Theses and Dissertations
This collection includes both ASU Theses and Dissertations, submitted by graduate students, and the Barrett, Honors College theses submitted by undergraduate students.
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- All Subjects: Mindfulness
Description
School bullying is a serious problem for children and adolescents, associated with a multitude of psychological and behavioral problems. Interventions at the individual level have primarily been social skills training for victims of bullying. However, investigators have had mixed results; finding little change in victimization rates. It has been suggested victims of school bullying have the social skills necessary to be effective in a bullying situation; however they experience intense emotional arousal and negative thoughts leading to an inability to use social skills. One intervention that has been getting increasing acknowledgement for its utility in the intervention literature in psychology is mindfulness. However, there has been no research conducted examining the effects of mindfulness meditation on victims of bullying. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to develop an online intervention for victims of bullying that utilizes the cutting-edge technique of mindfulness and to determine the efficacy of this intervention in the context of bullying victimization. Participants were 32 adolescents ages 11 to 14 identified by their school facilitators as victims of bullying. Repeated measures ANOVAs were used to assess the efficacy of the NMT program versus a treatment as usual (TAU) social skills program. Results revealed significant decreases in victimization and increases in mindfulness among both treatment groups from pre-test to follow-up and post-test to follow-up assessments. There were no differences found between the two treatment groups for mean victimization or mindfulness scores. Overall, the NMT program appears to be a promising online intervention for bullied teens. Directions for future research and limitations of this study were also discussed.
ContributorsYabko, Brandon (Author) / Tracey, Terence J. G. (Thesis advisor) / Homer, Judith (Committee member) / Sebren, Ann (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
Female college veterans face a host of struggles both personally and academically. Research that focuses primarily on female veterans’ wellness needs as they transition into civilian life is limited and this population is woefully understudied in comparison to male veterans. The purpose of this study was to describe and explore some of the wellness needs of female college veterans making the transition from military service to college/civilian life. Twelve hundred and thirty female veterans from a University Veterans Center were sent a recruitment email where 125 successfully completed a life satisfaction (Frisch, 1994), physical activity (Craig et al., 2003), resilience (Connor & Davidson, 2003), and a five-facet mindfulness (Baer et al., 2008) questionnaire. The means for this population were: Quality of life (M= 37.8), Resilience (M= 70.5), Physical Activity MET minutes (M= 4,605), and Five-facet mindfulness (M= Observing 3.50, Describing = 3.38, Acting with Awareness M= 3.02, Non-Judging of Inner Experience M= 2.98, Non-reactivity to Inner Experience M= 3.06). Resilience was significantly (p <0.01) and positively correlated to all five domains of mindfulness (range r = 0.332 – 0.534) and was negatively associated with Quality of Life (QOL) (r= -0.204). Vigorous Activity minutes and Total Met Minutes were both positively associated with QOL (r= 0.300 and r= 0.199 respectively). This population of female veterans self-reported to have very low/low life satisfaction, low resilience, and high physical activity levels. The behaviors and traits reported in these female college veterans provide important information for developing resources and potential interventions in the future.
ContributorsYu, Gladys Marie Tiu Lim (Author) / Swan, Pamela (Thesis advisor) / Sebren, Ann (Committee member) / Davis-Strong, Devi (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2019
Description
Hospice Music Therapy is an established specialization area within the field of music therapy with significant empirical research confirming its efficacy. Much of the current research on hospice music therapy concerns the use of receptive music therapy and traditional counseling and psychotherapy techniques. According to a survey of people with terminal illness, the most common needs experienced are: pain management, support for autonomy to the fullest extent possible, psychosocial support, and spiritual support. Mindfulness and mindfulness based interventions have been linked to increased self-compassion, reduced stress, reduced anxiety, and a reduction in self-reported perception of pain. While music therapy performs well in empirical measures of hospice-related need areas, mindfulness techniques and practice may enhance the music therapist’s capacity for self-care and administering hospice treatment. Additionally, music therapy may be a good companion to a mindfulness based therapy due to similar cognitive effects and processes that are utilized in each. This thesis will formulate a conceptual framework in which mindfulness and body awareness might be used as an integral aspect to the music therapist's practice in the hospice setting.
