Browsing by Author "Cooper, Lee D."

Now showing 1 - 20 of 74
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    Adapting Parent Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) to Custodial Grandparents
    Murphy, Haley Gordon (Virginia Tech, 2018-06-13)
    As the structure of the American family changes, it is becoming more common for children to be raised by their grandparents. In fact, over the past 40 years, there has been a 50% increase in grandparent-headed homes in the US (Ellis and Simmons, 2014). Custodial grandparents, who provide primary caregiving responsibilities for their grandchildren, often become responsible for their grandchildren due to distressing situations and report many social-emotional, physical, and psychological difficulties (e.g., Hayslip and Kaminski, 2005). Additionally, children of custodial grandparents have been found to have significantly more emotional and behavioral problems than non-custodial grandchildren (Smith and Palmieri, 2007). The main parenting resource for this population is often support-groups, which often do not provide needed assistance with discipline and behavior management. The overall purpose of this study was to adapt Parent Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) to custodial grandparents, using a consumer-oriented approach. The study was completed in three discrete stages. During Stage 1, qualitative interviews with custodial grandparents were completed to collect further information about custodial grandparents' experience parenting their grandchildren, use of parenting resources, and opinion of parenting strategies and PCIT. Findings from this stage indicated that custodial grandparents were amenable to PCIT procedures, but experienced significant barriers in accessing parenting services. Due to these barriers, a service delivery adaptation was developed and an online intervention was created (Stage 2) to transcend treatment barriers. Finally, during Stage 3, this online intervention was tested in a small single-subject design pilot study. Multiple metrics supported the feasibility, accessibility, satisfaction, and initial treatment efficacy of this intervention. All participants demonstrated clinically significant reductions in at least two symptom measures and reported satisfaction with the online intervention. Overall, results provide preliminary support for the use of online interventions to teach PCIT strategies and support future research on online interventions for this population.
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    Adolescent Inhalant Use in the United States: Examining Long-Term Trends and Evaluating the Applicability of Self-Determination Theory
    Halliburton, Amanda E. (Virginia Tech, 2013-11-01)
    Inhalants are a critical, under-studied substance used by young adolescents in the United States (U.S.). Despite the serious negative consequences that can accompany use (most notably neuropsychological damage) the topic of inhalants has been neglected by clinicians and prevention scientists, particularly in comparison to other drugs. The present research focused on the etiology of U.S. adolescent inhalant use in two ways, both of which utilized large, nationally representative data sets for secondary data analysis. Study I examined long-terms trends in inhalant use prevalence rates and changing proportions of gender and ethnic groups among lifetime inhalant users. Study I also evaluated the effects of policies aimed at other drugs, including regional "three strikes laws" and national methamphetamine laws, on changing inhalant use prevalence rates among twelfth graders. Inhalant use increased during the early-1990s but has declined from the mid-1990s to the present day; lifetime inhalant users have increasingly become female and non-White. Importantly, "three strikes laws" and a national methamphetamine law were related to increases in annual inhalant use rates for twelfth graders. Study II evaluated the applicability of Self-Determination Theory (SDT)-related constructs, namely self-perceived autonomy, competence and parental relatedness, to concurrent and prospective inhalant use. Competence was consistently related to inhalant use and inhalant use severity; parental relatedness was related to concurrent but not prospective use and use severity. The findings from both studies are discussed in terms of their commonalities and differences, implications for clinicians and prevention scientists, overall strengths and limitations, and directions for future inhalant use research.
