Psychology Commons^™

Motivating Clients To Exercise: Improving Adherence To Exercise-Based Treatment Through Psychoeducation, Reed Andrew Vierra

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Exercise has been consistently shown to have a positive effect on both physical and mental health, with past studies indicating exercise as an adjunctive treatment for diagnoses such as Major Depressive Disorder. However, despite the knowledge of exercise’s benefits, 80% of Americans do not regularly meet recommended levels of exercise in a week. Past studies have been hampered by high drop-out rates, as participants have difficulty sustaining a new exercise regimen over time. This study focused on understanding the motivational processes which sustained experienced exercisers. With the information gleaned from experienced exercisers in addition to past research on human motivation, …

Empty Cribs: Infertility Challenges For Orthodox Jewish Couples, Itay Kohane

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

This dissertation discusses an issue that is of importance to many people throughout their lifetime—infertility. One in every eight couples (12%) is incapable of carrying a pregnancy to term after one year of natural attempts. This paper further examines the prevalence of infertility among couples, bringing into focus more common variables such as gender and age. But, going beyond these, the present study will demonstrate that other variables including stressors such as social factors, interpersonal dynamics, and personal judgment affect couples in a manner which indirectly reduces their chances of conceiving a child. This research will touch on a number …

Resilience In Adult Women Who Experienced Early Mother Loss, Elizabeth Schmitz-Binnall

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

The primary purpose of this dissertation study was to explore levels of resilience in adult women whose mothers died when the participants were children. The death of a mother during an individual’s childhood is an adverse event that can affect all areas of that person’s life. It is intuitive to believe that early mother death would cause long-term effects on the overall resilience levels of the individuals; however, there has been minimal research exploring resilience in this population. With a sample of 245 women throughout the United States, this study used the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale 25 (CD-RISC-25) to begin investigating …

Teachers’ Experiences Of School-Wide Positive Behavior Interventions And Supports: A Qualitative Study, Eric Walter

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

The purpose of this study was to describe the unique personal experiences of teachers implementing School-Wide Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (SWPBIS) in their classroom and identify themes within their experiences that impacted their desire or ability to implement SWPBIS. Phenomenological analysis was utilized to analyze data to develop a greater understanding of how teachers view and experience SWPBIS, and identify factors that aid and hinder acceptance and implementation. Four participants involved in implementing Tier 1 of SWPBIS were interviewed and asked about their experiences implementing SWPBIS. Participants described a number of experiences that negatively impacted their belief in, attitude …

Confusing Conversations: Assessing Traumatic Stress In Young Children, Jennifer Lela Moniz

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Early detection and interventions are important for the prevention of negative long-term effects of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Current evaluations of PTSD in young children rely heavily on caregiver reports, and there are few self-report measures for children under 8 years old (Mash & Barkley, 2007). This study examined the construct validity of the Post Traumatic Symptom Inventory for Children (PT-SIC), a self-report measure of PTSD symptomatology for young children, through a comparison of results with the Trauma Symptom Checklist for Young Children (TSCYC), an empirically supported caregiver measure of child PTSD symptomatology. Results of the Spearman correlation indicated that …

The Use Of Mobile Social Technology As Transitional Objects Impact On Personality Functioning, Peter Gleiberman

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

The purpose of this dissertation is to examine the impact unlimited connectivity and unlimited access to voice, text, and video communication as well as multimedia content consumption through mobile social technology has on personality integration. The increased use of mobile social technology has changed how the user engages social relationships. Through mobile social technology, the user places importance in an inanimate object for engagement of social relationships. A reliance on the inanimate object as a social relationship is thought to compromise the ability to internalize integrated object relations and develop stable personality organization. This theoretical research uses hermeneutic analysis of …

Stepping Outside: A Quantitative Study Exploring Nature’S Effect On Therapist Compassion, Dana N. Vitrano

