Matching Items (8)
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- All Subjects: Mental Health
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Description
Interest in health and wellness has significantly increased in today's society. Living a healthy and active lifestyle is suggested to promote overall physical and psychological well-being. This study explored the effects of wearing a Fitbit Zip activity monitor and the impact of expressing mindfulness on levels of physical activity. It was predicted that expressing mindfulness, as measured by the use of present-tense language during the daily emotional writing task, would moderate the relationship between wearing a Fitbit Zip activity monitor and change in physical activity. Specifically, it was hypothesized daily monitoring would only lead to increased activity among those higher in mindful language. Over the course of five days, participants were asked to wear a Fitbit Zip and to complete a daily questionnaire and writing task at the end of each evening. On the last day of the study, participants completed a follow-up assessment, which suggested that the combination of wearing a Fitbit Zip activity monitor and expressing more mindfulness throughout the week increased levels of physical activity. An important issue for future research is to conduct this study for a longer period of time in order to get more variability in the data. However, despite the limitations of the design, these findings suggest that activity monitoring may be a promising way to promote healthy lifestyle change.
ContributorsTarachiu, Viorela (Author) / Newman, Matt L. (Thesis advisor) / Hall, Deborah (Committee member) / Salerno, Jessica (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2014
Description
Numerous studies have established that during the transition to parenthood couples experience changes within their relationship as well as in their overall mental health. The present study examines these changes specifically through conflict interactions. The author proposes the more conflict that occurs within a relationship, the lower each individual's self-esteem; the lowered self-esteem then leads to signs of depression. The present study's analysis consisted of two primary aims: 1) examine the association between romantic relationship conflict and mental health by using a proposed mediational pathway, in which self-esteem explains the connection, and 2) explore gender differences. The study aims were examined using secondary data analyses of Dr. Kristin Mickelson's study on couples transitioning to parenthood (Baby TIME Study). Results varied by conflict type as well as gender. When conflict was measured by perceived negative spousal interactions, results showed that the proposed mediational pathway was significant for men, but not for women. When conflict was measured by frequency of spousal arguments, results showed that the proposed mediational pathway was significant for women, but not for men. Furthermore, the results from this analysis indicate that during the transition to parenthood, men and women are affected by conflict differently in regards to their self-esteem and further their reported levels of depression.
ContributorsHoyt, Alyssa Aileen (Author) / Mickelson, Kristin (Thesis director) / Hall, Deborah (Committee member) / School of Social and Behavioral Sciences (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2018-05
Description
Pediatric anxiety disorders are highly prevalent and while pharmacological intervention seems to be an effective treatment, the validity of reported adverse side effects remains unclear. <br/><br/>Objective: To analyze the nature of evidence regarding adverse side effects in the pharmacological treatment of pediatric anxiety disorders. <br/><br/>Approach: A search using Google Scholar, PubMed, and PsychInfo was conducted for meta-analyses of pharmacological treatment of pediatric anxiety disorders as well as randomized controlled trials. The focus was on adverse events.<br/><br/>Results and Conclusion: Reportings of a limited number of adverse events were found among resources available to clinician and patient informed sources to inform pharmacological treatment of pediatric anxiety disorders. Only a small fraction of adverse side effects were found in the research literature. This finding raises concerns about making informed decisions to treat pediatric anxiety disorders with pharmacotherapy.
ContributorsMartin, Mark (Co-author) / Reyes, Trevin (Co-author) / Whooley, Max (Co-author) / Pina, Armando (Thesis director) / Benoit, Renee (Committee member) / School of Life Sciences (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2021-05
Description
The thesis project merges interdisciplinary research to develop a self-directed creative intervention for immigrant youth, allowing them to make sense of their social and cultural identities. It takes research on self-awareness, multicultural identification, perceived belonging, and bibliotherapy to create a guided journal titled "Unearth," filled with art and writing prompts that are age-appropriate for adolescents and that serve as avenues for self-exploration. The project ultimately engages a focus group discussion to understand the usability and accessibility of the intervention.
