Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Parent Training, Support And Psychoeducational Groups As Evidence Based Practice In Children's Mental Health, Dorothy Wagner

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

The evidence base for programs in children’s mental health has expanded significantly in the last decade (Burns, 2003), yet the implementation of these programs has lagged behind (Walrath, Sheehan, Holden, Hernandez & Blau, 2005). The purpose of this project is to research current evidence based practices and programs that could improve and/or update services that are provided to children and adolescents diagnosed with severe emotional disturbance (SED) in Steele County. Research and analysis of the feasibility of implementing a group intervention to provide support, psychoeducation and/or skills training to families was conducted.

Elevated Corticotropin-Releasing Hormone In Human Pregnancy Increases The Risk Of Postpartum Depressive Symptoms, Ilona S. Yim, Laura M. Glynn, Christine Dunkel Schetter, Calvin J. Hobel, Aleksandra Chicz-Demet, Curt A. Sandman

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Postpartum depression (PPD) is common and has serious implications for the mother and her newborn. A possible link between placental corticotropin-releasing hormone (pCRH) and PPD incidence has been discussed, but there is a lack of empirical evidence.

The Lived Experience Of Hiv-Positive Tanzanian Orphans, Carol A. Parker

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The purpose of this investigation was to generate a context- specific model of the lived experience of HIV positive Tanzanian orphans. With the advent of anti-retroviral drugs, Sub-Saharan African populations with high burdens of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) face annually accumulating increases in the number of HIV positive children, and ultimately adults. Perinatally infected, these children often become orphans while still young. Extended interviews were performed with a purposive sample of 12 HIV infected orphaned children between 9 and 12 years of age. Half of the research participants lived in an orphanage and half were children living with guardians in …

Molluscan Memory Of Injury: Evolutionary Insights Into Chronic Pain And Neurological Disorders, Edgar T Walters, Leonid L Moroz

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Molluscan preparations have yielded seminal discoveries in neuroscience, but the experimental advantages of this group have not, until now, been complemented by adequate molecular or genomic information for comparisons to genetically defined model organisms in other phyla. The recent sequencing of the transcriptome and genome of Aplysia californica, however, will enable extensive comparative studies at the molecular level. Among other benefits, this will bring the power of individually identifiable and manipulable neurons to bear upon questions of cellular function for evolutionarily conserved genes associated with clinically important neural dysfunction. Because of the slower rate of gene evolution in this molluscan …

Facilitation Of Learning Spatial Relations Among Goal Locations Does Not Require Visual Exposure To The Configuration Of Goal Locations, Bradley R. Sturz, Debbie M. Kelly, Michael F. Brown

Psychology: Faculty Presentations (2009-2022)

Human participants searched in a virtual-environment open-field search task for four hidden goal locations arranged in a diamond configuration located in a 5 x 5 matrix. Participants were randomly assigned to one of three groups: Pattern Only, Landmark + Pattern, or Cues + Pattern. All participants experienced a Training phase followed by a Testing phase. During Training, visual cues were coincident with goal locations for the Cues + Pattern group, and a single visual cue at a non-goal location maintained a consistent spatial relationship with the goal locations for the Landmark + Pattern group. All groups were then tested in …

Behavioral Couple Therapy: Partner-Involved Treatment For Substance-Abusing Women, William Fals-Stewart, Wendy K.K. Lam, Michelle L. Kelley

Psychology Faculty Publications

Among the various psychosocial interventions presently available to treat alcohol and drug abuse, it could be argued that partner-involved treatments are the most broadly efficacious. There is not only substantial empirical support for the use of couple-based treatments in terms of improvements in primary targeted outcomes, such as substance use and relationship adjustment, but also in other areas that are of clear public health significance, including intimate partner violence (IPV), children's adjustment, and cost-benefit ratio and cost-effectiveness. During the last few decades, programmatic research on the application of partner-involved therapies for substance abuse has been among the most active and …

Alchoholism And Intimate Partner Violence: Effects On Children's Psychosocial Adjustment, Keith Klostermann, Michelle L. Kelley

