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- All Subjects: Mental Health
- All Subjects: Older people--Health and hygiene.
Description
Introduction: Less than half of U.S. adults meet the aerobic physical activity guidelines to exercise at least 150 minutes a week. An individual's decision to be physically active is influenced by their perceptions of physical activity. To address perceptions, interventions need to be implemented where adults spend one third of their day; the workplace. A number of physical activity interventions have been conducted and few have been successful at improving physical activity; therefore, there is a need to explore novel approaches to improve physical activity in the worksite. The purpose of this pilot study was to examine the impact of a seven-day gratitude intervention on perceptions of physical activity and happiness in the workplace. Methods: Full-time employees at two worksites participated in a seven-day online journaling study. Participants were randomized into the intervention (gratitude) or control group and were assessed for perceptions of physical activity and happiness at baseline, immediate post-test (day 7) and one-week follow-up (day 14). Results: Results of this study indicate that the seven-day gratitude intervention may not significantly improve perceptions of physical activity or increase happiness. Future research should consider assessing the individual's readiness for change at baseline, increasing the length of the intervention, testing participant level of gratitude at baseline and employing a larger sample size.
ContributorsRowedder, Lacey (Author) / Huberty, Jennifer (Thesis advisor) / Chisum, Jack (Committee member) / Lee, Chong (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2014
Description
ABSTRACT Despite significant advancements in drug therapy, cardiovascular disease (CVD) is still the leading cause of death in the United States. Given this, research has begun to seek out alternative approaches to reduce CVD risk. One of these alternative approaches is Vitamin D supplementation. Current research has shown a link between Vitamin D status and CVD risk in both healthy and diseased populations. Among the possible mechanisms is a positive effect of Vitamin D on vascular endothelial function, which can be measured with noninvasive techniques such as flow-mediated dilation (FMD) of conduit vessels using high-resolution ultrasound. This dissertation is comprised of two studies. The first examines whether Vitamin D supplementation can improve FMD in older adults within a time period (two weeks) associated with peak increases in plasma Vitamin D concentrations after a single-dose supplementation. The second examines the effect of Vitamin D supplementation in people with Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA). The reason for looking at an RA population is that CVD is the leading cause of early mortality in people with RA. In the first study 29 Post-Menopausal Women received either 100,000 IU of Vitamin D3 or a Placebo. Their FMD was measured at baseline and 2 weeks after supplementation. After 2 weeks there was a significant increase in FMD in the Vitamin D group (6.19 + 4.87 % to 10.69 + 5.18 %) as compared to the Placebo group (p=.03). In the second study, 11 older adults with RA were given 100,000 IU of Vitamin D or a Placebo. At baseline and one month later their FMD was examined as well as plasma concentrations of Vitamin D and tumor necrosis factor-alpha; (TNF-alpha;). They also filled out a Quality of Life Questionnaire and underwent a submaximal exercise test on the treadmill for estimation of maximum oxygen uptake (VO2max). There was no significant change in FMD in Vitamin D group as compared to the Placebo group (p=.721). Additionally, there was no significant improvement in either plasma Vitamin D or TNF-alpha; in the Vitamin D group. There was however a significant improvement in predicted VO2max from the submaximal exercise test in the group receiving Vitamin D (p=.003). The results of these studies suggest that a single 100,000 IU dose of Vitamin D can enhance FMD within two week in older adults, but that a similar dose may not be sufficient to increase FMD or plasma Vitamin D levels in older adults with RA. A more aggressive supplementation regimen may be required in this patient population.
ContributorsRyan, Dana Meredith (Author) / Gaesser, Glenn A (Thesis advisor) / Rizzo, Warren (Committee member) / Martin, Keith (Committee member) / Larkey, Linda (Committee member) / Chisum, Jack (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Description
The goal of this thesis was to create a resource addressing non-course-specific (NCS) student needs that College of Integrative Sciences and Arts (CISA) faculty can provide to their students when appropriate. Students attend faculty office hours for a variety of reasons, and not all are academic in nature. Data was collected in order to determine which resources were lacking in addressing these needs. Student need was identified through a 13-item survey regarding faculty perception of NCS student needs, including the primary reason for office hour visitation and the primary sources of stress, academic advising, and time management complaints from their students. Additionally, feedback was collected regarding faculty perception of available resources and likelihood of utilizing a new resource. Throughout the Downtown, Tempe, and Polytechnic campuses, 24 faculty responded. It was found that work stress, familial stress, academic advising requests, and students comments of being overwhelmed were the primary NCS student needs as perceived by faculty. Additionally, the majority of faculty reported not feeling fully equipped to address these needs. This information was used to create a resource compiling a list of University and off-campus tools that students can access to address these needs. The resource combined data from faculty and from the literature to address general and specific issues of stress, academic advising, feeling ‘off,’ and recovery and was created a double-sided handout to be used electronically or for print. It is currently available for faculty use. With further research, this resource could be expanded or refined to address the needs of a larger population of students in different colleges or on different campuses. Eventually, this could be used as a University-wide tool.
