Digital Commons Network^™

The First Anniversary: Stress, Well-Being, And Optimism In Older Widows, Mary E. Minton, Melody Hertzog, Cecilia R. Barron, Jeffrey French, Roni Reiter-Palmon

Psychology Faculty Publications

The first anniversary for older widows (n = 47) has been explored during Months 11, 12, and 13. Concurrent correlations show that optimism inversely correlates with psychological (intrusion and avoidance) stress as measured with the Impact of Event Scale (r = —.52 to —.66, p < .005) and positively correlates with well-being (physical: r = .36 to .46, p < .025; psychosocial: r = .58 to .72, p < .005; spiritual: r = .50 to .69, p < .005). Lagged correlation patterns suggest that higher levels of optimism at a given time are associated with higher life satisfaction and spiritual well-being at later times. Psychological stress is higher at Month 12 when compared to Month 13, t(43) = 2.54, p = .01, but not when compared to Month 11, t(43) = 1.49, p > .10. There are no significant differences in physiologic stress (salivary cortisol) or well-being during the first …

Affective Well-Being In Retirement: The Influence Of Values, Money, And Health Across Three Years, Andrew Burr, Jonathan Bruce Santo, Dolores Pushkar

Psychology Faculty Publications

In this study, personal values, health, and financial status were investigated as determinants of affective well-bring in a sample of 371 recent retirees across 3 years. Personal values, measured with the Portrait Value Questionnaire (Schwartz et al. in J Cross Cult Psychol 32:519–542, 2001), were hypothesized to show direct links to positive affect (PA) and negative affect (NA) as well as to moderate the association between financial and health status and affective well-being. Using structural equation modeling, higher PA was predicted by female gender, better finances, fewer illnesses, and higher self-transcendence (ST), openness to change (OC), and conservation values. Higher …

Stability, Change, And Heritability Of Borderline Personality Disorder Traits From Adolescence To Adulthood: A Longitudinal Twin Study, Marina Bornovalova, Brian M Hicks, William G Iacono, Matt Mcgue

Psychology Faculty Publications

Although personality disorders are best understood in the context of lifetime development, there is a paucity of work examining their longitudinal trajectory. An understanding of the expected course and the genetic and environmental contributions to these disorders is necessary for a detailed understanding of risk processes that lead to their manifestation. The current study examined the longitudinal course and heritability of borderline personality disorder (BPD) over a period of 10 years starting in adolescence (age 14) and ending in adulthood (age 24). In doing so, we built on existing research by using a large community sample of adolescent female twins, …

Social Science In A Water Observing System, John B. Braden, Daniel G. Brown, Jeff Dozier, Patricia Gober, Sara M. Hughes, David R. Maidment, Sandra L. Schneider, P. Wesley Schultz, James S. Shortle, Stephen K. Swallow, Carol M. Werner

Psychology Faculty Publications

We set forth an argument for the integration of social science research with natural science and engineering research in major research infrastructure investments addressing water science. A program of integrated observation of water resources offers great opportunities to address several environmental “grand challenges” identified by the National Research Council, including climate variability, institutions and resource use, and land use dynamics, and their importance for hydrologic forecasting. We argue that such a program has the potential to advance both water science and the contributing disciplines. However, to realize this potential, it is essential to recognize that social science requires critical infrastructure …

Systems Of Care And The Prevention Of Mental Health Problems For Children And Their Families: Integrating Counseling Psychology And Public Health Perspectives, Melissa L. Whitson, Stanley N. Bernard, Joy S. Kaufman

Psychology Faculty Publications

The purpose of this paper is to present systems of care as an example of how counseling psychology and public health overlap with regards to prevention and intervention approaches for children's mental health. A framework for prevention is presented as is the state of children's mental health promotion, with a particular focus on ecological and systemic approaches to children's mental health and how these approaches cut across multiple perspectives. Systems of care are highlighted as an example of the congruence of prevention and ecological or systemic approaches to address the mental health promotion of children and their families, with the …

Mapping Quantitative Trait Loci For Feed Consumption And Feeding Behaviors In A White Duroc × Chinese Erhualian Resource Population, Z. Y. Zhang, J. Ren, Dongren Ren, J. W. Ma, Y. M. Guo, L. S. Huang

