Counseling Psychology Commons^™

How Art Therapy And Emdr Help Asylum Seekers And Refugees Move Towards Healing Trauma: A Literature Review, Anna Mogilevsky

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

In the past ten years, there has been a significant rise in the number of asylum seekers and refugee populations worldwide (UNHCR, 2022). Displaced individuals are extremely vulnerable to mental illness because of the compounded trauma experienced in their countries of origin with the stress of immigration, asylum seeking, culture shock, and language barriers. PTSD is affecting 500 million individuals globally, and refugees are especially susceptible to having these symptoms (Farrell, 2020). Art therapy and EMDR are identified as the most promising modalities for treating such trauma.

This literature review examines the various ways EMDR and art therapy have been …

South Asian American Experiences Of Microaggressions And Wellbeing: The Moderating Role Of Social Support, Archita Birla

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Although the South Asian American community is rapidly expanding in the United States (South Asian Americans Leading Together [SAALT], 2015), there remains a dearth of psychological research regarding the impacts on mental health and wellbeing affecting this diverse community. Racial microaggressions, or verbal or behavioral actions indicating hostile or negative attitudes toward marginalized individuals (Sue et al., 2007), negatively impact People of Color (POC) mental health and wellbeing (Forrest-Bank & Jenson, 2015a; Nadal, Wong, et al., 2015). Some research exists on South Asian American communities and microaggressions (Houshmand et al., 2014; Poolokasingham et al., 2014) but there is limited research …

An Exploration Of Adult Children’S Attachment To Their Parents Across Two Cultural Groups: Indians In India And Indians Who Immigrated To The United States, Vilasini Meenakshi Arun

Doctoral Dissertations

Typically, attachment theory has been studied and explored with western populations. Individuals seeking mental health treatment within the United States include western and nonwestern cultural groups and research, theories and interventions that apply to diverse populations are necessary. Attachment relationships are often a part of, or reasons for clients to seek therapy either overtly or covertly, thus allowing research on attachment to better inform treatment plans and practice. An attachment relationship between a parent and child can be influenced by several factors and may change over the course of development, but little is known about this process among Indians …

Music Therapy As A Support Model In Massachusetts Special Education: A Literature Review, Bonnie Diamond

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

Mental health directly impacts student propensity for making academic progress in the public education system. For children with disabilities, it is especially vital to develop and implement techniques within special education that deliver personally tailored benefits. According to the United States Department of Education, music therapy offers highly effective support to a wide range of students within the school setting so that they may achieve academic success and be supported in their social/emotional development (U.S Department of Education, 2011; AMTA, 2021). In examining the multifaceted ways that music therapy can offer support within the structure of education and mental health, …

Feldenkrais And Music Informed Listening: A Neurophenomenological Perspective On Autism, Arona Primalani

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

Phenomenologists identify the subjective body and its felt-senses as the basis for human development and consciousness, including mental health. Several mental health disorders, when viewed from a phenomenological perspective, share common symptomology related to varying extents of fractured selves, which in turn hinders dynamic interaction between individuals, their actions, and their relationships with their social and material worlds. Autism is one such condition. Hence, I created an intervention to investigate how listening, which foster subjective and intersubjective experiences, lies at the heart of somatic and arts-based interventions. This thesis, first, begins with a summary of the presenting symptoms observed in …

A Music Therapist’S Clinical Improvised Songwriting To Explore Countertransference In The Therapeutic Relationship For An Individual With Multiple Disabilities, Isabella Sances

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

This qualitative and arts-based capstone thesis discusses working with individuals with multiple disabilities, songwriting in music therapy, intersubjective communication and theory, and countertransference in music therapy, by sharing the literature and presenting a method of how a music therapist’s own clinical improvised songwriting explores countertransference in the therapeutic relationship for an individual with multiple disabilities. Music therapy is used to treat individuals with multiple disabilities. The literature demonstrates that music therapy and improvisation can support communication development in clients with multiple disabilities. However, there is little research regarding countertransference and reflections by music therapists. This thesis explored post-session improvised songwriting …

