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Purpose Intimate partner violence (IPV) has significant consequences for women's mental and physical health, but many women show adaptive functioning amidst this adversity. Few studies have assessed the interactive internal and external resources that promote resilience among IPV-exposed pregnant women. The current study examined associations between locus of control (LOC), social support (family/friend), and resilience in IPV-exposed pregnant women, as well as the moderating role of social support on the association between LOC and resilience. Method Pregnant women (N = 137; M.sub.Age=27.30, SD = 6.00; 66% Black/African American) who experienced IPV in the previous year completed a series of self-report measures during a structured 1.5-hour assessment. Direct and moderating relations were examined using hierarchical linear regression analyses. Results The family support model was significant (F = 3.53, p = .003, R.sup.2 = 14.0%), with more internal LOC (B=-1.28, p = .011) and more family support (B = 0.53, p = .019) associated with higher resilience. Including the LOC by family support interaction significantly improved (âF = 7.34, p = .008, âR.sup.2 = 4.6%) the model (F = 4.22, p < .001, R.sup.2 = 18.6%). The interaction term was significant (B = 0.23, p = .008), such that more external LOC was associated with lower resilience only among women with low family support (t=-3.81, p .001). The friend support model was significant (F = 5.64, p < .001, R.sup.2 = 20.6%). More internal LOC (B=-1.28, p = .008) and more friend support (B = 0.74, p < .001) were associated with higher resilience. Adding the LOC by friend support interaction did not significantly improve the model. Conclusion Results suggest that internal LOC and social support are associated with higher resilience and that strong family supports may buffer against the negative consequences typically associated with external LOC., Author(s): Amanda J. Hasselle [sup.1] , Kathryn H. Howell [sup.1] , Jessica R. Carney [sup.2] , Hannah C. Gilliam [sup.3] , Kaytryn D. Campbell [sup.3] , Laura E. Miller-Graff [sup.4] [...]

Purpose Intimate partner violence (IPV) during pregnancy is prevalent in Mexico and is associated with deleterious effects on physical and mental health. This study explored barriers to, and facilitators of, wellbeing and access to resources for IPV-exposed, pregnant women living in Nuevo León, Mexico. Method Participants were N = 43 individuals (n = 17 women receiving IPV or prenatal health services, n = 20 mental health professionals, and n = 6 medical professionals) who participated in nine focus groups in Nuevo León. Qualitative focus group data were analyzed using thematic analysis. Results Several barriers to women's access to community resources and wellbeing were identified, including intrapersonal barriers, structural barriers, widespread violence exposure, and family expectations and power structures. Similarly, multiple facilitators of women's wellbeing and access to resources emerged from the data, including women's intrapersonal empowerment, support from women's immediate social circles, and supports in the broader community. Conclusions Results suggest that women in Nuevo León who experience IPV during pregnancy face significant barriers to accessing supports that could foster wellbeing. Women also possess inherent strengths and actively seek to supports that contribute to their resilience in the face of IPV. Intervention strategies should focus on ways to overcome common barriers experienced by IPV-exposed women, while incorporating strategies to bolster personal empowerment and connection with existing community resources., Author(s): Jessica R. Carney [sup.1] , Cecilia Martinez-Torteya [sup.2] , Laura E. Miller-Graff [sup.1] [sup.3] , Hannah C. Gilliam [sup.4] , Kathryn H. Howell [sup.4] Author Affiliations: (1) https://ror.org/00mkhxb43, grid.131063.6, [...]

Objective: Few studies have explored the impact of insecure attachment on college student mental health. The present study examined how anxious and avoidant attachment to a mother, father, and best friend were related to depression and resilience in emerging adults exposed to trauma. Participants: Participants included 372 trauma-exposed emerging adults, aged 18-24 (M[subscript age] = 19.64, SD = 1.62), from a university in the Midsouth, United States. Method: Participants completed an assessment battery of self-report measures to determine how maternal, paternal, and best friend insecure attachment each uniquely contribute to the variance in depression and resilience. Results: Hierarchical linear regression analyses revealed that anxious and avoidant attachment to a best friend were associated with lower resilience, but only anxious attachment to a best friend was associated with more depressive symptoms. Discussion: Findings highlight the importance of cultivating healthy relationships in a university setting to foster secure peer attachments for emerging adults exposed to adversity.

