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Development And Testing Of The Home Safety And Beautification Checklist With Mothers Referred For Child Neglect And Substance Abuse, Michelle Pitts

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Unintentional injury is the leading cause of death among children in the United States accounting for nearly 40 percent of deaths in this age group. Approximately 50 percent of nonfatal injuries, and 40 percent of fatalities, occur in and around the home. Elevated rates of child injury in the home environment are associated with parental substance abuse and neglectful behaviors. Childhood injuries are preventable, yet practical and cost-effective measures to identify child home safety risks are limited. This study involved a retrospective preliminary examination of the Home Safety and Beautification Checklist (HSBC) in a sample of drug-abusing mothers referred by …

Predictors Of Major Commitment, Anna Jill Womack

Master's Theses

Contextual (e.g. job fit, job involvement), individual (e.g. job satisfaction, need for achievement), and demographic (e.g. gender, educational level) factors have been related to forms of career commitment (i.e. affective, continuance, and normative commitment), highlighting that the commitment one feels toward his or her career is a complex variable. Furthermore, commitment has been associated with intent to remain within a profession or organization (Bowling, Beehr, & Lepisto, 2006; Den Hartog & Belschak, 2007; Duffy, Dik, & Steger, 2011; Goulet & Singh, 2002), suggesting that commitment is an important component of retention within a career. Correspondingly, commitment to one's academic major …

The Fatherhood Factor: The Impact Of The Father-Child Relationship On The Social, Interpersonal, And Recidivism Risk Factors Of Previously Incarcerated Men, Larissa A. Maley

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

Of the men who return home from prison, nearly 7 out of 10 will be re-arrested and sent back within 3 years of their release (Travis, Solomon, & Waul, 2001). This trend has large- scale implications, not just for individuals, but for their families and communities as well. Clearly, understanding the factors that contribute to a man’s success or failure in staying out of prison is extremely important in constructing policy and programs to assist these at-risk individuals and communities. Of the few studies that have explored the lives of previously incarcerated men, some have found fatherhood to be a …

The Importance Of Access To Benefits Under The Family Medical Leave Act For Low-Income Families For Bonding And Attachment Facilitation With A Fragile Infant And The Role Of The Social Worker, Theresa Stewart Moran

21st Century Social Justice

Lack of universal family leave discriminates against low-income families with infants who require care in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. Birth complications tend to occur more frequently in families living with low socioeconomic status, placing a disproportionate burden on an already vulnerable population. Parents in this group tend to be employed in jobs that do not include the benefit of parental leave. Considering that attachment relationships form as the result of bonding transactions during a critical time in development, limiting contact curtails secure attachment. This, combined with other risk factors, increase the odds of lifelong negative outcomes. Family leave policy …

Secondary Teachers' Perceived Role In Suicide Prevention And Intervening With Suicidal Students, Victoria R. Hatton

Theses and Dissertations

Best practices in adolescent suicide prevention include teachers as major participants, because teachers are in a unique and frontline position to support students. Unfortunately, many teachers are unaware of their role in suicide prevention efforts. In addition to confusion about their roles, teachers may feel uncomfortable and/or lack confidence in their abilities to identify warning signs and intervene with suicidal students. This study assessed secondary teachers' (N = 74) perceptions of their role in suicide prevention as well as how they perceive their comfort and confidence levels in identifying and intervening with suicidal students. In addition, this study explored possible …

Effects Of Gender Bias And Gender Inversion Stereotypes On Assessment Of Personality Traits And Diagnosis Of Personality Disorders, Beatrice Charmaine Mosier

Doctoral Dissertations

Past research has shown the results of gender and gender role biases on the diagnostic decision-making process, particularly with regard to personality disorders. This bias has implications for homosexual individuals, as they often are viewed as displaying traits of opposite sex individuals. With regard to personality assessment, current research continuously supports a more dimensional conceptualization of personality pathology. In the most recent edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, a hybrid model of personality assessment, which utilizes both categorical methods and dimensional approaches, has been added as an alternative model. The study explored the effects of …

University Counseling Groups For International Students: Impact On Group Leaders And Members, Mark Beecher, Ph.D.,, Mark Beecher

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Academic Objectives: All of the objectives in the grant proposal were met. Included is each of the objectives from the original proposal and how each has been met.

