LaVerne A. Berkel

Gender Role Attitudes, Religion, and Spirituality as Predictors of Domestic Violence Attitudes in White College Students

In this study we investigated gender role attitudes, religion, and spirituality as predictors of beliefs about violence against women in a sample of 316 White college students. Results indicated that gender role attitudes were the best overall predictor of domestic violence beliefs. Spirituality also contributed to the models for men and women. Implications and intervention strategies to address dating violence among college students are discussed.

Counseling Needs of Students Who Seek Help at a University Counseling Center: A Closer Look at Gender and Multicultural Issues

We investigated psychological distress and vocational problems presented by university students seeking help at a university counseling center (N = 597, 68% female, 12% African American, 9% Asian American, 58% White). All students reported distress in several areas, but African American students in particular perceived barriers when pursuing their vocational goals and Asian American students were unclear about their vocational identity. Especially for White students vocational difficulties correlated with psychological distress, and for women in particular anxiety and depression symptoms and perceived vocational barriers related to how well they functioned in school and in relationships.

Independent and Interdependent Self-Construals, Individualism, Collectivism, and Harmony Control in African Americans.

The authors investigated the relationships among independent and interdependent self-construals (i.e., self-conceptualizations), dimensions of individualism and collectivism, and aspects of harmony control (i.e., the degree to which individuals are flexible in recognizing that their personal power stems from spiritual, social, and contextual forces) in a sample of 240 African American community college students. Results revealed that independent and interdependent self-construals and dimensions of individualism and collectivism were differentially related to various harmony control dimensions. Implications of the findings are discussed.

Obesity Classification in Military Personnel: A Comparison of Body Fat, Waist Circumference, and Body Mass Index Measurements

OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study was to evaluate obesity classifications from body fat percentage (BF%), body mass index (BMI), and waist circumference (WC). METHODS A total of 451 overweight/obese active duty military personnel completed all three assessments. RESULTS Most were obese (men, 81%; women, 98%) using National Institutes of Health (NIH) BF% standards (men, >25%; women, >30%). Using the higher World Health Organization (WHO) BF >35% standard, 86% of women were obese. BMI (55.5% and 51.4%) and WC (21.4% and 31.9%) obesity rates were substantially lower for men and women, respectively (p < 0.05). BMI/WC were accurate discriminators for BF% obesity (theta for all comparisons >0.75, p < 0.001). Optimal cutoff points were lower than NIH/WHO standards; WC = 100 cm and BMI = 29 maximized sensitivity and specificity for men, and WC = 79 cm and BMI = 25.5 (NIH) or WC = 83 cm and BMI = 26 (WHO) maximized sensitivity and specificity for women. CONCLUSIONS Both WC and BMI measures had high rates of false negatives compared to BF%. However, at a population level, WC/BMI are useful obesity measures, demonstrating fair-to-high discriminatory power.

Postdeployment reintegration experiences of female soldiers from national guard and reserve units in the United States.

BackgroundWomen are an integral part of Reserve and National Guard units and active duty armed forces of the United States. Deployment to conflict and war zones is a difficult experience for both soldiers and their families. On return from deployment, all soldiers face the challenge of reintegration into family life and society, but those from the National Guard and Reserve units face the additional challenge of reintegration in relative isolation from other soldiers. There is limited research about the reintegration experiences of women and the functioning of the families during reintegration following deployment. ObjectiveThe goal was to document postdeployment family reintegration experiences of women in the National Guard. MethodsSemistructured interviews were conducted with 42 female members of Midwestern National Guard units. Directed content analysis was used to identify categories of experiences related to women’s family reintegration. ResultsFive categories of postdeployment experience for female soldiers and their families were identified: Life Is More Complex, Loss of Military Role, Deployment Changes You, Reestablishing Partner Connections, and Being Mom Again. DiscussionThe categories reflected individual and family issues, and both need to be considered when soldiers and their families seek care. Additional research is needed to fully understand the specific impact of gender on women’s reintegration.

