Digital Commons Network^™

Visualizing The Risks: The Significance Of Graphic Design In Educating Women About The Risks Of Prescription Opioids & Pre-Existing Mental Health Conditions, Natascha Foret Truong

Masters Theses

This thesis explores the critical issue of educating women about the increased risks of prescription opioid use and misuse relating to a co-occurring mental health illness. The research-based graphic design solutions proposed in the thesis aim to create awareness and provide knowledge to women on this matter. It is imperative to address this issue as it has severe consequences for women, their families, and society. This thesis utilizes research and best practices from scholarly articles, case studies, visual analysis, personas, and mind mapping to present graphic design solutions based on evidence. These solutions aim to educate women about the gender-specific …

Healing Artists Through Art, Corey Aaron Cundiff

Masters Theses

Men die by suicide nearly four times more than women, with higher rates among artists. There has been an increase in the rate of suicide over the years, primarily linked to depression and mounting societal expectations imposed upon men. The prevalence of social media and the awareness that comes with indicates that the issue of suicide may never disappear unless action is taken. This paper examines the need for art therapy to counter depression among male artists. No longer do we need to rely strictly on medication and talk therapy to treat depression. Many art therapy techniques have proven quite …

Efficacy Of Modified Psychotherapy To Mitigate Depression Among African American Adults And Older Adults: A Systematic Review, Bridget Ashaolu, Nassrine Noureddine

Pacific Journal of Health

It has been established that due to several factors, African American adults and older adults in the United States respond poorly to pharmacologic intervention in treating depression. The study will help to provide evidence and raise awareness on how to better serve the African American population with depression. This systematic review of the literature examines the effectiveness of using modified evidence-based psychotherapy and faith-based resources in improving depression among older African American adults over the use of conventional pharmacological intervention. 21 studies that recommended utilizing psychotherapy intervention to improve depression in this population were reviewed to better understand the need …

A Comparison Of Depressive Symptom Self-Reported Measures In The Texas Youth Depression And Suicide Research Network (Tx-Ydsrn), Beth D Kennard, Graham J Emslie, Holli Slater, Taryn L Mayes, Melissa Defilippis, Cynthia Garza, Eric A Storch, Sarah M Wakefield, Madhukar H Trivedi

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Objective: To evaluate psychometrically and provide crosswalks between 3 self-report measures of depressive symptomatology in youth in psychiatric care settings. Ratings included the Patient Health Questionnaire for Adolescents (PHQ-A), a widely used 9-item self-report; the 16-item Quick Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology-Self-Report (QIDS-SR16); and the 5-item Very Quick Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology-Self-Report (VQIDS-SR5), a recent effort to create a bridge from the QIDS-SR16 to clinical practice.

Methods: Data from the Texas Youth Depression and Suicide Research Network Registry (August 26, 2020-May 11, 2022) were included in this work. At first visit, 795 depressed or suicidal adolescent (12-20 years of age) psychiatric …

Depression Screening Tool For Hysterectomy Patients, Dede C. Mihedji

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Projects

Abstract

Background: The prevalence of hysterectomies in the United States ranges from

5.1 to 5.8 per 1000 women (Harnod et al., 2018). A standardized screening tool for assessing

depression preoperatively could mitigate the worsening of postoperative depressive symptoms in patients scheduled for a hysterectomy.

Local Problem: Currently, there is no standard of practice to routinely screen for depression in preoperative patients scheduled for hysterectomy surgeries. However, as with any surgical intervention, there are risks of long-term complications. Studies have identified that a hysterectomy may increase the risk of cardiovascular events, menopause, depression, and other outcomes (Madueke-Laveaux et al., 2022). …

Multilayer Perceptron Modeling For Social Dysfunction Prediction Based On General Health Factors In An Iranian Women Sample, Sajjad Bagheri, Sarvenaz Taridashti, Hojjatollah Farahani, Peter Watson, Elham Rezvani

Department of Psychology Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

In the year 2022, this research conducted an in-person study involving 780 single or widowed women, aged between 20 and 70, falling within the bottom three economic deciles and possessing varying levels of education. All participants held educational qualifications below a high school diploma and were beneficiaries of charitable financial support in Khorasan province, Iran. The study aimed to investigate the predictive factors of social dysfunction in this specific demographic. Data collection spanned a 12-month period throughout 2022, with participants completing the GHQ-28 questionnaire during their visits to the charity office. Clinical in-person interviews were also conducted to gather comprehensive …

