Mary Klein Buller

Ms. Mary Klein Buller

orcid

Research Focus & Metrics

Academic Career Length

22Years (2005-Present)

(Calculated once Scilit publication data is synced: current year − year of first publication + 1)

Representative Publications

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1 January 2005 in Health Psychology
Verified
Journal Article
Closed access
DBDavid B Buller
David B Buller
MBMary Klein Buller
Mary Klein Buller
IKIlima Kane
Ilima Kane
The Sunny Days, Healthy Ways curriculum, which has been effective in previous trials, was disseminated to public elementary schools (n=2,030) and state-licensed child-care facilities (n=3,755) in 4 states. Two Web sites were created, varying in the amount and type of information. Mailings referred principals and directors to the sites. Overall 117 unique users made 172 visits to the sites. More repeat visits were made to the enhanced than to the basic site (p=.04). In a survey, 20.0% of principals and directors recalled receiving the mailings and 80.9% of these read them. Web-based strategies were weak, but the low response rate may be typical for such marketing. They will require supplementation by more personal approaches.

14 October 2012 in Journal of School Health
Verified
Journal Article
Closed access
PDF file
KRKim D Reynolds
Kim D Reynolds
DBDavid B Buller
David B Buller
SFSimone French
Simone French
MBMary Klein Buller
Mary Klein Buller
JAJeff L. Ashley
Jeff L. Ashley

26 November 2018 in American Journal of Health Promotion
Verified
Journal Article
Closed access
PDF file
DBDavid B Buller
David B Buller
BWBarbara J. Walkosz
Barbara J. Walkosz
MBMary Klein Buller
Mary Klein Buller
AWAllan Wallis
Allan Wallis
PAPeter A. Andersen
Peter A. Andersen
GCGary R Cutter
Gary R Cutter
Implementation of employer sun safety actions was assessed in a 2-year follow-up to an occupational sun protection policy intervention. Two-year follow-up assessment in a randomized pretest–posttest controlled design. Local government organizations with workers in public safety, public works, and parks and recreation. Sixty-three local government organizations (participation = 64%) and 330 frontline supervisors and 1454 workers. Sun Safe Workplaces (SSW) intervention promoting occupational sun safety policy and education. Observations of SSW messages and sun safety items and surveys on organizations’ communication and actions on sun safety. Comparison between SSW and control groups was conducted using regression models and adjusted for clustering where appropriate, with α criterion set at P = .05 (2-tailed). At intervention worksites, more SSW messages (P < .001) and sun safety items (P = .025) were observed; more frontline supervisors reported organizations provided free/reduced price sunscreen (P = .005) and communicated about sun safety (P < .001); and more workers recalled receiving sun safety messages (P < .001) and sun safety training (P <.001) compared to control organizations. Implementation was greater at larger than smaller intervention organizations for wide-brimmed hats (P = .009), long work pants (P = .017), and shade structures (P = .036). Older workers received the most written messages (P = .015). Sun Safe Workplaces appeared to produce actions by organizations to support employee sun safety. Large organizations may have processes, communication channels, and slack resources to achieve more implementation.

3 August 2022 in JMIR Formative Research
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
AMAida Hutz Midgett
Aida Hutz Midgett
DDDiana Doumas
Diana Doumas
MBMary Klein Buller
Mary Klein Buller
Background: Bullying is a significant problem for youth associated with wide-ranging negative consequences. Providing students who witness bullying with intervention strategies to act as defenders can reduce bullying and negative associated outcomes for both targets and bystanders. Educating teachers about bullying and training them to support students to intervene as defenders may increase the efficacy of bystander programs as teachers’ attitudes and responses to bullying relate to bystander behavior. This is particularly important in middle school, when bullying peaks and rates of reporting bullying to teachers begin to decline. Reducing implementation barriers, including limited time and resources, must also be considered, particularly for schools in low-income and rural areas. Technology-based programs can increase access and scalability but require participant buy-in for adoption. Objective: We used a mixed methods design to inform the development of the STAC teacher module, a companion training to a brief bullying bystander intervention. STAC stands for the four bystander intervention strategies: Stealing the Show, Turning it Over, Accompanying Others, and Coaching Compassion. Objectives included examining the effectiveness of the STAC teacher module and informing the translation of the training into a technology-based format that can be used as a companion to the technology-based STAC. Methods: A sample of 17 teachers recruited from 1 middle school in a rural, low-income community completed pre- and posttraining surveys assessing immediate outcomes (ie, knowledge, confidence, comfort, and self-efficacy), intention to use program strategies, and program acceptability and relevance, followed by a qualitative focus group obtaining feedback regarding program appropriateness, feasibility, content, perception of need, and desire for web-based training. Descriptive statistics, 2-tailed independent-sample t tests, and thematic analyses were used to analyze the data. Results: Assessment of pre- and posttraining surveys indicated that teachers reported an increase in knowledge and confidence to support defenders, confidence and comfort in managing bullying, and bullying self-efficacy. Furthermore, most participants reported that they were likely or very likely to use STAC strategies to support students who intervene in bullying. Quantitative and qualitative data revealed that participants found the training easy to use, useful, relevant, and appropriate. Qualitative data provided feedback on ways of improving the program, including revising role-plays and guidance on understanding student behavior. Participants shared positive perceptions regarding program feasibility and need for bullying-specific prevention, the most significant barriers being cost and parent buy-in, suggesting the importance of including parents in the prevention process. Finally, participants shared the strengths of a web-based program, including ease of implementation and time efficiency, while indicating the importance of participant engagement and administration buy-in. Conclusions: This study demonstrates the effectiveness of the STAC teacher module in increasing knowledge and bullying self-efficacy and provides support for developing the module, including key information regarding considerations for web-based translation.

