Parental Divorce and First-Year Students' Transition to University: The Need to Include Baseline Data and Gender

This research examines parental divorce and first-year students' transition to university. Incoming students (N = 2,724) to six diverse universities completed questionnaires in August, before university, and again in November and March. Initial baseline measures indicated that females of divorced parents reported more depressive symptoms than females of intact families, whereas males of divorced parents reported lower levels of perceived stress than those of intact families. These findings remained over the first year. Regarding adjustment to university, males with divorced parents reported the best academic adjustment, and females with divorced parents were most vulnerable regarding personal-emotional adjustment.     

The Role of a Psychiatric Pharmacist in College Health

Abstract

Published evidence indicates there is a growing prevalence of psychiatric illnesses on college campuses, and that approximately one quarter of students may be taking psychotropic medications. But attracting and retaining experienced mental health care professionals to college health settings is a challenging task. The psychiatric pharmacist is one professional resource that can serve as both a clinical and educational consultant for college mental health services. A pilot psychiatric pharmacist service project is described.     

Individual and Familial Correlates of Body Satisfaction in Male and Female College Students

Abstract

Objective: This study investigates the relative contributions of global self-esteem, body mass index (BMI), dieting behaviors, and perceived parental control and care on body satisfaction among a nonclinical sample of college students. Participants and Methods: Participants (49 males and 299 females) reported weight and height (to calculate BMI) and completed the EAT 26 test. Perceived parental care and control, global self-esteem, and body satisfaction were measured and examined in relation to BMI and dieting behavior. Results: High BMIs were associated with lower body satisfaction for both genders; dieting behavior, self-esteem, and perceived parental care and control demonstrated a unique gender-specific association among variables in prediction of body satisfaction and dieting behavior for each gender. Conclusions: Body satisfaction as a part of global self-esteem is constructed differently by males and females. Various aspects of parenting (care and control) are associated with self-esteem and body satisfaction for each gender, influencing dieting behavior.     

Characterization of psychiatrically hospitalized college students

Abstract

Objective: To characterize contemporary college students requiring psychiatric hospitalization. Participants and methods: Sociodemographic and diagnostic information was gathered retrospectively and analyzed from the electronic medical records (EMRs) of the consecutive inpatient hospitalizations of 905 college students admitted to a psychiatric inpatient unit. Results: Significantly more females compared to males experienced the following: more hospitalizations, more family and financial stressors, more depression, and less psychotic and bipolar disorder. The most frequent diagnosis was a depressive disorder, followed by bipolar disorder, psychotic disorder, and personality disorder, most frequently borderline personality disorder. Half of participants had comorbid diagnoses with substance abuse most common. More than two-thirds of students endorsed social or intimate relationship, academic, and family challenges as psychosocial stressors. In all, 15% of participants had repeat admissions. Conclusions: The present study provides demographic data from a sample of psychiatrically hospitalized college students. Findings can help improve screening and identification of decompensation in college students.     

The Attitudes of Social Work Students and Practicing Psychiatric Social Workers Toward the Inclusion in the Community of People with Mental Illness

Abstract

This study measured and compared the attitudes of social work students and practicing psychiatric social workers to the inclusion in the community of people with mental illness. The Community Living Attitude Scale Mental Illness (comprising the four subscales of Empowerment, Exclusion, Sheltering, and Similarity) was administered to a random sample of 68 Israeli BA social work students (first year: n = 35; third year: n = 33) and 28 practicing psychiatric social workers. Overall, the participants endorsed Empowerment and perceived the Similarity of persons with mental illness to themselves more than they agreed with the Exclusion attitude of segregating those persons from community life. First-year students rated Empowerment and Similarity significantly lower than did the third-year students and rated Sheltering significantly higher than did psychiatric social workers. Psychiatric social workers did not differ from third-year students and did not have stronger attitudinal commitment to the inclusion paradigm. They differed from first-year students only in the sheltering attitude; they showed lower support for sheltering people with mental illness.     

