Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

An Integrated Relational Framework Of Depressed Mood And Anhedonia During Pregnancy, Rebecca L. Brock, Molly Franz, Erin L. Ramsdell

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Objective: The aim of the present study was to test a unified framework that integrates several theories into a cohesive model to explain the interplay between neuroticism and intimate relationship quality as risk factors for prenatal depression.

Background: There is a notable spike in risk for depression during pregnancy, and the processes unfolding in the interparental relationship during this important time in the family life cycle might serve to mitigate or enhance this risk. Yet there is a need for theory-driven research integrating multiple conceptual frameworks to explicate the role of intimate relationship quality in depression.

Method: In a sample …

Identifying And Addressing Barriers To Treatment For Child Sexual Abuse Survivors And Their Non-Offending Caregivers, Kate Theimer, Akemi E. Mii, Emily Sonnen, Kelsey Mccoy, Katie Meidlinger, Brittany Biles, T. Zachary Huit, Mary F. Flood, David J. Hansen

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Mental health treatment is a critical part of an effective and compassionate response to the disclosure of child sexual abuse (CSA). Given the vast negative consequences for children and families following CSA, engagement in treatment can benefit youth and their non-offending caregivers. Yet, these families face unique barriers to treatment initiation, adherence, and effectiveness. The identification of these barriers allows clinicians, researchers, and policy makers to increase treatment utilization, engagement, and value. The current review and its recommendations derive from the existing literature combined with knowledge gained from a clinical research team with more than 20 years of experience offering …

Change In Motherhood Status And Fertility Problem Identification: Implications For Changes In Life Satisfaction, Arthur L. Greil, Julia Mcquillan, Andrea R. Burch, Michele H. Lowry, Stacy Tiemeyer, Kathleen S. Slauson-Blevins

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Objective: To determine whether the association between changes in life satisfaction and becoming a mother (or not) depends on fertility problem identification status.

Background: Evidence and symbolic interactionist theory suggest that, for women who initially perceive a fertility barrier, gaining the valued identity “mother” should be associated with increases and continuing to face a blocked goal (i.e., not becoming a mother) should be associated with decreases in life satisfaction.

Method: This study used the nationally representative two-wave National Survey of Fertility Barriers to conduct a change-score analysis with chained multiple imputation. The focal dependent variable was change in life satisfaction. …

Ptsd And Dysfunctional Parenting: Emotional And Biological Mechanisms, Molly Franz

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Women are disproportionately at risk for developing PTSD following exposure to trauma. Among its many harmful effects, PTSD is associated with a range of negative family outcomes, including impairments in parenting behaviors. Despite the prevalence of PTSD and its impact on parenting, little is known about the mechanisms responsible for this association. The present project addressed this gap by examining the impact of PTSD on dysfunctional parenting behaviors in a lab setting. Based on prior theory and empirical evidence, I expected that a diagnosis of PTSD would be associated with more dysfunctional parenting (i.e., harsh/overreactive and lax/permissive behaviors) during routine …

Understanding Perceptions Of Child Maltreatment Risk: A Qualitative Study Of Early Head Start Home Visitors, Alayna Schreier, Kelsey Mccoy, Mary F. Flood, Brian Wilcox, David J. Hansen

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Infants and toddlers enrolled in Early Head Start are at increased risk for child maltreatment. Within Early Head Start, home visitors are in a unique position to identify the families most likely to experience maltreatment by identifying characteristics and behaviors of children, caregivers, families, and environments that are of concern. However, research has demonstrated that home visitors are often ill-equipped to identify and address risk factors such as parental mental health concerns, substance abuse, and domestic violence. Further, little is known about how home visitors understand and perceive risk for maltreatment and identify vulnerable families. The study sought to identify …

Spirituality Among Black Americans: A Hierarchical Classification Of The Family Strengths Model, Genese Clark