Effectiveness Of A Peer-Supported Digital Brief Intervention: Reducing Alcohol Use & Related Harms In Young Adults With Histories Of Interpersonal Trauma, Caitlin Mcgettrick

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Alcohol is the most frequently used substance in the United States, and young adults ages 18-25 have the highest rates of heavy alcohol use. Heavy and persistent alcohol use is associated with a host of negative outcomes in young adults, including poor mental health, lower life satisfaction, cognitive impairments, poor academic performance, increased risk for motor vehicle accidents, and substance use disorders. Brief interventions (BI) are low-resource, short-term interventions designed to reduce problematic substance use and mitigate the substantial harms posed by heavy and persistent use of substances such as alcohol. BIs have limited effectiveness in trauma survivors despite trauma …

Cultural And Structural Barriers Of Utilizing Mental Health Services In A School-Based Setting For Latinx Populations, Silvia Lozano, Bridgette Guadalupe Calderon

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

This qualitative research study aimed to reduce mental health service disparities in Latinx communities and helps fill in the gap by addressing cultural and structural barriers to utilizing MHS in a school-based setting for Latinx youth. There is limited research regarding Latinx parents’ perspectives and the reservations they have on utilizing school-based mental health services (MHS) for their children. This study identified six important themes: cultural factors, trust and rapport, reservations, access and awareness, parental involvement and challenges, and school-based resources. Implications for school districts are that they can use these findings to increase early intervention mental behavioral health programs …

Trauma Is A Wound: Demonstrating The Use Of Character Analysis To Practice Clinical Analysis, Madisyn Beare

Honors Projects

Evidence-based treatments of trauma require clinicians to base their treatments on the client’s specific and individual needs, experiences, cognitions, and place in recovery. Essentially, each new client is a new and unique case, and the practice of understanding how trauma may affect an individual only comes from clinical exposure.Literature provides the public with somewhat of an aid in these circumstances: fictional characters are not real people, and therefore can undergo limitless character analyses. Analyzing a fictional character allows clinicians the ability to practice their exploration of various behavioral indicators of mental health concerns while honoring the ethical code of non-maleficence, …

Psy-7 Peer Effects Of Seeking Mental Health Help From A Professional, Devanshi Patel, Susan Ruppel

SC Upstate Research Symposium

How does peer support effect the ability of students to seek out mental health help from a professional? In this study, the experimenter investigates the type of support the students receive from their peers and how that affects their ability to seek out help from a professional. Accurate intention-seeking of students was recorded for both the behavioral concerns and their support types. A Mental Help Seeking Intention Scale was used to measure the data collected in this study. It was found that the behavioral concern (mental, physical) of a student does not matter in this study, nor did the type …

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 …

Psilocybin With Acceptance And Commitment Therapy (Act) For The Treatment Of Social Anxiety Disorder (Sad), Aspen E. Allred

University Honors Theses

Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD) is a debilitating mental health condition characterized by an overwhelming fear and anxiety of social rejection that can lead to chronic patterns of social behavioral avoidance. Despite the existence of traditional efficacious treatments, a significant number of individuals either do not respond to treatment or experience a recurrence of symptoms over extended periods, spanning 10-12 years. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), a form of acceptance-based behavioral therapy considered part of the "third wave" of cognitive behavioral therapies, has shown promising results in early studies, comparable to those of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) that is considered the …

At The Intersection Of Religion, Spirituality, And Clinical Psychology: A Conversation With Two Jewish Psychologists, Robert A. Demayo, David A. Levy

Psychology Division Scholarship

This article presents a dialogue between two Jewish psychologists who share their respective personal and professional journeys on how spirituality and religious affiliation impacts their work as clinicians. They address the following questions: How would you identify your cultural background with respect to your religious or spiritual history and identity? How do you manage the competing demands of respecting both individual cultural identity and group cultural identity? How did your early experiences with Judaism influence your professional practice? What were your earliest academic influences on the question of spirituality in psychology? How have religion and spirituality manifested in your clinical …