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    Adventure-Based Therapy and Self-Efficacy Theory: Test of a Treatment Model for Late Adolescents with Depressive Symptomatology
    Richardson, Elizabeth DeHart (Virginia Tech, 1998-11-18)
    The primary objective of the current study was to propose and test a model for conceptualizing changes that occur as a result of adventure-based therapy (ABT), using self-efficacy theory as the conceptual foundation. Other objectives were to test the effects of ABT on depressive symptomatology and related psychosocial variables (e.g., anxiety, self-esteem). One-hundred and nine college freshmen participated in the screening procedure. Subjects who indicated mild to severe depressive symptomatology on a self-report measure and did not report past history of trauma were invited to participate in the study. Forty-one individuals were randomly assigned to either the adventure-based therapy (ABT) condition (i.e., a one-day ropes course experience) or to a placebo-control condition (i.e., an extended walk outdoors in a group). Subjects were divided into two cohorts, each with treatment and control groups, because of safety requirements related to capacity on the ropes course. Self-report instruments were completed immediately prior to participation (i.e., pretest), immediately following participation (i.e., posttest), and at 2-weeks and 2-months post participation. Primary multivariate analyses of variance performed on state and trait dependent measures did not yield statistically significant interactions; therefore, results indicated that ABT may not significantly decrease depressive and anxious symptomatology in late adolescents with depressive symptomatology. However, data were further analyzed for exploration in light of the generally low statistical power and group differences suggested by graphic displays of data. Exploratory analyses suggested that ABT may increase efficacy for coping with anxiety created by novel situations and efficacy for working and problem-solving in a group. It was therefore suggested that self-efficacy theory warrants further consideration as a theoretical framework for explaining changes that occur as a result of ABT. In addition, exploratory analyses suggested that ABT may also reduce anxiety and general psychological distress. Finally, depressive symptomatology decreased for individuals in the ABT treatment group and the placebo-control group according to exploratory analyses; however, there were no differences between groups. Further exploration of the potential effects of ABT on depressive and anxious symptomatology and general psychological distress is warranted.
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    ALJI: Active Listening Journal Interaction
    Sullivan, Patrick Ryan (Virginia Tech, 2019-10-29)
    Depression is a crippling burden on a great many people, and it is often well hidden. Mental health professionals are able to treat depression, but the general public is not well versed in recognizing depression symptoms or assessing their own mental health. Active Listening Journal Interaction (ALJI) is a computer program that seeks to identify and refer people suffering with depression to mental health support services. It does this through analyzing personal journal entries using machine learning, and then privately responding to the author with proper guidance. In this thesis, we focus on determining the feasibility and usefulness of the machine learning models that drive ALJI. With heavy data limitations, we cautiously report that with a single journal entry, our model detects when a person's symptoms warrant professional intervention with a 61% accuracy. A great amount of discussion on the proposed solution, methods, results, and future directions of ALJI is included.
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    Application of Social Influence Strategies to Convert Concern into Relevant Action: The Case of Global Warming
    Lehman, Philip Kent (Virginia Tech, 2008-02-04)
    This research studied the efficacy of enhancing information-based appeals with social influence strategies in order to encourage environmental activism and efficiency behaviors in response to global warming. A secondary goal was to study the relationship between pro-environment attitudes as measured by the New Ecological Paradigm (NEP) and the activism/efficiency behaviors. After hearing a 15-minute presentation about the threat of global warming, 270 participants were encouraged to take relevant action by (a) signing web-based petitions asking automakers to build more environmentally friendly cars, (b) sending web-based letters to their state senators asking them to pass legislation to curb global warming, and (c) replacing their own inefficient incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs). The primary independent variable was the intervention technique used to encourage the three behaviors. The Information Only condition received a standard informational presentation, and a Social Influence condition received a presentation enhanced by the social psychological principles of authority, social validation, and consistency. A third group—Social Influence and Commitment—received the social influence manipulations and also signed a commitment statement. Overall compliance was relatively low, with 30.7% of participants across all conditions completing one or more activism/efficiency behavior. Statistical comparisons of the compliance rates of the three groups were insignificant, and thus failed to support the efficacy of the social influence approach. Participants who held stronger pro-environment attitudes were more likely to complete the tasks. Those who completed at least one of the environmental actions scored significantly higher on a pre-presentation NEP (m = 54.9) than those who completed none (m = 50.3). In addition, political conservatism was negatively related to the NEP and task compliance. Finally, individuals who completed at least one of the requested behaviors showed a significant increase in pro-environment attitude on a second (post intervention) NEP, while the NEP scores of non-compliers remained unchanged.
