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Picture-Word Differences In Memory Comparisons Involving Colour, Deborah Joan Stuart
Picture-Word Differences In Memory Comparisons Involving Colour, Deborah Joan Stuart
Digitized Theses
Picture-word differences in mental comparisons involving object colour were investigated. On each trial of Experiment 1, a colour was tachistoscopically presented beside either an uncoloured line drawing of an object or the object's name. Subjects indicated whether or not the colour differed from the object's real-life colour. The categorical structure of colour concepts was operationalized by using normative data so that the presented colours best exemplified basic and boundary (e.g., greenish blue) colour terms and were either from the same colour name category as the real-life colour of the object or from a different category. Also, perceptual distance between the …
An Examination Of The Persistence Of Kindling, A Model For Neural Plasticity, Zoe Dennison
An Examination Of The Persistence Of Kindling, A Model For Neural Plasticity, Zoe Dennison
Digitized Theses
The primary purpose of the experiments discussed here was to discover whether kindling is a permanent and stable state or a slowly eroding persistent state. In addition, questions concerning the relationship between retention and seizure generalization, site of stimulation, and stimulus characteristics were addressed. Experiment One results showed that a large part of the kindling effect was retained over the interval, but there was also a consistent degree of fallback seen when comparing the kindling manifestations just before the interval with those exhibited on the first rekindling session. The retention of the kindling effect was not dependent on the animal …
The Classification Of The Schizophrenias According To Symptomatology: A Two-Factor Model, Ian R. Nicholson
The Classification Of The Schizophrenias According To Symptomatology: A Two-Factor Model, Ian R. Nicholson
Digitized Theses
The purpose of this investigation was to examine a proposed two-factor model of schizophrenic symptomatology (Nicholson & Neufeld, in press). To achieve this aim, a semi-structured interview was administered to one hundred schizophrenic patients and a series of symptomatology scales were rated. Preliminary analysis indicated that these ratings were consistent with previous research in schizophrenia.;The item-level data from the scales was clustered to reduce redundancies in the large amount of data (95 schizophrenia variables) and 26 symptom clusters resulted. These symptom clusters were then rated and subsequently placed into four schizophrenia variable groups (paranoid, nonparanoid, positive, and negative). The four …
Finsting Multiple Places In The Visual Field: Evidence For Simultaneous Facilitation, Jacquelyn Ann Burkell
Finsting Multiple Places In The Visual Field: Evidence For Simultaneous Facilitation, Jacquelyn Ann Burkell
Digitized Theses
Indexing of multiple locations in a visual display was examined in the context of a selective search task. Subjects searched for a conjunctively defined target among subsets of display items randomly distributed throughout the display, identified only by their abrupt onset relative to other items in the display. Experiment 1 indicates that search is faster when observers search selectively over a subset of three display items (among a total of fifteen) indicated as potential target positions. Moreover, this result cannot be due to selective attention to one of the indicated items only, because search times are influenced by characteristics of …
Child Sexual Abuse And The Mother-Daughter Relationship: Moderating Effects, Patricia Anne Bourdeau
Child Sexual Abuse And The Mother-Daughter Relationship: Moderating Effects, Patricia Anne Bourdeau
Digitized Theses
The enormous variability of negative effects putatively resulting from childhood sexual abuse has prompted researchers to consider situational and environmental factors that may contribute to differential outcome. Because the clinical literature has traditionally focused on sexual abuse of female children, the relationship with nonoffending mothers is thought to play a crucial role in recovery. However, empirical evidence is sparse.;The present study investigated the moderating effects of mother-related variables in relation to features of child sexual abuse and subsequent maladjustment. Child adjustment was assessed by standardized measures, both parent- and child-report. Information about mothers' histories of childhood sexual abuse was obtained …
Polysemy Effects: Evidence For Dual Access Routes To Word Meanings, Yasushi Hino
Polysemy Effects: Evidence For Dual Access Routes To Word Meanings, Yasushi Hino
Digitized Theses
The effects of polysemy (number of meanings) and word frequency were examined in lexical decision and naming tasks. Polysemy effects were observed in both tasks. In the lexical decision task, polysemy was additive with frequency. Polysemy effects appeared for both high and low frequency words. In the naming task, however, polysemy effects interacted with frequency, with polysemy effects being limited to low frequency words. When degraded stimuli were used in both tasks, the interaction appeared not only in naming but also in lexical decision. When pronounceable nonwords were replaced by pseudohomophones in lexical decision tasks, however, polysemy was once again …