The “Aging Males’ Symptoms” (AMS) Scale assesses depression and anxiety

Abstract

Objective: Emotional distress may be associated with severe aging symptoms. This study aimed to investigate aging symptoms in male psychiatric outpatients and their relationship with anxiety and depression.

Method: About 176 male psychiatric outpatients aged 40–80?years were enrolled into this single-center cross-sectional study, and completed self-reported questionnaires including “Aging Males’ Symptoms” (AMS) scale and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS).

Result: Age was correlated with less anxiety (r?=??0.23), less psychological (r?=??0.16) and more sexual symptoms (r?=?0.31). After controlling demographic variables, the partial correlation coefficients of HADS and AMS scores ranged from 0.30 to 0.73. Four groups were defined by HADS: control (C; n?=?103), depression (D; n?=?18), anxiety (A; n?=?26) and mixed anxiety and depression (M; n?=?29). The M group had the most severe aging symptoms, and the C group the least. The A group had more psychological and less sexual symptoms than the D group. “Impaired sexual potency” was the only aging symptom in males not significantly different among the four groups.

Conclusions: Anxiety and depression was associated with more severe aging symptoms in male psychiatric outpatients. Sexual dysfunction could be regarded as the core manifestation to differentiate aging symptoms from syndromal emotional distress.     

Predicting Human Papillomavirus Vaccine Intentions of College-Aged Males: An Examination of Parents’ and Son's Perceptions

Abstract

Objective: To examine male students’ and their parents’ human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine communication in relation to males’ willingness to discuss the vaccine with their health care provider and the likelihood of being vaccinated. Participants: Dyads (n = 111) of students and parents. Methods: Participants completed a HPV vaccine survey based on the risk perception attitude framework in 2009. Results: Male students’ perceived susceptibility for HPV and self-efficacy to talk to their provider were directly related to their intention to discuss the HPV vaccine, and their intention was directly related to their likelihood of being vaccinated. Parents’ perceived self-efficacy to talk to their son and response efficacy of the vaccine were directly related to their intention to talk to their son; however, parents’ intention was not related to the likelihood of their son being vaccinated. Conclusions: College males may benefit from HPV vaccine educational programs that include communication skills training to discuss the HPV vaccine with their parents.     

Homosexuality and Risk for Psychiatric Disorders

Abstract

Social science researchers have traditionally found it difficult to obtain representative samples of gay men and lesbians. Still, this has not prevented some from making broad conclusions about the lives and mental status of homosexuals as a group. In recent months, two separate national studies have examined sexual attitudes and behaviors of adults and adolescents. Collectively, the sample size of males and females surveyed in these studies is in the thousands. Because the subjects in both studies were randomly selected, the findings were based on persons with a wide spectrum of sexual attitudes and behaviors. In many respects, these studies confirm some of the data from smaller studies. That is, homosexual orientation can be a risk factor for psychiatric disturbance for some men and women. In addition, adolescents struggling with issues related to sexual orientation are two times more likely than their peers to consider or attempt suicide.     

Marital status and psychiatric disorders among blacks and whites.

This paper examines the association between marital status and psychiatric disorder for Blacks and explores the extent to which these patterns differ from those for Whites. Widowed and separated/divorced Black males and females have higher rates of disorder than the married; never-married Blacks do not have an elevated risk of psychiatric illness. The association between marital status and disorder for White males is similar and stronger than that observed for Blacks. For White women, the separated/divorced have a higher risk of disorder than the married, and unmarried White females have higher rates of the substance abuse disorders, but lower rates of the anxiety disorder than the married. Across all marital status groups, Black males and White males have higher rates of disorder (except for depression), than females. A complex pattern emerges when gender differences in the relative rates of disorder for unmarried Blacks compared to married Blacks are considered. Separated/divorced Black men, widowed Black women, and never-married Black men are worse off than their respective peers. Except for the separated/divorced, opposite patterns are evident for Whites. Directions for further research are outlined.     

