Teen Dating Violence in New Hampshire: Who Is Most at Risk?

In this brief, authors Katie Edwards and Angela Neal discuss the results of a study examining how demographic characteristics such as sexual orientation, school characteristics such as the school poverty rate, and community characteristics such as the population density of the county relate to the possibility that a New Hampshire teen will be the victim of dating violence. The study included 24,976 high school students at least 13 years old who participated in the 2013 New Hampshire Youth Risk Behavior Survey. The authors report that nearly one in ten New Hampshire teens reported being the victim of physical dating violence during the past year, and more than one in ten New Hampshire teens reported being the victim of sexual dating violence during the past year. Being female, a racial/ethnic minority, or a sexual minority significantly increased the risk of sexual and physical dating violence victimization. They conclude that more research and community conversations are needed about how to ensure that all teens in New Hampshire have access to comprehensive violence prevention initiatives in all grade levels that include a focus on diversity and inclusivity, positive youth development (for example, the sense of mattering and purpose), and structural inequities (such as poverty)

Examining Situations Involving Intimate Partner Aggression: A Dyadic Study of Agreement on Behaviors, Attributions, and Emotional Effects

There is a growing body of literature investigating agreement of partners on instances of intimate partner aggression (IPA) well as attributions for why people engage in IPA. Although our understanding has increased, there remains a major gap in the literature: the utilization of only one member of a couple\u27s reports of the aggression and attributions (i.e., partners\u27 perceptions of why an event of IPA occurred). Using a dyadic study, romantic couples were asked to independently discuss the same psychological, physical, and sexual IPA incidents in their relationship. Seeking to bridge the two bodies of literature of both perpetrators\u27 and victims\u27 perceptions of the same IPA incidents, the current study found that while there was moderate agreement on whether or not aggression even happened in an instance of IPA, as well as agreement on the general type of aggression that occurred (e.g., psychological), there was little to no agreement otherwise (i.e., Kappa statistics indicating agreement ranging from nonexistent agreement to poor agreement on specific behaviors, attributions, and emotional effects). Partners typically disagreed on most behaviors that were enacted during instances of aggression, the attributions for the aggression (with the exception of alcohol), as well as the emotional outcomes related to IPA. In addition, disagreement on specific behaviors of aggression were related to various correlates (i.e., hypergender ideology, emotion dysregulation, controlling behavior, perceptions that one/one\u27s partner will perpetrate in the future, past year physical IPA victimization/perpetration, past year psychological IPA victimization/perpetration, and any past year IPA victimization/perpetration), whereas disagreement on emotional effects was only related to past-year psychological IPA perpetration. These findings and area of research are imperative to understanding the complexities of conflict in the realm of romantic relationships, as well as being vital for the development and success of IPA prevention and treatment programs

Teen Dating Violence in New Hampshire

Dating violence, defined as physical abuse (such as hitting) or sexual abuse (such as forcible sexual activity) that happens within the context of a current or former relationship, leads to a host of negative consequences, including poor mental and physical health and academic difficulties. Therefore, it is important that researchers examine factors that increase or decrease risk for dating violence, and then use this research to create evidence-based prevention and risk reduction efforts

The VIBE TR Series: Fit-Widget Bracelet

As our society begins to understand the impact of mental health on human behavior, David Postula saw the need for a product that could help children increase their productivity in the classroom. David imagined the VIBE Bracelet, designed as an anti-anxiety tool that helps young children reduce stress in the classroom and intermittently reminds the user of goals or ideas throughout the day. David offered sponsorship for the development of the VIBE Bracelet design project by Cal Poly SLO students. The students designed the VIBE Bracelet to fit David’s requirements for a thoughtful reminder bracelet: a fidget element on the band, an interchangeable icon element, and a vibration element to act as a reminder in conjunction with the icon. The following report includes a detailed literature review, conceptual designs, a final prototype design, testing with results, and future recommendations

Lingual Ischemia from Prolonged Insertion of a Fastrach Laryngeal Mask Airway

We report a case of lingual ischemia and swelling in an elderly stroke patient from prolonged insertion of a FastrachTM Laryngeal Mask Airway ® following a failed Emergency Department intubation. Simple suggestions to mitigate such injury are provided

