Digital Commons Network^™

Providing Counseling Services In An Off-Campus Clinic: A Blueprint For Creating A Successful Partnership, Judith A. Nelson, Mary Nichter

Journal of Community Engagement and Higher Education

We offer a blueprint for creating an off-campus clinic through a university, school district, and community partnership. The facility which is housed in the school district provides university students with direct counseling experiences with clients who have genuine needs, allows the university to expand its goal of providing for the public good, and benefits the school district by enabling it to grow its own school counselors who currently teach in the district.

One Is The Loneliest Number: The Impact Of Social Isolation On Blaberus Discoidalis, Jaden Jackson

Student Theses and Dissertations

Isolation in humans and its consequences has been documented by researchers as early as the 1700s (McNeil et al., 1984). More recently, interest in the impact of social isolation has been renewed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many of the studies covering social isolation and the COVID-19 pandemic rely on self-report measures obtained through questionaries or interviews. Studying social isolation experimentally is difficult due to risk factors associated with isolating one from conspecifics. This is particularly true when studying humans. Animal models of social isolation are important as they allow for implementation of necessary controls needed to establish …

Young Adults’ Self-Perceptions Of Parenting Styles And Attachments Influencing Juvenile Criminality, Keristin Zanda Scott

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Parenting styles, parent-to-child attachments, and parental involvements are contributing factors leading to juvenile delinquency. Adolescents are committing offending acts at a younger age, recidivating, and perpetrating with peers or parents. However, there is a lack of empirical research on juvenile perceptions of parenting, juvenile criminality, and desistance implications. The purpose of this interpretive phenomenological study was to explore past juvenile criminal offenders’ lived experiences and the corresponding influence parenting styles had on their deviant behaviors. Ainsworth and Bowlby’s attachment theory, Baumrind’s parenting style theory, and Bandura’s social learning theory provided a lens for examining young adults’ perceptions of parenting related …

Enhancing Students’ Self-Confidence From Disharmonious Families Through Group Guidance With Sociodrama Technique, Drajat Edy Kurniawan, Almadia Qosita Janah Saputri

Buletin Konseling Inovatif

Adolescence is a developmental phase full of challenges, particularly for students from disharmonious family backgrounds who are vulnerable to low self-confidence. This study aims to enhance students’ self-confidence through group guidance services using the sociodrama technique at a public junior high school in Yogyakarta. The research employed a quantitative approach with a one-group pretest–posttest design. The subjects consisted of six eighth-grade students identified as coming from disharmonious families and having low self-confidence. The instrument used was a self-confidence scale that included indicators of belief in one’s abilities, courage to express opinions, and ability to face challenges. Data were analyzed using …

Religiosity And Attitudes Toward Suicide Among Filipinos, Marc Eric S. Reyes, Therese Angelie C. Daluping, Omar Joseph Sj. Dela Cruz, Sigmund Gabriel A. Estremadura, Jonah Emmanuel D. Gavino, Elaine G. Villanueva, Alvin L. Jacob Iii

Makara Human Behavior Studies in Asia

Religiosity is generally negatively associated with attitudes toward suicide. Religious individuals typically have more negative attitudes toward suicide than individuals with lower levels of religiosity. This is partly due to the belief that suicide goes against many religious teachings that revere life as a sacred gift from God. Hence, using a cross-sectional, predictive design, we aimed to investigate the link between religiosity and suicide attitudes and how much religiosity predicts different suicide attitudes. Using non-probability convenience sampling, 1148 Filipino participants aged 18–65 completed an online test battery: Centrality of Religiosity Scale Interreligious form-20 and Attitudes Toward Suicide Scale. Results revealed …

The Role And Influence Of Media Coverage And Social Media On Suicides: A Scoping Review, Kevin Miko Buac, Janine Trixia Austria, Claro Emmanuel Monsanto, Ma. Jamaica Monique Ponce, Arnold Christopher Soriano, Mystie Suzuki, Marc Eric S. Reyes

