Digital Commons Network^™

Counselors’ Experience With Male Opioid Abuse Clients With Anxiety And Depression During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Sheila J. Stauffer

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

There has been a spike in overdoses in the United States resulting in approximately 100,306 deaths since the COVID-19 pandemic began with overdose results from men in opioid and fentanyl abuse with a shortage of resources for substance use disorders and mental health. Families across the U.S. have been affected with the social problem of substance abuse disorders for many years due to environmental and biological constructs due to loss of jobs, housing, limited childcare, and exposure to drugs and alcohol at an early age. The present phenomenology qualitative study explored counselors’ experience working with male clients who abuse opioids …

‘Foundations Of The Mind, Brain, And Behavioral Relationships’: A Combined Faculty And Student’S Perspective Of A New Textbook On Clinical Neuroscience, Richard J. Addante, Jahdiel Perez Caban, Sarah E. Smith

Psychology Faculty Publications

The textbook, ‘Foundations of the Mind, Brain, and Behavioral Relationships’ (Moini et al., Citation2023), is one of the newest textbooks in neuroscience to arrive. The market for textbooks in the field of neuroscience is competitive among several excellent comparators, but critical market gaps still remain to be filled, notably the area of clinical neuroscience that is both advanced in content but accessible to students. One of the reasons that this gap has existed in the field is precisely because it can be a very difficult a mark to hit: how does one present neurobiological content that is …

Nerve Injury Inhibits Oprd1 And Cnr1 Transcription Through Rest In Primary Sensory Neurons, Ashok Subedi, Asieh Etemad, Aadhya Tiwari, Yuying Huang, Biji Chatterjee, Samantha M Mcleod, Yungang Lu, Diangelo Gonzalez, Krishna Ghosh, Mario Sirito, Sanjay K Singh, Elisa Ruiz, Sandra L Grimm, Cristian Coarfa, Hui-Lin Pan, Sadhan Majumder

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

The transcription repressor REST in the dorsal root ganglion (DRG) is upregulated by peripheral nerve injury and promotes the development of chronic pain. However, the genes targeted by REST in neuropathic pain development remain unclear. The expression levels of four opioid receptor genes (Oprm1, Oprd1, Oprl1 and Oprk1) and the cannabinoid CB1 receptor (Cnr1) gene in the DRG regulate nociception. In this study, we determined the role of REST in controlling their expression in the DRG induced by spared nerve injury (SNI). SNI induced chronic pain hypersensitivity in wild-type mice and was accompanied by increased levels of Rest transcript and …

On The Role Of Prediction In Streaming Hierarchical Learning, Ramy Mounir

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In today's world, AI systems need to make sense of large amounts of data as it unfolds in real-time, whether it's a video from surveillance and monitoring cameras, streams of egocentric footage, or sequences in other domains such as text or audio. The ability to break these continuous data streams into meaningful events, discover nested structures, and predict what might happen next at different levels of abstraction is crucial for applications ranging from passive surveillance systems to sensory-motor autonomous learning. However, most existing models rely heavily on large, annotated datasets with fixed data distributions and offline epoch-based training, which makes …

Acpe’S Spiritually Integrated Psychotherapy (Sip) Training Program: Clinical Competencies For Integrating Religion And Spirituality In Counseling, Carol Za Mcginnis, Maya Georgieva, Mary Elizabeth Toler

Journal of Faith Integration Counseling (JFIC)

Clients frequently seek psychotherapy that will incorporate their unique religious or spiritual values into the therapeutic process, yet they are discouraged by practitioners who are not equipped to provide those services. Licensed mental health practitioners can receive this training and certification from the ACPE Spiritually Integrated Psychotherapy Training Program. Spiritual competencies exclusive to this integrative process have been designed to guide and support SIP-certified practitioners in alignment with other professional ethical codes. It is our hope that students, educators, and licensed practitioners from all mental health fields will find this information helpful in understanding the ethical integration of spirituality into …

An Exploration Of The Psyche-Cosmos Interconnection By Correlating Jungian Archetypes With Universal Phenomena, José Luis Díaz Dr.

