National-Louis University: OASIS - The NLU Digital Commons
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Perceptions of the Veterans Administration and Mental Health Treatment Seeking Intentions Among Veterans
Get PDFAmong the veteran population there is a trend of underutilizing mental health services despite the higher number of veterans with mental health diagnoses. Though previous research has examined barriers to mental health care such as stigma and a warrior mentality, there may be additional barriers that emanate from the system to which veterans are entitled and encouraged to use, the Veterans Administration (VA). This study examined the mediational relationships among perceptions of the VA, attitudes about seeking mental health treatment at the VA, and intentions to seek mental health treatment at the VA among veterans. Data from 96 veterans were collected via social media platforms (i.e., Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram). The results of the study showed there was a significant positive relationship between perceptions of the VA and intentions to seek mental health treatment at the VA. As positive perceptions of the VA increased, so did veterans’ reports of intentions to seek mental health treatment at the VA. There was also a relationship between attitudes about seeking mental health treatment at the VA and intentions to seek mental health treatment at the VA, indicating that as attitudes became more positive, ratings of reported intentions to seek mental health treatment at the VA increased. Finally, attitudes mediated the relationship between perceptions and intentions in the predicted direction, thus supporting the hypothesis. The current study provides evidence that perceptions and attitudes of the VA may facilitate seeking VA mental health treatment when perceptions are more positive. Conversely, negative perceptions of the VA may present a barrier to seeking such services. The results further define what influences veteran mental health utilization and have the potential to inform policy changes to improve the VA’s image and services to increase the use of mental health services among the veteran population
Impact of COVID-19 on Latinx and Black Communities
Get PDFThis critical literature review project explored the impact of COVID-19 on Latinx and Black communities. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as of September 28, 2022, around 16% of COVID-19 cases in the United States were among Latinx people, and 14% of cases were among Black people (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2022). Since COVID-19 began, clinicians have become more conscious of the effects of health disparities within racial and ethnic minorities, which has warranted increased advocacy by educating health and mental health providers and creating and providing resources to these communities and clinicians. The review focused on the health disparities and outcomes of the COVID-19 pandemic, the impact of the pandemic on mental health, and how the COVID-19 pandemic discouraged the help-seeking behaviors of the Latinx and Black communities. Results from the review indicate that the COVID-19 pandemic significantly exacerbated the present health and mental health disparities, in addition to deterring help-seeking behaviors in these communities. Findings are presented in terms of theoretical and practical implications and directions for future investigations. Recommendations for clinicians are also included based on the review of the literature
The Impact of Culturally Responsive Teaching on the Achievement of African American Students
Get PDFCulturally responsive teaching is a pedagogical practice that incorporates cultural knowledge, prior experiences, frames of reference, and performance styles of students to make learning encounters more relevant and effective. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the impact of culturally responsive teaching on the academic achievement of African American students. The context of this inquiry is at a minority-majority Title I high school within a large urban school district. The district and evaluation school previously adopted a culturally responsive teaching initiative. My mixed-method study captures the quantitative performance of students within the school in teachers\u27 classrooms using culturally responsive teaching strategies and the qualitative perspective of teachers, administrators, and parents about culturally responsive teaching\u27s impact on student achievement
Hippocampal Volume and the Detection of Mild Cognitive Impairment in an Older Adult Population: Assessing Performance on Cognitive Screeners Administered In-Person and Electronically
Get PDFThe present study investigated how performance on in-person and electronic neuropsychological assessment measures predicted subcortical hippocampal volume and cognitive decline consistent with mild cognitive impairment. It was hypothesized that the Montreal Cognitive Assessment would display better predictive strength than the Cogstate Brief Battery when evaluating subcortical hippocampal volume measured via structural magnetic resonance imaging. It was further hypothesized that the Montreal Cognitive Assessment would be more sensitive to predicting group membership to the diagnostic classification of mild cognitive impairment compared to the Cogstate Brief Battery. The sample included 445 older adult participants selected from the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative 3. Participants met criteria for diagnostic classifications of cognitively normal and mild cognitive impairment and had undergone neuropsychological testing consisting of the Montreal Cognitive Assessment and Cogstate Brief Battery, as well as structural magnetic resonance imaging scans of the hippocampus at baseline testing. The learning/working memory composite from the Cogstate Brief Battery was the only substantial predictor for total subcortical hippocampal volume. When evaluating predictive strength relative to group membership of either cognitively normal or mild cognitive impairment, the Montreal Cognitive Assessment was the most substantial predictor of diagnostic classification, specifically mild cognitive impairment. The learning/working memory composite from the Cogstate Brief Battery was also a good predictor of group membership, though the Montreal Cognitive Assessment was observed to be more sensitive overall. The results of this study maintained the effectiveness of in-person neuropsychological assessment, while also supporting the use of electronic measures with older adults when evaluating cognitive status. The data also contributes additional information that is helpful in the early detection of progressive neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer’s disease
A Review of the Role of Anxiety in Diagnosis of Children and Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Paradigm Shift in Conceptualization and Diagnosis