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    Assessing the impact of COVID-19 on outpatient psychiatric population well-being and symptomology utilizing COVID-19 Events Checklist (CEC) and Measurement Based Care
    Jones, Sydney B.; Ko, Hayoung; Gatto, Alyssa J.; Kablinger, Anita S.; Sharp, Hunter D.; Cooper, Lee D.; Tenzer, Martha M.; O’Brien, Virginia C.; McNamara, Robert S. (2024-11-21)
    Background: This study examines the impact of SARS-CoV-2 (i.e., coronavirus, COVID, COVID-19) using data from a measurement-based care (MBC) system utilized in an outpatient psychiatric clinic providing telemedicine care. A novel Patient Rated Outcome Measure (PROM), the COVID-19 Events Checklist (CEC) was administered in a hospital system based ambulatory clinic beginning April 2020 to track COVID-19-19’s impact on patients’ mental, emotional, and health-related behaviors during the pandemic. The study (1) provides descriptive CEC data, and (2) compares CEC results with PROMs evaluating anxiety (Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7; GAD-7), depression (Patient Health Questionnaire; PHQ-9), and psychological distress (Brief Adjustment Scale-6; BASE-6). Methods: This retrospective observational study included patient intake data collected from April 2020 to March 2021. Patient (N = 842) reports on the CEC’s five domain questions were aggregated to calculate average reports of COVID-19 related impacts at intake over the initial 12 months of the pandemic. Trends in COVID-19 related impacts were examined, and non-aggregated scores on the PHQ-9, GAD-7, and BASE-6 were compared to primary dichotomous (yes/no) CEC survey questions via Wilcoxon rank- sum testing. Results: Results capture the relationship between COVID-19 exposure, COVID-19- related sequelae and behaviors, and psychological symptom severity. Specifically, Wilcoxon rank-sum tests indicate that social determinants of health (SDOH), negative mental health impacts, and positive coping skill use were significantly associated with psychological symptomatology including overall psychological functioning via the BASE-6, anxiety via the GAD-7, and depressive symptoms via the PHQ-9. Results regarding SDOH were as follows: BASE-6 (w = 44,005, p < 0.001), GAD-7 (w = 44,116, p < 0.001), and PHQ-9 (w = 43,299, p < 0.001). Regarding negative mental health outcomes, the results were: BASE-6 (w = 38,374, p < 0.001), GAD-7 (w = 39,511, p < 0.001), and PHQ-9 (w = 40,154, p < 0.001). As the initial year of the pandemic elapsed, incoming patients demonstrated increased rates of suspected or confirmed exposure to COVID-19, (+2.29%, t = 3.19, p = 0.01), reported fewer negative impacts of COVID-19 on SDOH (−3.53%, t= −2.45, p = 0.034), and less engagement in positive coping strategies (−1.47%, t = −3.14, p = 0.010). Conclusions: Psychosocial factors related to COVID-19 are discussed, as well as opportunities for further research on the relationship between psychological symptomatology and the impact of COVID-19 on health-related behaviors.
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    Assessment of Criminal Thinking as a Predictor and Mediator of Behavior Problems in a Community Youth Sample
    Delk, Lauren Annabel (Virginia Tech, 2020-05-14)
    Criminal behavior results in negative, costly consequences for both individuals and society at large. Therefore, researchers have worked to identify variables that predict recidivism, or recurrence of crime. The variables with the strongest predictive power include criminal thinking, personality traits, antisocial peers, and family difficulties, among others. In addition, policy makers and stakeholders are creating interventions which target criminal thinking, to reduce criminal thinking and hopefully reduce future crime. However, little is known about measuring criminal thinking in community youth for the purposes of early intervention and prevention of future behavior problems. Therefore, this study examined a measure of criminal thinking in community youth to examine item-level and measure validity. It also sought to examine if criminal thinking acts as a mediator between other risk factors and subsequent behavior problems. Although some items may need to be revised, results suggested generally good validity for the total score. This study also supports the stability of criminal thinking in community youth, and thus could be used as a measure of change. Finally, results suggest that criminal thinking mediates the relationships between antisocial friends and parenting styles in predicting reactive aggression. The results of the item-level analysis of this study highlight the similarities between psychopathy and criminal thinking. Questions also arise about the relationship between criminal thinking in community youth and more transdiagnostic concepts, such as emotion regulation problems. Overall, criminal thinking appears to be a viable target for assessment and intervention in community youth.
