Psychology Commons^™

The Buffering Effects Of Resilience On Alcohol Use: A Phenotypic And Genotypic Investigation, Shannon Cusack

Theses and Dissertations

The college years encompass a time of vulnerability for problematic alcohol use/alcohol use disorder (AUD) and exposure to traumatic events (TE), which is a transdiagnostic risk factor for AUD, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and comorbid AUD-PTSD. However, not all who experience a TE develop these disorders, highlighting the need to identify factors that impact post-trauma outcomes. Resilience has been shown to be associated with lower alcohol consumption and related problems following TE, though the buffering effects of resilience on alcohol use have not yet been examined. Further, twin studies demonstrate that resilience is moderately heritable, but further research is needed …

Attitudes And Opinions About Direct-To-Consumer Genetic Testing In Undergraduate Science Students, Morgan N. Driver, Sally I-Chun Kuo, Olivia Nayeri, Chloe J. Walker, Chelsea Derlan Willians, Tricia Smith, Amy E. Adkins, Danielle M. Dick

Graduate Research Posters

Background: There has been exponential growth in the number of direct-to-consumer genetic testing kits sold in the past decade. Consumers utilize direct-to-consumer genetic tests for a number of reasons which include learning about one’s ancestry and potential ways to manage health. Emerging adults tend to be early adopters of new technologies; however, there has been little research regarding the opinions about direct-to-consumer genetic testing in emerging adults.

Methods: Data came from a study conducted in an upper-level biology course focusing on understanding undergraduate science students’ overall experiences with receiving personalized genetic testing results from 23andMe. The present study used data …

Principal Components Analysis Corrects Collider Bias In Polygenic Risk Score Effect Size Estimation, Nathaniel S. Thomas, Peter B. Barr, Fazil Aliev, Sally I. Kuo, Danielle M. Dick, Jessica E. Salvatore

Graduate Research Posters

BACKGROUND: Genome-wide polygenic scoring has emerged as a way to predict psychiatric and behavioral outcomes and identify environments that promote the expression of genetic risks. An increasing number of studies demonstrate that the effects of polygenic risk scores (PRS) may be biased by the inclusion of heritable environments as covariates when the environment is influenced by unmeasured confounding variables, an example of collider bias. Inclusion of the principal components of observed confounders as covariates may correct for the effect of unmeasured confounders.

METHODS: A simulation study was conducted to test principal components analysis (PCA) as a correction for collider bias. …

Relations Between Sexual And Gender Minority Stress, Personal Hardiness, And Psychological Stress In Emerging Adulthood: Examining Indirect Effects Via Human-Animal Interaction, Camie A. Tomlinson, Jennifer L. Murphy, Angela Matijczak, Shelby E. Mcdonald

Graduate Research Posters

Introduction: Although there is emerging evidence that companion animals are important sources of comfort and support for many LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and other sexual and gender minority identities) individuals, little is known about the interplay between sexual and gender minority (SGM) stress, human-animal interaction (HAI), and psychological adjustment in this population. To address this gap in the literature, the current study examined the role of HAI in relations between SGM stress (i.e., microaggressions, victimization) and psychological adjustment (i.e., self-efficacy, psychological stress) during emerging adulthood.

Methods: Our sample included LGBTQ+ young adults between the ages of 18 and 21 …

A Psychometric Evaluation Of The Best In Class Adherence And Competence Scale, Katrina A. Markowicz

Theses and Dissertations

It is critical to utilize treatment integrity instruments to support the evaluation of evidence-based programs in early classroom contexts. However, in the early childhood field, guidelines for collecting treatment integrity data are underdeveloped. Consequently, most treatment integrity instruments employed in the field solely assess adherence, vary in design features and have little psychometric evidence supporting their use. As such, this represents a gap in the field that might slow efforts to implement evidence-based programs. The current study examines the score reliability and validity of an observational treatment integrity instrument (The BEST in CLASS Adherence and Competence Scale [BiCACS]; Sutherland et …

E-Cigarette Use And Perceptions Among Adolescents With Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: The Role Of Parental Messages About Tobacco, Mayra S. Ramos

