Digital Commons Network^™

Police Social Work In Minnesota: Starting The Conversation, Jenny Ellsworth, Taylor Fish, Alison Niesen, Natalia Pitts

Master of Social Work Student Policy Advocacy Briefs

Even with enhanced police officer training focused on improving responses to mental illness, chemical dependency, and other crisis-related calls, police officers remain ill-equipped to serve as trained mental health professionals. Officers respond to these service-related calls more frequently than crime-related calls, which is why community partnerships between police officers and social workers are needed to promote the safety and well-being of people in crisis.

Systematic Review Of Integrating Care To Improve Quality Of Life Within Chronically Diseased Patients With Mental Illness, Brooke R. Goble

Honors Theses

Chronic disease and mental illness affects a multitude of individuals in the United States. Sufficient treatments exist for chronic diseases and mental illnesses, separately. However, a gap in care exists in individuals who have co-occurring conditions. The presence of one or more chronic conditions, or comorbidities, has been observed by several providers, yet there is a crucial need for integrated care in the case of chronically diseased individuals with mental illness. Increasing quality of life within this vulnerable population is a necessity. The purpose of this systematic review is to determine whether integrated care and collaboration between behavioral health and …

Act To Save A Life: Evidence-Based Youth Suicide Prevention, Meghan Diamon

National Youth Advocacy & Resilience Conference

Youth suicide is a preventable tragedy that can occur when children's mental health needs are unmet. Participants will discuss published research on risk factors for youth suicide, how to implement an evidence-based prevention program, and how to tackle common obstacles encountered. Participants will be prepared to mobilize school staff, parents, and community members to address the critical issues of depression awareness and suicide prevention.

Get Teens Talking: A Hands-On Approach To Sel Through The Arts, Gina H. Moore, Gina H. Moore

National Youth Advocacy & Resilience Conference

Explore the power of art to give tweens and teens a vehicle for healthy self-expression and life skills that can take them from risk to resilience. Interact and connect in this hands-on session that demonstrates engaging activities to create a sense of community within groups. Exercise your creativity and leave with unique artwork and a written guide to facilitate the activities in your programs.

Correctional Officers' Mental Health Literacy And Attitudes Toward Offenders With Mental Illness, Amber Rebecca Hebert

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Overrepresentation of people with mental illness in the criminal justice system is a major societal problem. According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, nearly three quarters of people housed in local jails report having symptoms suggestive of mental illness. Individual consequences to incarceration for people diagnosed with a mental illness include disruption in treatment, increase in symptomology, exposure to violence, and victimization. Correctional officers are an important component to the criminal justice system but their role in the lives of offenders with mental illness has been understudied. The current study explored the mental health knowledge, attitudes, and personal experiences of …

Exploring The Concept Of Recovery In Irish Mental Health Services: A Case Study Of Perspectives Within An Inter-Professional Team, Calvin Swords, Stan Houston

Irish Journal of Applied Social Studies

The concept of recovery has been well documented in the Irish state’s policies on mental health. More widely, the notion has been contested and embroiled in a number of definitional debates. Given the formative nature of this unfolding discourse, this research explored the meaning of recovery from the perspectives of one inter-professional team delivering mental health services to vulnerable individuals within an Irish community setting. The researchers sought to analyse whether the disciplines of medicine, psychology, nursing and social work could work together purposively to promote the biopsychosocial approach to recovery-oriented practice. This vein of inquiry was salient as an …

An Assessment Of Mental Wellbeing And Health-Related Quality Of Life Among Youth Living In Central Mexico, Steven Hoffman, Heidi Adams Rueda, Stefan Chase

Social Work Faculty Publications

The current state of adolescent mental health and wellbeing in Mexico constitutes a serious public health concern. In an effort to better understand the potential impact this crisis is having on youth in Central Mexico, we designed a study to assess the connection between Mental Wellbeing and Health-related Quality of Life among a sample of children in junior high school. Descriptive statistics suggest that 22.5% of our sample was “at-risk” of poor health-related quality of life, with 19.8% at risk within the physical subscale and 24.3% at risk within the psychosocial subscale. Regression analyses showed that mental wellbeing scores significantly …

Schizophrenia Spectrum Disorders: Linking Motor And Process Skills, Sensory Patterns, And Psychiatric Symptoms, Lola Halperin, Janet Falk-Kessler

The Open Journal of Occupational Therapy

Background: Consistent evidence suggests sensory abnormalities and skill deficits in people with Schizophrenia Spectrum Disorder (SSD). Further exploration of their sensory patterns and performance skills is warranted to promote community participation among these individuals.

Method: This study examined sensory patterns and motor and process skills in relationship to psychiatric symptoms in adult patients with SSD. Participants were evaluated using the Adolescent/Adult Sensory Profile, the Assessment of Motor and Process Skills, and the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale.

