Master of Science in Counseling Research
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Item Buprenorphine MAT's Impact on Opioid Relapse(2022) Thomas, Alexandria; Drinnon, JoyIn 2020, opioids were involved in 68,630 overdose deaths, which accounted for 74.8% of all drug overdose deaths (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2022). In the past few decades, an increased understanding surrounding the neurological, and subsequent physiological, dependence caused by substances has shifted society’s ideology away from viewing addiction as a choice and instead towards a disease that has claimed the lives of millions. Opioid addiction as outlined by the 5th edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, indirectly effects arguably all Americans due to the financial toll and how this disease impacts not only loved ones, but also communities surrounding individuals suffering from addiction. Buprenorphine, a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved pharmacological treatment option for opioid use disorder, has yielded drastically positive outcomes, especially when combined with behavioral health interventions. More specifically, Greiner et al. (2021) found that of those who retained treatment, fewer met relapse criteria (16.4% vs 38.9%), they had fewer opioid use days in the past month (4.4 days vs 9.8 days), and they had less stimulant use (15.2% vs 27.7%). An opposition to MAT options such as Buprenorphine, neglects the empirically sound evidence, disregards the importance of combating the opioid epidemic, and exhibits a lack of urgency to save lives. It is important to note that buprenorphine at any dose has been found to retain patients in recovery better than a placebo (Reimer et al., 2020). The availability of these treatment options is vital to preserving the health of Americans and combating years of stigma attributing to barriers individuals face when receiving addictions treatment.Item Trauma in Dyadic Relationships and Couple Counseling as Treatment(2022-07-10) Worrell, Alynda; Drinnon, JoyThis systematic review focuses on dyadic relationships, and seeks to answer the following questions: 1) How do traumatic life events impact survivors and partners in dyadic relationships? 2) Is couple counseling an effective treatment for mental health or relationship issues when one or both partners have experienced trauma? The review contains ten articles. Although there is some overlap, six articles focus primarily on trauma outcomes in dyadic relationships and address the first research question. Five articles address the second question, and center around the treatment of trauma. Included are a mixture of qualitative and quantitative research. One study was a randomized control trial (RCT), one was quasi-experimental (pre- and post-treatment data collection), two utilized in-depth interviews and thematic analysis, and one article was a collection of vignettes outlining treatment. The remainder were correlational.Item What is Stopping Me from Stopping? Barriers to Evidence-Based SUD Treatment(2022-07-10) Kelly, Alexis; Drinnon, JoyThe United States houses around 4% of the world’s population, but approximately 33% of the world’s prisoners (Lee, 2020). Currently, the United States has adopted a punishment model for crime, in hopes that criminalized behavior will become less desirable. This model is associated with various movements such as the Tough on Crime movement and the War on Drugs, both popularized in the 70’s after crime surged in the 1960’s (Lee, 2020; Murphy, 2013; Tsai & Gu, 2019). While the goal has been to decrease drug dependence, incarceration rates continue to rise and addiction remains a major issue within the general and prison populations and continues to disproportionately affect minority groups (Clement et al., 2019; Murphy, 2013; Tsai & Gu, 2019). After over 50 years of staying ‘tough’, many are asking if this approach is causing more harm than good. This review seeks to identify barriers to receiving evidence-based treatment for Substance Use Disorders.Item Systematic Review of Social and Executive Functioning in Women with ADHD(2022-07-24) Jones, Bailie; Drinnon, JoyADHD is misunderstood and frequently underdiagnosed in females. The lack of proper intervention and treatment for females with ADHD can have an effect that last years. The articles I have studied backed that claim as well, but I wanted to know something a little more specific. Many women are believed to express ADHD symptoms through internalizing issues, so I wanted to know how that internalization of ADHD affects executive functioning, and I wanted to know how that internalization of ADHD affects social functioning. My research found that among several studies, girls diagnosed with ADHD, even when symptoms go into remission in late adolescence or adulthood, struggle significantly more than their peers with social and executive functioning. More research is needed to understand why this has such a long-term effect, and what treatments could be beneficial for these girls.Item The Effects of Expressive Arts Therapy on Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder(2021-07-27) Herndon, Jasmine; Drinnon, JoyExpressive arts therapy is a combination of psychology and the creative arts in a way to facilitate the process of personal growth. This method of counseling could be beneficial for children with autism spectrum disorder because many times these children may experience difficulties with speech and interpersonal skills. The purpose of this review was to determine if expressive arts therapy has an effect on children with autism spectrum disorder. A total of 11 articles were chosen for review, both quantitative and qualitative studies. The results of six articles showed small positive effects of expressive arts therapy concerning social skills, symptom severity, and communication development. The remaining articles showed no effects of expressive arts therapy. The findings of these articles cannot completely support the research