Hannah J. Holmes

Emotional awareness and expression training improves irritable bowel syndrome: A randomized controlled trial

Current clinical guidelines identify several psychological treatments for irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). IBS patients, however, have elevated trauma, life stress, relationship conflicts, and emotional avoidance, which few therapies directly target. We tested the effects of emotional awareness and expression training (EAET) compared to an evidence‐based comparison condition—relaxation training—and a waitlist control condition.

Undergraduate college students' perceptions of psychiatric nurses.

We surveyed undergraduate students’ perceptions of psychiatric nurses’ effectiveness and analyzed other sources of data. Students reported that psychiatric nurses’ strengths include helping in situations that involve psychiatric symptoms, mental health evaluation, and drug abuse. Psychiatric nurses also were said to be effective when helping an individual with psychiatric symptoms, such as delusions and hallucinations. Friends or associates, common knowledge, school and education, and movies are some sources by which students learn about psychiatric nurses. Sources that provided less influential information include insurance carriers, newspapers, and personal experience.

Qualitative perspectives toward prostitution's perceived lifestyle addictiveness

Background and aims: The aim of the present study was to provide a phenomenological perspective of individuals who actively engage in street-level prostitution and identified a lifestyle addiction associated with their activities. Methods: We interviewed 25 women who were incarcerated in American county jails (at the time of interviews) for prostitution crimes. The transcripts were analyzed for themes that represented the shared consensus of the research participants. Results: Four negative psychological dynamics related to prostitution. First, participants described accounts of physical and emotional violence which they experienced at the hand of clients and others involved in the lifestyle. Second, interviewees explained an extreme dislike for their actions relating to and involving prostitution. These individuals did not describe themselves as being sexually addicted; sex was means to a desired end. Third, participants described how prostitutions lifestyle had evolved into something which they conceptualized as an addiction. As such, they did not describe themselves as feeling addicted to sex acts – but to lifestyle elements that accompanied prostitution behaviors. Finally, participants believed that freedom from prostitutions lifestyle would require social service assistance in order to overcome their lifestyle addiction. Conclusions: The results show that, although the prostitutes repeatedly and consistently used the term “addiction” when describing their lifestyles, they did not meet the DSM-IV-TR criteria for addiction. Rather, they shared many of the same psychological constructs as do addicts (e.g., feeling trapped, desiring escape, needing help to change), but they did not meet medical criteria for addictive dependence (e.g., tolerance or withdrawal).

College student BlackBerry versus Apple users: a qualitative-comparative analysis

The present study provides an analysis of college student BlackBerry and Apple users from three previously published qualitative research articles. The results were compared in order to show the contrasts, as well as some similarities, between students who use divergent PDA devices. In particular, we note five key differences that seem to demarcate the two groups, based on the qualitative interviews they shared regarding technology use. The differences became evident in the domains of motivation for purchase and continued use, desired outcomes from technology, brand loyalty, group connectedness, and social perceptions. Overall, the BlackBerry users described themselves mostly in utilitarian terms and Apple users framed their perceptions in light of valued cool/artistic elements. The results are discussed with respect to social psychology dynamics, the effects of advertising on consumers, and brand loyalty impacts.