Psychiatry and Psychology Commons^™

Motives For Participation In Triathlons Among Midlife To Older Black Women: A Mixed Method Study, Candace Brown

Theses and Dissertations

BACKGROUND: Research has established the positive link between physical activity and its impact on health among adults. Generally, as people get older, they are less likely to be active. Black women comprise 13% of the women in the US but constitute 52% of women who are inactive. Existing articles on exercise motivation among Black women have generally assessed sedentary individuals. Little research has examined the motivations to exercise among physically active Black women. METHODS: Guided by the regulators of the Self Determination Theory, the 56 item Motivations of Marathoners Scales for Triathletes (MOMS-T) was used to assess the motives of …

Chronic Pain Causal Attributions In An Interdisciplinary Primary Care Clinic: Patient-Provider And Provider-Provider Discrepancies, Bryan Jensen

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the influence of pain causal attributions on patient pain-related functioning, treatment engagement, and clinical outcomes. Additionally, the impact of discordant pain causal attributions between patients and their providers as well as between interdisciplinary providers was examined. Patients rated their pain functioning and causal pain attributions during a regular clinic visit. Following the patient’s visit both the behavioral medicine provider and internal medicine resident provided ratings of similar pain-related functioning domains and causal attributions. Follow-up data were collected from the electronic medical record three months following that clinic visit. Overall, results revealed …

The Effect Of Pre-Deployment Physiology As A Predictor Of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Among A Sample Of United States Army National Guard And Reserve Soldiers, David J. Rothman

Theses and Dissertations

Potential risk factors for development of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) are still unclear. One potential risk factor for the development of PTSD is an individual’s cardiovascular reactivity and recovery in response to stressor tasks. The current study was conducted with 763 Army National Guard and Army Reserve soldiers. Participants completed a stressful induction along with self-report measures prior to deployment. Post-deployment, self-report measures were completed to assess PTSD symptomatology and experiences related to deployment and combat. Multiple regression was used to determine the ability of blood pressure response to stress to predict PTSD symptoms immediately and one-year after return from …

Improving The Inference Of Some Experiemtal Studies By Using Ranked Auxiliary Covariates, Rajai Jabrah

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

In many studies, the measurement of sampling units according to the response variable is costly or time consuming, however, it is possible to rank sampling units according to baseline auxiliary covariates, which are available, easily obtainable, and cost efficient. In these cases, when estimating the population mean, Ranked Set Sampling (RSS) can be a more efficient sampling method than the Simple Random Sampling (SRS) method. In this dissertation, we propose a modified approach of the RSS method to allocate units into an experimental study, aimed to compare two or more groups.

Ranked auxiliary covariates, which are typically correlated with the …

Social Anxiety Disorder And The Americans With Disabilities Act's Impact On A Professional Athlete's Media Obligations, Matthew Gollub

Cardozo Public Law, Policy & Ethics Journal

No abstract provided.

Testing A Low-Intensity And Accessible Cognitive Behavioral Therapy For Insomnia (Cbt-I) Intervention In Individuals Newly Diagnosed With Cancer, Amma Agyemang

Theses and Dissertations

Insomnia is defined as difficulty initiating or maintaining sleep, or nonrestorative sleep that lasts for at least one month and is accompanied by significant impairment in daytime functioning including fatigue, irritability, and/or difficulty concentrating. It is one of the most common complaints reported by individuals with cancer, especially around the time of cancer diagnosis and treatment. Yet it is often unrecognized and untreated, leading to adverse health consequences and increased healthcare costs. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I) has been recommended as the gold standard for treating insomnia among individuals with cancer. Multiple studies have tested and proven the efficacy …

Predictors Of Caffeine-Related Withdrawal Symptoms In College Freshmen, David J. Pomm

Theses and Dissertations

While caffeine withdrawal has been well-characterized, research on caffeine intake and factors associated with withdrawal has been limited. The present study examined prevalence rates of caffeine use and identified psychosocial factors associated with having caffeine withdrawal headaches (CWH). Participants were N = 1,989 college freshmen who participated in the 2011 Spit for Science project. Caffeine use was reported by 80% of the sample. Females were more likely than males to consume caffeine, and soda was the primary source of caffeine for both genders. As hypothesized, daily caffeine users were more likely to report CWH than non-daily users. When multivariable analyses …

Exploring The Role Of Intersectionality On Cardiovascular Disease Risk In Sexual Minorities, Leia Harper

Theses and Dissertations

Background: Previous research has shown that sexual minority individuals (SM) are twice as likely to smoke, twice as likely to be overweight or obese, and less likely to be physically active than heterosexual persons; all of which place SMs at an increased risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD). While information on CVD risk by race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status is well documented, there is scant literature examining race, gender, and the potential CVD risk in SMs. The purpose of this study was to examine CVD risk in sexual minorities.