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    An Attention-Specific Intervention for Adults with ADHD
    Francisco, Jenifer (Virginia Tech, 2006-05-09)
    Attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) consists of symptoms of both inattention and hyperactivity/impulsivity that cause significant functional impairment (APA, 1994). Approximately 4.7% of adults are diagnosed with ADHD; however, there are few empirically-informed interventions that are specifically designed for adults. Instead, many of the common interventions for adults are derived from work done with children with ADHD and may not be appropriate for their particular needs (Weiss & Weiss, 2004). Given that adults with ADHD typically experience more symptoms of inattention rather than hyperactivity, an investigation of the effectiveness of an intervention that specifically targets their inattentive symptoms is warranted (Weiss & Weiss, 2004; Weiss et al., 2002). Therefore, the goal of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of an attention-specific intervention for adults with ADHD. The intervention used in this study, Attention Process Training (APT; Sohlberg & Mateer, 1987), has never been applied to adults with ADHD. The underlying assumption behind this intervention is that attentional functioning can be improved through the use of tasks that are designed to re-train various aspects of attention. More specifically, this study addressed sustained, alternating, and selective/divided attention during the intervention. A non-concurrent multiple baseline design was used in order to assess the effectiveness of the APT among a sample of adults with ADHD. A sample of four adults, aged 21-37 years (M = 27.75) participated in this study and demonstrated minimal changes in their attentional ability after the intervention. In addition, the findings suggest that the different components of attention addressed in this intervention are not distinct and likely have a reciprocal affect on one another.
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    Brief Adjustment Scale - 6 for Measurement-Based Care: Further Evaluation of Psychometric Properties, Ethnic Samples, and Clinical Utility
    Ko, Hayoung (Virginia Tech, 2021-09-08)
    The Brief Adjustment Scale-6 (BASE-6) was recently developed and initially examined as a brief, reliable, no-cost survey for measuring general psychological functioning within Measurement-Based Care (MBC). This study aims to further evaluate the psychometric properties of the BASE-6 in both clinical and nonclinical populations. More specifically, psychometric properties including reliability and validity, generalizability for different race/ethnic samples, and clinical utility within the context of MBC were examined. Three adult samples participated in this study: online community participants (Sample 1: n = 394), college students (Sample 2: n = 249), and individuals receiving outpatient clinical services (Sample 3: n = 80). Participants within the clinical sample regularly completed the BASE-6 while receiving evidence-based treatment in a community based psychological training clinic, where the practice of MBC is standard. Results showed that the BASE-6 had a high level of internal consistency and good test-retest reliability. It showed high convergent validity through a significant positive correlation with total and subscale scores of the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21). Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) results supported a unidimensional model that strongly fit the data. All results were uniform across samples. When comparing the clinical and nonclinical samples, participants from the clinical sample demonstrated higher scores in total and most of the single items of the BASE-6. Finally, within the clinical sample, the BASE-6 was sensitive enough to capture change over time by demonstrating a large effect size of pre-post treatment changes and significant linear change in multilevel growth modeling. These results support the BASE-6 as a reliable and valid measure that has a one-factor structure, regardless of race/ethnicity and participants’ clinical status. Additionally, it can sensitively detect clinical change in individuals over the course of the treatment. Thus, the BASE-6 appears to accurately monitor overall psychological adjustment.
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    Caregiver-Assisted Social Skills Intervention for Preschoolers with Autism Spectrum Disorder: Examining Caregiver-Child Relationships and Family Functioning in the PEERS® for Preschoolers Program
    Factor, Reina Suzanne (Virginia Tech, 2020-05-26)
    Social impairments characteristic of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) are evident in early childhood and often worsen as an individual matures (Rao, Beidel, and Murray, 2008). Despite the emphasis on early intervention and caregiver training, few evidence-based interventions explicitly address the development of social skills in preschool-aged children with ASD (DeRosier, Swick, Davis, McMillen, and Matthews, 2011; Reichow and Volkmar, 2010) and none appear to actively integrate caregivers into treatment (Reichow, Steiner, and Volkmar, 2012). Research indicates that generalization beyond a social skills group setting might occur by including caregivers (DeRosier et al., 2011). The PEERS® program is an evidence-based caregiver-assisted social skills program for adolescents and young adults (Laugeson and Frankel, 2010) that has recently been extended for preschoolers with ASD. An initial randomized controlled trial (RCT) indicated benefits from the PEERS® for Preschoolers (P4P) program, but did not examine caregiver or family outcomes. Researchers also suggest a bidirectional effect in which the family system is impacted by the child with ASD and in turn, the child with ASD is also affected by the family (Karst and Van Hecke, 2012). This study examined the P4P curriculum with 15 children with ASD and their caregivers and examined feasibility of the intervention as well as child social skills, caregiver competency, confidence, and parenting skills in working with their child, and family functioning in the context of the P4P intervention. Results suggest the feasibility of proof concept of applying the P4P curriculum to young children with ASD and their caregivers. Specifically, this 16-session intervention appears to improve social skills scores in children with ASD, which is maintained 4-6 weeks after treatment, increased scores were noted in caregiver confidence interacting with their children, as well as improved scores in their affect/animation and achievement orientation in interaction styles with their child, and noted improvements in their parenting styles overall score. Therefore, this intervention may have an impact both the child and caregiver in positive ways and these positive results are largely maintained at a follow-up after intervention completion. Future research will need to focus more on the entire family unit, as no changes were noted in the present study, and should examine the specific mechanisms that lead to these positive results regarding child social skills and caregiver interaction styles and confidence. Additionally, more work that adds to making P4P an evidence-based treatment must be at the forefront of future work.
