Recent ucsb_imagine items

Clinician’s Experiences Implementing Multidimensional Family Therapy with Multilingual Families

Thu, 22 May 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Multidimensional Family Therapy (MDFT) is an intervention that supports adolescents struggling with substance abuse, emphasizing improved family communication and restructuring of behavior problems. It provides a family-based approach to treating adolescent substance abuse and addressing mental/behavioral health problems. While most MDFT literature focuses on English- speaking populations, evaluating the therapy's effectiveness in Spanish-only, bilingual (Spanish and English), and trilingual (Mixtec, Spanish, and English) households is crucial. This study involves qualitative interviews with three (N=3) Licensed Marriage and Family Therapists that reveal key themes surrounding the practice of MDFT, including cultural competence, family dynamics, language in therapy, and interventions for parental reconnection. The prevalence of these themes became more apparent as data was collected, highlighting how often other therapists might come across such themes through their practicum...

Asset-Based Pedagogies for English Learner Curriculum

Thu, 22 May 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Past research has shown that English language classes for English learners (ELs) often center around English-only policies and do not encourage the use of students’ existing linguistic and cultural knowledge (Figueroa & Torff, 2018). Classes for English learners only focus on learning English, and the curriculum is not meant to help students succeed in other subjects, often causing them to fall behind non-English learners (Figueroa & Torff, 2018). Furthermore, teachers may not be adequately trained to teach ELs coming from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds (Nieto, 2000). Asset-based pedagogies encourage the use of curricula for ELs that incorporate the cultural and linguistic backgrounds that students already have. Using the literature on asset-based pedagogies, I identified six core characteristics of this approach: valuing student assets, evaluating current practices, analyzing personal views, incorporating family and community, teaching content that...

Psychological Injury Rehabilitation: The Link Between Body and Mind

Thu, 22 May 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Psychological factors, including stress, can increase the likelihood of sustaining an injury as well as inhibit proper recovery, making mental health intervention within athletics crucial to injury prevention and successful recovery. There is extensive research that confirms that mental rehabilitation is equally as important as physical rehabilitation when recovering from an athletic injury. Psychological training during injury rehabilitation greatly improves the likelihood an athlete successfully returns to their sport, as well as increases the given timeline for this recovery process. This paper intends to expand on this data by also exploring the specific mental training strategies that may be most effective.

The link between psychological factors and bodily function involves a multitude of specific aspects, none being more important than mind-muscle connection. In the simplest explanation, mind muscle connection is bringing attention to one’s body or specific body...

Indigenous and Latina Women Immigrating to the US: Exposure to Violence in the US And Across Their Borders Leading Their Own Resistance

Thu, 22 May 2025 00:00:00 +0000

This article explores the intersection of gender, race, and historical violence affecting Indigenous and Latina women who immigrate to the United States from Central America and Mexico. It highlights how systemic erasure and settler-colonial frameworks marginalize these women through both bureaucratic classification and interpersonal violence. Drawing on historical context, from U.S. intervention in Latin American politics to contemporary border policies, the Barbosa illustrates how imperialism and domestic violence intersect to push women to migrate. The piece also centers female-led resistance movements, both in their countries of origin and in diaspora communities, revealing how these women maintain agency, preserve cultural identity, and challenge oppression. Personal insights from activist Sindy Valle reinforce the resilience and leadership of Indigenous women navigating displacement and invisibility in U.S. immigrant narratives.

Expanding Conservation Efforts for the Critically Endangered Giant Sea Bass (Stereolepis gigas)

Thu, 22 May 2025 00:00:00 +0000

This study focuses on the critically endangered giant sea bass (Stereolepis gigas) and the current conservation efforts to help preserve the species. The giant sea bass is the largest bony fish on the California coast measuring up to 7 feet and weighing about 255 kilograms. They nearly went extinct due to their slow growth rate, predictable aggregations, and heavy fishing pressure. There are commercial and recreational landing restrictions in California that make it illegal to catch giant sea bass, yet fishing activities remain legal in Mexico. Although past fishing regulations have successfully increased the giant sea bass population, there is more that can be done to prevent future declines. Various research projects are expanding our understanding of giant sea bass, such as UC Santa Barbara’s Spotting Giant Sea Bass project, UC San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography, and a marine research lab at CSU Northridge; all are determined to develop the most efficient conservation...

