Health Psychology Commons^™

Do Educators Value The Promotion Of Students’ Wellbeing? Quantifying Educators’ Attitudes Toward Wellbeing Promotion, David Byrne Phd, Colm Mcguinness Phd, Aiden Carthy Phd

Articles

Educators’ attitudes toward Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) and health and wellbeing promotion can significantly influence the success (or otherwise) of such policies and practices. While numerous studies exist, from which a broad understanding of such attitudes can be garnered, there is currently no attendant measurement which quantifies educators attitudes regarding the promotion of student wellbeing. The aim of this study was to address this gap in knowledge by quantifying the degree to which educators are positively or negatively disposed to the promotion of student wellbeing. The Attitudes Toward Wellbeing Promotion (ATWP) scale was administered …

Exploring Experiences Withcontraceptive Discontinuation, Julia Giurleo

Honors Program Theses and Projects

The purpose of this study was to explore women’s experiences with contraceptive discontinuation and to analyze the importance of various factors that influenced the decision to switch or discontinue contraceptives. Qualitative interviews asking participants about their experiences with contraceptive discontinuation and decision making were conducted with 15 participants between the ages of 18 and 45 (M = 27.6, SD = 7.9). Thematic analysis was applied to these interviews, and we identified four themes in the data. The first theme, Early Experiences with Contraceptives, explored the similar perceptions that women had towards the beginning of their contraceptive journeys that led to …

Endorsement (And Rejection) Of Normative Fitness Culture: Qualitative Evidence For A Novel Construct, Sara M. Stanley, Eva Pila, Katarina Huellemann

Undergraduate Student Research Internships Conference

“Normative fitness culture” is a phenomenon within the disordered eating literature that comprises the endorsement of sociocultural fitness norms (e.g., “no pain, no gain” rhetoric). Endorsement of normative fitness culture is hypothesized to contribute to maladaptive body, eating, and exercise attitudes and behaviours, though it has never been formally operationalized and examined in the psychological literature. Qualitative explorations of how women endorse (and reject) normative fitness culture may inform how these norms are promoted and maintained, and their impact on individual psychosocial experiences. Therefore, the objective of the current study was to explore and characterize the endorsement and rejection of …

Usri Summer Experience - Psychological Intern, Jessica Ierullo

Undergraduate Student Research Internships Conference

I had the pleasure of working with Colin King under the Mary J. Wright Child and Youth Development Clinic to aid in their new research project. Studying children, the goal for the project is to assess the psychological impacts that long-term, intensive PCCU care has on the youth. Throughout the summer, I worked as an intern, helping to establish a base from which the project can stem from. This short slide show highlights the current progress that has been made towards setting up the study. I am looking forward to inspecting the study results once it is completed.

A Prescription Of Positive Psychology: Bridging The Intention-Behavior Gap In Social Prescribing In The Uk, Jill Rzym

Master of Applied Positive Psychology (MAPP) Capstone Projects

Although people have intentions to change their behavior, many do not take any action, and this discrepancy is called the intention-behavior gap. Studies estimate the gap is as high as 50%, a figure of some significance in health behavior change. This paper explores the intention-behavior gap in the context of social prescribing in the UK. It looks at the current problems of measurement and evaluation within social prescribing and the potential impact of the intention-behavior gap. The paper also considers the current research addressing the gap and proposes an alternative solution based on a positive psychology framework and positive psychology …

Coping With The Unforeseen: An Investigation Of Character Strengths Of Parents Who Have Children With Life-Altering Diagnoses, Rabiya Karamali

Master of Applied Positive Psychology (MAPP) Capstone Projects

Parenting is a challenge role, and it is an even more challenging experience when you have a child with a life-altering diagnosis (LAD). In this investigation, the character strengths of parents of healthy children and parents of children with LADs were measured, as well as their sense of meaning and well-being. We hypothesized that parents of children with LADs might have a different profile of top strengths than parents of healthy children. However, the results revealed no significant differences in character strengths between the two groups of parents, except for the character strength of love of learning. There were significant …

The Coping Strategies Of Older Adults With Age Related Vision Loss (Arvl) – A Narrative Account, Zakara J. Stampp

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The goal of this study was to share the stories of older adults with age-related vision loss (ARVL) and how they have coped to maintain meaningful occupational engagement. Grounded in a constructivist paradigm, data collection and analysis were guided by the narrative inquiry methodology. The participants consisted of six older adults aged 60 or older, diagnosed with one of the following ARVL conditions: macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, and/or glaucoma. Participants were recruited from vision loss non-profit organizations such as the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB) and the Alliance for Equity of Blind Canadians (AEBC). One older adult was …

Ambivalent Sexism And Condom Use Self-Efficacy Amongst Men Who Bottom: A Serial Mediation Model, Elliott Nolan Devore