This study examined how mental health and intimate partner violence (IPV) relate to women's beliefs about their ability to communicate with partners about sexual history and risk (i.e., sex behavior self-efficacy). Participants were composed of 148 women (M age = 34.6; 69% non-Hispanic Black; 74% income <$20,000/year) recruited from community organizations in the US Mid-South. A hierarchical linear regression was used to examine associations among sex behavior self-efficacy and depressive symptoms, resilience (Model 1) and physical IPV, psychological IPV, sexual IPV, negotiation, and IPV perpetration (Model 2). The final model was significant with variability in sex behavior self-efficacy explained by depressive symptoms, partner negotiation frequency, and IPV perpetration. Findings highlight novel areas to consider when assessing barriers and facilitators of partner communication and when developing culturally responsive interventions for women experiencing relationship-based adversity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The inclusion of Persistent Complex Bereavement Disorder (PCBD) in the DSM-5 appendix signifies a call for research regarding the distinguishing features and clinical utility of proposed PCBD criteria. Rigorously constructed tools for assessing PCBD are lacking, especially for youth. This study evaluated the validity and clinical utility of the PCBD Checklist, a 39-item measure designed to assess PCBD criteria in youth aged 8 to18 years. Test construction procedures involved: (a) reviewing the literature regarding developmental manifestations of proposed criteria, (b) creating a developmentally informed item pool, (c) surveying an expert panel to evaluate the clarity and developmental appropriateness of candidate items, (d) conducting focus groups to evaluate the comprehensibility and acceptability of items, and (e) evaluating psychometric properties in 367 bereaved youth (Mage = 13.49, 55.0% female). The panel, clinicians, and youth provided favorable content validity and comprehensibility ratings for candidate items. As hypothesized, youth who met full PCBD criteria, Criterion B (e.g., preoccupation with the deceased and/or circumstances of the death), or Criterion C (e.g., reactive distress and/or social/identity disruption) reported higher posttraumatic stress and depressive symptoms than youth who did not meet these criteria, ηp2 = .07-.16. Youth who met Criterion C reported greater functional impairment than youth who did not, ηp2 = .08-.12. Youth who qualified for the "traumatic bereavement specifier" reported more frequent posttraumatic stress symptoms than youth who did not, ηp2 = .04. Findings support the convergent, discriminant, and discriminant-groups validity, developmental appropriateness, and clinical utility of the PCBD Checklist.

Community violence (CV) is a serious public health concern. To date, most of the existing research has focused on youth of color living in high-risk environments. The prior literature has shown that CV-exposed youth are at risk for post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS), delinquency, and substance use. CV has also been tied to beliefs about violence being an acceptable way of resolving conflict, referred to as the Code of the Streets (COS). It is unclear how the trajectories of other CV-exposed populations may differ from vulnerable youth, including college students who are in a developmental period associated with high-risk for violence exposure. The study objectives were therefore to: 1) examine the relations between CV and delinquency (i.e. gang involvement, arrest, weapon ownership) and illicit substance use, as well as 2) investigate whether there are indirect effects between CV and both delinquency and illicit substance use through PTSS and COS beliefs among college students. The sample included 547 students from two universities (Mage = 20.31, SD = 2.08, Range = 18–28; 80.8% female; 57.8% White). CV was associated with delinquency and illicit substance use. COS beliefs had an indirect effect on the relation between CV and delinquency, but PTSS did not. Conversely, PTSS had an indirect effect on the link between CV and illicit substance use, but COS did not. College students are at risk for CV exposure and adverse outcomes. Interventions addressing PTSS and COS beliefs may be central to mitigating delinquent behaviors and illicit substance use in this population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While spirituality and parenting have been examined among caregivers experiencing adversity, less research has explored these factors among mother survivors of intimate partner violence (IPV). Given the potentially protective role of spirituality, understanding how parenting is associated with spirituality is important. The current study explored parenting practices, parent-child communication, and spirituality among 175 women caregivers who had experienced recent IPV. Hierarchical linear regression was used to examine associations between maternal age, education, HIV status, and illicit substance use (model 1); child age and gender (model 2); parent-child comfort communicating about sexual practices, IPV, HIV/AIDS, and substance use (model 3); and positive and negative parenting practices (model 4) with spirituality. Findings suggested positive parenting practices, greater comfort talking about IPV, and greater discomfort talking about substance use were associated with higher spirituality. Results highlight the value of parenting and communication strategies among women caregivers experiencing recent adversity., Author(s): Caroline C. Kaufman [sup.1] , Kathryn H. Howell [sup.1] , Jessica E. Mandell [sup.1] , Amanda H. Hasselle [sup.1] , Idia B. Thurston [sup.2] [sup.3] [sup.4] Author Affiliations: (1) [...]