Journal of Conscious Evolution

This paper systematically explores the correlations between Jungian archetypes and observable phenomena in the universe, aiming to deepen the understanding of the interconnectedness between human consciousness and the cosmos. I identify the core Jungian archetypes—including the Self, the Shadow, the Anima and Animus, the Hero, and others—and establish direct correlations with specific universal phenomena such as the cosmological singularity, dark matter and dark energy, matter-antimatter symmetry, supernovae, and universal physical laws. These correlations suggest that the fundamental structures of the human psyche mirror those of the universe, supporting philosophical concepts like the microcosm-macrocosm analogy and ontological monism. The proposed correlation …

A Fisher Information Theory Of Aesthetic Preference For Complexity, Sébastien Berquet, Hassan Aleem, Norberto M. Grzywacz

Psychology: Faculty Publications and Other Works

When evaluating sensory stimuli, people tend to prefer those with not too little or not too much complexity. A recent theoretical proposal for this phenomenon is that preference has a direct link to the Observed Fisher Information that a stimulus carries about the environment. To make this theory complete, one must specify the model that the brain has about complexities in the world. Here, we develop this model by first obtaining the distributions of three indices of complexity measured as normalized Shannon Entropy in real-world images from seven environments. We then search for a parametric model that accounts for these …

Donald Griffin, Sentience, And Animal Research Ethics, John Gluck

Animal Sentience

Recollection of early encounters with Donald Griffin’s pioneering work on animal awareness, provoking intense, often hostile academic responses, later forgotten.

An Empirical Analysis Of The Mmpi-3 Suicidal/Death Ideation Scale, Brittany Barnes Rhodes

Theses and Dissertations

Suicide is a significant concern in society and is one of the leading causes of death in the United States and around the world. Suicidality is particularly prevalent in outpatient psychological treatment centers, with some studies estimating a tenfold increase in prevalence in this setting compared to the population at large. Several measures have been developed to assess suicide risk potential based on symptom frequency and combinations of risk factors, and broadband personality measures have also incorporated suicidality scales into their tests. The current study was focused on assessing the effectiveness of the Suicidal/Death Ideation (SUI) scale on the third …

Dispositional Optimism, Sleep, And Trait Affective Mediators: A Latent Variable Approach, Nicole Ruiying Chen, Nadyanna Binte Mohamed Majeed, Adalia Yin Hui Goh, Paye Shin Koh, Jonathan Louis Jie Sheng Chia, Andree Hartanto

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Dispositional optimism has been shown to be associated with better sleep. However, most existing studies rely on subjective assessments of sleep, which may not align with objective assessments of sleep. Additionally, research investigating the mechanisms underlying the association between optimism and sleep is lacking. Moreover, the confounding role of possible content overlap in measures relevant to the constructs of interest has been neglected. To address these gaps, we utilised latent variable analysis and investigated the mediating role of depression and trait anxiety across two large-scale studies (total N = 2312), with objective sleep measures included in Study 2. In Study …

Conceptions Of Latinos And Latinas About The Grieving Process And Associate Concepts Of Dying, Death, Bereavement, And Loss: A Covid-19-Post-Pandemic Case Study, Rosario Garcia Ortiz

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to recognize the grieving process and the related concepts of Latinos who lost a loved one to the COVID-19 pandemic. Death and dying have been studied in the United States, with limited studies focusing on the Latino culture. The COVID-19 pandemic was a devastating experience for the world and continues to be studied for understanding and lessons in the aftermath. This research included four participants from the Latino culture who lost a loved one during the COVID-19 pandemic. An inductive approach and data analysis were used to form theoretical constructs. Three main categories were …

Kajian Risiko Kesehatan Terkait Pajanan Benzene, Toluene Dan Xylene Pada Pekerja Kilang Minyak Pt. X, Putri Noer Halizah, Mila Tejamaya

National Journal of Occupational Health and Safety

Workers in oil and gas production units are at risk of exposure to chemical hazards. One of the ingredients in petroleum is volatile organic compounds (VOC), with examples of ingredients known for their toxicity being benzene, toluene and xylene. This study aims to assess health risks related to exposure to benzene, toluene and xylene of oil refinery workers at PT. X. This study will analyze personal exposure to inhalation routes from benzene, toluene and xylene chemicals using the Chemical Health Risk Assessment (CHRA) method from the Department of Safety and Health, Malaysia. The study results showed that the risk level …