Theses and Dissertations

Adolescents with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are at increased risk of using e-cigarettes compared to their neurotypical peers. Parent-adolescent communication about tobacco use and number of ADHD symptoms can influence adolescents’ perceptions of e-cigarettes and their e-cigarette use. Adolescents with ADHD (n = 80) completed questionnaires assessing parental messages about tobacco use; e-cigarette harm perceptions; susceptibility to use e-cigarettes; and e-cigarette use. Parents reported on messages about tobacco use, adolescent’s ADHD symptomatology, and completed demographic questionnaires. Twenty-percent of adolescents reported e-cigarette ever use. Adolescent girls were significantly more likely to report higher e-cigarette harm perceptions than boys. Parents reported providing messages …

Evaluating The Effects Of Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems On Smoking Reduction, Negative Mood, And Stress Among Smokers With Mental Illness, Cosima Hoetger

Theses and Dissertations

Introduction: Smokers with mental illness (MI) are disproportionately affected by negative health outcomes. Electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) may represent a harm reduction tool for those who reduce and/or replace their cigarettes with ENDS. Little previous research has examined how smokers with MI respond to ENDS. This analysis aimed to address this research gap using secondary data from a randomized controlled trial of ENDS varying in nicotine delivery among smokers with and without current MI. The aims were to test 1) the effects of MI status, condition, and time on changes in smoking behavior and negative mood and stress measures, …

Mobile-Based Contingency Management To Promote Daily Self-Monitoring Of Pain Severity And Related Measures In An Online Sample Of Individuals With Chronic Pain, Kathryn Polak`

Theses and Dissertations

Between 11% and 40% of the US population experience chronic pain. One promising pain management solution is remote self-monitoring. Unfortunately, low rates of adherence have impeded the use of remote self-monitoring among chronic pain patients. One robust strategy for improving adherence is contingency management (CM). This project pilot tested a fully-automated CM app (DynamiCare Rewards) programmed with an escalating variable-ratio reinforcement schedule for promoting daily self-monitoring of pain symptom severity, related variables (e.g., sleep), and prescription opioid use over a 28-day period in a sample of individuals with chronic pain. A pilot RCT compared participants randomized to CM (n …

Physiological And Subjective Effects Of Protonated Nicotine Liquids In Tobacco Users, Alisha Eversole

Theses and Dissertations

Electronic cigarettes (ECIGs) produce an aerosol by heating a liquid that often contains nicotine. The nicotine can be protonated, potentially making the aerosol easier to inhale than freebase nicotine. This study’s purpose was to determine, in inhaled tobacco product users, the effects of three concentrations of protonated nicotine aerosolized at two different power settings (in watts).

Twenty-two participants completed six sessions that varied by liquid nicotine concentration (10, 15, or 30 mg/ml protonated nicotine) and device power (15 or 30 W). Participants took 10 puffs from each product and then used each product for 60 minutes ad libitum. Plasma …

The Impact Of Healthcare Professional Students' Racial, Hiv-Related, And Abortion-Related Biases On Recommendations For Prenatal Care, Alison J. Patev

Theses and Dissertations

Black women and HIV-positive women have increased maternal mortality rates and other negative pregnancy outcomes, in part due to disparate prenatal care. Although women who seek abortions do not have the same negative outcomes, abortion stigma exists and is normalized in healthcare. Limited work has examined prenatal care provision for women in these groups, and even less work has explored the prenatal care provision by healthcare trainees (i.e., medical, nurse practitioner, and physician assistant students). Examining the role of bias on the prioritization of prenatal care items by healthcare trainees is imperative. Healthcare education sets the stage for future practice, …

Breaking The Cycle: A Longitudinal Study Of Factors That Disrupt Peer Selection And Influence Processes Among Urban Youth, Kelly E. Oconnor

Theses and Dissertations

Having friends who engage in problem behavior (i.e., aggression, substance use, delinquency) has consistently been linked to adolescents’ own engagement in problem behavior. There are, however, several key gaps in the literature on peer influence. Few studies have considered the influence of friends’ prosocial behavior and there has been limited research to identify promotive factors that influence urban youths’ affiliation with peers who engage in problem and prosocial behavior across early adolescence, a time of heightened susceptibility to peer influence. The purpose of this study was to identify modifiable promotive factors that reduce adolescents’ problem behavior by decreasing exposure to …

Alcohol Use Subgroups Among Rural Middle School Students: The Impact Of Community Violence Exposure, Courtney B. Dunn

Theses and Dissertations

A substantial portion of early adolescents initiate alcohol use. This represents a significant public health concern due to its association with a variety of adverse consequences. Although person-centered analytic approaches such as latent class analysis have been used to describe heterogeneity in adolescents’ alcohol use, most prior studies have focused on high school or older samples. This may obscure patterns of alcohol use that emerge during early adolescence. The current study identified and described subgroups of adolescents based on their alcohol use in a racially diverse sample of rural middle school students. Because research and theory indicate that exposure to …

