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Experiences with Social Media Social Comparison in Women Ages 18-28: A Qualitative Study
No full textThis qualitative study aimed to understand young women’s experience using social media and their reported mental health connections, such as self-esteem and comparison. As inferred in recent research, a wide range of social media content is being produced and consumed, from promoting the “thin ideal” to newer campaigns advocating for body positivity (Cohen et al., 2019, Grabe et al., 2008; Groesz et al., 2002). In a time where there is so much online content to consume, it is important to continue to evaluate the lived experiences of those using social media. This phenomenological qualitative research captured the lived experiences of young women between the ages of 18 and 28 who report using social media daily, as expressed through interviews, thereby allowing them the space to share their experiences. This is important to make space for participants to have the freedom to explore in what ways they are experiencing negative or positive mental health effects from daily social media use
Creating Educational Curriculum and Fostering Health Promotion for Individuals with Down Syndrome at GiGi’s Playhouse
Full text linkThis doctoral capstone project was completed through partnership with GiGi’s Playhouse Nashville. GiGi’s Playhouse is an organization with over 61+ locations across the United States and Mexico with the purpose of offering free, therapeutic and educational programs for individuals with Down Syndrome. The goal of this project was to create appropriate, educational curriculum for participants in GiGi Nashville’s adult education programs focused on self-confidence, skill knowledge, personal wellness, quality of life and a variety of other topics. A secondary focus of this project was to foster health promotion for individuals with Down syndrome through an emphasis on functional fitness. A 25-page evidence-based resource guide for participants and caregivers was created on the common health impairments for individuals with Down syndrome and the benefit that functional fitness can play in slowing down the progression/preventing disease. An additional resource created by this project consisted of 16-week curriculum for GiGi Prep and GiGi U Programs placed into a google drive and shared among staff members for current and future use. Throughout this project, participants demonstrated increased knowledge of targeted skills and health-promoting behaviors
Raising Awareness of Visual Impairments and the Neonatal Assessment Visual European Grid (NAVEG)
Full text linkBlind Early Services Tennessee (BEST) is a nonprofit organization providing early intervention services to children with visual impairments and their families. Through a partnership with BEST, this doctoral capstone project aimed to raise awareness of visual impairments and promote the use of the Neonatal Assessment Visual European Grid (NAVEG). The NAVEG is a validated, non-invasive screening tool designed to identify neurological risk for Cortical Visual Impairment (CVI) in infants. The project aimed to educate healthcare providers and establish partnerships with Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICUs), to ultimately increase early referrals to ophthalmology and early intervention services. A secondary focus of this project was to create and disseminate educational resources for BEST families and providers. Outcomes included outreach to four NICUs, development of a NAVEG flyer, and the creation of an educational resource archive. Additional efforts included distributing approximately ten sensory “little rooms” and registering eligible children for American Printing House for the Blind’s Federal Quota program. This capstone reinforces the role of occupational therapy in interdisciplinary collaboration, advocacy, and education to promote early and equitable access to vision-related supports and services
Sleep Hygiene Programs in Adults with Parkinson’s Disease
Full text linkThis doctoral capstone project was completed in collaboration with Bridges for Parkinson’s (B4PD), an associate of Rock Steady Boxing. B4PD is a wellness organization that offers fitness classes tailored to the needs of adults with Parkinson’s Disease (PD). Sleep disturbance is one of the most common non-motor symptoms of PD and was an identified need of the population at B4PD. This project aimed to address sleep needs through comprehensive individualized sleep hygiene programs based on a series of consultations. A sleep diary, the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), and a semi structured interview were used to assess sleep disturbances. The PSQI from the evaluation was analyzed and results indicated that waking at night was the most frequent sleep disturbance. Results from a Pearson correlation demonstrated a positive correlation between subjective sleep scores and total PSQI scores, but it was not significant. Some sleep dairies demonstrated and increase in quantity of sleep for 30 minutes to an hour. Qualitative reports demonstrated a positive experience and some improvement in sleep. Information from consultation research was compiled into a comprehensive sleep hygiene guide for future needs regarding sleep
A Guide to Home Modifications Through the OT Lens
Full text linkThis doctoral capstone was completed through partnership with Westminster Home Connection. Westminster Home Connection is a non-profit agency serving low income adults 60+ or individuals with a disability by providing home repair and modifications to allow individuals to safely live in their home. The primary focus of this project was to create educational materials and bring an OT perspective to the assessment and modification process. Resources provided included a guidebook for home modifications and fall prevention education. Throughout this project I attended and assisted with home assessments, home modification, ramp builds, and declutter projects
Navigating Excellence: A Comprehensive Program Evaluation of an Academic Clinical Nurse Educator Pilot Course
Full text linkBackground and Rationale: Clinical instructors play a key role in nursing education, yet clinical instructors have varying degrees of formal preparation for the role. These inconsistencies affect student outcomes and instructors’ ability to effectively teach, mentor, and evaluate students. To address this, Belmont University developed the Academic Clinical Nurse Educator Program online course. This project conducted a comprehensive program evaluation to assess its effectiveness.
