UB Faculty Experts

John Crane, MD, PhD
Associate Professor
Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine
University at Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
716-829-2676
jcrane@buffalo.edu

EXPERT CONTACT : Amanda Nickerson, PhD Director of the Jean M. Alberti Center for the Prevention of Bullying Abuse and School Violence University at Buffalo Graduate School of Education 716-645-3488 nickersa@buffalo.edu

Nickerson is an expert on school crisis prevention and intervention, with a particular focus on violence and bullying. She has edited or authored three books on the topic.

“A tragedy like the shooting at Chardon High School in Ohio often brings about fear, outrage and speculation about who or what was responsible," Nickerson says. "Understandably, schools, parents, the media and the general public try to understand how the senseless deaths could have happened.”

“Despite the high-profile school shootings, schools continue to be among the safest place for children and adolescents to be," Nickerson says. "Although statistics vary, one estimate is that for every 1,000 violent deaths of youth, only 10 of these occur in schools.”

Since becoming director of the Alberti Center for the Prevention of Bullying Abuse and School Violence, Nickerson has been consulted and quoted in a wide variety of media on bullying and its effect on victims. She also has spoken on current anti-bullying research to parents, young people, school administrators, teachers and other scholars.

Some early reports on the Chardon shootings indicated bullying may have played a role, but these reports at this time were inconclusive. And Nickerson stressed the importance of having accurate information to avoid making a horrible situation even worse.

“There is no accurate ‘profile’ for a school shooter, although the findings from the U.S. Secret Service Study of school shooters found that most were male and acted alone," Nickerson says. "Although many did not show signs of having academic or discipline problems at school, about three-quarters felt they were bullied, persecuted or mistreated by others. Most of the shooters also had a preoccupation with fantasy violence and were perceived to suffer from a sense of failure or loss of status.”

Rather than jumping to quick conclusions, Nickerson stressed the need to support victims, both those directly involved or who witnessed the shootings as well as those who may be harmed in a more indirect way.

“Reactions to this type of crisis will vary depending on several factors," she says, "such as whether the person saw or heard the shooting, relationship with the shooter and/or the victims, personal vulnerabilities (mental illness or disability, lack of social support, previous trauma history) and immediate and long-term reactions and thoughts about the event.

“In addition to cooperating with law enforcement’s investigation, it is important for schools to offer clear and accurate information about the event, ensure that staff and student physical health needs are met, work to ensure that students feel safe and secure, and provide support as needed.

 “This can include connecting youth with their natural sources of support (friends, parents) and providing information to family members and youth about common reactions to this type of event (trouble eating and sleeping, thoughts about the event, difficult concentrating), and what they can do to cope (surround self with support, keep routine -- with room to express feelings, try to eat, sleep, and exercise, avoid watching TV and exposing self to the images).

“Schools and community agencies can also offer crisis intervention for those who may be at-risk for traumatic reactions, and should continue to assess who may be showing signs that signal the need for more intensive crisis intervention in the coming days, weeks and months.”

A video interview with Nickerson is available here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5nUZOUbFHk.
 

EXPERT CONTACT : Dr. Steven L. Dubovsky, MD Professor and Chair of Psychiatry University at Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences 716-898-5940

Dubovsky is an expert on post-traumatic stress. He has studied the Columbine, Colo., shootings and interviewed survivors of the tragedy. His thoughts on the Chardon High School tragedy:

"There's a lot of post-traumatic stress disorder after an event like this, and some students end up having problems with grades, dropping out of school, etc., over the next couple of years."

"There also may be an increased incidence of accidents and suicides. The best response in treating student-survivors depends on what resources exist within the community, and how comfortable they feel with discussing the tragedy with outside experts.”

"When survivors are interviewed on TV about the death of friends and classmates it is rarely helpful, and sometimes harmful, because it evokes more distress and arousal without resolving anything. The best approach often is to strengthen the sense of community; to help the students finding meaning; and to identify something positive coming out of the tragedy if possible."

"Recent research shows that prompt or even delayed intervention can prevent post-traumatic stress disorder in survivors of disasters like this.”

EXPERT CONTACT : David G. Lichter, MD Professor of Neurology University at Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences Contact Ellen Goldbaum at 716-645-4605 or egoldbaum@buffalo.edu

Lichter, an expert in movement disorders, including Tourette's Syndrome and other tic disorders, has been interviewed by numerous local and national media concerning the emergence of multiple cases of "conversion disorder" in a high school in LeRoy, N.Y.

What is conversion disorder and why does it seem more common among girls than boys?

Conversion disorder is defined as a loss of, or alteration in, physical functioning in which psychological factors are judged to be causally related to the symptoms. This link is suggested by a temporal relationship between a significant psychosocial stressor and initiation or exacerbation of the symptom. Importantly, the person is not conscious of intentionally producing the symptom. This differentiates conversion disorder from factitious disorder or malingering. Conversion disorder is, indeed, more common among girls than boys and particularly affects adolescent girls and young women. One suggestion is that females are more prone to internalizing stress than males. Females may also be more suggestible than males.

How do you think social networking has influenced the appearance of these symptoms?

In the past, symptoms or behaviors of mass psychogenic illness have been spread from a small number of individuals to larger numbers of individuals by what we call "line of sight" and "line of hearing," where the affected sufferers share a common, enclosed environment, such as a school. Social networking now provides another avenue for symptoms to be transmitted rapidly to potentially vulnerable individuals who may be geographically distant from, or not yet directly exposed to, the original cohort.

