About

Samantha Anders is an adjunct professor in the Counseling Psychology program at the University of Minnesota, affiliated with the College of Liberal Arts. She specializes in career counseling and assessment, supervising doctoral and master's level students in advanced practica settings. Her teaching responsibilities include courses in counseling psychology assessment, as well as the history and theories of counseling psychology. Dr. Anders holds a PhD in Counseling Psychology from the University of Minnesota, earned in June 2012, and a BA in Psychology from Carleton College, obtained in June 2000. Her educational background and professional focus emphasize her expertise in counseling psychology, with particular attention to career development and assessment practices.

Research topics

• Clinical psychology
• Social psychology
• Medical emergency
• Medicine
• Psychology
• Developmental psychology
• Psychoanalysis

Selected publications

• Associations between sexual assault and romantic relationship functioning: A mixed-methods analysis

  Journal of Social and Personal Relationships · 2024 · 3 citations

  • Psychology
  • Developmental psychology
  • Social psychology

  Background: Research on the relation between sexual assault (SA) and romantic functioning has yielded inconsistent results. The goals of the current studies were to examine this association while addressing limitations of past research; assessing revictimization, multiple victimization, and assault timing; and examining whether this association was moderated by neuroticism, attachment orientations, or perceived partner responsiveness. Design and Methods: College students (Study 1; N = 437) and community members (Study 2; N = 566) completed measures assessing SA, romantic functioning, attachment, neuroticism, and partner responsiveness. Study 2 used a mixed-methods approach. Data were collected via online surveys in psychology courses (Study 1) and on Prolific (Study 2). Results: In Study 1, SA was not associated with romantic functioning and this association was not moderated by attachment or neuroticism. In Study 2, SA survivors reported significantly poorer relationship quality and less partner trust, but not less sexual satisfaction. However, significant effects were small. Partner responsiveness did not moderate these associations, and revictimization, multiple victimizations, and assault recency were not related to poorer functioning. In qualitative data, the most common response was that the SA had not affected participants’ relationships. Conclusions: Relationships may be one area in which SA survivors demonstrate resilience.

  PublisherDOI

• A randomized controlled pilot study of CBT-I Coach: Feasibility, acceptability, and potential impact of a mobile phone application for patients in cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia

  Health Informatics Journal · 2016-06-27 · 161 citations

  article

  There has been growing interest in utilizing mobile phone applications (apps) to enhance traditional psychotherapy. Previous research has suggested that apps may facilitate patients' completion of cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) tasks and potentially increase adherence. This randomized clinical trial pilot study ( n = 18) sought to examine the feasibility, acceptability, and potential impact on adherence and sleep outcomes related to CBT-I Coach use. All participants were engaged in CBT-I, with one group receiving the app as a supplement and one non-app group. We found that patients consistently used the app as intended, particularly the sleep diary and reminder functions. They reported that it was highly acceptable to use. Importantly, the app did not compromise or undermine benefits of cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia and patients in both groups had significantly improved sleep outcomes following treatment.

  PublisherDOI

• Sexual victimization history predicts academic performance in college women.

  Journal of Counseling Psychology · 2016-02-25 · 99 citations

  article

  College women frequently report having experienced sexual victimization (SV) in their lifetime, including child sexual abuse and adolescent/adult sexual assault. Although the harmful mental health sequelae of SV have been extensively studied, recent research suggests that SV is also a risk factor for poorer college academic performance. The current studies examined whether exposure to SV uniquely predicted poorer college academic performance, even beyond contributions from three well-established predictors of academic performance: high school rank, composite standardized test scores (i.e., American College Testing [ACT]), and conscientiousness. Study 1 analyzed longitudinal data from a sample of female college students (N = 192) who were assessed at the beginning and end of one semester. SV predicted poorer cumulative end-of-semester grade point average (GPA) while controlling for well-established predictors of academic performance. Study 2 replicated these findings in a second longitudinal study of female college students (N = 390) and extended the analyses to include follow-up data on the freshmen and sophomore students (n = 206) 4 years later. SV predicted students' GPA in their final term at the university above the contributions of well-established academic predictors, and it was the only factor related to leaving college. These findings highlight the importance of expanding the scope of outcomes of SV to include academic performance, and they underscore the need to assess SV and other adverse experiences on college campuses to target students who may be at risk of poor performance or leaving college. (PsycINFO Database Record

  PublisherDOI

• Mediators of the relation between sexual victimization and distress: Comparison to bereavement.

  Psychological Trauma Theory Research Practice and Policy · 2016-06-30 · 7 citations

  article

  The purposes of this research were (a) to examine relationship quality and neuroticism as mediators of the relation between past sexual victimization and current distress in 2 samples of college students and (b) to examine the specificity of the mediated effects by assessing whether these variables also mediated the relation between the most common potentially traumatic event in both samples (past bereavement) and current distress. This study improved on prior research by using longitudinal data, assessing multiple mediators, assessing specificity of mediated effects, and replicating results across 2 samples.Participants in both studies were undergraduate students in psychology courses (Ns = 1,528 and 1,084, respectively). In both studies, sexual victimization, bereavement and the 2 mediators (relationship quality and neuroticism) were assessed at baseline, and distress was assessed at baseline and 2 months later using standard measures.Structural equation modeling was used to assess the indirect (mediated) effects of sexual victimization and bereavement on later distress through relationship quality and neuroticism, controlling for baseline distress. In Study 1, the indirect effects of sexual victimization on distress through relationship quality and neuroticism were both significant. In Study 2, only the indirect effects through neuroticism were significant. None of the indirect effects were significant for bereavement, suggesting that the mediators were specific to sexual victimization.Neuroticism was a consistent mediator of the relation between lifetime sexual victimization and current distress, suggesting that it may be an important target of intervention for those with a history of sexual victimization. (PsycINFO Database Record

  PublisherDOI

• Evaluating the dimensionality of PTSD in a sample of OIF/OEF veterans.

