Clinical Psychology Commons^™

Investigating Post-Exertional Malaise As A Core Symptom Of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis And Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: A Meta-Analytic Approach, Abigail A. Brown

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Efforts to establish a reliable and valid case definition for myalgic encephalomyelitis and chronic fatigue syndrome (ME and CFS) have been complicated by an over-reliance on clinical consensus, and inconsistent application of established case definitions by researchers across study sites. This has resulted in the absence of an empirically-based case definition for ME and CFS, as well as failed replication studies on potential diagnostic tests and biomarkers. One step toward an empirically-driven case definition is determining which symptoms best discriminate between patients with ME and CFS versus controls. Post-exertional malaise (PEM) is considered a cardinal symptom of ME and CFS …

The Lived Experience Of Recovery Home Residents: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis, Dina Chavira

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Substance use disorders have had an enormous impact on individuals, families, and communities in the United States. The societal cost of substance abuse in terms of health care, crime, and lost wages is over $700 billion annually. Despite advances in evidence-based treatments, the chronicity of substance use disorders underscores the need to explore and expand long-term aftercare options to prevent relapse after acute residential treatment. Oxford Houses offer an affordable alternative to more costly and limited forms of transitional housing. These self-sustaining, democratically-run recovery homes provide a safe and sober living environment with peer support and no professional staff. Provided …

The Role Of Therapeutic Engagement, Oral Language Proficiency, And Core Learning Indicators On The Effects Of Therapy For Youth With Depression, Amanda E. Wagstaff

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Youth with depression, particularly ethnic minority youth, have low rates of engagement in mental health services, indicating a large need to better understand the role of engagement in effective treatments for depression (Merikangas et al., 2011). Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is one of the leading psychotherapeutic treatments available for youth with depression (Weisz, McCarty, & Valeri, 2006), but several questions still remain regarding why and in what circumstances this therapy is most appropriate. CBT posits that part of the positive treatment effects is accounted by learning certain cognitive and behavioral skills during and outside of session (i.e., through active homework …

Examination Of Multidimensional Acculturation Theory And Acculturation Process On Latinas/Os In Communal Recovery Homes, Roberto Lopez Tamayo

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Disparities in access and utilization of substance abuse treatment (SAT) among Latinas/os, accentuated by the rapid growth of this population are creating a public health issue. Among those in need of SAT, only 7.7% receive treatment and nearly half of these individuals complete SAT or continue their recovery in a controlled environment. Additionally, Latinas/os who complete SAT reported their needs were not met in treatment. Although substance abuse literature has given more consideration to environmental factors and social support in relation to treatment outcomes, current substance abuse models fail to address important contextual and cultural aspects for Latinas/os in recovery. …

Maternal Trauma Experience On Infant Cortisol Reactivity At 12 Months, Michelle Anne Gilchrist

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) is a major public health concern in the United States (US). One third of women in the US have experienced rape, physical assault or stalking by a former or current partner (Black et al., 2011). Evidence suggests that women experience increased risk for IPV during the perinatal period and exposure to IPV during and after pregnancy increases risk for adverse physical and mental health outcomes for victims. The “fetal programming” hypothesis proposes that prenatal experiences are also particularly impactful for offspring development in the short and long term; prenatal poor nutrition and stress have been linked …

An Examination Of Depression And Social Support Among African American Women In Substance Use Recovery, Jocelyn Rose Droege

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Depression is responsible for widespread functional impairment and disability in 16 million individuals across the United States, as well as societal costs that exceed $36 billion. There are numerous risk factors for depression, such as female gender, ethnic minority status, poverty, incarceration, and comorbid substance use disorders. Thus, low-income, criminal-justice-involved African American women in recovery from substance use problems represent a population that is particularly vulnerable to depression. Social support has been established as a protective factor against depression; however, the relationship between social support and depression has been understudied in such high-risk African American populations. The present study examined …

Examining The Role Of Mentorship On Urban Youth: The Effect Of Locus Of Control On Academic Achievement, Stacy Alaina Stewart

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Positive academic effects of mentoring interventions have bee established, but little is known about how and why mentoring interventions are effective. Understanding the mechanisms or constructs that enable mentoring effects would allow researchers to better generalize these types of interventions across populations. This present study explored the construct, locus of control, and examined its effects on academic achievement in the context of mentorship. In the present study, 87 urban, low-income middle school youth participated in a randomized controlled trial intervention, entitled The Cities Mentor Project. Cities Mentor Project provides coping trainings, and access to mentors and community organizations, to further …

Corporate Social Responsibility (Csr) And Its Impact On Actions: Exploring Social Change Through College Students, Rachael Leigh Suffrin