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    Childhood aggression in schools: The impact of behavioral patterns and contextual influences on teachers' cognitive, affective, and behavioral responses
    Alvarez, Heather Krishna (Virginia Tech, 1999-12-15)
    Despite considerable advances in the development and implementation of school-based interventions, aggressive behavior in schools remains a significant problem for both educators and the community as a whole. The present study was designed to examine possible contextual influences on the course and treatment of aggression in schools, in an effort to inform future intervention development. The aim of the present study was to examine possible influences on teachers' response to reactive and proactive aggression in the classroom, and test the applicability of Weiner's attributional model of motivation and emotion. A sample of 121 middle school teachers completed self-report measures of teaching characteristics, efficacy, stress, and burnout. They also responded to four vignettes of student aggression with measurements of proposed attributions, affective reactions, and interventions. A series of ANOVAs showed that teacher's proposed responses differed as a function of child aggression subtype, teacher stress, burnout, efficacy, and training. Multiple regression analyses were used to test Weiner's theoretical model, as well as consider the moderating influence of teacher characteristics. Findings failed to support the application of Weiner's model to the current sample. Alternative patterns of moderation and mediation were significant, however. Implications of study findings were discussed as they relate to relevant theoretical models and recent advances in clinical and educational research.
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    A Clinical Validation of the Obsessive Compulsive Consequences Scale-Revised
    Van Kirk, Nathaniel Peter (Virginia Tech, 2014-04-21)
    Given the high rates of treatment drop-out and non-compliance within empirically-based treatments for OCD, it is important to increase our understanding of factors that impact the treatment process. Two studies were conducted to evaluate the clinical utility of the Obsessive Compulsive Consequences Scale-Revised (OCCS-R) and increase understanding of the relationships between the prognostic factors of motivation, insight, treatment compliance and treatment outcome. Study 1 used maximum likelihood Confirmatory Factor Analysis to show the OCCS-R's four factor solution was an adequate fit in a sub-clinical college population. Study 2 evaluated the clinical utility of the OCCS-R for predicting treatment outcome and its relationship to identified predictor variables. The OCCS-R predicted treatment drop-out but did not predict symptom improvement. Some support was found for predicted relationships between the OCCS-R and its factors, a general measure of motivation and treatment compliance. No variables predicted symptom improvement. Insight and initial symptom severity predicted treatment motivation which in turn predicted treatment compliance.
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    Cocaine Use Modulates Neural Prediction Error During Aversive Learning
    Wang, John Mujia (Virginia Tech, 2015-05-07)
    Cocaine use has contributed to 5 million individuals falling into the cycle of addiction. Prior research in cocaine dependence mainly focused on rewards. Losses also play a critical role in cocaine dependence as dependent individuals fail to avoid social, health, and economic losses even when they acknowledge them. However, dependent individuals are extremely adept at escaping negative states like withdrawal. To further understand whether cocaine use may contribute to dysfunctions in aversive learning, this paper uses fMRI and an aversive learning task to examine cocaine dependent individuals abstinent from cocaine use (C-) and using as usual (C+). Specifically of interest is the neural signal representing actual loss compared to the expected loss, better known as prediction error (δ), which individuals use to update future expectations. When abstinent (C-), dependent individuals exhibited higher positive prediction error (δ+) signal in their striatum than when they were using as usual. Furthermore, their striatal δ+ signal enhancements from drug abstinence were predicted by higher positive learning rate (α+) enhancements. However, no relationships were found between drug abstinence enhancements to negative learning rates (α±-) and negative prediction error (δ-) striatal signals. Abstinent (C-) individuals' striatal δ+ signal was predicted by longer drug use history, signifying possible relief learning adaptations with time. Lastly, craving measures, especially the desire to use cocaine and positive effects of cocaine, also positively correlated with C- individuals' striatal δ+ signal. This suggests possible relief learning adaptations in response to higher craving and withdrawal symptoms. Taken together, enhanced striatal δ+ signal when abstinent and adaptations in relief learning provide evidence in supporting dependent individuals' lack of aversive learning ability while using as usual and enhanced relief learning ability for the purpose of avoiding negative situations such as withdrawal, suggesting a neurocomputational mechanism that pushes the dependent individual to maintains dependence.