Power And Control Wheel Tactics: Assessing Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (Ptsd) Epistemology Among Domestic Violence Survivors, Lisa Hady

Theses and Graduate Projects

Domestic violence affects more than 10 million adults in the United States annually (National Network to End Domestic Violence, 2020). The Power and Control Wheel (PCW) places power and control at the center of physical and sexual violence, with eight surrounding tactics representing the abusive behaviors perpetrators use to retain power and control over survivors. Although the PCW has been extended to understand various abusive relationships, and the PCW tactics have been examined in both Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) and Non-Intimate Partner Violence (NPV; Basile et al., 2004; Scott, 2018), limited research compares tactics used based on the perpetrator’s relationship …

Fantasia On A Theme Of Purpose: Using A Music-Guided Scribble Technique To Support Meaning-Making In Older Adult Retiree Musicians, Sophia R. Smith

Art Therapy | Master's Theses

Within the population of older adults, overall well-being corresponds with the ability to self-actualize and seek meaning, but age-related changes combined with ageism and isolation can negatively impact this capacity to maintain a sense of purpose, especially following retirement. It may be that retired musicians are especially vulnerable to this experience later in life due to a loss of the primary method of creative engagement and community that is facilitated by musical performance in a group setting. Integrating phenomenological and ethnographic approaches, this study utilized a qualitative design to understand how music-guided art-making incorporating the scribble technique could support a …

An Exploration Of The Lived Experiences And Psychological States Of Migrants And Refugees, Zainab Akef, Senel Poyrazli, Isabel Quintero

The Qualitative Report

UNHCR reports that about 82.4 million individuals were forcibly displaced as they attempted to avoid persecution, conflict, or human rights violations in their home countries. In addition to traumatic experiences, refugees encounter stressors such as low income, reduced social support, and language barriers. This qualitative study aimed to explore the impact of pre-migration trauma and political detainment on mental health outcomes and living conditions. A total of eight interviewees participated in video conferencing interviews. A non-probability convenience sampling using the snowballing technique was utilized to identify participants. Data were analyzed using an inductive approach for thematic analysis. The software Dedoose …

Analysis Of Research On The Effects Of Auditory Stimulation On Anxiety And Stress In Clinical And General Populations, Rebecca Lee

CMC Senior Theses

The use of auditory stimulation may be a useful method in treating clinical anxiety disorders, as well as aiding in coping with daily stress among general populations. The understanding of how certain forms of auditory stimulation can increase anxiety and stress is also critical so clinicians and the general population can approach decreasing anxiety and stress in the most effective way possible. The following paper will provide a literature review on studies published after the year 2000, analyzing the various impacts of different types of auditory stimulation, including impacts of music-therapy, music and noise at different frequencies, binaural beat stimulation, …

Exploring Perceptions Of Self-Compassion In Individuals With Complex Trauma Symptomology: A Qualitative Approach, Brooke Roseman

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

The aim of the present study sought to explore the perceptions of self-compassion through the perspectives of individuals who experience complex trauma symptomology and low rates of self-compassion to inform and enhance trauma treatment. Despite a growing accumulation of studies implicating self-compassion as an integral construct for alleviating symptoms associated with complex trauma, most research designs were quantitative and did not investigate the internal processes occurring within the individual. Based on this gap, the current study expanded the scope of the current literature to include a qualitative thematic analytic approach to better understand the nuances of how this population relates …

Posttraumatic Growth Following Pregnancy Loss, Megan Pinette

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Posttraumatic growth (PTG) is positive psychological change that can result from the struggle with trauma or other highly stressful events (Calhoun & Tedeschi, 1999; Calhoun et al., 2010). The aim of this study was to capture the rich narratives of individuals who have experienced pregnancy loss and reported PTG. The narratives of ten participants were investigated to better understand what areas of posttraumatic growth they experienced following this often-devastating loss, as well as the processes that led to this growth. Participants of this study reported experiencing growth in the domains of (a) Relating to Others, (b) Personal Strength, (c) New …

