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Adolescent Depression: Implementation Of Annual Screening To Improve Mental Health Referral Rates, Crystal R. Prewitt

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

Adolescent depression is becoming increasingly prevalent in the United States with an estimated 2.9 million adolescents between the ages of 12 and 18 years old affected by Major Depressive Disorder annually. Adolescent depression increases the risk of academic difficulties, substance abuse, and suicide. Depression screening in the primary care setting is an effective intervention to identify at-risk youth, but screening rates remain low. Primary care providers fail to identify up to 80% of adolescents with depression symptoms and more than 60% of adolescents do not receive needed mental health services. This DNP project implemented an evidence-based practice change for annual …

Female Athletes With Better Psychological Readiness Are At Higher Risk For Second Acl Injury After Primary Acl Reconstruction, Ryan Zarzycki, Kathleen Cummer, Elanna Arhos, Matthew Failla, Jacob J. Capin, Angela H. Smith, Lynn Snyder-Mackler

Physical Therapy Faculty Research and Publications

Background: Approximately 1 in 4 athletes returning to sports will sustain a second anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury. Psychological factors related to kinesiophobia, confidence, and psychological readiness are associated with second ACL injury; however, the evidence is conflicting.

Hypothesis: Athletes who sustain a second ACL injury (ie, graft rupture or contralateral ACL rupture) within 2 years of ACL reconstruction (ACLR) would have greater kinesiophobia, less confidence, and lower psychological readiness prior to return to sport (RTS) compared with athletes who do not sustain a second ACL injury.

Study Design: Secondary analysis of a prospective randomized trial.

Level …

Health Sciences Students’ Career Commitment, Mental Health, And Physical Activity During The Covid-19 Pandemic, David Wrucke, Marie K. Hoeger Bement, April L. Harkins, Sandra K. Hunter, Stacy Stolzman, Astrida S. Kaugars

Physical Therapy Faculty Research and Publications

Objective: To understand the biopsychosocial dimensions of university health sciences students’ experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Participants: Health sciences students (n = 297) from two universities in July and August 2020.

Methods: Participants completed a Web-based survey asking about depression, anxiety, physical activity, coronavirus threat, and career commitment.

Results: Moderate or severe depression and anxiety were reported by 28.6% and 31.3% of respondents, respectively. Depression and anxiety were positively correlated with perceived coronavirus threat and negatively correlated with career commitment and strenuous physical activity. A change in career commitment interests during the COVID-19 pandemic was reported by 11% of …

Midlife Health Crisis Of Former Competitive Athletes: Dissecting Their Experiences Via Qualitative Study, Jacob J. Capin, Taylor Wolf, Jena Heck Street, Carolyn S. Smith, Shannon L. Lennon, William B. Farquhar, Sandra K. Hunter, Linda B. Piacentine

Physical Therapy Faculty Research and Publications

Sports participation confers many health benefits yet greatly increases injury risk. Long-term health outcomes in former athletes and transition to life after competitive sports are understudied. Ending a sport may pose physical and psychosocial challenges. The purpose was to determine the lived experiences of former competitive athletes and how their sports participation impacted their long-term health and well-being. Former college varsity athletes participated in semistructured interviews focusing on their experiences, including past and current health, the impact of injuries, activity, exercise, diet and transition to life after competitive sport. Thematic analysis was completed using a collaborative, iterative process. Thirty-one (16 …

Age-Related Development Of Bilateral Coordination Of The Upper Limbs In Children And Adolescents, Samuel Nemanich, Sheila M. Schindler-Ivens

Physical Therapy Faculty Research and Publications

Bilateral coordination of the upper limbs (UL) is important for activities of daily living and physical activities. Motor coordination improves from childhood through adolescence. However, age-coordination trajectories for bilateral UL movements are not well-established, and it is unclear if bimanual coordination develops slower than unilateral coordination. In this study we examined age-related changes in UL coordination from childhood to late adolescence. Typically-developing children (N = 29, aged 7–17 years) performed unilateral and bilateral, antiphase cycling tasks with their ULs. Variations in cycling velocity and interlimb phase errors were computed as measures of coordination. Linear regression was used to examine …

The Retention Of Urban Secondary Special Education Teachers: Why Stay?, Chelsea Quezada

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

Utilizing interview data collected from six urban secondary special education teachers (SETs), this qualitative study explored why these individuals chose a teaching position in special education in urban secondary schools and why they remained in those positions despite the challenges inherent to that setting. From role and organizational theory, we know that retention is the result of a complex set of socialization factors that either support successful integration into the SET role or impede the individual’s efforts to achieve fit within the given organization. This study sought to understand how these six SETS experienced the socialization process and which factors …