Makara Human Behavior Studies in Asia

Suicide is one of the leading causes of death worldwide. Numerous factors contribute to suicide ideation; recent studies highlight that the media’s presentation of suicide plays a significant role in influencing suicide ideation and attempts among their audience. This study aims to evaluate the extent of the literature on traditional media reporting and social media in the context of suicide ideation and attempts, considering social media as a distinct yet relevant domain with its widespread reach and user-driven nature. The PRISMA Extension for Scoping Reviews was employed to retrieve relevant studies and address the following questions: (1) What potential factors …

Multiple Pathways Of Social Impairment For Youth With Symptoms Of Adhd: A Novel Model Of Serial Mediation, Ewald Michael Wefelmeyer

Dissertations (1934 -)

The current study sought to explain the heterogeneity of social impairment among youth with symptoms of ADHD with the goal of potentially improving a clinician's ability to identify and support those children. A novel model of the relationship between the disorder and social impairment was proposed with serial mediators of parental/family functioning and emotion regulation. It was anticipated that a higher level of ADHD symptoms would lead to more impairment among aspects of parental/family functioning, which would predict more emotion dysregulation which would subsequently predict poorer social functioning. Structural Equation Modeling yielded little support for the overall model and no …

Legends, Lies, & Rewritten Lives: After The Little Bighorn: Forgotten Struggles Of Those Who Walked Away, Thomas B. Davidson

DU Textbooks

This Narrative is about an event that occurred on June 25, 1876, on the banks of the Little Bighorn River in what is now the state of Montana. Seen from a 21st century perch, it tells a story of a contest between the armed representatives of two different civilizations, each of which fought in the manner of its society. The narrative will attempt to balance the truth of what happened while also relating an engaging story, but without drifting into sensationalism. The narrative will go beyond a focus on the meeting of the soldiers from either group to explore the …

Nigerian Immigrant Mothers’ Parenting Style In Supporting Academic Achievement In Their Children, Ganiyat Olasumbo Saidu

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Supporting their children’s academic activities while navigating the socioeconomic norms of the new system continues to be a significant challenge for most immigrant parents in urban areas of the United States. However, there is inadequate literature on the parenting behaviors used by Nigerian immigrant parents to support their children’s academic achievement. The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand how Nigerian immigrant mothers describe the parenting styles that support their children’s academic achievement. The theoretical framework for this study was Bandura’s (1977) social cognitive theory and Baumrind’s (1966) theory of parenting styles. For this basic qualitative study, the population …

Behavioral Assessment Software: Enhancing Polygraph And Investigative Interviewing, Alan Saquella

Publications

In the rapidly evolving world of security, law enforcement, and investigative sciences, professionals are increasingly turning to advanced technologies to supplement tried-and-true methodologies. One emerging innovation is behavioral assessment software, designed to enhance both pre-employment screening and investigative interviewing. Acting as a form of modern human intelligence collection, these tools enable examiners and investigators to gather deeper insights directly from candidates and subjects, revealing behavioral cues and risk indicators that might otherwise remain hidden (Vrij, 2008).

Importantly, behavioral assessment software is not intended to replace polygraph or other traditional investigative methods. Instead, it functions as a complementary resource—one that provides …

School Resource Officers’ Perceptions Of Their Role And The Effects Of Their Interactions With Students, Tameka Arlene Elizabeth Evans

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The use of school resource officers (SROs)—trained police officers who have been assigned to schools—has markedly increased with the rise in school shootings in the United States. However, after several high-profile incidents of excessive force by SROs, there has been a movement toward removing them from schools. Although researchers have studied the use of SROs in schools, few have examined how the relationship between SROs and students affects students’ perceptions of the police. The purpose of this study was to increase the understanding of how SROs experience their interactions with students and how those interactions affect students' perceptions of police …

First-Generation Black And Latinx Students And Their Perceived Level Of Postsecondary Education Preparedness, Shawanna Burton

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

First-generation Black and Latinx students report challenges of belonging and preparation in the transition to college. Limited research on these experiences hinders counselors’ support for these students. The purpose of this hermeneutic phenomenological study was to explore first-generation Black and Latinx college students’ meaning of their high school experiences. A hermeneutic phenomenology conceptual framework was used to explore the lived experiences of first-generation Black and Latinx college students, focusing on how guidance from high school counselors influenced their sense of belonging, persistence, and degree attainment in postsecondary education. Data were collected from nine participants through semistructured interviews and analyzed using …

