Previous studies found that children with ASD tend to participate in lower amounts of physical activity (PA), accumulate greater hours of screen time (ST), and have poorer sleep quality (SQ), compared to typically developing (TD) youth. Unfortunately, these poor health behaviors put youth with ASD at a high risk for developing obesity, as well as other obesity-related conditions (e.g. Type 2 diabetes). In order to reduce this risk, it is critical to understand the factors that affect activity levels and sleep in youth with ASD. Several studies have demonstrated that parents may have a large influence on social behaviors in youth with ASD, however, no studies have focused on the association between parent and child health behaviors in youth with ASD. Therefore, the purpose of the current study was to examine the association between parent and child PA, sedentary behavior (SB), ST, and SQ in youth with ASD. Data was collected from 15 child (ages of 6-17) and parent pairs, recruited from a private school in Central Orlando. Daily minutes of PA, SB, and SQ were measured using an Actigraph accelerometer, that both children and parents wore on their wrist over a 7-day period. Parents and children also completed surveys that inquired about both their PA and ST levels during weekdays and weekend. Pearson correlations found significant positive associations between objective parent and child PA and both self-reported weekend PA and ST. This is the first study to examine associations between parent and child health behaviors in youth with ASD, finding positive correlations between PA and ST during the weekend. These findings suggest that there is a relationship between parent and child activity levels in youth with ASD. It is critical for future work to examine the causal factors of this relationship between parent and child activity levels in youth ASD populations. Such results may support the inclusion of parents to develop more effective interventions to target health behaviors in youth with ASD.

It is assumed that stigmas surrounding mental illnesses have begun to lessen over time. Generation Z seems to be the most accepting of neurodivergent individuals and people with mental illnesses (Bethune, 2019). However, existing literature suggests that college students continue to have negative attitudes toward mental illnesses, which could lead to a refusal of mental health services, unsafe social environments, and self-medication (Phelan & Basow, 2007). To further investigate GenZ’s stigmas toward mental illness, this study assesses college students’ attitudes toward various mental health diagnoses including Depression, Anxiety, Attention Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), and Eating Disorders. Specifically, perceptions related to factors such as relationship disruption, visibility, anxiety, and professional efficacy will be investigated. After reviewing situational vignettes depicting peers with diagnoses and the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual Fifth Edition definitions of these diagnoses, participants’ attitudes were assessed using an adapted version of Day’s Mental Illness Stigma Scale, and additional questions regarding participants’ attitudes. Previous studies found prevalent stigmas amongst college students regarding ASD and eating disorders. Students may hold more positive attitudes toward anxiety, depression, and ADHD than eating disorders and ASD. This research helps to address the conflicting claims about GenZ’s attitudes about mental disorders and explore the stigma of mental illnesses among college students. Mean comparisons between each level of both conditions, study limitations, and future directions are discussed.

Depression is a disorder frequently noted in college students that can affect multiple aspects of one's life, ranging from physical health issues to interpersonal relationship difficulties. Therefore, it is imperative that the depressive symptoms of college students be identified, evaluated, and treated. This investigation explored the validity of a newly published self-report narrow-band measure of depression, the Clinical Assessment of Depression (CAD; Bracken & Howell, 2004) with an existing broad-band measure, the Brief Symptom Inventory (Derogatis, 1993). College students 18 to 52 years of age (n = 280) enrolled in undergraduate courses in psychology at a south central Kentucky university provided the study data. Strong positive correlations (.60 to 1.0) supported convergent validity between three of the five scales on the CAD with the BSI Global Severity Index. Moderate level correlations (.20 to .60) between dissimilar scales supported divergent validity between the two measures. The correlations between the measures generally supported stronger relationships between scales of similar symptom patterns. Acceptable classification consistency (80%) existed between the two measures using the BSI Global Severity Index at or above a T score of 63 and the CAD two standard deviations above the mean classification criterion (T > 70). The combination of the two criterion resulted in acceptable classification consistency for all CAD scales with the BSI Somatization, Depression and Anxiety Scales. This study also investigated gender differences. Independent /-tests evidenced no mean score differences based on gender for the CAD Total score. Results support the use of the CAD as an adequate diagnostic tool for depression with college students. A discussion of implications for use of the CAD provides guides for practice and suggestions for further research.

African Americans utilize mental health services significantly less frequently than do White-Americans. This study examined the social factors that work to influence the decision to seek services outside of the social circle. Using the National Survey of Black Americans, 4th wave, factors were examined using logistic regression analysis to test the likelihood of accessing the sick role. In addition to the sick role, regression analysis was used to determine the sick role's effect on the decision to seek outside care. Controlling for education, perceived racism, religiosity and employment problems, the findings suggest that life control and socioeconomic status factors influence the decision to seek outside care. In relation to self reported health and influence its effect on access to the sick role, findings suggest that women who were more educated effect and recipients of Medicare were more likely to admit illness.

This study investigated the relationship between time perspective (TP) and the personality dispositions of optimism, pessimism, and realism with regard to their proposed influence on three measures that collectively assessed subjective well-being (SWB). The Depression-Happiness Scale (McGreal & Joseph, 1993) assessed happiness or the presence of positive affect and the absence of negative affect, the cognitiveaffective components of SWB. The Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS) (Diener, Emmons, Larsen, & Griffin, 1985) provided the measurement of subjective life satisfaction, the essential final cognitive-judgmental component of SWB. The Life Orientation Scale-Revised (LOT-R) (Scheier, Carver, and Bridges, 1994) and a Reality Scale, composed by the author, assessed the dispositional styles. The Zimbardo Time Perspective Inventory (ZPTI) (Zimbardo & Boyd, 1999) assessed TP. Five temporal perspectives were found. Results indicated that the TPs emerged as strong and unique predictors of SWB in regression analysis. An optimal temporal profile was found that consisted of a combination of Present-Hedonistic, Future, and Past-Positive TP characteristics.

