Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Comparing Web-Based Mindfulness With Loving-Kindness And Compassion Training For Promoting Well-Being In Pregnancy: Protocol For A Three-Arm Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial, Amy Louise Finlay-Jones, Jacqueline Ann Davis, Amanda O'Donovan, Keerthi Kottampally, Rebecca Anne Ashley, Desiree Silva, Jeneva Lee Ohan, Susan L. Prescott, Jenny Downs

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

© Amy Louise Finlay-Jones, Jacqueline Ann Davis, Amanda O'Donovan, Keerthi Kottampally, Rebecca Anne Ashley, Desiree Silva, Jeneva Lee Ohan, Susan L Prescott, Jenny Downs. Originally published in JMIR Research Protocols (http://www.researchprotocols.org), 14.10.2020. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work, first published in JMIR Research Protocols, is properly cited. The complete bibliographic information, a link to the original publication on http://www.researchprotocols.org, as well as this copyright and license information must be included. Background: Promoting psychological well-being and preventing …

Preparing Student Paramedics For The Mental Health Challenges Of The Profession By Using The Wisdom Of The Experienced, Lisa Holmes, Natalie Ciccone, Lynne Cohen, Richard Brightwell

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Given the significant mental health issues affecting our paramedics, there exists an urgent need to promote positive mental health and well-being among future cohorts of student paramedics. This study investigated the preparedness of student paramedics for the mental health challenges of the profession and explored the coping strategies used by experienced paramedics. The study was conducted in two parts. Part A comprised of two surveys which were developed and administered to 16 course coordinators and 302 students of the 16 accredited undergraduate paramedicine courses across Australia and New Zealand. The survey aimed to identify the perceived need for preparation within …

Mood Effects And Individual Differences On Reappraisal And Distraction: An Erp Study Of The Sensitivity Of Emotion Regulation Strategies, Elsa Mastico

All Master's Theses

The present research evaluated the effect of mood and individual differences on the regulatory process of emotions by using a regulation task with negative and neutral images to assess reappraisal and distraction ability. Specifically, this research evaluated the average amplitude of the latent positive potential (latent positivity, LPP) brainwave linked to distraction and reappraisal using an ERP analysis. In addition, the current study compared the modulation of the LPP to the self-reported mood of the participants and their individual differences in regulation ability through scores of a self-report emotion regulation questionnaire. The latent positive potentials from an emotion regulation task …

A Metacognitive Triggering Mechanism For Anticipatory Thinking, Alexander R. Hough, Othalia Larue, Ion Juvina

Psychology Faculty Publications

Current autonomous systems have the ability to adapt to envi-ronmental changes in real-time, but limited ability to engage inanticipatory thinking (AT) with the flexibility to generalize andconsider hypothetical future situations. We argue that metacog-nitive processes are important for an and provide supporting lit-erature primarily from psychology. As an example, we presenta metacognitive monitoring mechanism implemented in a cog-nitive model and discuss ways to extend the mechanism to allowfor dynamic behavior and anticipatory thinking capabilities.

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 …

Assessing Pain-Related Factors As Predictors Of Distress During Transitional Musculoskeletal Pain Experience, Gary Robert Ahlstrom

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

During people’s pain experience, certain difficulties may emerge within individuals’ psychological and social domains that can confound and exacerbate the frequency of their pain-related distress episodes. Previous research has consistently found psychosocial factors evident during the first months of unresolved pain are reliable predictors of pain chronicity and disability at 12 months. This exploratory descriptive quantitative multivariate study included 2 nationwide online surveys that examined the frequency of moderate-to-severe symptoms of distress within the anxiety-depression spectrum, and the extent that 8 pain-related factors influenced and predicted episodes of anxiety and depressed mood, which included 2 demographic risk factors (age range …

Relationship Between Parent Asthma Knowledge, Parental Control Of Child's Asthma, And Parent Qol, Glori Sommerer

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The long-term responsibility of caring for a child with asthma can result in parents

experiencing a lower quality of life (QoL), especially if the child's asthma is not well

controlled. Asthma knowledge can enhance asthma control practices among parents.

