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Should We Change The Way We Model Change? Comparing Traditional And Modern Techniques In Modeling Change In Sense Of Identity Over Time, Kelli Marie Samonte May 2012

Should We Change The Way We Model Change? Comparing Traditional And Modern Techniques In Modeling Change In Sense Of Identity Over Time, Kelli Marie Samonte

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

Repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) and multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) are two of the most common techniques employed in longitudinal data analysis. These methods, however, are extremely limited in the type of data permitted in analysis, the residual covariance matrices employed in analysis, as well as in the focus of the research questions. There are, however, modern techniques for analyzing longitudinal data that do not have the same limitations of repeated measures ANOVA and MANOVA. This study aims to compare traditional methods of analyzing longitudinal data with more modern techniques, including alternative covariance structure (ACS) modeling and multilevel …


Interaction Between Source And Filter In Vowel Identification, Christopher James Becker May 2012

Interaction Between Source And Filter In Vowel Identification, Christopher James Becker

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

Speech sounds can be modeled as a product of two components: the source and the filter. The effects of filter manipulations on speech perception have been studied extensively, while the effects of source manipulations have been largely overlooked. This study was an attempt to assess the impact of source manipulations on vowel identification. To this end, two source manipulations were conducted prior to filtering. First, several harmonics of the source sawtooth wave that were located near formant peaks were mistuned, either towards or away from the peaks. Mistuning towards formant peaks was expected to facilitate vowel identification by helping to …


Measuring Employability Among College Students: A Validity Study, Megan Rodgers May 2012

Measuring Employability Among College Students: A Validity Study, Megan Rodgers

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

The practice of assessment in higher education is often focused on measuring outcomes of student success. However, the potential for a student to obtain a job (i.e., their employability) after graduation is often not directly measured. This reality is unfortunate given the competitive job market and rising cost of an education. One scale, the Employability Skills Inventory (ESI) has been identified as a potential assessment instrument that purports to measure skills necessary for employment in most occupations. Before deciding to use any scale for a particular purpose, one must establish that the scale is both reliable and valid. The focus …


Individual Differences And Basic Logic Ability, Christopher R. Runyon May 2012

Individual Differences And Basic Logic Ability, Christopher R. Runyon

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

The study of reasoning and information processing in cognitive science has often used problems derived from classical propositional logic inference rules in order to see how people make decisions, often comparing the qualities of those that can and cannot successfully complete these tasks. However, the majority of research that has been done has only focused on one inference rule: the material conditional. This narrow focus does not allow for inferences to be made about the role of logical ability simpliciter in cognitive science research. In order to better understand the relationship between cognitive ability and successfully completing tasks based on …


Using Longitudinal Mean And Covariance Structures (Lmacs) Analysis To Assess Construct Stability Over Two Time Points: An Example With Psychological Entitlement, Bozhidar Mihaylov Bashkov May 2012

Using Longitudinal Mean And Covariance Structures (Lmacs) Analysis To Assess Construct Stability Over Two Time Points: An Example With Psychological Entitlement, Bozhidar Mihaylov Bashkov

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

The current paper reviewed two widely used approaches to assessing construct stability over two time points (rank-order and mean-level consistency), as well as common misconceptions about what each indicates. In addition, the application of longitudinal mean and covariance structures (LMACS) analysis as a modern approach to assessing construct stability was explained and demonstrated by assessing the stability of psychological entitlement over 1.5 years measured via the Psychological Entitlement Scale (PES). Confirmatory factor analysis supported a one-factor solution for the PES at both time points, and reliability of scores was adequate (ω = .88 and .89). Full configural and metric invariance …


Measuring Cost: The Forgotten Component Of Expectancy Value Theory, Jessica Kay Flake May 2012

Measuring Cost: The Forgotten Component Of Expectancy Value Theory, Jessica Kay Flake

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

Abstract Expectancy-Value Theory (EVT) (Eccles et al., 1983) offers one of the most influential models for understanding motivation. One component of this theory, cost, can be defined as how much a student has to sacrifice to engage in a task. However, EVT researchers appear to have forgotten the component of cost. Though cost has been theorized as an important component of EVT, empirical work has neglected to measure and study it (Wigfield & Cambria, 2010). As a result, cost and its relationship with student outcomes is largely unknown (Wigfield & Eccles, 2000). The focus of the current study is to …


The Relation Between Delay Discounting And Disordered Eating In College Women, Lindsey Alanna Mayberry May 2011

The Relation Between Delay Discounting And Disordered Eating In College Women, Lindsey Alanna Mayberry

