Psychology Commons^™

Post-Inpatient Attrition From Care “As Usual” In Veterans With Multiple Psychiatric Admissions, Nicholas W. Bowersox, Stephen M. Saunders, Bertrand Berger

Psychology Faculty Research and Publications

Disengagement from outpatient care following psychiatric hospitalization is common in high-utilizing psychiatric patients and contributes to intensive care utilization. To investigate variables related to treatment attrition, a range of demographic, diagnostic, cognitive, social, and behavioral variables were collected from 233 veterans receiving inpatient psychiatric services who were then monitored over the following 2 years. During the follow-up period, 88.0 % (n = 202) of patients disengaged from post-inpatient care. Attrition was associated with male gender, younger age, increased expectations of stigma, less short-term participation in group therapy, and poorer medication adherence. Of those who left care, earlier attrition was …

Comparing The Interpersonal Behavior Of Distressed Couples With And Without Depression, Lynne M. Knobloch-Fedders, Leanne K. Knobloch, C. Emily Durbin, Andrea Rosen, Kenneth L. Critchfield

Psychology Faculty Research and Publications

Objective

This study compared the interpersonal behavior of distressed couples with depression in one partner (n = 23) to distressed couples without depression in either partner (n = 38).

Method

Participants (mean age = 44 years old) were recruited at an urban outpatient mental health center. Couples discussed the three best things in their relationship, and their interactions were coded using Structural Analysis of Social Behavior (Benjamin, 1987).

Results

Self‐ and partner‐focused hostility were associated with actors’ and partners’ relationship distress. Actors’ hostility towards partners was positively associated with partners’ depression status, but negatively associated with partners’ depression …

The American Male And Female 35 Years Later: Bem Sex Role Inventory Revisited, Denise D. Guastello, Stephen Guastello

Psychology Faculty Research and Publications

This study reassessed the profiles of traits associated with stereotypic males and females in 2009- 2010 35 years after the Bern (1974) Sex Role Inventory (BSRI) was introduced. Qualitative changes could have resulted from other cultural trends toward occupational and educational equality or growing public awareness of the nature of gender roles. The adjectives appearing in the BSRI, which produces a measure of androgyny, were rated as stereotypically male, female, or neutral by 1075 undergraduates. Chi-square tests, which assigned adjectives to genders, indicated that most of the traits formerly associated with males are now considered neutral. The characteristic ''childlike," which …

Dose-Effect Relationship In Routine Outpatient Psychotherapy: Does Treatment Duration Matter?, Niklaus Stulz, Wolfgang Lutz, Stephen Mark Kopta, Takuya Minami, Stephen M. Saunders

Psychology Faculty Research and Publications

Objective: There is an ongoing debate concerning how outcome variables change during the course of psychotherapy. We compared the dose–effect model, which posits diminishing effects of additional sessions in later treatment phases, against a model that assumes a linear and steady treatment progress through termination. Method: Session-by-session outcome data of 6,375 outpatients were analyzed, and participants were categorized according to treatment length. Linear and log-linear (i.e., negatively accelerating) latent growth curve models (LGCMs) were estimated and compared for different treatment length categories. Results: When comparing the fit of the various models, the log-linear LGCMs assuming negatively accelerating treatment progress consistently …

Acculturative Stress And Latino Depression: The Mediating Role Of Behavioral And Cognitive Resources, Mark W. Driscoll, Lucas Torres

Psychology Faculty Research and Publications

Although research has found that acculturative stress is significantly associated with adverse psychological adjustment among Latinos, the mechanism by which this relationship exists is not clearly understood. The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of behavioral and cognitive resources—active coping and self-efficacy, respectively—as mediators of the relationship between acculturative stress and depression among a sample of Latina/o adults (N = 469). Multiple mediator analysis indicated that active coping partially mediated the relationship between acculturative stress and depression symptom severity. The indirect relationship of acculturative stress to depression symptom severity through self-efficacy was not significant. The results suggest …

Effectiveness Of Groups For Adolescents With Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus And Their Parents, Jessica C. Kichler, Astrida S. Kaugars, Patricia Marik, Laura Nabors, Ramin Alemzadeh

Psychology Faculty Research and Publications

Peer- and family-based group therapies have been used as separate interventions to improve adjustment and self-management among youth with Type 1 diabetes mellitus. This study replicates a treatment protocol that combined these two types of diabetes management groups, while also using a wait-list control design methodology within an outpatient mental health clinic setting. General psychosocial and diabetes-related variables were assessed at baseline, immediately posttreatment, and 4 months posttreatment. Youths’ medical information, including metabolic control values, was extracted from medical charts for the 6 months prior to baseline and 6 months after treatment ended. At 4 months posttreatment, parents and youth …

Initial Development And Validation Of The Mexican Intercultural Competence Scale, Lucas Torres

Psychology Faculty Research and Publications

The current project sought to develop the Mexican Intercultural Competence Scale, which assesses group-specific skills and attributes that facilitate effective cultural interactions, among adults of Mexican descent. Study 1 involved an exploratory factor analysis (N = 184) that identified 5 factors including Ambition/Perseverance, Networking, the Traditional Latino Culture, Family Relationships, and Communication. In Study 2, a confirmatory factor analysis provided evidence for the 5-factor model for adults of Mexican origin living in the Midwest (N = 341) region of the United States. The general findings are discussed in terms of a competence-based formulation of cultural adaptation and include …

Recognition Of Famous Names Predicts Cognitive Decline In Healthy Elders, Michael Seidenberg, Christina D. Kay, John L. Woodard, Kristy A. Nielson, J. Carson Smith, Cassandra Kandah, Leslie Guidotti, Julia Novitski, Melissa A. Lancaster, Monica Matthews, Nathan Hantke, Alissa Butts, Stephen M. Rao

Psychology Faculty Research and Publications

Objective: The ability to recognize familiar people is impaired in both Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) and Alzheimer’s Dementia (AD). In addition, both groups often demonstrate a time-limited temporal gradient (TG) in which well known people from decades earlier are better recalled than those learned recently. In this study, we examined the TG in cognitively intact elders for remote famous names (1950–1965) compared to more recent famous names (1995–2005). We hypothesized that the TG pattern on a famous name recognition task (FNRT) would predict future cognitive decline, and also show a significant correlation with hippocampal volume.