However, research has not explored these variables together to determine whether

parental control of child's asthma mediates the relationship between parent asthma

knowledge and parent QoL. This quantitative research study explored whether parental

control of child's asthma mediated the relationship between parent asthma knowledge

and parent QoL. The theoretical foundation was asthma self-regulation theory, focused

on the importance of asthma knowledge …

Information Security Ambassadors’ Perceptions Of Peer-Led Motivation In Phishing Detection, Kingkane Malmquist

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Phishing rates are increasing yearly and continue to compromise data integrity. The need to guard business information is vital for organizations to meet their business objectives and legal obligations. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore security ambassadors’ perceptions of motivating their peers to adopt safe internet behaviors in a large medical campus in Minnesota. Hackman and Oldham’s job characteristic motivation theory was used to frame the study. Data were collected from semistructured interviews with 20 security ambassadors. Data coding and analysis yielded 7 themes: rewarding, value, personal interest, limited information security knowledge, increased interest, communication, and topics …

Does Providing Pill Testing At Festivals Increase Intention To Use Ecstasy?, Sherri Lee Murphy

Theses : Honours

Calls to provide sanctioned pill testing (drug checking) at music festivals has met with resistance from most Australian governments due to a concern that such services would increase use of ecstasy and other drugs. To address an important gap in current knowledge, I investigated how a pill testing service might influence intention to use ecstasy. I also drew from the Theory of Planned Behaviour to examine what determinants of behaviour predict intention to use a pill testing service. Music festival attendees (N = 247) were presented with three hypothetical pill testing scenarios: The current legal circumstance where consumers only …

The Efficacy Of Ketamine In Adult Patients With Obsessive Compulsive Disorder With Symptoms Refractory To Standard Of Care Treatment., Brooke Thornton

Capstone Showcase

First line pharmacologic treatments for adult patients with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) involve selective serotonin/norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SSRI/SNRIs). These drug classes often fail to deliver timely relief of symptoms as well as maintain longevity of symptom recurrence. This research analyzed the use of ketamine in adult patients suffering with OCD for the purposes of more efficacious management of symptoms. Although ketamine demonstrated a timelier relief of symptoms in some small clinical studies, its effects were ultimately unable to be sustained long term. Additionally, a wide range of adverse effects including dissociation, and rebound symptoms were observed. As a result, large …

Weight Stigma In Different Aspects Of Life, Emanuel Noyola

Capstone Showcase

Weight stigma is discrimination or bias against any individual who is perceived to be overweight or obese. It has recently been recorded that the effects of weight discrimination have an influence on three major areas of life which include schools, the workplace, and personal relationships. This is important as weight discrimination was found to mostly have negative effects in all these areas but was also found to be sometimes beneficial in others, such as retail. Past research has also shown that the effects of weight discrimination are 37 times worse among obese females compared to obese males. One alarming setting …

"It's All In Your Head": Diagnostic Overshadowing And Mental Illness, Katya Monarski

Capstone Showcase

Diagnostic overshadowing in mentally ill patients is the misattribution of physical illness to a preexisting mental health condition. This phenomenon contributes to the fact that patients with mental illness to receive diagnoses later, receive less treatment, and live with untreated chronic conditions. The societal attitudes on mental illness associate sufferers with negativity, danger, fear, and strangeness. This stigma could affect the formation of a realistic schema for mentally ill patients, even in a medical context. Doctors who view mental illness with the misinformed stereotypes may only see the patient for that stereotype and not as a whole. A detriment to …

