Mental Disorders Commons^™

Drinking Motives Underlying Internalizing And Externalizing Pathways To Alcohol Misuse In College Students, Jeanne Savage

Theses and Dissertations

Alcohol misuse, including heavy episodic use and negative consequences, is a major public health concern and a particular problem among college students. The etiology of alcohol misuse is not well resolved, with multiple and often contradictory factors implicated in its development. Genetic factors influence alcohol misuse but few specific genes have been identified. A potential reason for these challenges is that alcohol misuse is phenotypically and genetically heterogeneous; that is, there are multiple causal pathways underlying its development. Previous typologies have suggested that distinct internalizing and externalizing pathways are involved, with corresponding differences in profiles of personality, temperament, and comorbid …

A Study Of Media Portrayal Of Schizophrenics To Understand How Stigma Associated With Schizophrenia May Be Reversed, Rainielle M. Cua

Undergraduate Research Posters

The news media are one of the most influential sources of information regarding mental illness. Media coverage on schizophrenia, one of the most stigmatized mental illnesses, tends to be negative, focusing on high risks of violence, failure, and unpredictability. Such perceptions may cause a detrimental impact on the mentally ill and cause them to internalize a stigmatizing stereotype and hinder the public’s understanding of mental illness. I studied how media portrayal in newspaper coverage of schizophrenics has evolved to discover how nonfiction media representation has affected people’s perceptions and attitudes towards schizophrenics and to propose an implementable solution to reduce …

Identification And Ptsd Screening Of Military Veteran Patients In Community Healthcare: A Quality Improvement Project, Caitlin Rose Budrewicz

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Projects

Background: Military veterans are at an increased risk for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) related to their prior military service. Establishing veteran status of patients cared for in civilian healthcare and screening for PTSD will increase the likelihood of identifying symptoms and prompt appropriate treatment. Purpose: The focus of this project is to increase practitioner awareness and knowledge of PTSD in veteran patients as well as to identify and screen veteran patients for PTSD symptoms utilizing the primary care PTSD screen (PC-PTSD). Method: To determine veteran status, patients over the age of 18 years in an internal medicine clinic will be …

Consequences Of Job Stress For The Psychological Well-Being Of Teachers, Irvin Sam Schonfeld, Renzo Bianchi, Peter Luehring-Jones

Publications and Research

This chapter examines research on the relationship between job stressors and mental health (depressive symptoms, burnout, and mental disorders such as depression) in teachers. Teachers are exposed daily to job stressors (e.g., student disruptiveness) that have been linked to adverse mental health effects. Epidemiologic research indicates that when compared to members of other groups, teachers experience higher rates of mental disorder, although some studies question that conclusion. Large-scale studies indicate when compared to members of other occupational groups, teachers are at higher risk for exposure to workplace violence, with its adverse mental health consequences. Longitudinal research has linked teaching-related stressors …

Mental Health Courts And Sentencing Disparities, E. Lea Johnston, Conor P. Flynn

UF Law Faculty Publications

Despite the proliferation of mental health courts across the United States, virtually no attention has been paid to the criminal justice effects these courts carry for participants. This article provides the first empirical analysis of differential sentencing practices in mental health and traditional criminal courts. Using a case study approach, the article compares how Pennsylvania’s Erie County Mental Health Court and county criminal courts sentenced individuals who committed the same offenses and held the same average criminal history score. Information on the mental health court—including eligibility criteria, plea bargaining and sentencing procedure, sentencing policies, program length, graduation rates, likelihood of …

The [E]Motionless Body No Longer: Tracing The Historical Intersections Of Mental Illness And Movement In The American Asylum, Holly Adele Herzfeld

Senior Projects Spring 2017

Senior Project submitted to The Division of Multidisciplinary Studies of Bard College.

