Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

The Relationships Among Personality Traits, Food Consumption, And Anthropometrics In Healthy People, Chelsea Schwartz

Wayne State University Theses

Two out of three people are obese in the United States, but Western culture isn’t the only population suffering from obesity and comorbidities. Many factors contribute to this global epidemic and more recently various research suggests that personality traits can be used to predict eating behaviors. This study investigated the Big Five personality trait’s influence on food consumption to determine what traits contribute to healthy eating and what traits are susceptible to overeating and therefore, poor health consequences. The Big Five personality traits, anthropometric measures, and diet logs were used to assess 38 individuals for health-related behaviors and obesity-related risk …

A Patient-Centered Ethnographic Interview And Measurement Of Intelligibility In Spastic-Ataxic Dysarthria For People With Multiple Sclerosis, Courtney Marie Leppek

Wayne State University Theses

Multiple sclerosis (MS) produces neurological impairments that are variable in duration and severity, and that are unique to each case of MS. In addition to variability of symptoms, the length of the MS diagnostic process often affects quality of life. In this mixed qualitative and quantitative study, we used ethnographic interviews to investigate the underlying thoughts and feelings of two very different individuals with MS and Spastic-Ataxic Dysarthria. The results contribute to the understanding of MS as a multi-faceted condition that has implications that are both internal and external to the person with MS. Further, the results reflect the clinical …

Muslims In America: Religion And Identity, Gabriel Lotarski

Wayne State University Theses

Using data collected by Pew from the 2011 Muslim American Survey, this study examines the association between religious identity and American identity for Muslims within first and second-generations. The more self-reported religious influence, the more likely they are to identify as a Muslim first. In addition, the study finds that religious sect and nation of origin are predictors of primary identity. Muslim individuals belonging to the Sunni sect are more likely than Shia Muslims to identify themselves as Muslims first. This distinction may be due to the majority of Muslim followers worldwide identifying as Sunni. This positions Shia Muslims’ not …

Leadership: A Resource In The Workplace, Wyatt Edward Stahl

Wayne State University Theses

Leadership is an organizational component that has seen considerable interest in the I/O psychology literature. The current study aimed to expand on this literature by investigating the extent to which the relation between leadership style and strain outcomes varies based on employee social class. Participants were asked to complete a survey assessing leadership style of their supervisor, indicators of stress, indicators of work-related strain, and components of social class. Results suggested that individuals of lower social class experience higher levels of stress and strain. Additionally, individuals with leaders who are more transformational experience lower levels of stress and work-related strain. …

White Supremacy As Class Compromise: The Poverty Of Structural Racism As A Theoretical Paradigm, Cody Robert Melcher

Wayne State University Theses

In this thesis, I develop a theoretical frame through which the perpetuation of racial inequality in the United States can be fruitfully interpreted. This reconceptualization is necessary, I argue, because the now dominant paradigm of so-called “structural racism” is methodologically untenable. I contend that the seminal theoretical and empirical accounts within the paradigm do not provide compelling or methodologically sound explanations for the perpetuation of racial inequality, often (and disturbingly) ignoring the historical record of race relations in the US. Specifically, I show that these accounts rely on the dubious causal mechanisms of structural inertia or ideological racism. Where these …

Exploring The Characteristics And Motivations Of Undergraduates Who Sext, Mackenzie Boehler

Wayne State University Theses

ABSTRACT

IDENTIFYING THE MOTIVATIONS AND CHARACTERISTICS OF UNDERGRADUATES WHO SEXT

by

MACKENZIE BOEHLER

May 2017

Advisor: Dr. Matthew Larson

Major: Criminal Justice

Degree: Master of Science

In recent years, sexting has become a controversial topic among legal scholars and behavioral scientists. Research has displayed varying accounts of the prevalence of sexting among young adults and has yet to answer the question of why. This study seeks to understand the characteristics and motivations of young adults who are involved in sexting. A survey of sexting behaviors was administered online at a large urban university. Identifying the factors and influences for a …

