Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Video Modeling To Increase Interaction For Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder In A Museum Setting Using An Application On A Tablet, Bethany Miota Miota

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this thesis was to perform an exploratory study to determine if the ScanDo! app intervention is an assistive technology that increases interaction for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in a museum setting. The ScanDo! app intervention presented a video demonstration that modeled the interaction for each learning station by scanning the QR code attached to the station. Using a naturally occurring baseline single-subject design with ABA and reversed ABA phases, two children with ASD and their parents visited the grocery store exhibit at a children’s museum. Observers of the trials and questionnaires completed by parents before …

Bidirectional Relationships Between Maternal Parenting Behaviors And Conduct Disorder Symptoms In Preschool Children, Benjamin Rolon Arroyo

Doctoral Dissertations

Conduct disorder (CD) symptoms emerge in preschool children, and some evidence for bidirectional effects between maternal parenting behaviors and these symptoms has been found in school-age children and adolescents. However, the strength and pattern of these effects are unknown during the preschool years. The present study examined the bidirectional relationships between several key maternal parenting behaviors (negative affect, warmth, overreactivity, and laxness) and CD symptoms across the preschool years. Participants were 197 preschool children (M = 44.24 months, SD = 3.37; Girls = 92) exhibiting significant behavior problems and their mothers who participated in a 3-year longitudinal study. Maternal …

Impact Of Peer Relationship And Exposure To Violence On Posttraumatic Stress For Children At Risk For Maltreatment, Aura Ankita Mishra

Open Access Theses

Post-traumatic Stress (PTS) symptomology includes ruminating thoughts and feelings around trauma, inability to feel and express emotions, and avoidance of things related to the traumatic event (American Psychiatric Association, 2000). Children and youth exposed to child maltreatment (abuse and neglect) are at higher risk of experiencing PTS. Extra-familial support, including peer support can reduce post-traumatic stress among youth (Pina et al., 2008). In the present study, Witnessing, Victimization, and Both Witnessing and Victimization due to Exposure to In-Home Violence and Peer Relationship Quality are evaluated as to their relative impact on PTS for children at risk for child maltreatment. Peer …

Measuring Engagement Of The Executive Control Network From 3 Months Of Age, Michelle Tran

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The executive control network (ECN) is critical for higher cognition and executive function (EF). Despite its importance, no scientific consensus has been reached on how and when it begins to function. In the present study, we assessed the development of the ECN in awake infants less than a year old by employing functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and naturalistic stimuli. First, we identified evocative movies that engaged infant attention. We then transferred them into adult imaging to test for which movie evoked the highest ECN response. Strong ECN responses were evoked while viewing Despicable Me, therefore we implemented this …

Spirituality And Psychological Well-Being Among Als Caregivers: Hope And Perceived Stress As Mediators, Bridget R. Jeter

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The empirical study of the salutary relationship between spirituality/religiousness and psychological well-being is burgeoning. However, mechanisms of this association have received less empirical attention. Theory suggests that spirituality/religiousness may lead to positive psychological characteristics such as hope, which may function as a means of coping in the context of a significant stressor or stressful situation. The perceived burden and stress associated with caring for individuals with chronic illnesses such as ALS is significant, and caregivers may be at risk for increased symptoms of depression, symptoms of anxiety, somatic symptoms, and other deleterious psychological well-being related outcomes. Within the context of …

Quality Of Life And Athletic Participation Assessment In Children And Adolescents With Congenital Heart Disease, Kayla Stuckey

Honors Program Theses

Just under 1% of infants are born with a heart defect [congenital heart disease (CHD)], and as a result of treatment and early diagnosis, 85% of these children survive into adulthood. Few studies have investigated the quality of life, global happiness, and athletic participation in pediatric populations, especially with respect to those who have CHD. In 2010, the number of people aged 0-18 years who had CHD was estimated to be between 1,905,000 and 2,102,000, and there are varying qualities of life that these children experience based on disease severity. In addition to patients who are born with CHD, children …