Results: Of the 18 participants, the majority showed sensory differences, deficits in motor and process skills, and the presence of moderate …

Rural Community Mental Health Agency’S Strategies To Involve Parents In Children’S Psychosocial Treatment, Kerry Ellen Morrell

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The increased prevalence of children’s mental illness and the need for community-based treatment with enhanced outcomes is propelling the need to improve children’s mental health treatment to the forefront of children’s mental health policy reform. Including parental involvement in children’s mental health treatment increases the possibility of improved treatment outcomes. However, policy, social, attitudinal, and fiscal factors have affected the strategies used to overcome the barriers to facilitating parental involvement. The purpose of this in-depth qualitative case study was to understand the strategies that one mental health agency used to overcome the barriers to facilitating parental involvement in the psychosocial …

Supporting Student Mental Health During And After Covid-19, David Bryant Naff, Shenita Williams, Jenna Furman, Melissa Lee

MERC Publications

This report by the Metropolitan Educational Research Consortium (MERC) in the VCU School of Education offers a rapid review of research about supporting student mental health as they return to school during COVID-19. It pulls from literature on natural disasters like hurricane Katrina, the psychological impacts of quarantine, and emergent research on the mental health impacts of the Coronavirus. The report is structured to answer three overarching questions: 1) Why is it important to address the mental health needs of students in schools? 2) How can we expect COVID-19 to impact the mental health of students? 3) What are some …

Analysis Of Stigmatic Content In State Mental Health Legislative Proposals, David L. Conley

Theses and Dissertations

Despite the proven effectiveness of mental health interventions, services remain limited across the country. Social workers have repeatedly advocated for increased funding, but mental healthcare gaps persist. Disparities could be addressed through the policy process, but critical proposals often do not pass. One of the biggest barriers is the concept of stigma, which could extend into legislatures and influence mental health-related policy outcomes as a form of structural stigma. Factors that influence legislator voting behavior are found in the literature, but studies have not explicitly focused on structural stigma or mental health-specific policy outcomes. Thus, the present study aimed to …

God And The Machine: A Correlational Study On Mobile Phone Dependence, Religious Coping, And Mental Health, Rachel Bolme

Senior Honors Theses

Research on the various effects of mobile phones did not begin to be published until after they had already been integrated into society. To date, the results of various studies looking into the relationship between mobile phone use and mental health demonstrate that phones, if used in problematic ways, have negative effects on mental health. Even so, there are no studies looking into problematic mobile phone use and how it correlates with spirituality and positive religious coping as well as mental health. Due to this gap in the research, this anonymous online study was designed to look into correlations between …

Can General Strain Theory Be Used To Explain The Relationship Between Recidivism And Secure Placement?, Alessia R. Shaw

Honors Undergraduate Theses

There has been extensive research conducted on recidivism among serious juvenile offenders. This study examines juvenile recidivism through the lenses of General Strain Theory (GST). GST has been used in previous studies to explain recidivism, however, secure placement and its effect on juvenile mental health, has not been studied. The purpose of this study is to test for a relationship between emotional responses like anger and hostility and secure placement, utilizing the Pathways to Desistance data. I will also examine if anger and hostility act as a mediator between secure placement and recidivism. Pathways to Desistance was a prospective study …

Strengthening Mental Health Awareness Of University Students Using An Online Training Module, Lavern Rosemarie Bourne

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Canadian youth pursuing postsecondary education are facing a major mental health crisis. There are substantial gaps between the diagnosis and treatment of mental illnesses. The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether a web-based mental health educational intervention was an effective tool with which to increase mental health awareness and help-seeking behaviors of university students. The theory of planned behavior, the help-seeking model, and the technology acceptance model were the theories that guided this study. Using a quantitative quasi-experimental research design, data were collected from 329 undergraduate students in the Faculty of Health Sciences at a university in Eastern …

Tough But Not Enough: Female University Athletes Self-Reported Mental Toughness, Kerrie Trottier

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Background: Mental health and sport related mental toughness have become prominent in the media in recent years. Successful athletes cope with stressful situations by building their mental toughness in response to challenging conditions. In university, athletes are required to maintain performance standards, school standards of excellence, and continue to develop their mental toughness. This study was motivated by the limited knowledge associated with female athletes, at a unique point in their life where they are challenged both academically, socially, and in their chosen sport.