Get PDFEarly evidence of co-occurring anxiety symptoms in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) dates back to the first descriptions of ASD by Leo Kanner (1943) and Hans Asperger (Frith & Mira, 1992). While current research has identified anxiety disorders as one of the most prevalent co-occurring disorders in children and adolescents with ASD, little is known about the nature of the relationship between these disorders. In an effort to explain these high prevalence rates, recent research has started to investigate the relationship between these two disorders. To join these efforts, this clinical research project explored the role of anxiety in diagnosis of children and adolescents with ASD. To guide the exploration of this role, the following research questions were answered: How prevalent or significant is anxiety in children and adolescents with ASD?; How do symptoms of anxiety manifest in children and adolescents with ASD?; and How is anxiety conceptualized, assessed, and treated in ASD? Results from this literature review indicate that there are current limitations in this area of research that need to be addressed to form an accurate conceptualization of anxiety symptoms in this population. Steps to resolve these limitations are discussed and areas of further research are explored. Recommendations for accurately assessing and treating co-occurring symptoms of anxiety in youth with ASD are provided and a suggested conceptualization model based off current research is proposed
Reclaiming and Reconceptualizing Accountability
Get PDFThis body of work contributes to the exploration of the intended and unintended consequences of the policy levers, referred to as education accountability policy, that have driven entire systems toward the inclusion of student performance data into educator performance ratings and the impact on the profession. Only from an extensive understanding of where we have been can a reimagined path forward be born to serve our youth and society better. This mixed methods dissertation does so by uncovering the legal landscape that defines the policy levers and bringing educators together in focus groups to delve deeply into these levers’ impact on the profession
Globalizing Curriculum and Introducing Diplomacy: Wright College’s Participation in the Diplomacy Lab Program
Get PDFIn 2016, Wright College became a partner in the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomacy Lab program, which provides students the opportunity to undertake research projects that further U.S.’s foreign policy goals. Through Diplomacy Lab, students not only gain a rich educational opportunity working on real-world problems, but the Department of State can utilize an untapped source of intellectual talent. Since becoming a partner, Wright faculty have worked on 20 separate projects with over 350 students participating. In this article three students will discuss the projects they worked on and how it changed their perceptions of the Department of State, the various global challenges the world faces, and their own career aspirations
Improving Second Language Learning Through Performance-Based Assessment Practices
Get PDFFrom the time of the No Child Left Behind Act (2001) to the present day, standardized testing has become the benchmark measure for student assessment and school accountability in the United States. Multilingual learners are a vulnerable population with more testing and accountability requirements than mainstream students. Not only are they required to learn a second language, but they are also assessed within the same standardized testing paradigms as their peers - native speakers of the English language. This study aimed to examine and evaluate the benefits of instructional practices and assessments that provide multilingual students and teachers prompt and meaningful feedback where the data inform further instruction. The context of the study assesses the multilingual student population in K-8 with the Assessing Comprehension and Communication in English State-to-State for English Language Learners (ACCESS) test. For this study, the researcher used a mixed methodology research design. The researcher surveyed and interviewed teachers with experience working with the multilingual student population, and interviewed parents of children receiving bilingual services in combination with reflective memos. The research findings concluded that assessment data is essential for planning future instruction and providing measures to assist students. However, the ACCESS data is not immediate, lacks specificity, and yearly testing depletes the opportunities for interventions to assess multilingual learners\u27 progress and language development adequately. Therefore, the researcher recommends using performance-based instructional practices and assessments that ignite student learning, curiosity, and relevancy
POST-PANDEMIC STUDENT ATTENDANCE
Get PDFStudent attendance has been a national concern since the start of compulsory education in America; however, since the COVID-19 pandemic, attendance plummeted to never- before-seen attendance rates. Nationally, by the end of the 2021-2022 school year, nearly one in three students were absent 10% or more of the school year (Attendance Works, 2023). My 39-question survey conducted in two vastly different states between April and May of 2023 corroborated the national data and resulted in nearly one in three students being absent 10 or more school days in a year. Through my study, I explored parents’ perceptions of post-pandemic K–12 public or charter school students regarding barriers to student attendance, impacts on absenteeism, and motivation to attend school digitally or in the brick-and-mortar classroom. Health-related reasons have been the primary cause of student absences, but family events, social avoidance, and deaths led to additional absences. Parents desired their children to be successful but reported that they did not feel like partners in the educational process; therefore, improving community and family engagement practices is necessary. State-wide attendance improvement plans have yet to be successful or were non-existent in the states under study. I recommended a state student database to track student attendance state-wide while providing appropriate resources to districts and schools requiring additional support
Single-Case Pilot Study For Longitudinal Analysis Of Referential Failures And Sentiment In Schizophrenic Speech From Client-Centered Psychotherapy Recordings
Get PDFThough computational linguistic analyses have revealed the presence of distinctly characteristic language features in schizophrenic disordered speech, the relative stability of these language features in longitudinal samples is still unknown. This longitudinal pilot study analyzed schizophrenic disordered speech data from the archival therapy audio recordings of one patient spanning 23 years. End-to-end Neural Coreference Resolution software was used to analyze transcribed speech data from three therapy sessions to identify ambiguous pronouns, referred to as referential failures, which were reviewed and confirmed by multiple raters. Speech samples were analyzed using Google Cloud Natural Language API software for sentiment variables (i.e., score, valence, and magnitude). Referential failures and sentiment variables were analyzed within each session and all sessions combined to study the relationships between these variables within single sessions and over a span of 23 years. Results and implications for this study are discussed