Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Demonstrated Sensitivity, Kate Crankshaw

Theses and Dissertations

Flameworking is a tedious process that demands all of your attention and focus. Making multiples of a shape in this process allows my body and mind to fall into a rhythm. During these times, it allows my anxious mind to be quieted and helps me dive into processing past memories, trauma, and grief. It is commonly suggested in Dialectical Behavioral Therapy practices to find an activity to do that is both physical and repetitive to work through grief. This stimulates the physical and mental parts of the body, both areas where the effects of grief and trauma are held. Relaxing …

The Experiences Of Religiously And Spiritually Diverse Counselors And Psychotherapists Who Work With Survivors Of Sexual Violence, John M. Waters

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the lived experiences of religiously and spiritually diverse counselors and psychotherapists who work with survivors of sexual violence. The researcher used a transcendental phenomenological approach to understand how the participants engaged their religious and/or spiritual identity to cope with the traumatic stress that accompanies continuous exposure to their clients’ trauma narratives over time. As the only study that has examined these phenomena qualitatively, the present study aimed to enhance counselors and counselor educators’ understanding of the ways that religiously and spiritually diverse counselors make meaning of their experiences. The researcher collected …

The Resulting Mental Health Pandemic From Covid-19: Research And Resources For Social Workers, Ami Lynch

Social Work Student Works

The COVID-19 pandemic will have long-lasting mental health impacts on hundreds of millions more worldwide than the contagion itself. Social workers are seeing increases in depression, anxiety, suicidality, and post-traumatic stress disorder and other negative mental health impacts. Because of this, social workers in all environments and modalities of practice need to be well-trained, agile, and energized while facing the pandemic themselves. This report compiles the impacts and concerns for a variety of social workers and their clients into a single, digestible source, supplemented by the “COVID-19 Resource Compendium for Social Workers and Their Clients”. Social workers must practice self-care, …

Reflections On Now And Then, Jack Frazer

Mighty Pen Project Anthology & Archive

Jack Frazer juxtaposes past and present in a poem reflecting on his experience, losses, and consequences of the Vietnam War.

Articles, stories, and other compositions in this archive were written by participants in the Mighty Pen Project. The program, developed by author David L. Robbins, and in partnership with Virginia Commonwealth University and the Virginia War Memorial in Richmond, Virginia, offers veterans and their family members a customized twelve-week writing class, free of charge. The program encourages, supports, and assists participants in sharing their stories and experiences of military experience so both writer and audience may benefit.

Empirical Relationships Among Trauma Exposure, Anxiety Sensitivity, And Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Sandra Yankah, Michael Southam-Gerow, Samantha Dehart, Payton Beam

Graduate Research Posters

This review synthesized and critically reviewed empirical studies that assessed relationships among trauma exposure, anxiety sensitivity (AS), and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Across the literature, the prominent theory conceptualized anxiety sensitivity as a causal risk factor within two competing models. One model posited that individuals with dispositionally high AS prior to experiencing a potentially traumatizing event (PTE) have a greater likelihood of developing PTSD after trauma exposure. The second model theorized that the introduction of a PTE raises an individual’s baseline level of AS, leading to the development and maintenance of PTSD symptoms. Emerging research highlighted the possibility of …

The Moderating Role Of Developmental Assets On Relations Between Child Maltreatment, Trauma, And Dating Violence, Stephanie A. Hitti

Theses and Dissertations

Teenage dating violence (TDV) is prevalent and associated with an array of psychosocial and health problems. Thus, numerous studies have focused on the identification of risk and protective factors for TDV. Child maltreatment has been consistently identified as a risk factor for TDV victimization and perpetration. However, potential underlying mechanisms that may partially explain the relations between child maltreatment and TDV victimization and perpetration are not well understood. The present study explored indirect relations between child maltreatment and TDV victimization and perpetration via trauma symptoms, and examined whether internal and external developmental assets moderated relations between (a) child maltreatment and …

Effects Of Violent And Nonviolent Life Stressors Among Urban Early Adolescents: Testing Competing Models Of Comorbid Distress And Externalizing Symptoms, Erin Thompson

Theses and Dissertations

The strong association between stressful life events and the wide-ranging spectrum of psychopathology has led some to advocate for the reconceptualization of traumatic stress. There has been a longstanding debate on whether these symptoms are best represented by using dimensional versus categorical approaches. Moreover, further understanding of the risk factors associated with various dimensions or patterns of comorbid emotional and behavioral problems could inform future research and intervention efforts. The current study tested competing variable- and person-centered approaches and examined how stressful life events are associated with different patterns of distress and externalizing symptoms among a predominantly African American and …

A Longitudinal Investigation Of Interpersonal Trauma Exposure, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, And Cannabis Use Phenotypes Among College Students, Terrell A. Hicks

Theses and Dissertations

College students have an increased risk for cannabis use, trauma exposure, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Cannabis use disorder (CUD) and PTSD comorbidity is high, and given the negative consequences of the comorbidity (e.g., poor academic outcomes), there is a need to understand comorbid CUD-PTSD etiology. Two primary etiologic models exist: self-medication (i.e., PTSD à CUD) and high-risk (i.e., CUD à PTSD) hypotheses. This study 1) examined the prevalence and predictors of cannabis use and interpersonal trauma (IPT) exposure; 2) investigated the relationship between cannabis use and IPT; and 3) examined cannabis use, IPT, and PTSD through mediational self-medication and …

Competing Strength-Based Models Of Trauma And Suicidality In A High-Risk Primary Care Sample, Samantha Mladen

Theses and Dissertations

There is limited research on the relationship between trauma exposure, depression, and suicidality, particularly in high-risk primary care samples. The present study aims to: 1) characterize the prevalence of suicidality, depression, and trauma exposure in this sample; 2)develop and test models of the relationships between suicidality, depression, and trauma exposure in this sample; 3) augment the selected model with key protective factors, including social support and religiosity; and 4) further elaborate the nature of religiosity as a potential protective factor using the subscales of the Attitudes toward God scale, Anger toward God and Comfort with God.