Method: The current study used data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent …

A Longitudinal Study Of The Motivations For The Non-Medical Use Of Prescription Drugs In A National Sample Of Young Adults, Tess K. Drazdowski

Theses and Dissertations

Young adults are most at-risk for the non-medical use of prescription drugs (NMUPD) and many of its associated negative consequences. Understanding this population’s motivations for use can help to inform efforts to reduce NMUPD. Past research has been limited in scope, consisting primarily of cross-sectional work with college students focusing on prescription stimulants. The current study researched how motivations for NMUPD changed over young adulthood using three waves of data from a longitudinal, nationally representative sample of 14,990 19 to 24 year olds in the Monitoring the Future study cohorts collected between 1976 to 2013. Prescription stimulants, central nervous system …

“The Most Poisonous Of All Diseases Of Mind Or Body”: Colorphobia And The Politics Of Reform, April J. Gemeinhardt

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Focusing on the mid-1830s through 1865, this thesis explores colorphobia—the irrational fear and hatred of black people otherwise known as racial prejudice—as a reform tactic adopted by abolitionists. It argues that colorphobia played a pivotal role in the radical abolitionist reform agenda for promoting anti-slavery, immediate emancipation, equal rights, and black advancement. By framing racial prejudice as a disease, abolitionists believed connotations, stigmas, and fears of illness would elicit more attention to the rapidly increasing racial prejudice in the free North and persuade prejudiced white Americans into changing their ways. Abolitionists used parallels to cholera, choleraphobia (fear of cholera), and …

Parsing The Behavioral And Brain Mechanisms Of Third-Party Punishment, Owen D. Jones, Matthew Ginther, Richard J. Bonnie, Morris B. Hoffman, Francis X. Shen, Kenneth W. Simons, Rene Marois

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

The evolved capacity for third-party punishment is considered crucial to the emergence and maintenance of elaborate human social organization and is central to the modern provision of fairness and justice within society. Although it is well established that the mental state of the offender and the severity of the harm he caused are the two primary predictors of punishment decisions, the precise cognitive and brain mechanisms by which these distinct components are evaluated and integrated into a punishment decision are poorly understood.

Using a brain-scanning technique known as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), we implemented a novel experimental design to …

Examining The Psychological Adjustments Of Neurotypical Siblings Of Individuals With Autism Spectrum Disorder (Asd) And Determining The Efficiency Of Support Groups, Swathi Deo Sambatha

UROP Posters

Neurotypical siblings of individuals with behavioral disorders are reported to have complex, complicated psychological adjustments that vary significantly due to a multitude of sociodemographic factors. In addition, these children are at risk of mental health disorders and negative psychological symptoms. Support groups or extensive social support are known to increase intra-communication and create better sibling dynamics between the neurotypical and autistic siblings. This paper investigates such complications to the psychological adjustment of neurotypical siblings of individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and determines the implications of the utilization of support groups/social support. The analyzed trends and reportings of multiple studies …

Subjective Measures Of Mz And Dz Twins During Anxiety-Provoking Tasks, Sravya Uppalapati

UROP Posters

Temporary anxiety is a healthy response to stress; however, continuous anxiety can threaten an individual’s day-to-day living by eliciting negative responses. In the study, monozygotic 84 (MZ) and 153 dizygotic (DZ) adolescent twins pairs, ages 15 to 20 years, participated in anxiety-provoking tasks and subjective experiences of anxiety were measured using subjective units of distress (SUDS). The twin participants were recruited through the Mid-Atlantic Twin Registry (MATR) at Virginia Commonwealth University. The twins participated in a carbon dioxide (CO₂) breathing task and a trier social stress task (TSST). The study aims were to evaluate the relationship between anxiety-provoking …

The Relationship Between Exercise And Depression And Anxiety In College Students, Joshua Frank, Dr. Amy Adkins, Nathan Thomas, Dr. Danielle Dick

