Psychology Commons^™

The Role Of Occupational Therapy In School Disciplinary Practices, Trisha Irwin, Angela Blackwell, Anne H. Watson, Steven M. Gerardi

Fall 2020 Virtual OTD Capstone Symposium

The capstone project discusses disproportionate rates of disciplinary practices utilized in public education and examines the negative impact current disciplinary practices have on adolescent well-being, school climate, student engagement, and student outcomes. Public schools across the United States are utilizing exclusionary disciplinary practices wherein the consequence often is more extreme than necessary, influencing continued student misconduct, failing to address trauma and deficits in social-emotional skills, and limiting academic performance and participation for all students.

The purpose of this project is to inform occupational therapy practitioners of their potential roles in addressing school disciplinary practices to better support students in promoting …

Occupational Therapy’S Role In Addressing Sensory Deficits In Children With Behavioral Health Challenges Through Teacher Training, Devon A. Ayres, Becki Cohill, Susan Macdermott, Mark Wilson

Summer 2020 Virtual OTD Capstone Symposium

Sensory processing difficulties have been well-documented in children who have behavioral health challenges. Addressing a child’s sensory processing needs may decrease behaviors that disrupt occupational participation and thus leading to improved learning and better information retention. A review of current literature revealed that teachers who work with children with behavioral health challenges are not required to receive education in addressing sensory deficits in the classroom. This capstone project performed a needs assessment, exploring current teacher understanding of sensory processing and what role occupational therapy could play in providing training for teachers. The project also generated pertinent online teacher training modules …

Turning Everyday Activities Into Play: Building Relationships And Fostering Connections For Adopted And Foster Children, Marissa E. Siu, Becki Cohill, Susan Macdermott

Summer 2020 Virtual OTD Capstone Symposium

Turning Everyday Activities into Play is a program that was created for foster children, adopted children, and individuals who work with this population in the community. This program uses everyday activities to foster the connection between children and adults. The goal of this program is to use the power of play to support regulation and build stronger bonds and relationships by turning everyday activities into play.

Understanding Adolescent Friendships: An Analysis Of The Role Of Social Perspective-Taking In Friendship Dissolutions, Joseph W. Stewart

Transformations: Presentation Slides

Friendships are critical relationships in adolescence, however, many friendships dissolve. One construct that may play a role in how adolescents experience such dissolutions is social perspective-taking (SPT). To test this hypothesis, 354 middle-schoolers (Mage=11.89, SD=0.86; 53% female; 82% white) completed a self-report, online survey regarding a dissolution experience. Results from an independent samples t-test revealed that females (M=2.45, SD=0.70) displayed higher SPT than males (M=2.09, SD=0.73), t(270)=-4.13, p<0.001. A correlational analysis confirmed our hypothesis that adolescents who showed greater SPT would report higher quality friendships, r(271)=0.593, p<0.001. Contrary to our hypothesis, adolescents who displayed higher SPT were more likely to react with anger (r(257)=0.16, p<0.001), sadness (r(252)=0.31, p=0.01), loneliness (r(253)=0.28, p<0.001), and rumination (r(252)=0.23, p<0.001), and less likely to feel happy (r(259)=-0.29, p<0.001) and relieved (r(255)=-0.26, p<0.001) following a dissolution. These results aid in the understanding of social perspective-taking and its meaning in adolescent relationships and social development.

Creating A Standardized Workflow For Providers At South Burlington Family Practice, South Burlington Vt For Documenting And Diagnosing Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder In Pediatric Patients Aged 0-17, Racquel Sales De Castro

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

An initiative of the Vermont Child Health Improvement Program (VCHIP) is to improve the attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADD/ADHD) pediatric diagnostic process in both family medicine and pediatric practices in the state of Vermont. This project specifically on improving this process at South Burlington Family Practice in South Burlington Vermont but is generalizable to all practices caring for pediatric and adolescent patients. For this project emphasis was placed on creating a standardized workflow that is followed by all providers in the practice, creating educational material for caregivers who present with a behavioral concern for their child or adolescent, and establishing an efficient …