Aim: This project evaluated the effectiveness, success, and sustainability of an online Clinical Nurse Educator and Preceptor course designed to prepare registered nurses to teach undergraduate students and new nurses in clinical settings.
Design: This study used a summative program evaluation guided by the CIPP (Context, Input, Process, Product) framework to systematically assess the program’s relevance, implementation, effectiveness, and sustainability. It focused on program outcomes, participant perceptions, and long-term sustainability.
Methods: Course content was mapped to the AACN Essentials to assess alignment with national nursing accreditation standards. Data collection included surveys from Belmont Online, Qualtrics, and the ACNESAT, a validated tool measuring confidence and self-efficacy. The ACNESAT assessed role characteristics and fulfillment. Survey responses were analyzed for satisfaction, perceived effectiveness, self-efficacy, role expectations, and areas for improvement.
Results: The summative evaluation showed an 80% completion rate and increased self-efficacy (+19%), with the greatest gain in assessment/evaluation strategies (+21.84%). Satisfaction & Impact: Participants rated content (7.67/10) and interactivity (7.5/10) highly; 53% plan to take the CNEcl exam. Key themes: communication, professional boundaries, and bias reduction. AACN Essentials Mapping: The course aligned with 9/10 competencies, with the highest representation in Professional Development (92.8%) and Professionalism (87%).
Conclusions: The course effectively improved self-efficacy, confidence, and preparedness for clinical teaching, with the greatest improvement found in assessment/evaluation strategies. High satisfaction and strong alignment with AACN Essentials support its relevance and sustainability.
Implications for Practice: This evaluation underscores the need for ongoing faculty development in clinical assessment. Findings support structured, competency-based programs in enhancing self-efficacy, professional growth, and certification readiness
Empowering Staff Wellbeing: A Team-Based QI Initiative
No full textProject Title: Empowering staff wellbeing: A team-based QI initiative
Keywords: Burnout, wellbeing, DNP, primary care, QI methodology
Background and Rationale: The consequences of burnout in healthcare are alarming: worse patient outcomes, lack of continuity of care, higher turnover, and increased cost to employers. Many studies of burnout and wellbeing of clinicians focus on larger institutions such as hospitals and Federally Qualified Health Centers. Over the past several years, burnout has been discussed among our small, eight-person clinician team working in a small, non-profit primary care clinic. Yet, there has been no formal assessment of the level of burnout among the team with validated tool, and as such, addressing the issue has been difficult without any measures.
SMART Aim: The aim of this quality improvement project was to improve the well-being in the clinician team in this clinic by January 25th, 2025 as evidenced by an average improvement of 1 point on the Well-Being Index score.
The Well-Being Index tool was invented by the Mayo clinic to assess risk of burnout and wellbeing in healthcare setting. It has been validated by multiple studies for use with physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, medical residents, and several other medical populations. It is important to note that a higher score on the Well-Being Index is associated with a higher risk of adverse outcomes like burnout, turnover, severe fatigue, and poor quality of life whereas a lower score is associated with lower risk of adverse outcomes. The scoring system ranges from negative 2 to 9. The threshold score for MDs is ≥ 3 and threshold score for APPs is ≥ 2, with these scores indicating higher risk for adverse outcomes.
Methods: A baseline Well-Being survey was conducted anonymously in mid-January 2024 of the clinician team (3 MDs, 3 NPs, and 2 PAs). At the end of January, overall results were discussed with the team, and evidence was shared regarding contributing factors to burnout in primary care. Two brainstorming sessions followed to reach a consensus of change ideas specific to clinical context in how to improve overall team wellbeing and decrease burnout. Collaboration occurred with other departments that would be involved with change ideas on best ways to implement. Rapid change cycles were implemented in from May-June 2024 (delegation, work efficiency), July-August 2024 (workload, improved EHR efficiency), and September-October 2024 (assessing patient volume from previous years; standardizing coverage for PTO). There was an attempt for a cycle in December 2024 that was unsuccessful due to manager of the department being out of the office for extended period of time.