Posttransplantation Late Complications Increase Over Time For Patients With Scid: A Primary Immune Deficiency Treatment Consortium (Pidtc) Landmark Study, Hesham Eissa, Monica S Thakar, Ami J Shah, Brent R Logan, Linda M Griffith, Huaying Dong, Roberta E Parrott, Richard J O'Reilly, Jasmeen Dara, Neena Kapoor, Lisa Forbes Satter, Sharat Chandra, Malika Kapadia, Shanmuganathan Chandrakasan, Alan Knutsen, Soma C Jyonouchi, Lyndsay Molinari, Ahmad Rayes, Christen L Ebens, Pierre Teira, Blachy J Dávila Saldaña, Lauri M Burroughs, Sonali Chaudhury, Deepak Chellapandian, Alfred P Gillio, Fredrick Goldman, Harry L Malech, Kenneth Desantes, Geoff D E Cuvelier, Jacob Rozmus, Ralph Quinones, Lolie C Yu, Larisa Broglie, Victor Aquino, Evan Shereck, Theodore B Moore, Mark T Vander Lugt, Talal I Mousallem, Joeseph H Oved, Morna Dorsey, Hisham Abdel-Azim, Caridad Martinez, Jacob H Bleesing, Susan Prockop, Donald B Kohn, Jeffrey J Bednarski, Jennifer Leiding, Rebecca A Marsh, Troy Torgerson, Luigi D Notarangelo, Sung-Yun Pai, Michael A Pulsipher, Jennifer M Puck, Christopher C Dvorak, Elie Haddad, Rebecca H Buckley, Morton J Cowan, Jennifer Heimall

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Background: The Primary Immune Deficiency Treatment Consortium (PIDTC) enrolled children in the United States and Canada onto a retrospective multicenter natural history study of hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT).

Objective: We investigated outcomes of HCT for severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID).

Methods: We evaluated the chronic and late effects (CLE) after HCT for SCID in 399 patients transplanted from 1982 to 2012 at 32 PIDTC centers. Eligibility criteria included survival to at least 2 years after HCT without need for subsequent cellular therapy. CLE were defined as either conditions present at any time before 2 years from HCT that remained unresolved (chronic), …

Research Considerations For Prospective Studies Of Patients With Coma And Disorders Of Consciousness, Lorenzo Tinti, Thomas Lawson, Erika Molteni, Daniel Kondziella, Verena Rass, Tarek Sharshar, Yelena G Bodien, Joseph T Giacino, Stephan A Mayer, Moshgan Amiri, Susanne Muehlschlegel, Chethan P Venkatasubba Rao, Paul M Vespa, David K Menon, Giuseppe Citerio, Raimund Helbok, Molly Mcnett

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Disorders of consciousness are neurological conditions characterized by impaired arousal and awareness of self and environment. Behavioural responses are absent or are present but fluctuate. Disorders of consciousness are commonly encountered as a consequence of both acute and chronic brain injuries, yet reliable epidemiological estimates would require inclusive, operational definitions of the concept, as well as wider knowledge dissemination among involved professionals. Whereas several manifestations have been described, including coma, vegetative state/unresponsive wakefulness syndrome and minimally conscious state, a comprehensive neurobiological definition for disorders of consciousness is still lacking. The scientific literature is primarily observational, and studies-specific aetiologies lead to …

Adolescent/Young Adult Self-Management And Independence Self-Report Scale: Preliminary Psychometric Findings, Monique M Ridosh, Zoe Smith, William Adams, Timothy J Brei, Ellen Fremion, Grayson N Holmbeck, Audrey J Roach, Kathleen J Sawin, Eileen Sherburne

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Purpose: This study examined preliminary psychometrics of the Adolescent/Young Adult Self-Management and Independence Self-Report Scale (AMIS II SR).

Methods: Adolescents and adults (N = 159; 13-38 years old) with spina bifida from two clinics and one community sample completed the AMIS II SR. The majority (83%) had myelomeningocele, and about half were female (51.6%). The sample included 44.7% White, 11.3% Black and over one-third Hispanic/Latino (38.4%) participants. Descriptive analyses and reliability were assessed; a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was conducted.

Results: Item-to-total correlations support the AMIS II SR total scale (r = .38-.79) and its two subscales: condition (r = …

Welcoming 2024: Supporting Students' Well-Being, Eric A Storch, Rick Yang

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

No abstract provided.

