Clinical Research Directory

Social Experiences of Adolescents and Young Adults With Cancer

Participants are being asked to take part in this clinical trial, a type of research study, because investigators want to learn more about the social experiences adolescents and young adults who are being treated or have been treated for cancer. Primary Objectives * Describe differences in social experience variables (peer connectedness, perceived social competence, parent versus peer attachment) based on treatment status: on versus off therapy. * In on-therapy patients, describe differences in social experience variables (peer connectedness, perceived social competence, parent versus peer attachment) based on developmental stage: high school versus post-high school. Secondary Objectives * Assess the social support and peer interaction needs of AYA with cancer as a means of determining stakeholder interest and need for psychosocial interventions targeting social experiences. * Using qualitative interviews, explore patient perceptions of the impact of cancer on social experiences among AYA, particularly with regards to changes in friendships as a result of the cancer diagnosis and the role of the hospital in helping or hindering friendship maintenance/development. Exploratory Objectives * Explore differences in social experience by demographic, disease and treatment factors, including: gender, diagnostic category (brain tumor, leukemia/lymphoma, solid tumor), late effects/symptom burden, and treatment (e.g., treatment intensity, serious medical events). * Explore associations between perceived impact of cancer and social experience in AYA. * Explore associations between use of social media and social experience. * Explore associations between social experiences and overall functioning (quality of life, distress, coping). * Explore the possibility of subclasses of AYA by using person-centered analyses to empirically derive profiles of social experience.

Tele-Wellness Supported App for Family Child Care Home Providers and Families to Promote Health, Family Engagement, and School Readiness Amid COVID-19

The investigators aim to deliver a tele-wellness supported app to Baltimore City's Family Child Care Home (FCCH) providers who are caring for children of Essential Personnel. Once a pre-survey is conducted, login information will be assigned to 30 Family Child Care Home providers and parents the FCCH serve. Providers and Parents will receive self-care and parenting/parent engagement support through the app and through a tele-wellness service, Ask a Nurse, provided by community health nurses at the Johns Hopkins School of Nursing. Children will have access to gamified learning materials in early literacy, math, social-emotional learning, and nutrition.

Well-being in Students and Teachers Study

The goal of this randomized trial is to test the effectiveness of two universal classroom-based mindfulness social and emotional learning (SEL) programs (one for students and one for teachers) by examining behavioral outcomes on 5th and 6th grade students and their teachers. The main questions it aims to answer are: * What are the singular and combined effects of a mindfulness-based SEL education programs for teachers and their students on the development of students' and their teachers' social, emotional, and cognitive competence, and well-being? * Can mindfulness-based SEL education programs for students and teachers foster the creation of caring, inclusive, equitable, and collaborative classroom contexts? * Can mindfulness-based SEL education programs support the development of students' and teachers' prosocial attitudes, mindsets that positively impact student learning? * Are the effects durable beyond the end of the programs with regard to the singular and combined mindfulness-based SEL interventions? A total of 24 classrooms will be randomized into one of three study conditions: 1. Mindfulness SEL program for Educators only 2. Mindfulness SEL program for Educators and Mindfulness SEL program for Students in combination, and 3. "Business as usual" (comparison groups in which regular classroom SEL curricula is implemented). Data will be obtained via multiple objective and subjective methods (e.g., self- and teacher-reports, peer behavioral assessments) from different sources (e.g., self-, peer-, and teacher-reports). Data will also be collected to monitor implementation of the two programs. To explore the ways in which these two programs impact student, teacher, and classroom outcomes, data will be analyzed to compare students and teachers in the three conditions. In Phase One (year one), the investigators will conduct an experimental "outcome" study to examine the singular and combined effects of the two programs by comparing pre-test and post-test measures across the three conditions. In Phase Two (year two), the investigators will conduct a six-month follow up with those teachers and students who participated in Phase One in order to determine the degree to which the program effects are durable after the program has ended.

From Brain Currents to Interpersonal Flow: Investigating the Social Processing Stream of Schizophrenia

The overall objective of this project is to identify the neural signature of the impaired ability to relate socially seen in individuals with schizophrenia. A hypothesized path from the neural processes of social cognition, to social cognition assessed behaviorally, to real-life social interactions is examined. Secondary aims are to compare electrophysiological measures of high vs low level social cognition; to develop assessment methods of real-life behavior; and to increase the ecological validity of schizophrenia research. Much research within the field is devoid of personal meaning and interpersonal context. This project's use of personalized assessment allows for an ecologically valid approach to the social deficits of schizophrenia.