1 April 2008 in Journal of Cancer Education
Verified
Journal Article
Closed access
PDF file
MBMary Klein Buller
Mary Klein Buller
IKIlima L. Kane
Ilima L. Kane
RMRobert C. Martin
Robert C. Martin
AGAimee J. Giese
Aimee J. Giese
GCGary R. Cutter
Gary R. Cutter
DBDavid B. Buller
David B. Buller
Background. Interactive multimedia grograms derived from the Sunny Days, Healthy Ways (SDHW) sun safety curriculum were evaluated with children aged 5–13. Methods. A randomized pretest to posttest 3-group study was conducted with 871 students in 12 primary schools in the western United States comparing computer programs alone, teacher-led presentation, or both combined. Results. Computer programs with teacher-led presentation improved knowledge over either treatment individually (P=.001). The combination improved self-reported sun protection in lower but not higher grades over teacher-led presentation (P=.005). Conclusions. Computer-based sun safety instruction used with teacher instruction in primary schools may improve sun safety, especially with younger children.

26 October 2021 in JMIR Formative Research
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
DDDiana Doumas
Diana Doumas
AMAida Hutz Midgett
Aida Hutz Midgett
VMValerie Myers
Valerie Myers
MBMary Klein Buller
Mary Klein Buller
Background: Students who are targets of bullying and who witness bullying are at high risk for negative mental health outcomes. Bystander training is essential to reduce bullying and the negative associated consequences for targets and bystanders. Resources necessary for program delivery, however, pose significant barriers for schools, particularly those in rural, low-income communities. Technology-based programs can reduce health disparities for students in these communities through cost-effective, easy-to-disseminate programming. Objective: The aim of this study is to conduct usability testing of a bystander bullying web app prototype, STAC-T (technology-based STAC, which stands for the 4 bystander strategies Stealing the Show, Turning it Over, Accompanying Others, and Coaching Compassion) as an initial step in the development of a full-scale STAC-T intervention. Objectives include assessing usability and acceptability of the STAC-T prototype, understanding school needs and barriers to program implementation, and assessing differences in usability between school personnel and students. Methods: A sample of 16 participants, including school personnel and students recruited from 3 middle schools in rural, low-income communities, completed usability testing followed by a qualitative interview. Descriptive statistics, 2-tailed independent sample t tests, and consensual qualitative research were used to assess usability and program satisfaction and to extract themes related to acceptability, feasibility, needs, barriers, and feedback for intervention development. Results: Usability testing indicated that the app was easy to use, acceptable, and feasible. Both school personnel (mean rating 89.6, SD 5.1) and students (mean rating 91.8, SD 7.0) rated the app well above the standard cutoff score for above-average usability (ie, 68), and both school personnel (mean rating 5.83, SD 0.41) and students (mean rating 6.10, SD 0.57) gave the app high user-friendliness ratings (0-7 scale, with 7 as high user-friendliness). The overall ratings also suggested that school personnel and students were satisfied with the program. Of the 6 school personnel who said they would recommend the program, 1 (17%), 4 (66%), and 1 (17%) rated the program as 3, 4, and 5 stars, respectively; 80% (8/10) of students said they would recommend the program; and 60% (6/10) and 40% (4/10) rated the program as 4 stars and 5 stars, respectively. Qualitative data revealed that school personnel and students found the STAC-T app to be useful, user-friendly, and relevant, while providing feedback related to the importance of digital learning activities that engage the user. Data from school personnel also indicated positive perceptions regarding program feasibility and probability of program adoption, with the most significant barrier being cost, suggesting the importance of considering the financial resources available to schools in rural, low-income communities when setting the price point for the full-scale STAC-T intervention. Conclusions: This study provides support for the full-scale development of the STAC-T app and provides key information for revision to enhance used engagement. Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04681495; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04681495