The Functional Basis Of Counterfactual Thinking, Neal Joseph Roese
The Functional Basis Of Counterfactual Thinking, Neal Joseph Roese
Digitized Theses
The functional role of counterfactual thoughts ("might have been" reconstructions of the past) was explored in three laboratory experiments. Specifically, counterfactual thoughts were posited to serve two possible functions: an affective function (feeling better) and a preparative function (preparing for the future via avoiding the recurrence of negative events). It is argued that counterfactuals as a generic class of cognitions generally serve these two functions, but that specific types of counterfactuals may in particular do so. Two dimensions are described alone which counterfactuals may be classified: direction (upward vs downward) and structure (additive vs subtractive). Upward counterfactuals focus on an …
The Impact Of Maltreatment On Children's Social Problem-Solving Abilities, Susan Kaye Wilson
The Impact Of Maltreatment On Children's Social Problem-Solving Abilities, Susan Kaye Wilson
Digitized Theses
Social problem solving is generally thought to involve five sequential steps. These steps include encoding, interpretation, response search, response evaluation, and response selection. Acquiring social problem solving skills is a critical aspect of normal child development. These skills are necessary for effective interpersonal interactions with the peers and adults in a child's environment. Family interactions are thought to play a central role in the development of children's social problem solving abilities. In families where the parent-child relationship is extremely dysfunctional, as in cases of maltreatment, the social problem solving abilities of children would then be expected to show some impairment. …
Behavioral, Electrophysiological, And Neuroanatomical Plasticity In The Rat, As A Result Of Complex Environment Housing, Eric Lynn Hargreaves
Behavioral, Electrophysiological, And Neuroanatomical Plasticity In The Rat, As A Result Of Complex Environment Housing, Eric Lynn Hargreaves
Digitized Theses
Long-term potentiation (LTP) is an electrophysiological phenomenon of neuroplasticity, whereby synaptic transmission of specific brain pathways become enhanced, or potentiated, after the delivery of a series of brief, high-frequency electrical trains. The increase in synaptic efficacy is of substantial duration, and therefore LTP has been likened to the theoretical reverberatory circuit that lead to permanent memory traces, as originally hypothesized by Hebb (1949). To further examine the direct relations between LTP and learning this thesis focused on the paradigm of complex environments, which have been shown to enhance learning, neocortical thickness, and hippocampal evoked potentials. It was decided to examine …
Pain And Adjustment In Hemophilia, Shara Lee Highgate
Pain And Adjustment In Hemophilia, Shara Lee Highgate
Digitized Theses
This study examined psychological factors associated with coping and adjustment in hemophilia, a chronic condition characterized by recurrent pain.;Mild (n = 23) and severe (n = 26) hemophiliacs were compared with rheumatoid arthritic (n = 22) patients and pain-free controls (n = 30) on personality, health beliefs, perceived social support, and experimental pain perception. Pain history, pain coping strategies and disability were compared among medical groups. Hemophiliacs' psychological functioning was within normal limits. Hemophiliacs and arthritics made similar attributions about health control from powerful others, despite hemophiliacs' stronger internality. Medical groups reported greater family support than did controls, but did …
A Behavioural Genetic Analysis Of Personality, Personality Disorder, The Environment, And The Search For Sources Of Nonshared Environmental Influences, Kerry Leslie Jang
A Behavioural Genetic Analysis Of Personality, Personality Disorder, The Environment, And The Search For Sources Of Nonshared Environmental Influences, Kerry Leslie Jang
Digitized Theses
A behaviour genetic analysis of personality, liability to personality disorder, and the general environment of siblings was conducted using a classic twin study design. A sample of 138 same-sex young adult twin pairs (89 monozygotic pairs, 49 dizygotic pairs) was used to estimate trait variance attributable to direct gene action (h{dollar}\sp2\sb{lcub}\rm A{rcub}{dollar}), shared environmental experiences (c{dollar}\sp2{dollar}), and nonshared environmental experiences (e{dollar}\sp2{dollar}). Paralleling previously published results, model-fitting heritability analyses of the Personality Research Form (PRF; Jackson, 1986), and the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory, (MMPI, Hathaway & McKinley, 1983) showed that additive genetic and nonshared environmental factors could satisfactorily account for the …
Multiple Maltreatment, Attribution Of Blame, And Adjustment Among Adolescents, Robin A. Mcgee
Multiple Maltreatment, Attribution Of Blame, And Adjustment Among Adolescents, Robin A. Mcgee
Digitized Theses