Trends In The Community Supervision Population Of The United States: An Analysis Of Race, Gender, And Region's Effect On Probation And Parole, Patricia Bynum

Wayne State University Theses

Past research noted that the community supervision population of the United States has grown at a rate comparable to the incarcerated population. The two-fold purpose of this study was to describe the trend of growth for the community supervision population of the United States at the state- and national-level from 1990-2010, and to quantitatively examine whether race, gender, or region influenced the ratio of individuals under community supervision over incarceration by state. Data were collected from the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) database from four different publications for all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Data were prepared in …

The Relationship Of Assimilation On The Health Behaviors, Health Beliefs, And Use Of Health Care Services Of The Samoan Immigrants In The United States, Miliama Bracken

Wayne State University Theses

This study accepts the null hypothesis that there is no relationship between assimilation and the health behaviors, health beliefs, and use of health care services of the Samoan immigrants in the United States. The target population included Samoans who immigrated from Samoa or American Samoa and were 18 or more years of age. A total of 150 questionnaires were distributed and 126 respondents were included in the study. The respondents were asked how often they visited the doctor during the year. Would they seek the help of a medical doctor if they were sick, or a Samoan healer? They were …

Efficacy Of A Structured Free Recall Intervention To Improve Rating Quality In Performance Evaluations, Maximum Mgrdich-Ararat Sirabian

Wayne State University Theses

This experiment investigated the effects of a rater training on halo errors and accuracy during performance evaluations. 408 participants were randomly assigned to three groups (n=136) where they were either presented with a structured free recall intervention (SFRI), frame of reference training (FoRT), or no training. The purpose of this study was to further investigate the efficacy of SFRI against prominent training methods and no training at all. Results were not significant, and did not support previous finding in the literature. Further explanations are offered and a discussion is presented as to why these results were obtained.

The Influence Of The Physical Workspace On Creative Performance: Alternative Mediation Models, Reed James Bramble

Wayne State University Theses

The present study assessed how individuals respond to stimuli in their immediate work environment. Specifically, I conducted a laboratory experiment with a student sample to test the influence of natural stimuli in the workspace on individuals’ creative performance. Additionally, I tested a series of potential mediating variables that could have driven the effect: state positive affect, state openness to experience, and self-regulation of effort. While the results indicated that the hypotheses were broadly unsupported, supplemental analyses revealed that the intervention significantly predicted effort regulation in a high-performing subgroup. Study limitations and recommendations for future directions are discussed.

The Implementation Of Body Worn Cameras: Lessons Learned The Case Of Detroit Police Department, Toycia Collins

Wayne State University Theses

The level of mistrust between citizens and the police continues to have serious implications for police legitimacy. Police legitimacy is an important phenomenon that must be preserved, since it forms the very foundation of police authority. The intricates surrounding police/citizen mistrust is further compounded in this era of citizen journalism, where the increasing availability of cellphones and varying social media platforms, have given rise to the ability to share the captured footages with a wider audience. In 2014, then president, Barack Obama proposed a compromise to bridge the gap between citizens and the police. This compromise came in the form …

The Relation Between Parenting Daily Hassles And Child Behavior Problems Among Low-Income Families: Examining The Role Of Caregiver Positive Expressiveness, Shawna Tanner

Wayne State University Theses

Examined was the role of caregiver positive expressiveness (PE) in the relation between parenting stress and change in child adjustment from preschool to early elementary in a low-income sample. Participants included 133 caregiver-child dyads who participated in a laboratory task and completed measures on parenting daily hassles (PDH), depressive symptoms and child problem behaviors when children were in preschool; and 98 who returned when the children were in elementary. Observed caregiver PE was coded from a videotaped family drawing task. The moderated regression analysis did not support the hypothesis that caregiver PE was a protective factor, attenuating the relation between …

Mental Health Service Utilization Among At-Risk Urban Adolescents: The Relative Contributions Of Perceived Need, Attitude, And Spirituality/Religiosity, Yi Tak Tsang

