Child Psychology Commons^™

The Effect Of Animal-Assisted Therapy On Prosocial Behaviors In Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders And Developmental Delay: A Pilot Study, Emma Mitchell

Psychological Science Undergraduate Honors Theses

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by difficulties in social interaction, nonverbal communication, and repetitive patterns (American Psychiatric Association [APA], 2013). Indeed, autistic individuals have been shown to have greater challenges with developing, maintaining, and understanding social relationships which can persist over their lifetime. Early intervention services are recommended for autistic children when they are young to help promote positive skills to enhance their functioning within society and increase their wellbeing over time. This is an especially pressing issue as ASD rates are rising – with the latest data now suggesting 1 in 36 children have the …

Communication Of Mental Health Diversity To The Early Childhood Age Group: “The Adventures Of Anxious Anderson, Distracted Daniel, And Organized Olive”, Jessica Gower

Honors Projects

In this project, I aim to explore various aspects of communication, cognitive ability, and mental health diversity in early child development. The three research questions guiding this project are: What cognitive and language abilities do children in the early childhood stage of development have? What are the most effective strategies for communicating information about mental health disorders to children ages 4 to 7 through storytelling? And lastly, how do anxiety, attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) manifest, particularly in children? The storybook's purpose is to create a sense of empathy and understanding of mental health diversity in children …

Evaluating The Efficacy Of Universal Depression Screenings In The High School Setting, Telisha Anthony Msn, Fnp-Bc, Jennifer Thorsen Bsn, Rn, Jackie Sharp Dnp, Pmhnp-Bc, Sharon Little Dnp, Fnp-Bc

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

Purpose/Background

Depression in adolescents is rising each year. Early detection of depression has been shown to result in better health outcomes and success in school. This scoping review aims to evaluate the implementation of universal depression screenings in the high school setting and how this detection of depression and initiation of treatment.

Methods

From August 2022 to November 2023, we used the Medline, PubMed, Elsevier, Google Scholar, and PsycINFO databases, using specific keywords related to depression in adolescents. Of the 38 articles found, 10 were chosen after extensive article critique. The publication dates ranged from 2014-2023, were full-text, and from …

A Responsible Parrhesia? A Review Of The Price Of Secrecy, Sara Tafakori

RadioDoc Review

The Price of Secrecy immerses the listener in stories of individual trauma, of child abuse and rape, yet also draws lessons from them of wider social significance. It includes moments of narrative catharsis, interspersed with repeated reminders that the stories are unfinished and open-ended—that the solutions lie out there, in social action, rather than in the stories themselves. The series also gestures towards structural critique, especially of ‘the legal constraints’ it identifies, yet it places greater importance on changing the wider culture through challenging the culture of secrecy and shame around victims’ stories of rape and abuse. This centrally means …

Mypov: Promoting Self-Efficacy And Empowerment Amongst Foster Youth, Hanah Friel

Senior Capstone Papers

Trauma is a key player in the lives of young people within the child welfare system. Adverse childhood experiences define the course of life for many foster youths prior to entering the system, and for many, exemplify their time during and after foster care. The results of this trauma are often overwhelming and far-reaching, as traumatic behaviors often take the form of distrust and dysregulation. Moreover, trauma can disrupt one’s sense of safety and contribute to feelings of disempowerment. For many, it is rare that our lives are representative of a complete lack of opportunity for self-efficacy and empowerment; however, …

Project Attain: Advancing Trauma-Informed Care For Youth With Intellectual And Developmental Disabilities And/Or Gender Diverse Youth, Kady F. Sternberg, Charlotte E. Bausha, Charlotte Jones, Erin Knight, Crystal N. Steltenpohl, Rebecca R. Parton, Jennifer L. Mclaren, Erin R. Barnett

Developmental Disabilities Network Journal

Children with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD) and/or gender diversity are at higher risk of experiencing trauma. Provider knowledge is lacking; trauma, disability, and LGBTQ+ resources are often siloed; and few providers screen for trauma in this population. This paper describes the design, delivery, and initial evaluation of Project ATTAIN (Access to Trauma-informed Treatment and Assessment for Neurodivergent and/or Gender-expansive Youth).