ContributorsMcAnally, Kaylyn Marie (Author) / Chisum, Jack (Thesis director) / Lisenbee, Cayle (Committee member) / School of Social and Behavioral Sciences (Contributor) / College of Health Solutions (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
Although maintaining an optimal level of muscle quality in older persons is necessary to prevent falls and disability, there has been limited research on muscle quality across age and gender groups. The associations of muscle quality, muscle strength, and muscle mass also remain less explored. Purpose: This study examined the muscle quality differences (arm and leg) between healthy young and elderly adults across gender groups. This study also examined the associations of muscle quality, muscle strength, and muscle mass in young and elderly adults, respectively. Methods: Seventy-one total subjects were recruited for this study within age groups 20-29 years old (20 females and 20 males) and 60-80 years old (18 females and 13 males). All participants completed anthropometric measures, dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry, pulse wave velocity, handgrip strength and leg strength tests, gait speed, and sit to stand test. Results: Young male adults had a greater leg muscle quality index (leg MQI) than did elderly male adults (21.8 Nm/kg vs. 16.3 Nm/kg, p = 0.001). Similarly, young female adults had a greater leg MQI than did old female adults (21.3 Nm/kg and 15.6 Nm/kg, p<0.001). For arm muscle quality index (arm MQI), there was a gender difference in young adults (p = 0.001), but not for the elderly adults. Among elderly adults, there was a positive association between leg MQI and isometric leg strength (r = 0.79, p<0.001). Notably, there was a negative association between leg MQI and leg lean mass (r = -0.70, p<0.001) and between arm MQI and arm lean mass (r = -0.58, p = 0.001). In young adults, there was also a positive association between arm MQI and handgrip strength (r = 0.53, p<0.001) and between leg MQI and isometric leg strength (r = 0.81, p<0.001). There was no association between muscle quality and muscle mass in young adults. Conclusion: Young adults had a greater leg muscle quality than did elderly adults in both men and women. Leg muscle quality is positively associated with leg muscle strength in both young and elderly adults but is inversely associated with leg muscle mass in the elderly adults.
ContributorsDierickx, Erin (Author) / Lee, Chong (Thesis advisor) / Swan, Pamela (Committee member) / Marsit, Joseph (Committee member) / Chisum, Jack (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2017
Description
A history of trauma can affect a child’s capacity to express emotions due to the neurological footprints left from neglect and abuse. Oftentimes, children do not have a caregiver as a protector which leaves them vulnerable to harm. In response, children use emotional survival strategies of either flight or fight to adapt to their stressful environment. Occupational Therapy Practitioners (OTP) are positioned to address social and emotional development; however, they often feel ill equipped to address the complexity of trauma and its impact on emotions. OTPs need to look at each sensory system from a nurturing/grounding perspective using movement-based strategies as inroads to address the child’s emotional capacity. A sensory integration intervention, Proprioceptive Activities to Lower Stress (PALS), was developed to study the effect on a six-year-old boy’s expressions of emotions using a single subject design. Three emotions were measured using a facial analysis system, Noldus FaceReader™. The emotions were happiness, sadness, and neutral. Neutral is defined as the level of emotional detachment. Results indicate a statistically significant improvement in the expressions of happiness and sad post the PALS program.
ContributorsTaggart, Lara G (Author) / Puckett, Kathleen (Thesis advisor) / Chisum, Jack (Committee member) / Diamant, Rachel (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2019
Description
Background: It is estimated that 50% of all mental illness arises prior to age 14, an incident attributed in part to disruptions and imbalances within the family system. Equine assisted learning is a complementary and alternative approach to family therapy which is being used increasingly to promote mental health in both adults and children. This study sought to build and deliver an evidence-based, family-centered equine assisted learning program aimed at promoting family function, family satisfaction and child social-emotional competence, and to measure its acceptability and preliminary effect.
