Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Feasibility And Preliminary Outcomes From A Pilot Study Of The Smile Curriculum For Mother-Infant Co-Occupational Engagement And Maternal Self-Efficacy, Emily Whitlock

Theses and Dissertations

OBJECTIVE: To report on the feasibility and preliminary outcomes from a pilot study of the SMILE curriculum, a new educational program designed to enhance the mother-infant relationship by focusing on improvement of co-occupational engagement within daily routines.

METHOD: Six mothers, each with an infant diagnosed with special medical needs who received services in a local birth-to-three program, participated in an exploratory design study. Each mother was assigned to a SMILE curriculum intervention group or a waiting-list control group. Mothers were evaluated pre- and post-intervention using the Perceived Maternal Parenting Self-Efficacy (PMP-SE) Scale for measurement of maternal self-efficacy and the Center …

A Comparison Of Attention Bias Paradigms Related To Insomnia, Nathaniel Maloney

Theses and Dissertations

Attentional bias to sleep related stimuli by poor sleepers has been reported as a factor in initiating and maintaining sleep disturbance. In this study, three paradigms (Flicker, Posner, and Stroop) were used in comparison to further investigate the role of attentional biases in Primary Insomnia. Participants (n=117) were split into good sleepers and poor sleepers using a median split with the Pittsburgh Insomnia Rating Scale (PIRS). Using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) as the covariate, two-way mixed modality ANCOVAs were conducted for each paradigm revealing no significant differences in word type, quality of sleep, or the interaction …

Spirituality And Alcohol Consumption In A General Population, Nicole Keenan

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the relationship between spirituality and alcohol consumption in a general population because spirituality is important when it comes to the treatment and continued recovery from addiction. In order to measure spirituality, we used three psychometrically tested measures; The Intrinsic Spirituality Scale, the Spiritual Intelligence Self Report Inventory, and the Spiritual Assessment Inventory. To measure alcohol consumption we utilized the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test. Results sustain the multidimensionality and overlap between spirituality and religion and the need for more complete definitions. Our findings support the buffering relationship between spirituality and alcohol consumption as well as a relationship …

Are Your Parents To Blame? Disentangling Temperament, Parenting Style, And Schemas In The Development Of Depressive Symptoms, Jenny Delorme

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined Jeffrey Young's Schema Theory (1990; 2003) and its influence in understanding the etiological factors related to depressive symptoms. It was hypothesized that there would be significant interactions between parenting and temperament traits. It was also hypothesized that The Defectiveness and Insufficient Self Control EMSs would mediate the relationship between the significant parenting/temperament interactions and depressive symptoms. Participants were administered the Young Schema Questionnaire Short form-3 to measure the endorsement of schemas; the Beck Depression Inventory to measure symptoms of depression; the Young Parenting Inventory to measure perceived parenting; and the Adult Temperament Questionnaire to measure temperament traits. …

Locus Of Control And Quality Of Life In Individuals With Schizotypy, Rachael Paulbeck

Theses and Dissertations

The present study collected data from 200 undergraduate students (106 male, 94 female) and sought to examine the relationship between levels of stress, cognitive processes related to stress management (Locus of Control- LOC; Sense of Coherence; SOC), and quality of life (QOL) across varying levels of risk for developing schizophrenia. Results indicated that high-risk individuals are significantly more likely to have an external locus of control (F=4.121, p=.018) supporting hypothesis 1. Counter to our second hypothesis, locus of control was not directly associated with QOL. However, LOC was correlated with both stress and level of risk for schizophrenia which (in …

The Freshman Experience, Stephanie Mannon

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this exploratory research was to investigate if change in sexual risk-taking behavior between high school and college can be predicted as a function of the interaction of person and situation traits. College, conceptualized as a backspace (situation) construct, and personality traits (sensation-seeking, neuroticism, extraversion) conducive to deviant behavior were examined. While significant risky behavior was reported for all students (n = 252), hierarchical regression analyses revealed that higher levels of the specified personality traits in combination with on-campus backspace residential status was not predictive of greater change in engagement in sexual risk-taking behavior. Implications for future research …

Content Analysis Of Cognitive Distortions In Pedophiles' Online Forum Posts, Lyndsie Johnson

Theses and Dissertations

Historically, sexual encounters between adults and children were rarely reported to authorities, and thus considered a rare problem. However, as many as 33% of girls and 14% of boys experience sexual encounters with adults and as a result may experience consequences such as aversive feelings regarding the act of sex, substance abuse, and self-mutilation. Such consequences lead research to examine pedophile's cognitive distortions. This exploratory study examined pedophiles' website forum posts to determine if any posters demonstrated cognitive distortions. Four independent raters used content analysis to determine which cognitive distortions were demonstrated by the examined pedophiles. Results suggested that cognitive …

An Exploratory Investigation Of Teacher Job Satisfaction And Involvement In Extracurricular Programming, Winfield Thompson

Theses and Dissertations

The purposes of this exploratory study were to (a) examine secondary teachers' overall job satisfaction and satisfaction specific to extracurricular programming involvement, (b) ascertain whether extracurricular involvement affects overall job satisfaction, and (c) identity the factors that are most influential over teachers' satisfaction specific to extracurricular involvement. A review of the existing literature presents factors previously implicated in affecting teacher job satisfaction. Extrapolations are made regarding the presence of these same factors in the extracurricular programming setting. To investigate these extrapolations, data was collected via secondary teachers' completion of the Extracurricular Programming Questionnaire, a survey developed by the principal researcher. …

Prevalence Of Secondary Traumatic Stress Among Disaster Relief Volunteers, Erica Ballard

Theses and Dissertations

Secondary Traumatic Stress is a stress response brought about by working with or having a close relationship with a person or population affected by a traumatic event. It has been found in doctors, nurses, social workers, psychologists, and aid workers. The purpose of this study was to further understand the prevalence of STS in disaster relief volunteers. Thirty-five former and current volunteers for various disaster relief organizations filled out a survey about their experience, the Secondary Traumatic Stress Scale and the Compassion Fatigue Scale-Revised. Out of 35 participants, 91% were found to have at least one symptom of STS or …