Thesis (M.A.)--State University of New York at Binghamton, Dept. of Psychology, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references.

Objective: Pregnancy requires thorough monitoring and management because not only is it a time where normal physiological and psychological changes put a mother under stress and strain, but maternal sensitivity begins to develop, and the developing foetus needs a well regulated intrauterine environment. Such important processes can be compromised by abnormal or inconsistent physiological and emotional regulation. The study aimed to explore pregnant women’s regulation capacity at rest and their physiological reactivity, and return to physiological baseline, in response to infant related stimuli. Methods: Extended analyses of previously acquired psycho-physiological data at baseline, and pre- and post-presentation of relevant audio-visual stimuli. Results: Baseline physiological activity was significantly different between pregnant participants and controls. There were, however, no other differences in reactivity. Conclusion: Findings were inconsistent with previous research which indicates infant stimuli to become increasingly salient throughout pregnancy.

This study examined the links among child maltreatment (i.e., child sexual abuse, child physical abuse, child emotional abuse, and child neglect), eating disorder symptoms, problematic use of drugs and alcohol, coping strategies, and emotion regulation in women. This study also examined coping strategies and emotion regulation as potential moderators of the links among child maltreatment, eating disorder symptoms, and problematic substance use. Maltreatment in childhood is linked with numerous adverse outcomes across the lifespan. For instance, the development of maladaptive coping styles, poor emotion regulation, substance use problems, and eating disorders all are linked to a history of child maltreatment, but how these factors interact has yet to be investigated. These constructs were examined through hierarchical multiple regressions in a sample of 383 women age 19 or older, recruited online. Results indicated that women who experienced greater overall child maltreatment engaged in more problematic drug use and more problematic alcohol use and women with child sexual abuse (CSA) engaged in greater levels of problematic drug use. Avoidance coping was associated with greater levels of problematic drug use, dieting, bulimia and food preoccupation, and overall eating disorder symptoms. Women with more severe eating disorder symptoms and who used greater expressive suppression, also engaged in more problematic alcohol use. When considered together, all forms of child maltreatment were associated with greater avoidance and problematic drug and alcohol use, CSA survivors used less avoidance and expressive suppression, and child neglect (CN) survivors used more avoidance and expressive suppression. These findings suggest that health care professionals working with women survivors of child maltreatment should be aware of increased risk of developing substance use problems as well as less effective coping and emotion regulation strategies that may be stemming from victimization experiences. In addition, it may be helpful for clinicians working with women with eating disorders or problematic substance use to focus on improving coping and emotion regulation skills. / Graduate