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

Some researchers have suggested that impulsive behavior is a characteristic of disordered eating. Nevertheless, there are relatively few studies that have examined the relation between impulsivity and disordered eating. In the present study, I used a delay-discounting task to measure impulsive behavior in a sample of college women who met the criteria for disordered eating and in a sample of matched controls. On this task, participants completed trials on which they chose between smaller, sooner monetary rewards and larger, later monetary rewards, all of which were hypothetical. I found that women with disordered eating were no more impulsive, on average, …


A Systematic Evaluation Of The Immediate Feedback Assessment Technique, Whitney Flemming Smiley May 2011

A Systematic Evaluation Of The Immediate Feedback Assessment Technique, Whitney Flemming Smiley

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

Currently, researchers are conducting many studies on n improving teaching methods. However, research is underdeveloped is improving testing formats so that they can promote student achievement. One way of improving testing could be to incorporate feedback into the testing procedure. This study replicated and extended past research done Epstein, Epstein, & Brosvic’s (2001) by for a testing technique called the Immediate Feedback Assessment Technique (IF-AT), which allows test takers to receive immediate feedback on each response during testing. I extended Epstein’s research by including two new conditions (scantron with feedback and computerized IF-AT). Results showed that adding feedback into the …


The Impact Of Cheating On Irt Equating Under The Non-Equivalent Anchor Test Design, Daniel Pacheco Jurich May 2011

The Impact Of Cheating On Irt Equating Under The Non-Equivalent Anchor Test Design, Daniel Pacheco Jurich

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

The prevalence of high stakes test scores as a basis for significant decisions necessitates the dissemination of accurate and fair scores. However, the magnitude of these decisions has created an environment prone to examinees resorting to cheating. To reduce the risk of cheating, multiple test forms are commonly administered. When multiple forms are employed, the forms must be equated to account for potential differences in form difficulty. If cheating occurs on one of the forms, the equating procedure may produce inaccurate results. A simulation study was conducted to examine the impact of cheating on IRT true score equating. Recovery of …


The Relationship Between Self-Esteem And Social Influence: An Empirical Comparison Of Two Theoretical Models, Chauncy Thomas Brinton May 2011

The Relationship Between Self-Esteem And Social Influence: An Empirical Comparison Of Two Theoretical Models, Chauncy Thomas Brinton

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

The relationship between social influence and self-esteem was examined in two studies from the lens of two different theoretical approaches, Leary’s sociometer theory and Henriques’ Unified Theory of Psychology (HUTP). Whereas sociometer theory contends that self-esteem functions completely as a barometer of relational value, HUTP posits that human self-esteem should also be significantly influenced by the cultural context, especially the extent to which self-enhancement is justified. This conception leads to the prediction that socialization will influence self-esteem, after controlling for social influence. Specifically, individuals socialized to self-enhance should demonstrate higher levels of self-esteem after controlling for social influence. Two studies …


Gathering Further Validity Evidence For The Academic Entitlement Questionnaire: Examining The Relationship Between Noncompliance And Academic Entitlement, Jason Paul Kopp May 2011

Gathering Further Validity Evidence For The Academic Entitlement Questionnaire: Examining The Relationship Between Noncompliance And Academic Entitlement, Jason Paul Kopp

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

A rigorous investigation of the psychometric properties of the Academic Entitlement Questionnaire (AEQ) was undertaken. Academic entitlement (AE) is defined as the expectation that one should receive positive academic outcomes (e.g., high grades), often independent of performance. AE had been theoretically linked with uncivil student behavior, but this relationship had not been evaluated empirically prior to this study. Responses on the AEQ were gathered from compliant and noncompliant students. Measurement invariance was established for the AEQ across these compliant and noncompliant samples. As predicted, the noncompliant sample was significantly higher in latent AE than the compliant sample. Relationships between AE …


Addressing Response Requirements And Behavioral Costs In Contingency Management For Smoking Cessation, Brantley Phillip Jarvis May 2010

Addressing Response Requirements And Behavioral Costs In Contingency Management For Smoking Cessation, Brantley Phillip Jarvis

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

Despite the efficacy of contingency management (CM) in promoting smoking reduction and abstinence, major barriers continue to hinder its widespread dissemination and adoption. The present study addressed two of these barriers, inefficient response requirements and high behavioral costs, by evaluating a novel payment schedule implemented within a workplace setting. Nine university staff were enrolled in a 6-week ABAB study design. During baseline weeks, participants earned money contingent on session attendance. During CM weeks, participants earned money contingent on smoking reduction or abstention payment arrangements, which were available concurrently. Abstention payments increased in magnitude across treatment weeks whereas reduction payments decreased. …


The Effects Of Caffeine On Delay Discounting In Humans, Andrew Dylan Markham May 2010

