Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Heat Stress In Urban Environments: A Case Study Of Heat Vulnerability In New Haven, Ct, Logan M. Howard

Library Map Prize

A place-based understanding of heat and its behavior is necessary for appropriately preparing our cities and protecting the most vulnerable populations from this urgent climate and public health threat. This paper aims to identify the areas in New Haven, CT that have the highest autumnal temperature exposure and sensitivity to provide evidence for developing mitigation and adaptation measures. Original temperature data was collected using a bike-mounted Smart T sensor and then compared with data on land cover and water proximity. These heat exposure estimates were analyzed with 2019 Census data on age, income, race, and ethnicity, for 19 census tracts …

“It Didn’T Matter What The Bill Said...”: Influences On Abortion Policy Legislative Decision-Making In Georgia, Erica Barton, Subasri Narasimhan, Dabney P. Evans

Journal of the Georgia Public Health Association

Background: In March 2019 the Georgia legislature passed HB 481 described as a “heartbeat bill”, prohibiting abortion at around six weeks gestation. Given the prevalence of anti-abortion legislation and the public health implications of abortion restrictions, we sought to understand how Georgia legislators made decisions on this early abortion ban legislation.

Methods: We conducted in-depth interviews with nine legislators from the Georgia House of Representatives who participated in the 2019 legislative session. In-depth interviews were conducted in-person and over the phone. Interview recordings were transcribed verbatim and inductive codes identified. Codes focused primarily on views of: abortion in general; specific …

Supporting Student-Athlete Mental Health: Ncaa Division I Coaches' Experiences, Perceived Role, And Barriers, Kelsey Kinnamon

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The opportunity for coaches to play an important role in supporting student-athlete mental health has been increasingly identified (Biggin et al., 2017; Gulliver et al., 2013; Henrikson et al., 2020). Findings suggest that coaches have the potential to help identify athletes who may benefit from mental health services, as well as foster an environment supportive of mental health and help-seeking (Bapat et al., 2009; Bissett et al., 2020). Recommendations have been set forth regarding how coaches may best engage in their role of supporting mental health, however, the literature lacks evidence of what collegiate coaches are actually doing to support …

Identifying Collegiate Athlete's Motivation To Continue Training In Quarantine Compared Between Sexes, Delaney A. Jamison

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Purpose: To identify the type of motivation that was most common among NCAA Division I athletes to continue training during a period of quarantine and how this differs between sexes. Methods: Male and female student-athletes from a university in the southern United States were recruited for the study. 47 participants (males = 13, females = 34) completed the Sport Motivation Scale-II (SMS-II) and Basic Needs Satisfaction in Sport Sale (BNSSS) questionnaire to determine their motivation and basic needs satisfaction during the period of imposed quarantine. Data Analysis: A Mann-Whitney-U test was calculated to determine the differences of composite intrinsic motivation …

Associations Between Social Determinants Of Health And Chlamydia Infections Among Georgia Counties, Bre'auna K. Beasley

Theses and Dissertations

Chlamydia is a growing public health concern that disproportionately impacts southern states. While social determinants of health are not direct causes of chlamydia infections, studies have found that these determinants do influence infections by creating environments that promote or hinder health seeking behaviors, as well as exposure to risk factors. Guided by the Social Ecological Model of Public Health and the Healthy People 2030 Social Determinants of Health Conceptual Framework, this dissertation study aimed to examine the associations between social determinants of health and chlamydia infections among Georgia counties. This study employed a correlational research design. Aggregate-level secondary data for …

A Conceptual Proposal For The Epigenetically Causal Relationship Between Parental Ptsd And Inflammatory Disease In Post Hoc Offspring., Emma Griffith

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Could a combat veteran's horrific experiences in early-2000s Afghanistan have a direct, biological impact his now-adult daughter's risk of a heart attack later in her life? This concept would have been unapologetically mocked a mere twenty years ago, and it has only been in the past decade that the new field of epigenetics has revealed a distinct possibility for this event to actually take place—for parents' experiences to profoundly influence the biology of their children. The major objective of this research project is to argue for the legitimacy of this theoretical phenomenon by discussing the latest data regarding PTSD's interaction …

Market Structure And Quality Of Service: Investigating Oligopolies And The Quality Of Nursing Home Care In California During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Tessa Ireton