The present study had two purposes. First, it examined the combined and unique contribution of five maltreatment types to variance in adolescent adjustment (i.e., physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, neglect and exposure to family violence). In accordance with contemporary social learning theory (social cognitive theory), it was hypothesized that aggressive forms of maltreatment would predict externalizing problems, particularly for boys, whereas nonaggressive maltreatment would predict internalizing problems. Second, the study examined the predictive utility of blame attributions for maltreatment. Integrating the writings of several theorists regarding blame attribution, it was predicted that self-blame would mediate or moderate internalizing problems, …
The Consequences Of Low Birthweight, Ann L. Robson
The Consequences Of Low Birthweight, Ann L. Robson
Digitized Theses
An extensive literature investigating the consequences of low birthweight for childhood development has focused on group differences and the prediction of global cognitive outcomes. The purpose of this thesis was to identify factors that predict specific childhood outcomes and to consider explanatory models of the role of early medical risk for childhood language, motor and attention outcomes. Ninety low birthweight children participating in a prospective longitudinal study were assessed at {dollar}5{lcub}1\over2{rcub}{dollar} years of age. Although there were no consistent differences between within-sample medical risk subgroups on the childhood outcome measures, regression analyses demonstrated that both early medical risk and environmental …
Predicting Improvement In Psychiatric Patients: A Longitudinal Examination Of Personal And Environmental Factors, Susan M. Ruscher
Predicting Improvement In Psychiatric Patients: A Longitudinal Examination Of Personal And Environmental Factors, Susan M. Ruscher
Digitized Theses
The present study was designed to assess the six-month effects of stress, self-esteem, social competence, coping, social, and family support on the level of functioning and recovery status of 41 depressed and 43 nondepressed psychiatric inpatients. Diagnostic evaluations and level of functioning were based on DSM-III-R (A.P.A., 1987) criteria using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-III-R - Patient Version (SCID-P; Spitzer, Williams, Gibbon, & First, 1989). Patients were interviewed and completed self-report questionnaires assessing each of the psychosocial variables at three different times: shortly after hospital admission (Time 1), one (Time 2), and six months after discharge (Time 3).;At Time …
Judgments Of Resource Distributions: The Role Of Long-Term Outcomes, Carolyn L. Hafer
Judgments Of Resource Distributions: The Role Of Long-Term Outcomes, Carolyn L. Hafer
Digitized Theses
Equity theory (Adams, 1965; Walster, Berscheid, & Walster, 1976) proposes that people will perceive a distribution of resources as fair when each person in the relationship receives outcomes in proportion to his/her contributions. While equity appears to be a very important determinant of perceived fairness, inequitable distributions may also be judged fair (Deutsch, 1985). For this dissertation, it was hypothesized that many apparently inequitable distributions are seen as fair because the relationship is expected to be equitable eventually. In such a case, equity is still the underlying principle of distributive fairness, though, on the surface, people appear to be defining …
Cognitive Profiles Of Psychological Maladjustment, Henny Alice Westra
Cognitive Profiles Of Psychological Maladjustment, Henny Alice Westra
Digitized Theses
A review of the literature investigating various cognitive constructs across different maladjustment patterns indicated that, despite numerous cognitive similarities, the content domains to which cognitive processes apply may be one potentially important feature distinguishing various forms of psychological maladjustment. This proposal was empirically tested in a pilot study, in which irrational belief profiles were examined concurrently across four maladjustment patterns: depression, anxiety, the Type A behaviour pattern, and bulimia. Correlational data gathered from 63 introductory psychology students yielded data consistent with content specificity proposals.;Using a university undergraduate population, content specificity proposals were comprehensively investigated across four cognitive components: irrational beliefs, …
The Sexual Media: The Role Of Individual Differences, Anthony Francis Bogaert
The Sexual Media: The Role Of Individual Differences, Anthony Francis Bogaert
Digitized Theses
In two studies, an individual difference approach to understanding sexual media effects was pursued. In Study I, personality (e.g., intelligence, aggression) and individual difference (e.g., prior sexual experience) factors were assessed in a sample of undergraduate males. These males also indicated their preference for various forms of sexual media, including sexual stimuli with aggressive and nonaggressive content. As expected, individual differences were predictive of preferences for different sexual stimuli, with, for example, males lower in intelligence and higher in aggression preferring aggressive sexual stimuli. In Study II, similar personality constructs and individual differences, together with salivary testosterone (T), were assessed …