Coping Strategies In Response To Peer Victimization: Comparing Adolescents In The United States And Korea, Joo Young Yang, Kristina L. Mcdonald, Sunmi Seo

Psychology Faculty Publications

We examined cultural specificity in how adolescents' coping strategies in response to peer victimization are associated with adjustment with a sample of 7th–8th graders from the United States (n = 292, 60% female, Mage = 13.6, SD = 0.65) and South Korea (n = 462, 50.2% female, Mage = 13.7, SD = 0.58). Participants read scenarios describing victimization and rated the likelihood of utilizing different coping strategies. US adolescents rated conflict resolution, cognitive distancing, and revenge higher than Korean adolescents, while Korean adolescents endorsed social support seeking more than US adolescents. Social support seeking was positively …

Gender Differences In Youth’S Mental Health Problems During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Kimberly A. Hohlfeld

Honors Capstones

The purpose of this research paper is to examine whether young girls were more likely to experience depression and anxiety symptoms than young boys during the COVID-19 pandemic at two time points, in April of 2020 and May of 2020. An additional hypothesis that was examined was whether the presence of siblings in the home moderated the association between gender and depression and anxiety symptoms during the COVID-19 pandemic. T-tests were used to analyze the mean differences in youth mental health symptoms based on gender. Young girls were found to experience significantly higher anxiety symptoms in May of 2020 than …

Endometriosis And Its Effect On Women's Lives, Haley Duncan

Psychology Student Publications

My paper is about women with endometriosis, and its effects on women's lives. I discussed the disease itself, as well as its psychological and physical impacts it has on not just affected women, but their partners as well.

Animal-Assisted Therapy In Mental Illness, Chanae Cypress

MSN Capstone Projects

Mental health disorders are a significant global health concern, with a growing need for alternative therapeutic approaches. Animal-assisted therapy has gained recognition for its potential to improve the emotional and psychological well-being of individuals struggling with these disorders.

This Capstone Benchmark proposed project explores the potential positive impact of animal-assisted therapy (AAT) on patients with mental health disorders during inpatient hospitalization. The project outlines a 4-week intervention program involving 45-60 minutes sessions with dogs, which patients receive 2-3 times per week. For this Capstone Benchmark project, the selected PICOT question is: In patients with mental health disorder (P) how does …

Evaluating Clinical Outcomes In Patients Being Treated Exclusively Via Telepsychiatry: Retrospective Data Analysis, Cheryl Person, Nicola O'Connor, Lucy Koehler, Kartik Venkatachalam, Georgia Gaveras

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Depression and anxiety are highly prevalent conditions in the United States. Despite the availability of suitable therapeutic options, limited access to high-quality psychiatrists represents a major barrier to treatment. Although telepsychiatry has the potential to improve access to psychiatrists, treatment efficacy in the telepsychiatry model remains unclear.

OBJECTIVE: Our primary objective was to determine whether there was a clinically meaningful change in 1 of 2 validated outcome measures of depression and anxiety-the Patient Health Questionnaire-8 (PHQ-8) or the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7)-after receiving at least 8 weeks of treatment in an outpatient telepsychiatry setting.

METHODS: We included treatment-seeking patients …

Collaborative Decision Making Improves Interpersonal Psychotherapy Efficiency: A Randomized Clinical Trial With Postpartum Women, Scott Stuart, Rebecca L. Brock, Erin Ramsdell, Stephan Arndt, Michael W. O’Hara

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Background: Randomized controlled trials of Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT) and other psychotherapies for depression have required strict adherence to protocol and do not allow for clinical judgment in deciding frequency of sessions. To determine if such protocols were more effective than allowing therapists to use their clinical judgment, we compared “Clinician-Managed” IPT (CM-IPT), in which clinicians and patients with postpartum depression were allotted 12 sessions and determined collaboratively when to use them, to a once weekly 12 session protocol (“Standard IPT”). We hypothesized that CM-IPT would be more efficient, requiring fewer sessions to reach an equivalent acute outcome, and that …