Senior Independent Study Theses

Quality-of-service outcomes in nursing homes are of great social and human importance. However, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, consistently maintaining markets with high quality care has been a pervading issue in the American nursing home industry. Furthermore, the industry is strongly characterized by oligopolies, a market structure that literature indicates may be less compatible with quality service than competitive markets. With this paper, I aim to investigate the possible intersection of oligopolist market structures and the quality of nursing home care during the COVID-19 pandemic. I start by describing quality of care in nursing homes, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, …

Harming The Help-Seeking: Necessity For Assessing Harmful And Biased Attitudes Toward Clients With Substance Use Disorder, Crystal D. Mcdowell, Crystal Dawn Mcdowell

Psychology Doctoral Specialization Projects

Numerous times, as a new clinician, I have witnessed the substance use disorder population referred to as not being dependable, dangerous, burnt out, and even hopeless. Often times I have heard mental health professionals make statements amongst themselves that the client could not be helped, referred to them as a “frequent flyer,” (meant to convey they frequently present for treatment, relapse, and return for treatment), and complain how tax dollars are being wasted to support the client. I felt empathy and a sense of hopelessness for these clients as they were seeking treatment in order to get help and yet …

Understanding Female Somali Noncollege Graduate Immigrant’S Experiences With Cervical Cancer Screening Services, Rachel Anyu Anyu-Lainjo

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractHealthcare disparities exist in cervical cancer screening worldwide particularly in women of East African descent compared to non-African women. Previous research has investigated the reasons for low participation in cervical cancer screening among Blacks, minorities, and immigrant populations. Limited research has focused on immigrant women in the United States of America, specifically immigrants from Somalia who currently live in St. Cloud, Minnesota. The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand the perception of Somali immigrant women ages 25 - 45 years who have not earned a college degree and their lived experiences with cervical cancer screening. Two conceptual frameworks …

Female Health Networks In Yemen: An Examination Of The Impact Of Conflict On Health Infrastructure And The Role Of Women In Yemen’S Health System, Philippa S. Chadwick

Senior Projects Spring 2021

This project aims to establish the existence of informal community female-led health networks within Yemen and understand the functions of these health networks and how they have been impacted by the ongoing internal conflict in the country. Female health networks exist globally in both informal and formal sectors. But, the extent to which female health networks function and their importance is unique to Yemen, and there has been no scholarly work focusing on this phenomenon. This paper will use the information gained from 52 interviews with Yemeni women and available literature to understand the current formal and informal health systems …

The Impact Of Social Media On Teenage Females Self-Esteem, Amanda C. Perkovich

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Social media has become the way we connect with the world. Social networking sites, including Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter and TikTok, allow users to share intimate details of their lives, upload photographs, initiate and maintain relationships, plan social gatherings, observe the lives of others and express beliefs, values and emotions. In the last ten years, numerous articles have focused on the relationship between social media use and mental health however, very few studies have concentrated on self-esteem, especially in teenage females. The purpose of this literature review is to explore the associations between increased social media activity (greater than 2 …

Comparing The Acceptability Of Treatment Rationales For Two Psychotherapies, Marin Gail Olson

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

An effective treatment rationale is important because it can affect whether or not a client decides if they will commit to the therapeutic approach. In recent years, acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) has developed as an approach that, although related to cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), is philosophically distinct. CBT typically places a greater emphasis on changing/eliminating “symptoms” of psychological disorders and the role thoughts play in directly influencing emotional and behavior problems. ACT, on the other hand, places a heavier emphasis on accepting and changing one’s relationship to aversive private experiences. When comparing the assumptions and goals underlying CBT and ACT, …

The Effects Of Therapist Expertise And Concerns Of Involuntary Hospitalization On The Disclosure Of Suicidal Ideations And Behavior, Zane Hensel

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Suicide continues to grow as a complex and multi-faceted problem in prevention and treatment, particularly for college students with an increased predictor of risk of suicidal behaviors. Previous research has indicated that one of the largest concerns for suicide disclosure is a fear of involuntary hospitalization. Over 200 college students participated in examining therapist expertise and understanding information on involuntary hospitalization on their rate of suicide disclosure. A 2x2 MANOVA, a 2x2x2 MANOVA that included gender, and a factor analysis were performed on an ad-hoc 11-question survey assessing suicidal ideation and suicidal behavior disclosure. The results indicated that there was …

