Bennington Research Community

Connecting researchers across departments at Bennington College

Psychology Research at Bennington


Recent Publications

Adolescence

Emily Waterman, Natira Mullet, Hafsa Zulfiqar, McKennly McLain. (October 2022)

Abstract: In this article, we review issues related to adolescent development and mental health. We start by describing normative changes that occur during adolescence and how these changes may increase susceptibility to mental illness. We review recent literature on rates of adolescent mental health challenges over time, and discuss trends related to mental health of Black adolescents as well as the association between technology and mental health. We provide an overview of risk and protective factors that contribute to adolescent mental health, with a section devoted particularly to LGBTQIA+ adolescents.
DOI: 10.1016/B978-0-323-91497-0.00112-0
In book: Reference Module in Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Psychology

Rates of Recent Adverse Childhood Experiences Among Indigenous Children

Emily Waterman, Katie Edwards, Natira Mullet, Ramona Herrington, Skyler Hopfauf, Preciouse Trujllo, Naomi Even-Aberle, Lorey A Wheeler. (November 2023)

Abstract: The current paper describes rates of recent (past six months) adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and examines the association of ACEs with cultural connection and depressive symptoms among Indigenous children aged 10 to 14 (N = 177; mean age = 11.8; 48.3% boys; 44.3% girls; 7.4% another gender identity). Children completed baseline surveys as part of a larger evaluation of a culturally grounded, strengths-focused, family-based program to prevent ACEs. Surveys included an inclusive measure of ACEs developed for the current study, an adapted measure of connection to culture, and the Children’s Depression Screener. Results for ACEs indicated that 18.6% of Indigenous children reported none, 37.2% reported one to three, and 44.2% reported four or more in the past six months. Importantly, children who reported no ACEs reported greater cultural connection than children who reported one to three ACEs. Depressive symptoms were higher among children who reported one to three and four or more ACEs compared to children who reported no ACEs.
Journal of Child & Adolescent Trauma
DOI: 10.1007/s40653-023-00587-1

Investigating Impact of Mental Health Bias in Emergency Medical Services on Patients

Kingsley Czermerys. (PREPRINT)

Abstract: Emergency Medical Services (EMS) play a critical role in providing care to individuals, and have increasingly become more involved in providing pre-hospital care in psychiatric crises (Prener & Lincoln, 2015). However, recent research has indicated the presence of negative attitudes and biases among EMS personnel toward individuals with mental health conditions (Prener & Lincoln, 2015; Haugen et al, 2017) . By examining the literature, there is suitable evidence that EMS mental health bias may impact care of their psychiatric patients, and that there are several factors, such as education, that can help decrease the experience of stigma. Through providing education, social connections, and addressing EMS culture around mental health bias may be effective in decreasing the effects on patient treatment outcome. Keywords: Emergency Medical Services, Mental Health Bias, Improvement to Treatment Outcomes, Psychiatric crises.
PREPRINT

Current Faculty Projects

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Current Senior Work

Annika Owenmark Child Development, SGM Research, Qualitiative Analysis
New Narratives of Queer Gender Development
In this study, we examined the narratives of childhood gender experiences from queer undergraduate students in a Predominantly Queer Institution (PQI) college. We interviewed 16 students with representative gender, race/ethnicity, sexuality, and social class. Using qualitative thematic analysis and examining each theme through narrative analysis, we aim to understand how college students recall their internal experiences, and what meaning they ascribe to interpersonal interactions from childhood.Children often show signs of queerness, or have internal awareness of their differences. Any child could be quietly contemplating their gender, and all children should be given the space and support to explore their identities.

Identity (Dis)continuity and Multiple Selves Among Queer College Students
In this study, we examined how undergraduate students in a small liberal arts college negotiate queerness along with race/ethnicity and class identities during this formative time of their lives. We interviewed 16 students with representative gender, race/ethnicity, sexuality, and social class. Using qualitative thematic analysis and an inductive epistemological approach, we attended to students’ descriptions of macro, meso, and micro level influences on their identity formation, self-expression, and gender performances. We were particularly interested in how students experience and adapt multiple facets of identity while negotiating contexts with varying degrees of acceptance, including their family home and college campus. Centering the intersectional, decolonial and queer theories, we found support for the importance of representation, acceptance, and normalization for self-expression, openness and freedom.

Gender Joy and Discomfort: Trans* Experiences at a PQI
What do institutions and systems that are not cis-centered look like, and how do they affect transgender experiences and perceptions of self? This qualitative study aims to understand both the joyful and stressful experiences of being trans in the relative absence of cis-hetero normative narratives and how centering queer narratives at a Predominantly Queer Institution (PQI) affect one’s perceptions of self through narratives of self-identified trans* and nonbinary college students at a PQI. The PQI provides a space of protection from much of the harm that exists in the outside world, allowing for more complex exploration of identity and a stronger sense of self. This sense of self often diverges from the 'Born This Way' narrative that has been popularized in the cis-normative world. On the other hand, the PQI environment can feel rigid in its understanding of queerness, and result in feelings of not being trans enough, or not fitting in to a platonic ideal.

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Senior Name Department Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Fusce pharetra tristique vulputate. Aenean dictum dignissim nibh dignissim rutrum. Pellentesque vel velit volutpat, hendrerit ex sit amet, luctus urna. Fusce convallis erat in libero tincidunt, sed tincidunt mi sollicitudin.