The Contribution Of African American Parents’ Stem Racial Socialization And Support To Adolescent Academic Outcomes, Rachel J. Davis

Theses and Dissertations

Historically, African Americans have experienced various inequalities in education that have long contributed to overall educational attainment gaps within the African American community (St. Mary, Calhoun, Tejada, & Jenson, 2018). Thus, African American parents are tasked with instilling messages of racial pride into their children and providing educational support that serve as protective factors against racial discrimination in education (Koch, Lundh, & Harris, 2019). Theoretical frameworks provide a basis of understanding how parent socialization contributes to African American educational outcomes, specifically noting the role of parents’ beliefs and values in dictating mechanisms of value transfer (e.g., buying toys or learning …

The Importance Of Connection: Contributions Of Relationships With Fathers And Connections To School To Delinquent Behavior And Positive Youth Development, Colleen S. Walsh

Theses and Dissertations

Risk-taking and boundary pushing are hallmarks of adolescent behavior, making the identification of promotive and protective factors related to both delinquent behavior and positive adolescent functioning essential. Previous studies have provided compelling evidence that suggests aspects of familial relationships may successfully attenuate delinquent behavior and support positive functioning outcomes. Despite these findings, the father-adolescent relationship is understudied in association with these outcomes. The current study examined relations between adolescents’ perception of school connectedness and father-adolescent relationship quality and delinquent behavior and positive adolescent functioning outcomes. This study used data collected when youth were nine and fifteen years old from the …

Functional Limitations And Well-Being Throughout The Adult Lifespan: The Moderating Role Of Sleep, Claire M. Williams

Theses and Dissertations

Functional limitations represent individuals’ difficulty with completing essential activities of daily living, such as sitting, stooping, and walking. Though functional limitations have been linked to lower well-being outcomes, less is known about potential protective factors for well-being in the experience of functional limitations. The present study used archival data from the MIDUS Refresher study to evaluate how sleep and salient aspects of identity may alter the association between the experience of functional limitations and well-being. In particular, this study had two central aims: to examine the associations between functional limitations, life satisfaction, and affect and detect how aspects of identity …

Efficient Vengeance: The Role Of Processing Fluency In Making Decisions About Retaliation, Samuel J. West

Theses and Dissertations

Aggressive behavior is a harmful and pervasive psychological and behavioral phenomenon. Inherent to every act of aggression are decisions regarding the modality, severity, and timing of such actions. Prevailing theories of aggression emphasize the role of cognitive processes in aggression, especially retaliatory aggression. Despite this emphasis, few cognitive processes have been examined for their possible involvement in making decisions about retaliatory aggression. Across two studies, I examined the role of processing fluency in making decisions about retaliation. I drew from contemporary models of aggression (e.g., the General Aggression Model) and processing fluency (e.g., the Multi-Source Account) to develop hypotheses in …

The Relationships Between Adolescents’ Future Aspirations And Postsecondary Enrollment: Finite Mixture Models, Chu Yi Lu Qiu

Theses and Dissertations

This study took person-centered statistical approaches to explore the multidimensional construct of adolescents' future aspirations and its associations with three covariates (i.e., gender, race, and SES) and a binary, distal outcome measure, postsecondary enrollment. Fourteen survey items representing the multidimensionality of adolescents' future aspirations were extracted from two-waves of Educational Longitudinal Study:2002 student data. The multidimensionality or the latent construct of the adolescents' future aspirations were explored using two finite mixture models called latent class analysis (LCA) and latent transition analysis (LTA). Based on the students' response patterns on the fourteen indicators, three latent classes representing three levels of aspiration …

Understanding Predictors Of Telemedicine Adoption Before, During, And After The Covid-19 Pandemic, Bradford S. Pierce

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined change in physicians’ use of telemedicine before, during, and expectations after the COVID-19 pandemic. It also examined the ability of personal and environmental variables to predict telemedicine adoption, and applied the theory of reasoned action and technology acceptance model to physicians’ adoption of telemedicine during the pandemic. A total of 230 licensed physicians currently practicing in the United States were recruited. Telemedicine accounted for 3.72% of physicians’ clinical work prior to the pandemic, 46.03% during the pandemic, and predicted 25.44% after the pandemic ends. Physicians within hospitals reported less telemedicine use during the pandemic (M = …