Psychology Faculty Publications

It is widely recognized that alcoholism and relationship violence often have serious consequences for adults; however, children living with alcoholic parents are susceptible to the deleterious familial environments these caregivers frequently create. Given the prevalence of IPV among patients entering substance abuse treatment, coupled with the negative familial consequences associated with these types of behavior, this review explores what have been, to this point, two divergent lines of research: (a) the effects of parental alcoholism on children, and (b) the effects of children's exposure to intimate partner violence. In this article, the interrelationship between alcoholism and IPV is examined, with …

The Effectiveness And Adoption Of Market-Based State Health Care Expansion Programs, Nathan Gregory Myers

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Market-based state health expansion programs are alternatives to government programs like Medicaid and SCHIP which also seek to expand access to health insurance for uninsured populations. These programs either utilize the private health insurance market or function according to market principles. The market-based policies at issue in this research are state high-risk health insurance pools, limited benefit plans, group purchasing arrangements, reinsurance programs, and Health Insurance Flexibility and Accountability waivers. This research addresses two separate but related research questions: (1) Do these market-based programs provide general economic and social benefits for the citizens of a state? (2) What role does …

Perceptions Of Ethical Behaviors: A Survey Of Human Service Professionals, Tammi F. Milliken, Edward S. Neukrug

Counseling & Human Services Faculty Publications

In addition to helpers' moral obligation and professional commitment to treat clients in an ethical manner, enhanced consumer knowledge of ethically correct helping relationships has increased the need to recognize potential ethical dilemmas and have the skills to respond appropriately. This article describes the development and results of an updated survey of human service professionals' perceptions of ethical behavior. The results may be used to assist in the revision of the NOHS Ethical Standards and inform ethics education.

The Tactile Motion Aftereffect, Peggy Joanne Planetta

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The tactile motion aftereffect (tMAE) is a perceptual phenomenon in which illusory motion is reported following adaptation to a unidirectionally moving tactile stimulus. Unlike its visual counterpart, relatively little is known about the tMAE. For that reason, the purpose of this dissertation was to gain a better understanding of the tMAE using both psychophysical and neuroimaging techniques. In a series of five experiments the skin was adapted using a plastic cylinder with a square-wave patterned surface. Chapter 2 consists of two experiments, both of which adapted the glabrous surface of the right hand. Experiment 1 showed that the prevalence, duration, …

Contextual Leadership: The Social Construction Of Leadership In A Comprehensive Healthcare System, Mark J. Moir

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Healthcare is a complex and dynamic environment containing a plurality of social forces and perspectives that shape the organizational culture and the nature of the leadership. As leadership is a social phenomenon, it is important to understand the complex social processes that mediate our perceptions and that in turn influence processes of leader attribution. The central purpose of this study has been to illuminate the nature of culturally specific processes that emerge within a specific organizational setting and that fuel leader attribution and the social construction of leadership. Accordingly, this qualitative study has developed a Grounded Theory utilizing Situational Analysis …

Educating Clinical Pastoral Education Supervisors: A Grounded Theory Study Of Supervisory Wisdom, Judith R. Ragsdale

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) is an 80 year old education modality that provides professional education for students of pastoral care. Supervision is central to the CPE process. Pastoral supervisors in the Association for Clinical Pastoral Education (ACPE) have done little writing about their work educating Students in Supervisory Education (SSEs). The purpose of this dissertation is to identify and interview those practitioners in ACPE who have been identified by their peers as excellent in practice, and to cull their wisdom by listening to and categorizing their experience of supervising SSEs. The research question to the supervisors was: What is your …

An Analysis Of The Current United States And State Of Washington's Mental Health Policies Serving Children And Families, Maile M. Bay

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Due to continued fragmentation and gaps in mental health services and the increase in the prevalence of mental health problems for children, youth, and their families, these populations remain underserved. In 2003, the federal New Freedom Commission (Commission) responded by publishing policies to address these concerns. As directed in 2005, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) funded planning incentive grants to states to transform their delivery of care.