A Natural Remedy: Nbccpt Approach In School For Adhd Diagnosed, Kiran Patel

Capstone Showcase

Nature-based child centered play therapy (NBCCPT) is a non-directive approach that can be practiced by the counselor in a natural environment consisting of natural tools. The approach allows a child to lead a therapy session without the counselor’s input. Such an approach can be beneficial for children with Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), especially in a school setting. Therapy in school can aid families that cannot afford outpatient therapy as well as allow counselors to track the child’s therapy progress. In school, counselors can utilize an outdoor garden to conduct NBCCPT with the help of five stages, planning, preparing, planting, …

Retrieval-Induced Forgetting In Autism Spectrum: Combining Narrative Experience With Clinical Research To Explore Stress-Induced, Transitory Retrograde Amnesia, Elizabeth Willsmore-Finkle

Scripps Senior Theses

Currently, psychological research explores autism, a blanket term for a range of neurobiological and developmental differences, through a clinical, as opposed to an experiential, lens. Autism has only existed as formal diagnosis under that name since 1943 (Kanner); however, the advocacy of activists such as Temple Grandin, a slaughterhouse systems designer best known for documenting her life with autism in a series of autobiographic accounts, has begun to legitimize the incorporation of emic experiences of autism within clinical research. Researcher Dermot Bowler and colleagues (2011) have conducted extensive reviews of memory distinctions in autism, finding differences of varying degrees across …

Cancer Patients’ Tobacco Use And Tobacco Treatment Referral Response: Implementation Outcomes At A National Cancer Institute- Designated Cancer Center, Tia Borger

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Smoking after cancer diagnosis is linked to cancer-specific and all-cause mortality among other adverse outcomes. Yet, 10-20% of U.S. cancer survivors are current smokers. Implementation of evidence-based tobacco treatment in cancer care facilities is widely recommended, yet rarely accomplished. This study focuses on the early outcomes of a tobacco treatment program integrated within an NCI-designated cancer center. Participants consist of 26,365 patients seen at the cancer center during the first 18 months of implementation. The study is a retrospective chart review of patients’ tobacco use, and among current users, patients’ treatment referral response. Over 99% of patients were screened for …

The Relationship Between Intensity Of Fitness Tracker Usage And Motivation, Rachel Cannata, Abigail C. Daugherty, Madison O. Dirocco, Julianne Green, Pial Dasgupta

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Many college students engage in unhealthy behaviors which may contribute to diseases. Additionally, some students may lack motivation to rectify these behaviors to improve their long-term health. This study assessed the relationship between intensity of fitness tracker usage and motivation among health professions students at a large, public Midwestern university. This non-experimental, correlational study used convenience sampling and a theoretical framework based on Bandura’s Social Cognitive Theory. Online recruitment announcements were emailed and included links to the consent form and survey. Motivation was measured with Deci and Ryan’s modified self-determination tool. Intensity of tracker usage was measured using a scale …

Proposing The Mindful Check-In: A Brief Mindfulness Exercise, Michael Viveiros

EWU Masters Thesis Collection

This study investigated the effectiveness and adherence rate of the mindful check-in compared to a traditional mindfulness exercise. This study compared the effects of a traditional mindful breathing exercise and a no-treatment control condition to the mindful check-in on measures of mindfulness, psychological flexibility, affect, compassion, and adherence to the proposed practice schedule. Statistical analyses showed that the mindful check-in reduced negative affect compared to the other two conditions, increased mindful ability on one of the two measures of mindfulness, had a marginally-significant increase in psychological flexibility, and reduced fear of receiving compassion from others and giving compassion to yourself. …

The Allied Health Work Readiness Study: Identifying Personal Characteristics Signalling Work Readiness In Allied Health Students, Maxine O'Brien, Kelli Troy, Jayne Kirkpatrick

Internet Journal of Allied Health Sciences and Practice

Purpose: Clinical placements associated with university degrees for the allied health professions aim to support the preparation of students for post graduate employment through the practical application of theoretical constructs. However, employers recognise that a range of generic skills and attributes outside of technical and academic achievement impact of work readiness. Allied health clinical educators within Darling Downs Health (DDH) sought to identify these generic characteristics, and their relative importance, with a view to further supporting the work readiness of students completing placements in the district. Method: The study utilised the knowledge and experience of allied health clinical educators, experienced …