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

This dissertation explored the impact of spending time in nature on therapist levels of compassion fatigue and compassion satisfaction for office- and nature-based therapists. While the study mainly focused on office-based therapists, a sample of nature-based therapists were included for exploratory purposes as they constitute a unique niche of mental health workers who combine traditional talk therapy methods and the healing properties of nature. The literature is reviewed within an ecopsychology frame, key terms are defined, and nature’s impact on mental health and wellbeing is explored. One hundred fifty participants (124 office-based, 26 nature-based) were included in this study. They …

Adolescent Perspectives On Media Use: A Qualitative Study, April Fiacco

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

This qualitative study looks at adolescents’ engagement with media and explores their perceptions of how media plays a role in their lives. For the purpose of this study, media includes watching television shows, watching and reading the news, and involvement in various types of social media. The influence of parents and peers is also explored to examine adolescents’ views of whether parent and peer opinions affect the types of media with which the adolescent participants choose to engage. The study used a semi structured interview to collect data with participants from a Massachusetts public high school. The data were analyzed …

Separating Rope Strands: An Unraveling Of Shame In Gay Men, Chad Allen Lazzari

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

This theoretical dissertation uses self psychology, Lacanian theory, and neuropsychoanalysis to explore shame in gay men and formulate an integrative understanding for how this master affect effects self and psyche for same-sex attracted men. Brief introductions to the theories used are provided with links to existing scholarship that informs theoretical leanings. A scholarly case is made for the significance of understanding the origin and lifecycle of shame, as well the importance of differentiating between early relational trauma shame (understood as an “inside out” experience), and a later, socially informed “outside in” experience. An argument is made for how shame “attaches” …

A Drama-Based Group Intervention For Adolescents To Improve Mentalization, Michael S. Goddard

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

This dissertation is an innovative intervention design to improve mentalization in preadolescents. The intervention presented is conducted in a group format and using techniques drawn from drama-based therapy. I have provided a brief literature review on mentalization, and relevant topics in group treatment and drama therapy. I have outlined key concepts from mentalization theory including: (a) the development of the self, (b) its relationship to attachment, (c) psychic equivalence and pretend mode functioning, (d) marked-affect mirroring, (e) the various facets of mentalization, and (f) mentalization treatment with children. After outlining these concepts, I discuss psychodynamic group treatment, mentalization-based group therapy, …

Ayurvedic And Bionian Theories Of Thinking: Mental Digestion And The Truth Instinct, Jenna Labbe-Watson

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

This theoretical paper integrates Ayurvedic and Bionian psychoanalytic theories of thinking into a new, integrative understanding of how individuals learn from experience. The relationship between knowledge, emotional experience, and the truth instinct is explored. Ayurvedic and Bionian theories describe the complexity involved in transforming raw sensory and emotional experiences into thoughts that nourish our intelligence and permit us to continually dream ourselves into being. Ayurvedic theories of intrapsychic processes and the anatomy and physiology of the mind will be explicated alongside Bionian concepts of intersubjective projective identification. For the promotion and maintenance of psychological growth, Bionian psychoanalytic thinkers describe the …

Why Patients Miss Appointments At An Integrated Primary Care Clinic, Katherine Lambos Wilsey

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Missed appointments in primary care clinics is of import given the significant impact not only on patients’ continuity of care, but also on the larger healthcare system. Missed appointments indicate that there are barriers to patients’ access of health care and these contribute to poor health outcomes. Further, missed appointments lead to financial and capacity issues for primary care clinics while also contributing towards higher patient utilization of emergency department services, for medical problems traditionally treated by primary care. Integrated primary care clinics offer both medical and mental health services to patients by way of employing behavioral health consultants to …

Shame In The Supervisory Hour: Do Supervisors Sense What Is Hidden?, Melanie R. Harkins

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Shame inevitably arises for psychologists in training, as they are required to expose potential mistakes or oversights in their personal and professional selves (Hahn, 2001). However, studies show that shame impedes supervisee’s willingness to disclose information to the supervisor, especially regarding clinical difficulties (Ladany et al., 1996; Yourman, 2003) or concerns with professional competence (Ladany & Lehrman-Waterman, 1999). The presence of shame in supervision threatens the assumption of most supervision models: supervisees will willingly disclose pertinent information (Falender & Shafranske, 2004). Fortunately, strong supervisory relationships can buffer negative emotions and supervisors can encourage disclosures (Hess et al., 2008). Utilizing qualitative …