A Data-Driven Discovery of Indicators for Elevated Rates of Academic Dismissal among College Students: A Study of UCSB's Scholar Retention Program

Thu, 22 May 2025 00:00:00 +0000

At the University of California, Santa Barbara, 3,408 college students were academically dismissed between the years of 2008 and 2021. Through data gathering and comparison research, we discovered that the elevated rate of dismissal among college students was associated with certain self-identified race/ethnicity groups and socioeconomic factors. We distributed a survey to the listed academically disqualified students and with 42 survey responses, it was indicated that mental health played a significant role in the increased rate of college student dismissals. Following mental health issues, the change in environment caused by the Coronavirus-19 pandemic, as well as feeling lost and unmotivated, also had an impact on many students. In this study, the data showed that the majority of students affected were Chicano/Latin/other Spanish, White/Caucasian, and Asian/Pacific Islander, in that order, according to the data regarding academically dismissed students. For the affected students,...

An Aquarist’s Comprehensive Guide to Octopus Husbandry: For Small Scale Aquaristry

Thu, 22 May 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Octopuses are complex animals with whom humans have the privilege of interacting. They are unique organisms which are inspiringly intelligent. Escaping even the most well-secured tanks, solving puzzles, and using tools to find food are some of the specialties of octopuses. However, they are also delicate and sensitive creatures requiring the best care. Octopuses have idiosyncratic personalities, can identify their keepers, and bond with the people who care for them. They use mentally stimulating toys and puzzles. These exercise their mental capacity and keep them happy in their enclosure. When keeping an octopus, it's critical to follow proper aquarium guidelines for tank setup and maintenance. This includes feeding not only their bodies but their minds.

Examining the Interaction Between Leadership Role and Scenario Type on an Individual's Group Emotions and Group-Supportive Behaviors toward a Social Group

Thu, 22 May 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Previous studies have investigated the importance of group identification and the negative implications that can follow, such as depersonalization and unwavering loyalty to a group’s attitudes and beliefs. The study compares the differences between support-or-conflict conditions and leadership-or-non-leadership conditions, with a focus on the exhibited behavior of the group members and the emotions they experience. We predicted an interaction effect of Support x Leader, Conflict x Non-leader, and Conflict x Leader conditions. We conducted a 2 x 2 (support/Conflict x Leader/Non-leader) factorial ANOVA to determine the effects of each dependent variable and analyze whether there were any main effects on participants emotions, group-supportive behaviors, or any possible interaction effects. We found that participants in the Support x Leader condition had the strongest positive emotions toward their group, participants placed in the Conflict and Non-leader condition resulted...

Betraying the American Dream:Trauma and Mental Health Problems for Immigrants

Thu, 22 May 2025 00:00:00 +0000

This paper examines the psychological toll of U.S. immigration policies on Latinx immigrants through a historical and social lens. Challenging the idealized narrative of the American Dream, the study explores how structural violence, U.S. intervention in Latin America, and the conditions within detention centers contribute to long-term trauma and mental health disorders such as PTSD, depression, and anxiety. Using scholarly research and firsthand accounts, the paper reveals the multilayered trauma experienced across three stages of migration: pre-migration, en route, and post-migration. Particular attention is given to the experiences of undocumented individuals, children, and mixed-status families who face systemic discrimination, the threat of deportation, and institutional neglect. The study argues for urgent reform of immigration practices and detention systems, advocating for a humane approach that centers psychological support, family unity, and accountability.

The Effects of Parental Perception for Behavioral Health Services on Help-Seeking Behavior in Women with ADHD within the Chicanx/Latinx Community

Thu, 22 May 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Unfortunately, clinical psychology research has a long history of neglecting Latinx women, especially those with diagnoses related to neurodevelopmental disorders like Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). This major oversight has had serious consequences for the advancement of psychiatric treatments for the Latinx community. This study on young Chicanx women with diagnosed ADHD or symptomatic ADHD at the University of California, Santa Barbara, conducted qualitative interviews to investigate the clinical experiences for this population (or lack thereof), as well as explore how their cultural identity and collectivism within the Latinx community has affected their help-seeking behavior. Participants were surveyed on their parents’ perceived attitudes using the Day’s Mental Illness Stigma Scale and the Mexican American Cultural Values Scale for Adolescents and Adults. There were three primary predictions: participants diagnosed with ADHD would report more familial support,...