Psychology Faculty Publications

To identify QTL for feed consumption and feeding behavior traits in pigs, ADFI, feed conversion ratio (FCR), number of visits to the feeder per day (NVD), and average feeding rate (AFR) were recorded in 577 F₂ animals from a White Duroc × Chinese Erhualian resource population during the fattening period of 120 to 240 d. A whole genome scan was performed with 183 microsatellites covering the pig genome across the entire resource population. A total of 8 QTL were identified on 5 pig chromosomes, including 3 genome-wide significant QTL for FCR on SSC2, 7, and 9, 1 significant QTL …

Reactivity And Distortions In The Self: Narcissism, Types Of Aggression, And The Functioning Of The Hypothalamic–Pituitary–Adrenal Axis During Early Adolescence, William M. Bukowski, Alex Schwartzman, Jonathan Bruce Santo, Catherine Bagwell, Ryan Adams

Psychology Faculty Publications

A multisample, multistudy project aimed at understanding how individual differences in narcissism during early adolescence are related to distortions in the aggression, and the reactivity of the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis to negative and positive experiences. The findings indicate that individual differences in narcissism are a remarkably stable aspect of personality during early adolescence. It is predictably related to an inflated view of the self that is not warranted by objective indices of social functioning. Further evidence shows that it promotes the continuity of aggressive behavior and is more strongly related to reactive aggression than to proactive aggression and more strongly related …

Conscientiousness Is Not Always A Good Predictor Of Performance: The Case Of Creativity, Roni Reiter-Palmon, Jody J. Illies, Lisa M. Kobe-Cross

Psychology Faculty Publications

Meta-analyses investigating the relationship between Conscientiousness and performance suggest a positive relationship for a variety of criteria. However, recently it has been argued that Conscientiousness is not always a good predictor of performance, particularly for creative performance. Additionally, it has been suggested that Conscientiousness includes two distinct components, achievement and dependability, which may have different relationships with criterion measures. Two studies were conducted to determine whether the components of Conscientiousness predict creativity better than the full factor. Students in each study completed a measure of the Five Factor Model and a measure of creative performance. In the first study, creative …

High Cortisol Levels In The Offspring Of Parents With Bipolar Disorder During Two Weeks Of Daily Sampling, Mark A. Ellenbogen, Jonathan Santo, Anne-Marie Linnen, Claire-Dominique Walker, Sheilagh Hodgins

Psychology Faculty Publications

Objectives: The hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis is compromised in major depression, bipolar disorder (BD), and in the offspring of parents with major depression. Less is known about the offspring of parents with BD (FH+). The present project provides follow-up to a previous study showing that the adolescent (mean age 16.7 years) FH+ offspring had higher salivary cortisol levels than the offspring of parents with no mental disorder (FH−) throughout the day in their natural environment, and that girls had higher cortisol levels than boys (Ellenbogen MA, Hodgins S, Walker C-D, Adam S, Couture S. Daytime cortisol and stress reactivity in the …

Stimulus Type, Level Of Categorization, And Spatial-Frequencies Utilization: Implications For Perceptual Categorization Hierarchies, Assaf Harel, Shlomo Bentin

Psychology Faculty Publications

The type of visual information needed for categorizing faces and nonface objects was investigated by manipulating spatial frequency scales available in the image during a category verification task addressing basic and subordinate levels. Spatial filtering had opposite effects on faces and airplanes that were modulated by categorization level. The absence of low frequencies impaired the categorization of faces similarly at both levels, whereas the absence of high frequencies was inconsequential throughout. In contrast, basic-level categorization of airplanes was equally impaired by the absence of either low or high frequencies, whereas at the subordinate level, the absence of high frequencies had …

Testing Gender Effects On The Mechanisms Explaining The Association Between Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms And Substance Use Frequency, Marina Bornovalova, Paige Ouimette, Aaron V Crawford, Roy Levy

Psychology Faculty Publications

The present study examines gender differences in the mechanisms that explain the association between PTSD symptoms and substance use frequency in a sample of 182 urban substance users. Specifically, the current study examined gender differences in the role of two potential explanatory variables, namely, difficulties controlling impulsive behavior when distressed (IMP), and a lack of emotional awareness and clarity (AW/CLAR). Multiple-group path modeling (across males and females) was used to examine gender differences in the path coefficients from PTSD symptoms to IMP and AW/CLAR, and from these latter variables to drug use frequency. Results indicated that PTSD symptoms were associated …

Microsatellite-Based Genetic Diversity And Evolutionary Relationships Of Six Dog Breeds, J.-H. Ye, Dongren Ren, A.-F. Xie, X.-P. Wu, L. Xu, P.-F. Fu, H.-A. Zhao, Q.-Y. Yang