Barriers And Facilitators Of Suicide Risk Assessment In An Emergency Department: Perspectives From Health Care Providers, Megan Lynn Petrik

Dissertations (1934 -)

Emergency departments (EDs) are critical sites for identifying patients with heightened suicide risk but there are no practice guidelines for the assessment of such patients. This study aimed to inform ED suicide risk assessment practices by examining ED providers' perspectives on this practice via a mixed methods approach. ED providers (n = 92) from two hospital systems completed an online survey that assessed demographic information, occupational information related to screening for suicide risk and related conditions, attitudes toward suicide prevention, and knowledge of suicide risk factors. A subset of ED providers (n = 19) completed a qualitative interview to gain …

Parenting Behaviors, Adolescent Depressive Symptoms, And Problem Behavior: The Role Of Self-Esteem And School Adjustment Difficulties Among Chinese Adolescents, Cixin Wang, Yan Ruth Xia, Wenzhen Li, Stephan M. Wilson, Kevin Bush, Gary Peterson

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

Cross-sectional data from 589 Chinese adolescents were used to investigate whether parenting behaviors are directly or indirectly (through self-esteem and school adjustment difficulties) associated with adolescent depressive symptoms and problem behavior. Structural equation modeling results showed that school adjustment difficulties fully mediated the relations between two parenting behaviors (parental punitiveness and paternal monitoring) and adolescent problem behavior and partially mediated the relation between maternal monitoring and adolescent problem behavior. Adolescent self-esteem partially mediated the relations between maternal punitiveness and adolescent depressive symptoms and fully mediated the relations between parental support and adolescent depressive symptoms. Parental love withdrawal was not significantly …

Hispanic Residential Ethnic Density And Depression In Post-Acute Coronary Syndrome Patients: Re-Thinking The Role Of Social Support, Ellen-Ge Denton, Jonathan A. Shaffer, Carmela Alcantra, Lynn Clemow, Elizabeth Denton

Publications and Research

Background: The ethnic density hypothesis suggests that ethnic density confers greater social support and consequently protects against depressive symptoms in ethnic minority individuals. However, the potential benefits of ethnic density have not been examined in individuals who are facing a specific and salient life stressor.

Aims: We examined the degree to which the effects of Hispanic ethnic density on depressive symptoms are explained by socioeconomic resources and social support.

Methods: Patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS, N = 472) completed the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and measures of demographics, ACS clinical factors and perceived social support. Neighborhood characteristics, including median …

Organizational Leaders’ And Staff Members’ Appraisals Of Their Work Environment Within A Children’S Social Service System, David A. Patterson Silver Wolf (Adelv Unegv Waya) Phd, Catherine N. Dulmus Phd, Eugene Maguin Phd, John Keesler, Byron James Powell

Brown School Faculty Publications

Several studies have demonstrated the effect of an organization’s culture and climate on the delivery of services to clients and the success of clinical outcomes. Workers’ perceptions are integral components of organizational social context, and in order to create a positive organizational culture and climate, managers and frontline staff need to have a shared understanding of the social context. The existing literature does not adequately address that discrepancies in perceptions of culture and climate between frontline staff and managers impact the implementation of policies and services. The purpose of this study is to compare the workgroup-level culture and climate of …

Kids Alive! Support For Children Of Parents With Cancer: An Exemplar Program For Children Of Parents With Cancer, Shane Spears