ATTAIN is an ongoing 5-year state-wide initiative aiming to assess readiness to engage in new roles and practices over time; provide state-wide training and consultation in trauma, disability, and LGBTQ+-informed practices; install screening and assessment of trauma exposure and …

Social Emotional Learning For Students In Schools And Communities, Gisselle Villar

Senior Capstone Papers

The goal of the educational approach known as Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) is to integrate these skills regarding SEL to be implemented in the school curriculum. In addition to emphasizing students’ abilities, education helps students build the kind of brains needed to acquire everyday tasks. The goal of this proposal is to help students develop a feeling of self-worth and awareness so they can connect and communicate honestly with one another. Schools will witness a significant shift in the lives of their students and the way teachers instruct once this learning is implemented. When this knowledge is successfully applied …

Interpersonal Violence And The Impact On Children’S Educational Outcomes, Samantha Hurst

Senior Capstone Papers

This capstone explores the complex topic of interpersonal violence which impacts children in the home and their school outcomes. Understanding children who are not getting their emotional or physical needs met could have a harder time focusing, staying awake, or being present in the classroom is incredibly important. This paper examines the pre-existing literature on the topic of how children react to interpersonal violence and how punishment in schools can affect academic outcomes. A solution is proposed for teachers to be taught trauma informed care to increase empathy towards students and decrease behavioral suspensions. Trauma informed care can mitigate partial …

Childhood Cancer Survivorship: Navigating A New Normal In Middle Tennessee, Karli M. Beaumont

OTD Capstone Projects

Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt in partnership with Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center offers REACH for Cancer Survivorship, a pediatric cancer survivorship clinic. REACH provides a full range of follow-up care designed to meet the physical, emotional, and practical needs of survivors and continuous surveillance of deleterious effects of cancer and its treatments. The purpose of this project was to meet population and agency needs through research of long- and late-term sequela while advocating for occupational therapy’s role in the oncology population through the proactive therapy and prospective surveillance models. The process of creating this project included synthesizing the literature, …

Making Deception Fun: Teaching Autistic Individuals How To Playfriendly Tricks, Adel Naj, Megan St. Clair, Kacie Massoudie, Jonathan Tarbox, Lauri Simchoni, Marianne Jackson, Angela Persicke

Psychology Division Scholarship

Perspective taking is a critical repertoire for navigating social relationships and consists of a variety of complex verbalskills, including socially adaptive forms of deception. Detecting and being able to use socially adaptive deception likelyhas many practical uses, including defending oneself against bullying, telling white lies to avoid hurting others’ feelings,keeping secrets and bluffing during games, and playing friendly tricks on others. Previous research has documented thatsome Autistic1 children have challenges identifying deception and playfully deceiving others (Reinecke et al., 1997). Thecurrent study employed a multiple baseline across participants design to evaluate the use of multiple exemplar training, rules,modeling, practice, and …

Family Obligation, School Climate, And The Academic Achievement Of Latinx Youth Living In One- And Two-Parent Households, Elizabeth Martinez Charleston

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Latinx youth are achieving lower levels of educational attainment when compared to their ethnic or racial peers from other backgrounds. Addressing these academic disparities is imperative, with the Latinx population in the U.S. experiencing substantial growth. Guided by the Positive Youth Development Model and the Integrative Model of Child Development, this study explored family obligation and school climate as factors associated with academic achievement. Participants included 268 Latinx youth, including 101 (37.7%) in one-parent households. Participants were 5th through 7th-grade students (56.7% female; M_age = 11.4), mainly 2nd generation (US-born with foreign-born parents; 77.2%), and primarily identified as Mexican …

Storytelling Through A Critical Positive Youth Development Framework: A Mixed Methods Approach, Maru Gonzalez, Michael Kokozos, Katherine Mckee, Christy Byrd

Journal of Youth Development

No abstract provided.

Table Of Contents, Vol. 19, Issue 1

Journal of Youth Development

No abstract provided.

“We Are Protected”: Examining Youth Perceptions Of Safety Within A Faith-Based Positive Youth Development Program In El Salvador, Samuel Hay, Jonathan M. Tirrell, Jacqueline Lerner, Elizabeth Dowling, Alistair T. R. Sim, Pamela E. King, Jennifer M. Vaughn, Guillermo Iraheta, Richard Lerner

Journal of Youth Development

No abstract provided.

4-H Volunteers Leaders’ Turnover Intention, Suzanna R. Windon, Mariah K. Awan, Rama Radhakrishna

Journal of Youth Development

No abstract provided.

Targeting Social-Emotional Learning And Activity Attitudes During After-School Programming Post Covid-19 Restrictions, Kelly L. Simonton, Victoria N. Shiver, Aimee Gray, Katie Juarez, Angela Simonton

Journal of Youth Development

No abstract provided.

Benchmarking Strategies Used To Increase Diversity, Equity, Inclusion At Summer Camps, Lisa Meerts, Tyler Wycoff, Jim Sibthorp

Journal of Youth Development

No abstract provided.

