Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

A Scoping Review Investigating Relationships Between Depression, Anxiety, And The Prep Care Continuum In The United States, Sarah J. Miller, Sayward Harrison, Kamla Devi Sanasi-Bhola

Faculty Publications

Men who have sex with men and transgender women in the United States are at increased risk for HIV and may benefit from pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), a once-a-day pill to prevent HIV. Due to stigma and discrimination, sexual and gender minority (SGM) populations are also at risk for depression and anxiety. This scoping review sought to identify literature addressing relationships between the PrEP care continuum, depression, and anxiety among SGM individuals and others at high risk for HIV. We conducted a systematic review of four databases (i.e., PubMed, PsycInfo, Web of Science, Google Scholar) and identified 692 unique articles that …

Trajectories Of Heart Activity Across Infancy To Early Childhood Differentially Predict Autism And Anxiety Symptoms In Fragile X Syndrome, Abigail Hogan, Erin Hunt, Kayla Smith, Conner Black, Katherine Bangert, Jessica Klusek, Jane Roberts

Faculty Publications

Fragile X syndrome (FXS) is a monogenic disorder characterized by high rates of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and anxiety. A longstanding "hyperarousal hypothesis" in FXS has argued that ANS dysfunction underpins many symptoms of FXS. However, the developmental onset and trajectory of ANS dysfunction, as well as the consequences of ANS dysfunction on later psychiatric symptoms, remain poorly understood in FXS. Insight into the emergence, trajectory, and consequences of ANS dysfunction across early development in FXS has critical implications for prevention, intervention, and optimal outcomes in both typical and atypical development. This longitudinal study investigated whether and when males with …

Establishment Of A Reliable Change Index For The Gad-7, Thomas Bischoff, Shayne R. Anderson, Joy Heafner, Rachel Tambling

Faculty Publications

Aim: It is increasingly important for mental healthcare providers and researchers to reliably assess client change, particularly with common presenting problems such as anxiety. The current study addresses this need by establishing a Reliable Change Index of 6 points for the GAD-7.

Method: Sample size included 116 online community participants using Amazon’s Mechanical Turk (MTurk) and archival data for 332 clinical participants. Participants completed measures of the GAD-7 and the MDI in 2 rounds. Using previously established cutoff scores and Jacobson and Truax’s (1991) method, we establish a Reliable Change Index which, when applied to 2 administrations of the GAD-7, …

Does Time Spent Using Social Media Impact Mental Health?: An Eight Year Longitudinal Study, Sarah M. Coyne, Adam A. Rogers, Jessica D. Zurcher, Laura Stockdale, Mccall Booth

Faculty Publications

Many studies have found a link between time spent using social media and mental health issues, such as depression and anxiety. However, the existing research is plagued by cross-sectional research and lacks analytic techniques examining individual change over time. The current research involves an 8-year longitudinal study examining the association between time spent using social media and depression and anxiety at the intra-individual level. Participants included 500 adolescents who completed once-yearly questionnaires between the ages of 13 and 20. Results revealed that increased time spent on social media was not associated with increased mental health issues across development when examined …

Early Negative Affect In Males And Females With Fragile X Syndrome: Implications For Anxiety And Autism, Carla A. Will, Abigail L. Hogan, Elizabeth A. Will, Samuel Mcquillin, Bridgette L. Kelleher, Jane E. Roberts

Faculty Publications

Background Fragile X syndrome (FXS) is a genetic disorder that is highly comorbid with anxiety and autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Elevated negative affect in young children has been associated with increased risk for both anxiety and ASD; however, these relations remain poorly understood in FXS.

Methods The present prospective longitudinal study examined the trajectory of negative affect from infancy through preschool in males and females with FXS and typical development and its relation to anxiety and ASD.

Results Results indicate a complex association reflecting group, developmental, and sex effects. Specifically, the group with FXS displayed a trajectory of increasing negative …

Effects Of A Brief Mindfulness Induction On Death-Related Anxiety, David M. Schultz, Randolph C. Arnau

Faculty Publications

This study examined effects of a mindfulness induction on proximal and distal defense responses to mortality salience and negative affect. Three experimental conditions were included: mindfulness, mind-wandering, and worrying. Participants in the mindfulness condition underwent a mindfulness induction at the experiment’s outset, while participants in the other two conditions underwent a mind-wandering or worry induction. Inductions involved following guided audio instructions presented via headphones. All conditions (N = 77) underwent a mortality salience induction after experimental manipulation, involving a written exercise pertaining to one’s death. Results indicated fewer proximal responses in the mindfulness and mind-wandering groups, compared with the worrying …

Infant Social Avoidance Predicts Autism But Not Anxiety In Fragile X Syndrome, Jane E. Roberts, Hayley Crawford, Elizabeth A. Will, Abigail L. Hogan, Samuel Dale Mcquillin, Bridgette L. Tonnsen, Shannon O'Connor, Douglas A. Roberts, Alexis M. Brewe

Faculty Publications

Objective: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD), attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and anxiety are three of the most common childhood psychiatric disorders. Early trajectories of social avoidance have been linked with these psychiatric disorders in previous studies, but it remains unclear how social avoidance differentially predicts comorbid disorders in a high-risk genetic subgroup. Here, we delineate the association between trajectories of social avoidance from infancy and subsequent ASD, ADHD, and anxiety outcomes at preschool in children with fragile X syndrome (FXS), a well-characterized single-gene disorder highly associated with social avoidance as well as elevated rates of ASD, ADHD, and anxiety.

