Psychology

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12503/31261

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    SUICIDE RISK AND MENTAL HEALTH CO-MORBIDITIES IN A COMMUNITY DWELLING PROBATIONER POPULATION
    (2013-04-12) Cardarelli, Roberto
    Purpose: Suicide is a leading cause of death in the United States with mental health disorders constituting an important predictor of suicidal ideation, attempt, and death. Mental health problems are disproportionately represented in the community corrections system. Despite this, there is limited information on the epidemiology of mental health and correlated factors such as suicide among probationers, the largest population supervised by the criminal justice system. The purpose of this study was to assess the prevalence of mental health disorders in a community-dwelling probationer population and its association with suicide risk. Methods: A purposive sample of 2,077 probationers completed an assessment to screen for mental health disorders, substance use disorders, suicide risk, and demographic characteristics. Simple and multiple logistic regression were performed to assess the association between mental health screening status and suicide risk. Study procedures where IRB approved by the UNTHSC IRB (IRB # 2009-006). Results: Over 13% of probationers in this study were at high risk of suicide. After adjusting for potential confounding effects, females were approximately two times more likely to screen positive for suicide risk. Moreover, those who screened positive for substance abuse disorders were over two times more likely to screen positive for suicide risk. Probationers who screened positive for ADHD, anxiety disorder, bipolar disorder, and depression were between 2 to 8 times more likely to screen positive for suicide risk. Conclusions: Probationary status can prompt clinicians to further assess potential mental health conditions due to high rates of mental health concerns in this population. Appropriate mental health treatment and referral additionally provides a clinical means of addressing the high risk of suicide among probationers. Future studies should examine points of access to health care for probationers and how clinicians can become more involved in addressing the mental healthcare of community dwelling offenders.
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    THE ROLE OF LIFETIME TRAUMA IN EXECUTIVE FUNCTIONING IN PATIENTS WITH A DIAGNOSED DEPRESSIVE DISORDER
    (2013-04-12) Gandhy, Shreya
    Purpose: Exposure to trauma has been associated with depression, hostility, self-harm and other problems of daily life. Trauma is defined based on previous studies which suggest that events of direct or indirect exposure to interpersonal violence and other traumatic experiences may place individuals at risk for several dysfunctional psychological orientations. The aim of this study was to explore the relationship between lifetime trauma and behavioral and psychological factors such as symptoms of depression and problems with aggression. Methods: We used an exploratory approach in a cross-sectional, correlation study designed to assess the potential relationship of life trauma with symptoms of depression and indicators of aggression. The subjects for this study were 14 women between the ages of 25-40 recruited from JPS Psychiatry Clinic System. Outcome measures included the Social and Health History Questionnaire (SHHQ Part 1), the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), and the Buss-Perry Aggression Questionnaire. Results: This project was designed to describe a small group of psychiatric outpatients diagnosed with Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) with respect to the impact of lifetime trauma on their psychosocial behavior We hypothesized there was a relationship between trauma, depression and aggression. In this study sample however, there was no linear relationship between an individual's history of trauma and their recent self-reported aggression or depression ratings. Conclusions: The clinical significance of our findings indicates that trauma exposure may or may not be associated with co-occurring depression and hostility. Thus, physicians should evaluate all of these dimensions of the whole person in order to determine the next steps in treatment.