Graduate School of Professional Psychology: Doctoral Papers and Masters Projects

Cancer in a parent or caregiver is an event that affects the whole family. The roles and responsibilities of the diagnosed parent, as well as those of each family member, are affected at the time of diagnosis and throughout the progression of the illness. According to the American Cancer Society, there will be an estimated 1,665,540 new cancer cases diagnosed and 585,720 cancer deaths in 2014. This staggering statistic means there are a number of cancer diagnoses that will directly affect thousands of parents and their children. Past research suggests this upheaval in the system is particularly stressful on children …

An Equine-Facilitated Prison-Based Program: Human-Horse Relations And Effects On Inmate Emotions And Behaviors, Keren Bachi

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Policy makers and correctional authorities are seeking ways to enhance effectiveness of incarceration and reduce recidivism. Equine-facilitated prison-based vocational programs aim to rehabilitate inmates. Informed by the theories of attachment and desistance, this study evaluates the emotional and behavioral effects of such an intervention utilizing a quasi-experimental methodological triangulation design.

Recidivism and disciplinary misconduct are examined by clinical data-mining of institutional records. Propensity Score Matching, binary and multinomial logistic regressions are applied in a discrete-time event history analysis. Semi-structured interviews revealing the subjective experiences of participants are analyzed via the Listening Guide methodology. Quantitative questionnaires, exploring attachment and closeness to …

Between Sites: Critical Convergences At The Personal, Interpersonal, And Institutional Levels In A Service Learning Course, Kendra Rashaun Brewster

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Set within the context of the increasing emphasis on civic engagement and transformative education, this work addresses service learning as a form of civic engagement that holds both the risks of acriticality and critical potential. This study examines the capacity for the critical consciousness and relationality that define the primary commitments of critical service learning (see Kinefuchi, 2010). Thus, this study is grounded in the ways that the circuits of privilege and dispossession were breached in a service learning course where college students travelled to mentor adolescent girls who were in a secure residential facility. The narratives of former service …

Parental Mental Health: The Role Of Parental Attachment To Their Child With Asd, Adrianna Elyse Holness

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Research suggests that parents of children with an Autistic Spectrum Disorders (ASD) experience higher levels of stress than both those of typically developing children and children with other developmental disabilities. Parental stress may spill over into additional domains of parental competence, impairing parental mental health, and parents’ ability to bond with their child. Little research has addressed the impact of the parent-child bond on parental stress. The current study used data from the Mindful Awareness for Parenting Stress project (MAPS) at Loma Linda University to further our understanding of parents’ attachment to the child and parental stress examining whether parental …

Mental Health Services For Asian Youths In The United States: A Structured Literature Review, Victoria A. Nguyen

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

This study is a structured review summarizing findings of the existing literature on mental health service use among Asian and Pacific Islanders (API) youth. The project aims to answer the following questions: (1) What type of services do API youths access to address their mental health needs? (2) To what extent are API youths utilizing these mental health services to address their needs? (3) What type of methodological approach is used to evaluate API youth’s needs and utilization of mental health? (4) How can findings from this literature review contribute to clinical practice and future research? The methodological approach includes …

Parental Depression And Child Behavior Problems: A Closer Examination, Yangmu Xu

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Parents of children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) have higher rates of depressive symptoms, and parental depressive symptoms are strongly associated with problem behaviors in children. However, the direction of effect between parental depression and child behavior problems is unclear. Additionally, the mechanisms through which parental depression contributes to child behavior problems and vice versa are not well understood. The purpose of the present study is to examine the relationship between parental depression and child behavior problems among families of children with ASD; more specifically to investigate as mediating variables that may explain the mechanisms through which parental depression and …

Incarceration And Reintegration: How It Impacts Mental Health, April M. Marier, Alex Alfredo Reyes

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

ABSTRACT

Background: Previous criminal justice policies have been non-effective leading to overpopulated prisons and unsuccessful reintegration. There is a lack of effective supportive and/or rehabilitative services resulting in high rates of recidivism and mental health implications. Objective: This study investigated the perceived impact that incarceration and reintegration with little to no supportive and/or rehabilitative services has on the mental health status of an individual. The emphasis was on participant perception and not on professional reports because of underreporting and lack of attention to mental health in the criminal justice system. Methods: Focus groups in the Inland Empire and Coachella Valley …