Regulating Driving Automation Safety, Matthew Wansley

Articles

Over forty thousand people die in motor vehicle crashes in the United States each year, and over two million are injured. The careful deployment of driving automation systems could prevent many of these deaths and injuries, but only if it is accompanied by effective regulation. Conventional vehicle safety standards are inadequate because they can only test how technology performs in a controlled environment. To assess the safety of a driving automation system, regulators must observe how it performs in a range of unpredictable, real world edge cases. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is trying to adapt by experimenting …

Neurosymbolic Value-Inspired Ai (Why, What, And How), Amit Sheth, Kaushik Roy

Publications

The rapid progression of Artificial Intelligence (AI) systems, facilitated by the advent of Large Language Models (LLMs), has resulted in their widespread application to provide human assistance across diverse industries. This trend has sparked significant discourse centered around the ever-increasing need for LLM-based AI systems to function among humans as part of human society, sharing human values, especially as these systems are deployed in high-stakes settings (e.g., healthcare, autonomous driving, etc.). Towards this end, neurosymbolic AI systems are attractive due to their potential to enable easy-tounderstand and interpretable interfaces for facilitating valuebased decision-making, by leveraging explicit representations of shared values. …

Tutorial: Knowledge-Infused Artificial Intelligence For Mental Healthcare, Kaushik Roy

Publications

Artificial Intelligence (AI) systems for mental healthcare (MHCare) have been ever-growing after realizing the importance of early interventions for patients with chronic mental health (MH) conditions. Social media (SocMedia) emerged as the go-to platform for supporting patients seeking MHCare. The creation of peer-support groups without social stigma has resulted in patients transitioning from clinical settings to SocMedia supported interactions for quick help. Researchers started exploring SocMedia content in search of cues that showcase correlation or causation between different MH conditions to design better interventional strategies. User-level Classification-based AI systems were designed to leverage diverse SocMedia data from various MH conditions, …

Causal Neuro-Symbolic Ai: A Synergy Between Causality And Neuro-Symbolic Methods, Utkarshani Jaimini, Cory Henson, Amit Sheth

Publications

Causal Neuro-Symbolic AI combines the benefits of causality with Neuro-Symbolic Artificial Intelligence (NeSyAI). More specifically, it (1) enriches NeSyAI systems with explicit representations of causality, (2) integrates causal knowledge with domain knowledge, and (3) enables the use of NeSyAI techniques for causal AI tasks. The explicit causal representation yields insights that predictive models may fail to analyze from observational data. It can also assist people in decision-making scenarios where discerning the cause of an outcome is necessary to choose among various interventions.

Ontolog Summit 2024 Talk Report: Healthcare Assistance Challenges-Driven Neurosymbolic Ai, Kaushik Roy

Publications

Although Artificial Intelligence technology has proven effective in providing healthcare assistance by analyzing health data, it still falls short in supporting decision-making. This deficiency largely stems from the predominance of opaque neural networks, particularly in mental health care AI applications, which raise concerns about their unpredictable and unverifiable nature. This skepticism hinders the transition from information support to decision support. This presentation will explore neurosymbolic approaches that combine neural networks with symbolic control and verification mechanisms. These approaches aim to unlock AI’s full potential by enhancing information analysis and decision-making support for healthcare assistance1.

Proknow: Process Knowledge For Safety Constrained And Explainable Question Generation For Mental Health Diagnostic Assistance In The Age Of Large Language Models, Kaushik Roy, Manas Gaur, Misagh Soltani, Vipula Rawte, Ashwin Allen, Amit P. Sheth

Publications

Current Virtual Mental Health Assistants (VMHAs) primarily offer counseling and suggestive care but do not assist with patient diagnosis due to their lack of training in safety-constrained and specialized clinical process knowledge, referred to as ProKnow. In this work, we define ProKnow as an ordered set of information aligned with evidence-based guidelines or categories of conceptual understanding used by domain experts. We also introduce a new dataset of diagnostic conversations guided by safety constraints and Pro- Know, known as ProKnow-data. We develop a method for natural language question generation (NLG) designed to interactively gather diagnostic information from patients, termed ProKnow-algo. …

Associations Between Parenting Factors, Self-Efficacy, And Physical Activity Levels In Overweight African American Adolescents, Noelle Mink

Senior Theses

While there is extensive research on physical activity (PA) and the role it plays in preventing obesity, African American populations remain understudied despite reporting lower levels of PA compared to White Americans. Particularly, PA in adolescence has several indications for the development of healthy adult lifestyles. Additionally, there is limited data on the relationship between parenting factors and adolescent PA in overweight African American adolescents, despite theories that suggest that authoritative parenting factors, such as demandingness (e.g., control, monitoring) and responsiveness (e.g., warmth), can influence adolescent behaviors, including their motivation and self-efficacy for engaging in PA. Confidence in one’s ability …

