Psychological well-being is shaped by an individual’s ability to buffer existential anxiety through self-esteem, cultural worldviews, and close relationships. However, prior research suggests that trauma weakens these mechanisms, increasing vulnerability to distress. Studies indicate that individuals with high trauma exposure struggle to reinforce cultural values in response to mortality salience, leaving them susceptible to psychological disorders. This study examines whether disrupted anxiety-buffering mechanisms contribute to increased fear of death and lower well-being. Participants, which are college students, (N=100) will complete measures assessing childhood trauma (ACE), fear of death (CL-FODS), and well-being (SWLS, PANAS). It is hypothesized that high-trauma individuals will report greater death anxiety and lower well-being compared to their low-trauma counterparts. This research aims to refine models of trauma’s psychological impact and inform interventions designed to restore effective anxiety-buffering mechanisms in survivors.

There is substantial literature exploring public perceptions of police, with many studies focusing on demographic factors such as race, age, prior police encounters, and neighborhood characteristics as key influences. While these factors are important, there remains a gap in research examining the public’s perceptions of law enforcement's abilities in handling public health emergencies, particularly opioid overdoses. This gap is concerning as law enforcement often serves as the first responders to such crises. The current study aimed to address this gap by interviewing residents of Tarrant County regarding their perceptions of law enforcement’s ability to effectively intervene in opioid overdose situations. Participants were recruited from various public locations across Tarrant County (N = 72). As part of the interview process, participants completed a nine-question survey using a seven-point Likert scale (1 = strongly disagree, 7 = strongly agree) to assess their confidence in police responses to opioid overdoses. Results revealed that while there were marginal variations in survey scores, no significant differences were observed based on sex or education level. Overall, the findings suggested a moderate level of confidence among Tarrant County residents in law enforcement’s ability to effectively respond to opioid overdoses. Future research should further explore the factors influencing these confidence levels and develop interventions aimed at strengthening trust-based relationships between Tarrant County residents and law enforcement.

In 2023, a national survey found that less than 1% of adults diagnosed with substance use disorder sought treatment. Examination of past research revealed stigma as a potential barrier to seeking treatment, with higher levels of stigma associated with a lower likelihood of receiving treatment services. Understanding how sociodemographic factors shape stigma perceptions is essential for curating targeted interventions that promote treatment-seeking behavior. This study examined how sociodemographic factors influence perceptions of stigma related to seeking substance use treatment in a community-based environment. Community members were recruited (N = 77) at bus stops, community centers, and public parks in Tarrant County and asked to complete a brief paper survey. Analysis of the data revealed no significant differences in levels of stigma to seeking treatment for substance use across sociodemographic variables. Although there were no significant differences among sociodemographic factors, other barriers could be influencing the lack of service utilization that were not measured here. Further community-based research is essential for understanding the relationship between stigma and sociodemographic variables, as well as developing effective interventions to reduce stigma-related barriers to substance use treatment.

Research has found that a sense of mattering, the perception that one is recognized and valued by other people and/or society, contributes to people’s well-being (e.g., reduced burnout & stress). Although some research has been done in university samples (i.e., undergraduate students), little work has explored the psychological benefits of mattering in graduate students. Thus, the aim of this research is to examine the relation between mattering and several well-being outcomes (e.g., satisfaction, stress, burnout) among graduate students at Texas Christian University (TCU). The study survey will be sent to approximately 1900 graduate students at TCU. It is hypothesized that a higher (vs. lower) sense of mattering will be positively related to increased school/job satisfaction and reduced stress, burnout, depression, and frustration. Additionally, research has shown that women in male-dominated fields such as STEM (i.e., Science, Technology, Engineering, & Math) receive less recognition and credit for their work, which may contribute to a lower sense of mattering for them. Although yet to be empirically examined, the second aim of the current research is to explore whether there is (a) a gender difference in the level of mattering between females and males for graduate students and how area focus (i.e., STEM vs. non-STEM-related majors/careers) moderates potential gender differences. It is hypothesized that females (vs. males) in STEM-related professions (as compared to their non-STEM counterparts) will report reduced mattering scores, with associated detriments to their psychological well-being.

Sleep quality refers to an individual's overall feeling of restfulness. Lower sleep quality is reported in many psychiatric disorders, including depression, schizophrenia, and substance use disorders. In addition to the relationship between traumatic life experiences and sleep quality, childhood unpredictability—one’s perceived level of uncertainty in their environment as a child—has been noted to impact one’s quality of sleep. This study will seek to examine whether participants’ childhood unpredictability is related to sleep quality. Furthermore, we are looking to see if unpredictability beliefs could serve as a mediating variable between childhood unpredictability and sleep quality. The implications of this study include the identification of a psychological process that could be intervened upon to improve sleep quality in general and clinical samples with a history of childhood unpredictability.