Demystifying Music Therapy: Applications Over The Lifespan, Barry C. Nelson

Counselor Education Capstones

This study seeks to evaluate the curative factors of music therapy and discuss the benefits of the practice over the course of the human lifespan. Additionally, a case will be made for prospective and current counselors to add music therapy techniques to their repertoire in order to provide more diverse methods of care. To accomplish this aim, research will be presented conveying how music therapy has been evaluated for effectiveness in treating various mental health concerns during childhood, adulthood, and older adulthood. The results of this evaluation suggest that music therapy is effective at treating a diverse range of disorders …

Social Media & Mental Health: An Examination Of Tiktok & Mental Health Outcomes, Jessica Maddox

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The goal of this research study was to examine the relationship between amount of Tiktok use and the results of various mental health scales. The hypothesis was that increased Tiktok use would be correlated with a decrease in self-esteem, and an increase in depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, and overall loneliness. Participants were recruited on Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk) and paid a small monetary benefit in exchange for completion of the study. There were a total of 285 participants. Correlations and linear regression analysis were used to determine statistical significance; results showed no statistical significance and none of the hypotheses were …

Self-Reflections Through A Screen: Self-Identity, Social Media, And Psychological Well-Being, Jeremy J. Serio

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Social media use among emerging adults is assumed to be related to a variety of negative psychological outcomes and has, in recent years, become a widely studied phenomenon (Kim, 2017, Pew Research Center, 2018). Despite the widespread assumption, the results from empirical studies of the effects of social media use on mental health in this population have been inconsistent and inconclusive (Keles et al., 2020, Yang et al., 2021). Several meta-analyses (e.g., Keles et al., 2020) demonstrate these inconsistent results across studies and point to the need to consider individual difference factors when researching this issue. Different self-identity styles have …

A Quality Improvement Project To Screen For Food Insecurity In Adults With Anxiety Or Depression, Kelsie Evelyn Kroll

Doctor of Nursing Practice

Background Food insecurity is the limited availability and inconsistent accessibility of healthy foods (Coleman-Jensen et al., 2022a). Food insecurity contributes to mental health problems. Individuals with food insecurity have greater odds of screening positive for depression and anxiety (Wolfson et al., 2021). The Hunger Vital Sign™ screening tool is a 2-questions evidence-based tool used to identify food insecurity (Hager et al., 2010). Purpose. Implement the Hunger Vital Sign™ tool at a non-profit behavior health clinic to identify food insecurity in adults who screened positive for anxiety or depression, offer resources for them to obtain nutritious food, and provide additional information …

Evaluating The Effects Of Ketamine On Cognitive Flexibility In Rats Using A Probabilistic Reversal Learning Task, Anthony N. Nist

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Depression is one of the most debilitating and widespread mental health conditions in the world today. Drugs that are traditionally prescribed to combat depression are flawed in several ways, and because of this, new treatments are needed. One drug that seems capable of overcoming the limitations of traditional antidepressants is ketamine. In clinical research, a single dose of ketamine can significantly reduce symptoms of depression quickly, its effects may last for weeks to months, and its side effects appear to be limited and relatively harmless. However, clinical research is ongoing, and more research is needed to fully understand ketamine's beneficial …

Depressive Symptoms In Autistic Youth With Anxiety Disorders, Rebecca L Greenberg, Andrew G Guzick, Sophie C Schneider, Saira A Weinzimmer, Minjee Kook, Amanda B Perozo Garcia, Eric A Storch

Center for Medical Ethics and Health Policy Staff Publications

Objective: Anxiety and depression often coexist in youth and share overlapping symptomatology; however, little is known about the comorbidity of anxiety and depression in autistic youth. This study explores (1) the frequency of depressive symptoms among autistic children with clinically significant anxiety, (2) clinical variables that may be associated with elevated depressive symptoms, and (3) whether pretreatment depressive symptoms predict cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) outcomes for anxiety.

