Psychology Commons^™

Table Of Contents

Issues in Religion and Psychotherapy

No abstract provided.

Letter From The Editor, Kristin L. Hansen

Issues in Religion and Psychotherapy

No abstract provided.

Cover

Issues in Religion and Psychotherapy

No abstract provided.

Front Matter

Issues in Religion and Psychotherapy

No abstract provided.

Between Identity And Truth: A Christ-Centered Perspective On Emotion, Mauro Properzi

Issues in Religion and Psychotherapy

Emotions are receiving a lot of attention in both academic and popular circles. In fact, our culture is increasingly characterized by emotionality in thought, expression, and personal interaction, with some positive but also many negative consequences. How should Christians respond to these developments in the secular culture? A Christ-centered approach to the emotions is the general theological foundation on which we need to ground our reflections and decisions about their nature and significance. Specifi- cally, by deepening our understanding of Jesus’s teachings on His identity, telos, life-giving reality, and sanctifying power, as aptly described in John 14:6, we may experience …

The Spirituality Of Psychodynamic Psychotherapy: A Case Study, Stephen B. Morris Ph.D.

Issues in Religion and Psychotherapy

Although psychodynamic psychotherapy is effective and can be done briefly, it has fallen out of favor, especially with religiously oriented psychotherapists—including Latter-day Saint psychotherapists. The client in this case study is a 50-year-old, middle-class, Caucasian member of the Church. Using the case study as a framework, this paper describes and illustrates how psychodynamic psychotherapy can be seen as a spiritual endeavor that is compatible with both a traditional Christian orientation and a Latter-day Saint orientation. To the author’s knowledge, this is the first case report of psychodynamic psychotherapy with a Latter-day Saint client. This report may form part of the …

Patience As A Development Virtue And Common Therapeutic Factor, Vaughn E. Worthen Ph.D.

Issues in Religion and Psychotherapy

This article provides an overview of patience and its associated constructs by examining its role in five domains: (a) confidence and control; (b) distress tolerance; (c) relationship development, maintenance, and repair; (d) character development; and (e) spiritual maturation. It highlights initial evidence that patience contributes to increased self-regulation and impulse control, distress tolerance, self-compassion, mindfulness, empathy in relationships, perspective taking, use of cognitive reappraisals, prosocial ori- entation, character development, and spiritual maturation. Patience helps with coping with anxiety and depression, aids with handling uncertainty, facilitates relationship maintenance and repair, and sustains the ability to manage the ambiguities present during faith …

Religious Perfectionism: Utilizing Models Of Perfectionism In Treating Religious Clients, Michael D. Adams

Issues in Religion and Psychotherapy

Past research has asserted that members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (i.e., Mormons) have high rates of religious perfectionism. A historical investigation was performed exam- ining how the perception of perfectionism has changed within the field of psychology. The study first investigates early viewpoints (e.g., Freud, Horney, Adler, Ellis, Beck) that unanimously perceived perfectionism as negative and debilitating in an individual’s psychological adjustment. New research, which understood and measured perfectionism as a multidimensional construct, found both positive and negative components of perfectionism. Different theoretical understandings of perfectionism (e.g., behavioral, attachment, self-conscious emotions, acceptance, Big Five personality …

Analyzing Anger References In The Scriptures: Connections To Therapy In A Religious Context, Emily Swensen Darowski, Kristin L. Hansen, Aaron P. Jackson, Charles D. Flint, John Linford

Issues in Religion and Psychotherapy

People navigate life more successfully and find more joy when they are able to regulate emotion in healthy ways. Teaching and helping clients regulate emotion in healthy ways is an important part of many psychotherapy approaches. In this paper, we focus on the emotion of anger from a theistic therapy perspective, arguing that understanding the nature of God’s anger and human anger in the scriptures can inform theistic therapy practice. To establish this understanding, we analyzed cases of the word anger in the scriptures through content analysis (e.g., quantitative) and hermeneutic analysis (e.g., qualitative). Findings revealed that, while God was …

Full Issue

Issues in Religion and Psychotherapy

No abstract provided.