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

The present study has three goals. First, it validates a new Sensitivity to Employer Social Responsibility Scale, used to help understand how undergraduate students perceive their values related to corporate social responsibility (CSR) impact their prospective employment decisions. Second, this study examines whether students value working for a socially responsible employer and third, how (a) social justice experiences in college and/or (b) social justice attitudes and beliefs may predict how students perceive the impact their CSR values have on their prospective employment decisions. Results indicate that students who participated in the study overall positively endorsed a degree of sensitivity to …

Universal Teacher-Child Interaction Training: A Pilot Study Examining Coaching With Random Assignment, Alexandra Lauren Barnett

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Classrooms are in dire need of teacher support services and effective child behavior management, particularly in low-income urban areas (Campbell & Ewing, 1990; Fantuzzo & Mohr, 1999; Hamre & Pianta, 2004; Visser, Bitsko, Danielson, Perou, & Blumberg, 2010). Teacher-Child Interaction Training - Universal (TCIT-U) is a preventive, classroom-wide teacher training protocol that shows promise for strengthening teacher and child behavior (Budd, Garbacz, & Carter, 2016; Fernandez, Gold, Hirsch, & Miller, 2015b; Garbacz, Zychinski, Feuer, Carter, & Budd, 2014; Lyon, Budd, & Gershenson, 2009a). To date, this is the first pilot study with random assignment to investigate TCIT-U; further, it is …

Bedtime Fading With Response Cost For Treatment Of Sleep Disturbances In Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Sela Ann Sanberg

Theses & Dissertations

As many as 82% of children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) experience numerous chronic sleep-related problems and at a much higher frequency and severity than their typically developing peers. Behavioral treatments are considered best practice and first-line treatment to address sleep problems. These treatments tend to address one specific sleep-related behavior at a time. Bedtime Fading with Response Cost (BFRC) is a promising intervention that targets a multitude of sleep problems concurrently and has yet to be replicated by more than one investigative team in the home setting with children on the autism spectrum. This study evaluated the effectiveness of …

Executive Dysfunction Or State Regulation: A Dimensional Comparison Of Two Neuropsychological Theories Of Attention Disorder Symptoms Using Rdoc Paradigms, Justin Hull Ory

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Two leading theories regarding the neurocognitive basis of attentional disorders are the executive dysfunction theory and the state regulation theory. The executive dysfunction theory takes a top-down approach, explaining the symptoms of ADHD as a byproduct of general deficits in executive functioning—particularly disinhibition. The state regulation theory takes a bottom-up approach, explaining the symptoms of ADHD as a failure to be sufficiently aroused by, and subsequently engage with, less stimulating or rewarding tasks. These two theories predict different patterns of performance on tasks of executive functioning and attention, and research has demonstrated mixed support for both theories. The present study …

Examining Variables Associated With Age Of First Concern And Diagnosis In Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Amy Mathews Creel

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Abstract

Autism Spectrum Disorder is a disorder that is present during a child’s early developmental ages; affects that child’s ability to communicate and socially interact with others; and involves the presentation of restrictive interests and/or repetitive behaviors. Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) symptoms/behaviors are recognized by parents and can be reliably diagnosed at age two but often are not diagnosed until after age four. Delay in diagnosis results in loss of important intervention services that can improve the well-being of children with ASD. This study examined ethnicity, severity of symptoms, and type of symptoms and their effect on the age at …

A Tale Of Two Tasks: Comparing Steady-State Visually Evoked Potentials With The Dot Probe As Measures Of The Anxiety-Related Threat Bias, Aqib J. Chowdhury

Theses and Dissertations

The present study explored how the anxiety-related threat bias (TB) measured by the dot probe is associated with steady-state visually evoked potentials (ssVEPs). ssVEPs were not significantly correlated with TB measured by the dot probe, suggesting that the dot probe and ssVEPs may index distinct components of attention to threat.

The Role Of Teacher Warmth In Teacher Accuracy Evaluating Child Cognitive And Executive Functioning, Heather Hennrick

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

This study sought to expand current knowledge about aspects of the teacher-child relationship that may facilitate accuracy in teacher reporting on children’s higher-order cognitive skills, including attention, working memory, and executive functioning (EF). The study proposed a model of children’s cognitive functioning, wherein performance-based neuropsychological measures of children’s attention, working memory, and EF and teacher-student relational warmth predicted teacher reports of children’s abilities. The final sample for this study included 37 teachers and their 8- to 12-year old students. Results found that teachers’ behavioral reports captured children’s true neurocognitive abilities, as measured by performance-based neuropsychological measures. Teacher warmth was related …