Psychology Faculty Publications

The Tibetan Mastiff is one of the most archaic, ferocious and the largest dogs in the world. The Kunming dog is the chief working-dog breed in China. In this study, ten microsatellite loci were used to assess the genetic diversity and evolutionary relationships in six dog breeds, including Tibetan Mastiff, Kunming dog, Belgian Malinois, Labrador Retriever, English Springer Spaniel, and German Shepherd. The highest genetic diversity was exhibited by the Tibetan Mastiff, indicating useful protection and little inbreeding in the modern Tibetan Mastiff. Higher genetic diversity was observed in European breeds, supporting the hypotheses that breeders outcross their pure breed …

Cultural Adaptation Of Treatments: A Resource For Considering Culture In Evidence-Based Practice, Guillermo Bernal, María I. Jiménez-Chafey, Melanie M. Domenech-Rodriguez

Psychology Faculty Publications

There is a growing interest in whether and how to adapt psychotherapies to take into account the cultural, linguistic, and socioeconomic context of diverse ethnocultural groups. At the root of the debate is theissue of whether evidence-based treatments (EBTs) developed within a particular linguistic and cultural context are appropriate for ethnocultural groups that do not share the same language, cultural values, or both. There is considerable evidence that culture and context influence almost every aspect of the diagnostic and treatment process. Yet, there are concerns about fidelity of interventions, and some have questioned whether tinkering with well-established EBTs is warranted. …

Long-Term Effects Of Parents' Education On Children's Educational And Occupational Success Mediation By Family Interactions, Child Aggression, And Teenage Aspirations, Eric F. Dubow, Paul Boxer, L. Rowell Husemann

Psychology Faculty Publications

We examine the prediction of individuals' educational and occupational success at age 48 from contextual and personal variables assessed during their middle childhood and late adolescence. We focus particularly on the predictive role of the parents' educational level during middle childhood, controlling for other indices of socioeconomic status and children's IQ, and the mediating roles of negative family interactions, childhood behavior, and late adolescent aspirations. Data come from the Columbia County Longitudinal Study, which began in 1960 when all 856 third graders in a semirural county in New York State were interviewed along with their parents; participants were reinterviewed at …

Euthanasia-Related Strain And Coping Strategies In Animal Shelter Employees, Benjamin E. Baran, Joseph A. Allen, Steven G. Rogelberg, Christiane Spitzmüller, Natalie A. Digiacomo, Jennifer B. Webb, Nathan T. Carter, Olga L. Clark, Lisa A. Teeter, Alan G. Walker

Psychology Faculty Publications

Objective—To identify and evaluate coping strategies advocated by experienced animal shelter workers who directly engaged in euthanizing animals.

Design—Cross-sectional study.

Sample Population—Animal shelters across the United States in which euthanasia was conducted (5 to 100 employees/shelter).

Procedures—With the assistance of experts associated with the Humane Society of the United States, the authors identified 88 animal shelters throughout the United States in which animal euthanasia was actively conducted and for which contact information regarding the shelter director was available. Staff at 62 animal shelters agreed to participate in the survey. Survey packets were mailed to the 62 …

Treatment Of Monozygotic Twins With Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Using Cognitive Therapy And Exposure With Ritual Prevention, Michael P. Twohig, Maureen L. Whittal, Katherine A. Peterson

Psychology Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: Assessment and treatment of cohabiting monozygotic (MZ) twins with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) is a possible challenge for clinical psychologists. AIMS: This study aims to present a detailed history of two sets of cohabiting MZ twins with OCD, and describe the adaption of cognitive behavior therapy in their treatments. METHOD: Two sets of cohabiting MZ twins completed a structured intake and the Yale Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale as well as measures of depression, anxiety, a measure of obsessive beliefs, and thought action fusion. One set received cognitive behavior therapy and exposure with ritual prevention (ERP) simultaneously and the other …

Ethics-A Bridge For Communities And Scientists: A Curriculum For Community Outreach And Education, Ann Freeman Cook, Helena Hoas

Psychology Faculty Publications

The Ethics - A Bridge for Communities and Scientists (E-ABCs) project was conducted in the community of Libby, Montana where it examined the ethical, legal, and social implications of asbestos contamination. The project was designed to explore how an awareness of ethics can support and enrich community dialogue and inform decision-making.