The purpose of this study was to assess the relationship between mental well-being and selected health behaviors. A cross-sectional study was performed on a sample of 490 students at Western Kentucky University during the 1993 Spring, Summer, and Fall semesters. Study participants completed the Participant Data Sheet, General Weil-Being Schedule, and the Health Behavior Instrument. The data were gathered and analyzed via correlation analysis which revealed a relationship between mental well-being and certain health behaviors. The correlations between general well-being and selected health behaviors were stronger among males than females. There was a relationship found between mental well-being and hours of sleep, eating breakfast, and exercising. It is very noteworthy that there was a significant correlation between GWBS and combined health behaviors.

This paper explores the integration of art assessments with cancer patients as a tool for determining potential scholarly value. Qualitative data was collected from two clinicians who ran weekly art therapy groups with women who are undergoing or who have survived breast cancer treatment. Both groups were 10 week modules structured as open studio groups, and each clinician was subsequently interviewed by the researchers who used a series of formatted questions to assess how the four art assessments were offered to participants, how participants responded to the invitation to engage in assessments, and how the clinician’s reflected on patients’ experiences of the assessments. The qualitative data collected was assessed to deepen the understanding of how clinician’s imagined the art assessments could be clinically useful and/or potentially valuable for research. These findings were then examined and connected to findings in the literature that indicate the importance of sensitivity in regard to the unique lived experience of a cancer diagnosis, and the significance of offering control and transparency whenever possible to patients. Researchers concluded that offering art assessments in traditional context, when presented by clinicians who are attuned and considerate to the needs and impacts such assessments can have on patients, could deepen opportunities for exploring clinically efficaciousness alongside cultural and contextual sensitivity. Future research should continue to explore how clinician style can be clinically relevant and the impact art assessments could have on both research and clinical work.

This dissertation delineates research in PTSD, and other anxieties in the military, firefighters, medical caregivers, and law enforcement domains. It is a comprehensive review of PTSD symptoms, training, treatments, and psychological, physiological, biological, neurological, diet, sleep, and environmental impact on people suffering from anxiety. It presents a new way to detect anxiety and control it without medicinal drugs, treatments, or training. It empowers people to control their anxiety on their own and improve their quality of life. It proposes a Detect, Alert, Distract Anxiety (DADA) model, which detects user's anxiety, alerts the user of their symptoms in real-time, and encourages the use of distraction strategies to help distract user's negative thoughts and emotions. The engine of the DADA model is the Anxiety Detection (AD) algorithm, which facilitates continuous detection and monitoring of anxiety symptoms. It presents a prototype engineering solution that facilitates real-time monitoring and feedback of anxiety symptoms automatically. It has the potential to save people from committing suicide by alerting them every time they are experiencing anxiety to distract their negative thoughts and emotions. There are a total of three studies conducted in support of this dissertation. The study one encourages the need for creating an engineering solution to help combat anxiety by showing that taking a healthy diet, having enough sleep, and consuming less harmful chemicals found in food and environment does not equate to an anxiety-free life. Study two collects data on brainwaves and R-R interval from people suffering from speech anxiety to generate an anxiety detection (AD) algorithm. Study three promises the usefulness of the DADA model in potentially reducing anxiety and the effectiveness of the AD algorithm.

Given the growing population of aging adults, there is a need for research examining factors that enhance quality of life for older adults (QoL; Colby & Ortman, 2014). Changes in health, relationships, support systems, and social identity are inevitable throughout the lifespan. Therefore, research focused on lessening the negative effects of changes due to aging while also improving QoL is warranted. As such, the aim of the current research study was to examine the extent to which subjective age (SA; how old or young an individual feels), playfulness (PF; "the ability to frame or reframe everyday situations to experience them as entertaining, intellectually stimulating, and/or personally interesting" [Proyer, 2015, p. 93-94]), and depression (an emotional state ranging from mild discouragement to feelings of extreme despair [CDC, 2017; Corsini, 2002]) predict QoL ("a person's sense of well-being that stems from satisfaction or dissatisfaction with the areas of life that are important to him or her" [Ferrans, 1985, p. 15]) among adults over the age of 55. Using convenience sampling with eligibility requirements, adults (N = 1,315) 55 and older and who spoke and read English were surveyed both face-to-face (F2F) and online (e.g., Amazon Mechanical Turk and a senior educational program). Standard multiple regression was utilized, and results identified a statistically significant model with the variable of depression predicting the largest unique contribution to the model, while PF predicted a small, statistically significant contribution. Subjective age did not statistically contribute to the prediction. Implications from the findings that relate to counselors, counselor educators, and researchers are provided. In addition, the findings provide guidance and a new perspective on variables associated with QoL and aging adults.

No comprehensive data base concerning the adult developmentally disabled (ADD) population is available. The absence of theoretical formulations about aging, and particularly the aging ADD, make it difficult for service providers or professionals to incorporate a conceptual framework into their work.