<p dir="ltr">Overcontrol is a coping style common to many psychiatric disorders that involves rigidity, goal persistence, and relying on a strict set of beliefs to manage aversive experiences. Overcontrol is associated with many core deficits, including disorders of internalizing and difficulties with social function. In clinical observation, it has been noted that there are two subgroups of patients with overcontrol, those who are “overly agreeable” and “overly disagreeable”. This work aimed to examine the role of agreeableness in overcontrol, investigating whether there exist important differences in psychiatric or psychosocial functioning at the poles of agreeableness. This study found evidence of this non-linear relationship for certain outcomes. For example, the relationship between internalizing distress and emotion dysregulation was non-linear in nature, meaning particularly low/high agreeableness in combination with overcontrol predicted more depression and dysregulation. Further nuance to these findings were investigated in exploratory analyses. Contrary to expectations, there was no evidence for a curvilinear role of agreeableness in social functioning, however, overcontrol was significantly related to loneliness. Further, there were many associations between agreeableness, overcontrol and interpersonal values, lending credence to clinical observation that people high in overcontrol hold certain values about their interpersonal context which may not be overtly expressed. Taken together, this paper offers support for the Radically Open Dialectical Behavioral Therapy conceptualization of behavior, providing empirical support to the agreeableness subgrouping.</p>

Answers to the question of what works best for what persons under what conditions have given rise to a new wave of metatheoretical approaches to counseling and psychotherapy that are situationally specific and tailored to meet the needs of individual clients. Such questions have only begun to be raised in the field of counselor education. Hence, the education and supervision of counseling students has remained largely an amorphous undertaking. In this study the researcher sought to examine how Master's level counseling students differed on measures of behavior, personality and theoretical orientation. Behavior patterns were assessed using Hutchins' metatheoretical model, called the T-F-A system, and the Hutchins Behavior Inventory (H.B.I.) that measures thinking, feeling and acting dimensions of human behavior. Personality characteristics were assessed using the Adjective Check List (A.C.L.). Theoretical orientations were assessed using a modified Smith Questionnaire. The students were divided into groups on the basis of behavior patterns, theoretical orientations, and gender. The issue of differences across these groups on measures of personality and behavior was then investigated. Results indicated that the H.B.I. works very well in assessing a) different personality orientations, b) responses to specific situations and c) theoretical preferences of counseling students. The existence of significant differences across theoretical orientation, behavior pattern, and gender groups on measures of behavior and personality calls for the development of a prescriptive approach to the training of counseling students. Results clearly suggest how counselors need to adapt to the specific client situations to maximize the possibility of behavior change. Implications for counselor education programs are discussed. / Ed. D.

The present study included two investigations examining social skills in fourth grade elementary school children. The first investigation involved the examination of the use of inhibiting and facilitating self-statements (i.e., self-statements that would make it harder or easier to deliver on effective social response) by groups of withdrawn (n=33), aggressive (n=32), and popular (n=27) children across types of interpersonal situations (conflict, initiation of interactions) and relationships (friend, stranger). Results indicated that popular children showed significantly greater facilitating-inhibiting change scores on a self-report measure devised for the present investigation (Socialization Self-Statement Test), completed following the four behavioral analogue situations (Conflict Friend, Conflict Stranger, Initiate Friend, Initiate stranger). There was no significant difference between aggressive and withdrawn children on this measure. In addition, results indicated a greater tendency for children to endorse facilitative vs. inhibiting self-statements in those situations involving friends (vs. strangers) and the initiating of social behavior (vs. conflict situations). Finally, a Relationship x Situation interaction was found, indicating significantly higher facilitating-inhibiting scores in situations involving initiating interactions with friends. In the second investigation, unpopular aggressive (n=24) and withdrawn (n=24) children were randomly assigned within sociometric categories to a behavior therapy, cognitive therapy, or attention control group and evaluated on a number of measures related to social competence (peer ratings, teacher ratings, direct observations, self-report). Results indicated no significant between-treatment group differences across assessment measures, although several significant within treatment group pre-post differences were found. The lack of between treatment group differences is discussed, along with some findings related to status group differences and correlational findings. Finally, suggestions for future research are introduced. / Ph. D.

Background: Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), an outpatient intervention, has shown efficacy in reducing suicidality. Less is known about its effectiveness when delivered in usual care (UC), and the resource-intensive nature of the program often results in modifications when implemented in usual care. Methods: A systematic search yielded 83 empirical evaluations of DBT that reported original data on at least one of three suicidality-related outcomes: (a) self-directed violence (SDV), (b) crisis service use (CSU), and (c) suicidal ideation (SI). Using meta-analysis, the current study (1) estimated pooled effect of DBT in UC, (2) compared effects in UC and non-UC settings, and (3) examined predictors of differential outcomes. Results: DBT demonstrated a large effect (g=.81) in reducing SDV and a medium effect in reducing SI (g=.68). The estimated effect on CSU (g=.60) was non-significant after adjusting for publication bias (g=.29). DBT was more effective than control conditions in reducing SDV (g=.50), even after adjusting for publication bias (g=1.63). No differences between UC and non-UC effects were detected. In uncontrolled studies, positive associations emerged between therapist training and SDV reduction, adherence-reporting and CSU reduction, and outpatient and SI reduction. Discussion: Results support DBT’s effectiveness in reducing suicidality-related outcomes in UC, but should be interpreted with caution given the heterogeneity among studies. Potential sources of heterogeneity and the methodological challenges of synthesizing research in UC are discussed. Recommendations for future work are offered. / Psychology

published_or_final_version / Social Work / Master / Master of Social Sciences

An experiment was conducted to contrast the effectiveness of Behavior Therapy administered in self, individual, or group therapy versus a no-treatment control condition. The therapy conditions were administered to two subgroups, high and low self reinforcers, as defined by Rosensky and Bellack (1976). The general hypothesis was that high self reinforcers would engage in countercontrol and therefore do poorly in group and individual therapy, but would lose weight in self therapy. Individual behavior therapy showed the best long term results, but self and group therapies also showed significant weight loss. It was also found that low self reinforcers as a group lost more weight than did high self reinforcers.