Method: Children aged 7 to 13 years (N = 87) and their parents participated in a randomized controlled trial comparing 2 versions of a parent-led, telehealth-delivered CBT program. Parents and children completed a …

Awareness Of Mental Health Among Adolescents, Gloria Ortiz-Wilson

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

The focal point of this capstone project is to bring mental health awareness to the adolescent community in Soledad, California. With the numbers rising in the likelihood of adolescents developing a mental health disorder, it is extremely important for adolescents to know the different types of mental health disorders and the signs of these disorders (Abrams, 2023). Between 20-30% of adolescents have a form of depression, 37% have anxiety disorders, and there has been a 16% increase of suicide in youth 12 and older (Valdez et al., 2022).

Because of adolescents’ increasing risk for mental health issues, there is a …

Does Maternal Mental Health (Anxiety And Depression) Negatively Impact Exclusive And Continued Breastfeeding Practices?, Smriti Neupane

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Exclusive and continued breastfeeding practices are the optimal source of nutrition for an infant's well-being, cognitive growth, and development and have positive health outcomes for the mother too. Anxiety and depression are common perinatal mental health conditions associated with early breastfeeding interruption. However, Nevada lacks data on perinatal mental health and its influence on breastfeeding practices. The objective of this study was to assess whether maternal mental health (anxiety and depression) impacts exclusive and continued breastfeeding practices in Clark County, Nevada. A cross-sectional survey was conducted with 358 mothers having children 0-23 months old and residing in Clark County, Nevada. …

Exploring The Relationship Between Diabetes, Diabetes Risk, Depressive Symptoms, Chronic Stress, And Inflammatory Markers In Mexican-American Men, Aleli Fernandez

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Background: Individuals with depression and stress are 60% more likely to develop type 2 diabetes compared to those without (Mezuk et al., 2008). Moreover, biological pro-inflammatory markers associated with psychosocial stress are risk factors for diabetes. Examining the relationship between psychological disorders, inflammation, and diabetes risk among MAH is important as they have high rates of diabetes.

Purpose: To examine the relationship between 1) depressive symptoms, chronic stress, and inflammatory markers, 2) inflammation and diabetes risk factors and 3) depression, stress, inflammation, diabetes risk, and metabolic syndrome (MetS).

Methods: A cross-sectional study of 100 adult men from El Paso, Texas …

A Sound Mind In A Sound Body: A Novel Concept Unravelling Heterogeneity Of Depression, Gabor Hullam, Zsofia Gal, Xenia Gonda, Tamas Nagy, Andras Gezsi, Isaac Cano, Sandra Van Der Auwera, Mikko Kuokkanen, Peter Antal, Gabriella Juhasz

School of Medicine Publications

Depression is a highly prevalent and debilitating condition, yet we still lack both in-depth knowledge concerning its etiopathology and sufficiently efficacious treatment options. With approximately one third of patients resistant to currently available antidepressants there is a pressing need for a better understanding of depression, identifying subgroups within the highly heterogeneous illness category and to understand the divergent underlying biology of such subtypes, to help develop and personalise treatments. The TRAJECTOME project aims to address such challenges by (1) identifying depression-related multimorbidity subgroups and shared molecular pathways based on temporal disease profiles from healthcare systems and biobank data using machine …

Factors Associated With Depressive Symptoms Among Community-Dwelling Older People In East-Coast Malaysia, Siti Suhana Zakaria, Siti Nur Illiani Jaafar, Muhammad Kamil Che Hasan, Nik Noor Kaussar Nik Mohd Hatta, Wan Nor Aliza Wan Abdul Rahman

Jurnal Keperawatan Indonesia

Older people are increasing in number globally, and they are likely to have mental health problems, including de- pression. In this population, the risk of having depressive symptoms is very high due to multidimensional factors, but these symptoms are often undertreated. This study aimed to determine the prevalence and associated factors of de- pressive symptoms among community-dwelling older people living on the East Coast of Malaysia. A cross-sectional study was conducted in several areas of the state of Terengganu based on multilayered stratified sampling. A total of 240 participants were randomly selected. Several instruments were employed, such as the Geriatric …

Feasibility And Acceptability Of A Dance Fundamental Movement Skill Intervention For Symptoms Of Depression And Anxiety In Children, Juanita Patterson-Price

