Mental and Social Health Commons^™

Person-Centered Treatment To Optimize Psychiatric Medication Adherence, Natalie Bareis

Theses and Dissertations

Objectives: Adherence to psychotropic medication is poor among individuals with bipolar disorder (BD). To understand treatment experiences and associated adherence among these individuals, we developed a novel construct of Clinical Net Benefit (CNB) using psychiatric symptoms, adverse effects and overall functioning assessments. We tested whether adherence differed across classes of CNB, whether individuals transitioned between classes over time, and whether these transitions were differentially associated with adherence.

Methods: Data come from individuals aged 18+ during five years of the Systematic Treatment Enhancement Program for Bipolar Disorder (STEP-BD). Latent class analysis identified groups of CNB. Latent transition analysis determined probabilities of …

The Impact Of Perceived Mental Illness Stigma On Caregivers’ Desire To Relinquish Care, Tyler R. Corson

Theses and Dissertations

Caregiving can be stressful, and older adults’ health and well-being may be impacted by the roles and responsibilities they assume as caregivers for persons with serious mental illness (SMI). This study is the first to apply the Stress Process Model of Caregiving (SPM) in an attempt to understand how mental illness stigma influences caregiver outcomes, specifically their desire to relinquish care. The intent of this study was to call attention to care relinquishment as an under-studied stress process outcome and to explore stress factors, with a focus on mental illness stigma, that contribute to SMI caregivers’ desire to relinquish care. …

Walking In Beauty: Responsive And Responsible Health And Healing Among Virginia American Indian People, Amy J. Prorock-Ernest

Theses and Dissertations

Little is systematically known about the collective health and well-being of Virginia American Indian people. This study sought to explore the meaning of health and healing among Virginia American Indian people in the context of a reservation-based, non-federally funded health clinic. Using an emergent approach to qualitative research grounded in a constructivist inquiry paradigm and guided by Indigenous research principles, a total of 24 in-depth, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 17 American Indian service-users of the Clinic. Through an inductive thematic analysis of participant stories, a framework for understanding responsive and responsible health and healing was derived. The framework includes …

Ballroom Dancing In Conjunction With Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy: Increasing Emotional Connections Through Non-Verbal Communication, Shana B. Kronish

Graduate School of Professional Psychology: Doctoral Papers and Masters Projects

Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy (EFCT), Dance Movement Therapy (DMT), and ballroom dance have each been found to be beneficial in developing individual and interpersonal verbal and non-verbal communication and emotional awareness; however, very little research has been performed on the combined therapeutic use of any of these modalities. In this study, semi-structured interviews were conducted with therapists and ballroom dance instructors who work with couples in order to facilitate dialogue regarding the limitations and benefits of therapy and ballroom dance. The core theme of this study was the ‘Interest in Application.’ The eleven additional themes that evolved were ‘Benefits of …

Exploring Police Officers' Perceptions Of Mobile Crisis Rapid Response Teams Within A Nodal Policing Framework, Trevor Viersen

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

An increasing portion of police service resources are being dedicated to interactions involving persons with mental illness (PMI). As a result, Mobile Crisis Rapid Response Teams (MCT) comprised of mental health professionals have been recently implemented to assist police officers in more efficiently handling police calls for service involving PMI. The current ethnographic study used data collected through researcher ride-alongs with police officers at a mid-sized police service in Ontario to assess how police officers interact with and perceive MCTs. Results from thematic analysis indicated that officers value the skill sets possessed by MCT workers, had relatively positive perceptions towards …

Young Adults In Transition: Factors That Support And Hinder Growth And Change, Mona Treadway

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Young adults between 18 and 24 years of age with mental illness are significantly less likely to receive mental health services than adults in older age groups.Nationally, higher rates of depression, substance abuse, and psychiatric issues are reported in this age group.A therapeutic model referred to as young adult transition programs has emerged to better address the unique developmental challenges found in this age group.This study examined 317 critical incidents that supported or hindered young adults in a therapeutic transition program.The research design used a combination of an instrumental case study and critical incident technique (CIT).Using interviews and the Outcome …

The Effects Of Gender And Perception Of Community Safety On Happiness, Jennifer K. Daffon

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Income-based indicators of happiness have been shown to be limited in their ability to predict happiness. Alternative measures of happiness have been gaining prominence in happiness research, and two predictors of happiness were investigated in the current study. The extent to which happiness (measured by affect, life satisfaction, and psychological well-being) could be predicted by gender and perception of community safety was investigated with 19,644 participant responses to The Happiness Alliance Survey. Multiple linear regression models indicated that gender and community safety are significant predictors of affect, life satisfaction, and psychological well-being. The effect of the predictor variables was similar …