Youth's Career Adaptability In Untung Jawa Island, Lydia Freyani Hawadi, Gary Collins Brata Winardy, Hasna Hafizhah Salma

Psychological Research on Urban Society

The development of coastal regions is a pivotal aspect of Indonesia's ‘poros maritim dunia’ national agenda. This study focuses on Untung Jawa Island, a designated 'tourism village' off the coast of Jakarta, to investigate how the aspirations and perspectives of its young population align with this developmental drive. This study focuses on the viewpoints of the active Karang Taruna group members on the island, as they represent the youth engaged in community development. Utilizing a qualitative exploratory phenomenology design, this study employs Focused Group Discussions (FGD) to gain insights into how the youth perceive their potential career based on their …

Exploring The Associations Between Perceived Parent Communication And Involvement, Community Violence Exposure During Adolescence, And Subsequent Risk For Alcohol Use Disorder In Young Adulthood, Alexandra Toscova Tonigan

Individual, Family, and Community Education ETDs

This dissertation explores the dynamics between parenting practices, family structure, community violence exposure, and adolescent development through three interrelated studies. Collectively, these papers address how family environments shape adolescent experiences and outcomes, including alcohol use disorder (AUD). Using data from the Add Health study, this dissertation offers insights for researchers and clinicians supporting youth in vulnerable contexts. Chapter 1 examines the influence of average perceived communication and involvement, as well as differences in these behaviors between parents, on adolescent community violence exposure. This study critiques the conventional focus on averages, emphasizing the impact of discordant parenting. Chapter 2 investigates how …

Can We Use Judgement Bias To Assess The Welfare Of Fish In Aquariums And Zoos?, Culum Brown

Animal Sentience

This commentary examines the potential of tests of judgment bias to assess fish welfare in aquariums and zoos. Judgment bias offers a non-invasive approach to interpreting affective states in animals, using cognitive responses to ambiguous stimuli as indicators of mental wellbeing. Despite the constraints of captive environments—such as limited handling and species diversity in exhibits—recent adaptations of judgment-bias protocols make them suitable across taxa, including fishes. Collaborations with progressive zoos and aquariums could facilitate this research, based on the shared goal of enhancing animal welfare and promoting public education.

Gambaran Persepsi Pengawas Terhadap Efektivitas Geotab Dalam Mengendalikan Risiko Kecelakaan Kendaraan Ringan Di Divisi X, Aisyah Yasmin Zafirah, Chandra Satrya

National Journal of Occupational Health and Safety

This study aims to understand supervisors' perceptions of the effectiveness of Geotab as a control measure for mitigating the risk of collisions involving light vehicles. Conducted in Division X of PT. X, a mining industry, from February to June 2023, this descriptive, semi-qualitative study collected data through control effectiveness questionnaires, interviews, and document review. The variables studied include the relevance, coverage, reliability, reactivity, resource competence, and supervision system of Geotab. Questionnaire results showed supervisor perception scores of 3.09 for relevance (appropriate), 3.10 for coverage (appropriate), 3.06 for reliability (appropriate), 2.99 for reactivity (appropriate), 2.93 for resource competence, and 2.95 for …

Stress On The Brain: An Investigation Into The Impact Of Stress On Learning, Memory, And Metamemory Processes, Felicia M. Chaisson

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

While acute anxiety or stress has been shown to enhance certain cognitive functions, such as memory for emotionally salient stimuli, its effects on memory for emotionally neutral information remain ambiguous. Successful memory encoding and retrieval often involve control processes—both self-initiated and directed—that dictate organization during learning. Previous research indicates that these processes facilitate the contextual binding and organization of information. However, multi-domain evidence suggests that stress during encoding may be disrupted due to changes in neural mechanisms at play. This dissertation explores how stress impairs cognitive control, identifies potential underlying neural correlates, and examines broader metacognitive influences. Chapter 1 begins …

The Lived Experience Of Psychological Suffering In Animal/Environmental Activists, Pamela Jimenez