Linguistic Analysis as a Method for Assessing Symptoms After Sexual Trauma Among Female Adolescent Psychiatric Inpatients

ABSTRACT

Using a sample of female psychiatric inpatient adolescents, the current study aimed to extend this literature to an adolescent sample for the first time by examining if linguistic markers and their subcategories (cognitive process words, pronoun use, and somatosensory detail) in a trauma account are related to trauma symptomology and recovery during inpatient care. Results indicated that greater use of body words and fewer insight words were related to increased trauma symptoms at admission. In addition, use of fewer cognitive process words at admission predicted greater symptom change at discharge, extending previous research findings to an adolescent sample. Findings suggest that linguistic analysis may be an important component of adolescent trauma symptom assessment and treatment monitoring.     

Perceived Obligations of Remarried Households to Provide Financial Assistance to Younger Family Members

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine perceived obligations of stepparents to provide financial assistance to adult stepchildren. Building on previous research, this study examined both contextual and ideological variables that may be related to perceptions of normative obligations. College student participants (N = 218) perceived higher levels of obligations to adult stepchildren whose financial need was not their fault as compared to adult stepchildren who were perceived as responsible for having financial needs. Also, perceptions of obligations were negatively related to ideologies consistent with traditional beliefs about marriage and with familism. This study highlights the need for more research and the need for policymakers to attend to how diversity in family structures is likely related to differences in intergenerational transfers.     

The Relationship Between Mandatory Divorce Education and Level of Post-Divorce Parental Conflict

Abstract

This study assessed the association between conflict between divorced parents and their attendance or nonattendance at a divorce education program. A telephone interview was done with 160 individuals who participated in the education program and 59 individuals who did not. Both males and females in the nonattendance group had higher conflict scores than the attendance group. Attendance at the divorce education class was found to be associated with whether a subject will return to court or not. Those who attended were less likely to return to court related to the divorce.     

Different pathways explain alcohol-related problems in female and male college students

ABSTRACT

Objectives: Comprehensive models elucidating the intricate associations of depressive symptoms, coping motives, alcohol use, alcohol-related problems (ARPs), and gender among young adults have been scarcely examined. This study investigated relationships among these variables and the effect of gender on these pathways. Methods: College students (N = 163; 49.7% female) completed self-report measures on alcohol consumption, depressive symptoms, coping motives, and ARPs. Results: Structural equation modeling showed that the association between depressive symptoms and ARPs was mediated by coping motives in both females and males. However, frequency of heavy alcohol use mediated the association between depressive symptoms and ARPs in females but not in males. Conclusions: Different models explain the association between depressive symptoms and ARPs in male and female college students. Prevention programs aimed at reducing ARPs should focus on increasing alcohol screening among students with depressive symptoms, teaching coping skills, and emphasizing moderation in alcohol consumption.     

Relationship functioning and sexuality among people with multiple sclerosis

This study was concerned with how the sexuality and relationships of people with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) are different from those of people from the general population. Three‐hundred eighty‐one respondents (144 males, 237 females) with MS and 291 respondents (101 males, 190 females) from the general population participated in the study. Sexual satisfaction, sexual dysfunction, relationship satisfaction, and coping style were assessed among all respondents. Information was also obtained from people with MS regarding age of onset and diagnosis of symptoms, as well as severity of symptoms. Overall, males with MS experienced a higher frequency of sexual dysfunction than males from the general population, while females with MS only differed from females from the general population in their levels of masturbation and numbness of the genital area. Coping strategies and levels of cognitive functioning were important predictors of sexual satisfaction, sexual dysfunction, and relationship satisfaction for women with MS, but there were fewer coping or health‐related factors that predicted these variables among men with MS. The results of this study are discussed in terms of factors related to sexual satisfaction and positive interpersonal relationships. There is a need to conduct further research in this area so that professionals working with people with MS are informed on strategies to improve the sexuality and relationships of their clients' lives.     

The College Student Psychiatric Emergency: A Descriptive Study

Abstract

The authors utilized computerized records of a psychiatric emergency department to study the nature of psychiatric emergencies among college students. The 1156 visits made by students over an eight-year period are described using demographic variables, times of visit, and accompaniment. Implications of the findings for campus administrators and mental health service providers are discussed.     