Tyrimo tikslas – ištirti žmonių, patyrusių apatinių galūnių amputaciją, potrauminio streso sutrikimo simptomų, jų įveikos strategijų ir psichologinio atsparumo sąsajas. Buvo ištirti 120 tiriamųjų (92 vyrai ir 28 moterys), kurie patyrė apatinių galūnių amputaciją. Tyrime buvo naudojami trys klausimynai: 1. DRS-15 (Dispositional Resilience Scale) skirtas matuoti psichologinį atsparumą, kaip asmenybės savybę. 2. Streso įveikos klausimynas, kuris naudojamas matuoti įveikos strategijoms. 3. Įvykio poveikio skalė - revizuota (IES-R) skirsta potrauminio streso sutrikimo simptomams nustatyti. Tyrimo rezultatai atskleidė, jog psichologinis atsparumas nėra susijęs su potrauminio streso sutrikimo simptomais tiesiogiai. Bet nustatyta, jog jaunesnių su žemesniu nei aukštuoju išsilavinimu vyrų didesnis bendras psichologinis atsparumas ir psichologinio atsparumo įsipareigojimas susijęs su dažniau naudojama problemų sprendimo įveikos strategija, o dažnesnis šios strategijos naudojimas susijęs su mažesniu potrauminio streso sutrikimo vengimo simptomo kiekiu. Jaunesnių su žemesniu nei aukštuoju išsilavinimu asmenų bendras psichologinis atsparumas ir jo bruožai (kontrolė, įsipareigojimas) teigiamai susiję su problemų sprendimo įveikos strategijos naudojimu. Vyresnių su žemesniu nei aukštuoju išsilavinimu žmonių grupėje rastas toks pat ryšys tarp bendro psichologinio atsparumo bei jo kontrolės bruožo ir problemų sprendimo įveikos strategijos. Vyresnių asmenų didesnė psichologinio atsparumo... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / The aim of the study was to examine associations between posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, coping strategies and hardiness among people with lower limb amputations. There were examined 120 patients (92 men and 28 women) who suffered a lower limb amputation. In the study were used three questionnaires: 1. DRS-15 (Dispositional Resilience Scale) which is designed to measure hardiness as a characteristic of personality. 2. Coping with stress questionnaire, which is used to measure coping strategies. 3. The Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R) is used to measure PTSD symptoms. Results showed that hardiness was not directly associated with PTSD symptoms. But there were found that higher overall hardiness and commitment characteristic were associated with a more frequent usage of problem solving coping strategy and more frequent usage of this coping strategy was associated with less PTSD avoidance symptom amount among men who were younger and had lower than higher education. Among people who were younger and had lower than higher education there were found that higher overall hardiness and its characteristics (control, commitment) were associated with a more frequent usage of problem solving coping strategy. In the older age group of people with lower than higher education overall hardiness and its control characteristic were positively associated with problem solving coping strategy. In older age group there were found that hardiness control characteristic was... [to full text]

Childhood and adolescent bullying victimization procures mental health issues and dysfunction. Using a longitudinal design from the McMaster Teen study dataset, a semi-parametric group- based trajectory analysis was used to identify distinct patterns of peer victimization across ages 10 to 18. A three-class solution of peer victimization was selected. Most individuals followed a low decreasing trajectory of peer victimization (71.3%). The next largest group followed a moderate decreasing peer victimization trajectory (25.2%), and the smallest group followed a high stable peer victimization trajectory (3.5%). These trajectory groups were used to predict Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) symptoms and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in emerging adulthood (ages 19 to 22). Results indicated that the high stable and moderate decreasing groups differed from the low decreasing group on BPD symptoms; individuals who were bullied by their peers in childhood and adolescence were more likely to have elevated symptoms of BPD in adulthood. However, when controlling for gender and childhood maltreatment, this differentiation only held true for the high stable group. Results also indicated that children and adolescents who followed a high stable trajectory of bullying victimization were more likely to meet PTSD diagnostic criteria in emerging adulthood than those who followed a low decreasing or moderate decreasing trajectory. The implications of the positive associations of childhood and adolescent bullying victimization on BPD symptoms and PTSD are considered via a group socialization theory lens. High levels of bullying victimization are explained as a form of relational trauma. Results suggest that peer relations are powerful enough to lead to subsequent personality pathology, and implications of these associations are examined through a developmental trauma framework. Understanding the developmental impact of childhood and adolescent bullying on BPD symptoms and PTSD provides insight and supports prevention and intervention initiatives at the school level and in clinical practice.

Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is among the most common reasons for referral to children's mental health clinics, with an estimated prevalence of 3% to 5% in the general population of school-age children. Children who exhibit the requisite behaviors may obtain a diagnosis of ADHD at any age; however, symptom onset must occur before age 7 and persist for at least 6 months. Despite these temporal requirements for diagnosis, little empirical information about the manifestation and stability of ADHD symptoms in preschool children exists. This study provides information about the initial presence and stability over one academic year of ADHD behaviors in a sample of 290 preschool children rated by mothers and/or teachers. Data suggest higher levels of these behaviors at home versus school, with behaviors remaining stable over the course of the academic year at school, and diminishing over this time period at home. Family environment factors (e.g., socioeconomic status, family stress) were not found to have strong predictive relationships with levels of ADHD behaviors in this sample of preschoolers including little support for a directional relationship between dysfunctional parenting behaviors and child ADHD symptoms. Conclusions and clinical implications of these finding, are provided and may assist psychologists in their efforts to diagnose and treat this disorder in young children.