ContributorsRynex, Benjamin Warren (Author) / Rio, Robin (Thesis advisor) / Eubanks, Kymla (Thesis advisor) / Sebren, Ann (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2018
Description
Physical inactivity is a continuing public health crisis because of its negative effects on health (e.g. hypertension, cardiovascular disease, type II diabetes). To combat the rising prevalence of these non-communicable diseases, physical activity (PA) promotion is a public health priority. However, current programs seem to be ineffective in the long-term promotion of PA. Resultingly new, effective interventions are needed. Recent studies have established a link between mindfulness and PA engagement. Based on the current literature, the present study sought to investigate the associations between trait mindfulness, behavioral regulation towards exercise, exercise intention, stress, and self-reported PA. This study also examined whether trait mindfulness was independently associated with meeting weekly, leisure-time, moderate-to-vigorous PA [MVPA] recommendations in university undergraduate students after controlling for demographic characteristics, past PA experience, exercise intention, stress, and motivation.
The study used a cross-sectional design and participants consisted of 180 undergraduate university students (aged 18 to 24 years). Participants completed a one-time survey that assessed demographic characteristics, trait mindfulness, behavioral regulation toward exercise, exercise intention, perceived stress and PA. Bivariate associations between the variables were assessed with Pearson or Spearman correlations. A logistic regression analysis was conducted to determine which variables were independently associated with meeting weekly, leisure-time MVPA guidelines. Results of this study found weak positive associations between the mindfulness domain of acceptance and leisure time MVPA ( = .168, p < .05), no associations between mindfulness and transportation PA, and negative associations between mindfulness (MAAS, = –.238, p < .01; acceptance, = –.175, p < .05) and sitting time. Results of logistic regression found that only relative autonomy (OR = 1.085, 95% CI [1.008, 1.168], p = .030) and intention (OR = 2.193, 95% CI [1.533, 3.138], p < .0001) were independently associated with meeting weekly, leisure- time MVPA recommendations. The results of this study show that while there is only a weak direct relationship between trait mindfulness and PA, mindfulness may be related with other factors associated with PA. More research is needed in order to better understand the potential mechanisms behind the results found in this, and past, studies.
The study used a cross-sectional design and participants consisted of 180 undergraduate university students (aged 18 to 24 years). Participants completed a one-time survey that assessed demographic characteristics, trait mindfulness, behavioral regulation toward exercise, exercise intention, perceived stress and PA. Bivariate associations between the variables were assessed with Pearson or Spearman correlations. A logistic regression analysis was conducted to determine which variables were independently associated with meeting weekly, leisure-time MVPA guidelines. Results of this study found weak positive associations between the mindfulness domain of acceptance and leisure time MVPA ( = .168, p < .05), no associations between mindfulness and transportation PA, and negative associations between mindfulness (MAAS, = –.238, p < .01; acceptance, = –.175, p < .05) and sitting time. Results of logistic regression found that only relative autonomy (OR = 1.085, 95% CI [1.008, 1.168], p = .030) and intention (OR = 2.193, 95% CI [1.533, 3.138], p < .0001) were independently associated with meeting weekly, leisure- time MVPA recommendations. The results of this study show that while there is only a weak direct relationship between trait mindfulness and PA, mindfulness may be related with other factors associated with PA. More research is needed in order to better understand the potential mechanisms behind the results found in this, and past, studies.