Navigating Multiracial Identity Development In The Digital Ages: An Intersectional Exploration, Diana Mccullough

National Cross-Cultural Counseling and Education Conference for Research, Action, and Change

In the 2020 U.S. Census, 33.8 million individuals reported multiracial identities, which increased since 2010 from nine million (US Census, 2020). Despite the substantial growth in multiracial individuals, there remains a dearth of understanding regarding the unique challenges and determining factors shaping their identity. This session aims to equip counselors and counselor educators with evidence-based strategies to navigate and support the intricate identity development of multiracial clients and students.

A Phenomenological Study Of School Psychologists: The Influence Of Implicit Bias On The Disproportionate Identification Rates Of African American Students Evaluated For Emotional Disturbance, Sonya Coe-Milo

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

As advocates, school psychologists remain ethically responsible and uniquely positioned to identify social injustices and promote nondiscriminatory practices in prekindergarten through grade 12 public education institutions. Implicit bias and its influence on African American students is one such practice. In public education, implicit bias contributes to discipline disproportionality, differentiated teacher support, pedagogical practices, and adult perceptions and expectations of appropriate and inappropriate behaviors. These factors directly correlate to the disproportionate identification rates of African American students for special education and related services. Therefore, this phenomenological qualitative study examined the personal, lived experiences and perceptions of school psychologists regarding implicit bias …

Providing Incarcerated Youth With A Community Of Their Peers, Providing Resources, And Modeling Healthy Attachment May Lead To Prosocial Behaviors, Emilee Brnusak

University Honors Theses

This thesis examines the connection between gang activity and attachment style. A summary of literature suggests that childhood attachment injuries lead to antisocial, maladaptive relationships and neurological changes that impact executive functioning and emotional regulation. These factors leave youth at higher risk of gang membership. This thesis then explores how an outreach experience at the MacLaren Youth Correctional Facility inspired a large-scale intervention called Resources for Attachment-injured Youth (RAY) that could be implemented in youth prisons across the country.

Annual Research Review: The Power Of Predictability – Patterns Of Signals In Early Life Shape Neurodevelopment And Mental Health Trajectories, Elysia Poggi Davis, Laura M. Glynn

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

The global burden of early life adversity (ELA) is profound. The World Health Organization has estimated that ELA accounts for almost 30% of all psychiatric cases. Yet, our ability to identify which individuals exposed to ELA will develop mental illness remains poor and there is a critical need to identify underlying pathways and mechanisms. This review proposes unpredictability as an understudied aspect of ELA that is tractable and presents a conceptual model that includes biologically plausible mechanistic pathways by which unpredictability impacts the developing brain. The model is supported by a synthesis of published and new data illustrating the significant …

General Cognitive Ability In High School, Attained Education, Occupational Complexity, And Dementia Risk, Jimi Huh, Thalida Em Arpawong, Tara L. Gruenewald, Gwenith G. Fisher, Carol A. Prescott, Jennifer J. Manly, Dominika Seblova, Ellen E. Walters, Margaret Gatz

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

INTRODUCTION

We address the extent to which adolescent cognition predicts dementia risk in later life, mediated by educational attainment and occupational complexity.

METHODS

Using data from Project Talent Aging Study (PTAS), we fitted two structural equation models to test whether adolescent cognition predicts cognitive impairment (CI) and Ascertain Dementia 8 (AD8) status simultaneously (N_{Cognitive Assessment} = 2477) and AD8 alone (N_{Questionnaire} = 6491) 60 years later, mediated by education and occupational complexity. Co-twin control analysis examined 82 discordant pairs for CI/AD8.

RESULTS

Education partially mediated the effect of adolescent cognition on CI in the cognitive assessment aample and …

Animal Assisted Play Therapy® For Childhood Animal Abuse Following Exposure To Family Violence: A Case Example, Katharine Wenocur, Rise Vanfleet

People and Animals: The International Journal of Research and Practice

Intentional harm to nonhuman animals in childhood often correlates with histories of witnessing, experiencing, or perpetrating violence. Without appropriate intervention, children and adolescents who abuse animals following exposure to family violence risk long-term behavioral health challenges. While some treatment models have been specifically designed to reduce the risk of future violence among children displaying this behavior, interventions involving nonhuman animals represent a novel approach and show promise in addressing behavioral challenges associated with this behavior. Framed through the lens of a clinical case study, this article presents the potential benefits of implementing Animal Assisted Play Therapy® to treat symptoms of …

Temporal Relation Between Pubertal Development And Peer Victimization In A Prospective Sample Of Us Adolescents, Jessica A. Marino, Elysia Poggi Davis, Laura M. Glynn, Curt A. Sandman, Jennifer Hahn-Holbrook

