The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of cognitive group therapy, aerobic exercise, or their combination, on anxiety and stress in college students. Sixty subjects were recruited from a large undergraduate abnormal psychology class. Fifty-three volunteered to participate in the study, and were divided into three experimental groups using matched random assignment. Treatment took place over a six-week period, and groups were labelled as follows; (#1) Cognitive group therapy only, (#2) Aerobic exercise only, and (#3) Cognitive group therapy combined with aerobic exercise. There was also a no-treatment control group (#4) of 17 subjects, consisting of students enrolled in a different course option unrelated to the study. All groups were administered the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), the SCL-90-R, and measures of perceived fitness and anxiety before and immediately following the study. The STAI and the perceived measures were also administered after a two-month follow-up. The following hypotheses were presented: (1) Is participation in either aerobic exercise, cognitive group therapy, or the combination of both treatments more effective in reducing anxiety than involvement in a no-treatment control group? (2) Are exercise and cognitive group therapy equally as effective in reducing anxiety? (3) Is a combination of treatments more effective in reducing anxiety than one treatment? (4) Can anxiety reduction be maintained over time? Results indicated that all interventions were equally effective in reducing anxiety, both combined or individually, as compared to no intervention. Combining cognitive group therapy and exercise was not significantly more effective than either individual treatment. Furthermore, although a trend was present, most effects were not maintained after two months. The lack of longer-term effects may have been due to insufficient sample size and power, or the possibility that these interventions were effective in changing transient states but not established traits. Subjects reported that components from both treatments were effective in attenuating anxiety, and identified a number of possible mechanisms responsible for these changes. Further research examining the effects of combining exercise with other therapeutic treatments is warranted.

Deleterious early experiences, wrought by childhood abuse, parental dysfunction, and inconsistent relationships with parents, have been repeatedly associated with suicidal ideation and suicide attempts in adolescence and young adulthood. Both depression and aggression have been correlated with suicidality as well. The precise relationships among these variables remain largely unspecified, however, and contradictory findings portend our imperfect understanding of youth suicide. Psychoanalytic object relations theory suggests a mechanism by which early experiences influence later functioning, providing a link between disrupted caretaking in childhood and suicidal ideation in early adulthood. Using structural equation modeling (SEM), this study examined the extent to which experiences of loss, trauma, and deprivation in early life induced an object world that left one vulnerable to suicidal ideation in young adulthood. The dual aim of the study was to obtain confirmation for the mediating role of object relations in the development of suicidal ideation, and to explore the specific relationships among early experiences, object relations, depression, aggression, and suicidal ideation. Two hundred and fifty college undergraduates participated in group administrations of the Thematic Apperception Test (TAT), and completed the Adult Suicidal Ideation Questionnaire, Beck Depression Inventory, Hopelessness Scale, Aggression Questionnaire, Early Experiences Questionnaire, and Suicide Attempts Questionnaire. The Social Cognition and Object Relations Scale (Western, 1990a) was used to assess four dimensions of object relations from TAT stories. SEM supported the hypothesis that object relations play a crucial role in mediating between deleterious early experiences and suicidal ideation in young adulthood. Traumatic early experiences, particularly physical, sexual, and emotional abuse perpetrated by trusted adults, left an inedible mark on object relations. An object world marked by expectations of unpredictability, rejection, and potential malevolence from others in the context of earnest investment in interpersonal relationships led to elevated levels of both depression and aggression in these college students. Depression, but not aggression, precipitated thoughts of suicide, lending support for the psychoanalytic postulate that depression ensues when aggression is turned toward the self. Some intriguing results and their relation to the literature, limitations of the study, and directions for future research are discussed.

<p> Untreated depression among older American adults has serious consequences. Individuals experiencing symptoms of depression, as well as those providing care to these older adults, habitually overlook symptoms or dismiss them as normal in this age group. Strategies are urgently needed to overcome this practice. In the study presented here, this researcher provides analyzed content regarding caregiver responses to focused interview questions about recognizing symptoms of depression in the older adults for whom they care and how to engage those with depression in treatment. The researcher considered this analysis within the framework of mental health literacy and knowledge brokering. Outcomes are presented in terms of how to improve components of mental health literacy, specifically regarding geriatric depression, among caregivers for older adults. Participants in this case study were volunteers in one of three identified categories providing care to older adults: Professional, paraprofessional, and nonprofessional. The sample size consisted of four participants in each category, with 12 participants in total. Participants demonstrated a baseline level of mental health literacy regarding geriatric depression. Based on corresponding implications, the researcher suggests which components of caregiver mental health literacy are sound, as well as areas where interventions could be used to improve caregiver mental health literacy.</p><p>