The Effects Of Caffeine On Delay Discounting In Humans, Andrew Dylan Markham

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

A behavioral form of impulsivity, delay discounting, has been used to examine the effects of drug consumption on individuals' abilities to delay gratification. However, delay discounting has not been used to examine one of the most commonly used drugs in the world, caffeine. Nor has delay discounting been used to examine the effects of drug influence on impulsivity. This study examined the influence of 200 mg caffeine on delay discounting in a collegiate sample. 15 participants underwent two experimental sessions: a caffeine condition and a placebo condition. Although participants were more impulsive under caffeine than under placebo, this trend was …


Investigating The Functionality Of A Self-Report Instrument To Detect Autistic Traits In A Non-Clinical College Population: Psychometric Properties Of The Short Version Of Autism-Spectrum Quotient (Aq-26), Anna Zilberberg May 2010

Investigating The Functionality Of A Self-Report Instrument To Detect Autistic Traits In A Non-Clinical College Population: Psychometric Properties Of The Short Version Of Autism-Spectrum Quotient (Aq-26), Anna Zilberberg

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

The present study investigated the dimensionality of the short version of Autism-Spectrum Quotient (AQ-26) (Baron-Cohen et al., 2001) via confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and exploratory factor analysis (EFA). Designed to screen for autistic traits in a non-clinical adult population, the AQ-26 can potentially be a very useful tool both in research and practice. However, evidence pertaining to the structural validity of the AQ-26 is scarce and inconclusive. Competing factor structure models based on previous research were specified and tested using an American college student sample. None of the theoretically specified models provided adequate fit for the data and the focus …


Adolescent Characteristics That Contribute To Family Conflict In Families With Adolescents With Adhd, Olivia Adelle Christensen May 2010

Adolescent Characteristics That Contribute To Family Conflict In Families With Adolescents With Adhd, Olivia Adelle Christensen

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

Adolescents with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) are at a heightened risk of parent/adolescent conflict. Families with adolescents with ADHD tend to experience frequent and intense family conflict which can be problematic to family cohesion. Existing treatments targeting family conflict are minimally effective. The current study explored adolescent characteristics hypothesized to predict family conflict in families with adolescents with ADHD. The relationship between parents’ and adolescents’ perceptions of conflict was also investigated. In the current study there was not a relationship between parents’ and adolescents’ perceptions of family conflict indicating disagreement. Adolescents’ age and symptoms of depression predicted family conflict regardless …


The Impact Of Culture On Self-Objectification And Risky Appearance Management Behaviors In College Females: A Path Analytic Model, Ellyn Leighton-Herrmann May 2010

The Impact Of Culture On Self-Objectification And Risky Appearance Management Behaviors In College Females: A Path Analytic Model, Ellyn Leighton-Herrmann

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

According to objectification-theory, females are socialized to think of their bodies as objects. Given the presence of media and social influence in day to day life, these are likely to have an influence on how young adult females view their bodies. The current study specified a path model testing theoretically-based, hypothesized relationships between cultural, self-objectification, and certain appearance management behaviors in college females. As predicted, significant, positive relationships were found between the Internalization of the thin ideal and the Media, Relationship Status, and Family and Peer influence. Only two of the three hypothesized relationships between Internalization the components of McKinley …


Interteaching And The Testing Effect: How Quizzes Alter The Efficacy Of Interteaching, Tonya Lambert May 2010

Interteaching And The Testing Effect: How Quizzes Alter The Efficacy Of Interteaching, Tonya Lambert

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

In recent years, educational systems have come under great scrutiny. In response to this scrutiny, researchers have developed numerous behavior-analytic teaching methods, the most recent being interteaching. In a growing number of studies, interteaching has proven to be more effective than traditional methods of instruction, but little research has examined ways to make interteaching even more effective. Research on the testing effect suggests that frequent testing may improve student-learning outcomes. Thus, including post-discussion quizzes as a part of interteaching might be one way to make it more effective. In the present study, participants completed interteaching in a simulated classroom setting. …


Predicting Police Aggression: Using Theory To Inform Police Selection Assessment, James Robert Koepfler May 2010

Predicting Police Aggression: Using Theory To Inform Police Selection Assessment, James Robert Koepfler

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

Although incidents of excessive force by police are very rare, they have a significant impact. Instances of excessive force can lead to expensive law suits, wasted resources spent on training and equipping officers, as well as a breakdown of trust between citizens and police departments. Psychologists can help to reduce inappropriate aggressive behavior through careful screening of police officer candidates. Most research has focused on the efficacy of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 (MMPI-2) in predicting police performance; however, results have been inconclusive regarding its ability to predict police aggression. The purpose of this study was to identify whether the …