The Relationship Of Workplace Support, Job Control, And Burnout In Nurses, Shannon A. Mccleery

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

Nurses are the most likely group of healthcare workers to develop burnout. Previous research identified supervisory support, job control, and decision-making ability in the workplace as protective factors against burnout. There was a gap in the literature regarding the relationship between burnout in nurses and their experience of support, control, and decision-making during the COVID-19 pandemic. Reducing and preventing burnout in nurses is important due to the nursing shortage and concerns of attrition rates. This quantitative study examined the relationship of emotional support, instrumental support, job control, and decision-making opportunities in the workplace to burnout in hospital-based nurses. Measures used …

The Pursuit Of Happiness: Freedom And Well-Being In Positive Psychology, Kevin J. Mckenzie

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

This project explores the relationship between freedom and well‑being. Through reviewing the literature of positive psychology and existential psychology, clearer pictures of well‑being and freedom emerge, allowing for statistical analysis. By adopting Seligman’s well‑being theory as a model that incorporates hedonic and eudaimonic elements of well‑being and self‑determination theory’s conceptualization of autonomy as a proxy for freedom in existential psychology, this study explores the relationship between these constructs and their theorized factors through correlational analysis. A potential measurement model for an overall well‑being measure incorporating freedom as a factor is proposed and tested using confirmatory factor analyses. The effects of …

Feasibility Of Influencing Clinician Perceived Knowledge And Competence Of Human Trafficking Via A Continuing Education Workshop, Rachel Wakefield

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Previous research has examined the complex mental and social health deficits of those who were trafficked that clinicians have to treat therapeutically (Litam, 2017; Pascual-Leone et al., 2017). Other research has explored how continuing education workshops often change the knowledge, competence, and attitudes of attendees to use more effective and evidenced techniques and skills (Neimeyer et al., 2009; Raghavan et al., 2008). However, there is a lack of understanding about how a complex topic, specifically treatment considerations of those who were trafficked, changes the knowledge and competence of continuing education workshop attendees. The purpose of the current study is to …

The Effects Of Cultural Responsiveness And Therapy Duration On Black Americans’ Therapy Preference, Katilyn M. Ashley Treem

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Marginalized groups are less likely to seek out mental health services than non-marginalized groups. There are various reasons why marginalized groups, such as Black Americans, are less likely to seek out mental health services, one of which is the cultural barriers between a clinician and client. Research suggests that Black Americans feel that clinicians struggle to overcome these cultural barriers. Therefore, it is important for clinicians to actively receive training on how to serve clients with diverse backgrounds. Cultural responsiveness, an extension from cultural competence, is the active application of the knowledge and skills obtained in training. Examining people’s therapy …

Exploring The Relationships Among Adhd, Generalized Anxiety Disorder, And Emotion Regulation, Anna S. Hall

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study investigated the relationships among Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) symptoms and common comorbid struggles for clients, including Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) symptoms, and executive functions, especially emotion regulation. ADHD and GAD are prevalent mental health conditions, are commonly comorbid with each other, and are both correlated with relative deficits in executive functions. Executive functions comprise higher-order cognitive processes like planning, inhibition, initiation, and monitoring, as well as emotion regulation. Prior research established connections among ADHD symptoms, GAD symptoms, and emotion regulation but did not examine which specific facets of emotion regulation were most relevant. The current study aimed to …

The Lived Experience Of The Covid-19 Pandemic Among Mandate-Resistant Adults In Washington State, Amber N. Peterson

Antioch University Full-Text Dissertations & Theses

This study examined the lived experience of self-identified, mandate-resistant adults in Washington state. This study explored participants’ experience of the COVID-19 pandemic, from a retrospective framework by uncovering challenges, silver linings, decision-making, and self-reported mental health. Remote interviews were conducted with nine participants. Participants were between 23–31 years old, mostly male, and over half identified as Black. Through semi structured interviews, data was collected and analyzed using Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). Participants described their experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic and highlighted significant changes in the way they lived their lives. Most notably, participants described ways in which they defied COVID-19 …