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Anxiety and depression are highly prevalent mental health conditions in children. Rates of both disorders are rising, surpassing the capacity of available treatment services (albertapatients, 2022; Edwardson, 2022; Statistics Canada, 2020). Lack of treatment can often result in worsening of symptoms towards serious long-term effects (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2023). Additional treatment supports must be made available. The goal of this doctoral research is to examine the feasibility and acceptability of genre-inclusive dance as a psychosocial intervention for anxiety and depression in children. The first manuscript of this doctoral work shares lessons learned in a program evaluation using …

Effectiveness Of Post-Abortion Bible Studies On Self-Forgiveness And Depression, Karen Haaland Hubbard

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Pro-choice and pro-life perspectives differ regarding adverse emotional symptoms after abortion. Pro-choice researchers maintain that abortion presents no more risk of emotional distress than carrying an unplanned pregnancy to term. However, pro-life researchers discuss evidence that abortion does increase the risk of adverse emotional symptoms that persist long after the abortion. Since many women seek faith-based interventions, the purpose of the current study was to examine the effectiveness of the post-abortion Bible study, Forgiven and Set Free by Linda Cochrane, in decreasing depression and increasing self-forgiveness. The first research question was, “Does participation in a post-abortion Bible study increase post-abortive …

Depression And Anxiety Of Care Partners During The Emergency Department Visit Of Older Adults With Cognitive Impairment, Nancy Glober, Anthony Perkins, Joshua Chodosh, Karen Connor, Sujuan Gao, Frank Messina, Malaz Boustani, Soo Borson, Nicole R. Fowler

Journal of Geriatric Emergency Medicine

Background: Older adults with cognitive impairment (CI) are more likely to visit the emergency department (ED) than those without CI. They are also more likely to suffer poor outcomes after an ED visit. Family and friends who serve as care partners contribute significant time and resources to the care of these patients and may need particular attention to their emotional needs during and after the ED encounter. In this study, we examined the association between patient and care partner characteristics on care partner depression and anxiety at the time of the ED visit.

Methods: Baseline data from 640 patient-care partner …

Targeting Loneliness In Older Adults With Weekly Socialization, Tanja Johnson

Dissertations

Problem: Loneliness related to social isolation among the older adult population has become an increasing health concern with few interventions available for the general population. Loneliness has been directly associated with depression, poorer physical health outcomes, and overall quality of life.

Methods: The purpose of this study is to evaluate loneliness in the older adult population residing in a senior living community in an urban area in Missouri. Weekly one-on-one socialization, ranging from 45-60 minutes, will be implemented over 6 weeks, with pre and post-intervention screening for loneliness with the 28-item Visit-A-Bit (VAB) screening tool. Approval was received by both …

Editorial: Resilience, Quality Of Life And Psychosocial Outcomes Of Cancer Patients And Their Caregivers, Nida Zahid, Nargis Asad, Ashraf El-Metwally

Department of Surgery Docs

No abstract provided.

Psychological Distress, Resilience, And The Impact On Quality Of Life In Breast Cancer Survivors With Taxane-Induced Peripheral Neuropathy, Lauren Schwab

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation study was to longitudinally examine psychological distress (depressive symptoms and anxiety symptoms), resilience, and the impact on quality of life (QOL) in breast cancer survivors (BCS) with taxane-induced peripheral neuropathy (TIPN). The specific aims were 1) to describe psychological distress (depressive and anxiety symptoms) in BCS with TIPN and the impact on QOL using a scoping review; 2) to determine the relationship between psychological distress, QOL, and resilience in BCS with TIPN over time in a 16-week randomized controlled trial (RCT); and 3) to determine if resilience moderates psychological distress and QOL in BCS with …

Correlations Between Mental Health, Physical Activity, And Body Composition In American College Students After The Covid-19 Pandemic Lockdown

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Restrictions associated with the COVID-19 pandemic had forced American college students to significantly reduce their daily energy expenditure and increase their sedentary behaviors, thus presumably increasing mental health symptoms, decreasing physical activity levels, and enhancing the promotion of unhealthy eating habits. This study aimed to explore the correlations between mental health symptoms, physical activity levels, and body composition in college students in the years following the pandemic, focusing on the lingering effects of lockdown measures. American college students completed pre-existing, well-validated surveys for both mental health (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale) and physical activity (International Physical Activity Questionnaire—Long Form). Body …