Method: Males with …

Designing And Developing An Online Self-Regulated Learning Course, Grant Eckstein, Mariah Krauel-Nix, Norman W. Evans, Benjamin L. Mcmurry

Faculty Publications

The concept of self-regulated learning has been a prominent topic in education and has been researched and applied to various educational fields. In the field of TESOL, self-regulation has been categorized into dimensions and linked with possible application tools to help ESL/EFL students better apply and develop related skills (Andrade and Evans 2013, 2015). Although these applications have seen some success, the administration of one intensive English program felt that its center's self-regulated learning program was ineffective for teachers and students. Therefore, curriculum designers evaluated the center's program, compiled data, and formed design specifications for an improved program. Their specifications …

Increasing English Learners’ Positive Emotional Response To Learning Through Dance, Grant Eckstein, Elizabeth Hanks

Faculty Publications

This study investigates dance as an English Second Language (ESL) curriculum enhancement. The curriculum utilizes kinesthetic learning, which is a method seldom incorporated in formal academic classrooms (Pourhosein Gilakjani, 2011) despite evidence suggesting that it benefits all students, including those without kinesthetic learning preferences (Schumann, 1997). Supporters believe that the benefits of incorporating movement in the classroom include increased student enjoyment, motivation, and confidence in learning. However, these beliefs are merely anecdotal at present. This study analyzes quantitative questionnaires and qualitative feedback from 26 students who participated in a 4-week long Dance ESL curriculum to determine whether dance-based learning can …

Full Statistical Mediation Of The Relationship Between Trauma And Depressive Symptoms, Patricia J. Place, Shichun Ling, Lawrence Patihis

Faculty Publications

Owing to the potentially devastating effects of trauma‐induced depression, explaining the relationship between trauma and depressive symptoms is important. In this study, we measured lifelong exposure to potentially traumatic events and depressive symptoms in 370‐female undergraduates. We also measured anxiety, past negative time perspective and dissociation as potential mediators. Trauma exposure and depressive symptoms were related with a small but significant effect size (r = .16). Trauma was not associated with dissociation. We found that past negative time perspective and anxiety were full statistical mediators of this trauma‐depressive symptoms relationship. These two mediators combined accounted for all of the …

Quantitative Genetics Of Response To Novelty And Other Stimuli By Infant Rhesus Macaques (Macaca Mulatta) Across Three Behavioral Assessments, G. L. Fawcett, A. M. Dettmer, D. Kay, M. Raveendran, James Dee Higley, N. D. Ryan, J. L. Cameron, J. Rogers

Faculty Publications

Primate behavior is influenced by both heritable factors and environmental experience during development. Previous studies of rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) examined the effects of genetic variation on expressed behavior and related neurobiological traits (heritability and/or genetic association) using a variety of study designs. Most of these prior studies examined genetic effects on the behavior of adults or adolescent rhesus macaques, not in young macaques early in development. To assess environmental and additive genetic variation in behavioral reactivity and response to novelty among infants, we investigated a range of behavioral traits in a large number (N = 428) of pedigreed infants …

Measurement Issues With Couple-And Family-Level Data, Dean M. Busby, Franklin O. Poulsen

Faculty Publications

Early in my (D.B.) training as a family therapist, I did some co-therapy with a clinical psychology student who wanted to learn how to work with couples. The couple we were working with was quite volatile, and it was not uncommon for the dialogue between the spouses to get heated. While it was challenging enough to keep the interactions between the partners moving in a productive direction, my co-therapist was quite uncomfortable with conflict and would emotionally "check out" of the session as soon as things became intense. Each time a session was challenging and conflict became intense, my co-therapist …

Anxiety Sensitivity And Retaliatory Aggressive Behavior In Research Volunteers, Joshua J. Broman-Fulks, Michael S. Mccloskey, Mitchell E. Berman

Faculty Publications

An important focus of recent aggression research has been to identify personality variables that influence the expression of aggression. One such variable may be anxiety sensitivity (AS). Individuals high in AS fear unpleasant anxiety-related physiological sensations and perhaps physiological arousal in general. Accordingly, people high in AS are motivated to avoid situations that produce these sensations. With respect to aggressive encounters, an intense attack by an opponent involves significant physiological arousal. High anxiety-sensitive individuals may therefore attempt to decrease the intensity of the interaction by responding in a non-aggressive or conciliatory manner. To test this possibility, 112 community volunteers completed …

Effects Of Aerobic Exercise On Anxiety Sensitivity, Joshua J. Broman-Fulks, Mitchell E. Berman, Brian A. Rabian, Michael J. Webster

Faculty Publications

Anxiety sensitivity is a known precursor to panic attacks and panic disorder, and involves the misinterpretation of anxiety-related sensations. Aerobic exercise has been shown to reduce generalized anxiety, and may also reduce anxiety sensitivity through exposure to feared physiological sensations. Accordingly, 54 participants with elevated anxiety sensitivity scores completed six 20-min treadmill exercise sessions at either a high-intensity aerobic (n = 29) or low-intensity (n = 25) level. Self-ratings of anxiety sensitivity, fear of physiological sensations associated with anxiety, and generalized anxiety were obtained at pretreatment, post-treatment, and one-week follow-up. Results indicated that both high- and low-intensity exercise reduced anxiety …