Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Older Adult Spouses’ Emotional Responses To Reminiscing About Their First Encounter: Associations With Mental Health, Marital Satisfaction, And Cardiovascular Reactivity, Hanzhen Lan

Public Health Theses

Objectives: While there has been growing interest in how close relationships affect older adults’ health, not much research has examined how emotional experiences in older married couples’ positive interactions relate to individual and relational well-being and physical health. The present study hypothesizes that positive emotional responses to older couples reminiscing about first encounter are associated with each spouse’s higher marital satisfaction, fewer depressive symptoms, and healthier cardiovascular reactivity (blood pressure and heart rate variability).

Method: One hundred and one couples completed a background questionnaire at home and then participated in a laboratory session in which they discussed how they first …

Gaps In Mental Healthcare Use And Perceived Quality Between Privately Insured Lgb And Heterosexual Individuals In The United States, Yuki Hayashi

Public Health Theses

Previous research has identified significantly heightened levels of mental health issues and psychological distress among lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals in the U.S., as well as greater mental health service utilization among this population. Using a nationally representative sample of privately insured adults in the U.S., we investigate differences in mental healthcare utilization, characteristics of mental healthcare received, and perceived quality of care between LGB and heterosexual individuals. Key results find that privately insured LGB men and women are significantly more likely than their heterosexual counterparts to have used outpatient mental healthcare as well as out-of-network (OON) outpatient mental …

The Association Between Self-Reported History Of Experiencing Violence & Mental Health Status Among Urban Refugees And Asylum Seekers In Malaysia, Rayne Soyoung Kim

Public Health Theses

Background: In displaced populations, studies have shown that there are significant associations between exposure to violence and reporting mental illness. There is little known regarding this relationship in countries like Malaysia, which serves as a transitional point where refugees wait to be resettled.

Objective: To assess the cross-sectional association of exposure to violence with mental health status in the urban refugee and asylum-seeking population in Malaysia.

Methods: 286 self-identified refugees and asylum seekers, recruited by using time-location sampling, were given interviewer-administered surveys, including questions regarding exposure to violence and mental health symptoms. Multivariable logistic regression analyses were performed to evaluate …