Physician Training And Support In Managing Dilemmas Around Benzodiazepine Prescribing, Elizabeth Corley

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Numerous concerns have emerged regarding the dangers of extended benzodiazepine use and abuse, as well as continued prescribing by medical professionals despite related contraindications. Primary care physicians (PCPs) may find decisions around benzodiazepine prescription and related patient encounters to be especially challenging. Little is known on the efficacy of routine medical training and supervision/consultation models in preparing emerging PCPs for managing the dilemmas that may ensue with regards to prescribing benzodiazepines. The present study sought to begin addressing this gap by conducting an initial qualitative inquiry into the training and supervision experiences and needs of a group of current family …

A Phenomenological Inquiry Into The Client Experience Of The Psychotherapy Relationship, Mark D. Knutzen

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Meta-analyses have indicated that there are likely common factors across varied treatment modalities that account for the effectiveness of psychotherapy. Research has attempted to identify therapist and treatment relationship components that correlate with effective mental health treatment. Yet, there is a paucity of research directly addressing the qualitative experience of the relationship between psychotherapists and their clients.

Eight adult psychotherapy clients were interviewed regarding their experience of the psychotherapy relationship with their mental health therapist. The interviews were analyzed through the use of Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). Seven themes emerged. Three themes related to the formation, and overall foundation of …

The Descendants Of Hurao: An Exploratory Study Of Chamoru Rights Groups, Alan T. Butler

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

The psychological literature conducted in Guam on indigenous practices of resistance to colonialism is nonexistent. This dissertation responds to this absence in the literature by conducting an exploratory hermeneutic study on the lived experience of members of Chamoru rights groups in Guam. Data for this study were collected through semi-structured interviews with eight members of Chamoru rights groups. Results indicated that engagement in a Chamoru rights group can be a deeply meaningful experience that involves education, activism, and being part of a supportive community. This community was felt to be healing, allowing for active engagement with community issues and against …

Coercive And Compulsive Treatment Of Eating Disorders: Surveying Treatment Providers’ Attitudes And Behavior., Jessica Cowan

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Stigma toward individuals with eating disorders is common and well-documented. Individuals with eating disorders regularly report experiencing stigma associated with perceptions that they are to blame for their illness, that their illness is trivial compared to other conditions, or that they are engaging in disordered behavior to gain attention. These stigmatizing attitudes toward eating disorders are also reported by the general public and healthcare professionals, including those who treat eating disorders. Treatment of these illnesses at all levels of care often include paternalistic approaches such as coercion and compulsion that can have both adverse and advantageous consequences. While there are …

To Empathize Or Iempathize: Social Networking And Adolescent Female Friendships, Jennifer A. Schonberg

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Through qualitative methodology, this dissertation aimed to explore adolescent girls’ use of social networking sites (SNS) and the impact these sites could be having on girls’ development of empathy and their ability to address conflict in their friendships. The topic is introduced by outlining the relevant statistics and through highlighting some of the negative and positive influences of SNS use on adolescent female life. Carol Gilligan’s theory of moral development is explained and used to frame the research questions for this phenomenological research study. Section One of this dissertation reviews the current literature on this topic, including how social media …

Moral Reconation Therapy: Efficacy And Predictors Of Dropout, Amber Maiwald

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

No known research has been conducted on whether Moral Reconation Therapy (MRT) actually reduces criminogenic thinking. Similarly, no known research has been conducted to identify factors associated with dropout from the MRT program (i.e., choosing to leave the group before completion/release). Therefore, the purpose of this study was twofold: (a) to discover whether MRT reduces criminogenic thinking, and (b) to determine if criminogenic thinking, ACEs, cognitive abilities, and personality traits, particularly impulsivity, psychoticism, and antisocial traits, influence dropout. If significant effects in one or more of the aforementioned areas are discovered, individuals predicted to have the same profile as past …