ContributorsNawrocki, Andrea Elizabeth (Co-author) / Dizon, Arni (Co-author) / Pina, Armando (Thesis director) / Benoit, Renee (Committee member) / Causadias, Jose (Committee member) / Historical, Philosophical & Religious Studies (Contributor) / Historical, Philosophical & Religious Studies, Sch (Contributor) / Department of Psychology (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2021-05
Description
The COVID-19 pandemic has affected many aspects of daily life due to social distancing guidelines, including physical exercise. Prior research indicates that physical activity is a potent resilience factor against stress’ impact on mental health. Further, research suggests that social integration and participation positively contributes to mental well-being. Yet, one aspect of physical activity that may be particularly impacted by social distancing guidelines is the social context. It is unclear if those who participated in social physical activity prior to the COVID pandemic are more impacted by the restrictions placed on these behaviors. In a sample of 519 adults in the United States, the current longitudinal study examined whether participation in social physical activity, compared to individual physical activity, moderates the influence of pandemic stress on mental health and whether there are gender differences between men and women in these associations. Study results indicated physical activity did benefit mental health during the COVID pandemic. However, greater social physical activity did not buffer against the negative impact of stress. Future research should examine other variables potentially influencing these relationships, and examine them under non-pandemic conditions.
ContributorsKaneris, Marianna Irene (Author) / Mickelson, Kristin (Thesis advisor) / Hall, Deborah (Committee member) / Mean, Lindsey (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2022
Description
Although adverse events cannot always be prevented, the negative outcomes on development can potentially be modified by considering methods of fostering positive emotional and behavioral responses. The study examined biopsychosocial health outcomes in the presence of uncontrollable adverse childhood events with the goal of identifying a potential intervention to increase resilience, health, and safe behaviors among at-risk children. It was hypothesized that adverse events can result in positive biopsychosocial outcomes in the presence of high scores on the Positive Emotion, Engagement, Relationships, Meaning, and Accomplishments (PERMA) model of well-being, self-efficacy, gratitude, and the ability to envision a positive future self. The study retrospectively examined adverse childhood events and present behavioral, emotional, and physical health outcomes. Participant (n = 685) data were analyzed using Hayes PROCESS (v3.5) to test all components of the moderation model. Results suggest that as adverse events increase, health adversity also increases. However, those with high intrapersonal strengths showed better health outcomes. Through understanding intrapersonal pathways in the presence of adverse events, the study can potentially identify mechanisms important for promoting resilient outcomes in childhood that could cascade into adulthood.
ContributorsBraunstein, Bailey Marie (Author) / Mickelson, Kristin (Thesis advisor) / Hall, Deborah (Committee member) / Lindstrom-Johnson, Sarah (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2022
Description
Transgender populations display disproportionately poorer health outcomes compared to the general population. On average, these populations tend to experience decreased well-being in part through increased mental health concerns (e.g., anxiety, depression) and poorer physical and behavioral health status. Understanding the process by which these deleterious outcomes occur for this population is integral to developing interventions. This thesis aimed to examine whether experiences of gender dysphoria and body dissatisfaction influenced the association of felt pressure to conform to gender norms with mental health and quality of life outcomes. Specifically, I hypothesized that greater pressure to conform to gender norms would be directly related to worse mental health and quality of life outcomes, and that gender dysphoria and body dissatisfaction would indirectly mediate this relationship. Furthermore, I hypothesized that participants' gender identity would moderate this relationship, such that transgender individuals would show stronger associations on all pathways as compared to cisgender individuals. The sample consisted of 211 individuals – 109 being transgender and 102 being cisgender. Participants completed a 15-minute online survey including a consent form. Results indicated partial support of hypotheses – pressure to conform to gender norms directly predicted outcomes of compromised mental health (i.e., depression, anxiety, and stress), but did not predict well-being or quality of life. Furthermore, gender dysphoria (but not body dissatisfaction) mediated the relationship between felt pressure for gender conformity and compromised mental health outcomes for cisgender participants, but unexpectedly not for transgender participants. Post hoc analyses suggest that perceived discrimination mediated the relation between felt pressure and all mental health measures and quality of life measures for both transgender and cisgender participants.
ContributorsKlennert, Victoria Elizabeth (Author) / Mickelson, Kristin (Thesis advisor) / Hall, Deborah (Committee member) / Nelson-Coffey, Katherine (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2023
Description
An expanse of research has demonstrated that persons with mental illness (PWMI) tend to avoid formal psychological treatment.One possible explanation for this failure to pursue formal treatment is the tendency of religious individuals to construe mental illness as spiritual in nature, leading religious communities to actively discourage emotional and psychological help-seeking through non-spiritual means. The present study examined help-seeking behaviors among religious PWMI by examining the impact of religiosity and gender on the relationship between mental illness stigma and help-seeking behaviors. Results indicate that higher levels of perceived stigma and religious salience relate to higher reported indirect support-seeking (ISS). Moreover, only religious salience appears to significantly relate to ISS among men, whereas perceived mental illness stigma significantly predicts direct and indirect support-seeking behaviors among women.
ContributorsMalouf, Laura Means (Author) / Mickelson, Kristin (Thesis advisor) / Hall, Deborah (Committee member) / Schweitzer, Nicholas (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2020