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Exploring The Potential Of Aging Network Services To Improve Depression Care, Leslie Hasche

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

Depression is a prevalent, debilitating yet treatable psychiatric disorder affecting older adults. Older adults underutilize specialty mental health care, persistently receive poor quality care in primary care settings, and have high rates of non-adherence to pharmacotherapy. Aging network services, such as adult day services, homecare services, senior centers, and supportive housing may be able to improve the quality of depression care. However, it is unknown how current models of empirically supported depression care are used within or could be adopted by aging network services. Thus, this study described the organizational factors, staff factors, and current agency practices regarding depression among …

Everyday Magic : A Depressed Mother's Guide, Diana Coulson-Brown

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation project was threefold: to develop a cognitive-behavioral manual for therapists, a self-help manual for depressed mothers, and a guide to assist children, aged 6 to 11, through the risks of depression was paramount in the design of this project. Given a paradigm shift in the field of psychotherapy towards resilience, this manual is timely in that it is a valuable resource for promoting resilience outcomes in both mothers and their children. This manual includes a variety of social, emotional, and behavioral activities for mothers and children, allowing mothers to be at the forefront of establishing …

Does Alcoholics Anonymous Participation Decrease Learned Helplessness And Increase Self-Efficacy? , Philip John Pellegrino

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) has long been the major treatment of choice in the United States for individuals with alcohol related problems. Research on AA has had methodological problems and there is no clear evidence that AA in and of itself is effective in treating alcohol problems. Treatment studies on alcohol and substance users have found that abstinence self-efficacy and approach coping skills have been related to improved drinking outcomes. Also, depression and alcohol problems have been shown to be highly correlated with each other. Therefore, this study examined the relationship between participation in AA and improvements in abstinence self-efficacy, learned …

Environmental Effects On Adolescents Exposed To Hurricane Katrina, Karen Laslie Davidson

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Adolescents in New Orleans were displaced by hurricane Katrina and returned to find their city devastated by this natural disaster. Although many studies have found a relationship between hurricane exposure and development of psychopathology, the current study evaluated this relationship within the context of protective and risk factors. Specifically, the current study evaluated whether community violence, parent support, and peer support moderated the relationship between hurricane exposure and adolescent PTSD or depression. Results found no relationship between hurricane exposure and adolescent depression. Although there was a main effect for hurricane exposure and PTSD, the proposed variables did not moderate this …

Psychiatric Illness In The Next-Of-Kin Of Intensive Care Unit Patients, Janelle Katie Moulder

Yale Medicine Thesis Digital Library

The prevalence of psychiatric symptoms in next-of-kin (NOK) of intensive care unit (ICU) patients has been reported at higher than 70% when screening is performed using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). The primary purpose of this study was to assess the ability of the HADS to predict psychiatric illness, diagnosed with the aide of a validated tool, the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV (SCID). In addition, we asked NOK to rate aspects of the ICU experience to determine possible associations with psychiatric diagnosis. Thirty-four NOK were enrolled in this study from July 2006 to November 2006. Subjects were …

Depression Among The Oneida: Case Studies Of The Interface Between Modern And Traditional, Mark R. Powless

Dissertations (1934 -)

Depression, defined by a EuroAmerican biomedical diagnostic criterion, using the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-Fourth Edition, Text Revision is prevalent among First Nations peoples. However, some studies suggest that the term depression may hold little heuristic value outside of its EuroAmerican conceptualization. This study utilized qualitative methods to understand how depressive symptoms are conceptualized and experienced by traditional Oneida people. A vignette was presented and in-depth interviews of seven traditional healers, culture and Oneida language experts were conducted to: (1) gain a basic understanding of traditional views of mental health, (2) acquire multiple conceptualizations of someone who presents …

Inhibition Of Pro-Inflammatory Processes Reduces Sensitization Of The Behavioral Response To Maternal Separation, Kristopher Doojin Paik