Partially nested designs (PNDs) are common in intervention studies in psychology and other social sciences. With this design, participants are assigned to treatment and control groups on an individual basis, but clustering occurs in some but not all groups (e.g., the treatment group). In recent years, there has been substantial development of methods for analyzing data from PNDs. However, little research has been done on causal inference for PNDs, especially for PNDs with nonrandomized treatment assignments. To reduce the research gap, in the current study, we used the expanded potential outcomes framework to define and identify the average causal treatment effects in PNDs. Based on the identification results, we formulated the outcome models that could produce treatment effect estimates with causal interpretation and evaluated how alternative model specifications affect the causal interpretation. We also developed an inverse propensity weighted (IPW) estimation approach and proposed a sandwich-type standard error estimator for the IPW-based estimate. Our simulation studies demonstrated that both the outcome modeling and the IPW methods specified following the identification results can yield satisfactory estimates and inferences of the average causal treatment effects. We applied the proposed approaches to data from a real-life pilot study of the Pregnant Moms' Empowerment Program for illustration. The current study provides guidance and insights on causal inference for PNDs and adds to researchers' toolbox of treatment effect estimation with PNDs. Partially nested designs (PNDs) are often used in treatment outcome studies in psychology and other social sciences. For example, in a therapy study, participants in the treatment group may be nested in therapy clusters (or therapists), whereas participants in the control group are nonnested. There is a growing methodological literature on PND analysis in recent years. However, causal inference methods for PNDs have been underdeveloped and underevaluated, especially for PNDs with nonrandomized treatment assignments. In the current study, we adopted the expanded potential outcomes framework to examine the average causal treatment effects in PNDs. Using the identification results, we proposed the outcome models that could produce treatment effect estimates with causal interpretation and evaluated how alternative model specifications affect the causal interpretation. We also proposed an inverse propensity weighted (IPW) estimation approach and developed R package "IPWpn" for the implementation. The simulation results demonstrated that the proposed outcome modeling and IPW approaches can perform well for estimation and inference of the average causal treatment effects in PNDs. We used data from a pilot study of the Pregnant Moms' Empowerment Program for illustration. The current study provides guidance and insights on causal inference for PNDs and adds to researchers' toolbox of treatment effect estimation in PNDs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Maltreatment survivors are at a heightened risk for revictimization during adulthood. Yet, existing work has specifically focused on sexual revictimization, and it is unclear what factors increase one's risk for revictimization more broadly. Posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS), anger, and substance use have been identified as factors associated with sexual revictimization; the function of these variables is ambiguous in the broader revictimization framework. There is also a lack of understanding regarding the roles of the DSM-5 posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptom clusters and revictimization. This study aimed to 1) examine the links between maltreatment and revictimization and three factors (i.e., PTSS, anger, and substance use), 2) determine whether there are indirect effects between maltreatment and revictimization through each factor, and 3) investigate whether PTSD clusters have indirect effects on the relationship between maltreatment and revictimization. The sample included 350 maltreated college women (Mage = 21.96, SD = 5.31; 54.2% White) from two universities. Findings indicated that maltreatment and revictimization were linked with PTSS (B = 4.65, B = 0.03, respectively). Only maltreatment was related to anger, B = 1.70, and revictimization was tied to substance use, B = 0.08. Only PTSS had an indirect effect on the link between maltreatment and revictimization (B = 0.13). Maltreatment was related to each of the four PTSD symptom clusters, but the clusters had no indirect effects on the association between maltreatment and revictimization. These findings indicate that PTSS may be uniquely important in increasing the risk for revictimization among women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Pregnant Moms' Empowerment Program (PMEP) is a brief, group intervention for pregnant women who have experienced intimate partner violence (IPV). This study was a quasirandomized trial of the effects of PMEP on parenting. Participants were 137 pregnant women exposed to IPV in the past year; 82 received PMEP and 55 were in a no-treatment control condition. Participants completed four assessments (pretest [T1], posttest [T2], 3-month postpartum[T3], and 12-month postpartum [T4]). At T1–T4, women self-reported on their parenting attitudes (i.e., expectations of children, parental empathy, corporal punishment, parent–child family roles) and parenting confidence. At the postpartum assessments, mother–infant dyads participated in a videorecorded free play session that was coded for warm-sensitive parenting. Results showed that women who received PMEP had more appropriate expectations of children (β = 0.51, 95% CI [0.03, 0.99], dr = 0.53, 95% CI [0.31, 1.02]) and higher empathy toward children (β = 0.64, 95% CI [0.05, 1.23], dr = 0.53, 95% CI [0.04, 1.02]) at T2, as compared to women in the control group. Women who received PMEP also showed more warm-sensitive parenting at T4 (Wald χ2 = 4.01, p =.045; R2 = 5.58%, d = 0.41, 95% CI [0.07, 0.88]) as compared to women in the control group. No differences emerged on corporal punishment, parent–child family roles, postpartum empathy and expectations of children, parenting confidence, or 3-month postpartum parenting behaviors. Thus, results were mixed, with some short-term positive effects and other benefits emerging only at 1-year postpartum. Findings highlight the potential clinical utility of brief interventions for pregnant, IPV-exposed women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This study examined typologies of childhood violence exposure (CVE) and the associations of profiles with current demographic characteristics and mental health in emerging adulthood. Participants: The study evaluated a sample of college students from 2 US geographic regions (Midwest, n = 195; Southeast, n = 200). Methods: An online questionnaire (collected 2013-2014) assessed CVE and current mental health. Latent class analysis was used to identify typologies of CVE. Follow-up analyses were conducted to distinguish differences between typologies in demographic characteristics and mental health. Results: Four distinct profiles emerged: High-Exposed, Domestic-Exposed, Community-Exposed, and Low-Exposed. High- and Domestic-Exposed groups were more likely to be first-generation college students and to experience symptoms of psychopathology. Conclusions: This study offers a unique presentation of CVE profiles and a nuanced interpretation of their differential relationship to current demographic characteristics and mental health. It may befit university mental health initiatives to engage first-generation students and utilize comprehensive assessments of previous victimization.