Impression Motivations And Mental Health In Collegiate Athletes And Musicians: The Benefits Of Promoting Virtues, Mary L. Inman, Olufemi A. Oluyedun, Erin Moran, Brendyn Mroz, Madison Mccreery

Faculty Publications

This study identifies two key impression-management motivations that arise in public settings: promoting virtues and preventing harm to one’s image. We explored their impact on mental health—specifically, socially-based perfectionism and depressive symptoms. Drawing from regulatory-focus theory, we predicted promotion motivations would predict strong mental health, prevention motivations would predict poor mental health, and promotion motivations would buffer against the negative effects of prevention motivations. Collegiate athletes and musicians (N = 262) completed validated measures of impression motivation, perfectionism, and depressive symptoms. Results revealed that athletes reported lower levels of perfectionism and depressive symptoms than did musicians. Across both groups, …

The Potential Benefits Of Co-Design In Dog-Assisted Treatment Programs For Veterans Seeking Mental Health Care, Parvin (Pary) Bahmanyari, Pauleen Bennett, Tiffani Howell

People and Animals: The International Journal of Research and Practice

Veterans are more likely than the general population to experience a range of mental health problems. While many veteran mental health support programs are available, veterans may struggle to access and engage with these services for various reasons (e.g., a stigmatized perception of mental health disorders, mistrust). Animal-assisted services have become more popular in civilian and military health care settings where traditional therapies (e.g., cognitive behavioral therapy) may not always be effective. Assistance dogs, for example, which live with veterans to provide disability support, have been successfully employed for veteran mental health. Unfortunately, a subgroup of veterans may miss out …

Self-Transcendent Experiences As Promoters Of Ecological Wellbeing? Exploration Of The Evidence And Hypotheses To Be Tested, Amy Isham

The International Journal of Ecopsychology (IJE)

In recent years, much has been written on the role of different mental states and their potential to influence our way of thinking and, perhaps more importantly, the way we act. With the recent acceleration of environmental and mental health issues, alongside the limited effectiveness of existing interventions, an exploration of new approaches to deliver transformative change is required. We therefore explore the emerging potential of a type of mental state known as self-transcendent experiences (STEs) as a driver of ecological wellbeing. We focus on four types of STEs: those facilitated by experiences of flow, awe, and mindfulness, as well …

Will Anyone Play With Me? Building Resilience Through Community Play With Transgender And Gender Diverse Young Adults, Lee Lebeda

Expressive Therapies Theses

The recent increase in anti-trans legislature in the United States has negatively impacted the mental health of transgender young adults nationwide. Current research suggests that creative expression in a group setting may be uniquely suited to help transgender people combat the negative mental health effects of internalized anti-trans messaging. Based on this research, a community engagement project was designed for transgender young adult participants to explore resilience building through drama therapy-informed community play. Three play-based support groups, facilitated by a drama therapy graduate student who identified as a peer to the participants, were offered to transgender young adults in their …

Black Somatic Liberatory Practices: The Africanist Aesthetic In Psychotherapeutic Movement Observation, Ebony Nichols

Counseling and Psychology Dissertations

This critical ethnographic qualitative study explored Black body-based healing practices and coping strategies used to resist and titrate the impact of racism and oppression. It also examined how Black individuals use their bodies to regulate their nervous systems to heal and cultivate liberatory practices. Grounded in theoretical frameworks such as Black Psychology, African Indigenous Healing Systems, Liberation Psychology, and Critical Race Theory, this research investigated the intersections of Black Aesthetics, Psychology, and the body through the lens of the Africanist Aesthetic. The study employed interaction analysis and reflexive thematic analysis to analyze non-verbal and verbal data collected from two focus …

Affirming Connections: Understanding The Factors That Cultivate Supportive Relationships For Latine Students And High School Staff, Ivelis Macaruso

Counseling and Psychology Dissertations

Latine students have increased steadily in the United States. This population brings rich experiences and strengths to their school communities. However, such strengths are often overlooked in the development of individual practices and institutional policies to better support Latine student wellbeing. Research suggests that supportive relationships between students and school staff promote positive academic outcomes and student wellbeing. Yet, the factors that promote supportive relationships among Latine students are not well understood. This qualitative dissertation examined Latine students’ experiences of both impactful factors and barriers to supportive relationships with school staff through the lens of critical race theory (CRT), Latina/o …

