Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

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 …

Mass Incarceration In Detroit: A Historical Narrative, Labreonna \. Bland

Wayne State University Theses

Mass incarceration has pervaded throughout the country and in its wake, the United States is looked to as the country that imprisons the largest percentage of its population than any other place in the world. The phenomenon of mass incarceration continues to be deconstructed by scholars in an attempt to turn the tide and understand the various intricacies that lie at the center of our carceral state. This paper attempts to explore those intricacies on a local level by looking at Detroit, Michigan. The city of Detroit has been constantly restructured economically, politically, racially, and socially throughout the years as …

Conversations On Controversy: An Examination Of Internet Discussions On High-Profile Incidents Of Recorded Police Brutality, Brittany Nicole Jefferson

Wayne State University Theses

The purpose of this study is to examine the conversations that Internet user have when discussing publicized, recorded incidents of police brutality. This study examined the deaths of Tamir Rice, Eric Garner and Walter Scott and the subsequent discussions about the incidents on YouTube.com, MSNBC.com and NYTimes.com. This was accomplished by using an exploratory content analysis to establish what are the general topics of these discussions. This analysis found that there are 2 major themes that are discussed by Internet users when they comment; the content of the video and the social context of the incident itself. However, the popularity …

Detection Of Malingering In Bona Fide Traumatic Brain Injury And Simulated Traumatic Brain Injury: Combining Response Time With Pvt Accuracy Results, Robert John Kanser

Wayne State University Theses

Threats to performance validity test (PVT) security and utility have increased efforts to develop covert measures of performance validity. Response time (RT) is a promising covert measure to distinguish between honest and feigned performance; however, research investigating RT patterns on PVTs is sparse and troubled by methodological problems. This study examined the incremental utility of RT variables on a computerized version of the Test of Memory Malingering (TOMM-C) in distinguishing adults with verified traumatic brain injury (TBI) and healthy adults coached to feign neurocognitive impairment. Participants were 45 adults with moderate to severe TBI, 45 healthy adults coached to feign …

Ambivalence Over Emotional Expression, Social Constraints, And Trauma As Moderators Of Emotional Awareness And Expression Training And Relaxation Training For Individuals With Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Hannah Holmes

Wayne State University Theses

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a central sensitization gastrointestinal disorder that affects 10-15% of the population. Psychosocial factors, including stress, social support, emotional processes, and trauma, have been shown to play a role in the development of IBS and the severity of symptoms. Effect sizes for psychological treatments are modest, indicating individual differences in effectiveness. A subset of patients with IBS may benefit from Emotional Awareness and Expression Training (EAET), a novel intervention that encourages the awareness and expression of emotions. In this study, 106 participants with IBS were randomized into one of two interventions—Relaxation Training or EAET—or a Waitlist …

Workplace Aggression, Safety Performance, And Safety Outcomes, Mediated By Burnout And Moderated By Psychological Capital (Psycap), Daniel Wiegert

Wayne State University Theses

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that in 2013, there were over four thousand work-related fatalities and over 1.1 million workplace accidents, with a cost to organizations due to these losses estimated to be over 2 billion dollars. The purpose of the current study is to identify workplace aggression as an antecedent of safety behaviors (i.e., safety performance and workplace accidents and injuries (i.e., safety outcomes), along with burnout as a mediator. Additionally, Psychological Capital (PsyCap) was proposed as a moderator (buffer) of the hypothesized mediational relationships. The Job Demands-Resources Model Conservation of Resources, and Lazarus and Folkman’s (1987) Transactional …

Personality Trait Interactions With Narrator Empathy In A Brief Computerized Intervention, Jennifer Danielle Ellis

Wayne State University Theses

Computer-delivered, brief interventions (CDBIs) have been an increasingly popular way to treat substance use disorders; however, very few studies have examined which characteristics of CDBIs maximize intervention effectiveness. The literature has consistently demonstrated that therapist empathy is associated with reduced substance use; however, it is unclear whether this principal applies to CDBIs. Therefore, one aim of this study was to examine whether the presence of an empathic narrator increases motivation to reduce heavy drinking in a CDBI. A second aim was to examine whether an individual’s personality traits (empathy, psychopathy, and Big Five Traits) interact with treatment characteristics (specifically high …

The Effects Of Pain Interference On Exhaustion At Work And The Mediating Role Of Negative Affect: A Diary Study Of Workers With Chronic Pain, Zachary Fragoso

Wayne State University Theses

Chronic pain is prevalent, affecting an estimated 116 million Americans (Jensen & Turk, 2014), and it is one of the leading causes of work-related disability in the U.S. (Sprigg, Stride, Wall, Holman, & Smith, 2007). Therefore, pain interference at work is an important topic for organizational researchers, yet there is currently a lack of research in this area. Drawing on theory related workplace stress and the chronic pain literature, I proposed a model in which fluctuation in pain interference with work is related to negative affective responses, above and beyond daily fluctuations in pain severity, which, in turn, manifests in …

Anders Breivik And Elliot Rodger: Violence, Communication, And The Mediated Sphere., Walter Anthony Lucken Iv

Wayne State University Theses

The “mass shooting” has become a major hallmark of everyday news and discussions in mass media. Through the lens of two specific cases, this research situates the mass shooting within a few preexisting historical continuities and disciplines. The mass shooting is read as a communicative media event, and is considered from the perspective of mass media proliferation, political violence, discourse, semiotics, and turn of the century cultural antagonisms. The methods employed herein are textual analysis, rhetorical analysis, and post-Marxian models of historical causation.

The mass shooting is an outgrowth of global consolidation and proliferation of mass media. The mass shootings …

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 …