Fear And Career Decision-Making Difficulties: Guiding Individuals With Career Indecisiveness, Jordan Hanks

Student Works

Individuals with fear-based career indecisiveness exhibit extreme career decision-making difficulties (CDD) which prevent them from successfully making career decisions. Fear must be recognized as a significant contributor to indecisiveness in order to aid those with fear-based career indecisiveness. Career guidance professionals may help indecisive individuals by first identifying the causes of indecisiveness and the decision-making fear. Career indecisiveness may have either low career self-efficacy or low emotional intelligence as a contributor, each of which impact individuals differently. Career indecisiveness also involves either a fear of failure or a fear of commitment, which may contribute to CDD. Guidance for these individuals …

Full Journal 13_2, Intuition Journal

Intuition: The BYU Undergraduate Journal of Psychology

No abstract provided.

Exploring Agentic Treatments For Anxiety And Depression, Tyler H. White

Intuition: The BYU Undergraduate Journal of Psychology

Agency and mental illness are hypothesized to be related. Agency may contribute to mental illness (specifically, anxiety and depression) by impacting the amount of choices in one’s life (LeMoyne & Buchanan, 2011; Schwartz, 2004). Effective treatment for the mentally ill targets causes of mental disorders, so if agency is related to mental illnesses, then it logically should be incorporated in treatment. Agentic treatment, which consists of any form of treatment that explicitly acknowledges the importance and the reality of agency, has been shown to be effective (Myers, 2016; Patterson et al., 2016; Slife, 2004). Effective agentic treatment includes autonomy groups …

School Of Rock: The Relationship Between Music Training And Academic Academic Achievement, Clayton Hadlock

Intuition: The BYU Undergraduate Journal of Psychology

Music education has been a key part of human culture for thousands of years (Cartwright, 2013). As children often begin to receive musical education during grade school, many researchers have begun to investigate whether musical training may benefit other areas of academics. This literature review evaluates the overall effectiveness of musical training on academic performance for three different age groups: pre- and elementary school children under 12 years old; middle and high school-age adolescents between 12 and 18 years old; and college and university students over 18 years old. Musical training here includes instrumental and vocal training, as well as …

Cultural Influences On Regulating Emotion, Gyuyi Kang

Intuition: The BYU Undergraduate Journal of Psychology

Emotional regulation is an important aspect of our social lives that can build or weaken relationships. Regulating emotion is influenced by many factors and culture is one of many important factors that has a striking influence on how people regulate their emotion. The world can be divided into two major cultures: independent and interdependent culture. Most Western countries show characteristics of independent culture while most Eastern countries show the characteristics of interdependent culture. Depending on what culture we are from, we will exhibit differences in emotion regulation on, behavior, and emotional coping strategies. Thus, understanding cultural differences is especially crucial …

Treating Comorbid Ptsd And Bpd: A Dialectical Approach, Meredith Pescatello

Intuition: The BYU Undergraduate Journal of Psychology

According to the Biosocial Developmental Model for Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD), individuals with a biological vulnerability (i.e., heightened emotional sensitivity and impulsive tendencies), plus an invalidating environment may develop BPD (Crowell, Beauchaine, & Linehan, 2009). Individuals with BPD are especially difficult to treat, because of their “extreme emotional, behavioral, and cognitive dysregulation” (Crowell, Beauchaine, & Linehan, 2009). Though challenging to treat, BPD can be successfully treated using Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) (Linehan, 1993; Linehan 2015). Similarly, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is complex and often burnout inducing to treat, because of the intensity of the emotional content related to traumatic events …

Healthy Habits To Reduce Sleep Deprivation In College Students, Jenna L. Bair

Intuition: The BYU Undergraduate Journal of Psychology

Abstract

Sleep can affect many regular functions in the body. Consequently, the physiological and psychological effects of sleep deprivation have many ramifications, including long-term health issues, depression, and eating disorders (Alhola & Polo-Kantola, 2007; Beiter et al., 2015; Jarcho, Slavich, Tylova-Stein, Wolkowitz, & Burke, 2013; Ozsoy, Besirli, Unal, Abdulrezzak, & Orhan, 2015). Despite the importance of sleep for regulative processes, studies indicate that the general population does not receive adequate sleep quality or length (Watson et al., 2017). College students represent a large demographic and often do not obtain enough sleep (Gaultney, 2010). Thus, it is proposed that collegiate institutions …