Steiner And Jung On Esoteric Knowledge, Katherine T. Ziemke Mst, Jd, Phd Candidate

Journal of Conscious Evolution

For centuries, humanity has been accumulating complex knowledge, systematically building increasingly intricate mathematical and scientific models by accruing predictable circumstances or facts, often designated as theories or laws. This essay proposes that there is a hidden well-spring of ideas or knowledge beyond the methodical accumulation of such mathematical and scientific knowledge, from whence the source that inspired the basis of this knowledge might have originated. Carl Gustav Jung and Rudolf Steiner believe there is an abundance of such knowledge that lies hidden in plain sight and available for a vast expansion of human awareness. In this essay, I take a …

Biophobia And Pet Ownership: Can Having A Pet Mitigate Our Fear And Aversion Towards Nature?, Alexia Barrable

The International Journal of Ecopsychology (IJE)

Biophobia, which we defined as fear, disgust, or aversion toward natural environments or organisms, has received little empirical attention when compared to biophilia, despite its implications for human and planetary wellbeing. This mixed-methods study explores the relationship between pet ownership, biophobia, and nature connectedness among 373 English- speaking adults. Quantitative findings reveal that (M = 26.4) exhibit significantly lower levels of biophobia than non-pet owners (M = 30.1; U = 5179, Z = -2.95, p = .002, R = 0.27), although no significant differences in nature connectedness were found across pet ownership (U = 7033, Z = 0.31, p = …

Postscript: A Historical Interlude, George Conesa

The International Journal of Ecopsychology (IJE)

Ravens fly in circles above our heads. Coyote peers from the hedge but dares not. Kachinas have not danced. The awelos tried but youth went their own way.

The Progressive Changes In Posttraumatic Symptoms And Posttraumatic Growth Associated With Traumatic Incident Reduction, Joseph L. Mcclory

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Many millions of people are suffering from symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Just in the United States, 13 million Americans had a PTSD diagnosis as of 2020. Through the theoretical lens of catharsis, analysis of variance was used to examine whether traumatic incident reduction (TIR) is associated with changes in posttraumatic symptoms and posttraumatic growth by comparing pre, mid, and post-TIR PTSD Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5) and Posttraumatic Growth Inventory (PTGI) scores. Regression was also used to test whether post-PCL-5 scores accounted for variance in the post-PTGI scores. Ninety-seven TIR cases from the mental health agency between 2017 and …

Self-Talk Speaks Loud: A Bibliometric Dissection Of Its Rise In Counseling Practices, Sri Purwanti, Wahyu Nanda Eka Saputra

Buletin Konseling Inovatif

This study aims to map global trends in self-talk using a bibliometric approach. The data source was entirely drawn from the Scopus database, focusing on publications containing keywords related to self-talk, such as self-talk, talk, and relationship. The analysis was conducted on 960 selected documents published between 1975 and 2025. The results show a significant increase in publications since 2020, reflecting a growing need for self-talk approaches that support mental health and psychological well-being. Authors from various countries contributed differently, with the United States dominating in terms of both publication volume and citations, while developing countries such as Indonesia have …

Parenting And Parental Well-Being As Risk And Resilience Factors For Mental Well-Being In Adolescents With And Without Neurodevelopmental Disorders, Wanqin Yu

All ETDs from UAB

Parenting practices and caregiver well-being are widely recognized as key determinants of adolescent mental health. However, few studies have examined how these factors operate in the context of neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs), particularly through a risk and resilience framework. This study investigated how positive and negative parenting practices, caregiver well-being, and parenting stress relate to adolescents’ emotional well-being and internalizing problems. It also explored whether these variables differed between adolescents with and without NDDs. Participants included 105 adolescents aged 11–14 years (61.9% female; 52.4% diagnosed with an NDD) and their caregivers, drawn from a larger study on adolescent socio-emotional competencies. Caregivers …

