Fraternity Membership and Sexual Aggression: An Examination of Mediators of the Association

Abstract

Objective: This prospective study examined attitudes (ie, hostility toward women, acceptance of rape myths), peer influences (ie, peer pressure to have sex, peer approval of forced sex), and risky behaviors (ie, high-risk alcohol use, number of sexual partners) as possible mediators of the association between fraternity membership and sexual aggression. Participants: The sample included 424 males recruited as freshmen from a large state university in the southeastern United States. Methods: Respondents completed survey measures in their first, second, and third years of enrollment at the university. Results: Path analyses revealed that the prospective effect of fraternity membership on sexual aggression was mediated by high-risk alcohol use. Conclusions: The findings indicate that high-risk alcohol use accounts for much of the association between fraternity membership and sexual aggression.     

Examining the Efficacy of a Brief Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (Brief MBSR) Program on Psychological Health

Abstract

Objective: The purpose of the study was to examine potential psychological health benefits of participating in a brief (5-week) mindfulness-based stress reduction (brief MBSR) program integrated into an academic course. Participants: Participants were 119 undergraduate students (treatment: n = 72; control: n = 47) enrolled in elective academic courses on addictive behaviors, between January 2010 and May 2012. Methods: This study employed a quasi-experimental pretest/posttest design comparing changes in psychological health between brief MBSR treatment and parallel control groups. Baseline and follow-up data were collected synchronously across semesters for both groups. Results: Analysis of covariance revealed significant improvements in psychological health, measured by mindfulness (Philadelphia Mindfulness Scale: p ≤ .001; Kentucky Inventory of Mindfulness Scale: p ≤ .001) and self-compassion (Self-compassion Scale: p ≤ .001), among brief MBSR participants compared with the parallel control cohort. Significant reductions in trait anxiety were not evident. Conclusions: Brief MBSR programs can improve psychological health; however, longer MBSR programs may be needed to improve psychological distress, such as trait anxiety.     

University Students’ Views on the Utility of Psychiatric Advance Directives

Abstract

Objective: Rates of serious mental illnesses (SMIs) among university students are increasing, and universities are struggling with how to respond to students who show SMI symptoms. Psychiatric advance directives (PADs) allow individuals, when well, to document their wishes for treatment during a psychiatric crisis. This project explored the feasibility of using PADs in university settings by examining students’ views towards PADs. Participants: Forty university students with SMIs were recruited for this study from 1 large university. Methods: A mixed-methods design was used, with both quantitative survey instruments and qualitative interviews with students. Results: Respondents were positive about PAD utility for students. Respondents saw PADs as beneficial because PADs gave students control over their treatment. However, students also considered PADs potentially problematic because PAD use raised a risk of breaching student privacy and stigmatizing students with SMIs. Conclusions: Although a promising intervention for students with SMI, this approach requires further research.     

Effectiveness of the Brief Alcohol and Screening Intervention for College Students (BASICS) Program With a Mandated Population

Abstract

Objective: This study evaluated the effectiveness of a large-scale intervention designed to reduce alcohol abuse among adjudicated college students. Participants: Participants were college students mandated to attend a Brief Alcohol Screening and Intervention for College Students (BASICS) program and a randomly selected comparison group of high-risk drinkers. Methods: Data were collected from January 2006 through December 2008. A total of 1,390 (67%) students in the intervention group and 508 (61%) students in the comparison group completed baseline and 6-month follow-up surveys. Results: Male students in the intervention group significantly decreased their drinking at follow-up, whereas those in the comparison group increased their drinking. Women in both the intervention and comparison groups decreased their drinking at 6 months. Conclusions: When implemented with fidelity, BASICS is a generally effective intervention, especially for male adjudicated college students. The intervention was most effective for moderate- and high-risk drinkers.     