The Experience Of Qigong Among Women Cancer Survivors, Jennifer Sveund

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Research has shown that qigong can be beneficial for a variety of health related conditions; However, evidence suggests that in the United States, a lack of well designed clinical trials limits the efficacy of qigong in the context of cancer treatment. Research has indicated that careful consideration should be given to the design of randomized control trials using qigong due to the conflicting philosophical methodologies. In the United States, qigong has been under investigated, particularly lacking are qualitative inquiries into qigong use and cancer survivorship. This study is an interpretative phenomenological inquiry that sought to understand women’s experience of qigong …

How Eye Movement Desensitization And Reprocessing (Emdr) Trained Therapists Stabilize Clients Prior To Reprocessing With Emdr Therapy, Edward H. Brendler

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Helping clients develop resources and stability required to tolerate reprocessing memories can be a considerable part of psychotherapy, particularly with clients who are suffering symptoms related to complex developmental trauma or cumulative multiple-event trauma. There is a paucity of research regarding how experienced EMDR Therapy practitioners experience helping their clients to develop resources required to tolerate reprocessing of trauma memories. This dissertation is an in-depth study of five participants, each a licensed mental health practitioner in the State of Washington, who are trained in EMDR and experienced working with clients who are suffering symptoms of trauma. Each participant was interviewed …

Significance Of The Feminization Of Male Eating Disorders, Rachel Rothman

Undergraduate Research Symposium Posters

Today, many individuals develop eating disorders; however, eating disorders are typically associated with women. In this paper, I declare that male eating disorders are stigmatized due to the feminization of eating disorders. I explain why this stigma exists and how this bias inhibits professionals from conducting objective research on male eating disorders and diagnosing them correctly. I illustrate how the stigma prevents men from recognizing their own unhealthy behaviors and can deter individuals from recognizing eating disorder-related behaviors in other men. Throughout the essay, I provide my own analysis regarding how to combat the stigmatization of eating disorders. By writing …

Experiences Of Postpartum Women In One Residential Treatment Facility For Substance Use Disorders: A Qualitative Case Study, Rebecca Jo Williams

Online Theses and Dissertations

A growing opioid crisis in the United States has sparked a need for gender-specific research and treatment to address unmet needs and promote positive health outcomes for both women and children. The primary purpose of this research is to provide insight into the experiences and perceptions of postpartum women with substance use disorders receiving care at one residential treatment facility. Two women, aged 22 and 27 years old, participated in semi-structured interviews designed to elicit perceptions about barriers to treatment, the value of various programs, the role of physical, social, and temporal contexts in treatment, and beliefs about the effect …

Euphoria: The Transition From Prescription Opioids To Heroin In Kentucky, Alexander Ryan Cundiff

Online Theses and Dissertations

The demand for and availability of prescription opioids has been quite prevalent in the state of Kentucky primarily since the early 1990's. But between 2010 and 2012, reformulations of opioids OxyContin and Opana, along with the passing of HB 217 and mandatory KASPER (Kentucky All Schedule Prescription Electronic Reporting) reports made the acquisition of diverted pharmaceutical opioids much more difficult. As a result, prices per pill increased and once opioids became nearly impossible to find on the streets, users then moved to another opiate, heroin. Since 2012, heroin related overdoses have increased significantly in the Bluegrass State. The purpose of …

The Development Of Mental Illness Stigma: The Role Of Perceived Social Support, Social Proximity, And Help-Seeking Behavior, Emily Kathryn Reed

Online Theses and Dissertations

The current study sought to explore the relationships mental illness stigmatization may have with perceived social support, proximity, and help-seeking behavior. Based on findings from previously conducted studies, hypotheses were formulated in order to further analyze how perceived social support, proximity, and help-seeking behavior may impact an individual's tendency to stigmatize mental illness. 203 Eastern Kentucky students participated in this study to test these hypotheses. These participants took part in an online study that measured their perceived social support based on their family environment, their proximity to those with a mental illness or mental illness in general, their attitudes regarding …

Racial Identity, Phenotype, And Self-Esteem Among Biracial Polynesian/White Individuals, Kawika Allen, Patton O. Garriott, Carla J. Reyes, Catherine Hsieh

Faculty Publications

This study examined racial identity, self-esteem, and phenotype among biracial Polynesian/White adults. Eighty-four Polynesian/White persons completed the Biracial Identity Attitude Scale, the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Inventory, and a Polynesian phenotype scale. Profile analyses showed participants identified more with their Polynesian parent. A mediation analysis revealed that phenotype did not mediate the relationship between biracial identity and self-esteem.