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Peer victimization typically peaks in early adolescence, leading researchers to hypothesize that pubertal timing is a meaningful predictor of peer victimization. However, previous methodological approaches have limited our ability to parse out which puberty cues are associated with peer victimization because gonadal and adrenal puberty, two independent processes, have either been conflated or adrenal puberty timing has been ignored. In addition, previous research has overlooked the possibility of reverse causality—that peer victimization might drive pubertal timing, as it has been shown to do in non-human primates. To fill these gaps, we followed 265 adolescents (47% female) prospectively across three-time points …

Determining The More Effective Behavior Analytic Intervention For Children With Autism Who Exhibit Pica Behaviors, Jennifer J. Lanham

Theses and Dissertations

Abstract

Determining the More Effective Behavior Analytic Intervention for Children With Autism Who Exhibit Pica Behaviors. Jennifer J. Lanham, 2024: Applied Dissertation, Nova Southeastern University, Abraham S. Fischler College of Education and School of Criminal Justice. Keywords: autism, pica, eating disorders, intervention, applied behavior analysis

This dissertation was designed to determine which behavior analytic intervention was more effective in the treatment and reduction of mouthing non-nutritive substances in children diagnosed with autism. This study included four participants in an A-B-A reversal design with a component analysis across four intervention phases. The study participants were enrolled in a center-based treatment environment …

Children Cooperate More With In-Group Members Than With Out-Group Members In An Iterated Face-To-Face Prisoner's Dilemma Game, Laurent Prétôt, Quinlan Taylor, Katherine Mcauliffe

Faculty Submissions

Adults are more likely to cooperate with in-group members than with out-group members in the context of social dilemmas, situations in which self-interest is in conflict with collective interest. This bias has the potential to profoundly shape human cooperation, and therefore it is important to understand when it emerges in development. Here we asked whether 6- to 9-year-old children (N = 146) preferentially cooperate with in-group members in the context of a well-studied social dilemma, the iterated Prisoner's Dilemma Game. We assigned children to minimal groups and paired them with unfamiliar same-age and same-gender peers. Consistent with our predictions, children …

Social Media And Performative Parenting, Sun Sun Lim, Yang Wang

Research Collection College of Integrative Studies

With the intensifying use of social media in many realms of everyday life, even parenting is manifesting a public dimension. Whereas one might regard parenting as a private activity undertaken within the home, the use of social media to highlight the joys and trials of child-rearing has put parenting under the digital spotlight. Parents are keen to showcase their children’s growth and development to family and friends. Significant achievements invite praise and social endorsement, as well as commendations for excellent parenting. The sharing of parenting struggles over social media can also elicit expressions of commiseration, sympathy and support. The ensuing …

Legal Pressure To Attend Substance Abuse Treatment, Angelicia Courteau

Auctus: The Journal of Undergraduate Research and Creative Scholarship

This paper was written to bring awareness of how the legal system does not take into consideration those who suffer from substance use disorder, as well as ACEs. Brian Luke Burijon’s battle with addiction while incarcerated was used as an example of how the legal system’s one-size-fits-all approach is flawed. Mr. Burijon opted for a treatment he did not feel was ideal for him because the alternative was to remain incarcerated for a long period. Mr. Burijon was unable to tolerate the treatment at the facility and left early, which resulted in his overdose death.

Development Of A Measure Assessing Adolescent Aggression: The Aggressive Behavior Risk Assessment- Adolescent- Parent Report (Abra-A-Pr), Katherine Fallon

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Although parent-report scales for general behavioral difficulties and aggression (e.g., verbal and physical aggression) exist, there are currently no measures assessing sexual behaviors in this context. Commonly, parent-report measures provide a few items relevant to behavioral aggression, and items encompassing sexually aggressive behaviors are frequently vague and non-specific in the actions being committed by the adolescent. The primary purpose of this project was to develop a comprehensive and multifaceted parent-report measure for aggressive behavior in adolescents. Three separate studies were conducted to evaluate the psychometric properties of the measure. Exploratory (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) were used to investigate …

At-Risk Children: Adult Perception And Recognition Of Mental Health Concerns, Abby D. Lucas

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Approximately 20% of children ages nine to 17 in the United States struggle with mental health concerns each year (Gamm et al., 2010). Early identification of child and adolescent mental health concerns is crucial for initiating treatment to prevent recurrence or persistence of pathology into adulthood (Logan & King, 2001). Children are primarily dependent upon adults in their lives (e.g., parents/caregivers, education professionals, healthcare providers) to recognize mental health concerns and seek services (Sayal et al., 2010). Providing these adults with guidance on how to appropriately identify and recognize these mental health needs in children is critical (Crouch et al., …