  Psychological Trauma Theory Research Practice and Policy · 2015-01-19 · 15 citations

  articleOpen access

  Both categorical and dimensional models of mental disorders, including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), are useful for diagnostic and heuristic purposes; however, few empirical studies have compared categorical and dimensional models of PTSD side-by-side or compared these models to a hybrid (dimensional and categorical) model. In the present study, the dimensionality of PTSD was examined by fitting latent profile analytic, confirmatory factor analytic, and factor mixture models in 271 Operation Iraqi Freedom/Operation Enduring Freedom veterans 6 months after return from deployment. Latent profile analysis was used to identify subgroups of individuals with similar PTSD symptom profiles and predictors of subgroup membership, confirmatory factor analysis was used to identify the underlying continuous structure of PTSD in this sample, and factor mixture modeling was used to test whether a hybrid categorical and continuous model of PTSD best fit our sample. A factor mixture model consisting of a 4-factor dysphoria model of PTSD with 2 classes characterized by low and moderate symptom severity was the best-fitting model. Dissociation and deployment concerns emerged as significant predictors of membership in the moderate symptoms class. Implications for PTSD diagnostic conceptualization and treatment planning are discussed.

  PublisherDOI

• DSM-5 personality traits discriminate between posttraumatic stress disorder and control groups

  Experimental Brain Research · 2015-04-10 · 29 citations

  article
  PublisherDOI

• The Number of Cysteine Residues per Mole in Apolipoprotein E Is Associated With the Severity of PTSD Re-Experiencing Symptoms

  Journal of Neuropsychiatry · 2015-03-09 · 16 citations

  article

  Apolipoprotien E (ApoE) is involved in critical neural functions and is associated with various neuropsychiatric disorders. ApoE exists in three isoforms that differ in the number of cysteine residues per mole (CysR/mole). This study evaluated associations between this informative ordinal biochemical scale (CysR/mole) and symptom severity in veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or subthreshold PTSD. Results demonstrated a significant negative relationship between the CysR/mole and severity of PTSD re-experiencing symptoms, adjusted for trauma. The findings suggest a genetic influence on PTSD symptomatology and dovetail with recent advances regarding the molecular mechanisms underlying the differential effects of ApoE in the brain.

  PublisherDOI

• Neural communication in posttraumatic growth

  Experimental Brain Research · 2015-04-16 · 18 citations

  article1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Social resources mediate the relations between attachment dimensions and distress following potentially traumatic events.

  Journal of Counseling Psychology · 2014-07-01 · 35 citations

  articleSenior author

  Insecure adult attachment dimensions are consistently related to poorer posttrauma adjustment, but these relations have rarely been examined prospectively or across a wide range of potentially traumatic events. In addition, the factors mediating these relations are not yet fully understood. Therefore, the first aim of this study was to assess whether anxious and avoidant attachment dimensions assessed preevent would predict changes in adjustment (e.g., distress) following a broad range of potentially traumatic events. The second aim was to determine whether postevent social resources mediated the relations between attachment dimensions and postevent adjustment. Undergraduate students (N = 1,084) completed preevent measures of attachment dimensions and psychological distress at Time 1 (T1); 73% (n = 789) completed a follow-up survey 2 months later assessing exposure to potentially traumatic events and social resources (Time 2; T2). Those who reported experiencing a potentially traumatic event between T1 and T2 and who completed a final follow-up survey assessing distress 2 months after T2 (Time 3) constituted the sample for the present analyses (n = 174). Individuals with more attachment avoidance and anxiety had greater increases in posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms and general psychological distress. These relations were mediated by social resources (i.e., positive and negative support, social withdrawal) at T2 such that anxious and avoidant attachment dimensions were associated with having fewer social resources following a potentially traumatic event, which in turn was associated with reporting more distress. Implications for research and practice with individuals exposed to potentially traumatic events are discussed.

  PublisherDOI

• Changes in functioning following potentially traumatic life events in college students.

  Psychological Trauma Theory Research Practice and Policy · 2013-10-15 · 21 citations

  article1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Patricia Frazier

  University of Minnesota

  29 shared

• Sandra Shallcross

  University of Minnesota

  19 shared

• Sulani Perera

  University of Minnesota System

  15 shared

• Nora K. Keenan

  12 shared

• Samuel Hintz

  Minneapolis VA Health Care System

  11 shared

• Lisa M. James

  7 shared

• Brian Engdahl

  Minneapolis VA Health Care System

  7 shared

• Carly K. Peterson

  6 shared