Method: Twenty families with children 10 years and older were recruited to participate in a 3-week equine assisted learning program at a therapeutic riding center in Phoenix, Arizona. Sessions included groundwork activities with horses used to promote life skills using experiential learning theory. The study design included a mixed-method quasi-experimental one-group pretest posttest design using the following mental health instruments: Devereaux Student Strengths Assessment, Brief Family Assessment Measure (3 dimensions), and Family Satisfaction Scale to measure child social-emotional competence, family function, and family satisfaction, respectively. Acceptability was determined using a Likert-type questionnaire with open-ended questions to gain a qualitative thematic perspective of the experience.
Results: Preliminary pretest and posttest comparisons were statistically significant for improvements in family satisfaction (p = 0.001, M = -5.84, SD = 5.63), all three domains of family function (General Scale: p = 0.005, M = 6.84, SD = 9.20; Self-Rating Scale: p = 0.050, M = 6.53, SD = 12.89; and Dyadic Relationship Scale: p = 0.028, M = 3.47, SD = 7.18), and child social-emotional competence (p = 0.015, M = -4.05, SD 5.95). Effect sizes were moderate to large (d > 0.5) for all but one instrument (Self-Rating Scale), suggesting a considerable magnitude of change over the three-week period. The intervention was highly accepted among both children and adults. Themes of proximity, self-discovery, and regard for others emerged during evaluation of qualitative findings. Longitudinal comparisons of baseline and 3-month follow-up remain in-progress, a topic available for future discussion.
Discussion: Results help to validate equine assisted learning as a valuable tool in the promotion of child social-emotional intelligence strengthened in part by the promotion of family function and family satisfaction. For mental health professionals, these results serve as a reminder of the alternatives that are available, as well as the importance of partnerships within the community. For therapeutic riding centers, these results help equine professionals validate their programs and gain a foothold within the scientific community. Additionally, they invite future riding centers to follow course in incorporating evidence into their programs and examining new directions for growth within the mental health community.
Method: Twenty families with children 10 years and older were recruited to participate in a 3-week equine assisted learning program at a therapeutic riding center in Phoenix, Arizona. Sessions included groundwork activities with horses used to promote life skills using experiential learning theory. The study design included a mixed-method quasi-experimental one-group pretest posttest design using the following mental health instruments: Devereaux Student Strengths Assessment, Brief Family Assessment Measure (3 dimensions), and Family Satisfaction Scale to measure child social-emotional competence, family function, and family satisfaction, respectively. Acceptability was determined using a Likert-type questionnaire with open-ended questions to gain a qualitative thematic perspective of the experience.
Results: Preliminary pretest and posttest comparisons were statistically significant for improvements in family satisfaction (p = 0.001, M = -5.84, SD = 5.63), all three domains of family function (General Scale: p = 0.005, M = 6.84, SD = 9.20; Self-Rating Scale: p = 0.050, M = 6.53, SD = 12.89; and Dyadic Relationship Scale: p = 0.028, M = 3.47, SD = 7.18), and child social-emotional competence (p = 0.015, M = -4.05, SD 5.95). Effect sizes were moderate to large (d > 0.5) for all but one instrument (Self-Rating Scale), suggesting a considerable magnitude of change over the three-week period. The intervention was highly accepted among both children and adults. Themes of proximity, self-discovery, and regard for others emerged during evaluation of qualitative findings. Longitudinal comparisons of baseline and 3-month follow-up remain in-progress, a topic available for future discussion.
Discussion: Results help to validate equine assisted learning as a valuable tool in the promotion of child social-emotional intelligence strengthened in part by the promotion of family function and family satisfaction. For mental health professionals, these results serve as a reminder of the alternatives that are available, as well as the importance of partnerships within the community. For therapeutic riding centers, these results help equine professionals validate their programs and gain a foothold within the scientific community. Additionally, they invite future riding centers to follow course in incorporating evidence into their programs and examining new directions for growth within the mental health community.
ContributorsSolarz, Allison (Author) / Chen, Angela (Thesis advisor)
Created2019-05-02