Difficult Paintings, Hao (Damien) Ding

Theses and Dissertations

The sublime as a concept has a fraught and racist history. However, it remains the single most helpful idea in describing the deeply felt state of being when one comes across something ineffably powerful. From an art-making perspective, this thesis, and the accompanying exhibition of installations and paintings, proposes an alternative construction of the concept of the sublime. Using Lacanian psychoanalysis as a conceptual point of departure, a painter can manipulate the relationship of the viewer and paintings to create paradoxical moments of simultaneous intimacy and distance, which interact to create an alternative path towards the sublime. Through descriptions of …

The Harm In Seeking Care: Assessing The Relationship Between Healthcare Discrimination And Healthcare Avoidance Behaviors In The Past Year And Since The Start Of The Coronavirus Pandemic In A Transgender And Gender Independent Sample, Kyle L. Mason

Theses and Dissertations

Background: Gender minorities encounter a myriad of barriers to accessing general and gender affirming healthcare. Financial disparities impacting affordability of healthcare costs and insurance-based denials for gender-affirming care are among prominent barriers discussed. Considerations of the prevalence of stigma, discrimination, and erasure of gender minority identities must not be neglected when seeking to understand healthcare accessibility and utilization in this population. Previous researchers have examined gender minority patients’ experiences of discrimination in healthcare settings and delaying care due to fear of discrimination. There is a dearth of knowledge about the relationship between lifetime exposure to varied forms of healthcare discrimination …

A Non-Inferiority Randomized Controlled Trial Comparing Behavioral Sleep Interventions In Women Veterans: A Secondary Analysis Of Pain Outcomes, Scott Ravyts

Theses and Dissertations

Women are disproportionally more likely to experience both insomnia and chronic pain. While these two conditions frequently co-occur, a wealth of literature suggests that insomnia is a stronger predictor of pain than pain is of insomnia. Preliminary research indicates that sleep apnea may also lead to adverse pain outcomes, with the combination of insomnia and sleep apnea contributing to an adverse synergistic effect on pain. Despite the clinical implications of such findings, knowledge regarding the interrelations between sleep disorder complexity and pain remain limited, especially among women. Additionally, interventions seeking to improve pain by targeting insomnia have yielded inconsistent results …

Genetics And Alcohol Interventions In Youth, Zoe E. Neale

Theses and Dissertations

Alcohol is the most commonly used substance among youth, and risky alcohol use is associated with harmful consequences such as accidents, academic consequences, and physical and emotional health problems. Alcohol use disorders are approximately 50% heritable, yet most efforts to prevent and intervene upon youth alcohol use focus only on environmental factors. Furthermore, current prevention and intervention programs tend to have modest effects and are not uniformly effective for all individuals. Gene-by-intervention (GxI) studies offer an opportunity to expand current understanding of interventions by examining whether underlying genetic risk may contribute to differential program effects. Much of the current GxI …

Interpersonal Trauma And Mental Health Among Lgbq+ College Students: Examining Social Support And Trauma-Related Drinking As Mediators, Eryn Delaney

Theses and Dissertations

Despite the increased risk of childhood, adulthood, and lifetime interpersonal trauma among LGBQ+ individuals, existing research that has examined the influence of interpersonal trauma on mental health has primarily focused on LGBQ+ adolescents and samples of LGBQ+ community-based adults, and less on LGBQ+ emerging adults in college. Additionally, limited work has focused on mechanisms that might explain the relations between these variables. Thus, the current study tested the relations between interpersonal trauma (i.e., childhood sexual abuse, adulthood sexual victimization, and lifetime physical assault and IPV) and mental health outcomes (i.e., anxiety symptoms, depressive symptoms, and PTSD symptoms), and examined social …

Expand Your Horizon: Investigating An Online Intervention For Weight Bias Internalization, Alexandria Davies

Theses and Dissertations

Weight bias internalization (WBI; i.e., self-directed weight stigma or the degree to which individuals apply negative weight-based stereotypes to themselves), is problematic because it is associated with increased stress, emotional eating, healthcare avoidance, and exercise avoidance. Thus, WBI exacerbates health disparities and there is an urgent need to create treatments that address this concern. The current study examined the preliminary effectiveness of a previously developed online body gratitude journaling intervention (i.e., Expand Your Horizon) compared to an active control writing condition in emerging adult women with WBI. Racially/ethnically diverse women (N=100; n=49) or Expand Your Horizon ( …