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Animal agriculture, the second-largest contributor to climate change, poses serious risks to human and global health. Animal/environmental activists work to reduce these risks but often face verbal ridicule and physical violence; however, little is known about the psychological suffering experienced by this group. This interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) aimed to explore the experience of psychological suffering in animal/environmental activists committed to ending exploitative animal agriculture and environmental activities. Ecopsychological theory and psychological constructs, such as eco-anxiety, eco-grief, and vicarious trauma, comprised the conceptual framework for this study. Data were collected through semistructured interviews with 18 animal/environmental activists, incorporating participant-selected photographs …

Supporting Gender Identity In Early Childhood: Understanding The Lived Experiences Of Parenting A Gender Variant Child Under Age 6 Years, Deborah Lyn Hahn

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The specific problem addressed through this qualitative research study was the lack of understanding of the lived experiences of parents of gender variant preschool children and the resources those parents need to help create affirming environments for their young children. Butler’s queer theory/feminist poststructuralism was the theoretical foundation of this research study. The purpose of this study was to explore the lived experiences of parents of gender variant children under the age 6 years and to determine the supports and services these parents need to help them create and maintain safe and affirming environments for their children. Transcendental phenomenology was …

Psychosocial Influences On African American Men Who Viewed Videos Of Police Killing Unarmed African American Men, Shaterrica Denae Maloney

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The strained relationship between the African American community and law enforcement is not a new phenomenon. However, these interactions have become a focal point in research given the current use of smartphones and other technologies that capture video footage of these interactions, including those that result in the fatality of an African American male. The purpose and research questions of this phenomenological study explored the lived experiences of African American men and how their psychosocial development is influenced by watching videos of unarmed African American men being killed by police. The research questions were: What is the experience of African …

Examination Of Musical Sophistication And Working Memory Correlates In High School Students, Abby South

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between musical engagement and cognitive ability in high school students. While musicians’ brains have long been of interest to those who study experience-dependent neuroplasticity, a lack of adolescent data grossly limits our understanding of the relationship between music training and observed neuroplastic changes in the brain. Advances in psychometric testing and brain imaging reveal relationships among musical expertise, changes in brain function, structure, and connectivity, and enhanced cognitive ability, but categorical groupings of dichotomously defined musicians and non-musicians prevent nuanced understanding of these complex relationships. In this study, 83 …

Adverse Childhood Experiences Moderate The Association Between Sensory Processing Sensitivity And Depression, Grant Benham

Psychological Science Faculty Publications

Investigations of the link between personality and depression provide a path to identifying at-risk individuals and developing tailored treatment. Sensory processing sensitivity, reflecting individual differences in processing of internal and external stimuli, has been found to predict depression severity. Based on a diathesis-stress model, the present study examines whether this association is moderated by adverse childhood experiences. An online survey containing standardized measures of adverse childhood experiences, sensory processing sensitivity, and depression severity, was administered to 558 college students. The sample was predominantly Hispanic (92%) and female (70%) with a mean age of 20.2 years. In support of the diathesis-stress …

The Extent To Which Race, Ptsd Symptoms, And Attitudes Toward Help-Seeking Predict Help-Seeking Intentions/Help-Seeking Behavior Among Veterans, Lenora Elizabeth Rogers

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Veterans who are returning to civilian life often experience barriers to seeking mental healthcare. The purpose of this quantitative, non-experimental, correlational study was to determine the extent to which race, PTSD symptoms, and attitudes toward help-seeking (psychological openness, help-seeking propensity, indifference to stigma) predict help-seeking intentions and help-seeking behavior among military veterans. Ajzen’s theory of planned behavior was the basis for this study. A convenience sample of 105 veterans (53 African Americans, 52 Caucasians) were recruited via Alchemer. Standard multiple regression analysis showed that help-seeking propensity was a significant predictor of help-seeking intentions, with higher scores on help-seeking propensity predicting …

Relationship Between Use Of Online Dating Apps And Mental Well-Being In Young Adults, Kyndal A. Burdin

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Technology and social media use are steadily becoming the preferred way to form and maintain relationships. A large majority of young adult populations investing time and energy into dating applications to meet romantic partners. Research has identified that there are many benefits, but also many risks, to using technology. It is important to identify the potential negative outcomes that dating app users may face and inform mental health professionals who can create proper preventive measures and treatment plans when working with clients. This study addresses the gap in the literature about some of the potential relationships between negative mental health …

