People with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) tendencies experience intrusive, uncontrollable thoughts and images that elevate anxiety. These tendencies could potentially influence time perception, which is the subjective experience of time passage. Time scarcity is the feeling that you don’t have enough time to complete tasks. In contrast, time affluence is the feeling that you have more than adequate time to complete tasks. Research has shown that time affluence is positively associated with meaning in life, while time scarcity has a negative association with meaning of life. This study examines how OCD tendencies influence the relationship between time perception and meaning in life. Participants (N = 360) were recruited from Prolific and were randomly assigned into 1 of 3 conditions (i.e., time scarcity, time affluence, vs. control). Following the completion of the Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS) to measure OCD traits, participants underwent a manipulation by reading a vignette that primed them about the tightness or openness of time in a work environment. After the manipulation, participants completed the Meaning in Life Questionnaire. This research will guide future work on how time-scarce or time-affluent environments affect OCD symptomology.

Stigma is a pervasive issue in society, with stigmatizing language describing individuals with substance use disorder (SUD) negatively impacting coping effectiveness, treatment-seeking, and interpersonal relationships (Luoma et al., 2008). Previous research has found that labeling individuals with SUD is associated with public fear and desire for minimal social contact (Link et al., 1999). Additionally, stigmatization of this population has been associated with reduced support for public health policy and greater support for punitive policies (Kennedy-Hendricks et al., 2017). The current study examined whether the language used to describe an individual with SUD affects perceptions of social distance and support for treatment. Community members in Tarrant County were approached in public areas and invited to participate in a survey regarding individuals with SUD. Participants were randomly assigned to read one of two different vignettes written in either person-first language or stigmatizing language, then completed survey questions via tablet or QR code. We hypothesize that participants reading stigmatized language will report greater desired social distance from the individual with SUD and display less support for treatment engagement. These findings would suggest that efforts to reduce stigmatizing language in public discourse, such as media campaigns, healthcare training, and policy reform, are critical to fostering more supportive attitudes toward treatment and recovery for individuals with SUD.

Throughout history, pathogens have posed a major threat to human survival. In response, humans have developed both physiological and behavioral defense mechanisms, including the immune system, which helps combat infections. Disgust serves as a crucial defense, preparing the body for exposure to potential pathogens before they enter the body. Since internal state changes redirect energy toward immune activity and healing, inflammatory responses may also influence willingness to exert effort in various contexts. This study examines how disgust affects effort exertion for rewards or to avoid costs. We hypothesize that disgust increases inflammation, which in turn reduces willingness to exert effort. We propose that this shift is driven by energy conservation due to an inflammatory response, rather than a reduced desire for rewards or avoidance of costs. Participants will be exposed to disgust-inducing stimuli while inflammatory markers (core body temperature, heart rate, and blood cytokines) are measured. Their willingness to exert effort for rewards or to avoid costs will also be assessed. Findings may offer insights into adaptive decision-making, clarifying how an immune response triggered by disgust impacts motivation and effort allocation. 

Anxiety sensitivity (AS) refers to the fear of bodily sensations typically associated with physiological arousal. High AS is a transdiagnostic predictor of poor mental health outcomes, such as panic disorder, other anxiety disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, and overall functional impairment. Individuals with high AS may exhibit body hypervigilance, and in turn, be more likely to experience psychosomatic symptoms. A State of Surrender (SoS) refers to one's ability to accept what is to come without resistance and relinquish control. It has been associated with greater well-being, and preliminary data suggests it is negatively associated to anxiety and AS, mediated by distress tolerance. To further test this, we will recruit individuals on Prolific and randomly assign them to either a surrender-based meditation protocol or a control condition. We will measure functional somatic symptoms, trait anxiety, distress tolerance, self-efficacy, and anxiety sensitivity. We predict that individuals in the experimental condition will endorse less AS, mediated by self-reported SoS. We also predict that the effect will be greater for individuals with more somatic symptoms. Findings will suggest further exploration of acceptance-based treatment for individuals with high AS and other psychosomatic complaints.

Youth involved with the juvenile justice system are disproportionately exposed to trauma, family stressors, and environmental obstacles. Although family dysfunction, emotion dysregulation, and caregiver strain have been studied in relation to youth delinquency, there’s a gap in the research examining the interaction between these three factors among families with youth involved in the juvenile justice system. Shaped by Bowen’s Family Systems Theory and Social Learning Theory, this study explored triangular associations among emotion dysregulation, family dysfunction, and caregiver strain.
Baseline data were drawn from the parent study, Leveraging Safe Adults (LeSA), which drew 220 youth and their caregivers from nine juvenile detention centers across Texas and Illinois. Among other measures, the youth completed the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS) and the Youth Family Assessment Device (Y-FAD), while the caregivers completed the Caregiver FAD (C-FAD) and the Caregiver Strain Questionnaire-Short Form (CGSQ-SF). Analyses examined correlations among the three factors.
Results indicated a moderate, statistically significant positive correlation between C-FAD and CSQ, but no significant relationship between Y-FAD and CSQ. The relationship between CSQ and DERS was small, but not statistically significant. Both Y-FAD and C-FAD were related to higher DERS reports.
By analyzing emotion dysregulation, family dysfunction, and caregiver strain reciprocally and interdependently rather than in isolation, this study helps to provide a better understanding of the objective socioemotional processes of and between youth and their families involved in the juvenile justice system. It also highlights the importance of incorporating both youth and caregiver perspectives into study design and assessments.