Exploring Weight Control Expectancies As A Mediator Of The Relationship Between Fear Of Fat And Nicotine Dependence In Smokers And Vapers, Emily Pomichter

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

Specific drug-use expectancies are shaped by reports from others about the effects of the drug, by an individual’s own experience with the drug, or by both. The present study hypothesized that, among smokers and e-cigarette users (vapers), an individual’s fear of weight gain would be associated with higher endorsement of appetite and weight control expectancies from nicotine use, which in turn would be associated with self-reported levels of nicotine dependence. The participants were smokers (n = 514) and vapers (n = 412) who responded to a Qualtrics survey advertised via Amazon’s Mechanical Turk platform. As predicted, nicotine’s appetite and weight …

Vermont Special Educators’ Perceptions On The Inclusion Of Students With Disabilities In Universal Positive Behavioral Interventions And Supports (Pbis), Cassandra L. Townshend

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

AbstractOver the last 25 years, there has been an increased body of research on best practices to address the social, emotional, and behavioral well-being of all students in schools. Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS) has consistently demonstrated effectiveness in attending to all students’ social, emotional, and behavioral wellbeing – including students with disabilities (Simonsen et al., Feb., 2020). Despite PBIS being implemented in over 27,000 schools in the United States (Horner & Sugai, 2015) and in over 50% of schools Vermont, minimal research has been conducted on the experiences of special educators and their perceptions of PBIS practices on …

Perceived Addictiveness Of Marijuana, Tobacco And Alcohol Use In Vermont Youth And Young Adults: Associations Between Addiction Perceptions, Sociodemographics, And Substance Use, Julia C. West

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

Dual and poly-tobacco and substance use are increasingly prevalent in youth and young adults. Current substance use prevention media efforts target addiction perceptions in young people; however, little is known about the perceived addictiveness of multiple substances among young people. The goal of the current study is to examine youth and young adults perceive addictiveness across several substances and the associations between addiction perceptions and substance use. Data were collected in Spring and Summer 2019 (Waves 1 and 2) as part of PACE Vermont, an online cohort study of Vermonters aged 12–25. Latent class analyses grouped participants by responses to …

The Relationship Between The Stigmatization Of Mental Illness, Communication Apprehension And The Willingness To Communicate, Madeleine Louise Winkler

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

This project explores how mental health stigmatization influences communication apprehension and the willingness to communicate about mental illness. A total of 153 people completed an online survey regarding three variables. Perceived stigma and communication apprehension when communicating about their own mental health were found to be positively correlated. Perceived stigma and communication apprehension when communicating about someone else’s mental health was also found to be positively correlated. Communicating about one’s own mental illness lead to higher levels of communication apprehension compared to communicating about someone else’s mental illness. Communication apprehension when talking about one’s own mental health and willingness to …

Mothers Know Best: Guidance For Healthcare Providers On Early Identification Of Perinatal Mental Health Disorders, Klarissa I. Garcia Orellana

Graduate School of Professional Psychology: Doctoral Papers and Masters Projects

Introduction: The perinatal period has been associated with an increased risk of developing psychiatric disorders among women. Perinatal mental health disorders (PMHD) are highly prevalent, yet highly underrecognized and untreated. The involvement of medical providers, especially obstetrics/gynecology and pediatric providers, in the early identification of PMHD is critical to ensure women with PMHD receive appropriate supports. However, providers lack the education, training, and ability to identify and screen for PMHD as well as the knowledge of appropriate referrals. Objective: This study explores the existing issues with healthcare providers’ early identification practices of PMHD from the perspective of ten mothers and …

Covid-19 And The Workplace: Implications, Issues, And Insights For Future Research And Action, Kevin M. Kniffin, Jayanth Narayanan, Frederik Anseel, John Antonakis, Susan P. Ashford, Arnold B. Bakker, Peter Bamberger, Hari Bapuji, Devasheesh P. Bhave, Virginia K. Choi, Stefanie J. Creary, Evangelia Demerouti, Francis J. Flynn, Michele J. Gelfand, Lindred L. Greer, Gary Johns, Selin Kesebir, Peter G. Klein, Sun Young Lee, Hakan Ozcelik, Jennifer Louise Petriglieri, Nancy P. Rothbard, Cort W. Rudolph, Jason D. Shaw, Nina Sirola