The study reviewed the federal policy, specifically the recommendations of the Commission’s Subcommittee on Children and Families, and Washington State’s policy and implementation actions of its five-year SAMHSA incentive …

A Search For Meaning: The Family’S Response To Serious Mental Illness, Katherine Marie Burrelsman

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

It is a commonly held belief that it is inherent in human nature to strive for coherence and meaning in the midst of adversity. Whether this is short or long term, for immediate or prolonged functioning, we all strive to put experiences within events into a framework that enables us to develop a sense of order leading to acceptance and resolution. Therefore, each individual within a family system may develop a hypothesis in order to make a modicum of sense of what can appear to be an impossible situation. The participants involved in this study were individuals with relatives suffering …

A Meta-Analytical Study Of Pediatric Bipolar Disorder: Symptomology And Comorbidity, April Walter

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

A meta-analysis approach was employed to research the symptomatology andcomorbidity of pediatric bipolar disorder (PBD). This approach was chosen due to the wide range of previously published research results and the limited size of the populations investigated. Database searches of peer-reviewed empirical research identified 861 journal articles published on the topic of pediatric bipolar disorder over the last 49 years. Fifty-four articles, with a total subject pool of 10,318, met specific inclusion criteria, which included being a quantitative study using standardized mean difference, correlation coefficient, or odds-ratio statistics. Fifteen separate meta-analyses were used to determine specificity regarding: differences reported in …

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder And Other Consequences Of A Picu Admission, Stephanie Ann Stowman

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Currently, there is a paucity of literature regarding children's experiences in a pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) relative to caregivers' experiences. Children admitted to a PICU and their caregivers are at risk for various psychopathology. Disorders commonly identified in seriously ill children include depression, anxiety, acute stress disorder, and posttraumatic stress disorder. Caregivers of seriously ill children are at increased risk of depression, generalized anxiety disorder, acute stress disorder, and posttraumatic stress disorder. Researchers often fail to examine all relevant psychopathology and contributing factors and stressors, such as family environment, in seriously ill children and their caregivers. This study assessed …

Disease In The Desert: Las Vegas As A Case Study Of How First Responders And Emergency Managers Understand Novel Threats To Human Health And Plan To Respond During Biological Emergencies, Monique Williamson

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Over recent years it has become clear that technological advancements, globalization, and ecological change, combined with the onset of increased terrorist incidents, are all currently working to create an extremely hazardous environment in terms of pathogenic invasion. Realizing that infectious diseases are both newly emerging and re-emerging in many parts of the world, the question of how prepared an expansive United States will be in the face of an oncoming global pandemic is easily raised. Using Las Vegas as an example of just how unequipped a largely visited U.S. city may be in the face of such a situation, this …

Pretreatment Client Characteristics And Treatment Retention In An Intensive Outpatient Substance Abuse Treatment Program, Shauna Elizabeth Fuller

Dissertations (1934 -)

The effectiveness and efficacy of substance abuse treatment is well established. At the same time, clients often prematurely drop out of substance abuse treatment, negatively impacting their chances of achieving favorable outcomes. Investigating variables associated with treatment retention has become increasingly important considering one of the most robust findings in substance abuse treatment outcome research is the positive relationship between the amount of time spent in treatment and post-treatment outcomes (e.g., decreased drug/alcohol use, decreased criminal activity, improved social functioning). This study examined the relationship between pre-treatment client characteristics and treatment drop-out among 273 adults who were admitted to intensive …

“Riding Bareback”: Factors Involved In The Development Of A Bareback Identity, Scott Charles Musgrove

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Researchers in the area of HIV prevention have long been aware of the rising incidence of unprotected sex among men who have sex with men (MSM). In recent years researchers have witnessed the emergence of the behaviors, attitudes and practices that discriminate between those of the MSM community who strictly and consistently adhere to safer sex practices, those who inconsistently practice safer sex, and those who eschew protected sex altogether. Understanding the factors that motivate the development and adoption of a "barebacker identity" in spite of serious potential for HIV infection may well help support the efforts of public agencies …

Does Type Of Stimulus Influence Task-Irrelevant Evaluative Categorization Processes?, Guadalupe Corral

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The effect of stimulus type on task-irrelevant evaluative categorization was examined in two separate studies by using the P3 component from event-related brain potentials. The first study presented idiosyncratic stimuli consisting of individuals that were rated by participants as either positive or negative within sequences of pictorial and verbal stimuli. The second study presented sequences of novel and familiar stimuli consisting of previously normed unattractive and neutral individuals. It was hypothesized that pictures would elicit task-irrelevant evaluative categorization processes and so would novel stimuli (relative to words and familiar stimuli, respectively). Task-irrelevance was examined by assessing P3 peak amplitude to …

Small Individual Loans And Mental Health: A Randomized Controlled Trial Among South African Adults, Lia C. H. Fernald, Rita Hamad, Dean Karlan, Emily J. Ozer, Jonathan Zinman

Dartmouth Scholarship

Background: In the developing world, access to small, individual loans has been variously hailed as a poverty-alleviation tool – in the context of "microcredit" – but has also been criticized as "usury" and harmful to vulnerable borrowers. Prior studies have assessed effects of access to credit on traditional economic outcomes for poor borrowers, but effects on mental health have been largely ignored.

