Previous literature has identified links between psychopathic trait severity and disturbed styles of attachment on sexual outcomes in adulthood. However, few studies have investigated these domains within one design. Therefore, it is unclear how they may influence each other, given that an association between attachment styles and psychopathic traits has also been previously documented. This study sought to explore the possible role of psychopathic traits upon the association between attachment and sexual outcomes. Participants were sampled from an undergraduate student population at a large university. Data were analyzed using correlational and hierarchical regression analyses, as well as two exploratory path models. Analyses suggested that aspects of attachment and psychopathic trait severity were significantly associated with each other and differentially predicted certain sexual outcomes. Furthermore, results indicated that the effects of attachment avoidance on sexual outcomes were mediated by Factor 1 traits of psychopathy, while the effects of attachment anxiety were mediated by Factor 2 traits. Additionally, it was found that attachment style was linked with contempt, and this was further linked to disturbances in sexual outcomes, which is a novel finding. Implications of the findings, limitations, and future directions are discussed.

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders arranges co-occurring clusters of symptoms into distinct disorder categories, which theoretically have specific etiologies, pathologies, and treatments. However, researchers and clinicians alike have consistently found DSM diagnoses to have high rates of comorbidity, low diagnostic specificity, and no disorder has proven to be a discrete category. There is mounting evidence that dimensional taxonomies more accurately capture the underlying structure of mental illness and clinical presentations. The recently proposed hierarchical taxonomy of psychopathology presumes to address the issues of categorical nosologies using a data driven approach to create a dimensional model of psychopathology. However, heretofore there are no empirical examinations of HiTOP's ability to predict psychotherapy treatment outcomes. This study compared the predictive validity DSM, RDoC, and HiTOP criteria using natural language processing on free text narrative notes. Of the three GMM run, only the model using DSM criteria as predictors had adequate model fit. Additionally, none of the nosologies significantly predicted treatment course. Implications for the application of RDoC and HiTOP are discussed.

Elevated social anxiety is a well-documented risk factor for developing problematic alcohol use behaviors. Adolescents with high social anxiety often report drinking for coping-related reasons, and drinking to cope has been linked to both acute and chronic alcohol use problems. Research further suggests that parenting is a primary socialization domain in terms of adolescent alcohol use onset and trajectory; however, no work has yet examined the role of parenting factors in the relation between social anxiety and coping motives for drinking. The current study investigated the role of two parenting dimensions, rejection/warmth and psychological control, on the link between social anxiety and problematic drinking motives. Drawing from an ongoing assessment of an inpatient program, the sample consisted of 94 girls and boys (ages 11-17 years). Regression analyses evaluated main effects of social anxiety, rejection, psychological control, the interactive effects of the parenting dimensions, and the three-way interaction of both parenting dimensions with social anxiety on coping motives for alcohol use. As expected, social anxiety was positively and statistically significantly related to coping motives when examined via raw scores, proportional values, and in the final model. Further, zero-order correlations indicated a positive, statistically significant relation between proportional coping motives and both …

The Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI) is a widely used and available self-report measure designed to assess clinical syndromes and has the potential to assist in the process of ADHD assessment. Since the PAI's inception, several researchers have attempted to create other supplemental indicators, some so effective and useful that they were added to the second edition of the Personality Assessment Inventory Professional Manual. Previous researchers have offered important insights into the possibility of the creation of an ADHD item-level index for the PAI that would effectively decrease false positive rates and increase accurate detection of ADHD in the adult population. Previous researchers were not successful in creating an item-level subscale that reliably detected adult ADHD. Four experts in ADHD assessment rated PAI items that they believed could discriminate adults with ADHD from adults without ADHD. After performing a PCA on the top 16 items chosen by the experts, 12 items sufficiently loaded onto one factor that has clear face validity by conceptually matching the DSM-5 description of inattention and impulsivity commonly seen in adults with ADHD as well as the "internalized restlessness" Hallowell and Ratey describe for adult ADHD. The PAI-ADHD was found to have good internal consistency, a = …

The current study of 151 college men explored weight-related factors that contribute to depressive symptoms among undergraduate men using structural equation modeling (SEM). Results of SEM supported the hypothesis that perceived negative messages about one's body and body dissatisfaction were significant mediators of the relationship between BMI and depressive symptoms. Moreover, social connectedness and academic self-concept were significant moderators of the relationship between body dissatisfaction and depressive symptoms. Although self-esteem was not a significant moderator, it was significantly related to body dissatisfaction, despite the men's magnitude of perceived body pressures. These findings inform therapeutic work with college men, signifying the importance of improving the quality of their relationships in family and social systems to reduce both depressive symptoms and body dissatisfaction. Furthermore, advocacy programming to counter body related pressure from media, societal systems, and other people would likely benefit college men struggling with body dissatisfaction and depressive symptoms.