Predicting Youth Treatment Failure: An Investigation Of Clinical Versus Actuarial Judgment, Tessa Nicole Salisbury

Theses and Dissertations

Research investigating clinical versus actuarial prediction and judgment has consistently demonstrated the superiority of actuarial (statistical) methods. Little research to date has directly compared clinical and actuarial predictions in the context of patient-focused psychotherapy outcomes. The most relevant study on this issue was completed with an adult population and results indicated that the actuarial method was significantly more accurate at predicting client treatment failure compared to clinician’s predictions. This study examined clinical versus actuarial prediction of client deterioration in a sample of children and adolescents receiving treatment in a managed care and community mental health setting. Predictions of treatment failure …

Student Employment In Organizations And The Relationships Among Commitment Levels, Turnover Intentions, And Absenteeism, Brittany J. Roy

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

To date, research that examines individuals who work and go to school generally aims to examine the effects of doing so on their academic performance. Little literature is available that examines the effects that these dual roles can have on the organization (e.g., lower levels of commitment and higher rates of absenteeism and turnover). Understanding such effects can assist organizations in managing their employees and developing programs tailored to them, such as career counseling. A literature review is presented which examines both the constructs of the multiple forms of commitment, absenteeism, and turnover, and the research currently available on student …

Burnout In Psychiatric Nursing: Examining The Interplay Of Autonomy, Leadership Style, And Depressive Symptoms, Renee Madathil, Nicholas C. Heck, David Schuldberg

Psychology Faculty Research and Publications

It is important to consider ways in which nurses can be protected from experiencing the effects of burnout. This study examined the relationships between leadership style of psychiatric nurse supervisors, work role autonomy, and psychological distress in relation to psychiatric nurse burnout. Eighty-nine psychiatric nurses from Montana and New York hospitals completed an online survey that assessed their work-related experiences. Overall, results of this study indicate that the participants were experiencing high levels of emotional exhaustion and depersonalization when compared to a normative sample of mental health workers. Results also showed that leadership style and work role autonomy are likely …

To Test Or Not To Test: Barriers And Solutions To Testing African American College Students For Hiv At A Historically Black College/University, Naomi M. Hall-Byers, Jennifer Peterson, Malynnda Johnson

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Young African Americans are disproportionately affected by sexually transmitted infections, including HIV. The purpose was to identify reasons that African American college students at a historically Black college/university (HBCU) identified as barriers to HIV testing, and how these barriers can be removed. Fifty-seven heterosexual-identified undergraduate students (ages 18-25) attending an HBCU in the southeastern US participated in the study. Latent content analytic techniques were used to code the transcripts for themes and categories, and representative quotations were used in the findings. Qualitative data indicates three main themes used to avoid testing and three themes to encourage testing. Students were forthcoming …

The Effect Of Social Problem Solving Skills In The Relationship Between Traumatic Stress And Moral Disengagement Among Inner-City African American High School Students, Kendell L. Coker, Uduakobong N. Ikpe, Jeannie S. Brooks, Brian Page, Mark B. Sobell

Psychology Faculty Publications

This study examined the relationship between traumatic stress, social problem solving, and moral disengagement among African American inner-city high school students. Participants consisted of 45 (25 males and 20 females) African American students enrolled in grades 10 through 12. Mediation was assessed by testing for the indirect effect using the confidence interval derived from 10,000 bootstrapped resamples. The results revealed that social problem-solving skills have an indirect effect on the relationship between traumatic stress and moral disengagement. The findings suggest that African American youth that are negatively impacted by trauma evidence deficits in their social problem solving skills and are …

Clinician Interest In Working In Substance Abuse Treatment: The Role Of Self-Efficacy, Outcome Expectancies, And Stigma, Genevieve Anne Covert

