Seed Grants

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this pilot study is to: (1) identify social and religious determinants of sexual/reproductive health to better understand existing disparities in HIV and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among African American (AA) young adult females and (2) pilot test the complementary and integrative use of various methodology, data collection and analysis modalities in this population. This study is guided by Family Theory and Social Learning Theory, which explains human behavior in terms of interaction between cognitive, behavioral, social (family/peer) and environmental influences. The proposed methods are innovative, complementary and suitable to address the purpose and aims of the study within the target population. We will use retrospective and cross-sectional methods and life course and social network perspectives to examine: (1) connections in families and social networks and the patterns of religious and sexual decision-making and behavior; (2) the history of religious behavior and sexual decision making and behavior over time; (3) associations between religious, psychosocial and sexual factors among individuals, families and social networks; (4) the interactions of age, time period and family/network cohort on behaviors (religious, sexual decision making, sexual behavior) of families, social networks and individuals and (5) the influence of religious and social networks on sexual decision making and behaviors. To accomplish this we will recruit a non-random sample of approximately 200 African American adult females and adolescents from three predominantly African American churches in the metro-Atlanta area who have expressed interest in and enthusiasm about participating and partnering with us on this project. We will recruit 100 adolescent-parent/guardian dyads. To be eligible participants will: (1) be between the ages of 15-65; (2) be female; (3) have an adolescent/young adult (15-24) and a (grand) parent/guardian willing to both consent/participate; (4) identify as Black or AA and (5) attend a church where recruitment will occur. We will collect data using computerized questionnaires (i.e.Social Network Structure questionnaire), event history calendars and open-ended questions. Members of each dyad will complete parent or adolescent versions of the same questionnaires (Ex: Problem- Oriented Screening Instrument (POSI); adolescents will complete the POSI-T scale and parents will complete the POSI-P scale, which is the parent version of the POSIT. Cross-sectional data will be collected and parents and young adults will also provide retrospective data regarding their sexual and religious/spiritual histories using event history calendars. Data analysis will be conducted by Senior Biostatistician, Dr. Melinda Higgins, in collaboration with Dr. Dalmida using descriptive statistics, non-parametric statistics, regression, event history, cohort and social network analyses. Throughout the project, the research team from Emory will collaborate with community and church members and peer, community and church leaders to discuss the study questions, methods, and outcomes.

ABSTRACT

The present study is intended to contribute to research in developmental psychology, religious studies, and public health by evaluating the effects of cognitive-based compassion training (CBCT) for children at the Paideia school among children aged 5 to 8 using a range of measures related to empathy, prosocial behavior, and stereotype and bias. A team has been assembled that includes researchers experienced in developmental psychology with particular expertise in empathy and prosociality (Dr. Philippe Rochat and his doctoral student, Erin Robbins) as well as in the Tibetan traditions that form the basis of CBCT (Geshe Lobsang Tenzin Negi) and in the scientific study of contemplative practices and their use as health interventions (Charles Raison, Brooke Dodson-Lavelle and Brendan Ozawa-de Silva). Building off of previous studies of CBCT at Emory with undergraduate, adult, and foster-children populations, this study employs a range of established measures at four time points before and after the delivery of the CBCT for Children program at the Paideia School to assess whether CBCT for Children can aid the development of prosocial skills and behaviors and the amelioration of negative stereotype and bias, with the potential for significant findings related to the capacity to enhance the emotional and physical health of children. The study has the full support of the Paideia School.

ABSTRACT

Suicide prevention policies are fairly new in Japan, and are based heavily on the WHO’s model, which focuses on the prevention and treatment of depression and does not address other forms of suffering and subjective experience related to suicidality. Despite the growth of a literature on factors contributing to positive mental health, such as meaning-making and a sense of affiliation (Keyes 2005, 2007, n.d.; Kabat-Zinn 1990; Kleinman 1989, 2006; Ozawa-de Silva ) and their importance in predicting and preventing suicide, current suicide prevention policies in Japan remain narrow in their focus and lack attention to these factors. There is therefore a strong need to investigate the underlying processes contributing to and inhibiting suicide through humanistic and social scientific research, and to situate this investigation in cross-cultural analyses. Furthermore, there is a pressing need to examine whether therapeutic interventions exist that can strengthen salutary processes conducive to positive mental health in individuals, thereby reducing the risk of suicide. To date, this has not been rigorously explored.Recent research suggests that the presence of positive mental health (sometimes called “flourishing”) may be even more important than the presence of current mental illness in predicting and preventing suicides. This study assembles an interdisciplinary team from anthropology (Ozawa-de Silva), sociology (Keyes) and nursing (Bauer-Wu) and employs combined ethnographic and quantitative measures of mental health to assess whether Japanese psychotherapeutic practices that arose out of Buddhist religious practices may be effective tools in fostering mental health and thereby contributing to the prevention of suicide and mental illness.

Researchers: Chikako Ozawa-de Silva, PhD, Anthropology; Corey Keyes, PhD, Sociology; Susan Bauer-Wu, PhD, Nursing

Religious Guidance and Care Regarding Genomic Testing

ABSTRACT

Data from contemplative science research suggests that meditation-based interventions can have demonstrable effects in stress, depression and inflammation–risk factors for a host of chronic disorders that plague the 21st century. Despite these promising results, methodological issues, including a lack of assessment tools that accurately asses meditation experience, greatly limit the reliability and generalizability of these findings. In order to address this shortcoming, our team has set out to develop and assess the validity of the EMPTE Scale, a self-report measure which will assess research participants’ meditation experience in a particular contemplative tradition. This scale, which relies primarily on common Buddhist-based contemplative practices that are commonly, will help researchers more clearly define subjects’ style of practice, control for variations between style and experience, and ultimately lead to new findings associated with particular styles of practice. The successful development of this scale promises to enhance the methodological rigor of this field by aiding researchers in determining what subjects are actually doing during a particular meditation session, and also by enabling clinicians and researchers to develop appropriate meditation-based interventions for specific populations.

Researchers: John D. Dunne and Geshe Lobsang Tenzin Negi, Dept. of Religion; Charles L. Raison, Dept. of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences; Nancy Thompson, Rollins School of Public Health

RHAs in Safe Water Projects in Haiti