Outcomes: Results from baseline Well-Being index in January 2024 demonstrated that 4 of the 5 APPs were at higher risk for adverse outcomes including burnout, severe fatigue, poor quality of life, and increased risk of turnover within 24 months. None of the MDs met the threshold score for higher risk of adverse outcomes. Results from the Well-Being index in January 2025, post-intervention, showed 3 of 4 APPs remained at higher risk for adverse outcomes and 1 of the 3 MDs at a higher risk for adverse outcomes. The team average Well-Being scores from 2025 to 2024 did show a 0.81 decrease overall. However, if looking at the subgroups (i.e. MDs, APPs), the average score of the APP team increased 0.20 points, and then average MD score decreased 1.67 points. Again, the lower the score, the less risk of adverse outcomes. It is important to note that before the 2nd Well-Being Index assessment, one of the APPs resigned (on 1/4/25), so the sample size decreased to 7 clinicians (3 MDs, 4 APPs).
Conclusion: Despite individual and team-based interventions addressing some of the key causes of burnout in primary care, the clinician team’s Well-Being Index score average did not decrease by 1 point. In addition, the APP team had indications of higher risk of adverse outcomes in 2024 and by 2025, one of the APPs did resign.
Implications for Practice: Implementing scheduled, validated assessments of staff wellbeing, along with organizational changes supporting a culture of wellness, can reduce burnout in staff. Reducing burnout decreases the risk of essential patient-facing clinicians leaving the workforce which results in increased cost for the organization, interrupted patient care, and negatively impacts staff morale
The relationship between caffeine intake and anxious tendencies in young adults and college students
No full textThe consumption of caffeinated drinks has become a daily ritual for most adolescents and adults. The glorification and prevalence of this drug may have caused society to overlook the mental and physical influences. The present study examines the relationship between caffeine intake and anxious tendencies in young adults and college students. While previous research examines caffeine\u27s effect on self-examined moods or broad anxiety symptoms, few studies have accounted for physical manifestations of anxiety that may be related to caffeine usage. Seventy-eight (N=78) participants were collected through Belmont SONA pool took part in a survey to examine the relationship between their amount of caffeine consumed daily (mg) with physical manifestations taken from the Beck’s Anxiety Inventory. A correlational design and regression were used to examine the relationship. The results indicated an insignificant relationship between anxious tendencies and caffeine consumption. Limitations and future directions are discussed to direct future research in this area
Altruism and Political Polarization: The Impact of Social Media Identifiers on Prosocial Behavior in Emerging Adults
No full textResearch increasingly highlights the potential of altruistic behavior as a countermeasure to growing political polarization. However, existing studies in this area remain limited, often focusing on older populations. Little is known about how contemporary social media platforms popular among young adults, such as Instagram, shape political polarization among their users. The present study aims to clarify two primary questions: (1) how social media use influences political polarization in young adults, and (2) whether fostering altruistic behavior can promote positive engagement with individuals holding opposing political views. Participants included 55 students (aged 18 to 29) enrolled in Introductory Psychology courses at Belmont University. Each participant viewed six constructed Instagram profiles representing individuals affiliated with the three most common American political identities: Democrat, Republican, and Independent. Participants were then presented with a hypothetical scenario asking them to indicate, on a 5-point Likert scale, their willingness to display altruism toward the individual from the profile they had previously viewed. The researchers hypothesize that participants will report greater altruistic tendencies toward profiles reflecting their own political in-group compared to perceived out-groups. Findings from this study aim to advance understanding of social media’s role in reinforcing political polarization and to inform potential interventions designed to reduce polarization through altruistic engagement online
Sense of Belonging and Student Success Among College Students
No full textAbstract
A sense of belonging and self-efficacy are vital needs of college students, both shown to be significant predictors for student success. Thus, our study will focus on academic performance and the contributing factors that might have a significant influence on overall student success rates. The purpose of the present project is to build upon prior research by developing a new measure in the field of social psychology, investigating the relationship between college students’ sense of belonging, combined with individual factors such as self-efficacy, and how they contribute to student success and academic performance. This study consists of a quantitative, cross-sectional survey design, utilizing a new metric to determine the validity and reliability of our scale as well as the relationships between college students’ self-efficacy, self-compassion, academic success, and sense of belonging. Data was collected online via a Qualtrics survey and SONA recruiting software. The survey consists of demographics and two scales, a sense of belonging subscale, and an academic success subscale. The data is analyzed using SPSS software, including conducting a linear regression analysis of the effects of sense of belonging on academic success. Key results and their implications, as well as concluding information, limitations, and future directions for research, will be discussed in the presentation