Methods: This study proposed the following two questions; “What are the factors associated with mental toughness …

Experiences And Challenges Of Social Workers Working With Transitioning And Postmilitary Service Members Who Have Mental Health Issues, Joyce M. Hewitt

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Active duty service members, veterans, and their family members are faced with a myriad of problems including mental health issues, substance abuse issues, traumatic brain injury, suicide, family integration issues, and family distress. Understanding the organizational, environmental, and person-centered factors that affect the delivery of mental health care treatment to active duty service members, veterans, and their families is urgent to this unique population for social work practitioners (licensed master, advanced, & clinical). This project explored the experiences and challenges that social work practitioners (licensed master, advanced, & clinical) have in providing effective services for mental health care treatment to …

Mental Health Needs In Schools As Predictors Of Burnout In School Counselors, Sondra Junek

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Researchers have found an increasing number of students with mental health issues, and

school counselors are often the first resource available to students. School counselors are

faced with many job duties including supporting students’ academic, career, and

emotional needs. Maintaining these duties of school counseling can increase stress and

lead to burnout. The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine mental health

needs, mental health knowledge, and mental health skills as predictors of each of the

three subscales of burnout (emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and personal

accomplishment) among early, middle, and late career school counselors. Lazarus and

Folkman’s transactional theory …

Bridging The Gap: The Collaboration Of Mental Health Services And The Juvenile Justice System, Gregory Medley

Educational Specialist, 2009-2019

Abstract

This paper explore the mental health needs of juveniles in the juvenile justice system. The need for mental health services in detention centers has been identified consistently throughout the United States. It is clearly noted in research that meeting the needs of youth in local community detentions centers are inadequate. With 65% to 70% of youth in contact with juvenile justice system having a diagnosable mental health disorder; over 60% of youth with a mental health disorder also having a substance abuse disorder (Mental Health and Juvenile Justice Collaborative for Change, 2015). As a result, I have created a …

Spirituality, Religion, And Mental Health Among Deaf And Hard Of Hearing People: A Review Of The Literature, David A. Barclay, Matthew A. Rider, Eileen A. Dombo

JADARA

Spirituality is increasingly being used in both assessment and intervention strategies. Available peer-reviewed literature and recent published dissertations are reviewed related to spirituality and religion among deaf and hard of hearing people. Knowledge is integrated in the context of mental health practitioners who work with deaf and hard of hearing people. Several themes including disability meanings, communication, family dynamics, and macro accessibility and representation are identified as topics to be applied to current mental health practice and future mental health research related to spirituality among deaf and hard of hearing people.

Interdisciplinary Collaboration In Exemplary Counseling-Enriched High School Programs: Integrating College & Career Readiness And Mental Health Wellness For Students With Emotional Disturbance, Amira S. Mostafa

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this mixed methods multiple-case study was to describe how interdisciplinary collaborative teams support the college and career readiness and the mental health wellness of adolescents with emotional disturbance. A secondary purpose was to explore how team members describe and rate the importance of their interdisciplinary collaboration using the four essential elements (reflection, flexibility, newly created roles, and interdependence) based on the model established by Mellin (Mellin et al., 2010). Lastly, this study sought recommendations from team members on improved practices supporting adolescents with emotional disturbance.

Methodology: An explanatory sequential mixed methods multiple-case study design explored the …

Peer Victimization, Internalizing Problems, And Substance Use In Urban African American Adolescents In Chicago: The Relevance Of The Self-Medication Hypothesis, Jun Sung Hong, Yi-Ping Hsieh, Kelly Lynn Clary, Rose Theda, Ryan Russ, Dexter R. Voisin

Social Work Faculty Publications

The aim of the study was to explore the link between peer victimization and substance use and tested the mediating role of internalizing problems in urban African American adolescents in Chicago. Six hundred and thirty-eight adolescents in Chicago's Southside participated in the study. Results from the hierarchical linear regression analysis showed that youth who reported peer victimization were at risk of internalizing problems. Those who were bullied by their peers were more likely to display internalizing problems, which was also significantly associated with substance use. Consistent with the self-medication hypothesis, findings from the study suggest that bullied youth are likely …

Deaf Adult Consumers Of Public Behavioral Health Services In Maryland: January 1, 2016 – January 1, 2018, Teresa Crowe Ph.D

JADARA

This exploratory study describes the demographic profiles of 7,474 deaf adults who are consumers of public behavioral health services in the state of Maryland. Up until recent years, data about deaf consumers were unavailable to researchers. Over the past two years, additional items were added to the Outcome Measurement Systems interview, such as “primary language” and boxes where providers could record “deaf.” The data presented in this paper are for deaf adults who received services from January 1, 2016 to January 1, 2018. The results of this study indicate that: 1) most deaf consumers lived in private residences, 2) consumers …

Responding To The Mental Health Crisis In Schools: Implications For Counselor Education Programs, Jose Maldonado, Vasti Holstun

Faculty Publications and Presentations

The significant rise in mental health issues among students is alarming and challenges school counselors’ preparation and professional identity. This mental health crisis in schools establishes the need for counselor education programs to revamp curriculum training methods, teaching pedagogy, and dual field experiences for counseling students.