Limits On The Number Of Concurrent Auditory Streams, Jonathan Henry Schuett May 2010

Limits On The Number Of Concurrent Auditory Streams, Jonathan Henry Schuett

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

Evidence suggests that listeners are limited to perceiving only three streams of auditory information when that information is presented within a rapid sequence of tonal elements. However, this limit has yet to be determined in a controlled setting while using complex tones. Because complex tones are more analogous to naturally occurring tones, finding this limit with complex tones would offer more ecological validity to the suggested perceptual limitation. Thus, Experiment 1 of the current investigation presented listeners with 2- to 5-tone sequences of sawtooth tones at a variety of presentation rates, instructing listeners to report the number of tonal events …


An Examination Of The Construct Validity Of The Hong Psychological Reactance Scale, Allison Brown May 2010

An Examination Of The Construct Validity Of The Hong Psychological Reactance Scale, Allison Brown

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

The purpose of the current study was to investigate the construct validity of a measure of trait reactance: the Hong Psychological Reactance Scale (HPRS). Investigating the functioning of this measure was particularly important, as the conclusions drawn from studies relating reactance to affect, attitudes, and behavior hinge on the legitimacy and quality of the HPRS. Using two samples of undergraduates, the current study employed structural equation modeling (SEM) to examine the factor structure of the HPRS and relate it to conformity, the Big Five personality traits, and entitlement. Results supported modeling the HPRS via a modified incomplete bifactor model. As …


Using An Adjusting Amount Procedure To Investigate Impulsivity In Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats (Shr), Phillip Andrew Halsey May 2010

Using An Adjusting Amount Procedure To Investigate Impulsivity In Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats (Shr), Phillip Andrew Halsey

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

This experiment compared impulsivity in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs), a putative animal model of Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), with two control strains. One definition of impulsive behavior that appears in the literature is preference for smaller sooner (SS) reinforcers over larger later (LL) reinforcers when both are concurrently available in the context of discrete trial choice procedures. Adopting that definition, the current experiment used an adjusting amount procedure to measure changes in the subjective value of delayed reinforcers. The LL reinforcers varied across 5 conditions (5 pellets, each evaluated at 5 delays: 2, 4, 8, 16, and 32-s). From the …


The Impact Of D-Amphetamine On Resistance To Extinction (Rte) In A Single Schedule Preparation, Stephen Howard Robertson May 2010

The Impact Of D-Amphetamine On Resistance To Extinction (Rte) In A Single Schedule Preparation, Stephen Howard Robertson

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

Some researchers have suggested that the discrepancy in findings between studies of resistance-to-extinction that use single-schedules and those that use multiple-schedules is the result of increased discriminability between training and extinction conditions in the single-schedule preparation, masking the true relation between reinforcer density and resistance to extinction. Because d-amphetamine has been shown to interfere with stimulus control in a number of preparations, the current study examined the effects of d-amphetamine on rats’ lever-pressing in the context of a single-schedule resistance-to-extinction preparation. During training, doses of d-amphetamine or vehicle were administered 15 min prior to sessions in which the delivery of …


Examining The Role Of Cognitive Ability And Individual Thinking Dispositions In Moral Judgment, Kimberly R. Marsh May 2010

Examining The Role Of Cognitive Ability And Individual Thinking Dispositions In Moral Judgment, Kimberly R. Marsh

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

The current study examined the relation between individual cognitive ability (SAT total score), thinking dispositions (Stanovich’s (2008) Master Rationality Motive, Cacioppo et al.’s (1984) Need for Cognition, Stanovich & West’s (1997) Actively Open-minded Thinking scales), and moral judgment. The relation between these individual differences and moral judgment was examined across multiple contexts. First, the expression of myside bias was examined within a medical ethics scenario in which a limited number of organs must be allocated between two groups of people with differential transplant survival rates. Second, the role of individual differences was examined in moral reasoning across differential presentation of …


Evaluation Of The Psychometric Properties Of The Emotion Regulation Scale, Bebhinn Martha Timmins Dec 2009

Evaluation Of The Psychometric Properties Of The Emotion Regulation Scale, Bebhinn Martha Timmins

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is the most common childhood disorder effecting 3-7% of school aged children and accounting for 30-50% of mental health referrals. Recent research in the area of emotional regulation has found that youth with ADHD have more difficulty regulating emotion than youth without ADHD. This is unfortunate, as emotional dysregulation has been linked to psychopathology, poor social functioning, substance abuse and suicide. Given this information, it is extremely important that measurement of emotion regulation is adequate because without good measurement it is impossible to improve our understanding of how emotional regulation is developed, maintained and how …