Although the prevalence of disordered eating and exercise behaviors (DE/EBs) among queer men of color (Q-BIPOC) is higher than their heterosexual and white sexual minority peers, little is known about the mechanisms behind these differences. We evaluated a series of hypotheses to test DE/EB models on a sample of 78 Q-BIPOC men, who were recruited online during the COVID-19 pandemic and given a questionnaire measuring DE/EBs, body dissatisfaction, depression, mesomorphic ideal internalization, gender role conflict, and distress from intra-community racism and heterosexism. Results show that Q-BIPOC men reported high rates of emotional and binge eating, restrictive eating behaviors, supplement/diet pill use, and depression symptoms. Gender role conflict and intra-community racism/heterosexism are positively associated with emotional and binge eating, with gender role conflict holding unique predictive contribution as other variables of interest were held constant. Fat and muscle dissatisfaction were the strongest predictors of DE/EBs, mediating the effects of both mesomorphic ideal and depression. Results support the tripartite influence and dual pathway models for our sample, with mixed support for intersectional minority stress and affect regulation. Clinicians are cautioned to carefully assess Q-BIPOC men for eating disorders, given high rates of critical behaviors in the current sample. Researchers are also encouraged …

When COVID-19 hit the United States in spring of 2020, collegiate student-athletes, who had sport seasons canceled and were forced to move off-campus, were uniquely and significantly impacted. Psychosocial resources, such as social support, self-compassion, and resilience, may have been used to help athletes cope with the stress of COVID-19. I used structural equation modeling to analyze the relationship of resilience, self-compassion, and social support to collegiate female athlete's (n = 3,924) psychological well-being at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Collectively, the more supported, self-compassionate, and resilient the athletes reported being, the less psychological distress they said they were experiencing (resilience to psychological distress (β = -.215, p < .001), self-compassion to psychological distress (β = -.533, p < .001), and social support to psychological distress (β = -.187, p < .001)). Further, self-compassion and social support were related indirectly (and inversely) to psychological distress, to the extent that they contributed to the athletes perceiving themselves as more resilient (Self Compassion X Resilience X Psychological Distress: β = -.106, 90% CI [-.148, -.069]; Social Support X Resilience Psychological Distress: β = -.065, 90% CI [-.099, -.041]). The total effect of social support, which included the direct and indirect effects, …

This study explored NCAA athletic departments' mental health screening practices, including the mental health concerns assessed for by the mental health screening, personnel responsible for administering and reviewing screeners, and resources available for athletes identified as "at risk." Participants were athletic department staff who had knowledge of their school's mental health screening processes. Frequencies and chi-square analyses were used to assess trends across divisional levels (DI vs. DII/DIII). Analyses show that significantly more DI than DII/DDIII institutions have a formal mental health screening program. Institutions' coverage of mental health topics in their screening did not vary significantly by Divisional level, with one exception: a larger percentage of DI institutions assessed whether student athletes had worked with a mental health practitioner than DII/DIII schools. DII/III were significantly more likely to have athletic trainers both administer and review mental health screeners and DI institutions were significantly more likely to have a sport psychologist employed within their athletic department than. DI schools were significantly more likely to have had a student athlete attempt suicide and participate in inpatient treatment than DII/III schools. Implications of the findings, limitations, and future directions are discussed.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) presents with difficulties in social communication, repetitive and/or restricted behaviors, as well as variable language development. Individuals with suspected ASD ideally participate in assessments which include measures of cognitive abilities, adaptive functioning, language functioning, and ASD specific measures (i.e., ADOS, ADI-R). Diagnosis of ASD can occur confidently at 2 years of age, however, the mean age at diagnosis is 4-5 years old. Delays in diagnosis are accounted for by lacking professionals and centers with the capabilities to assess ASD, as well as long waitlists for assessments. Early identification and intervention have been shown to provide the best improvements in ASD symptomology. The aim of the current study was to conduct a program evaluation of an autism treatment center that was designed to provide high quality evidence-based interventions. The study determined if treatment-as-usual in that center yields the expected gains in adaptive functioning and corresponding decreases in barriers to learning. Results indicated improvement in scores on standardized direct assessment of milestone achievement and barriers to learning, but no significant improvement in adaptive skills via secondary informant questionnaire measures following 6 months of treatment. The overall sample size was small due to COVID-19 complications, lack of institutional procedures, …