Doctoral Dissertations

The effects of gendered power dynamics between men and women during sexual encounters are well documented in the literature. Specifically, internalizing sexist beliefs about masculine dominance and feminine submission is related to worse sexual health outcomes. Less is known, however, about gendered power dynamics between men having sex. Those who engage in anal sex as the receptive partner (i.e., bottom) are feminized and shamed in various cultures, viewed as submissive, and may have internalized sexist beliefs and, thus, sexual role prejudice. Consequently, bottoms may feel less sexual autonomy, which influences their condom use self-efficacy. This is important given that bottoms …

Investigating Person-Specific Profiles Of Readiness-To-Exercise: Exploring Associations With Hypothetical Experiential Outcomes And Perceived Relevance, Cory Beaumont

Doctoral Dissertations

Autoregulation is a person-adaptive strategy wherein exercise workloads are adjusted to match one’s readiness (e.g., acute mental, physical, perceptual state). Prior work demonstrated that structural features of readiness profiles (i.e., which factor(s) are most important) differ across individuals. As this work relied on mathematical modeling, research is needed to understand the informational utility of person-specific profiles (PSPs) of readiness. Purpose: Model heterogeneity in PSPs of readiness (Aim 1), explore associations between PSP factor scores and forecasted experiences to hypothetical muscle-strengthening exercise (Aim 2), and explore participants’ perceptions of relevance and utility regarding their PSP (Aim 3). Methods: For …

Factors Associated With Eating Disorders In Men: A Systematic Review, Zoe Alsup

Psychology Capstone Projects

This systematic review sought to identify factors that are associated with men who experience anorexia or bulimia nervosa or symptoms of these disorders. Articles were included in this review if they were peer reviewed, published in or translated to English, published from 2010 to 2021, had full text accessible, included male participants, and included male participants diagnosed with anorexia and/or bulimia nervosa or who displayed symptoms of anorexia and/or bulimia nervosa. Articles were excluded if they did not meet the inclusion criteria, were a case study, interview, or literature review, or focused on a topic outside of the outcomes of …

Racial Differences In Tobacco Use And Risk Factors Among Young Adults: Roles Of Expectancies And Emotion Regulation, Laurel Brockenberry

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

African Americans experience higher mortality from lung cancer and other smoking-related diseases than Caucasian Americans (Kochanek et al., 2016) despite engaging in cigarette and e-cigarette use significantly less or at comparable rates to other racial groups (CDC, 2015; Schoeborn, 2013). During adolescence, smoking prevalence is lower among African Americans than Caucasian Americans, but there is a “cross-over effect” whereby smoking rates become similar later in adulthood (Belgrave et al, 2010). The mechanisms driving this effect are poorly understood. Thus, examining motivating factors for tobacco use, such as outcome expectancies and emotion regulation, may be especially illuminating for young adult African …

Cyberchondria And Covid-19 Health Threats Related To Attentional Bias And Safety Behaviors, Jacqueline J. Charles

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Cyberchondria is described as excessively searching online for health information that ultimately increases worry and anxiety about one’s health (Starcevic et al., 2019). Research has demonstrated an increased attentional bias in anxious individuals for threat-related stimuli. Attentional bias for health information exacerbated by the frequent exposure to health threats during the COVID-19 pandemic may contribute to additional health-seeking behavior. The current study aimed to explore the potential relationship between COVID-19 health threats and cyberchondria level on attentional bias toward illness-related stimuli (symptom words) and the intent to perform safety behaviors while controlling for Trait Anxiety and Health Anxiety. Participants ( …

Development And Evaluation Of A Spiritual Distress Screener For Use In Healthcare Settings, Sarah G. Salcone

Theses and Dissertations

Spirituality and religion can play an integral role in physical and mental health outcomes in positive and negative ways (Pargament, 2013; Rosmarin, 2018). While there are established screener items to determine positive utilization of spirituality, there are no existing screener measures for spiritual struggles. The Religious and Spiritual Struggles scale (RSS; Exline et al., 2014) is considered the gold standard for measuring spiritual struggles yet is too lengthy to be used as a screener. The present study sought to develop a brief spiritual distress screener for use in healthcare settings. Phase 1 of the study utilized secondary datasets in which …

Investigating Fruit And Vegetable Variety In A National Food Co-Op: A Brighter Bites Evaluation, Katherine G. Hearne

School of Public Health Dissertations (Open Access)

American children eat fewer fruits and vegetables (F&V) and less variety of F&V than recommended for health. Food cooperatives and other programs have become a popular way to increase F&V intake, but little is known about the variety of F&V distributed by these programs or its relationship with program attendance or child F&V intake. Brighter Bites is a national, school-based food co-op distributing rescued, donated, fresh F&V to families in low-income schools. We evaluated, for the first time, the variety of F&V Brighter Bites distributed to families in the 2018-2019 school year and the relationships between that variety and both …