The Cognitive Effects Of Late Bilingualism On Executive Functions: Lifelong Benefits, Rachel Casper

Intuition: The BYU Undergraduate Journal of Psychology

Late bilinguals, those who learn a language past the critical period, are often thought to not receive much benefits from their language learning in comparison to their early bilingual counterparts. A large of body of recent research suggests otherwise. Late bilinguals receive the same cognitive benefits as early bilinguals; these benefits are in higher levels of executive functions, specifically in inhibitory control and attentional switching. Higher levels of executive functions assist learners in improving their mental processing and cognitive health over the course of their lifetime. Aging bilinguals have greater cognitive health due to more white and gray matter density. …

Dream Interpretation: The Next Frontier Of Psychoanalysis, Samuel Skidmore

Intuition: The BYU Undergraduate Journal of Psychology

An examination of the history of dream interpretation reveals its significant role within psychotherapy, drawing upon religious texts, ancient philosophers, and modern uses. Many prominent psychologists such as Freud and Jung contributed to our knowledge of dreams and how they can be interpreted. The problems clinicians face today is that most methods for analyzing dreams are scattered and contrary. Several specific theories, from Freudian theory to the Hill Cognitive-Experiential Model of dream interpretation, are discussed and analyzed. Research has slowed on this topic due to methodological problems and diverse interpretations of dream content. Subsequently, the potential benefits of using dream …

The Expression Of Gratitude As A Contributor To Marital Strength, Kandace R. Palmer

Intuition: The BYU Undergraduate Journal of Psychology

Abstract

Gratitude is an important positive emotion for personal and social growth. Because of innate human needs, gratitude strengthens and builds interpersonal connections (Carnegie, 1936/1981; Johnson, 2008; Lambert & Fincham, 2011). In light of more recent research on the expression of gratitude in dyadic relationships, gratitude is considered to be an essential emotion for communicating “responsiveness” and for marriage survival (Algoe, Fredrickson, & Gable, 2013; Algoe, Kurtz, & Hilaire, 2016; Algoe & Zhaoyang, 2016). When spouses express appreciation, sincerity is necessary for gratitude to strengthen a marriage (Gordon, Arnette, & Smith, 2011; Leong, 2012). Furthermore, insincere gratitude, or a belief …

Front Matter 13_2, Intuition Journal

Intuition: The BYU Undergraduate Journal of Psychology

No abstract provided.

Oprm1 Genotype Interacts With Serotonin System Dysfunction To Predict Alcohol-Heightened Aggression In Primates, Carlos A. Driscoll, Stephen G. Lindell, Melanie L. Schwandt, Stephen J. Suomi, J. Dee Higley, Markus Heilig, Christina S. Barr

Faculty Publications

Although the notion that alcohol promotes violence is widespread, not all individuals are aggressive while intoxicated. Genetic variation could be a contributing factor to individual differences in alcohol-heightened aggression. The present study examines the effects of OPRM1C77G genotype on responses to threat in rhesus macaques under normal conditions and following alcohol administration. Prior studies have shown that a low CSF level of 5-HIAA is a trait marker for individuals prone to escalated aggression. We wanted to examine whether the predictive value for this marker on aggression was moderated by OPRM1 genotype. Animals were administered alcohol (BAC 100-200 mg%), were provoked …

One Jump Forward, Two Jumps Back: A Qualitative Study Of Parental Issues Raising Adolescents With Autism, Molly Anne Rosenbaum

Theses and Dissertations

There have been numerous investigations seeking to quantify the experience of parents raising adolescents of autism, but remarkably few have looked at the total experience qualitatively, as reported by parents. The present study was conducted along with a larger study for adolescents with autism participating in the PEERS® social skills group intervention, which includes simultaneous parent sessions. This study analyzed comments made in the parent group, identifying the issues parents reported spontaneously through a qualitative analysis of 12 unstructured hour-long sessions including parents (n = 16) and graduate student clinicians. The purpose of this investigation was to explore the …

The Longitudinal Impact Of Screen Time On Adolescent Development: Moderation By Respiratory Sinus Arrhythmia, Wesley Sanders, Justin Parent, Jamie L. Abaied, Rex Forehand, Sarah M. Coyne, W. Justin Dyer

Faculty Publications

Purpose: To date, little is known about underlying psychophysiological contributions to the impact of media content and overall screen time on adolescent psychological functioning. In the present study we examine respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) as a moderator of the link between specific types of media content use, overall media exposure, and the development of internalizing and aggressive symptoms in youth.