The training of educational psychologists has extensively changed in recent years, culminating in the development of doctoral courses and the removal of the teaching requirement for applicants. These changes have enabled applicants with a wide variety of relevant experience and background to join the profession. There has also been a renewed governmental focus on mental health in schools, and proactive supports for mental health and wellbeing for children and young people, as demonstrated in the Government’s’ Future in Mind publication. This thesis presents exploratory psychological research that examines the views trainee educational psychologists (TEPs) and recently qualified educational psychologists (RQEPs) have of their role supporting mental health in schools, the training they have received, and their profession title. The findings were that both TEPs and RQEPs viewed supporting social and emotional wellbeing was a core aspect of their role, although they were reluctant to use the term ‘mental health’ to describe the type of support they provided.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 1981. / Includes vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 179-184). Available online via OhioLINK's ETD Center.

Exploring Childbearing Intentions and Reproductive Behavior among Minority Adolescent and Young Adult Females with Behaviorally-Acquired HIV Infection

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Indiana University, Dept. of Psychological and Brain Sciences and Cognitive Science, 2009. / Title from PDF t.p. (viewed on Feb. 5, 2010). Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 70-04, Section: B, page: 2609. Adviser: Olaf Sporns.

<p> The abstract is not available from PDF copy and paste.</p>

<p> The present study utilized the microanalysis techniques for grounded theory described by Strauss and Corbin (1998) to better understand the lived experience of having rheumatoid arthritis (RA) as a young adult woman. The sample consisted of eight women between the ages of 25-36, each of which participated in a 60-90 minute telephone interview that explored how they feel, think, and behave in terms of their RA. A theory emerged from the data that reflected the process of moving from diagnosis to acceptance for the participants. This process was described as being akin to a roller coaster because of the myriad of ups and downs associated with the RA experience. The findings from this study may help to inform the understanding of how young adults experience life in terms of their RA and, therefore, has potentially positive implications for other young adults with RA as well as their health care professionals, family, and friends.</p>

<p>The social environment is hypothesized to broadly influence health by facilitating the distribution of health-promoting resources (e.g., health knowledge; Berkman, Glass, Brissette, &amp; Seeman, 2000). One important health-related resource, knowledge of acute myocardial infarction (MI) symptoms, is theoretically expected to be stratified by social relationships. Like the social environment, socioeconomic status is also associated with multiple health outcomes and is involved in the stratification of health resources (SES; Marmot et al., 1991; Pappas, Queen, Hadden, &amp; Fisher, 1993; Berkman et al., 2000; Oakes &amp; Rossi, 2003), and in turn markers of SES (i.e., income and education) are related to MI symptom knowledge (Dubard, Garrett, &amp; Gizlice, 2006; Lutfiyya, Lipsky, Bales, Cha, &amp; McGrath, 2008). The present study examined the relationship between MI symptom knowledge and <i>functional</i> and <i>structural</i> measures of the social environment in a large U.S. representative sample (<i>N</i> = 33,326). In addition, this study examined the relative contribution of social environment measures in the relationship between SES (income and education) and MI symptom knowledge. A <i>functional</i> measure was defined using a single item assessing <i> perceived emotional support</i> with answers ranging from <i>never </i> to <i>always</i>. <i>Structural</i> measures were obtained by summing responses to 7 items assessing number of <i> frequent social contacts</i> within past two weeks. MI symptom knowledge was defined by the summation of correct answers to 6 questions assessing knowledge of MI symptom categories and the appropriate emergency response. Continuous MI symptom knowledge scores ranged from 0 to 6 with higher values indicating higher knowledge. In the primary multivariate analysis, both dummy-coded social environment measures were associated higher MI symptom knowledge scores after controlling for sociodemographic, health status and SES covariates. Having emotional support <i>usually</i> and <i>always</i> was associated with a .27 and .22 (SE = .05, <i>p</i> &lt; .001; SE = .05, <i>p</i> &lt; .001) increase in MI symptom knowledge scores compared to those reporting <i>never/rarely</i> having emotional support respectively. Also, having 7 social contacts within the past two weeks was associated with a .47 (SE = .08, p<i></i> &lt; .001) increase in MI symptom knowledge scores compared to having 0/1 social contacts. Emotional support and social contacts explained 5% to 24% (SE = .01, <i>p</i> &lt; .001; SE = .02 <i>p</i> &lt; .001) and 9% to 19% (SE = .02, <i> p</i> &lt; .001; SE = .03, <i>p</i> &lt; .001) of the relationship between MI symptom knowledge and the two SES measures (education and income) respectively. By demonstrating a social environment stratification of a health resource, these findings demonstrate the broad health influence of social ties in a large nationally representative sample (Berkman et al., 2000; House, 2001). </p>