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

COVID-19’s impacts on workers and workplaces across the globe have been dramatic. We present a broad review of prior research rooted in work and organizational psychology, and related fields, for making sense of the implications for employees, teams, and work organizations. Our review and preview of relevant literatures focuses on: (i) emerging changes in work practices (e.g., working from home, virtual teams) and (ii) economic and social psychological impacts (e.g, unemployment, mental well-being). In addition, we examine the potential moderating factors of age, race and ethnicity, gender, family status, personality, andcultural differences to generate disparate effects. Illustrating the benefits of …

Lessons From Our Living Rooms: Illuminating Lockdowns With Technology Domestication Insights, Sun Sun Lim, Yang Wang

Research Collection College of Integrative Studies

With at least half of humanity under lockdown to arrest the spread of COVID-19 (Sandford, 2020), adults have been working from home and children engaging in home schooling for months on end. Competing for scarce resources such as digital devices, bandwidth, as well as physical and personal space, families have had to contend with rising tensions around the quality of digital engagement, children’s learning abilities, parent-child relationships and overall familial wellbeing. This fraught situation shone the spotlight on the household context of technology use but also enabled us to marshal academic insights to advance advocacy and public education. The pandemic …

Hair And Salivary Cortisol And Their Relationship With Lifestyle, Mood And Cognitive Outcomes In Premanifest Huntington’S Disease, Travis Cruickshank, Tenielle Porter, Simon M. Laws, Mel Ziman, Danielle M. Bartlett

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Salivary cortisol dysrhythmias have been reported in some, but not all studies assessing hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis function in Huntington’s disease (HD). These differences are presumed to be due to environmental influences on temporal salivary cortisol measurement. Further exploration of HPA-axis function using a more stable and longer-term measure, such as hair cortisol, is needed to confirm earlier findings. This study aimed to evaluate hair and salivary cortisol concentrations and their associations with clinical and lifestyle outcomes in individuals with premanifest HD (n = 26) compared to healthy controls (n = 14). Participants provided saliva and hair samples and data were …

Supporting Resilience In Reserve Component Spouses During Deployment: The Impact Of Family Life Cycle Phase And Deployment History On Social Support Needs, Jennifer L. Ceminsky

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

This exploratory study used a researcher developed survey to examine the relative value of instrumental, emotional, and informational support for Reserve Component spouses during deployment. Although all types of support were valued by nearly all study participants, significant differences were found between ratings of helpfulness for each type of support. Emotional support was the support type most valued by 73.1% of spouses in this study. Instrumental support was most valued by21.1%, and only 2.8% of spouses valued informational support most. Regression analyses were used to identify factors that were predictive of value placed on each type of social support. The …

The Benefits Of Evidence Based Practices In Public Administration: Does Therapeutic Listening Training Increase Emotional Intelligence To Affect Change Management Outcomes In Public And Private Sector Organizations, John Sillup

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

Abstract

This doctoral dissertation considers change management as it relates directly to evidence-based practices in public administration. The problem under study was the lack of scholarly research on the effect of an administrative leader’s emotional intelligence (EI) has on follower self-efficacy during change management. This study provided findings on the effect of therapeutic listening training as a means to increase emotional intelligence to potentially affect change management outcomes in public and private sector organizations. Change management is a systematic and structured process of developing and implementing strategies and interventions for organizations transitioning from current state to a desired state. The …

Go Talk To Your Employee: A Sequential Mediation Analysis Of Leader Communication Frequency And Employee Turnover Intent, Max Weaver

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Employee turnover has significant negative costs to healthcare organizations. While leadership communication styles and quality have been empirically supported to reduce turnover intentions, our understanding of specific modalities of leader intervention is not well understood. This paper sought to understand how the specific act of communication frequency reduces turnover. Through the lens of Leader-Member Exchange (LMX) and role dynamic theories, mediating effects of LMX quality and job satisfaction were investigated to further understand this proposed relationship in a sample of healthcare workers in the Midwest/US. Results indicate that communication frequency was negatively related to turnover intent. Furthermore, while LMX and …

Ehealth Parent Education For Hearing Aid Management: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial, Karen F. Muñoz, Guadalupe G. San Miguel, Tyson S. Barrett, Courtney Kasin, Kelsey Baughman, Bailey Reynolds, Caitlyn Ritter, Makynzie Larsen, John J. Whicker, Michael P. Twohig

Psychology Student Research

Objective: Parents frequently experience challenges implementing daily routines important for consistent hearing aid management. Education that supports parents in learning new information and gaining confidence is essential for intervention success. We conducted a pilot study to test an eHealth program to determine if we could implement the program with adherence and affect important behavioral outcomes compared to treatment as usual.