No description available.

Despite well-established diagnostic measures and measures of specific dimensions of eating disorder symptomatology, little work has been done to develop a brief, comprehensive, and valid measure for assessing change in eating disorder symptoms. Further, empirically-supported change indices to assess treatment progression and outcome have not yet been developed. The Change in Eating Disorder Symptoms Scale (CHEDS) is a new comprehensive measure designed to assess progress and change during treatment in persons with diagnoses on the eating disorder spectrum. Previous studies have demonstrated the subscale structure, reliability, and validity of the CHEDS. This study determined clinically significant change criteria for the CHEDS to complement the studies that have supported the CHEDS as a reliable and valid measure of eating disorder symptomatology. The CHEDS was also compared to a life functioning scale, the Clinical Impairment Assessment. A reliable change index (RCI) was developed, which generated an inferential statistic that estimates the magnitude of change in a score necessary for a change score to be considered statistically reliable. A cutscore was also developed, which differentiates between functional and dysfunctional populations, between eating disordered clinical subjects and non-clinical subjects. Trajectories were identified using hierarchical linear modeling methods for use in conjunction with clinical significance criteria to aid in the tracking of symptoms during treatment, treatment decision-making, and tailoring treatment according to expected and observed progress. The clinical significance change criteria were then applied to the clinical sample to determine change patterns descriptive of recovered, reliable improvement, deterioration, and no change. Finally, a scoring program with clinical significance change criteria and trajectory analyses for total and subscale scores was developed.

Text in English / This study was designed to determine whether a relationship exists between self-reported mindfulness, self-consciousness, adjustment and academic performance in first-year university students. Additionally, the study aimed to assess the predictive quality of mindfulness and self-consciousness towards emotional adjustment (adjustment disorder symptoms, depression and anxiety) and academic performance, and to further determine the contribution of mindfulness and self-consciousness on adjustment to the predictability of academic performance. First-year students (N = 290) at the Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) at the Pretoria West and Ga-Rankuwa campuses completed the selfreported mindfulness measure, Mindfulness Attention and Awareness Scale (MAAS) (Brown & Ryan, 2003), the Self Consciousness Scale- Revised (SCS-R) (Scheier & Carver, 1985), the Beck Depression Scale (BDI) (Beck et al., 1961) the Beck Anxiety Scale (BAI) Beck & Steer,1993) and the adjustment disorder checklist; based on DSM V, (Sadock, Sadock & Ruiz, 2014). Students’ year-end results for the first year of study were used to operationalize academic performance. Results of correlation analyses indicated a significant negative correlation between mindfulness and students’ emotional adjustment (adjustment disorder symptoms, depression and anxiety), a significant positive correlation between selfconsciousness and students’ emotional adjustment (adjustment disorder symptoms, depression and anxiety) as well as a significant negative correlation between adjustment disorder symptoms and academic performance. Multiple linear regression analysis was used to test whether mindfulness and self-consciousness significantly predicted students’ depression, anxiety and adjustment disorder symptoms. The results of the regression analysis indicated the two predictors explained 16% of the variance (F (1, 1773) = 29.66, P< 0.0001) (depression), 14% of the variance (F (1, 985) = 24.14, p < 0.0001) (anxiety) and 14% of variance (F (2, 292) = 23.87, p <0.001) (adjustment disorder symptoms). Furthermore, mediation analysis provided information regarding the impact of mindfulness and selfconsciousness on students’ academic performance. The impact of mindfulness and selfconsciousness on students’ academic performance (students’ marks) was found to be mediated by adjustment disorder symptoms. However, the Sobel test indicated a significant effect (0.03) for mindfulness and an insignificant effect (0.09) for self-consciousness. / Psychology / Ph. D. (Psychology)