Attitudes Of Nigerian Mothers Toward Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Valentine Ntoo Chukwueloka

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a form of developmental disability that affects many children in the U.S. and abroad. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) has indicated that 1 out of every 68 children is diagnosed with ASD in the United States. However, there was limited literature about the attitudinal dispositions of Nigerian mothers toward children with ASD and their lived experiences with a child with autism. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the attitudes of Nigerian mothers toward their children with autism. The theoretical foundation of this study was the variation of the social relational understanding …

Outcomes Of Aggression Replacement Training For U.S. Adolescents In Residential Facilities, Coral Ann Ondrus

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

A National Survey indicated that 1.6 million adolescents in the U.S. were arrested in 2010 and 1.5 million in 2011 for erratic aggressive behaviors, thus showing a decline from the 2.18 million adolescent arrests in 2007. Residential facilities in the state of Pennsylvania offer a group intervention called Aggression Replacement Training (ART) to help adjudicated adolescents regain control of erratic behaviors. The purpose of this study was to examine the extent to which level of group participation in ART and certain demographic factors (age, gender, ethnicity, family socioeconomic status, parental involvement, and education) predict decreased aggression and increased anger control …

A Feasibility Study Of A Lqts-Specific Workshop: Childrens' Problem-Solving Skills, Coping, Self-Efficacy, And Locus Of Control, Katherine L. Corvi

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

Living with a chronic medical condition in childhood and adolescence requires many critical lifestyle changes and restrictions, which may compromise psychosocial development. Social problem-solving skills have been shown to enhance the ability to cope with both minor and major daily stressors and to minimize psychological problems associated with physical health problems. The research is part of a larger study with children with long QT syndrome (LQTS) and their parents; the present study focuses on the children. This study was developed to examine the feasibility and efficacy of a problem-solving workshop to increase problem solving, self-efficacy, coping, and locus of control …

The Secret Ingredient For Improving Infant/Child Mental Health: Teaching Parents To Play, Geraldine Healy Marini

Occupational Therapy Doctorate Capstone Projects

Disorders in mental health are the highest of all disorders and results in the most common form of disability. Since 2011, mental health disorders have increased at alarming rates. It is estimated that 9.5 to 14.2% of children between the ages of 0 to 5 years have and emotional or behavioral problem. The mental health of parents or caregivers can affect and impact the development of young children (Nelson & Mann, 2011, Zero to Three, 2004).

The over arching goal of this research is to explore issues of mental health within parent-child interactions. Coaching parents during the co-occupation of play …

Influencers And Barriers To Consumption Of Healthful Diets In Rural Youth In Context Of The Bioecological Model, Megan Bren

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to determine influencers and barriers to healthful dietary intake in rural youth in context of the bioecological model. Four focus groups as part of Ignite, a tri-state, five-year, community based partipatory research (CBPR) intervention were conducted with 6th to 8th grade adolescents from an economically disadvantaged community of rural South Dakota. Results were categorized into the context of the bioecological model. Within the model, the process, person, context and time (PPCT) design with the three types of personal characteristics were used to describe the framework in which the systems are embedded. Focus group content …

Examination Of The Relationship Between Caesarean Section Births And Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Breea M. Rosas

All Master's Theses

Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, a neurological disorder characterized by inattentive and hyperactive behaviors, has become increasingly more prevalent (CDC, 2010). Recent research has found associations between this disorder and Caesarean section births (Amiri et al., 2012; Juarez et al., 2008). The current study examined the relationship between C-section birth and self-reported symptoms of ADHD by college students on the Internal Restlessness Scale (Weyandt et al., 2003). Results of the study indicate a significant difference in mean ratings of ADHD symptoms between C-section and vaginally born participants (t = 3.683, p < .000). The current study supports previous findings of a relationship between C-sections and ADHD.