Changing Weight Management Self-Efficacy Among Obese Puerto Rican Adults: A Quantitative Study Using A Health Coaching Intervention, Richard Valentin Ayala, Josh Bernstein

Internet Journal of Allied Health Sciences and Practice

Purpose: Obesity and associated healthcare-related issues continue to increase. The prevalence of obesity is on the rise, which has led many health professionals to find ways to improve health interventions. Health coaching can be a viable tool to reduce the obesity epidemic. The purpose of this quantitative study was to investigate the effects of an 8-weekhealth coaching intervention in obese individuals from Puerto Rico and to determine if self-esteem and body image influence weight managementself-efficacy. Method: A pretest-posttest design using a weight management self-efficacy scale helped the researcher evaluate the effectof the coaching sessions. In addition, body image …

Development Of A Multidimensional, Multi-Informent Measure Of Teacher Mindfulness As Experienced And Expressed In The Middle School Classroom, Nicolette P. Rickert, Ellen A. Skinner, Robert W. Roeser

Psychology: Faculty Publications

In response to growing interest in mindfulness as a support for educators, the current study sought to create and test a new multidimensional and multi-informant measure of teacher mindfulness in the classroom. To counter some of the limitations of context-general self-reports, we designed two theoretically based classroom-specific measures that capture the experience and expression of mindful teacher behavior from the perspective of teachers and students. Drawing on emerging consensus from experts on mindfulness in education, the measures incorporated three dimensions of mindfulness, namely, Calm, Clear, and Kind teacher behavior in the classroom, as well as their antitheses, namely, Reactive, …

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 …

Mechanisms Of Value-Biased Prioritization In Fast Sensorimotor Decision Making, Kivilcim Afacan-Seref

Dissertations and Theses

In dynamic environments, split-second sensorimotor decisions must be prioritized according to potential payoffs to maximize overall rewards. The impact of relative value on deliberative perceptual judgments has been examined extensively, but relatively little is known about value-biasing mechanisms in the common situation where physical evidence is strong but the time to act is severely limited. This research examines the behavioral and electrophysiological indices of how value biases split-second perceptual decisions and the possible mechanisms underlying the process. In prominent decision models, a noisy but statistically stationary representation of sensory evidence is integrated over time to an action-triggering bound, and value-biases …

Development And Validation Of A Mindful Food Parenting Instrument To Assess The Relationship Between Parent Food Practices And Children’S Dietary Outcomes, Su-Nui Escobar

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

American children’s diets are commonly recorded as deficient in nutrient rich foods such as vegetables, fruits, and whole grains. Such diets often exceed amounts of unhealthy items such as added sugars and sweetened beverages. In addition, 23% of children are considered overweight or obese. Mindfulness techniques in parents have been correlated with improved dietary outcomes in children and a healthier family eating environment.

The primary aim of this study was to develop and validate an instrument that reflects the theoretical framework drawn from current models of mindful eating, mindful parenting and mindful food parenting. The instrument is a practical tool …

Fight, Flight, Or Freezing? Investigating The Immobility Response In Military Veterans, Paige Elizabeth King

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

When the body is faced with threat to life or limb, the autonomic nervous system works to overcome the danger – by either fight, flight, or freezing. While immobility may not appear to be the most logical solution, theories exist that it allows for judgement of the situation and preparation for action. This study investigated the stress response that military veterans, with or without post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), demonstrate when shown unpleasant images. Researchers wanted to determine the extent to which veterans would show freezing or immobile responses when under an unpleasant image condition. It was hypothesized that veterans who …

Words Have A Weight: Language As A Source Of Inner Grounding And Flexibility In Abstract Concepts, Guy Dove, Laura Barca, Luca Tummolini, Anna M. Borghi