Prevalence of mental health concerns among young adults is high and continues to increase. As a specific subset of young adults, NCAA student-athletes seem to experience these concerns at a similar or greater prevalence than their non-athlete, age-matched peers. Despite the number of college student-athletes who are experiencing mental health concerns, understanding how mental health impacts sport performance has not been robustly studied and has not included the diversity of identities present in the athlete population. Thus, I explored the beliefs of 266 college student-athletes who represented diverse identities and sports regarding how mental health impacts sport performance. Responses were collected using an on-line survey and analyzed using both quantitative and qualitative methods. Overall, as well as by gender, race/ethnicity, and sport type, 96.4% to 100.0% of participants believed that mental health impacts sport performance. From thematic analysis emerged three themes and various subthemes: (a) cognitive disruptions (concentration, confidence, self-talk, motivation, mindset, and decision-making), (b) the stress of being a student-athlete (life impact sport, team factors, sport impacts mental health), and (c) a mind-body connection (mind correlates with body, and mental health symptoms impact sport performance). Post-hoc cluster analysis by demographic and sport-type variables did not reveal clustering; these variables …

Multiple contributors to neurocognitive impairment in individuals with sickle cell disease have been identified. Research indicates that a history of cerebrovascular accidents, such as silent infarcts and strokes are associated with greater cognitive decline among children with sickle cell disease. Additionally, disease effects such as hemoglobin and hematocrit levels significantly effect cognitive performance among this population and should be taken into consideration when examining neurocognitive impairment. Further, previous studies show a significant relationship between child behavior problems, family functioning, and cognitive performance in children with sickle cell, marking those as important targets for intervention among this population. While cognitive decline with increased age is not typically examined in healthy child populations, some research indicates the presence of age effects in those with SCD. A majority of the literature addresses cognitive impairment from a broad perspective, while a limited number of studies have begun to address effects among specific cognitive domains. Using archival data from the National Institutes of Health's Cooperative Study of Sickle Cell Disease, results revealed that disease severity was negatively correlated with some aspects of cognitive functioning, including visual-spatial domains. Additionally, some measures of cognitive performance were inversely correlated with age. Consistent with hypothesized outcomes, family functioning was …

Based on a step-wedge randomized control trial (intervention n = 136; comparison n = 137), this study investigated the impact of a peer mentor intervention for youth living with HIV aged 15-24 years in Ndola, Zambia. Using piecewise hierarchical linear modeling (HLM), change in internalized stigma predicted change in mindfulness, and mindfulness was a significant predictor of better self-reported adherence to antiretroviral therapy (ART) across both intervention groups. Intervention group membership did not predict rate of change in mindfulness, but predicted a reduction in internalized stigma and an increase in self-reported ART adherence. Following the peer mentor intervention, internalized stigma was significantly lower in the intervention group than the comparison group. Findings highlight the need to develop and implement interventions specific to adolescents living with HIV with a biopsychosocial approach that attends to both the physical and psychological needs specific to adolescents. Our findings support the inclusion of mindfulness-based components in interventions targeting ART adherence for adolescents living with HIV.

Betrayal trauma theory (BTT) explains the relationship between a victim and perpetrator to be an especially critical factor for predicting adverse trauma outcomes; however, to date, there is no adequate measure to assess this relationship. We aimed to create a measure of reliance, here defined as dependence on another for food, clothing, finances, emotional support, and more. We utilized a new scale, the Reliance on Perpetrator Scale, to measure this construct. 397 participants completed a battery of questionnaires to measure reliance and 4 primary outcomes of interpersonal trauma exposure: PTSD symptoms, depression, event centrality, and dissociation. A series of exploratory principal components factor analyses provided evidence for a 3 factor solution for this scale, though visual examinations of scree plots and a parallel analysis indicated 2 factors. We ultimately chose to retain 2 factors: practical reliance and emotional dependence. We expected and achieved predictive validity such that practical reliance and emotional dependence were both highly positively correlated with all outcomes. We expected and achieved convergent validity such that positive affect and secure attachment were highly positively correlated with emotional dependence as measured by an existing scale. The current study replicated previous findings that high betrayal events—as opposed to low betrayal …

