Master of Science (MS), Ohio University, 2013, Clinical Psychology (Arts and Sciences)

According to cognitive-behavioral theories of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), obsessions have their origin in normal intrusive thoughts. The presence of thought-action fusion (TAF) beliefs is implicated in the escalation of intrusions into obsessions. In addition, thought suppression contributes to the development of obsessions by paradoxically increasing the frequency of intrusions and the anxiety associated with such thoughts. Mood may also affect the experience of intrusive thoughts. Although the interrelationships between TAF beliefs, thought suppression, mood and OC experiences have been studied previously, to date no study has examined all of these variables in combination. Thus, the purpose of the current study was to examine the combined effects of an induced depressive mood state, a TAF induction, and thought suppression on OC experiences in a non-clinical sample. Prior to the experiment, participants completed questionnaires, which were used to test a multiple mediator model. Participants were randomly assigned to one of two mood induction conditions (depressed or neutral mood); after which they underwent a TAF induction. Next, they used one of two coping strategy conditions (thought suppression or monitor-only control), while monitoring frequency of intrusions and providing subsequent appraisal ratings (e.g., anxiety, guilt, urge to neutralize) over two, 5-min time periods. A partial mediation was found, with depressive symptoms and thought suppression tendencies significantly mediating the relationship between intrusive thoughts and OC symptoms. Exploratory analyses revealed a number of relationships among variables from the experimental portion of the study. Limitations to the study and directions for future research are also discussed.

Committee: Brook Marcks Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Timothy Anderson Ph.D. (Committee Member); Julie Suhr Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Clinical Psychology; Psychology

Master of Science (MS), Ohio University, 2013, Clinical Psychology (Arts and Sciences)

Intrusive thoughts are unwanted, distressing thoughts that are experienced by the majority of individuals, and are one of the key features of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). It is theorized that maladaptive beliefs about intrusive thoughts, such as thoughtaction fusion (TAF) beliefs, as well as the use of avoidant coping strategies, such as thought suppression, in response to intrusive thoughts may cause them to escalate into obsessions. Religiosity may be another factor that influences the way an individual responds to intrusive thoughts. Previous studies have found that religiosity is related to TAF and the tendency to suppress unwanted thoughts. However, it is unclear whether religiosity impacts the effectiveness of thought suppression. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to compare the effects of different coping strategies (thought suppression, acceptance-based approach, and monitor-only control) to manage an intrusive thought on distress and thought frequency, while also taking into consideration levels of religiosity. This study also aimed to test a model in which the relationship between TAF beliefs, thought suppression, and OC symptoms is moderated by religiosity. The results suggest that religiosity does not account for a significant amount of the variance in intrusive thought frequency, anxiety, negative appraisals, or changes in intrusive thought frequency and anxiety over time. Religiosity was also not found to moderate the relationship between TAF beliefs, thought suppression, and OC symptoms. Limitations of the experimental manipulation make interpreting the results from the experimental portion difficult. However, additional exploratory analyses provided evidence showing that thought suppression is related to increased intrusions, higher levels of anxiety, and negative appraisal ratings. The limitations of the current study and directions for future research are discussed.

Committee: Brook Marcks (Committee Chair); Timothy Anderson (Committee Member); Christine Gidycz (Committee Member) Subjects: Clinical Psychology; Cognitive Therapy; Psychological Tests; Psychology; Psychotherapy; Religion; Spirituality; Therapy

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2016, Psychology

Previous research has shown that individual differences in self-regulatory capacity, including resting heart rate variability (HRV), moderate thought suppression success. However, it remains unclear to what extent individual differences in self-regulatory capacity predict thought suppression success under conditions of cognitive load. Furthermore, few studies have investigated whether utilizing thought suppression can impact an individual's perception of their self-regulatory capacity (i.e., self-reports of effortful control). The current study aimed to further explore the relationship between predictors and consequences of thought suppression ability and sought to replicate the findings from previous work. The current study used a standard thought suppression paradigm that included a cognitive load condition in which participants recorded occurrences of a personally relevant intrusive thought over three monitoring periods. Participants also rated their level of effortful control both before and after the thought suppression task. Results were not generally consistent with those found in previous study examining resting HRV and thought suppression ability. Cognitive load did not significant impact the effects of HRV and effortful control on thought suppression ability. Moreover, performance on the thought suppression task did not significantly affect self-reports of effortful control. Reasons for such replication failures are considered and future directions for research on the roles of self-regulatory capacity, cognitive load, and thought suppression ability are discussed.

Committee: Amelia Aldao Ph.D. (Committee Member); Julian Thayer Ph.D. (Advisor); Michael Vasey Ph.D. (Advisor) Subjects: Clinical Psychology; Psychology

Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 2014, Psychology

Past theory on intrusive worry (e.g., Wells and Carter 1999) suggests that intrusive worry reflects, in part, the worrier's poor success at, and excessive reliance on, thought suppression to control their negative thoughts. That is, high worriers should be expected to experience difficulty in suppressing their unwanted thoughts, and attempts to nonetheless do so should results in greater accessibility of those thoughts (Wenzlaff & Wegner, 2000). Yet, empirical evidence supporting this theory has been rare, and recent research (Iijima & Tanno, 2012) has found that there are some high worriers who are able to successfully suppress unwanted thoughts, with this success predicting a reduced likelihood of ironic rebound. In a sample of 58 college students and using a standard laboratory thought suppression paradigm, the present study sought to replicate the findings by Iijima and Tanno (2012). Furthermore, individual differences in effortful control (EC) were proposed as an explanation for differential suppression success among high worriers. Specifically, we expected that the association between worry and thought suppression success is moderated by EC and the association between worry and ironic consequences of suppression is mediated by initial suppression success. We also tested the hypothesis that high worriers who suppress well will be less likely than their poor suppressing counterparts to show evidence of pathological worry (e.g., they should be less likely to meet diagnostic criteria for Generalized Anxiety Disorder [GAD]). The results successfully replicated the findings by Iijima and Tanno (2012). However, contrary to expectations there was no evidence to suggest that individual differences in EC account for differential suppression success among high worriers. Furthermore, suppression success did not moderate the association between worry and any indicators of pathological worry. Thus, high worriers who suppressed successfully in the thought suppressio (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Michael Vasey Ph.D. (Advisor); Julian Thayer Ph.D. (Committee Member); Amelia Aldao Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Clinical Psychology; Psychology

Doctor of Psychology (Psy.D.), Xavier University, 2013, Psychology

The primary focus of this study was to examine whether mindfulness mediated the relationship between perceived thought control ability and anxiety. Participants in the study were 162 Xavier University undergraduate students who completed measures of perceived thought control ability, mindfulness, anxious thoughts, and trait anxiety. Results of the planned analyses indicated that mindfulness did not mediate the relationship between perceived thought control ability and anxiety. However, post-hoc analyses provided support for the hypothesis that mindfulness mediated the relationship between perceived thought control ability and anxiety. The present findings indicate that level of mindfulness influences the relationship between perceived thought control ability and anxiety. If future research provides additional support for this relationship, there may be benefit in examining how increasing clinical focus on perceived thought control ability might effect the treatment of anxiety disorders.

Committee: Cynthia L. Dulaney Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Nicholas Salsman Ph.D., ABPP (Committee Member); Renee Zucchero Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Clinical Psychology; Mental Health; Psychology