Method: Seventy-eight healthy elders (ages …

Factorial Invariance Of The Brief Symptom Inventory-18 (Bsi-18) For Adults Of Mexican Descent Across Nativity Status, Language Format, And Gender, Lucas Torres, Matthew J. Miller, Kelly M. Moore

Psychology Faculty Research and Publications

The cultural equivalence of psychological outcome measures remains a major area of investigation. The current study sought to test the factor structure and factorial invariance of the Brief Symptom Inventory-18 (BSI-18) with a sample of adult individuals of Mexican descent (N = 923) across nativity status (U.S.- vs. foreign-born), language format (English vs. Spanish), and gender. The results show that 1-factor and 3-factor measurement models provided a good fit to the data; however, a single-factor model was deemed more appropriate and parsimonious. Tests of measurement invariance and invariance of factor variances (i.e., structural invariance) indicated at least partial measurement invariance …

Physical Activity And Brain Function In Older Adults At Increased Risk For Alzheimer’S Disease, J. Carson Smith, Kristy A. Nielson, John L. Woodard, Michael Seidenberg, Stephen M. Rao

Psychology Faculty Research and Publications

Leisure-time physical activity (PA) and exercise training are known to help maintain cognitive function in healthy older adults. However, relatively little is known about the effects of PA on cognitive function or brain function in those at increased risk for Alzheimer’s disease through the presence of the apolipoproteinE epsilon4 (APOE-ε4) allele, diagnosis of mild cognitive impairment (MCI), or the presence of metabolic disease. Here, we examine the question of whether PA and exercise interventions may differentially impact cognitive trajectory, clinical outcomes, and brain structure and function among individuals at the greatest risk for AD. The literature suggests that the protective …

Semantic Memory Functional Mri And Cognitive Function After Exercise Intervention In Mild Cognitive Impairment, J Carson Smith, Kristy A. Nielson, Piero Antuono, Jeri-Annette Lyons, Ryan J. Hanson, Alissa Butts, Nathan Hantke, Matthew D. Verber

Psychology Faculty Research and Publications

Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is associated with early memory loss, Alzheimer's disease (AD) neuropathology, inefficient or ineffective neural processing, and increased risk for AD. Unfortunately, treatments aimed at improving clinical symptoms or markers of brain function generally have been of limited value. Physical exercise is often recommended for people diagnosed with MCI, primarily because of its widely reported cognitive benefits in healthy older adults. However, it is unknown if exercise actually benefits brain function during memory retrieval in MCI. Here, we examined the effects of exercise training on semantic memory activation during functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Seventeen MCI participants …

Comparison Of Semantic And Episodic Memory Bold Fmri Activation In Predicting Cognitive Decline In Older Adults, Nathan Hantke, Kristy A. Nielson, John L. Woodard, Leslie M. Guidotti Breting, Alissa Butts, Michael Seidenberg, J. Carson Smith, Sally Durgerian, Melissa A. Lancaster, Monica Matthews, Michael Sugarman, Stephen M. Rao

Psychology Faculty Research and Publications

Previous studies suggest that task-activated functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) can predict future cognitive decline among healthy older adults. The present fMRI study examined the relative sensitivity of semantic memory (SM) versus episodic memory (EM) activation tasks for predicting cognitive decline. Seventy-eight cognitively intact elders underwent neuropsychological testing at entry and after an 18-month interval, with participants classified as cognitively “Stable” or “Declining” based on ≥1.0 SD decline in performance. Baseline fMRI scanning involved SM (famous name discrimination) and EM (name recognition) tasks. SM and EM fMRI activation, along with Apolipoprotein E (APOE) ε4 status, served as predictors of cognitive …

Parental Psychological Control And Autonomy Granting: Distinctions And Associations With Child And Family Functioning, Jennifer Hauser Kunz, John H. Grych

Psychology Faculty Research and Publications

Objective:This study utilized an observational coding scheme to identify parenting behavior reflecting psychological control and autonomy granting, and examined relations between these parenting dimensions and indices of child and family functioning. Design: A community sample of 90 preadolescents (aged 10.5 to 12 years) and both of their parents engaged in a triadic interaction that was coded for parental psychological control and autonomy granting. Participants also completed measures of child adjustment, interparental conflict, and triangulation. Results: Factor analyses indicated that a two-factor model better fit the data than a one-factor model, suggesting that psychological control and autonomy granting …

Verbal Response Modes In Action:Microrelationships As The Building Blocks Of Relationship Role Dimensions, Ayesha Shaikh, Lynne M. Knobloch-Fedders, William B. Stiles

Psychology Faculty Research and Publications

Dimensions of interpersonal relationships, such as attentiveness, directiveness, and presumptuousness, have typically been assessed through impressionistic ratings or by aggregate scores derived from coding of specific (e.g., verbal) behaviors. However, the meanings of these dimensions rest on the interpersonal microrelationships that are actually observed by the raters or coders. In this qualitative study, the way these global relationship qualities were built from microrelationships at the utterance level was examined in passages from one medical interaction. Applications of microrelationships to future communications research are suggested.