Theses and Dissertations

Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT) was used to examine clinician career interest for working in substance abuse treatment. The study examined the impact that self-efficacy and outcome expectancies have while exploring stigma as a moderating variable. Participants (N = 153) with experience providing mental health treatment completed the study. A series of self-report surveys were administered electronically. A series of Likert scales were used to assess career interests, self-efficacy, outcome expectancies, and stigma. A service-load measure and demographics survey were also completed. Correlation analyses and regression analyses revealed that self-efficacy significantly predicted career interest in substance abuse counseling. These analyses …

How Do We Conceptualize Depression?: A Mixed Methods Study, Mariafé Taeví Panizo

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

Despite being extensively discussed, the concepts of mental disorder in general and depression in particular remain unclear and no consensual definitions are yet established. Empirical research on how professionals and laypeople think about depression also points to tensions and lack of consensus. However, there still remains much work to be done in order to more effectively and clearly elucidate how depression is conceptualized. Specifically, there has not been an in-depth analysis of the beliefs, values, and justification that guide practitioners in their everyday work regarding mental disorders in general and depression in particular. The purpose of the current mixed methods …

Back To Nature: The Impact Of Nature Relatedness On Empathy And Narcissism In The Millennial Generation, Anne Loyer Metz

Educational Specialist, 2009-2019

Social science research suggests that the current generation of college students is quite different from previous cohorts of undergraduates. In particular, researchers have discovered that college students, known as “Millennials,” demonstrate lower levels of empathy, higher levels of narcissism, increased use of technology, and decreased time spent outdoors. As counselors working with Millennials, large scale dispositional changes may impact the overall functioning of these individuals. This quantitative study of 140 undergraduates explores the relationship between the constructs of empathy, narcissism, and nature-relatedness among the Millennial generation. Data analysis suggests that there is a statistically significant relationship between nature relatedness and …

Volunteers' Cross-Cultural Experience In Tanzania And Zambia, Josephine Elaine Talarski

Theses & Dissertations

Despite a growing interest in international volunteerism, there is a scarcity of literature concerning returning volunteers’ cross-cultural experience in developing countries. The purpose of the study was to examine the phenomenon of volunteers’ cross-cultural experience of participating in immersion trips to Tanzania and Zambia. The study also explored whether volunteers believed their cross-cultural experience to be life changing. The following research questions were used to guide this study: 1. What motivated volunteers to participate in immersion trips to Tanzania and Zambia? 2. How has the immersion experience changed the volunteers’ beliefs about themselves while engaging in a cross-cultural environment? 3. …

An Exploration Of Service-Oriented Fields, Eliza Murray

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

Community psychology, nonprofit administration, and social work are service-oriented fields that seek to understand and solve a variety of social problems. All of these fields are value-oriented, but they use a variety of approaches to understand social issues facing individuals, families, and communities. Community psychology uses participatory action research to understand the relationships between individuals and their communities, social work is practice-oriented and seeks to empower and liberate all people, and nonprofit administration explores the governance and leadership of nonprofit organizations. Information about the basic duties of professionals in these fields is readily available; however, individuals interested in the aforementioned …

Exploring Job Stress Among Drug Court Personnel, Ragan Andrew Downey

Dissertations

In the field of criminal justice, much research has been devoted to exploring job stress among corrections staff, police officers, and individuals working in legal professions. Additionally, there is an abundance of research regarding drug courts and their impact on the justice system. There is, however, a stark absence of research concerning job stress among drug court personnel. This study was designed to fill that gap in the existing literature by examining the perceptions of drug court personnel regarding job stress, job satisfaction, and other relevant factors identified in the literature. Results of bivariate and multivariate analyses indicated that drug …

Development And Evaluation Of A Geriatric Mood Management Program, J.W. Huh, Erin Woodhead, Sarah Brunskill, Christine Gould, Kathleen Mcconnell, J. Lisa Tenover

Faculty Publications

To address the needs of older veterans with mood disorders, the VA Palo Alto Health Care System Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center developed a program that offers mental health services delivered by geriatrics-trained providers.