Faculty and Staff Scholarship

The role played by language in our cognitive lives is a topic at the centre of contemporary debates in cognitive (neuro)science. In this paper we illustrate and compare two theories that offer embodied explanations of this role: the WAT (Words As social Tools) and the LENS (Language is an Embodied Neuroenhancement and Scaffold) theories. WAT and LENS differ from other current proposals because they connect the impact of the neurologically realized language system on our cognition to the ways in which language shapes our interaction with the physical and social environment. Examining these theories together, their tenets and supporting evidence, …

A Five-Sample Confirmatory Factor Analytic Study Of Burnout-Depression Overlap, Renzo Bianchi, Irvin Sam Schonfeld, Jay Verkuilen

Publications and Research

Objective: It has been asserted that burnout—a condition ascribed to unresolvable job stress—should not be mistaken for a depressive syndrome. In this confirmatory factor analytic study, the validity of this assertion was examined.

Methods: Five samples of employed individuals, recruited in Switzerland and France, were mobilized for this study (N = 3,113). Burnout symptoms were assessed with the Shirom–Melamed Burnout Measure, the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI)—General Survey, and the MBI for Educators. Depressive symptoms were measured with the PHQ‐9.

Results: In all five samples, the latent factors pertaining to burnout’s components correlated on average more highly with the latent Depression …

Investigating The Behavioral Effects Of Juvenile Stress In The Prairie Vole Model, Marigny C. Normann

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Early life stress during the juvenile period, such as emotional neglect, interpersonal difficulties, or other forms of non-violent maltreatment can have consequences into adulthood. Specifically, the negative effects include increased risk of psychiatric or physical illnesses, social deficits, and maladaptive behavioral responses to stress. Since these effects have far-reaching implications that can negatively alter later behavior and physiology, the present study assessed the effects of early life social stress on later social and affective behaviors in a social rodent species – the prairie vole. The prairie vole displays behavioral, cardiovascular, and neuroendocrine responses to social stress similar to those of …

Developmental Implications Of Child Maltreatment: Rorschach Assessment Of Object Representations, David Joubert, Linda Webster

Archives of Assessment Psychology

Child maltreatment is associated with a variety of negative psychological, social, and health outcomes. It is particularly important for healthcare professionals to assess psychosocial functioning in children and adolescents in foster care in order to facilitate optimal levels of adjustment in this population. The relative validity of two developmentally-based scales applied to Rorschach data, the Primitive Object Relations scheme (Kwawer, 1979) and the Developmental Object Relations Scale (Ipp, 1986), was investigated in a sample of 71 youth in foster care. Results from dimension reduction analyses suggest that the POR captures specific elements of primitive object relations, characterized by themes of …

Atheoretical Versus Theory-Based Approaches In Promoting Safer Adhd-Medication Prescribing For Adults, Kathleen A. Fairman

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Gaps between treatment guidelines and medical decisions persist despite interventions with physicians, which are mostly atheoretical. The purpose of this retrospective cross-sectional study was to compare atheoretical and theory-based logistic regression models of a binary outcome: potentially unsafe prescribing of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) medications to adults. Social cognitive theory and self-determination theory provided the framework for the study. Predictors were framed as social cognitive theoretical constructs: knowledge (e.g., physician specialty) and environmental influence (e.g., interventions). Atheoretical hypotheses were based on legislation mandating meaningful use of electronic health records and computerized decision support (CDS). Theory-based hypotheses were derived from literature …

Mental Health Care Practitioners, Self-Care, And Men Who Are Postincarcerated, Aduke Mccoy

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Mental health practitioners often suffer physical exhaustion, burnout, and increased stress from providing care to postincarcerated men with elevated mental illness. When working in these high environments, helping professionals, may neglect self-care when caring for clients under stressful conditions. Neglected self-care can have adverse implications for both the patient and the mental health professional. The research question aligned with the purpose of this study was to understand what grounded theory that explains how mental health practitioners manage self-care while providing services to postincarcerated men with elevated mental illness. Self-care theory was used as a conceptual framework for this qualitative grounded …