Psychosocial Determinants Of Insomnia In Adolescents: Roles Of Mental Health, Behavioral Health, And Social Environment, Yi-Ping Hsieh, Wei-Hsin Lu, Cheng-Fang Yen

Social Work Faculty Publications

The theoretical explanation of human problems is derived from the complex interplay of psychological, social, economic, political, and physical factors.

Aims: This study examined the roles of behavioral health (i.e., alcohol abuse and suicidality) and social environment (i.e., family support, school connectedness, and favorable neighborhood) and mental health [i.e., depression, anxiety, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)] in predicting insomnia in adolescents in an ecological perspective.

Methods: Approximately 6445 high school students in Taiwan were administered an anonymous self-report survey. Hierarchical multiple regression was performed to examine how multidimensional social environment, behavioral health, and mental health factors were associated with …

"They Smile But It's Not Real": Karen Refugees' Perceptions Of Depression, Carina Zuniga

Social Work Theses - Archive

Refugees often carry with them traumas and mental health issues, why may continue or worsen in their new resettlement country. Understanding refugee populations and their mental health needs is a critical endeavor to support them effectively during and after the resettlement process. Currently, there is a lack of research over this population's mental health and what kinds of interventions are most effective. Recently, the U.S. has resettled a proportionately high number of refugees from Burma or Myanmar, mostly from the ethnic minority group called Karen. The present study interviewed 16 Karen refugees who were receiving medical care or case management …

Black Women’S Wellbeing: The Intersections Of Race, Immigrant Status, And Mental Health Among African Diasporan Women In Houston, Texas, Sianneh Vesslee

African American and Africana Studies Summer Fellows

My central research question is: how has white supremacy impacted African Diaspora women’s mental health, access to mental healthcare, and identities as mental health patients in the United States as discernible in advertisements and state policies for psychological wellness? More specifically, I will investigate whether and/or how white supremacy shapes the ways in which advertising and state policies for mental healthcare address the particular needs of black women who immigrate to Houston, Texas from Lagos, Nigeria and Coahuila, Mexico. I choose those geographies because Houston is a U.S. city with one of the highest populations of black immigrants from Nigeria …

Audience Response Systems And Missingness Trends: Using Interactive Polling Systems To Gather Sensitive Health Information From Youth., Tammy Toscos, Michelle Drouin, Mindy Flanagan, Maria D. Carpenter, Connie Kerrigan, Colleen Carpenter, Cameron Mere Mba, Marcia Haaff

Health Services and Informatics Research

BACKGROUND: The widespread availability and cost-effectiveness of new-wave software-based audience response systems (ARSs) have expanded the possibilities of collecting health data from hard-to-reach populations, including youth. However, with all survey methods, biases in the data may exist because of participant nonresponse.

OBJECTIVE: The aims of this study were to (1) examine the extent to which an ARS could be used to gather health information from youths within a large-group school setting and (2) examine individual- and survey-level response biases stemming from this Web-based data collection method.

METHODS: We used an ARS to deliver a mental health survey to 3418 youths …

Penny Wise But Pound Foolish: How Permanent Supportive Housing Can Prevent A World Of Hurt, Lavena Staten, Sara Rankin

Homeless Rights Advocacy Project

People experiencing chronic homelessness are trapped in a cycle of homelessness and trauma. Traditional approaches to homelessness attempt to address people’s trauma first and use housing as a reward for complying with treatment; such approaches fail because people cannot improve physically or psychologically while they are actively experiencing the trauma of homelessness. Our current responses to chronic homelessness do not work, but cities often justify the status quo as the only fiscally responsible option. Instead, these approaches are among the most expensive and least effective.

Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) flips the traditional order in which homelessness and trauma are addressed …

Barriers To Mental Health Treatment In Patients Referred By Primary Care, Rebecca Palmer

Dissertations

Problem: Limited access to mental health treatment is one of many potential barriers to treating mental illness in the United States. Where resources are readily available, reportedly high no-show rates for established mental health appointments suggests further investigation is necessary to identify frequent barriers within that population. This was a quality improvement project to identify common themes in patient-reported barriers to care.

Methods: A 4-question phone survey was offered to individuals that did not appear at their mental health appointment. Data was analyzed to identify the most commonly reported barriers to mental health treatment. Additional data collected includes reported history …

Mental Health Services For Single Homeless Mothers With Children, Andrea Zermeno, Maria Alejandra Perez

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Single mothers with young children living in poverty often experience various disadvantages, especially when they have mental health issues. They are a vulnerable population and face challenges such as poverty, homelessness, and low paying jobs. Homeless mothers and their children often have difficulty in finding means to survive and obtaining basic needs. The purpose of this study was to explore the quality and availability of mental health resources to homeless mother and their children. Ten participants were chosen outside of a homeless shelter in the City of Riverside. The study was a qualitative design conducted through face-to-face interviews.

This study …