An Immersive Study Of The Artistry Of Gilbert Biberian —Guitarist, Composer, And Pedagogue— And Creative Responses From A Musical Apprenticeship, Stephanie J. Darcey

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This project examines the music of Istanbul-born British classical guitarist and composer Gilbert Biberian (1944-2023) and the potential of this music to stimulate original composition using an intuitive approach. Biberian is recognized as one of the most original and creative guitar composers from the second half of the twentieth century. His musical language embraces and integrates traditional tonality, jazz, post-tonal idioms, and the music of the Middle East. There are three strands to this project: an overview of Biberian’s life, philosophy, and music; a musical apprenticeship with Biberian on technique and musicianship; and also on my compositions. There will be …

Understanding Mental Wellbeing Of Family Day Care Educators In Australia: A Mixed Methods Study, Theresa Rayfield

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Family Day Care (FDC) is an essential service within the Australian early childhood education and care sector. FDC educators support Australian families who require convenience, flexibility, and versatility in the education and care of their children. FDC educators’ mental wellbeing (MWB) is vital to ensure optimal education and care is provided, however this is often overlooked by educators. This research aimed to gauge Australian FDC educators’ MWB, identify factors positively or negatively affecting MWB and strategies employed to maintain and support MWB.

Primarily, a cross-sectional quantitative questionnaire measuring MWB and ten predictor variables determining relationship with food, food insecurity, alcohol …

The Physiological And Performance Consequences Of The Australian Special Forces Selection Course, Angela Uphill

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Special Forces (SF) soldiers are the most elite element of military forces, who have undergone rigorous training in order to prepare them for a wide array of specialised missions. In Australia, entry into the SF is determined through the highly competitive SF Selection Course (SF-SC), which is a gruelling program involving extreme physical demands, psychological stress, and restricted access to sleep and nutrition. The stressors involved in arduous military training events such as the SF-SC can result in significant losses of fat mass and lean mass, disruption to hormonal homeostasis, and significant decreases in neuromuscular capacity, which can potentially increase …

Western Australian Mothers' Experiences Of Breastfeeding Support In Hospital After Birth: A Mixed Methods Study, Justine Van Der Watt

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Background: The benefits of breastfeeding are well established for infants, mothers and the community, with the World Health Organisation recommending that infants be exclusively breastfed up to six months of age with an achievable goal of 70% globally. Yet in Australia only 15-37% may be reaching that goal. There have also been reported benefits and desires for mothers to be supported with their breastfeeding in order to increase and prolong breastfeeding duration and exclusivity, especially early after birth. However, there is limited research or literature exploring what experiences mothers are having with breastfeeding support, especially during their hospital admissions in …

Preparing For End Of Life In A New Country: A Grounded Theory Study On African Migrants Living In Australia, Gertrude Gondwe Phiri

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

African migration to Australia has grown in the past 20 to 25 years with many migrants staying permanently. This has led to migrants dying away from their birthplaces where family is responsible for end-of-life care planning for the individual. Although migrating to Australia is considered a great achievement, many migrants also experienced challenges. Previous studies have explored the barriers faced by migrants in relation to end-of-life care but have not addressed the cause of those challenges. This constructivist grounded theory study examines how migrants from three African countries, Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe (MZZ) prepare for end-of-life in Australia. The study …

Parental Involvement In Children's Writing, Bronte Peta Kelso-Marsh

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Research suggests that parental involvement is important for supporting children’s early literacy development. However, much of the existing research has focused on reading outcomes, and studies have seldom examined the influence of parental involvement on children’s writing outcomes. Learning to write is a complex process. Furthermore, although writing is a necessary skill required throughout schooling and the workforce, evidence from international studies suggests children’s writing performance is in decline. Theoretical models of writing have proposed the importance of contextual factors in shaping children’s writing acquisition and development, which may include parents. However, whilst previous research suggests parental involvement in supporting …

A Wreck Of Seabirds: Entrapment And Isolation Within The Australian Coastal Gothic Landscape, Karleah May Olson