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

There is a need for disaggregate data pertaining to the perceived strengths of Black American families. This study identified which traits are salient and dominant among African-American families according to the Family Strengths Model. Utilizing this model, a mixed methods study was conducted among Black Americans living in Connecticut who identify with belonging to a family (N=59) to investigate the importance of six family strength domains. Results found the hierarchical rank (from most important to least important) to be commitment, spirituality/ spiritual wellbeing, appreciation and affection, positive communication, time together, and the ability to manage stress and crisis effectively. Additionally, …

Creating A Community Of Practice To Prevent Suicide Through Multiple Channels: Describing The Theoretical Foundations And Structured Learning Of Pc Cares, Lisa Wexler, Diane Mceachern, Gloria Difulvio, Cristine Smith, Louis F. Graham, Kirk Dombrowski

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

It is critical to develop practical, effective, ecological, and decolonizing approaches to indigenous suicide prevention and health promotion for the North American communities. The youth suicide rates in predominantly indigenous small, rural, and remote Northern communities are unacceptably high. This health disparity, however, is fairly recent, occurring over the last 50 to 100 years as communities experienced forced social, economic, and political change and intergenerational trauma. These conditions increase suicide risk and can reduce people’s access to shared protective factors and processes. In this context, it is imperative that suicide prevention includes—at its heart— decolonization, while also utilizing the “best …

Reasons For Tubal Sterilisation, Regret And Depressive Symptoms, Karina M. Shreffler, Arthur L. Greil, Julia Mcquillan, Kami L. Gallus

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Objective—To examine the associations between sterilisation reasons, regret, and depressive symptoms.

Study Design—Black, Hispanic, and non-Hispanic White US women ages 25–45 who participated in the National Survey of Fertility Barriers (NSFB) and reported a tubal sterilisation surgery were included in the sample for this study (n=837). Logistic regression was used to examine how characteristics of the sterilisation surgery (reasons for sterilisation, time since sterilisation, and new relationship since sterilisation) are associated with the odds of sterilisation regret, and linear regression was used to examine associations between sterilisation regret, sociodemographic factors, and depressive symptoms.

Results—Findings revealed that 28 …

Examining The Role Of Antisocial Personality Disorder In Intimate Partner Violence Among Substance Use Disorder Treatment Seekers With Clinically Significant Trauma Histories, Rita E. Dykstra, Julie A. Schumacher, Natalie Mota, Scott F. Coffey

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

This study examined the associations among posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptom severity, antisocial personality disorder (ASPD) diagnosis, and intimate partner violence (IPV) in a sample of 145 substance abuse treatment-seeking men and women with positive trauma histories; sex was examined as a moderator. ASPD diagnosis significantly predicted both verbal and physical aggression; sex moderated the association between ASPD diagnosis and physical violence. PTSD symptom severity significantly predicted engaging in verbal, but not physical, aggression. Overall, these results suggest that an ASPD diagnosis may be an important risk factor for engaging in IPV among women seeking treatment for a substance use …

Social Contexts Of Infant Feeding And Infant Feeding Decisions, Ellen J. Schafer, Natalie A. Williams, Siri Digney, Marion E. Hare, Sato Ashida

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

Background: Infant feeding takes place within a network of social relationships. However, the social context in which infant feeding advice is received remains underresearched.

Objective: The objective of this study was to evaluate the social contexts of infant feeding by examining individual and relationship characteristics of mothers and network members associated with advice to exclusively breastfeed, exclusively formula feed, or use a combination of breast milk and formula.

Methods: Information about 287 network members was reported by 80 low-income mothers during a one-time survey. Characteristics of relationships associated with mothers receiving advice (exclusively breastfeed/formula feed, combination feed) from each network …

The Wedding Night, Ida C. Craddock, Paul Royster , Editor

Zea E-Books in American Studies

Ida Craddock took her own life in October 1902, rather than face the 5-year federal prison term she seemed certain to receive following her conviction for distributing this work through the U.S. Mail. It is a short (24-page) pamphlet addressed to young women and men about to embark on a sexual relationship and an honest and frank effort to alleviate the ignorance which both sexes often brought to the marriage union. Craddock's discussion of the "sexual act" stressed that empathy and consideration for one's partner were the vital elements for an enduring marriage. Craddock neither shrank from the description of …