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Past Projects

Patients in an Integrated Substance Use Treatment Program during the COVID-19 Pandemic

We collected self-report data from patients receiving outpatient care for substance use and mental health disorders at a Level III Patient-Centered Medical Home affiliated with an integrated academic health center during the winter of 2020/2021 to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and associated stay-at-home orders on substance use, psychological stress, and relationship functioning.  

The Association between Communal Activation and Interpersonal Tendencies Associated with Vulnerable and Grandiose Narcissism

We used a web-based procedure to test whether completing specific, communally activating tasks (e.g., viewing a situation from one鈥檚 partner鈥檚 perspective) increases a person鈥檚 empathy, desire for closeness with their partner, and commitment to the relationship, especially when they endorsed elevated grandiose and vulnerable narcissism traits. A total of 219 partnered participants were recruited online and randomly assigned either the control or experimental group. Participants in both groups viewed psychoeducational videos on healthy relationships, and participants in the experimental group completed several activities designed to elicit a more communal orientation towards their partner, while participants in the control group completed a number of multiple-choice questions on the content of the videos.  

Daily Diary Study to Examine Mental Health, Social Support and Discord

This study had two main foci: The first goal was to understand the differential associations between relationship satisfaction (including positive and negative dimensions of relationship satisfaction) and symptoms of anxiety and depression. We also examined different indicators of partner social support  (i.e., acceptability of the support frequency, satisfaction of the support, helpfulness of the support) above and beyond support adequacy (discrepancy between actual and desired frequency of support). A total of 69 couples participated in two lab sessions three weeks apart during which they completed questionnaires as well as conversations about two relationship issues. In between the two lab visits, both partners completed daily online questionnaires in which they reported on symptoms of anxiety, depression, relationship satisfaction, and partner support. 

Communication Patterns in Romantic Couples

We investigated the extent to which word use, particularly pronoun use, was associated with relationship satisfaction, self-reported and observed communication quality, and whether those associations depended on either partner鈥檚 levels of anxiety or depression. A total of 118 dating, engaged, and married couples completed questionnaires and were asked to discuss two relationship concerns while being videotaped. All conversations were transcribed and analyzed using a word analysis software, and were observationally coded.