Previous Projects
Use of Mobile Applications for Mental Health Concerns During COVID-19
The coronavirus pandemic has disrupted the lives of billions across the globe, leaving people to cope with novel stressors while maintaining physical distancing. The purpose of this study is to explore individuals’ mental health mobile application use during the coronavirus pandemic and encompasses four primary aims. The first is to assess the perceived effectiveness of mobile apps in helping alleviate mental health symptoms. The second is to assess patterns of app use in participants that are affected by the pandemic. The third is to examine features that are important in the selection and continued use of mobile apps. The last is to examine the relationships across the above factors, demographic information, and pandemic experiences.
Promoting Diversity on Clinical Program Websites
To address the issue of diversity in the field of psychology, there must be more diverse students in psychology doctoral programs. Specifically, continued and persistent efforts to develop practices to enhance recruitment for diverse students are needed. This study is a content analysis of diversity content on clinical psychology Ph.D. and Psy.D. websites. The project will examine how programs aim to promote and retain a diverse student body.
Mobile Applications in Primary Care
The primary aim of this pilot study is to examine the feasibility and acceptability of implementing mobile applications within primary care. Our secondary aim is to examine the preliminary effectiveness of mobile applications that currently exist on the market in reducing depressive symptoms and improving functionality. We hypothesized that patients utilizing mobile applications will show a clinically significant reduction in depressive symptoms, and quality of life. The third aim is to examine whether matching a patient to their preferred mobile application results in greater overall clinical outcomes and adherence when compared to individuals who are randomized to an intervention.
Selection and Use of Mobile Applications for Depression and Anxiety
Although mobile apps may benefit users experiencing symptoms of depression and anxiety, mental health apps have the lowest rate of usage after 30 days when compared to other health and wellness apps. However, specific reasons for decreased mental health app use remain unknown. Moreover, few studies have been conducted regarding the selection of mental health mobile apps. This study encompasses three primary aims. First, to determine how people select mobile apps and their reasons for selecting specific apps. Second, to understand the reasons that people stop using mobile apps. Third, to understand patterns of mobile app use.
Examining Psychologists' Use of Mobile Applications in Clinical Practice
The purpose of the current study is to evaluate the use of mobile applications (apps) in a sample of licensed clinical psychologists. We are interested in understanding the specific mobile apps psychologists and their clients are using, whether psychologists are recommending mobile apps to their clients as an adjunct to therapy, and the reasons why psychologists may or may not choose to incorporate mobile apps in therapy.
Acceptability of the Stepped-Care Model of Depression Treatment in College Students
Despite the evidence indicating a number of benefits which may result from matching individuals with their preferred treatment, little is known about what treatments college students might prefer if seeking help for depression. Further, no study has assessed how college students might view the SCM for treating depressive symptoms. As a result, the goals of the current study are to systematically assess whether college students find the SCM presented acceptable and to assess what college students might prefer if they were to seek help for depressive symptoms. Gaining this knowledge will be important to future implementation of such models within universities and provide valuable information about potential obstacles to such attempts.
Maladaptive Parenting, Temperament, Early Maladaptive Schemas, and Depression: A Moderated Mediation Analysis
The purpose of this study was to assess the indirect effect of perceived parenting styles on depressive symptoms through Early Maladaptive Schemas. Furthermore, a series of moderated mediation analyses were conducted to examine whether the indirect effect varies as a function of temperament. This manuscript was published in 2016 in the Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment.
Specificity and Social Problem-Solving: Relation to Depressive and Anxious Symptomology
Measures of depressive and anxious symptoms and social problem-solving were administered to 245 undergraduate students. Partial correlations and regression analyses were conducted to explore the specificity of associations between depressive and anxious symptoms. This manuscript was published in 2006 in the Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology.
Attitudes and Preferences Towards the Stepped-Care Model for Depression Treatment in Oncology
The primary purpose of the study was to explore how a sample of women with breast cancer perceive the SCM outlined above. Patient acceptability for the SCM and specific preferences for treatments offered within the SCM were assessed. As previous literature has indicated that an individual’s cognitive perceptions of their illness and level of resilience are associated with depressive severity following a cancer diagnosis, these constructs were also explored. This manuscript is currently being prepared for submission.
The Association Between Social Problem-Solving, Mindfulness, and Depression
The purpose of this project was to explore the relationship between these social problem-solving and mindfulness and examine their unique and shared contribution to the prediction of depressive symptoms. This manuscript is currently being prepared for submission.
Acceptability of the Stepped-Care Model for Depression Treatment in Primary Care Patients
This study utilized a cross-sectional survey to inquire about general attitudes towards the stepped care model, the individual steps, and the treatments offered within each step. We also examined the step that participants would prefer if prescribing or seeking help and the strength of those preferences. Descriptive and inferential statistics indicated that participants view the stepped care model as an acceptable form of treatment for depression and it is an improvement upon standard care. Results also indicated that our patient sample generally preferred self-help interventions over other treatment options, while most of our provider sample would prefer to treat patients in a manner consistent with the stepped care model. This manuscript was published in 2019 in the Journal of Clinical Psychology in Medical Settings.
Feasibility and Efficacy of Bibliotherapy to Reduce Psychosocial Distress for Women with Breast Cancer
The primary goal of this study is to explore the feasibility and efficacy of using Mindfulness-Based Cancer Recovery bibliotherapy to reduce psychosocial distress and anxiety in a sample of women diagnosed with breast cancer. The secondary goal of this study is to assess whether patient preference, illness perception, and resilience act as mediator or moderators to outcomes on psychological measures of depression, anxiety, and mindfulness.