During the six year funding cycle for this project, a number of efforts were undertaken in order to provide resources for Libby residents who have diverse and changing needs and interests. The lessons learned from these efforts are reflected throughout the website and are summarized in the manual entitled, …

Creativity And Domain Specificity: The Effect Of Task Type On Multiple Indexes Of Creative Problem-Solving, Roni Reiter-Palmon, Marcy Young Illies, Toleo, Infousa, Oriental Trading Co.

Psychology Faculty Publications

The study addresses the issue of domain specificity within creativity by understanding the characteristics of creative tasks and how participants react to the task. One hundred and eighty seven participants were given one of three realistic everyday problems to solve. The problems differed in terms of complexity, involvement, and problem-based efficacy. Problem solutions were evaluated on several measures of creativity. Results indicate that creativity was influenced by the type of problem solved and the measure of creativity used to evaluate the solution. Further, these results were obtained after controlling for the effect of ability. Results imply that not all real-world …

Review Of Creative Leadership: Skills That Drive Change, Greg C. Ashley, Roni Reiter-Palmon

Psychology Faculty Publications

Reviews the book, "Creative leadership: Skills that drive change" by Gerard J. Puccio, Mary C. Murdock, and Marie Mance (2007). The introduction and opening chapter provide the overarching theme of the book, which is to connect the constructs of creativity and leadership and to make a case why the two go hand-in-hand. Both constructs involve dealing with change. The main focus of the book is the creative problem solving (CPS) approach to generating optimal problem solutions. Much of the book is spent illustrating the benefits of applying divergent and convergent thinking skills to each of the six process steps in …

Applications Of Multiple Regression In Psychological Research, Razia Azen, David Budescu

Psychology Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Does Unconscious Thought Outperform Conscious Thought On Complex Decisions? A Further Examination, Scott Andrew Withrow, Todd J. Thorsteinson

Psychology Faculty Publications

Two experiments examined the benefits of unconscious thought on complex decisions (Dijksterhuis, 2004). Experiment 1 attempted to replicate and extend past research by examining the effect of providing reasons prior to rating the options. Results indicated no significant differences between the conditions. Experiment 2 attempted to replicate the findings of Dijksterhuis, Bos, Nordgren, and van Baaren (2006) and determine if a memory aid could overcome the limitations of conscious thought on complex tasks. Results revealed that a memory aid improved decisions compared to the conscious thought condition. Participants in the unconscious thought condition did not perform significantly better than did …

Problem Identification And Construction: What Do We Know, What Is The Future?, Roni Reiter-Palmon, Erika J. Robinson

Psychology Faculty Publications

Many cognitive process theories of creativity include an initial process of problem identification, definition, and construction. Previous research suggests that problem identification and construction is related to creativity, and that creative individuals and experts tend to engage in problem identification and construction. Finally, previous research suggests that inducing active engagement in problem identification and construction, through instructions or training, facilitates creativity. In this paper we further offer our views regarding important future direction for researchers in this area. Specifically, issues regarding methodology, the relationship between personality and values and how problems are constructed, and problem identification and construction in teams …

A Randomized Controlled Trial Of The Shotblocker® For Children’S Immunization Distress, Jean E. Cobb, Lindsey L. Cohen

Psychology Faculty Publications

Objectives: Vaccinations protect children against deadly diseases and approximately 30 immunizations are recommended for children by 6 years of age. However, immunization injections cause negative short- and long-term consequences for children. The Gate Control Theory of Pain suggests that physical interventions (e.g., rubbing the site) may be helpful, but they are not well validated for children’s acute pain. This randomized trial examined the effectiveness of the ShotBlocker®, a physical intervention designed to decrease children’s injection pain.

Methods: Participants included 89 4- to 12-year-old children receiving immunizations at a pediatric practice. Participants were randomized to ShotBlocker®, placebo control, or typical care …

A Randomized Clinical Trial Of Vapocoolant For Pediatric Immunization Pain Relief, Lindsey L. Cohen, Jill E. Maclaren, Melissa Demore, Beverly Fortson, Abby Friedman, Crystal S. Lim, Balram Gangaram

Psychology Faculty Publications

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of the current study was to evaluate the effectiveness of vapocoolant for preschoolers’ immunization injection pain relief.

STUDY DESIGN: 57 4- to 6-year-old children were randomized to vapocoolant alone or typical care conditions. Pain was measured at baseline and at injection via self-report, caregiver-report, nurse-report, and an observational scale.