Trauma-Informed Supervision: The Supervisory Needs Of Mental Health Therapists Engaged In Trauma-Related Work, Erynne H. Shatto, James Stefurak Ph.D., Amy E. Rinner, Lacy M. Kantra

Journal of Counselor Preparation and Supervision

We present the need for therapists who engage in trauma-specific work to receive trauma-informed supervision or consultation. This is based on the findings that the emotional labor required of trauma-specific work is high and increases a therapist’s risk for experiencing negative impacts from their work such as vicarious trauma, compassion fatigue, unhelpful transference/countertransference, reminders of their own trauma, and burnout. Further, clients incur risks of receiving iatrogenic care when therapists engaged in trauma-related work are not given appropriate job related resources and/or receive ineffective supervision. We discuss a model for trauma-informed supervision, including supporting theory and initial guidelines for supervisors’ …

Constructing And Validating Of The Covid-19 Fear Scale: Psychometric Evidence And Optimal Cut-Off Score From Palestine, Fakher Khalili

An-Najah University Journal for Research - B (Humanities)

Background: Various corona-phobia scales have been constructed to measure the levels of fear related to COVID-19. However, probably these scales were established based on the individualistic perspective, without pay attention to fear for others’ destiny. Objective: The current study is addressing the fear of COVID-19 in light of collectivistic values. Method: The present study constructed and validated a new scale measuring fear of COVID-19 among Palestinians (C-19FSP) based on a sample size of (885) respondents. Further, this study was designed to provide an optimal cut-off score for diagnosing corona-phobia. The study was carried out through two phases using a convenient …

Professional And Personal Humility In Relation To Between-Therapist Differences In Effectiveness, Heather Muir

Doctoral Dissertations

Objective: Research demonstrates that mental health clinicians vary in their general effectiveness—the “between-therapist effect.” Thus, it is important to identify determinants of such differences in order to understand and cultivate the therapist characteristics or actions that reliably foster better patient outcomes. To date, several of such variables have emerged empirically. For example, therapists who exhibit higher versus lower levels of professional self-doubt (PSD; a critical questioning of one’s skills as a clinician) have been shown to achieve better interpersonal outcomes with their average patient. Although arguably counterintuitive, the beneficial influence of PSD may make sense if, instead of simply reflecting …

Survivor Experiences Of Male Childhood Sexual Abuse: A Literature Review, Elizabeth Burch B.S., Joseph T. Kenneally Psy.D., Stephanie Zepeda Phd

Psychology from the Margins

The World Health Organization (WHO) recognizes childhood sexual abuse (CSA) as a global health issue. CSA is a human violation that affects both female and male children and has a stronger detrimental impact on mental health than other traumatic childhood experiences. Despite a growing awareness of male survivors of CSA, male survivors are a marginalized group as most CSA research focuses on females. In addition, masculine norms can keep male adults from disclosing further, which can delay support and increase mental health issues. This meta- analysis reviews the current literature on this group of marginalized people and concludes with a …

The Impact Of Mandatory Substance Abuse Counselor Reporting Requirements On Child Maltreatment Reporting Outcomes, Bilgé Özgé Yilmaz

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

The present study sought to examine how state-level mandatory reporting policies are associated with child maltreatment reporting through analysis of the National Data Archive on Child Abuse and Neglect (NDACAN, 2021). This study aimed: 1) to examine how the implementation of substance abuse counselor reporting requirements is associated with the reporting process, including the disposition of reports and the presence of substance abuse; and 2) to examine differences in the above outcomes based on associations between non-specific reporting requirements and specific requirements that mention substance use counselors. A quasi-experimental approach with repeated cross-sectional data was utilized, as it is a …