Neighborhood Environment Perceptions and the Likelihood of Smoking and Alcohol Use

Neighborhood characteristics are important correlates for a variety of health outcomes. Among several health risk behaviors, smoking and alcohol use have significant consequences. Perceptions of neighborhood problems are associated with depressive symptoms, lower physical activity, and lower quality of life. However, it is unclear which perceived aspects of neighborhoods might be related to smoking and drinking. We examined whether perceived neighborhood characteristics were associated with smoking and drinking patterns using data from US metropolitan Midwestern area adults. Participants completed surveys including sociodemographic characteristics, neighborhood perceptions, behavioral and psychological health. For men, negative perceptions of neighborhood infrastructures were significant predictors for smoking and binge drinking. Among women, no perceived environmental factors were associated with smoking or drinking. However, education was a significant negative predictor for smoking. As age increased, the likelihood of using cigarettes, heavy and binge drinking in women decreased significantly. Depression was a positive predictor for smoking and heavy drinking in men and women, respectively. These findings indicate that the perceived neighborhood infrastructure was predictive of health behaviors among men, even after adjusting for key confounders. Closer attention may need to be paid to the role of neighborhood environmental characteristics along with individual-level characteristics in influencing unhealthy behaviors.

Client factors associated with treatment completion in a substance abuse treatment facility

This study examined a sample (n = 415) of patients initiating short-term substance abuse treatment to determine if demographic factors, personality factors, presenting affect, or presenting symptom severity could predict treatment completion. A logistic regression was conducted and results indicated that men, individuals scoring lower on a measure of neuroticism, and patients who reported higher levels of presenting agitation were all less likely to successfully complete the treatment program; 12% of the variance in completion was accounted for by these constructs. Presenting symptom severity, other indicators of the Big Five personality constructs, and additional negative affect indictors were not significant predictors of treatment completion. The implications for research and practice are discussed.

A gendered perspective on military deployment.

Military deployment, especially in combat or dangerous areas, can have a strong influence on subsequent mental health. This effect may be intensified as a result of the potential stigma that admission of mental health problems indicates weakness. Additional mental health issues exist for female soldiers from the National Guard who are pulled from non-military environments to work under dangerous conditions far from home and traditional social support. Minimal documentation is available about the day-to-day, gendered experiences of deployment for this group of female soldiers. To provide background for appropriate training and support, the aim of this study was to understand better the experiences of military deployment for women in the National Guard. We used content analysis to analyze individual, semi-structured interviews with a sample of 42 women from 7 U.S. National Guard units who were deployed in combat areas. Four general themes emerged about deployment experience: the general environment of stress, heterogeneous job responsibilities, home comes with you, and gendered stress. Military efforts are needed to address gender-specific issues associated with deployment and to develop resilience training that will optimize the mental health of female soldiers.

An Empirical Investigation of Viktor Frankl’s Logotherapeutic Model

The purpose of this study was to investigate the logotherapeutic model as described by Frankl that explains the relationships among the search for meaning in life, the presence of meaning in life, existential vacuum, existential frustration, noogenic neurosis, will-to-power, and will-to-pleasure. A sample of college students from a large Mid-Atlantic university (N = 750) completed paper-and-pencil instruments for the variables. Structural equation modeling was used to test and compare four competing alternative models of the relationships among the aforementioned constructs. Two models exhibited excellent fit, one model good fit, and the fourth model poor fit. Of the two best models, one treated will-to-power and will-to-pleasure as outcomes of noogenic neurosis and the other treated them as causes of noogenic neurosis. Limitations, suggestions for future research, and implications for clinical practice are also discussed.

Feminist Identity Attitudes, Negative Affect, and Eating Pathology in African American College Women

African American women are believed to have unique experiences related to eating pathology partially because of the intersection of gender and race in Western society. Investigations of negative affect and identity development as predictors of eating pathology in African American women have yielded mixed results; however, feminist identity development is yet to be examined as a predictor of eating problems in this group. Therefore, the current study investigated feminist identity attitudes, anxiety, and depression as predictors of eating pathology in 98 African American college women. Interestingly, most of the participants endorsed a “Synthesis” feminist identity style. However, negative affect emerged as the only significant predictor of eating pathology. These findings are congruent with previous research that supports significant relations between anxiety, depression, and eating disturbance in women.