Wayne State University Theses

Adolescence has been described as “a time of storm and stress” (Arnett, 1999; Hall, 1904). In fact, a national survey in the United States estimated that adolescents were twice as likely than adults to report at least one major depressive episode in the past 12 months (Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality, 2016). In particular, adolescents who are poor, who belong to ethnic minority groups, and who live in urban neighborhoods are more vulnerable to mood and behavioral symptoms than their White/Caucasian counterparts who grow up in relatively affluent suburban and rural areas (Beyers, Bates, Pettit, & Dodge, 2003; …

The Bidirectional Relationship Between Mothers And Their Infants: A Study Of Dyads Using The Still-Face Paradigm, Jordan Lynne Boeve

Wayne State University Theses

The central goal of this study was to describe maternal, infant, and dyadic contributions to mother-infant interaction processes at 7 months postpartum; i.e., how both mother and infant contribute to the quality of the interaction, in an understudied mostly low-income, African American sample. Eighty-five mothers and their 7-month-old infants participated. Dyads were videotaped during the Still-Face Paradigm (SFP) to analyze how a social stressor (maternal still-face) affects infant reactivity and mother-infant social interaction processes. The SFP includes 3 successive 2-minute episodes: normal play (baseline), maternal still-face, during which the mother holds a neutral, expressionless face, and resumption of normal play …

I Feel Your Pain: The Influence Of Pain Catastrophizing And Perceived Threat On Pain Severity Congruence In Couples, Shannon Clark

Wayne State University Theses

I FEEL YOUR PAIN: THE INFLUENCE OF PAIN CATASTROPHIZING AND PERCEIVED THREAT ON PAIN SEVERITY CONGRUENCE IN COUPLES by

SHANNON CLARK August 2016

Advisor: Dr. Annmarie Cano Major: Psychology

Degree: Master of Arts

The present study examines the extent to which partners were congruent on multiple ratings of participants’ pain severity during a cold pressor task and how pain catastrophizing and perceived threat may moderate participant-partner congruence over time. Undergraduate couples in a romantic relationship (N = 106 dyads) participated in the study. Both partners rated the participant’s pain in writing several times over the course of the task; thus, …

A Randomized Trial Of Implementation Intention And Industriousness Training For Exercise Initiation And Maintenance, Phuong Thi Vo

Wayne State University Theses

The current study tested the utility of a personality-informed approach combined with implementation intention formation to increase exercise initiation and maintenance. Participants (N = 221) were randomized to one of three research conditions and participated in a baseline psycho-educational group session. Participants returned individually for 3-week and 2-month follow ups. There were no statistically significant differences found among participants with regard to step rate at the end of the 3-week tracking period. However, effect size calculations at the 2-month follow up indicated that participants in the industriousness group showed the most increase in their exercise and industriousness levels while participants …

The City Is Black, Black Is The City: Exploring The Intersections Of Race And Stratification Beliefs On Policy Preferences, Randall Rashad Wyatt

Wayne State University Theses

This paper examines the association between race blame attitudes with support for policies aimed at improving the nation’s large cities among White and Black Americans. Although legislative safeguards protect the constitutional rights of all Americans, Blacks trail Whites on nearly all quality of life indicators. By extension, the quality of life within cities with disproportionate and segregated Black populations is decidedly worse than in other cities. That said, the current study largely finds that black and white Americans maintain different motivations for supporting increased or decreased funding for large urban American cities, which often serves as a code word for …

The Mental Health And Medication Experiences Of Youth In Foster Care, Caitlin Waters

Wayne State University Theses

Nearly half of children in the child welfare system have clinically significant emotional or behavioral issues (Bums et al., 2004; Leslie et al.,2004), and are medicated at higher rates than their non-foster peers (e.g. Leslie et al., 2011; Zito et al.,2003). Research shows prescription of multiple medications is also a common occurrence in foster care. The proposed study seeks to answer the question: what are foster care youth’s mental health and medication use while in placement? This research employs a quantitative descriptive study to examine medication and conduct reports for foster youth in a residential placement. Findings suggest there is …