Collegiate-Based Emergency Medical Service: Impact on Alcohol-Related Emergency Department Transports at a Small Liberal Arts College

Abstract

Objective: The authors examined the impact of a collegiate-based emergency medical service (CBEMS) on the frequency of emergency department (ED) transports. Participants: Students transported to the ED for acute alcohol intoxication during the Fall 2008 and the Fall 2009 semesters (N = 50). Methods: The frequency of students receiving transportation to a hospital ED and the reported blood alcohol content (BAC) levels during the initial operational semester of the CBEMS were compared to those values over the same time period the previous year. Results: More than twice the number of students was transported to the ED following the introduction of CBEMS. There was no change in mean BAC levels. Conclusions: CBEMS could promote a culture conducive to increased reporting behavior, which makes the campus safer. Similar BAC levels suggest that the degree of intoxication was similar for the 2 reporting periods, but students sought emergency assistance more frequently following the inception of CBEMS.     

Disregulated Alcohol-Related Behavior Among College Drinkers: Associations With Protective Behaviors,Personality, and Drinking Motives

Abstract

Objective: This study investigated the psychometric properties of the Disregulated Alcohol-Related Behaviors Inventory (DARBI), a measure of harmful alcohol-related behavior, and the relationship between protective behavior use and scores on the DARBI and several other measures. Participants: Participants were 281 undergraduate volunteers (60% female) enrolled in introductory psychology sections in Summer and Fall 2007. Methods: Participants completed the DARBI along with paper-and-pencil self-report measures of broad personality domains, trait resilience, protective behavior use, and drinking motivations and consequences. Results: The DARBI's internal consistency was good (alpha = .85). DARBI scores correlated negatively with conscientiousness scores but positively with neuroticism, the Michigan Alcohol Screening Test (MAST), Rutgers Alcohol Problem Index (RAPI), and positive-reinforcement motives scores. The self-reported use of protective behaviors related negatively to DARBI, MAST, RAPI, and enhancement motives scores. Protective behavior use was unrelated to broad personality domains. Conclusions: The DARBI may prove a useful tool in campus interventions. Further research should determine the dispositional and situational determinants of protective behavior use.     

Obsessive-Compulsive Spectrum Disorder Symptoms in College Students

Abstract

Objective: This study investigated the occurrence of obsessive-compulsive spectrum disorders (OCSDs) and associated symptomology in college students. Participants: Participants included 358 undergraduate students. Results: Results suggest that clinically significant levels of OCSD symptoms are relatively common. Additionally, OCSD symptoms co-occurred with each other and anxiety symptoms in general, yet not significantly with impulsivity symptoms. Conclusions: Given their prevalence in college students and potentially debilitating nature, it is important to increase awareness of OCSDs so that health professionals can better identify and treat symptoms of these disorders.     

Elder Abuse in Nursing Homes: An Ecological Perspective

Population trends suggest that the next 20 years will witness a dramatic increase in the adult population aged 65 and older. Projected increases in the elderly population are expected to significantly increase the stress on family and professional caretakers. Stress, in the context of caregiving relationships, is a risk factor associated with increased prevalence of elder abuse in familial and institutional settings. As increasing numbers of older adults are moved from family caregiving to nursing home care settings, it becomes important to identify the pattern of elder abuse risk factors in nursing home facilities. An ecological model is proposed for better understanding the risk factors associated with elder abuse in nursing homes and the complex interaction of individual/person characteristics and contextual factors in institutional elder abuse. An ecological perspective to institutional elder abuse provides a framework for guiding and informing future research on the risk factors of nursing home abuse and, in turn, for the development of effective interventions and relevant social policies.     

Conceptual Model and Map of Financial Exploitation of Older Adults

This article describes the processes and outcomes of three-dimensional concept mapping to conceptualize financial exploitation of older adults. Statements were generated from a literature review and by local and national panels consisting of 16 experts in the field of financial exploitation. These statements were sorted and rated using Concept Systems software, which grouped the statements into clusters and depicted them as a map. Statements were grouped into six clusters, and ranked by the experts as follows in descending severity: (a) theft and scams, (b) financial victimization, (c) financial entitlement, (d) coercion, (e) signs of possible financial exploitation, and (f) money management difficulties. The hierarchical model can be used to identify elder financial exploitation and differentiate it from related but distinct areas of victimization. The severity hierarchy may be used to develop measures that will enable more precise screening for triage of clients into appropriate interventions.