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    Comparing Dispositional and Episodic Assessment of Drug Use Motives among College Students: Prediction of Use and Use-Related Consequences
    Jones, Mark Edward (Virginia Tech, 2007-02-12)
    The current study was conducted with a sample of 253 college undergraduates to extend the findings in the existing research on motivational models of alcohol and marijuana use. Specifically it was intended to evaluate the relative benefits of assessing motives for using these drugs during a specific episode rather than in the dispositional fashion utilized in virtually every existing study on the subject. Affect regulation aspects of the motivational model were further explored by measuring state (rather than trait) affect immediately preceding a use episode. A timeline follow-back method was used to identify the most recent use episode and to assess recent quantity of use and negative consequences in greater detail. The similarity of the types of motives derived from episodic assessment to those seen dispositionally lends further credence to the validity of DUM subtypes, their distinct pathways to use and related problems, and the affective-motivational model as a whole. Affective states (rather than just traits) played a significant role in the motives endorsed and outcomes. Previous findings on the direct effects of drinking to cope on the development of problems were confirmed on an episodic level. Finally, episodic assessment appeared to have some utility above and beyond that of dispositional assessment when examining specific episodes of use.
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    Comparison of Participatively-set and Assigned Goals in the Reduction of Alcohol Use
    Lozano, Brian Edward (Virginia Tech, 2008-04-29)
    The effects of setting goals on goal commitment and goal achievement in the context of an alcohol use intervention were examined using an experimental design in which participants were randomly assigned to participatively-set goals, assigned goals, and no goal conditions. The current study provides information regarding the links between degree of participation in goal setting, goal commitment, self-efficacy for one's goal, subsequent alcohol use, and goal achievement. It was hypothesized that: 1) Goal setting and participation in goal setting would significantly predict alcohol use outcomes: a) having a goal for alcohol consumption would cause lower quantity and frequency of alcohol use relative to not having a goal; b) participation in goal setting, rather than being assigned a goal, would influence goal achievement such that participation in goal setting would cause greater success in achieving one's goal. 2) Participation in goal setting would influence goal commitment such that participation in goal setting would cause greater goal commitment. 3) Goal commitment would influence goal achievement such that greater goal commitment would be predictive of greater success in achieving one's goal. 4) The facilitative effect of participation in goal setting on subsequent goal achievement would be mediated by goal commitment. 5) Self-efficacy for one's goal would influence goal achievement such that greater self-efficacy for one's goal would be predictive of greater success in achieving one's goal. One hundred and twenty-six binge-drinking college students received a single cognitive-behavioral assessment/intervention session and completed measures of goal commitment, self-efficacy for goal achievement, and alcohol use. Results were consistent with, and expanded upon, previous research by demonstrating that having a goal for alcohol consumption was predictive of lower quantity and frequency of alcohol use relative to not having a goal; however, participation in goal setting did not result in significantly better alcohol use outcomes or greater goal achievement relative to when goals were assigned. Participation in goal setting yielded greater goal commitment and self-efficacy for goal achievement than assigned goals. Lastly, goal commitment and self-efficacy contributed unique variance to the prediction of goal achievement across follow-up as well as changes in quantity and frequency of alcohol use at follow-up after controlling for baseline use.