question without further statistically significant research.Item The Association Between Adolescent Substance Abuse and Suicidality(2021-08) Underwood, Jacob; Drinnon, JoyThis systematic review explored the relationship between adolescent substance abuse and suicidality. Peer-reviewed journal articles concerned with this topic were analyzed and screened from Google Scholar and Milligan University’s online research database. While the research varied in terms of experimental design, the data indicates that adolescent substance use, suicidal ideation, and suicide attempts are positively correlated. Increases in frequency of use and lethality of substance strengthens the relationship between the variables. Findings also indicate that females and minority groups are most likely to exhibit suicidal behavior and non-suicidal forms of self-injury. The research identifies various risk factors that contribute to adolescent suicidal ideation and substance abuse. The research varied in terms of experimental design, implications for future research, and approach to treatment.Item Effectiveness of EMDR and CBT in Children and Adolescents with Trauma(2020-07) Brannock, David; Drinnon, JoyThe main purpose of this systematic review was to compare the effectiveness of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) in children and adolescents who experienced trauma. Empirical studies suggest both treatment methods are effective in alleviating trauma in adults, so this review examined the efficacy of EMDR and CBT in minors. A secondary question was to compare these two methods in treating depression, which often accompanies posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). From electronic databases (Milligan OneSearch and Google Scholar), six studies of randomized controlled trials from 2004-2017 were identified. Four theoretical articles and six meta-analyses were included for background information. The results showed both EMDR and CBT are highly effective in treating trauma in children and adolescents. Neither method reduced PTSD distress significantly better than the other. EMDR was slightly more efficient in lessening traumatic symptoms. CBT was slightly more effective in reducing depression.Item Measuring Psychotherapy Outcomes: Feedback to Counselors and Clients(2019-05) Buchanan, Lisa; Drinnon, JoyObjective: To evaluate methods of measuring psychotherapy outcomes and uses of feedback to improve clinical services to clients in a college counseling center setting. Design: Systematic review of research evaluating use of outcome measures and feedback to counselors and clients. This review focused primarily on RCTs comparing feedback conditions to treatment as usual in university or college counseling center settings. Results: Two well-researched measures were identified: OQ-45 and PCOMS. Feedback to counselors or both counselors and clients using these measures significantly improved outcomes over treatment as usual. Clients achieved clinically significant change more often and in fewer sessions than those clients who did not receive feedback or whose therapist did not receive feedback. This was especially true for those clients at risk for dropout or poor outcomes. Conclusions: Of the two measures, PCOMS was selected as the most practical and effective for use in a college counseling center setting. Routine outcome monitoring and feedback is recommended for current counselors as well as counselors in training. Limitations of the current study and directions for future research are presented.Item Are there effective treatments for pornography and sexual addiction?(2019) Hodge, Christopher; Drinnon, JoyThis is a review of different treatment options for pornography and sexual addiction.Item Effects of Extracurricular Participation on Student Behavior(2019-08-02) Largent, Amanda; Drinnon, JoyExtracurricular activities are a large part of society. There are professional athletes and leagues for almost every sport possible. Sports can even provide an opportunity to earn collegiate scholarships and have some, if not all, of someone’s college education paid for. Outside the sports world, there are things such as music, art, dancing, etc. that people also participate in for enjoyment or expression. Many people start out participating in these activities during their middle-school years. Middle-school years can also bring more severe behavioral problems in children as they continue to develop more into their own people, and their personalities continue to emerge, which can have an effect on their choice participate in extracurricular activities or not. This research reviews different studies in order to answer the question of: Do middle school-aged children that participate in extracurricular activities have better classroom behavior than their peers that do not?Item The Influence of Friends and Peers on Adolescent Substance Use: A Systematic Review(2019-07-23) Hickman, Micheala; Drinnon, JoyAdolescents are susceptible to influences from many factors, but friends and peers influence adolescents the most. Typically, friends and peers lead adolescents to experiment and abuse illicit substances. The extent of the use depends on the type of friends and peers as well as various extraneous factors. This review seeks to look at what researchers found regarding the influences of an adolescent's social network on using substances.Item College Students and ADHD: Effective Treatments(2019-07-25) Lockridge, Rebecca; Drinnon, JoyWhat effective treatment options exist for college students diagnosed with ADHD? This review will provide an overview of current treatments available for college students diagnosed with ADHD, with a special focus on treatments and issues that could be addressed in the context of a college counseling center.Item When it hurts to help: secondary trauma in helpers(2019) McDonald, James; Drinnon, JoyThe author surveys Secondary Trauma in helper populations with exploration of the concept of Secondary Traumatic stress and implications for further study.