Do you think the media attention has caused the illness to spread to more people?

It is difficult to know whether media attention may have contributed to the spread of symptoms to others and it is important to note that three of the girls did have pre-existing tic disorders that were not due to psychogenic illness. However, I believe that the intense media scrutiny in this case, including the continued attention to alternative possible causes of the students' symptoms, has heightened anxiety, fostered an environment of mistrust and diverted attention away from the diagnosis that has been accepted by all professionals who have been directly involved in the evaluation and care of these students, i.e. conversion disorder. The result, in some cases, has been a failure to date to initiate appropriate supportive care or an abandonment of such care. This appears to have resulted in some cases in behavioral regression, compared with symptomatic improvement in those who have accepted the diagnosis and continued with appropriate therapy.

How long does conversion disorder usually last?

In cases where the disorder is quickly diagnosed, the diagnosis is accepted by the family and rapid, appropriate and supportive intervention is undertaken, conversion disorder can be successfully treated, with relatively rapid symptomatic resolution, sometimes in a few weeks. This is particularly likely in cases where the individual has healthy personality characteristics and good family support. In the absence of such positive predictors of outcome, the disorder may become chronic and refractory to treatment efforts.

Are researchers working on ways to better detect and treat conversion disorder?

Researchers are indeed working to better understand and treat conversion disorder. The LeRoy students have been offered free evaluation at the National Institutes of Health and have been offered inclusion in its ongoing research study of conversion disorder, which includes functional brain imaging. This research is being undertaken by the Human Motor Control Section at the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke by experts in both biologically based and psychologically based movement disorders, including some of the clinical, electrophysiologic and brain imaging overlap between the two.

EXPERT CONTACT : Dr. James E. Campbell UB Distinguished Professor and chair of the UB Department of Political Science University at Buffalo College of Arts and Sciences 716-645-8452 jcampbell@buffalo.edu

Campbell is a specialist in American electoral politics and forecasting. His insights into the effect of Governor Rick Perry dropping out of the presidential race are below:

"Rick Perry's dropping out of the race and his endorsement of Newt Gingrich, along with Sarah Palin's indication that she would vote for Gingrich in the South Carolina primary, are indications that Gingrich is well prositioned to become the conservative alternative to a Mitt Romney nomnation.

"The only remaining obstacle is Rick Santorum. Though highly regarded by social conservatives and having run strongly in Iowa, Santorum appears to be a second choice to Gingrich among conservative Republicans nationally. I would guess that Santorum may be pressed to drop out of the race if he finishes third or fourth in South Carolina.

"The Republican contest this year has been very unusual in that it has pitted the Republican establishment backing Romney against the party's large conservative base who have made their opposition to Romney very clear through their support of various candidates (Bachmann, Perry, Cain, Gingrich, and Santorum) and possible candidates (from Donald Trump to Chris Christie).

"It appears that the base may get its wish of a head-to-head match up between Romney and a single conservative alternative. Ironically, if this does happen, it might be attributed to the role of Super PACs in this campaign. They may have made the process more democratic than it might otherwise have been by allowing candidates to stay in the race longer and to fend off attacks from other well-financed candidates."

EXPERT CONTACT : Mark Bartholomew Associate Professor of Law University at Buffalo Law School 716-645-5959 bartholo@buffalo.edu

Bartholomew is an expert in intellectual property and cyber law. With Wikipedia, Reddit and other websites “going dark” today to raise awareness about two anti-piracy bills that could affect the amount of content available on the Internet, Bartholomew shared his thoughts on the pending legislation. The bills, the Stop Online Piracy Act and PROTECT IP Act, are commonly known as “SOPA and PIPA.”

EXPERT CONTACT : Jennifer Read Associate Professor of Psychology University at Buffalo College of Arts and Sciences jpread@buffalo.edu

Read, an expert on teen drinking, has a simple but effective message for anyone making decisions about alcohol, holiday parties and ways to be safe: Just use your head, she says. Develop a plan before your evening starts, and stick to it.

EXPERT CONTACT : Dr. Robert J. Genco UB Distinguished Professor and Vice Provost University at Buffalo Office of Science, Technology Transfer and Economic Outreach

EXPERT CONTACT : Dr. Ali A. El Sohl Research Professor of Social and Preventive Medicine University at Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences

To schedule an interview with El Solh or Genco, contact Sara Saldi in the Office of University Communications at 716-645-4593 or saldi@buffalo.edu.

With U.S. forces leaving Iraq, experts from the University at Buffalo are available to discuss the challenges veterans face upon returning home. From job hunting in a weak economy to living with traumatic brain injury or PTSD, readjusting to life in the civilian world can be difficult.

DAY-TO-DAY LIVING

LIVING WITH INJURIES

EXPERT CONTACT : Dr. John J. Leddy Associate Professor of Clinical Orthopaedics and Director of the UB Concussion Management Clinic University at Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences leddy@buffalo.edu

With the NFL and NHL seasons well under way, Leddy discusses the progress that doctors, teams and athletes have made in understanding concussions and recognizing the seriousness of the injuries. With colleague Barry Willer, Leddy has developed an exercise-based test that helps doctors understand when it’s safe for an athlete to return to play. Athletes treated at Leddy’s concussion management clinic include Toronto Maple Leafs center Tim Connolly, formerly of the Buffalo Sabres.

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