RESULTS: Self-report suggested that children in the vapocoolant alone condition demonstrated stronger increases in pain from baseline to injection than typical care. All other measures showed significant increases in pain from baseline to injection, but none indicted treatment effects.

CONCLUSIONS: Consistent with prior studies, vapocoolant might not be …

Behavioral Approaches For Infant Pain Relief, Naomi E. Joffe, Lindsey L. Cohen, Donald J. Bearden, Josie S. Welkom

Psychology Faculty Publications

Infants experience a host of painful medical procedures including heel sticks, venipuncture, and immunizations. Historically, little attention was given to infant pain management due to misconceived myths and beliefs about the experience and long-term effects of pain in infants. Recent data suggest that there are both short- and long-term negative repercussions associated with unmanaged infant pain. In response, a number of non-pharmacological approaches have been developed to provide infants with pain relief associated with medical events. This paper will review these behavioral approaches including positioning, parent training, distraction, sucrose, and skin-to-skin contact. Recommendations for best practices will be provided and …

Assessment Of Acute Pediatric Pain, Don J. Bearden, Lindsey L. Cohen, Josie Welkom, Naomi Joffe

Psychology Faculty Publications

Accurate assessment of acute pediatric pain can help dispel myths that children’s experience of pain is less severe than that of adults, aid medical staff and clinicians in accurately diagnosing and treating children’s pain, and allow researchers to investigate pain and its correlates. A range of measures have been developed to quantify children’s acute pain. In general, these assessment tools are either self-report, behavioral observation, or physiological. Although there are a number of psychometrically sound instruments in each of these areas, there continues to be room for improvement.

The Role Of Psychological Flexibility In Mental Health Stigma And Psychological Distress For The Stigmatizer, Akihiko Masuda, Matthew Price, Page L. Anderson, Stefan K. Schmertz, Martha R. Calamaras

Psychology Faculty Publications

Although the negative consequences of stigmatization on those with psychological disorders have been well-documented, little is known about the impact of stigmatization on individuals who report having such stigmatizing attitudes. The present set of studies first investigated whether there was a link between stigmatizing attitudes toward people with psychological disorders and one’s own level of psychological distress. In addition, psychological flexibility was explored as a possible facet of this relation. As predicted, results revealed that there was a significant positive correlation between mental health stigma and psychological distress. Furthermore, the results suggested that psychological flexibility may be a shared feature …

Psychological Approaches To Acute Pediatric Pain Management, Josie S. Welkon, Lindsey L. Cohen, Naomi E. Joffe, Donald J. Bearden

Psychology Faculty Publications

Children endure numerous acute painful events, most of which occur within the medical arena. For instance, by the time a child reaches the age of 6, the child will have experienced approximately 30 immunization injections (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2008). Grounded in the Gate Control Theory (Melzack & Wall, 1965), psychological methods of pain management have focused on anxiety and pain management via behavioral means. In addition, ample research has been devoted to how best to prepare children and their parents for upcoming painful or distress-provoking procedures (e.g., surgery, hospitalization, injection). This paper will review the preparation literature, …

Cebus Apella Tolerate Intermittent Unreliability In Human Experimenters, Sarah F. Brosnan, Frans B.M. De Waal

Psychology Faculty Publications

Monkeys form expectations for outcomes based on interactions with human experimenters. Not only do they anticipate receiving rewards which the experimenter indicates, but capuchin monkeys, a cooperative new world monkey species, apparently anticipate rewards based on what the experimenter has given to their partner. However, this could be due to subjects responding to either outcomes or experimenters. Here we examine whether capuchin monkeys will continue to interact with human experimenters who are occasionally unreliable. We tested ten monkeys with a series of familiar human experimenters using an exchange task. The experimenters had never before participated in exchange studies with these …

Trading Behavior Between Conspecifics In Chimpanzees, Pan Troglodytes, Sarah F. Brosnan, Michael J. Beran

Psychology Faculty Publications

Bartering of commodities between individuals is a hallmark of human behavior that is not commonly seen in other species. This is difficult to explain because barter is mutually beneficial, and appears to be within the cognitive capabilities of many species. It may be that other species do not recognize the gains of trade, or that they do not experience conditions (e.g., low risk) in which barter is most beneficial. To answer these questions, we instituted a systematic study of chimpanzees’ ability to barter with each other when doing so materially benefits them. Using tokens derived from symbols they have used …