Mindfulness is a core component of dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), a widely utilized treatment for borderline personality disorder (BPD); however, the import of mindfulness in treating BPD has yet to be demonstrated, and the relationship of mindfulness to BPD constructs is unclear. The current study utilized structural equation modeling to examine the relations of mindfulness with BPD features and the underlying constructs of interpersonal problem-solving effectiveness, impulsivity, emotion regulation strategies, and neuroticism in 342 young adults. Mindfulness was significantly related to effectiveness in interpersonal problem-solving, impulsivity and passivity in emotion regulation, and borderline features. Furthermore, mindfulness continued to predict borderline features when controlling for interpersonal problem-solving and impulsive/passive emotion-regulation strategies, as well as when controlling for neuroticism. It is concluded that difficulties with mindfulness may represent a core feature of BPD and that improvement in mindfulness may be a key component of treatment efficacy with BPD. It is recommended that the unique contribution of mindfulness be investigated in future treatment-outcome research.

Syfte: Syftet var att kartlägga effekten av kognitiv beteendeterapi och mindfulness baserad kognitiv terapi hos personer som lider av hypokondri/hälsoångest.Bakgrund: Hypokondri är en undergrupp till somatoforma syndrom, vilket är symtom som inte kan förklaras genom generell medicin. Hypokondri är svårdiagnostiserat och har en underklassificerad term vid namn hälsoångest. Olika behandlingsformer för hypokondri/hälsoångest kan bland annat vara kognitiv beteendeterapi eller mindfulness baserad kognitiv terapi med olika inriktningar.Metod: En litteraturstudie utfördes enligt Goodmans sju steg, där det sista steget exkluderades. Inklusionskriterier var studier som redovisade resultat med deltagare som uppfyllde kriterierna för hypokondri/hälsoångest. Artiklar som krävde en avgift exkluderas från studien. Databassökningar gjordes i PubMed, CINAHL och PsycINFO där tio vetenskapliga artiklar valdes ut och analyserades. Resultat: Behandlingstid var en avgörande faktor för reducering av hypokondri/hälsoångest, där gruppbehandling visade sig ge god effekt. Kognitiv beteendeterapi och mindfulness baserad kognitiv terapi reducerade den negativa synen och attityden på sjukdom och minskade uppmärksamheten över kroppsliga symtom. Konklusion: Graden av hypokondri/hälsoångest minskade med hjälp av kognitiv beteendeterapi, mindfulness baserad kognitiv terapi eller kognitiv terapi. Gruppbehandling gav positiv effekt och visade sig vara kostnadseffektivt för sjukvården. / Aim: The aim was to describe the effect cognitive behavior therapy and mindfulness-based cognitive therapy had on people who suffered from hypochondriasis/health anxiety.Background: Hypochondriasis is a subordinate group to somatoform disorders, which are disorders that cannot be explained by general medicine. Hypochondriasis is difficult to diagnose and has a subordinate term called health anxiety. Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy and cognitive behavioral therapy are different types of treatments for hypochondriasis/health anxiety. Method: A literature study was carried out according to Goodman’s seven steps, the last step was excluded. Inclusion criteria was studies that presented a result of participants who had criteria for hypochondriasis/health anxiety. Payment articles were excluded. Database searches were carried out in PubMed, CINAHL and PsycINFO, where ten scientific articles were chosen, and analyzed. Result: Time of treatment was a substantial factor for reduced hypochondriasis/health anxiety. Treatment in group had a significant effect on treatment outcome. Cognitive behavior therapy, and mindfulness-based cognitive therapy reduced the intrusive image and attitude of being sick, and reduced the attention of bodily symptoms.Conclusion: Hypochondriasis/health anxiety reduced due to treatment. Group treatment had a significant effect on outcome, and showed cost-effectiveness in health care.

published_or_final_version / Social Work / Master / Master of Social Work

This study used an interdisciplinary approach to examine an intervention for reducing public speaking state anxiety. A quasi-experiment was conducted to determine if a multiple-exposure treatment technique (TRIPLESPEAK) would help to attenuate public speaking anxiety. The treatment group reported experiencing significantly less state anxiety during their post-test presentation than did the control group. This lead to the conclusion that exposure therapy can be used to help students enrolled in basic communication classes begin to overcome their fear of speaking in front of an audience. Follow-up analysis of the treatment group's reported anxiety levels during all five presentations (pre-test, Treatment Presentation 1, Treatment Presentation 2, Treatment Presentation 3, and post-test) revealed an increase in anxiety from the last treatment presentation to the post-test presentation. In order to explore this issue, Shannon's entropy was utilized to calculate the amount of information in each speaking environment. Anderson's functional ontology construction approach served as a model to explain the role of the environment in shaping speakers' current and future behaviors and reports of anxiety. The exploratory analysis revealed a functional relationship between information and anxiety. In addition, a qualitative study was conducted to determine which environmental stimuli speakers perceived contributed to their anxiety levels. Students reported experiencing anxiety based on four categories, which included speaker concerns, audience characteristics, contextual factors and assignment criteria. Students' reports of anxiety were dependent upon their previous speaking experiences, and students suggested differences existed between the traditional presentations and the treatment presentations. Pedagogical and theoretical implications are discussed.