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

The current study examined the behavioral sensitization of guinea pig pups in response to consecutive days of maternal separation. In the first experiment, guinea pigs that received centrally administered artificial cerebrospinal fluid or IL-10 exhibited sensitization of passive behaviors from Day 1 to Day 2. IL-10 decreased the levels of passive behaviors on Day 1, as well as the increase on Day 2. The second experiment used unoperated pups, which also showed sensitization of the passive response from Day 1 to Day 2, though the effect appeared reduced relative to control pups of Experiment 1. Collectively, this investigation confirms previous …

Effects Of Infant Massage On Hiv-Infected Mothers And Their Infants, Krista Lee Oswalt

All ETDs from UAB

The current study aimed to determine whether HIV-infected mothers and their infants benefit from infant massage training. Because a number of risks, including maternal depression, high levels of maternal stress, decreased ability to perform parental tasks, involvement in risky behaviors such as drug use, inferior Brazelton Neonatal Behavioral Assessment Scale performance, and externalizing behavior problems in the children, have been associated with HIV-infected mothers and their children, this population was a sensible choice for intervention. A great deal of information related to the benefits of infant massage for a variety of at risk infants is available in the literature, however, …

Chronically Ill Midlife And Older Lesbians, Gay Men, And Bisexuals And Their Informal Caregivers: The Impact Of The Social Context, Karen Fredriksen-Goldsen, Hyun-Jun Kim, Anna M. Muraco, Shawn Mincer

Sociology Faculty Works

With the exception of HIV care, informal caregiving of chronically ill lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) adults has received very limited attention in the extensive caregiving literature. This article reports on research that considered the social context of care and a dyadic caregiving approach for 36 chronically ill LGB adults ages 50 and older and their informal caregivers. In this study, both discrimination and relationship quality were associated with depression among chronically ill LGB adults and their caregivers. Furthermore, preliminary findings suggested that relationship quality moderates the impact of discrimination as a risk factor for depression in chronically ill LGB …

Elevated Corticotropin-Releasing Hormone In Human Pregnancy Increases The Risk Of Postpartum Depressive Symptoms, Ilona S. Yim, Laura M. Glynn, Christine Dunkel Schetter, Calvin J. Hobel, Aleksandra Chicz-Demet, Curt A. Sandman

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Postpartum depression (PPD) is common and has serious implications for the mother and her newborn. A possible link between placental corticotropin-releasing hormone (pCRH) and PPD incidence has been discussed, but there is a lack of empirical evidence.

Is Alexithymia A Predictor Of College Student Alcohol Abuse?, Diane Arms

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Alexithymia, as defined by Sifneos (1973), literally means "no words for emotions." It is characterized by the following three domains: 1) the incapacity to identify feelings, 2) inability to describe feelings and 3) the tendency to think in externally oriented ways (Salminen, Saarijarvi, & Aarela, 1995; Sifneos, 2000). Although alexithymia is not a diagnosable disorder, it has been shown to be related to a wide variety of other constructs (e.g. alcohol use, depression and parenting styles). This study examined the interrelationships between alexithymia and student alcohol use, while controlling for sex, perceived parental alcohol use, perceived parenting styles and student …

Structural Relations Among Negative Affect, Mate Value, And Mating Effort, Beth Randi Kirsner, Aurelio Jose Figueredo, W. Jake Jacobs

Faculty Articles

We compared the ability of models based on evolutionary economic theory and Life History (LH) Theory to explain relations among self-reported negative affect, mate value, and mating effort. Method: Two hundred thirty-eight undergraduates provided multiple measures of these latent constructs, permitting us to test a priori predictions based on Kirsner, Figueredo, and Jacobs (2003). We compared the fit of the initial model to the fit of five alternative theory-driven models using nested model comparisons of Structural Equations Models. Rejecting less parsimonious and explanatory models eliminated the original model. Two equally parsimonious models explained the data pattern well. The first, based …

Correlates Of Attitudes Toward Behavioral Health Services Among Older Primary Care Patients, Nancy Bridger Lynn