Psychological Determinants Of Physical Activity Across The Life Course: A "Determinants Of Diet And Physical Activity" (Dedipac) Umbrella Systematic Literature Review, Cristina Cortis, Anna Puggina, Caterina Pesce, Katina Aleksovska, Christoph Buck, Con Burns, Greet Cardon, Angela Carlin, Chantal Simon, Donatella Ciarapica, Giancarlo Condello, Tara Coppinger, Sara D’Haese, Marieke De Craemer, Andrea Di Blasio, Sylvia Hansen, Licia Iacoviello, Johann Issartel, Pascal Izzicupo, Lina Jaeschke, Martina Kanning, Aileen Kennedy, Fiona Chun Man Ling, Agnes Luzak, Giorgio Napolitano, Julie Anne Nazare, Grainne O’Donoghue, Camille Perchoux, Tobias Pischon, Angela Polito, Alessandra Sannella, Holger Schulz

Publications

Low levels of physical activity (PA) are reported to contribute to the occurrence of non-communicable diseases over the life course. Although psychological factors have been identified as an important category concerning PA behavior, knowledge on psychological determinants of PA is still inconclusive. Therefore, the aim of this umbrella systematic literature review (SLR) was to summarize and synthesize the scientific evidence on psychological determinants of PA behavior across the life course. A systematic online search was conducted on MEDLINE, ISI Web of Science, Scopus, and SPORTDiscus databases. The search was limited to studies published in English from January 2004 to April …

Developing A Competency-Based Framework To Guide Elementary School Teachers' Efforts In Helping Bullied Children, Samantha Gregus

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The current study aimed to develop a competency-based framework designed to assist elementary school teachers in their efforts to help bullied children. Drawing from extant research, Gregus and Cavell (2017) created an initial draft of the framework that contained 25 components representing a mix of knowledge, attitudes, and skills. In Study 1, I obtained input on the framework from practicing elementary school teachers (n = 26) and researchers who study school bullying (n = 14). Teacher input was gathered via a series of focus groups and researchers responded using an online survey. Both teachers and researchers viewed the framework positively …

Examining Drinking Motivation, Resiliency, And Alcohol Use Among American Indian And Caucasian College Students, Emily Sargent

Theses and Dissertations

While previous research has suggested American Indians (AI) experience higher levels of alcohol use and related consequences than Caucasians (CA), recent research has demonstrated that AI may actually be drinking at the same or lower rates than CA. AI college students may choose to consume alcohol for different reasons than CA students, referred to as drinking motivation. Resiliency (i.e., experiencing positive outcomes regardless of serious threats) may be one factor that moderates the relationship between specific drinking motives and alcohol use. The current study examined alcohol use, drinking motivation, and resiliency among University of North Dakota (UND) AI (n = …

Fidelity Scorecard: Evaluation Of A Caregiver-Delivered Symptom Management Intervention, Dawn Frambes, Rebecca Lehto, Alla Sikorskii, Irena Tesnjak

University Faculty Publications and Creative Works

To evaluate and quantify the intervention fidelity of a symptom management protocol through implementation of a scorecard, using an exemplar study of caregiver-delivered reflexology for people with breast cancer. Background: Studies on caregiver-delivered symptom management interventions seldom include adequate information on protocol fidelity, contributing to potentially suboptimal provision of the therapeutic intervention, hindering reproducibility and generalizability of the results. Design: Fidelity assessment of a 4-week intervention protocol in a randomized controlled trial (RCT) with data collection between 2012 - 2016. Methods: The National Institutes of Health Behaviour Change Consortium (NIH-BCC) conceptual model for intervention fidelity guided the study. The five …

Body Image And Bodybuilding: The Impact Commitment To Bodybuilding Has On Body Image Disturbance Among Competitive Bodybuilders, Jordan Henslee

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect commitment to bodybuilding had on body image disturbance in men. It was hypothesized that competitive bodybuilders would exhibit higher levels of body dissatisfaction, body checking, body consciousness, and symptoms of muscle dysmorphia than regular weight lifters. It was also hypothesized that commitment to bodybuilding, as defined by the number of competitions, would predict the severity of body image disturbance as measured by body dissatisfaction, body checking, body consciousness, and symptoms of muscle dysmorphia. Participants included males who were a minimum age of 18 years old. Participants were recruited via Mechanical …

More Than Mere Synonyms: Examining The Differences Between Criminogenic Thinking And Criminogenic Attitudes, David W. Gavel

Dissertations

More than 75% of prison inmates are arrested for a new crime within five years of being released from prison. Known as recidivism, this trend of repeated criminal activity accounts for more than half of annual prison admissions, and rehabilitative programs demonstrate varying degrees of success in reducing recidivism. Andrews, Bonta, and Hoge (1990) demonstrated that offenders are less likely to recidivate when they receive services that match their assessed level of risk factors (e.g., history of violence), intervention needs (e.g., mental health diagnosis), and responsivity (e.g., ideal learning environment). Criminogenic cognition, mental events (e.g., thoughts, attitudes, and beliefs) often …