Design: Randomized controlled trial

Study sample: Parents of children birth to 42 months who use hearing aids. Eighty-two parents were randomly assigned to the intervention or treatment-as-usual group. Four parents assigned to the intervention group did not continue after baseline …

"Because It’S 2015!": Justin Trudeau’S Yoga Body, Masculinity, And Canadian Nation-Building, Jennifer Musial, Judith Mintz

Journal of Feminist Scholarship

In 2015, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told reporters he chose a gender-balanced cabinet “because it’s 2015,” a sentiment that resonated with Leftists and feminists. Trudeau showed he was a different kind of male politician through his yoga practice. Through candid yoga photographs, Trudeau represented himself as a sensitive new age guy who challenged hegemonic masculinity through wellness, playfulness, and a commitment to multiculturalism. Using discourse analysis, we examine visual, print, and social media texts that feature Trudeau’s connection to yoga, masculinity, and nation-building. We argue that Trudeau’s yoga body projects a “hybrid masculinity” (Bridges 2014; Demetriou 2001) that constructs …

College Students' Mental Health And Drug Use Outcomes During The Stay-At-Home Order, Alexander T. Hain

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected people of all ages causing increased drug usage and worsening mental health in addition to hospitalization and death. The current study investigated how the United States’ stay-at-home orders affected the mental health and drug use of young adult college students. This population is of particular interest because young adults are at most risk of drug use developing into addiction. Two hypotheses related to the self-medication hypothesis were investigated: (1) there will be a significant increase in drug use during the stay-at-home order when compared to drug use prior to the stay-at-home order and (2) feelings …

Implementación De Políticas De Prevención Y Control De La Obesidad Infantil En Estados Unidos Y Latinoamérica: Lecciones Para La Investigación Y La Práctica Transfronterizas, Mireya Vilar-Compte, Rafael Perez-Escamilla, Elizabeth Rhodes, Olga L. Sarmiento, Camila Corvalan, Rachel Sturke, Susan Vorkoper

Department of Public Health Scholarship and Creative Works

Aunque se han hecho avances en el desarrollo y aplicación a gran escala de inter-venciones eficaces contra la obesidad infantil, los retos siguen siendo importantes. Nuestro objetivo era comprender las causas del éxito de Estados Unidos y los países latinoamericanos en la implementación de políticas y programas (PYP) contra la obe-sidad e identificar oportunidades de mejora aplicando los principios de la ciencia de la implementación. Seleccionamos tres estudios de comparación de casos: (1) el etique-tado frontal en los envases de alimentos (México y Chile), (2) los programas de calles abiertas y calles para el juego (Colombia y Estados Unidos) y …

The Use Of Technology For Mental Wellbeing In The Era Of Covid-19, Adam Fakhri

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

Prevalence of mental health issues has increased during the time of COVID-19. There are many contributing factors to consider, the main one reported has been social isolation due to quarantine precautions. Members of the community have spent extended periods of time at home and away from their loved ones during this pandemic. Many patients have reported many life events occurring including deaths in the family without the ability to even mourn with their family members. This has taken a toll on the community, especially in Vergennes where this small tight knit community that has relied on its tight social bonds …

Maternal Depression Trajectories And Child Bmi In A Multi-Ethnic Sample: A Latent Growth Modeling Analysis, Charlotte V. Farewell, Ryley Donohoe, Zaneta Thayer, James Paulson, Jacinda Nicklas, Caroline Walker, Karen Waldie, Jenn A. Leiferman

Psychology Faculty Publications

Background

Perinatal (antenatal and postpartum) depression impacts approximately 12% of mothers. Perinatal depression can impact everyday functioning for mothers, and the relationship with, and development of, their children. The purpose of this study was to investigate depression trajectories from the antenatal period through 54-months postpartum and associations with child body mass index at 54-months postpartum.

Methods

This study applied latent growth modeling to the Growing Up in New Zealand study, which is a longitudinal pregnancy cohort study that provides nationally representative-level data, to investigate associations between depression at three time points (antenatal, 9-months postpartum, 54-months postpartum) and child body mass …