Imagine: A Promise Scholars and McNair Scholars Journal

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.

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 and practice. Data collection included interviews that were qualitatively coded and analyzed using a grounded theory approach. Clinicians highlighted disparities between their formal training and the policies at their practicum sites, specifically regarding cultural awareness, power shifts in families, resource translation, lack of support for Spanish-speaking populations, and lack of trust towards Spanish-speaking clinicians. These findings call for further investigation to enhance treatment outcomes for bilingual and trilingual families.

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.

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, higher rates of enculturation (traditionalism) would be associated with higher rates of mental health stigma, and inattentive ADHD would be prominent in this population. The results indicated that participants who received an ADHD diagnosis did in fact report more familial support, along with less enculturation and lower stigma rates. Perceived enculturation rates were found to be significantly positively correlated to stigma rates within one category, and participants reported experiencing mostly inattentive symptoms. Overall, Chicanx women with ADHD should be carefully evaluated for official diagnosis of ADHD as they are a vulnerable population due to their unique cultural needs.

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 part as they move it. Drawing this attention has major implications regarding injury rehabilitation, However mind muscle connection stems farther than just regarding injuries. Studies have shown that having a solid mind muscle connection can improve results in the realm of body building to maximize muscular development (Schoenfeld 2016, Calatayud 2016). Calatayud found that when athletes specifically focus on one muscle during a workout, muscle activity increased by 20% - 60%. If that specific workout incorporated multiple muscle groups, this focus on one muscle did not take away from muscle activity in the other. His results show the importance of mind-muscle connection regarding athletic success.

The body goes hand in hand with the mind. In order to have peak performance from the body, the mind must assist along the process. This connection goes for both training and injury rehabilitation. Mind-muscle connection cannot provide the results alone however, the same vigorous training is required for the best results, it is more of an enhancement.