The Relationship Between Parental Regard And Youth Athlete Performance And Contingency Of Self-Worth, Alysia M.K. Smith

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Youth athletic participation is important for the socioemotional development of children, such as lowering the risk of antisocial behaviors, increasing prosocial behaviors, improving physical and mental health, and lowering the risk of obesity. The purpose of this quantitative, correlational study was to explore the relationship between the youth athletes’ perception of how their parents regarded them and their self-worth and perception of their athletic performance, which was explored from the perception of the former youth athlete. The variables were operationalized by utilizing the following instruments: the Parental Conditional Positive Regard Scale (PCPRS), the satisfaction of sporting experience using Turman’s (2006) …

The Qualitative Study Of The African American Pastors' Perceptions Of Marriage And Family Therapists, De Angela Smith

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This phenomenological study investigates African American pastors' perceptions regarding mental health practitioners' roles. The research aims to comprehend the perspectives and experiences of ten participants, allowing them to select the location for data collection. This study investigates the relationship between interpretive phenomenon analysis and the perceptions of African American pastors using the hermeneutic phenomenology framework established by influential thinkers such as Husserl, Heidegger, Merleau-Ponty, and Sartre (Smith et al., 2022). As a philosophical discipline, phenomenology emphasizes the importance of an individual's lived experiences and worldview. Husserl, Heidegger, Merleau-Ponty, and Sartre have contributed to this discipline by emphasizing the inseparable relationship …

The Relationship Between Meaning, Basic Psychological Needs, And Motivation At Work: A Self-Determination Perspective, Cory Anne Trevena

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

In the following dissertation, I explored the predictive influence of meaning in life on autonomous motivation at work and psychological well-being in the presence of the three basic psychological needs of autonomy, competence, and relatedness identified by self-determination theory. The first hypothesis for this correlational study was that meaning in life would distinctly predict autonomous motivation at work beyond autonomy, competence, and relatedness. The second hypothesis for this study was that meaning in life would distinctly predict psychological well-being beyond autonomy, competence, and relatedness. I conducted a multiple regression analysis on the data collected from 94 working adults recruited using …

Evaluating The Difference Between Anxiety And Depression For Adults In The United States Who Were Adopted Internationally Versus Domestically, And Seeking To Determine If Age At Adoption Is A Predictor Of Depression And Anxiety For The Internationally Adopted, Kaitlyn Nicole Whiteside Engle

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

There is a gap in research on if there is a difference in mental health in those internationally and domestically adopted into the United States. The purpose of this quantitative study is to evaluate if there is a difference in depression and anxiety levels in those adopted domestically versus those adopted internationally and to determine if age at adoption for those internationally adopted is associated with levels of anxiety and depression. The three research questions are is there a difference in anxiety and depression levels in those internationally versus domestically adopted, is there a difference in age at adoption between …

Relationship Between Attachment, Spirituality, And Moral Injury Among Military Veterans, Amy C. Minor

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Extensive research indicates a convergence of emotional and neurobiological symptomatology between insecure attachment and moral injury among military veterans indicating a relationship may exist between attachment and moral injury. This quantitative correlational study aimed to investigate the relationship between attachment, moral injury, and intrinsic religiosity, addressing a gap in the research. This study included 42 United States residing participants all confirmed prior active military deployment to a war zone. Data was collected utilizing a single online survey to assess adult attachment, intrinsic religiosity, moral injury, and a demographic questionnaire. Bivariate correlations revealed that insecure anxious attachments positively correlated with intrinsic …

Fear, Distress, And Dissociation: Correlates Of Physiological Hyporeactivity After Interpersonal Victimization, Natalia Kecala

Dissertations

Background and Objective: Despite consistent findings of high reactivity to trauma cues in PTSD, there exists a consistent subset of physiological nonresponders who exhibit more complex and severe posttraumatic symptomatology. Research has identified different patterns of defensive reactivity representing Fear (core) and Distress (complex) PTSD symptoms. However, no studies have directly compared responders and nonresponders on physiological and clinical symptoms posttrauma.

Method: 66 adult women who had experienced first-degree sexual or physical assault within the last month were categorized using heart rate reactivity (HRR) to two personalized trauma scripts. Participants exhibiting negative HRR to both scripts were classified as nonresponders …