Different Not Less: An Evaluation Of The Autism Training Curriculum For The Kentucky Department Of Criminal Justice Training, Joseph Aaron Ellis

Online Theses and Dissertations

Autism spectrum disorder is one of the largest growing neurological behavioral disabilities in the United States, with a rise in diagnoses from 2012 (1 in 88) to present day (1 in 68). Studies have shown that individuals with disabilities are more likely to be victimized. Thus, the increasing diagnoses of ASD increases the chance that a victim of crime will have ASD. Police officers should have a working and growing knowledge of ASD from day one, for this reason. This exploratory study uses a literature review of autism spectrum disorder in order to develop an evaluation to analyze the curriculum …

Dementia: Incorporating Families And Caregivers In Direct Speech-Language Intervention, Jocelyn Hartley

Online Theses and Dissertations

In a survey, 50% of 1,000 caregivers reported that they received no information on dementia at the time of diagnosis (Thompson & Pulsford, 2012). This statistic provides strong evidence as to why caregivers feel ill-prepared to care for individuals with dementia. The role of a speech-language pathologist (SLP) is suggested to not only treat the individual with dementia, but consider the role and perspective of the caregiver (Watson, Aizawa, Savundranayagam & Orange, 2013). Providing education and training to caregivers of individuals with dementia is within the scope of practice of speech-language pathologists (Watson et al., 2013).

A survey design for …

The Impact Of Sexual Assault On College Students' Daily Occupations: A Phenomenological Approach, Lee Ann Hodge

Online Theses and Dissertations

It is estimated that 1 in 4 women experience sexual violence while in college (Tjaden & Thoennes, 2006), which may result in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Occupational therapy has been used to provide interventions for PTSD, but there is a gap in the literature addressing occupational therapy intervention for college students who have experienced sexual assault. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to inquire into students’ lived experiences of daily occupations while in college after having experienced sexual assault, through thematic analysis of data from two interviews conducted in Kentucky and Ohio. Six meaningful themes were developed: changes in …

Significance Of The Feminization Of Male Eating Disorders, Rachel Rothman

Undergraduate Research Symposium Posters

Today, many individuals develop eating disorders; however, eating disorders are typically associated with women. In this paper, I declare that male eating disorders are stigmatized due to the feminization of eating disorders. I explain why this stigma exists and how this bias inhibits professionals from conducting objective research on male eating disorders and diagnosing them correctly. I illustrate how the stigma prevents men from recognizing their own unhealthy behaviors and can deter individuals from recognizing eating disorder-related behaviors in other men. Throughout the essay, I provide my own analysis regarding how to combat the stigmatization of eating disorders. By writing …

Editorial: Depression, Burnout, And Other Mood Disorders: Interdisciplinary Approaches, Eric Laurent, Bianchi Renzo, Irvin Sam Schonfeld, Pierre Vandel

Publications and Research

Various perspectives on mood disorders and psychopathology are brought into perspective. The paper underlines (i) an interdisciplinary perspective and a complexity-oriented approach and (ii) an interest in both basic problems in science and potential far-reaching consequences of research applications.

Addiction, Choice And Criminal Law, Stephen J. Morse

All Faculty Scholarship

This chapter is a contribution to a volume, Addiction and Choice, edited by Nick Heather and Gabriel Segal that is forthcoming from Oxford University Press. Some claim that addiction is a chronic and relapsing brain disease; others claim that it is a product of choice; yet others think that addictions have both disease and choice aspects. Which of these views holds sway in a particular domain enormously influences how that domain treats addictions. With limited exceptions, Anglo-American criminal law has implicitly adopted the choice model and a corresponding approach to responsibility. Addiction is irrelevant to the criteria for the …

Distortion In Body Schema: The Influence Of Body Fat And Mass On Perceptions Of Personal Size, Katarina Ann Ferrucci

Senior Projects Spring 2017

Obesity has been linked with a myriad of negative outcomes for both physical and mental health including feeding and eating disorders and cognitive impairments that affect perception of body size. Understanding the cognitive mechanisms and physiological factors that contribute to perception of body size may help us to comprehend how obesity impacts the construction and development of one’s mental body representations. Previous research by Scarpina, Castelnuovo, and Molinari (2014) suggests that, compared to those with a normal Body Mass Index, individuals with a BMI greater than 30 (obese) not only inaccurately estimate tactile and mental distances on their own bodies, …

The Dual Faces Of Misery, Arden Moscati

Theses and Dissertations

Major Depression (MD) and Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) are psychiatric disorders that arise from dysfunction of the core human capacities for emotion. Sapience is inextricably bound up with the potential for feelings of regret, worry and concern. When these emotions lead to clinically significant impairment or distress, they may result in one or both of the disorders of MD and GAD. The occurrence of MD and GAD in the same person, known as comorbidity, is remarkably high; substantially higher than would be expected by chance.