An Exploration Of Overparenting And College Student Ability To Manage The Stress Associated With College Life, Isabelle Creste

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

There has been an increase in the level of anxiety, perceived stress, and mental health problems among college students. An examination of the contributions of parenting to these increases may help in improving college student mental health; however, research is limited in this area. This study examined the associations between overparenting, and other types of parenting including, authoritarian, authoritative, and permissive parenting, and differentiation of self, cognitive emotion regulation, perceived stress, and state and trait anxiety. The participants were 163 undergraduate college students (74.8% identified as cisgender women, 25.2% identified as cisgender men). The participants completed questionnaires that described their …

Client Perceptions Of The Therapy Room: Effects Of Homely Therapeutic Landscapes, Amanda Knapp

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

There is very limited research exploring the effects of a homely therapeutic landscape design on the psychological wellbeing of clients attending outpatient psychotherapy. In particular, very little is known about the impact of office design on client perceptions of their therapist and the quality of care they anticipate receiving. Ample data support the idea of healing environments; this has important implications for the field of clinical psychology. The theoretical framework underlying this study is the Tripartite Model, which states that people view spaces as most meaningful when they promote positive feelings of comfort, belonging, and security. Focusing on college students …

Adult Intellectual Developmental Disorder: Adverse Childhood Experiences And Problem Behaviors, Jacqueline R. Dye

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) have detrimental effects on health and psychological outcomes in the general population (Felitti et al., 1998). Individuals with the diagnosis of intellectual developmental disorder (IDD) are at increased risk for adverse events and may be vulnerable to poor outcomes, including problem behaviors (Hatton & Emerson, 2004; Hulbert-Williams et al., 2014). The present study examined relationships among Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) questionnaire (Felitti et al., 1998) items, total score, and problem behaviors for adults with IDD receiving community-based care. Participants (N = 41) were referred by a developmental services agency for a review of their archived records, …

Evaluating Implementation And Adaptation Of Moral Reconation Therapy At A Local Jail, Branwen Gregory

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Recidivism among criminal offenders has been a persistent and intractable problem for many decades. Cognitive behavioral interventions, particularly when implemented with adherence to the Risk-Need-Responsivity (RNR) treatment model, have proven to be effective in reducing recidivism rates. However, real world circumstances in penal institutions place restrictions on how these programs are implemented and may make it difficult for these interventions to be instituted with integrity and/or adherence to the RNR model. This is a particular challenge at local jails, which house shorter-term populations and have fewer resources. Currently there is a lack of research looking at the effectiveness of treatment …

Examining Optimism And Caregiver Strain In Parents With Youth And Young Adults Diagnosed With Anxiety And Unipolar Mood Disorders, Jennifer M. Gross

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

An anonymous online survey investigated optimism and caregiver strain in parents of youth and young adults diagnosed with anxiety and unipolar depression. Caregiver strain is a

well-researched phenomenon where the experience of parenting youth with serious psychological disorders has a potentially negative impact on parents and caregivers. Optimism is a trait that confers resiliency and improved coping to the individual. The relationship between caregiver strain and optimism is not well understood. This inquiry utilized the Caregiver Strain Questionnaire (CGSQ) to measure caregiver strain and the Life Orientation Test, Revised

(LOT-R) to measure optimism. Participants endorsed significantly higher scores on the …

Integrated Care For Older Adults And Memory: A Quality Improvement Approach, Haley E. Curt

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Integrated care, a combination of medical and behavioral health, is necessary to address the complex needs of the rapidly growing population of adults over the age of 65 (Karel, Gratz, & Smyer, 2012). Cognitive impairment, a common issue associated with aging, is a major concern for aging adults, their caregivers and family members. Comprehensively addressing cognition, whether there is an identified impairment or not, in a primary care setting allows the individual to take advantage of their independence, be an active member of planning care and making decisions, and begin treating their disease earlier when it is more manageable (Callahan …