Depression as a mediator in the relationship between perceived familial criticism and college adaptation

ABSTRACT

Objective: This study examined relationships among emerging adults' perceived familial criticism, their depressive symptoms, and their college adaptation. Participants: The current study examined the responses of 412 emerging adults (300 females and 112 males) who were college students at a large southeastern university. The majority of these emerging adults were Caucasian, but the remainder were from a broad range of racial backgrounds. Methods: Participants completed the Family Emotional Involvement and Criticism Scale as a measure of their familial criticism, the Student Adaptation to College Questionnaire as a measure of their college adaptation, and the Beck Depression Inventory-Second Edition as a measure of their depression. Results: Results were examined using correlational and regression analyses in the context of Baron and Kenny's (J Pers Soc Psychol. 1986;51:1173–1182) method for determining mediation. Results suggested that for female emerging adults, the relationship between perceived familial criticism and college adaptation was mediated significantly by depressive symptoms. In contrast, this pattern of results did not hold for male emerging adults. Conclusions: Given these findings, emerging adults' depressive symptoms may serve as a useful proximal target for psychotherapeutic interventions meant to improve adaptation to college (particularly for female emerging adults), even in the context of high levels of perceived familial criticism from emerging adults' family of origin.     

Predictors of Substance Use and Mental Health of Children of Divorce

Abstract

This short-term longitudinal study examined psycho-social influences on substance use and mental health among children of divorced parents. The sample consisted of ethnically diverse fifth and sixth grade students, and compared children of divorced parents (CODPs; N = 176), who were an average of four years post-divorce, with children of married parents (COMPs; N = 213) who had never divorced. CODPs reported more life stress, less problem-focused coping, and more substance-using friends and family members than COMPs. Further, these variables were significantly related to CODPs' greater reported substance use, aggressive behavior, and depression than COMPs cross-sectionally, and longitudinally, four months later. The results suggest the importance of including both substance use and mental health outcomes in preventive interventions for CODPs.     

Coping and Adjustment in Male and Female Survivors of Childhood Sexual Abuse

ABSTRACT

This study investigates the effects of childhood sexual abuse for male and female survivors, characteristics of the abuse experience, current coping strategies, and current psychological adjustment. Nineteen male and 59 female adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse, recruited from both local and national support groups, completed a background questionnaire, dispositional coping inventories measuring current and retrospective abuse-specific coping styles, and measures of current psychological adjustment. In response to sexual abuse experienced during childhood, avoidance coping emerged as the most frequently used strategy by both sexes. Although there were no gender differences in current use of problem-focused and avoidance strategies, males related more use of acceptance whereas females utilized more emotion-focused coping. In general* females reported significantly greater trauma-related distress than males, including higher levels of anxiety, depression, and post-trauma symptoms.     

The Infirmary as a Short-Term Psychiatric Facility

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to describe the role of the Oregon State University Infirmary (inpatient unit) in the provision of crisis intervention services for students with emotional problems. The focus was on the working assumptions of the infirmary program, the patient population which utilized the infirmary, the dimensions of treatment, and treatment outcomes.

Data were collected for a three year span on all patients who had contact with the infirmary for problems of an emotional nature. Records were reviewed for demographic variables, presenting symptomatology, diagnosis, treatment, disposition, and outcomes. Comparisons were made between these patients and those who received outpatient services through the Oregon State University Mental Health Clinic.

Demographic data indicated that patients who were treated in the infirmary differed only slightly from either the general student population of the university or from students receiving outpatient services. Presenting symptoms reflected a wide range of emotional problems. The severity of psychopathology was demonstrated by the finding that one-quarter of the patients manifested symptoms of acute psychosis, suicidal preoccupation, acute drug reaction, or toxic alcohol reaction. Consistent with the working assumptions of the program, the focus of treatment was short-term, intensive, and symptom directed. Treatment outcomes as determined by followup data were generally positive.

It was concluded that the infirmary provided an important treatment option which extended rather than duplicated outpatient services. The need for such an option was clearly demonstrated. The study was supportive of the concept that a university infirmary has the potential for utilization as a multipurpose facility.