ContributorsNapolitano, Vinson (Author) / Der Ananian, Cheryl (Thesis advisor) / Sebren, Ann (Committee member) / Ainsworth, Barbara (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2019
Description
Adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) face heightened risk of co-occurring psychiatric conditions, especially depression and anxiety disorders, which contribute to seven-fold higher suicide rates than the general population. Mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) is an 8-week meditation intervention centered around training continuous redirection of attention toward present moment experience, and has been shown to improve mental health in autistic adults. However, the underlying therapeutic neural mechanisms and whether behavioral and brain changes are mindfulness-specific have yet to be elucidated. In this randomized clinical trial, I utilized functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and electroencephalography (EEG) to characterize fMRI functional activity (Study 1) and connectivity (Study 2) and EEG neurophysiological (Study 3) changes between MBSR and a social support/relaxation education (SE) active control group. Study 1 revealed an MBSR-specific increase in the midcingulate cortex fMRI blood oxygen level dependent signal which was associated with reduced depression. Study 2 identified nonspecific intervention improvements in depression, anxiety, and autistic, and MBSR-specific improvements in the mindfulness trait ‘nonjudgment toward experience’ and in the executive functioning domain of working memory. MBSR-specific decreases in insula-thalamus and frontal pole-posterior cingulate functional connectivity was associated with improvements in anxiety, mindfulness traits, and working memory abilities. Both MBSR and SE groups showed decreased amygdala-sensorimotor and frontal pole-insula connectivity which correlated with reduced depression. Study 3 consisted of an EEG spectral power analysis at high-frequency brainwaves associated with default mode network (DMN) activity. Results showed MBSR-specific and nonspecific decreases in beta- and gamma-band power, with effects being generally more robust in the MBSR group; additionally, MBSR-specific decreases in posterior gamma correlated with anxiolytic effects. Collectively, these studies suggest: 1) social support is sufficient for improvements in depression, anxiety, and autistic traits; 2) MBSR provides additional benefits related to mindfulness traits and working memory; and 3) distinct and shared neural mechanisms of mindfulness training in adults with ASD, implicating the salience and default mode networks and high-frequency neurophysiology. Findings bear relevance to the development of personalized medicine approaches for psychiatric co-morbidity in ASD, provide putative targets for neurostimulation research, and warrant replication and extension using advanced multimodal imaging approaches.
ContributorsPagni, Broc (Author) / Braden, B. Blair (Thesis advisor) / Newbern, Jason (Thesis advisor) / Davis, Mary (Committee member) / Brewer, Gene (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2022
Description
The purpose of this study was to investigate how to decrease teacher stress and burnout by a virtual online mindfulness practice intervention with cognitive apprenticeship, self-determination, and self-efficacy theory as the frameworks. Teaching in the United States K-12 public school system is a stressful occupation because of the higher level of responsibility within schools that requires resilient stress coping skills for overall well-being. My research project’s purpose was to examine instruction and training in mindfulness practice as a tool to cultivate stress coping skills in K-12 teachers through a six-week mindfulness virtual online course (MVOC). This study involved 5 participants with the methodology employed was an explanatory sequential mixed-methods approach which included quantitative data collection with pre-and post-surveys, which included the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), the Kentucky Inventory of Mindfulness Skills Questionnaire (KIMS - Short), and the Philadelphia Mindfulness Scale (PHMS) with Linkert scale questions. Subsequently, followed by three qualitative interviews over six weeks to facilitate a case study consideration. The action research study results exhibited reduced stress following an increase in awareness from developing a personal mindfulness practice. Furthermore, the MVOC intervention helped the participants build a daily personalized mindfulness practice that improved their stress coping skills and was also beneficial in specific ways, which promises teachers whom routine mindfulness practice will cultivate progressively effective stress coping skills and assist K-12 teachers to enjoy increased job satisfaction and reducing the leading cause of burnout.
ContributorsPinthong, Uraipanyawan (Bo) (Author) / Giorgis, Cyndi (Thesis advisor) / Gonzales, Deborah (Committee member) / Sebren, Ann (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2021
Description
Research on self-regulatory variables like mindfulness and effortful control proposes strong links with physical and mental health outcomes across the lifespan, from childhood and adolescence to adulthood and old age. One pathway by which self-regulation may confer health benefits is through individual differences in reports of and emotional responses to daily negative and positive events. Mindfulness is broadly defined as non-reactivity to inner experiences, while effortful control is broadly defined as attentional and behavioral regulation. Mindfulness and effortful control have both been conceptualized to exert their beneficial effects on development through their influence on exposure/engagement and emotional reactivity/responsiveness to both negative and positive events, yet few empirical studies have tested this claim using daily-diary designs, a research methodology that permits for examining this process. With a sample of community-dwelling adults (n=191), this thesis examined whether dispositional mindfulness (i.e., non-reactivity of inner experience) and effortful control (i.e., attention and behavioral regulation) modulate reports of and affective reactivity/responsiveness to daily negative and positive events across 30 days. Results showed that mindfulness and effortful control were each associated with reduced exposure to daily stressors but not positive events. They also showed that mindfulness and effortful control, respectively, predicted smaller decreases in negative affect and smaller increases in positive affect on days that positive events occurred. Overall, these findings offer insight into how these self-regulatory factors operate in the context of middle-aged adults’ everyday life.
ContributorsCastro, Saul (Author) / Infurna, Frank (Thesis advisor) / Doane, Leah (Committee member) / Davis, Mary (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2018