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This thesis explores the concepts of entrapment and isolation as they relate to the Australian Gothic literary mode and coastal landscapes. It does so through a creative work, a novel entitled A Wreck of Seabirds, and an accompanying exegesis, which examines these concepts alongside the shift of the Gothic to Australian landscapes and ultimately to coastal settings, and their representation in fiction. It examines ways in which elements and tropes of the Gothic are utilized in Australian Coastal fiction, particularly through depictions and metaphors of entrapment and isolation. A Wreck of Seabirds is an Australian Coastal Gothic novel set in …

Enhancing Resilience In The Australian Security Vetting Process: Application Of The Psycho-Social Resources For Resilience Scale – Vetting (Prrs-V), Alan James Jnr Davies

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The disclosure or leaking of classified information by a trusted insider is an ongoing challenge for the national security apparatus in Australia and globally (Auditor General, 2018; Scott, 2020). In an effort to ensure that those with access to sensitive information will not disclose it, the Australian Government has a security vetting process. The Australian security vetting process measures a person's integrity by conducting a 'whole of person' assessment against several suitability indicators. In 2015, the Australian Government added resilience as a suitability indicator to its prescribed guidance on personnel security vetting, the Personnel Security Eligibility and Suitability of Personnel …

Verbal And Nonverbal Communicative Approaches Used By Reading Teachers To Foster Student Reading For Pleasure In Secondary School, Claire Patricia Smith

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The benefits of reading for pleasure are diverse. As evidence supporting the value of reading for pleasure grows, so does its legitimacy as a catalyst for positive personal and cognitive development, and as a stand-alone subject in education. Reading for pleasure pedagogy (RfPP), distinct from reading instruction, is evolving in tandem with these findings. This pedagogy is predicated on the profile of a Reading Teacher (RT) as a reader who enjoys reading and is prepared to share their personal reading lives to teach their students to read for pleasure. However, this profile may be an ideal rather than the norm. …

The Experiences Of Older Immigrants Living With Dementia In Australia: A Multi-Method Secondary Analysis, Pelden Chejor

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The ageing immigrant population and rising dementia cases underscores the need for culturally appropriate dementia care services. However, accessing dementia care services can be challenging for immigrants due to cultural and linguistical differences including their health beliefs. Understanding the experiences and concerns of older immigrants living with dementia is imperative for the planning and delivery of culturally and linguistically appropriate care. The aim of this thesis was to explore and describe the experiences of older immigrants living with dementia, as well as to describe and compare (against non-immigrants living with dementia) the characteristics (neuropsychiatric symptoms and pain characteristics) of older …

Social Connections And Social Identity As A Basis For Learning And Support: Experiences Of Medical Students With Minoritised And Non-Minoritised Ethnic Identities, Stephanie Bull, Rohini Terry, Neil Rice, Daniele Carrieri, Mark Tarrant, Gerens Curnow

School of Psychology

Background: Social connections between medical students provide a key basis for learning and support. These connections, and associated social identity, may be patterned by ethnicity, and students often perform similarly academically to those they connect with. The mechanisms that underpin the formation of these connections and the role that they play are not fully understood. This study explored how medical students connect with each other, and the potential impact of this on their academic attainment and well-being, with a focus on students with minoritised ethnic identities. Methods: A mixed methods study combining (1) a survey to establish the number and …

Peer Inclusion And School Equality Norm Associations With Intergroup Contact, And Academic Self-Efficacy Amongst Ethnic Majority And Ethnic Minority Youth, Shelley Mckeown, Gian Antonio Di Bernardo, Jaysan Charlesford, Loris Vezzali, Thia Sagherian-Dickey

School of Psychology

Social norms are important predictors of youth attitudes and behaviours. There is substantial evidence that positive and meaningful intergroup contact supported by inclusive norms can have a range of benefits beyond prejudice reduction. The present research explores whether perceived peer inclusion norms and perceived norms of equality in school are associated with better quality and more frequent intergroup contact and in turn, whether these are associated with better academic self-efficacy. To test these assertions, we conducted a cross-sectional survey with ethnic majority and ethnic minority youth aged 11–12 (n = 629, 48% female, 43% minority ethnic) attending one of four …

“A View Into The Ccu” – Investigating Visual Analysis And Machine Learning Approaches To Aid Clinicians In Critical Care Units, Christopher Haynes

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics Theses

Despite the vast quantities of data stored by critical care units, there is a resistance to applying this to technological innovation. This is limiting the potential to enable the best clinical decision making and increasing time pressures on clinical staff. This thesis examines the current state of data use in two critical care units at University Hospitals Plymouth. Through discussions with clinical staff, the main limitations of their current digital work environment are considered to develop a three-element system. A thorough literature review is then carried out into critical care practices, visualisation principles for multi-variate heterogeneous data, and supervised machine …