The minority stress model provides context to understand the mechanisms by which prejudicial experiences contribute to the disproportionate prevalence of adverse physical and mental health outcomes among LGBT people. The transactional model of stress and coping explains the appraisal processes through which people identify stigma-related stimuli as threatening and how they assess available coping resources to counteract these threats. The Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC) and the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) were used in this study to measure resilience and stress in a sample of 99 lesbian and gay older adults. Women reported statistically significantly higher levels of resilience and lower levels of perceived stress compared to older gay men. An analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) revealed statistically significant main effects for gender (Cohen's d = .51; ηp2 = .056; F(1,98) = 5.488, p = .021) while controlling for perceived stress (Cohen's d = 1.62; ηp2 = .375; F(1,98) = 55.840, p < .001). An interaction effect between gender and perceived stress was also statistically significant (Cohen's d = .72; ηp2 = .115; F(1,98) = 12.40, p < .001) indicating that the negative relationship between stress and resilience is stronger for older gay men. Clinical implications and relevance to future research are …

This person-centered analytic approach identifies homogeneous offender subtypes in terms of psychopathic trait profiles and facilitates examination of correlates that may be linked with specific subtypes. Prosody is an external correlate that contains a wealth of information relevant to disruptions in cognition and affect and may offer novel insight into different psychopathic subtypes. The current study examined prosodic output in a male offender sample (n = 469) within the context of the clinical Psychopathy Checklist – Revised interview (PCL-R; Hare, 2003). Audio recorded speech samples were drawn from offender responses to affectively-charged PCL-R interview questions representing differing levels of valence and arousal. Generally consistent with previous literature, LPA results indicated that a four-class solution yielded the best model fit for the allocation of individual cases to subtypes with high overall classification accuracy (85%). Results of external validation analyses using mixed effects multivariate analysis of variance revealed significant two- and three-way interactions (psychopathy subtype x valence x arousal) for both speech production and variability indices that helped differentiate the subtypes. Overall, the current study suggests that meaningful differences exist in terms of prosodic output within psychopathic offender subtypes, which may be related to dysfunction in underlying affective processes. Implications of these …

Having a secure attachment to God may act as a buffer against stress. Secure attachment to God has been positively associated with adaptive outcomes following stress, such as higher levels of stress-related growth and fewer maladaptive symptoms including depression, prolonged grief, and traumatic distress. However, relatively few studies have empirically tested the relationship between attachment to God and resilience and posttraumatic growth. Thus, the current study explored the potential associations and pathways through which attachment to God is associated with resilience and posttraumatic growth in a sample of 303 suddenly and/or traumatically bereaved individuals. The current study found that (a) God attachment avoidance is a unique negative predictor of resilience and posttraumatic growth even when controlling for adult attachment, (b) self-compassion and meaning-making mediate the association between God attachment anxiety and resilience/posttraumatic growth, (c) secure attachment to God is associated with higher levels of resilience than insecure attachment styles, but not with posttraumatic growth, and (d) an increased number of secondary losses is associated with lower levels of resilience. I conclude by discussing my findings in light of the extant literature on attachment to God, resilience, and posttraumatic growth. By better understanding attachment to God and how it may relate …

Female collegiate athletes have been identified as a group at risk of developing eating disorders (EDs) and unhealthy weight control behaviors. Interventions grounded in cognitive dissonance theory and those that incorporate mindfulness-based interventions have shown improved body image and reductions in internalization and ED symptomatology over time in female non-athletes. However, few studies have examined the efficacy of intervention programs among female athletes, and, despite early promising results, previous research has been limited in several ways (e.g., methodology, small sample size). The purpose of this study was to conduct a long-term (i.e., three years) qualitative follow-up evaluation of Bodies in Motion (BIM), an ED prevention program developed specifically to acknowledge the unique experience and needs of female athletes with respect to their bodies as women and athletes. Results indicate that, similar to their initial experiences, now-retired athletes reported increased awareness of sport and societal messages and their impact on body image, shifted perspectives in their view of themselves and their bodies, and ongoing use of skills to manage body image in their lives. Further, with the passage of time, athletes continued to report a positive experience in the program and the utility of Bodies in Motion as they navigated challenging …