UROP Posters

The literature shows an inverse association between exercise and mental disorders. The aim of this study is to further elaborate on this association with regards to exercise and its relationship with anxiety and depression in a college sample. The subject group focused on seniors in the Spit for Science data set which incorporated a total of 821 students. Physical activity was assessed using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) to estimate the overall metabolic equivalents (MET’s) each student spent in walking, moderate, or vigorous activity levels in the previous week. Sum scores were used to measure depression and anxiety. Overall,the …

Perceptions Of Harm And Addiction Among Dual Users Of Cigarettes And E-Cigarettes, Julia S. Rozman

UROP Posters

Background: Tobacco harm perceptions are important factors in why individuals may initiate, substitute, and/or engage in dual or poly-tobacco use patterns. Identifying correlates of these perceptions is important for understanding why these cognitions may exist and help provide intervention targets. The purpose of the current study was to examine perceptions of harm and addiction among a sample of cigarette and electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) users and examine whether these perceptions differ by demographics, other substance use, and tobacco use history.

Methods: The current sample consisted of 29 individuals who consented to participate in a clinical laboratory study of dual cigarette and …

Novel Spoxazomicins Derived From Streptomyces Sp. Rm-14−6 Attenuate Ethanol Induced Cytotoxicity In Vitro, Meredith A. Saunders

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

An estimated 13.9% of Americans currently meet criteria for an alcohol use disorder. Ultimately, chronic alcohol use may result in neurological deficits, with up to 85% of alcoholics exhibiting signs of cognitive decline. However, biochemical and behavioral factors contributing to this decline have remained elusive. Our ongoing research program encompasses a multi-tiered screening of a natural product library and validation process to provide novel information about mechanisms underlying these deficits and to identify novel chemical scaffolds to be exploited in the development of pharmacological treatments for alcohol use disorders in a rodent organotypic hippocampal slice culture mode. Experiment 1 sought …

Loss Aversion In Cocaine Users: Influence Of Risk And Commodity Type, Justin Charles Strickland

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Numerous studies in behavioral economics have demonstrated that individuals are more sensitive to the prospect of a loss than a gain (i.e., loss aversion). Although loss aversion has been well described in healthy populations, little research exists in individuals with substance use disorders. The purpose of this study was to comprehensively evaluate loss aversion in cocaine users. Participants completed measures designed to assess loss aversion for drug and non-drug commodities under varying risk conditions. Cocaine demand was determined using a cocaine purchase task. Cocaine users showed a loss aversion score that was consistent across commodity and risk conditions. Compared to …

Decision-Making Processes, Driving Performance, And Acute Responses To Alcohol In Dui Offenders, Walter Roberts

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Alcohol-impaired driving is a major cause of motor vehicle accident and death in the United States. People who are arrested for DUI (Driving under the Influence) are at high risk to reoffend; approximately one in three of these individuals will commit another DUI offense in the three years following their first conviction (Nochajski & Stasiewicz, 2006). This high risk for recidivism in these individuals suggests that cognitive characteristics may contribute to a pattern of pathological decision making leading to impaired driving. Indeed, individuals with a history of DUI report higher rates of impulsiveness and behavioral dysregulation compared to their nonoffending …

Burnout And Depression In Psychiatric Residents, Irvin Sam Schonfeld, Eric Laurent, Pierre Vandel, Renzo Bianchi

Publications and Research

Kealy et al. (2016) found that 21% of psychiatric residents were suffering symptoms of burnout. A number of problems call that finding into question. First, the writers used a one-item measure to assess burnout. Second, mounting evidence suggests that burnout is a depressive syndrome. Third, unresolvable job stress is related to depression. Given burnout's overlap with depression and the diagnostic blur around burnout, research on the impact of job stress should connect with depression, which is nosologically well characterized and diagnosable using clinically validated instruments.

Burnout And Depression: Label-Related Stigma, Help-Seeking, And Syndrome Overlap, Renzo Bianchi, Jay Verkuilen, Romain Brisson, Irvin Sam Schonfeld, Eric Laurent

Publications and Research

We investigated whether burnout and depression differed in terms of public stigma and help-seeking attitudes and behaviors. Secondarily, we examined the overlap of burnout and depressive symptoms. A total of 1046 French schoolteachers responded to an Internet survey in November–December 2015. The survey included measures of public stigma, help-seeking attitudes and behaviors, burnout and depressive symptoms, self-rated health, neuroticism, extraversion, history of anxiety or depressive disorder, social desirability, and socio-demographic variables. The burnout label appeared to be less stigmatizing than the depression label. In either case, however, fewer than 1% of the participants exhibited …