Comorbidity and Quality of Life in Adults with Hair Pulling Disorder

Hair pulling disorder (HPD; trichotillomania) is thought to be associated with significant psychiatric comorbidity and functional impairment. However, few methodologically rigorous studies of HPD have been conducted, rendering such conclusions tenuous. The following study examined comorbidity and psychosocial functioning in a well-characterized sample of adults with HPD (N=85) who met DSM-IV criteria, had at least moderate hair pulling severity, and participated in a clinical trial. Results revealed that 38.8% of individuals with HPD had another current psychiatric diagnosis and 78.8% had another lifetime (present and/or past) psychiatric diagnosis. Specifically, HPD showed substantial overlap with depressive, anxiety, addictive, and other body-focused repetitive behavior disorders. The relationships between certain comorbidity patterns, hair pulling severity, current mood and anxiety symptoms, and quality of life were also examined. Results showed that current depressive symptoms were the only predictor of quality of life deficits. Implications of these findings for the conceptualization and treatment of HPD are discussed

Factor Analysis of the Milwaukee Inventory for Subtypes of Trichotillomania-Adult Version

The Milwaukee Inventory for Subtypes of Trichotillomania-Adult Version (MIST-A; Flessner et al., 2008) measures the degree to which hair pulling in Trichotillomania (TTM) can be described as “automatic” (i.e., done without awareness and unrelated to affective states) and/or “focused” (i.e., done with awareness and to regulate affective states). Despite preliminary evidence in support of the psychometric properties of the MIST-A, emerging research suggests the original factor structure may not optimally capture TTM phenomenology. Using data from a treatment-seeking TTM sample, the current study examined the factor structure of the MIST-A via exploratory factor analysis. The resulting two factor solution suggested the MIST-A consists of a 5-item “awareness of pulling” factor that measures the degree to which pulling is done with awareness and an 8-item “internal-regulated pulling” factor that measures the degree to which pulling is done to regulate internal stimuli (e.g., emotions, cognitions, and urges). Correlational analyses provided preliminary evidence for the validity of these derived factors. Findings from this study challenge the notions of “automatic” and “focused” pulling styles and suggest that researchers should continue to explore TTM subtypes

Clarifying the Relationship Between Trichotillomania and Anxiety

Although research has consistently linked unidimensional anxiety with Trichotillomania (TTM) severity, the relationships between TTM severity and anxiety dimensions (e.g., cognitive and somatic anxiety) are unknown. This knowledge gap limits current TTM conceptualization and treatment. The present study examined these relationships with data collected from ninety-one adults who participated in a randomized clinical trial for TTM treatment. Based on prior research, it was hypothesized that TTM severity would be related to the cognitive anxiety dimension and that psychological inflexibility would mediate the association. Hypotheses were not made regarding the relationship between TTM severity and somatic anxiety. Regression analyses indicated that only cognitive dimensions of anxiety predicted TTM severity and that psychological inflexibility mediated this relationship. Implications for the conceptualization and treatment of TTM are discussed

Trauma and Trichotillomania: A Tenuous Relationship

Some have argued that hair pulling in trichotillomania (TTM) is triggered by traumatic events, but reliable evidence linking trauma to TTM is limited. However, research has shown that hair pulling is associated with emotion regulation, suggesting a connection between negative affect and TTM. We investigated the associations between trauma, negative affect, and hair pulling in a cross-sectional sample of treatment seeking adults with TTM (N=85). In the current study, participants’ self-reported traumatic experiences were assessed during a structured clinical interview, and participants completed several measures of hair pulling severity, global TTM severity, depression, anxiety, experiential avoidance, and quality of life. Those who experienced trauma had more depressive symptoms, increased experiential avoidance, and greater global TTM severity. Although the presence of a trauma history was not related to the severity of hair pulling symptoms in the past week, depressive symptoms mediated the relationship between traumatic experiences and global TTM severity. These findings cast doubt on the notion that TTM is directly linked to trauma, but suggest that trauma leads to negative affect that individuals cope with through hair pulling. Implications for the conceptualization and treatment of TTM are discussed