Current Studies

- Health Care Advocacy Studies

We are conducting a series of studies to determine under what conditions people will be most likely to hire a health care advocate to assist them or their family members with navigating the complex health care system. A Health Care Advocate (HCA) is a professional who received extensive training on the workings of the health care system. An HCA’s obligation is solely to the patient, independent of any other entity. As the health care system becomes increasingly difficult to navigate, patients are faced with more challenges. The tasks of an HCA may include: staying with a person who is hospitalized, accompanying a person to his/her medical appointment, dealing with insurance issues, maintaining a complete medical file, informing all medical providers of the treatment plan, researching treatment options, assisting with daily symptom management, and coordinating medical appointments. These studies are ongoing and involve data collection in the community.

 

- Fibromyalgia Study

Fibromyalgia (FMS) is a chronic pain condition that affects approximately five million people in the United States. Few interventions have been found to be effective for FMS. The most effective interventions are those that include aerobically intense exercise; however, the attrition rates in exercise interventions for FMS patients are high. One reason for the high attrition rates is that those with FMS avoid activities that are painful for them.

Dr. Cronan and her research team have published 30 articles about fibromyalgia, and she is now collaborating with Dr. Marinkovic and her lab members. Through this collaboration, we are testing the effects of two different interventions on fibromyalgia patients. This collaboration enables the evaluation of both psychosocial and physiological changes, including those in the brain. 

 

Previous Studies

- Breast Cancer Study

In this study, we examined whether Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) reduced psychological distress in a sample of breast cancer patients. Women were recruited from the California Cancer Registry. To be eligible to participate, women had to have been diagnosed with stage 0 to 3 breast cancer within the past year. Participants were randomly assigned to either the ACT or the attention-control intervention. Participants attended eight weekly 90-minute sessions. A manuscript summarizing the findings has been submitted to a peer-reviewed journal.

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- Mentoring Study

We are assessing students’ views of research mentors in psychology. We are examining whether students’ views of mentors have changed as a function of the enormous increase in the proportion of both female students and female faculty members in the field of psychology, as well as the changing role of faculty from primarily teacher to that of teacher/researcher. Undergraduate, master’s and Ph.D-level students are the participants in the study. Data collection for this study has been completed.