Analgesia Followed By Long-Term Hyperalgesia Generated By Disinhibition Of The Basolateral Amygdala, Derek Atchley

Wayne State University Theses

Stress produces bimodal effects on pain peception. During exposure to a stressor pain responses are inibited (i.e. stress-induced analgesia). However, following long-term exposure to a stressor increases in responsiveness to painful stimuli may develop (i.e. stress-induced hyperalgesia). Here I evaluated how a key component of the subcortical defense circuit and target of stress hormones contributes to the development of both stress-induced analgesia and hyperalgesia. Bicuculline methiodide, a GABAA antagonist, injected into the basolateral amygdala was used to mimic the neural effects of a stressor or threat exposure. Immediately following injection pain responsiveness was decreased as measured by vocalizations after discharge …

"Treat Everybody Right:" Multidimensional Foodways In Detroit, Alex B. Hill

Wayne State University Theses

Detroit is assumed to be a “food desert” even with contradicting evidence. With fruits and vegetables available at each of Detroit’s 70+ independent grocery stores, there remains a lack of understanding in consumer preference and perception of nutritional access. It was reported in 2010 that upwards of $200 million in grocery spending leaves the City of Detroit. Throughout the months of July to September 2014, 73 Detroit residents participated in focus groups and group interviews to discuss food purchasing habits and perceptions of food access. Of the 73 participants, 51 completed a Food Purchasing and Eating Patterns (FPEP) survey which …

Are Our Values Being Measured Adequately? Creation Of A More Comprhensive Work Values Scale, Daniel Ryan Krenn

Wayne State University Theses

Personal values are essential components in organizational climate and culture, leader-follower relationships, as well as other variables frequently investigated in I/O and management. Even though understanding values is vital to organizational research, the scales that assess these constructs have many problems. Depending on the scale that is used, the value taxonomy may vary significantly. There are also problems with the measurement of these values. Some scales assess the degree to which each value is important individually. Other values scales assess the order of importance of values. However, no scale has been created that assesses the extent of importance and the …

Crossing The Troll Bridge - The Framing Of Fat Bodies On Social Media, Amanda Levitt

Wayne State University Theses

As the use of social media grows, cyber bullying and trolling plague the way that people interact online. Even within spaces specifically dedicated to deconstructing dominant discourse around fatness, cyber bullying is an everyday occurrence. Data for this research came from a randomly selected sample of 500 messages sent to moderators of This is Thin Privilege, a Tumblr blog that explores and critiques the experiences of fat people in society. This study contributes to the growing body of literature on online communication by analyzing how commenters’ messages construct fatness and reify dominant narratives, the common tactics commenter’s use, and the …

Recording Of Custodial Interrogations: Policies And Practices, Laura Rubino

Wayne State University Theses

Within the last century, interrogation practices throughout the United States have notably changed. Police interrogations went from physical harm (i.e., the third degree) to psychologically suggestive techniques. These psychologically coercive techniques put suspects at risk of giving a false confession, which is one of the contributing factors in wrongful convictions. One remedy to reduce false confessions is to electronically record interrogations. Very little is known about the specific policies and practices of electronic recordings during interrogation within law enforcement agencies. Policies and practices vary by state and by agency, which makes it difficult to identify agencies that do electronically record …

Hobbies And Organized Activities: Correlates Of Participation And Relations With Psychosocial Adjustment Among Young Adolescent Girls, Davia Steinberg Steinberg

Wayne State University Theses

Recent research has linked participation in organized activities to better psychosocial adjustment in youth including academic achievement, increased peer competence, and better mental health (Fredricks & Eccles, 2006). Although such benefits have been reported among youth from various ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds, lower-income and ethnic minority youth have less access to organized activities (Quane & Rankin, 2006). The current study is among the first to explore whether more accessible forms of activity engagement, hobbies, confer similar benefits. I examine involvement in organized activities and hobbies among a sample of urban, mostly African American (73%) youth.