Methods: A sample of 374 adolescents (mean age = 15) reported on their media use, internalizing behavior, and aggressive behavior at time 1 (2011) and 1-year follow-up (2012). RSA reactivity was gathered during a challenging laboratory task. Path analyses were …

A Hermeneutic Exploration Of The Therapeutic Process Of Clinicians At An Eating Disorder Treatment Center, Sabree Anne Crowton

Theses and Dissertations

Eating disorders remain extremely difficult to treat and investigation has revealed that manual-based eating disorder treatment outcomes have failed to improve over the second half of the last century. Various studies have observed that clinicians use evidence-based treatments for eating disorders inconsistently and often exclude fundamental theoretical techniques. Some argue that this departure from evidence-based practice may in some cases be the efforts of clinicians to develop methods more sensitive to real world situations. It stands to reason that some of the techniques currently being used by clinicians are promising treatment approaches. The purpose of this study was to explore …

The Neurobiological Basis Of Memory Specificity: The Influence Of Context And Re-Encoding, Dr. Brock Kirwan

Journal of Undergraduate Research

At a general level, we know that the information that is successfully encoded in and retrieved from long-term memory is influenced by the context during encoding and retrieval. However, we do not yet know how context affects mnemonic discrimination of similar or overlapping items or events. Further, we do not yet know what the effect is of retrieving the wrong information (or false recognition) on the original memory representation. Here, I propose to lead a group of students in an investigation using functional MRI (fMRI) on the effects of context on a neural process called pattern separation that is thought …

Ianimate: Exploring The Use Of Animation And Virtual Environments In Educational Settings, Ryan O. Kellems

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Evaluation of how well the academic objectives of the proposal were met

The academic objectives of the grant were met. During the course of the study there were four independent research sites where the intervention was delivered and data was collected. The results form several of theses studies has been published and the conceptual ideals from the project have also been published. This funding has also provided the foundation for the current work I am doing. There is currently one other data set from the grant under review and another manuscript in the final stages of preparation.

Project Final Evaluation: Parent Training In Southeast Europe: Strengthening Families Of Children With Autism In Macedonia, Blake D. Hansen

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The purpose of this project was to evaluate program to education parents of children with autism in the Republic of Macedonia, located in Southeastern Europe. Macedonia has many factors that made it an important research site. Poverty rates, ethnic conflict, and access to professional resources make parenting a child with autism very difficult in Macedonia. This project sought to alleviate some of these burdens by providing a training model where parents trained each other on simple interventions to help their children.

Investigating The Processes And Outcomes Of Theistic Spiritually Oriented Psychotherapies, Dr. Scott Richards

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The MEG grant I was awarded for the academic years 2015 and 2016 funded two projects:

(1) Review of the research literature about the state of the evidence based on spiritually integrated psychotherapies.

Completed Academic Objectives:

a. completed literature search b. wrote manuscript summarizing and discussing findings c. presented findings at APA and AMCAP conventions (American Psychological Association, Denver, Colorado, August 2016, and Association of Mormon Counselors and Psychotherapists, Salt Lake City, October 2016, and American Psychological Association, Washington, DC, August 2017) d. submitted manuscript for publication consideration

(2) Data analysis and reporting the findings of two practice-based evidence studies …

The Effects Of Media On Ambivalent Sexism, Career Aspiration, And Help-Seeking Attitudes Toward Mental Health Services, Niwako Yamawaki

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Evaluation of how well the academic objectives of the proposal were met I proposed some academic objectives that students must achieve through the research project, entitled above. First, students were expected to create three 15-minutes video clips. Through this activity, they have learned about ambivalent sexism, identified examples of ambivalent sexism, learned how to run focus groups, and improved technical skills dealing with media. Second, Students must submit an IRB application for this project. Their application was successfully approved, and they have learned research processes, conducted literature reviews, improved writing and hypothesis building skills, and received training in ethical issues …