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Research suggests that more than ten percent of older adults experience behavioral health problems (including mental health problems and/or substance abuse). However, very few actually receive care from a behavioral health care provider or even a primary care provider. One major barrier to accessing and receiving care is the feeling of perceived stigma commonly associated with behavioral health problems. The present study examined the relationships among attitudinal variables, feelings of stigma, and behavioral health outcomes over time in an elderly population with the secondary analysis of data collected for a previously implemented research study, the Primary Care Research in Substance …

Traumatic Stress As A Predictor Of Suicidality, Sherry Malana Todd

Counseling & Human Services Theses & Dissertations

Suicide is a deliberate act of annihilation against one's self due to a crisis of problem solving. Far too many youth are dying by their own hands resulting in suicide being the third leading cause of death for 10-19 year olds (CDC, 2005). Suicide is particularly problematic for adolescents due to the impulsivity inherent in adolescent development. Since 1980, the national suicide rate of African American youth has increased by 114 percent (CDC). Suicidality has been positively correlated with depression and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD; Kessler et al., 1999). Suicidality is more prevalent when a person experiences a tragic or …

Depressive Symptoms In Elderly Women With Chronic Conditions: Measurement Issues, Jaclene A. Zauszniewski, Abir K. Bekhet

College of Nursing Faculty Research and Publications

Objective: Depression is highly prevalent in elderly women with chronic conditions and measuring depressive symptoms is complicated by co-occurring chronic illnesses. The 20-item Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression (CES-D) Scale is commonly used with elders, but its length may result in missing data. Twelve short four to 16 item CES-D forms exist, but their psychometric properties have not been systematically evaluated.

Method: This study of 250 elderly women compared reliability and validity estimates for the 20-item CES-D and its 12 short forms; all scales used four response alternatives. The study also investigated whether women with varying numbers of chronic conditions …

Psychosocial Outcomes Of Weight Stigma Among College Students, Sabrina Joann Robinson

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Overweight and obesity are important public health issues in the United States with more than 60% of US adults overweight or obese. The social consequences of being overweight and obese are serious and pervasive. Individuals who are overweight and obese are often the targets of bias and stigma and thus susceptible to negative attitudes. Obesity and weight stigma have been linked to low self-esteem, higher rates of depressive symptoms, body dissatisfaction and poor psychological adjustment. Although weight stigma is a problem in the general population, it is more consequential among adolescents due to mental and physical developmental changes. Therefore college …

Small Individual Loans And Mental Health: A Randomized Controlled Trial Among South African Adults, Lia C. H. Fernald, Rita Hamad, Dean Karlan, Emily J. Ozer, Jonathan Zinman

Dartmouth Scholarship

Background: In the developing world, access to small, individual loans has been variously hailed as a poverty-alleviation tool – in the context of "microcredit" – but has also been criticized as "usury" and harmful to vulnerable borrowers. Prior studies have assessed effects of access to credit on traditional economic outcomes for poor borrowers, but effects on mental health have been largely ignored.

Methods: Applicants who had previously been rejected (n = 257) for a loan (200% annual percentage rate – APR) from a lender in South Africa were randomly assigned to a "second-look" that encouraged loan officers to approve their …

Technologically Assisted Intervention (Tai): Are Clients Satisfied With Online Therapy?, Jennifer A. Morrow

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study examined the level of satisfaction reported by participants of a technologically assisted intervention study (TAI). TAI is a type of teletherapy done through online, live video conferencing. Satisfaction was examined at three different time points, post therapy, 3-months post therapy, and 6-months post therapy. Analyses examined if there were any changes in reported satisfaction over the three time periods. Participants received cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) targeted at reducing symptoms of mild to moderately severe depression. A satisfaction measure was developed for this study, and included quantitative and qualitative items which were analyzed to determine participants' level of satisfaction. …

Impact Of Seizure-Related Variables And Psychopathology On Health-Related Quality Of Life In Pediatric Epilepsy, Aja M. Meyer