MD and GAD have been studied since the mid-20^th century, resulting in a substantial …

Parental Input To Children With Asd And Its Influence On Later Language, Aparna Nadig, Janet Bang

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

In this chapter, we review evidence on parental input to children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), moving from quantitative measures of linguistic features to qualitative measures of interaction. First, we examine lexical and syntactic features (e.g., number of utterances, mean length of utterance [MLU]) in the input provided to children with ASD compared with TD [typically developing] children matched on language level. Second, we turn to work on parental responsiveness, or the tendency to provide verbal or gestural input in sync with the child’s focus of attention, and how this compares across dyads including a child with ASD or a …

Auditory Erp Differences Across A Continuum Of Psychotic Symptoms In Non-Clinical Population, Anaya Rehman

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Psychosis is a term given to a mental state described as a loss of contact with the real world. The aim of this thesis was to examine early non-specific psychotic experiences in a healthy population by means of two self-report screening tools: Prime Screen and Youth Psychosis At-Risk Questionnaire-Brief, and place individuals on a psychosis continuum. Across this psychosis continuum, three event related potential (ERP) components were assessed: P300, Mismatch Negativity and N100. There is evidence that P300 and mismatch negativity amplitudes diminish in individuals with psychosis. Similarly, impaired N100 amplitude suppression (increased N100 amplitudes) during vocalization has been observed …

Personality And Life Events In A Personality Disorder Sample, Linden R. Timoney, Zach Walsh, M. Tracie Shea, Shirley Yen, Emily B. Ansell, Carlos M. Grilo, Thomas H. Mcglashan, Robert L. Stout, Andrew E. Skodol, Donna S. Bender, Charles A. Sanislow, Leslie C. Morey, John G. Gunderson

Charles A. Sanislow, Ph.D.

Mending Invisible Wounds: The Efficacy And Legality Of Mdma-Assisted Psychotherapy In United States' Veterans Suffering With Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Jonathan Perry

Journal of Law and Health

Though Veteran Affairs has provided crucial life sustaining—and often lifesaving—treatments to returning soldiers, the substantial and ever-increasing rates of veteran suicides, drug addictions, and criminal behavior indicate a need for broader options in treatment. One of the most profound discoveries uncovered through MDMA-assisted psychotherapy research is MDMA’s facilitation of the alleviation of addictive behavior in subjects, and, as a result, an alleviation of addictions in general. Addiction is one of the key symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and drug abuse plays a large role in the other afflictions suffered by veterans, namely criminal activity and a high rate of …

A Systematic Review Of Complimentary Therapies To Treat Symptoms Of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder In The Aftermath Of Domestic Abuse, Jordan A. Meeks, Saida Byrami

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

Objectives: Explore the impact of intimate partner violence (IPV) on the health of female survivors. Identify complementary therapies that alleviate symptoms of psychological health impacts of IPV on women’s health.

Method: An exhaustive search of published, peer reviewed literature on complementary therapies and IPV was conducted. Databases included PubMed and CINAHL. Each article reviewed was published between the years of 2002 and 2016. The initial search produced 112 articles, abstracts of all studies were reviewed and studies were included if they addressed; a) complementary and alternative therapies, b) post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, and depression and, c) the impact of IPV …

Stigmatizing Attitudes Towards Men And Women Combat Veterans With Combat Related Ptsd, Heather L. Caldwell

Electronic Theses & Dissertations

Veterans with PTSD experience stigma and discrimination. The extent to which women combat veterans with PTSD may experience stigma and discrimination has yet to be investigated. This is critical given the increasing number of women veterans exposed to combat and combat trauma. Level of familiarity may affect stigmatizing beliefs. Gender may also affect stigmatizing beliefs. To assess this, 126 undergraduate students (men, n = 69) were randomly assigned to view videos of a man or woman veteran describing combat experience and their PTSD symptoms. Participants completed questionnaires assessing PTSD symptoms, level of familiarity with veterans, and stigmatizing attitudes toward the …