Attune With Baby: An Innovative Attunement Program For Parents And Families With Integrated Evaluation, Sara Beth Lohre

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Infants speak in their own language; sounds, screeches, cries, and howls that help them to communicate their caregiving needs. Unaware, parents may develop a checklist of caregiving approaches to the baby. The infant tells the adult directly what they need, and waits for the parent to respond. Infant talk may change from soft and quiet to loud and aggressive; coos and cries become crying and screams as the infant’s caregiver—communicating the intensity of emotion, urgency of their request, or their frustration with varied and sometimes inadequate, failed, or missing caregiving patterns the infant has no choice but to accept. When …

Lived Experience Of Military Mental Health Clinicians: Provided Care To Oif And Oef Active Duty Service Members Experiencing War Stress Injury, David W. Vandegrift

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Military mental health clinicians (MMHCs) have been essential to Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom. They served in extreme stress conditions, including on the front lines. As co-combatant/clinician, the MMHC bridged unique perspectives on the effects of war stress experienced by Active-Duty Service Members (ADSMs). To date, no study has focuses uniquely on MMHCs narratives as they provided care from this multiple perspective. This investigation was carried out from a phenomenological perspective. A single, open-ended question was asked of seven MMHCs about lived experiences while serving, resulting in in-depth interviews. These were textually coded. Though clinician positive and negative experiences …

A Novel Approach To Identifying A Neuroimaging Biomarker For Patients With Serious Mental Illness, Alok Madan, J Christopher Fowler, Michelle A Patriquin, Ramiro Salas, Philip R Baldwin, Kenia M Velasquez, Humsini Viswanath, David L Molfese, Carla Sharp, Jon G Allen, Susan Hardesty, John M Oldham, B Christopher Frueh

Staff and Researcher Publications

Serious mental illness (SMI) is disabling, and current interventions are ineffective for many. This exploratory study sought to demonstrate the feasibility of applying topological data analysis (TDA) to resting-state functional connectivity data obtained from a heterogeneous sample of 235 adult inpatients to identify a biomarker of treatment response. TDA identified two groups based on connectivity between the prefrontal cortex and striatal regions: patients admitted with greater functional connectivity between these regions evidenced less improvement from admission to discharge than patients with lesser connectivity between them. TDA identified a potential biomarker of an attenuated treatment response among inpatients with SMI. Insofar …

The Neurobiological Mechanisms Of Generalized Anxiety Disorder And Chronic Stress, Michelle A Patriquin, Sanjay J Mathew

Staff and Researcher Publications

Two classification systems are now at the forefront of clinical psychiatric research: (1) Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, Fifth Edition and (2) the National Institutes of Mental Health Research Domain Criteria. Herein, we propose that these two classification systems are complementary rather than mutually exclusive, and when combined provide important information for understanding aspects of the pathophysiology related to Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD). The neurobiological literature for GAD and one relevant research domain criteria component, sustained threat, are reviewed from multiple units of analysis (genetic, neuroimaging, neuroendocrine, and psychophysiological). It is hypothesized that generating a comprehensive, biologically based understanding of the …

Exploring The Experience Of Separation In Australia: Perspectives From Formerly Married And Cohabiting Parents, Sarah M. Barbas

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The increase in separation and divorce rates during the 20th century brought with it many far-reaching social implications for all involved, sparking a high level of interest among researchers. Most research in this area has been approached from stress frameworks that have conceptualised separation and divorce as a stressful life transition that individuals must adjust to. Yet, attempts to understand separation and divorce to date have been dominated by quantitative methods that have resulted in a relatively static and objective understanding of this experience; particularly in Australia. Furthermore, although international rates of divorce are declining, rates of separation following cohabiting …

Changes In The Relative Balance Of Approach And Avoidance Inclinations To Use Alcohol Following Cue Exposure Vary In Low And High Risk Drinkers, Ross Hollett, Werner G.K. Stritzke, Phoebe Edgeworth, Michael Weinborn

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

According to the ambivalence model of craving, alcohol craving involves the dynamic interplay of separate approach and avoidance inclinations. Cue-elicited increases in approach inclinations are posited to be more likely to result in alcohol consumption and risky drinking behaviors only if unimpeded by restraint inclinations. Current study aims were (1) to test if changes in the net balance between approach and avoidance inclinations following alcohol cue exposure differentiate between low and high risk drinkers, and (2) if this balance is associated with alcohol consumption on a subsequent taste test. In two experiments (N = 60; N = 79), low …