Patients (n …

Using Latent Semantic Analysis To Evaluate The Coherence Of Traumatic Event Narratives, Gabriella C. Scalzo

Theses and Dissertations

While a growing evidence base suggests that expressive writing about a traumatic event may be an effective intervention which results in a variety of health benefits, there are still multiple competing theories that seek to explain expressive writing’s mechanism(s) of action. Two of the theories with stronger evidence bases are exposure theory and cognitive processing theory. The state of this field is complicated by methodological limitations; operationalizing and measuring the relative constructs of trauma narratives, such as coherence, traditionally requires time- and labor-intensive methods such as using a narrative coding scheme. This study used a computer-based methodology, latent semantic analysis …

Wreading, Performing, And Reflecting: The Application Of Narrative Hypertext And Virtual World Experiences To Social Work Education, Linda Ayscue Gupta Phd

Theses and Dissertations

In this dissertation I propose the use of a new media composition of narrative hypertext, performances in a virtual world, and a dialogic process of writing to provide a continuum of learning opportunities in social work education. I suggest that the structure of the hypertext narrative, embedded with hypermedia, mirrors the dissociative aspects of traumatic memory. I argue that work with the multivocality and multisequentiality of narrative hypertext emulates the process of discovery in the clinical interview. The immersive component of work in a virtual world deepens the realism and affective impact of simulations and creates opportunities to practice and …

The Relation Between Peer Victimization And Changes In Trauma Symptoms In Adolescents, Anh-Thuy H. Le

Theses and Dissertations

Peer victimization has been shown to negatively impact youth functioning and may be especially damaging during adolescence, given the increased importance of peers. However, there is a dearth of longitudinal research examining trauma symptomatology as an outcome of peer victimization with low-income, ethnic minority adolescents. The present study investigated this relation in a predominantly African American sample of 684 students assessed at five time points between the fall of their sixth grade and seventh grade school years. Growth mixture models grouped participants with similar victimization trajectories, and latent growth models related growth trajectories of physical and relational victimization to changes …

Heart Rate Variability As A Moderator Of Trauma Writing Outcomes, Alison Eonta

Theses and Dissertations

Writing about personal traumatic experiences is associated with beneficial effects on physical and psychological symptoms compared with writing about emotionally neutral events. However, not everyone benefits from trauma writing to the same extent. The present study hypothesized that the effectiveness of trauma writing may be moderated by emotion regulation, as indexed by respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA). Research also shows that greater physiological reactivity is predictive of better trauma writing outcomes. Given the importance of physiological output in emotional processing, response training was developed and found to increase appropriate physiological reactivity. Because higher RSA is thought to indicate a more flexible …

Disclosure And Health: Enhancing The Benefits Of Trauma Writing Through Response Training, Andrea Konig

Theses and Dissertations

Writing about a personal traumatic event has been found to have psychological and physical health benefits. Focusing on traumatic memories in writing may be a form of exposure. In imagery exposure and trauma writing, greater physiological reactivity was predictive of better outcomes. Given the importance of physiological output in emotional processing, response training was developed and found to be effective in increasing appropriate physiological reactivity in imagery exposure. If response training amplifies physiological reactivity and the benefits of writing, the hypothesis that writing is a form of exposure would be strengthened, and training may be a valuable tool to improve …

Expressive Writing As A Therapeutic Process For Drug Dependent Women, Meshberg Cohen Sarah

Theses and Dissertations

Women with Substance Use Disorders (SUD) have high rates of trauma and PTSD, which is linked to greater physical and mental health problems and poorer SUD treatment outcomes. While research affirms trauma should be addressed during SUD treatment, the majority of addiction programs do not offer such services. One promising intervention is Pennebaker’s expressive writing paradigm, which includes disclosure of traumatic/stressful experiences through 20-minute writing sessions over 3-5 consecutive days. While expressive writing has been linked to improvements in mental and physical health, the intervention has not been studied in persons with SUDs. The present study was a randomized clinical …

Reflecting The Past And Shaping The Future: A Study Of Adolescent Schemas And Exposure To Community Violence, Monique Vulin Reynolds

Theses and Dissertations

Exposure to community violence is a pervasive problem among urban youth and has been associated with both internalizing and externalizing disorders. The mechanisms through which exposure to community violence impacts adolescent adjustment are unclear. A change in adolescent schemas has been proposed as a mechanism through which the impact occurs. The goals of this study were to develop a measure of relevant adolescent schemas and examine their relation to exposure to community violence. A sample of 320 5th and 8th graders were assessed and confirmatory factor analyses of the measure supported a three factor model, including self-schemas, world schemas and …

Addiction And Recovery Experiences Of African American Women: A Phenomenological Study, Patricia Diana Hill

Theses and Dissertations

Historically, substance abuse research has for the most part excluded African American women. The small body of existing substance abuse research regarding African American women does not examine gender and socio-cultural issues from African American women's perspectives. The purpose of this phenomenological study is to develop a deeper, contextual understanding of the experiences and perspectives of this marginalized population of women. The major goal of the study is to examine the perspectives of African American women about their substance abuse, treatment and recovery. The knowledge gained from this research with African American women regarding their experiences and specific needs in …