Current Projects
Currently Recruiting
The MAGICC Support Group for Teens with Spina Bifida
In our current project, we are developing, refining, and piloting a telehealth psychosocial support group for teens with Spina Bifida. The MAGICC group stands for Meaning And Growth In Chronic Conditions. All group sessions will be held over zoom. Using principles from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), an evidence-based cognitive-behavioral intervention, and the input of parent, teen, and community partners, the MAGICC support group will aim to nurture the meaning and growth teens experience from the difficulties they have encountered in their chronic condition.
Benefit-Finding and Growth (BFG) in Spina Bifida
Understanding more about what adolescents and young adults with spina bifida (SB), as well as their parents, perceive to be areas of benefit and growth from their illness will provide crucial insight into factors that should be enhanced in these families. We are currently piloting a measure of benefit-finding and growth (BFG) in large samples of individuals with SB and parents of youth with SB. This project will produce a measure that SB providers can use to build rapport with their patients, gain insight into the self-perceived benefits of SB, promote continued wellbeing by harnessing the positive growth that individuals experience, and make recommendations for intervention, treatment, and support.
Benefit-Finding in Military Service Members, their Partners, and Children
Military service impacts not just service members but their families as well. This study employed mixed methods to examine benefit-finding among military families: service member, their partner, and one child. An adapted version of the self-report Benefit Finding Scale (BFS; Carver, 2013) was administered to each family member, and individual semi-structured qualitative interviews explored benefit-finding capabilities, as well as the appropriateness of the BFS in this population. Findings highlight the ability of military-serving families to hold both the challenging and positive aspects of service at the same time, and point to several benefits that may not be captured by the BFS.