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Psychopathology typically is a lasting condition that is persistent from childhood to adulthood. Therefore, it is imperative that children with health conditions and comorbid psychiatric disorders are treated for both conditions as they are likely to have a significant negative impact on children's overall health-related quality of life (HRQL). More specifically, it is important to identify the variables that affect HRQL in children with epilepsy. Research has shown that biomedical variables such as seizure severity and frequency have only moderate relationships with HRQL; therefore, additional factors, such as depression and anxiety, must be identified so that they also may be …

Role Of Perceived Partner Responsiveness On Mexican American Males' Pain Severity And Depressive Symptomatology, Carolyn M. Freedman

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the role of cultural indicators in moderating the influence of perceived partner responses and relationship satisfaction on pain severity and depressive symptomatology among a sample of 62 married and cohabiting Mexican American men, the majority of whom were first generation Mexican Americans, with chronic back and/or neck pain. The cultural indicators were not found to act as moderators in the analyses that involved pain severity and depressive symptomatology as outcome variables. Nevertheless, this study's findings are an important initial step in understanding the relationship dynamics among an understudied population with chronic pain and raise many important questions …

Widowhood And The End Of Spousal Caregiving: Wear And Tear Or Relief?, Jennifer Reid Keene, Anastasia H. Prokos

Sociology Faculty Research

This paper analyses the impact of spousal care-giving on survivors’ depressive symptoms six months into widowhood, and examines the applicability of a ‘ relief model’ of spousal adjustment during bereavement. We examine several aspects of the care-giving situation, including care-giver stress, care-giving demands, and type and duration of care and how these affect survivors’ depressive symptomatology. The sample is drawn from two waves of the Changing Lives of Older Couples (CLOC) survey, which was conducted in the United States in the Detroit Metropolitan Area, Michigan. The first wave of data was collected from couples and the second from the surviving …

Anxiety And Depression As Comorbid Factors In Drinking Behaviors Of Undergraduate Students In An Urban Private University, Charles Vohs, Robert Gable, Cynthia Ward, Joseph Barresi, Ronald Martel, Dameian Slocumb

NERA Conference Proceedings 2008

This study examined differences among four drinking behavior groups (non-drinkers, low-risk drinkers, high-risk drinkers, and frequent high-risk drinkers) with respect to anxiety and depression in undergraduate males (n = 457) and females (n = 485). Participants completed a demographic questionnaire, the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test, the Beck Anxiety Inventory, and the Beck Depression Inventory. Results indicated significant differences among the groups only with respect to anxiety (F = 6.49, p < .001), and in levels of anxiety (p < .01) between high-risk females and males. Findings imply needed changes in prevention approaches to reduce high-risk drinking.

Enduring Mental Health Morbidity And Social Function Impairment In World Trade Center Rescue, Recovery, And Cleanup Workers: The Psychological Dimension Of An Environmental Health Disaster, Jeanne Mager Stellman, Rebecca P. Smith, Craig L. Katz, Vansh Sharma, Dennis S. Charney, Robin Herbert, Jacqueline Moline, Benjamin J. Luft, Steven Markowitz, Iris Udasin, Denise Harrison, Sherry Baron, Philip J. Landrigan, Stephen M. Levin, Steven Southwick

Publications and Research

Background The World Trade Center (WTC) attacks exposed thousands of workers to hazardous environmental conditions and psychological trauma. In 2002, to assess the health of these workers, Congress directed the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health to establish the WTC Medical Monitoring and Treatment Program. This program has established a large cohort of WTC rescue, recovery, and cleanup workers. We previously documented extensive pulmonary dysfunction in this cohort related to toxic environmental exposures. Objectives Our objective in this study was to describe mental health outcomes, social function impairment, and psychiatric comorbidity in the WTC worker cohort, as well as …

An Experimental Test Of The Maintenance And Vulnerability Hypothesis Of Depression In Consideration Of The Cognitive Hierarchy., Patrick Pössel, Kerstin Knopf