Potential And Pitfalls Of Mobile Mental Health Apps In Traditional Treatment: An Umbrella Review, Jerica Koh, Germaine Y. Q. Tng, Andree Hartanto

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

While the rapid growth of mobile mental health applications has offered an avenue of support unbridled by physical distance, time, and cost, the digitalization of traditional interventions has also triggered doubts surrounding their effectiveness and safety. Given the need for a more comprehensive and up-to-date understanding of mobile mental health apps in traditional treatment, this umbrella review provides a holistic summary of their key potential and pitfalls. A total of 36 reviews published between 2014 and 2022—including systematic reviews, meta-analyses, scoping reviews, and literature reviews—were identified from the Cochrane library, Medline (via PubMed Central), and Scopus databases. The majority of …

Let's Get Physical: Exploring The Socioemotional Motivators Of Group Exercise For Older Adults, Tessneem S. Hasan, Alyssa R. Minton, Jason Snyder, Joseph A. Mikels

DePaul Discoveries

Approximately 75% of active adults in the U.S. do not meet the recommended levels of overall physical activity (CDC, 2021a). Given the beneficial impact of physical activity on health, an 8-week long, evidence-based group exercise program—Fit & Strong! (F&S!)—was created to improve the health of older adults (Hughes et al., 2004, 2006, 2010). Despite the clear physical benefits of F&S!, it remains unknown what motivates F&S! participants to initially participate in the program and also throughout the program. Drawing from core notions of socioemotional selectivity theory (SST; Carstensen, 2006), research has found that older adults are highly motivated to exercise …

Perceived Stress And Salivary Biomarkers In Educators: Comparison Among Three Stress Reduction Activities, Doreen Wagner, Sharon M. Pearcey

Faculty and Research Publications

Background: The teaching profession is a potentially stressful occupation with up to 30% of all novice teachers leaving the profession and annual teacher turnover is higher when compared with turnover of all other occupations. This study investigated the effects of a one-time stress reduction activity (meditation, yoga, or aerobic exercise) in university and K-12 educators who were part of one-day seminar on Stress Reduction.

Methods: Participants (N = 26) self-selected their stress reduction activity, completed a demographic questionnaire, educator stress self-assessment tool, and visual analogue scales indicating current stress levels. Salivary cortisol and amylase levels were measured before, immediately after, …

Exploring Components For A Family-Focused Intervention For Families With A Child Diagnosed With Cancer And Other Chronic Illnesses, Nicole Kubinec

Psychology ETDs

Chronic illnesses are often life-long and affect academic performance, social development, psychological well-being, and family functioning. The broad effects of childhood chronic illnesses are often assessed using measures of child health-related quality of life (HRQL). Parent factors (parental distress, perceptions of child vulnerability, overprotection) and family factors (maintaining rituals, open communication, positive coping) have been associated with changes in child HRQL. This study sought to discover how parent and family factors were associated with child HRQL, and how such factors were perceived by families for inclusion in future interventions. Results demonstrated that parental perceptions of child vulnerability were associated with …

College Athletes’ Views On Academics: A Qualitative Assessment Of Perceptions Of Academic Success, Amanda M. Brouwer, John Johanson, Thomas Carlson

Journal of Athlete Development and Experience

The primary purpose of the current study was to give “voice” to college athletes regarding their views on academics. Given their perspectives, means of promoting their academic achievement were suggested. Research describing athletes’ experiences and the impact of socio-emotional stressors on academic success, especially for those not at a Division I school, is needed. Therefore, a qualitative study exploring the academic experiences of college athletes was conducted. Twelve focus groups of college athletes (N = 62) from six teams were held. Results revealed that college athletes are motivated to achieve by external factors and see grades as an external …

Perceived Social Support And Risk Of Cyberbullying In Adolescents: A Systematic Review, Sergio A. Castaño-Pulgarín, Katy Millán, Álvaro A. Acosta Echavarría, Ciro E. Redondo Mendoza, Milton C. Cardona Parra, Jose F. Castilla Tang

The Qualitative Report

This article analyzes the main findings of studies investigating the relationship between perceived social support and cyberbullying in adolescents. We reviewed research papers published between January 2015 and January 2020, included in the Web of Science, Scopus, PUBMED, and Science Direct databases. The protocol was previously registered on the PROSPERO International Systematic Reviews database (CRD42020176938). The article follows the PRISMA guidelines for systematic reviews (Moher et al., 2015). Out of 1929 surveyed articles, 23 met the inclusion criteria and quality standards of scientific evidence set by Downs and Black (1998). Results reveal the types and characteristics of studies and instruments …