Third Culture Kids - Playing To Heal, Amna Sana

Theses and Dissertations

With increased globalization and a large expat population, Qatar is home to increasing numbers of Third Culture Kids (TCKs). TCKs are children who live in a country where their parents are non-native, children who grow up between cultures. Young TCKs, especially children between the ages of three and seven, do not possess the skills to adequately vocalize their feelings, but fortunately, play therapy allows them to articulate problems and feelings on their own terms. This thesis addresses the emotional hurdles facing TCKs, using concepts derived from play therapy and offering a series of interactive objects designed to reflect emotional expression …

Western Clinicians’ Diagnostic Accuracy Of Culture-Bound Syndromes, Lisa Y. Chung

Theses and Dissertations

Culture-bound syndromes are of increasing importance in today’s more diverse world. The current study measured the ability of clinicians trained in a western setting to accurately diagnose culture-bound syndromes from cultures outside of their background. Eight-four clinicians were recruited through the American Psychological Association (APA) membership directory. All recruited clinicians were asked to read three vignettes. In two vignettes a patient was suffering from either Hwabyung or Ataque de Nervios and the third vignette represented a control GAD vignette. The clinicians were asked to diagnose the patient in the vignette, to explain what information informed their diagnosis, to complete two …

The Bio-Psycho-Social-Cultural Domains And Their Impact On Psychopharmacological Utilization Among Latinxs, Jesus Carranza, Kyle Hernandez, Jennifer Arguetta-Contreras, Isis Garcia-Rodriguez, Oswaldo Moreno

Psychology Publications

The Latinx population has become the largest minority group in the United States (U.S.).1 Compared to non-Hispanic Whites, Latinxs are younger and have less formal education. This community is also confronted with additional stressors (i.e., more likely to have problems of unemployment, poverty, lack of insurance, and language barriers).2 Although Latinxs are just as likely as non-Hispanic Whites to suffer from a mental illness, they are more likely to go untreated.3 Specifically, Latinxs experiences with psychopharmacological treatments is not well understood but can be studied through the multipath model (MPM).4 The MPM offers a way to view the variety and …

Health Conditions, Access To Care, Mental Health, And Wellness Behaviors In Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, And Transgender Adults, Richard S. Henry, Paul B. Perrin, Ashlee Sawyer, Mickeal Pugh Jr.

Psychology Publications

This study examined relationships among wellness behaviors, physical health conditions, mental health, health insurance, and access to care among a sample of 317 lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) adults. Participants completed a web-administered survey from May 2013 to April 2014. Of the sample, 41.6% of the participants reported having one or more health conditions. Most participants (92.1%) reported access to a health care facility and current health insurance coverage (84.9%), though 24.9% of those with health insurance reported being incapable of paying the copayments. Physical health conditions, age, and self-esteem explained 24% of the variance in engagement in wellness …

Acculturation, Religious Fatalism, & Psychological Healthcare Utilization Among Latinxs, Camila Tirado, Isis Garcia-Rodriguez, Oswaldo Moreno

Psychology Publications

As Latinxs acculturate to the U.S. (i.e., changes and transfer of customs from the host culture1 ), they may have more positive attitudes towards psychological healthcare utilization .2 Religious fatalism, the belief that an individual’s health is predetermined by a higher power, has also been shown to be associated with healthcare utilization, such that individuals who endorse higher religious fatalism have more negative attitudes and less health care utilization.3 Thus, acculturations’ association on healthcare utilization may be heavily influenced through religious fatalism; however, little is known about Latinxs specifically. Using a community sample of 102 (63 females and 39 males, …

Victim Silencing, Sexual Violence Culture, Social Healing: Inherited Collective Trauma Of World War Ii South Korean Military “Comfort Women”, Mijin Cho

VCU Phi Kappa Phi Award Winners

The unresolved reconciliation process for WWII South Korean military “comfort women” presents a case of nationally inherited collective trauma, in which South Koreans far removed in time and space from the historical tragedy feel its implications and obligations for reparations and social healing. In examining the South Korean comfort women redress movement and systemic concealment of WWII military sexual slavery, this study investigates a pattern of victim silencing, characterized by institutional patriarchy and ineffective government involvement, from 1945 to 2019. Following the South Korean government’s formal rejection of the 2015 agreement with Japan regarding a final and irreversible conclusion to …