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    The coping process of the unacknowledged rape victim
    Littleton, Heather Leigh (Virginia Tech, 2003-10-24)
    Unacknowledged rape- having an experience that, if true, legally would be considered rape, but not conceptualizing it as rape, or sometimes even a victimization, is a common and understudied phenomenon. The present study sought to examine a coping model regarding unacknowledged rape. In this model, not acknowledging rape is viewed, in part, as a response to experiencing a number of negative consequences as a result of the assault, such as negative social reactions and feelings of responsibility. In addition, it is hypothesized that unacknowledged victims may turn to maladaptive coping techniques to cope with this assault, and not acknowledging the rape may aid in facilitating and justifying these attempts at coping, once initiated. Therefore, it was hypothesized that unacknowledged victims, compared to acknowledged victims, would suffer more negative consequences after the assault and they would use more maladaptive, avoidance coping. To test these hypotheses, an online survey was developed. A total of 1,253 university women drawn from the psychology department participant pool over three semesters, completed the survey. Of these, 256, or 20.4% of the sample reported having an experience consistent with a legal definition of rape. Sixty percent did not consider this experience to be a victimization and thus were classified as unacknowledged rape victims. Replicating previous research, unacknowledged victims suffered less violent assaults and also had consumed more alcohol during the assault. However, the results overall did not support the proposed model. There were few differences in the amount of negative consequences experienced by acknowledged and unacknowledged victims. In addition, the results suggested that being an unacknowledged victim was not associated with increased reliance on avoidance coping. Instead, acknowledged victims engaged in more of all coping strategies, perhaps because acknowledged assaults tended to produce slightly more severe posttraumatic symptoms. Several possible future directions were therefore proposed including a focus on cognitive and memory variables in rape acknowledgment as well as a focus on what leads women to acknowledge an assault, given that not acknowledging rape is the normative response to this type of victimization.
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    Coping Strategies Form Systems that Regulate PTSD Symptoms in Children and Adolescents: Exploring the Regulatory Hypothesis
    Carvajal, Franklin (Virginia Tech, 2007-04-26)
    This study investigated the potential regulatory effects of various coping strategies on Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). It first divided PTSD symptoms and selected coping strategies into cognitive, social/motivational, and emotional types. The study then conceptualized each of the preceding types of coping strategies as being controlled stress responses and the PTSD symptoms as being semiautomatic stress responses. It lastly proposed that coping strategies be further divided into activating controlled stress response and deactivating controlled stress response. Controlled stress responses are coping strategies that are consciously initiated and implemented. Semiautomatic stress responses are PTSD symptoms that spontaneously emerge without conscious intent. Activating controlled stress responses consisted of the following coping strategies: seeking understanding, avoidant actions, and expressing feelings. Deactivating controlled stress responses encompassed: positive cognitive restructuring, emotion-focused support, and physical release of emotions. Semiautomatic stress responses entailed: reexperiencing, numbing, and arousal symptoms. It was proposed that cognitive, social/motivational, and emotional activating controlled stress responses would increase corresponding cognitive, social/motivational, and emotional semiautomatic stress responses. In the same vein, it was expected that cognitive, social/motivational, and emotional deactivating controlled stress responses would decrease respective semiautomatic stress responses. To illustrate, it was predicted that with regard to the cognitive regulatory system, its activating cognitive controlled stress response (seeking understanding) would exacerbate the frequency of associated cognitive semiautomatic stress responses (reexperiencing PTSD symptoms) whereas its deactivating cognitive controlled stress response (positive cognitive restructuring) would ameliorate it. Path analyses were conducted on correlation matrices whose elements represented two coping strategies (e.g., an activating controlled stress response: seeking understanding, and a deactivating controlled stress response: positive cognitive restructuring) and one PTSD symptom cluster of the same nature (e.g., the semiautomatic stress response: reexperiencing). Data were obtained from a sample of sixty-four children and adolescents ages 8-18. The coping strategies were assessed via ratings on items included in the How I Cope Under Pressure (HICUPS) instrument and the PTSD clusters through the use of the Diagnostic Interview for Children and Adolescents (DICA). Only one hypothesis was partially supported. It was found that the social/motivational activating controlled stress response (avoidant actions) indeed increased social/motivational semiautomatic stress responses (numbing symptoms).