The Resilience In Black Families Scale: A Validation Study, Destiny Kelly

All ETDs from UAB

The Resilience in Black Families Scale (RBFS) was developed to be a culturally relevant measure designed to assess the family resilience processes utilized within Black families. The purpose of this study was to validate the RBFS, which consists of a three-factor structure modeled after Walsh’s family resilience framework and is further enhanced with culturally relevant protective factors. Using a sample of 200 participants, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was conducted to test the theoretical hierarchical factor structure of the Resilience in Black Families model, consisting of 13 first order factors (making meaning of adversity, positive outlook, religiosity and spirituality, ethnic-racial socialization, …

The Longitudinal Associations Between The Longitudinal Associations Between Parent Involvement And Academic Achievement In Elementary School Involvement And Academic Achievement In Elementary School, Makayla Elizabeth Warnecke

All ETDs from UAB

Parent involvement has been positively linked to children’s academic outcomes (e.g., Chavkin, 1993; Eccles & Harold, 1993; Epstein, 1989, 1994; Hess & Holloway, 1984; Hobbs et al, 1984; U.S Department of Education, 1994). These outcomes include higher achievement test scores (Keith et al., 1986), better grades (NCES, 1985), and increased rates of secondary school completion (Chavkin & Williams, 1993; Delgado-Gaitan, 1988, 1992; Epstein, 1986, 1995; Angiano, 2004). However, gaps remain in the current state of research when investigating longterm implications. In a recent meta-analysis, researchers stated the lack of analyses using a longitudinal cross-lagged design as a future direction (Barger …

Racial Discrimination And Inflammation In Adolescence: Ethnic/Racial Processes As Moderators, Queenisha Crichlow

All ETDs from UAB

Discrimination and other psychosocial stressors contribute to chronic disease by dysregulating neuroendocrine and immune systems, which often leads to increased levels of inflammation. Given that inflammation is a key biological pathway associated with the development of chronic diseases, it has been proposed as a potential mechanism linking racial discrimination to poorer health. Most studies linking racial discrimination with inflammation have focused on adults, despite the fact that children and adolescents also experience discrimination. This dissertation explores the association between racial discrimination and inflammation, measured via salivary C-reactive protein (CRP) and proinflammatory cytokines, among Black and Hispanic adolescents. It also examines …

Promoting Mental Health And Social-Emotional Development In Underserved Families, Brianna Paquette

All ETDs from UAB

The overarching goal of this dissertation was to investigate interventions that aimed to support mental health and child development in underserved families. Individuals from low-income households often experience mental health difficulties, such as higher rates of caregiver depression. Additionally, children from disadvantaged backgrounds are more likely to face difficulties with social and emotional development. This dissertation is comprised of three papers exploring interventions to facilitate child development and well-being in low-income families. The first paper is a systematic review and meta-analysis on home visiting interventions aimed at supporting the social-emotional development of children from birth to five years of age. …

Measuring Emotional Well-Being Across Neurodevelopmental Disorders, Alecia Mercier

All ETDs from UAB

Emotional well-being has emerged as a crucial determinant of both physical and mental health, with implications for public health initiatives aimed at improving quality of life and reducing mortality. However, a clear and consistent understanding of emotional well-being, its components, and optimal measurement strategies remains lacking, especially for individuals with neurodevelopmental disorders. This dissertation investigated how emotional well-being is conceptualized and measured in individuals with neurodevelopmental disorders. Paper one was a scoping review that identified 20 emotional well-being measures developed or adapted for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Findings demonstrated that many existing measures do not include emotional well-being …

Psychedelics And Psychosis: An Interdisciplinary Re-Examination, Haley Maria Dourron

All ETDs from UAB

Psychedelics have long been described as potential drug models of psychosis. There is also concern that psychedelics might worsen psychotic symptoms in individuals with a history of psychotic disorders. This dissertation examines the overlap between psychedelic-induced states and non-affective psychotic disorders (NAPD) from both subjective and neurological perspectives, as well as the perceived impact of psychedelic use in people with a history of NAPD. Nineteen people with a history of NAPD who had used psychedelics were interviewed about their experiences. Participants generally described psychedelic and psychotic experiences as distinct, though both affected similar experiential domains, such as sensory alterations. Altered …