Faculty and Staff Scholarship

According to Beck's cognitive model of depression the activation of dysfunctional beliefs triggers negative automatic thoughts, which can be interpreted as the proximal “cause” for emotional, somatic, and motivational symptoms of depression. This top-down processes of beliefs causing thoughts and furthermore of thoughts causing symptoms can be called “cognitive hierarchy.” Besides these processes there are bottom-up influences as well with dysfunctional beliefs being activated by external and internal events. A differentiation between top-down processes and bottom-up influences can be drawn with the first being seen as causing thoughts and emotions while the latter only activate existing beliefs. To test Beck's …

Prenatal Alcohol: Effect On Depression And Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor (Bdnf) Levels, Mary Laughlin, Andrea Allan

Undergraduate Medical Student Research

Fetal alcohol exposure poses a significant social problem. Conservative rates of Fetal alcohol syndrome and Alcohol-Related Neurodevelopmental Disorders (ARND) together have been estimated at 9.1/1000 live births (Sampson 1997). Prenatal ethanol exposure can produce subtle learning disabilities in children, which may not become apparent until a child is school-aged and can occur in the absence of other physical evidence of alcohol-related birth defects. Along with cognitive deficits, ARND has been associated with an increased risk of psychiatric disorders such as Major Depressive Disorder (MDD). Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) has been linked to polymorphisms in the Brian Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) …

Racial Differences In Depressive Symptoms Among Older Adults, Emily Green

All Theses

The costs are very high, both emotionally and economically, to those who suffer from depression and those close to them. Depressive symptoms vary among individuals, by gender, between racial and ethnic groups, and by socioeconomic status (SES). Group differences in rates of depression have been noted for decades, especially between African Americans and non-Hispanic whites. The role of race in mental health is still relevant today, and many issues regarding risk factors and differences between racial and ethnic groups remain unanswered. This study examines the differences in rates of depressive symptoms between African Americans and non-Hispanic Whites. Particularly, socioeconomic status …

Mood Symptoms As Comorbidity In Schizophrenia, Amresh Srivastava

Psychiatry Presentations

No abstract provided.

The Effects Of Depressed Mood On Academic Outcomes In Adolescents And Young Adults, Robert Christopher Jones

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The following dissertation investigates the relationship between depressed mood and academic performance (measured in terms of grade point average) in U.S. middle and high schools.

Utilizing data from AddHealth, the dissertation establishes Ordinary Least Squares, Two-Stage Least Squares (2SLS), and individual and sibling fixed effect regressions that attempt to control for confounding factors, including student motivation, personality characteristics, and parental inputs that are unobserved but may influence both mental health and achievement.

Study findings indicate that students who report feeling depressed do not perform as well academically as non-depressed students. Additionally, the degree of GPA impact increases with the severity …

Etiological Characterization Of Emergency Department Acute Poisoning, Abdmalek S. Khlifi

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Poisoning is frequently associated with psychological and physiological co-morbidities that can be assessed in order to improve patients' management and reduce cost. The primary objective of this study is to conduct a review of emergency department (ED) poisonings to characterize its demographics and assess associated co-morbidities. The second objective is to explore correlation between personal history of diseases and poisonings. Predictors for poisonings and its outcomes were investigated and risk factors for suicidal poisoning and how it relates to mental illnesses were explored. Six hundred and forty nine cases admitted to ED between 2004 and 2007 were studied. Results indicate …

Predictors Of Depressive And Anxiety Symptoms Among African American Hiv-Positive Women, Nina Katherine Sublette

Theses and Dissertations (ETD)

This descriptive correlation study had four purposes: describe depressive and anxiety symptom levels in pregnant and non-pregnant African American (AA) HIV-positive women, examine the association between underlying vulnerabilities and depressive symptoms in HIV-positive AA women, determine the association between underlying vulnerabilities and anxiety symptoms in AA HIV-positive women, and determine the predictors of depressive and anxiety symptoms among African American HIV-positive women. A convenience sample of 80 African American HIV-positive women was recruited from university-based obstetrics/-gynecology and infectious disease practices in a large metropolitan city in the Mid-South. Depressive symptoms were measured with the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale …