly developed assessment screening measure designed to assess 14 common problem areas for college athletes. For the present investigation, 395 participants completed the 108-item CAPS measure. To establish criterion validity, participants also completed the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI). The present study had three research questions. Question one discussed the descriptive psychodynamic properties (Cronbach’s alpha, means, and standard deviations) of the 14 CAPS subscales. Question two …

An Application Of The Interpersonal Psychological Theory Of Suicide In College-Age Survivors Of Sexual Assault, Ava Katherine Fergerson

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Sexual victimization is a pervasive public health concern that disproportionately affects college students and results in severe mental and physical health risks for survivors. Despite low prevalence rates in the general population, a national study found that 33% of survivors of rape reported suicidal ideation, and 13% actually made a suicide attempt (Kilpatrick et al., 1992). Although it is clear that survivors of sexual violence are at increased risk for suicide, knowledge is largely limited to epidemiological studies. Few studies have integrated theories of suicide to understand how and why this population is at such elevated risk for suicidal thoughts …

The Effect Of Viewing Advertisements Depicting Information And Communication Technology On Older Adults' Technology Self-Efficacy, Hollie Brianne Coleman

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Information and communication technologies (ICTs) are an important part of society today. Older adults often report ICTs as difficult to use and unhelpful; however, ICTs can support older adults’ ability to stay in touch with family and friends across long distances and help increase their quality of life. Unfortunately, training programs targeted at teaching older adults to use ICTs are often costly and time-consuming. The current study attempts to determine whether advertisements depicting older adults using ICTs can be used to increase self-efficacy without the use of training programs.

A within subjects experimental design was completed using an independent variable …

Mental Health Stigma In College Students By Academic Major, Kristen Miller

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Stigma is best defined as the disapproval and shame felt by people who display characteristics not widely accepted in society. Although mental illness has become more prevalent in society through advocacy and awareness campaigns, it fails to be accepted and often individuals may feel shame that prevents them from seeking help (Dyrbye, Eacker, Durning, Brazeau, Moutier, Massie, S., et al, 2015; Givens & Tjia, 2002). Physicians in particular have been shown to have decreased help-seeking behaviors for psychological issues due to fear of professional repercussions (Dyrbye et al., 2015). Physicians also show increased levels of stress, anxiety, depression, and elevated …

Rapid Assessment Of Problem Solving For Kids (Raps-K), Hannah Perdew

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

The Rapid Assessment of Problem Solving (RAPS) is a clinical assessment of verbal problem solving skills created by Dr. Robert Marshall and colleagues (Marshall, 2003). The assessment, originally developed for adults, is based on the well-known twenty questions game. The clinician administering the assessment chooses a target picture and the participant asks yes or no questions to eliminate incorrect answers and, eventually, identify the target picture. Question asking efficiency, indicated by the number of choices eliminated, is considered to reflect levels of cognitive functioning, specifically problem solving. Recently, the RAPS has been utilized with typically developing children and children with …

Is Eye Movement Desensitization And Reprocessing Worth It? A Pragmatic Analysis For Clinicians, Brandon P. Cvengros

Psychology Capstone Projects

Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing is a treatment developed for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) that combines the cognitive processing of trauma with bilateral eye movements (EMs). Research has demonstrated that EMDR can be an efficacious treatment for PTSD. Other common treatments for PTSD include cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and exposure therapy (ET). Research has demonstrated that both CBT and ET are efficacious in the treatment of PTSD. EMDR is a controversial treatment, with critics stating that it is very similar to ET and that the novel component, EMs, are irrelevant to treatment outcomes. EMDR has additional time and financial costs, …

The Relationship Between Non-Suicidal Self-Injury, Suicide-Attempts And Resilience, Life Satisfaction, And Subjective Happiness In Minority Groups, Anna Siewers

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Non-suicidal self-injury and suicide ideation are important issues and known predictors of suicide attempts for any demographic, but specifically for minority groups who are significantly understudied and underreported in comparison to their White and Heterosexual counterparts. It has been found that among adolescents and college students, minority students are disproportionately impacted and are at greater risk for suicidal ideation and behavior. The goal of the present study was to examine the role of both ethnic and sexual minority experience in NSSI and suicide attempts, as well as potential protective factors. A sample of 2,280 undergraduate students completed a survey assessing …

Physician Stress: Is The Electronic Health Record To Blame?, Zack Ward

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore the potential relationship between Family Medicine physician burnout and the electronic health record. To do so, this study utilized the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory to assess burnout among physicians, along with specific questions regarding usage of the electronic health record and measurement of physician perceptions of the electronic health record. Members of the Kentucky Academy of Family Physicians were sent two separate invitations to participate in the study twice over a one-month period via email.

The study yielded no significant differences in Family Medicine physician demographics and their degree of burnout, or the …

A Collaborative Perspectives Approach For Understanding Effective Care Coordination In Autism Spectrum Disorder, Rachel Severs

Dissertations

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder that causes significant impairment in social and communication areas. The severity of the disorder can often result in a substantial degree and amount of service access and expenditures relating to a child’s needs. This study examined the experiences of how family caregivers and service providers of children with ASD view service delivery using a basic qualitative research design. For the study, 10 participants (five family caregivers and five service providers) were enrolled and interviewed. Interview data were collected and coded to produce a qualitative analysis of the experiences of these individuals who …

The Impact Of A Therapist's Language In Computer-Mediated Communication, Robert E. Twidwell

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Background: Nearly 45 million adults in the United States live with a mental health disorder and only 43% of them seek treatment. One of the major barriers to seeking treatment is accessibility and can be addressed through telepsychology, or providing services with technology. With technological improvements in written communication, using computer-mediated communication (CMC; e.g. text messaging) has become more regularly used and examined in healthcare. To date, little research has focused on the use of practitioner language in telepsychology.

Method: Two samples (university sample and national sample) totaling 396 participants were asked to rate a therapist on attractiveness (i.e. likability …

Substance Abuse Treatment In Prison Settings: A Systematic Review, Emilee Cline

Psychology Capstone Projects

A significant relationship between criminal behavior and substance abuse exists, which leads to a large proportion of individuals in the prison system who meet criteria for a substance use disorder. This review compares empirically-supported treatments for substance use disorder to current substance abuse treatment programs offered in United States prisons. A review of current literature indicates that Therapeutic Communities are the most common form of substance abuse treatment provided, and often these are combined with Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy groups. Special treatment considerations are provided based on the type of substance used, gender, and ethnicity. Empirically-supported treatments are currently being implemented by …

Identifying Clinical Distinctions Between Nonsuicidal Self-Injury And Eating Disorders In Adolescents, Natalie Marie Perkins

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Eating disorders and non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) are pervasive behaviors that typically begin in early to mid-adolescence. They commonly co-occur, resulting in increasingly negative psychological and physical outcomes than either behavior alone. Emotion reactivity and family functioning have been studied in relation to both eating disorders and NSSI. Both constructs have demonstrated strong relationships to these behaviors, but emotion reactivity appears to be more strongly associated with NSSI, while family functioning appears to be more strongly related to eating disorders. The current study sought to determine whether emotion reactivity and family functioning could differentiate between adolescents with only an eating disorder, …

Texting And Its Impact On Post-Event Processing And Symptoms Of Social Anxiety, Amanda Nicole Newquist

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The purpose of this study is to evaluate how individuals with social anxiety perceive a social event after a texting conversation compared to a face-to-face conversation. This review is known as post-event processing. This study included 154 participants (89 males and 65 females). These participants were recruited through Amazon Mechanical Turk. Each participant was asked to imagine a social situation where they experienced a high level of anxiety. The results of the study showed evidence that the self-reported level of trait anxiety was positively correlated with the self-reported level of state anxiety. Self-reported level of trait anxiety was positively correlated …

Practice Standards For Initial Adhd Assessment: A Review, Lauren Spencer

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

There are many challenges that come with diagnosing attentiondeficit/ hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), including shared symptoms with many similar disorders, high comorbidity of other mental disorders, and subjective bias from informant reports. Three clinical guidelines for diagnosing ADHD currently exist, published by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), and the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP). However, these guidelines are outdated as they are based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) and do not include more recent research. This project was intended to update …

Analyzing The Efficiency Of Reforestation Efforts In Regaining Carbon Storage In A Costa Rican Cloud Forest, Elvin Irihamye

Student Research Conference Select Presentations

Forests hold an important place in offsetting carbon emissions, absorbing nearly 40 percent of man-made fossil fuel emissions every year. Over the last 100 years, the effects of deforestation have crippled our forest’s ability to store excess carbon, leading to drastic atmospheric change. Efforts to regrow deforested forests have increased rapidly to address issues like climate change. There is thus a need to analyze current efforts at regaining carbon storage, a critical component to maintaining atmospheric homeostasis. Accordingly, we traveled to the Cloudbridge Nature Reserve in San Gerardo, Costa Rica to aggregate data on the carbon storage capabilities across three …

Decreasing Stigma Against Depression In Chinese International Students, Elizabeth Trader

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Higher levels of stress and a shift in support systems during the transition to another culture can put international students at risk for mood disorders like depression. Previous research supports there is also a higher level of depression stigma within Eastern cultures in comparison to Western cultures (Rao, Feinglass, & Corrigan, 2007). This may account for the strikingly low numbers from the Chinese population that seek and maintain professional counseling services while studying in the U.S. (Yakushko, Davidson, & Sandford-Martens, 2008). The present study sought to determine whether two self-produced Chinese videos regarding information about stigma, symptoms, and treatment of …

The Relationships Between Nonsuicidal Self-Injury Frequency And Suicidal Behaviors, Depression, And Anxiety: A Curvilinear Analysis, Sherry Elizabeth Woods

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) involves the deliberate damage of one’s own bodily tissue without suicidal intent. A number of psychological disorders and indicators of distress are correlated with the behavior, including suicidal behaviors (e.g. Whitlock & Knox, 2007), depression (e.g. Ross & Heath, 2002), and anxiety (e.g. Victor & Klonksy, 2014), and yet the research literature has been mixed on whether increased frequency of NSSI is correlated with increased levels of these variables. The present study hypothesized that these relationships are curvilinear. Data from a larger study were analyzed using curvilinear regression analyses, and hypotheses were partially supported. Curvilinear relationships were …

Colors In The World Of Healing", Jordan Mcroberts

Student Research Conference Select Presentations

Color has many places in the world. The human body and mind react to color in a way that is hard to explain. It is sometimes so subtle we may not even notice it. In this physician office’s design, color is picked out and placed to promote health and wellness. The research 69 conducted shows that color alters mood and promotes health in the human body. The colors selected are blue, green, and white. The calming color, blue, is believed to reduce migraines, nervousness, and high blood pressure. Earthy greens are believed to be stress reducing and have a positive …

The Influence Of Culture On The Use Of Healthcare Services By Refugees In Southcentral Kentucky: A Mixed Study, Chika N. Ejike

Dissertations

The world as a global village has become a ubiquitous trope in the popular discourse, and Bowling Green, Kentucky, with its substantial immigrant population, may be considered an exemplar of this idealized community. It has become an ideal location for research regarding the challenges faced by immigrants. Due to the diverse cultural identities of the refugee/immigrant population, it is particularly well suited for studies into complex culturally dependent healthcare utilization patterns.

The central research question for the study was as follows: What are the healthcare-seeking behavioral patterns (as influenced by culture) among refugees at their nearest healthcare facilities? This mixed …