Methods: Applicants who had previously been rejected (n = 257) for a loan (200% annual percentage rate – APR) from a lender in South Africa were randomly assigned to a "second-look" that encouraged loan officers to approve their …

Kelly, Rita Helen Roberts (Fa 353), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid and full-text scan of paper (Click on “Additional Files” below) for Folklife Archives Project 353. Paper: "Good Mothering through Breast Feeding: Observations of a Meeting of the La Leche League" written by Rita H. Kelly for a Western Kentucky University folk studies class.

Reviewing Existing Knowledge Prior To Conducting Animal Studies, Andrew Knight

Experimentation Collection

Highly polarised viewpoints about animal experimentation have often prevented agreement. However, important common ground between advocates and opponents was demonstrated within a discussion forum hosted at www.research-methodology.org.uk in July–August 2008, by the independent charity, SABRE Research UK. Agreement existed that many animal studies have methodological flaws — such as inappropriate sample sizes, lack of randomised treatments, and unblinded outcome assessments — that may introduce bias and limit statistical validity. There was also agreement that systematic reviews of the human utility of animal models yield the highest quality of evidence, as their reliance on methodical and impartial methods to select significant …

Faecal-Centric Approaches To Wildlife Ecology And Conservation; Methods, Data And Ethics, C. T. Darimont, T. E. Reimchen, H. M. Bryan, P. C. Paquet

Ethics and Conservation Biology Collection

Abundant and commonly encountered in the field, wildlife faeces have long attracted scientists. Recent advances in molecular techniques, however, especially when coupled with creative study designs, can now yield a great variety of high quality data. Herein, we review the opportunities and challenges of faecal-centric approaches to address ecological and conservation questions using wolves of coastal British Columbia, Canada, as a case system. We begin by discussing methodological considerations, which should have broad applicability to any wildlife study system. We then summarize the extensive and unique variety of data that has emerged from our ‘facts from faeces’ approach with wolves, …

An Analysis Of Current Healthcare Proposals: Obama And Mccain, Dan Terrell

Honors Projects in Economics

The healthcare system of the U.S. is broken. The next opportunity for overwhelming healthcare system reform will be when the next president takes office. This paper analyzes the 2008 presidential election candidates McCain and Obama healthcare proposals through a look at key players in the current healthcare system (government, pharmaceuticals, doctors, hospitals, and health insurance companies) and the affects of implementing such a plan. The presidential plans are presented side by side. Projected outcomes of the changes offered by Obama will be an increased role of the government and decreased power of the health insurance companies while increasing coverage. The …

Friends Of The Library Mcnair Scholarship Awards, The Mcnair Team

McNair Scholars Research Journal

No abstract provided.

Message From The Vice President For Research And Federal Relations, The Mcnair Team

McNair Scholars Research Journal

No abstract provided.

Acknowledgements, The Mcnair Team

McNair Scholars Research Journal

No abstract provided.

Mentor Profile, The Mcnair Team

McNair Scholars Research Journal

No abstract provided.

Eye Movement, Rem Sleep And Adhd: An Examination Of Eye Movement Patterns During Rem Sleep In Adhd Populations, Elin Marie Grissom

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The current study investigates differences in patterns of eye movement and sleep architecture during REM stage sleep in children with a diagnosis of ADHD, compared to those without the diagnosis. Existing studies have found differences in eye movement patterns during waking hours in these two groups (Munoz, Armstrong, Hampton, & Moore, 2003; O'Laughlin, Brubaker, Gay, Deans, & Aaron, 2006) as well as differences in patterns of REM sleep. The current study will focus on the fine structure of eye movement in REM in children with and without ADHD. Using pediatric polysomnographic recordings, the frequency, density, strength, and inferred direction of …