Results indicate that hobbies represent …

Outsourcing Self-Regulation: A Direct Replication, Julia Leah Briskin

Wayne State University Theses

This paper examines health and fitness goal pursuit from a social psychological perspective, and the question of how outsourcing self-regulation influences goal-relevant behavioral intentions for members of romantic couples is addressed. A direct, preregistered replication study of the sole outsourcing self-regulation paper (Fitzsimons & Finkel, 2011) was conducted. In three replication studies, participants’ “perceived partner instrumentality” was manipulated, and in Study one (N = 210) and Study three (N = 293), planned health goal pursuit was assessed as the dependent variable; in Study two (N = 316), procrastination time on an entertaining task was used as a measure of self-regulatory …

African Americans And The Communication Of Religious Exit, William P. Cooper

Wayne State University Theses

This exploratory study investigates Christian disaffiliation, or deconversion, in a sample of African American ex-Christians living in the metro-Detroit area. The data obtained from 15 interviews were used to address the following research questions: (1) How do participants recall the religious socialization process? (2) What are some catalysts for African Americans disaffiliating from their former Christian denominations? (3) How does the Christian disaffiliation process unfold communicatively for African-Americans? Specifically, did participants utilize any strategies of SMC in their communication of exit? Jablin’s (2001) Model of Organizational Exit and Meisenbach’s (2010) Stigma Management Communication Strategy Typology were used as theoretical frameworks. …

Development Of A Financial Decision-Making Self-Efficacy Measure For Older Adults, Evan Gross

Wayne State University Theses

Financial decision-making is important for older adults, and many are at increased risk for elder financial exploitation due to a combination of biological, social, and psychological factors. The role of self-efficacy for financial decision-making in this population has received little attention from researchers, but evidence suggests it may be a critical aspect in motivating positive decisions and avoiding exploitation. This study developed the Financial Decision-Making Self-Efficacy Scale (FDMSES) for older adults. Participants (N = 200, mean age = 71.5) completed the Lichtenberg Financial Decision-Making Rating Scale (LFDRS) and a neuropsychological test battery. Items from the LFDRS related to financial decision-making …

Does Justice Exist?: An Examination Of The Association Between Race And Perceptions Of The Criminal Justice System., Catina Antionette Polk

Wayne State University Theses

This paper examines the association between race and perceptions of trust in the criminal justice system amongst five different racial groups. Sociologists have diligently worked towards determining the effects of race, on court decisions, because (1) it is an important social issue, (2) it is widely considered a testing ground for propositions derived from conflict theory, and (3) the research literature is laced with contradictory findings and conclusions (Unnever et al. 1980). The present study will determine if there is a disconnection between minority groups and the criminal justice system. Furthermore, it will discover if "blackness" alone is the factor …

The Frame Game: An Examination Of How The Local Print Media Framed The Issue Of Pension And Health Care Costs In Detroit's Municipal Bankruptcy, Robin West Smith

Wayne State University Theses

Scholars suggest understanding media theory and media sociology are instrumental when discussing the question of media power. Most of the empirical work done in this area has centered on the “objective-functionalist paradigm” (McQuail, 1985). The purpose of this study is to explore how two urban local print media outlets framed a group of stakeholders, the pensioners, and the broken promise of the pension and healthcare benefits, during Detroit’s municipal bankruptcy. I conducted a content analysis of Detroit News and Detroit Free Press news articles for the period from August 2013 to July 2014, focusing primarily on thirty (30) key dates …

Episodic Memory, Hippocampal Volume, And Effects Of Premature Birth In Young Children, Dana Marie Anderson

Wayne State University Theses

The hippocampus is essential for episodic memory. Preterm birth is associated both with deficits in episodic memory and with alteration on hippocampal structure; however, the effect of term status on the relation between episodic memory and hippocampal volume (HCV) is unclear. We studied the potential of a latent construct of episodic memory as well as the relation between episodic memory and HCV in full-term and preterm born children (ages 5-6). The individual episodic memory measures separated into different components based on the level of association and decision that was required for the tasks. The composite scores were not significantly correlated …