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    Development and Feasibility of an Online Brief Emotion Regulation Training (BERT) Program for Emerging Adults
    Gatto, Alyssa Jo; Elliott, Truitt J.; Briganti, Jonathan S.; Stamper, Michael J.; Porter, Nathaniel D.; Brown, Anne M.; Harden, Samantha M.; Cooper, Lee D.; Dunsmore, Julie C. (Frontiers, 2022-06-10)
    Mental wellness is a critical component of healthy development in emerging adulthood and serves to protect against stress and promote resilience against psychopathology. Emotion regulation is a key mechanism for effective prevention because of its role in socio-emotional competence and its transdiagnostic significance for psychopathology. In this feasibility study, a brief, time and cost-effective emotion regulation training program for emerging adults (BERT) was developed and tested using the RE-AIM framework. Importantly, building interventions within the context of an implementation framework, such as the RE-AIM framework, enhances the chances that an intervention will be able to scale out and scale up. First, the brainwriting premortem method was utilized to refine program content, conducting focus groups a priori to identify potential program failures prior to program implementation. Undergraduate students (n = 12) attended four focus groups presenting initial program content. Four clinicians were also interviewed to determine program barriers. Qualitative analyses aggregated participant feedback to identify compliments, changes, and concerns about BERT and critical feedback was immediately implemented prior to initial testing. BERT was rooted in cognitive-behavioral practices and informed by the Gross model of emotion regulation. The 5-week program was then examined in a college sample (N = 42) to evaluate implementation (low attrition, high content engagement, favorable attitudes, low incidence of technical errors, costs), reach (enrollment and completion demographics comparable to the population in which recruitment took place), and efficacy (positive change in emotion regulation pre- to post-program). Of the recruited participants, 36 remained in the study where 27 completed at least 80% of program content. Repeated-measures ANOVAs exhibited significant improvements in emotion regulation, psychological distress, and negative affectivity, suggesting promising initial efficacy. Initial data provide support for feasibility and a future randomized control trial. BERT has potential significance for promoting healthy development as its brief electronic format reduced barriers and the program development process incorporated stakeholder feedback at multiple levels to inform better implementation and dissemination.
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    Development and Preliminary Testing of an Online Brief Emotion Regulation Training (BERT) Program for Emerging Adults
    Gatto, Alyssa Jo (Virginia Tech, 2022-07-21)
    Mental wellness is a critical component of healthy development and serves as a way to protect against stress and promote resilience against psychopathology. Emerging adulthood is an important time to foster mental wellness as individuals adjust to changing social roles, such as transitioning to college. Emotion regulation is a key mechanism for effective prevention because of its role in socio-emotional competence and its transdiagnostic significance for psychopathology. In this dissertation study, a brief, time and cost-effective emotion regulation training program for emerging adults (BERT) was developed and tested. Phase 1 focused on program development. Phase 2 utilized the brainwriting premortem method to refine program content. Undergraduate students (n = 12) attended four focus groups presenting initial program content. Four clinicians were also interviewed to determine program barriers. Qualitative analyses aggregated participant feedback to identify compliments, changes, and concerns about BERT in preparation for the pilot, and critical feedback was immediately implemented. In Phase 3, the 5-week program was pilot-tested in a college sample (N = 42) to evaluate Implementation (low attrition, high content engagement, favorable attitudes, low incidence of technical errors, costs), Reach (enrollment and completion demographics comparable to the population in which recruitment took place), and Efficacy (positive change in emotion regulation pre- to post-program). Twenty-seven participants completed at least 80% of program content. Chi-square analyses did not show any significant difference between participants who started the study and those who dropped out. Repeated measures ANOVAs exhibited significant improvements in emotion regulation, psychological distress, anxiety, stress, negative affectivity, and quality of life, suggesting promising initial efficacy. Development of BERT has high potential significance for promoting healthy development because the electronic delivery and brief nature of the program will reduce barriers to adoption and Implementation and the program development process that incorporates stakeholder feedback at multiple levels is expected to improve program Reach and Efficacy. The program development process, which incorporates stakeholder feedback at multiple levels, informs better implementation and dissemination.
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    The Development of a Hybrid Scoring Key for a Situational Judgment Test Designed for Training Evaluation
    Findlay, Rolanda A. (Virginia Tech, 2007-04-20)
    As a low fidelity work simulation, Situational Judgment Tests (SJTs) are an affordable and practical way of empirically linking training and on-the-job performance, thereby providing a viable means of evaluating training effectiveness. An issue, when utilizing SJTs, is deciding the appropriate manner in which the SJT should be scored. Traditional SJT scoring methodologies, while successfully utilized for selection and prediction, pose specific challenges when applied to a SJT designed to evaluate the effectiveness of a training program. This study discusses the shortcomings of traditional SJT scoring methodologies when used in the evaluation context. To overcome these challenges, an innovative scoring methodology, the Hybrid methodology, is presented. This study provides the detailed description of the Hybrid scoring key creation, and compares the Hybrid scoring key with two traditional scoring keys (Subject Matter Expert (SME) and Respondent-based scoring keys). Responses from a military training program are utilized to illustrate the distinctive effects of using the three different scoring approaches. The superiority of the hybrid scoring key, due to increased confidence in the key's accuracy, and findings regarding training evaluation are discussed. Future research directions and practical applications of the research are also discussed.