Psychology Commons^™

Storytelling To Promote Mental Health: A Conceptual Analysis And Application With Acceptance And Commitment Therapy For Depression, Carter H. Davis

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Mental health treatments can be delivered in many ways. One approach is to use storytelling to communicate healthy practices. While societies across the world have engaged in storytelling for thousands of years, these practices have been used less in the mental health field. The aim of this project was to study the overlap between the areas of mental health and storytelling. We also tested how a storytelling-based mental health treatment could help solve a particular clinical problem. In this case, the problem of people who receive inadequate help for managing depression through medication alone.

We examined one particular mental health …

Acceptance And Commitment Therapy For A Child With Misophonia: A Case Study, Julie M. Petersen, Michael P. Twohig

Psychology Faculty Publications

Misophonia, a condition involving hypersensitivity, anger, and/or disgust in response to specific noises (e.g., chewing, tapping), is highly underresearched in children. Several case studies point towards the utility of cognitive behavioral therapy and related treatments (e.g., acceptance and commitment therapy [ACT]). ACT presents a particularly promising option, as it focuses on building psychological flexibility in response to difficult internal experiences, rather than trying to remove or change them (e.g., responding effectively to irritation provoked by chewing). The present case study describes “Kelly” (pseudonym), a 12-year-old girl with moderately severe misophonia symptoms, who received a 16-session course of ACT for misophonia. …

School-Based Acceptance And Commitment Therapy For Adolescents With Anxiety: A Pilot Trial, Julie M. Petersen, Carter H. Davis, Tyler L. Renshaw, Michael E. Levin, Michael P. Twohig

Psychology Student Research

Anxiety disorders are one of the most prevalent diagnoses in youth, often resulting in impaired social and school functioning. Research on treatments for youth anxiety is primarily based in traditional clinical settings. However, integrating youth psychotherapies into the school environment improves access to evidence-based care. The present study is a pilot, randomized waitlist-controlled trial of a school-based, group acceptance and commitment therapy-based (ACT) intervention for adolescents with anxiety. Students at two separate schools (N = 26) with elevated anxiety were randomized to a 12-week waitlist or to immediate treatment. Participants in the immediate treatment condition reported statistically significant decreases …