Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Gender Differences In Accurate Route Recall In Novice Drivers Using Landmarks In Electronic Maps, Kimberly K. Brantley

Master's Theses - Daytona Beach

Past literature has found a link between gender and accuracy of route recall in traditional paper maps using landmarks. Research also suggests that what is already known about wayfinding behavior in the physical world can be applied to computer-generated environments. The goal of this study is to merge these two conclusions to determine if gender and route recall differences remain constant for global, electronic maps. Analysis of gender by accuracy as measured by number of trials showed that males required fewer trials (M = 3.63) than females (M = 4.09), F (1,99) = 7.29, p < .05 and accuracy as measured by number of errors in trial 1 also showed that males had fewer errors (M = 3.33) than females (M = 4.09), F (1,99) = 5.79, p < .05. Analysis of landmarks by accuracy as measured by number of trials showed participants viewing Landmark High Maps required fewer trials (M = 3.64) than those viewing Landmark Low Maps (M = 4.12), F (1,99) = 7.68, p < .05. Accuracy as measured by number of errors in trial 1 showed participants viewing Landmark High Maps had fewer errors in trial 1 (M = 3.16) than those viewing Landmark Low Maps (M = 4.33), F (1,99) = 11.87.

The Effects Of Feedback, Goals, And Consequences On Response Time For Medical Staff In A Medical-Surgical Hospital Setting, Don K. Nielsen

Masters Theses

Organizational Behavior Management (OBM) has developed procedures useful in addressing a variety of organizational challenges. Frequently used components of OBM interventions include feedback, goal setting, and consequences. Literature on various combinations of these components is abundant but there are few reports of their use in the hospital setting. Specifically, no published studies were found that focus on response time of answering patient calls. The present study was an attempt to evaluate the effects of feedback, goals, and consequences on the latency of responses to patient calls. A multiple-baseline design across individuals was used in a hospital setting to evaluate the …

The Effects Of Individual And Group Incentives On High And Low Performance, Heather M. Mcgee

Masters Theses

This study examined the effects of individual and group monetary incentives on the performance of high and low performers. Participants were six college students who performed a computerized work task called SYNWIN. Participants earned points for correct responses and lost points for incorrect responses. The primary dependent variables were the total number of points earned per session and the percent correct per session. An ABAC within-subject reversal design was used, where A= individual incentives, B = group incentives (either high or low performance), and C = hourly pay.

The point scores of all six participants decreased when group incentives were …

The Practice Of Adoption: History, Trends, And Social Context, Amanda Baden, Kathy P. Zamostny, Karen M. O'Brien, Mary O'Leary Wiley

Department of Counseling Scholarship and Creative Works

This article presents an overview of the practice of adoption to counseling psychologists to promote clinical understanding of the adoption experience and to stimulate research on adoption. The article includes definitions of adoption terminology, important historical and legal developments for adoption, a summary of adoption statistics, conceptualizations of adoption experience, themes and trends in adoption outcome research related to adoptees and birthparents, and selected theoretical models of adoption. The importance of considering social context variables in adoption practice and research is emphasized.

Client Commitment Language During Motivational Interviewing Predicts Drug Use Outcomes, Paul Amrhein, William R. Miller, Carolina Yahne, Michael Palmer, Laura Fulcher

Department of Psychology Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Client language from a motivational interview (MI) and drug use outcome were investigated. Interview videotapes of 84 drug abusers were coded for frequency and strength of utterances expressing commitment, desire, ability, need, readiness, and reasons to change or maintain their habit. Cluster analysis of proportion days abstinent (PDA) revealed 3 groups: high PDA at intake and follow-up (3, 6, 9, 12 months; maintainers); low intake PDA/high follow-up PDA (changers); and low intake PDA/low to moderate follow-up PDA (stragglers). Distinct group patterns emerged for commitment strength (CS) during MI. Clients dishonest in checklist self-report exhibited CS similar to stragglers. CS for …

Time Course Of Loudness Recalibration: Implications For Loudness Enhancement, Yoav Arieh, Lawrence E. Marks

Department of Psychology Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Loudness recalibration, the effect of a relatively loud 2500-Hz recalibrating tone on the loudness of a relatively soft 2500-Hz target tone, was measured as a function of the interstimulus interval (ISI) between them. The loudness of the target tone, assessed by a 500-Hz comparison tone, declined when the ISI equaled or exceeded about 200 ms and leveled off at an ISI of about 700 ms. Notably, the target tone’s loudness did not change significantly at very short ISIs (<150 ms). The latter result is incompatible with the literature reporting loudness enhancement in this time window but is compatible with the suggestion made by Scharf, Buus, and Nieder [J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 112, 807–810 (2002)] that early measurements of enhancement were contaminated by the influence of the recalibrating tone on the comparison …

The Effect Of Age And Advice Accuracy On Compliance With Decision Support, Susan E. Vallance

Master's Theses - Daytona Beach

This thesis was designed to determine whether age or the accuracy of advice provided significantly effects compliance with a computerized decision support assistant. 48 participants in two groups, aged 20-40 (younger adults) and 41-69 (older adults), performed a monitoring/vigilance task intended to be similar to screening baggage with an X-ray monitor. A decision support assistant was provided to assist participants in choosing one out of four gray circles that had the most contrast with the background screen. Compliance with the decision support assistant's advice was then assessed. Results indicated that the level of advice accuracy did have a significant effect …

School Functioning And Violent Behavior Among Young Adolescents: A Contextual Analysis, Amanda Birnbaum, Leslie A. Lytle, Peter J. Hannan, David M. Murray, Cheryl L. Perry, Jean L. Foster

Department of Public Health Scholarship and Creative Works

This paper examines associations between overall school functioning and the frequency of violent behaviors among young adolescents (ages 10–14). The sample included 16 middle schools participating in an unrelated intervention study (on nutrition) in Minneapolis, Minnesota. A School Functioning Index developed to characterize schools’ overall stability, performance, and demographics was constructed using data from public archives and school administrator surveys. Data on violent behaviors and other variables were collected in student surveys in fall 1998 and spring 1999. We used multilevel modeling to assess the effect of school functioning on violent behavior after adjusting for known individual-level covariates of violent …

Using Behavioral Systems Analysis To Improve The Placement Service Of The Association For Behavior Analysis, Lori H. Miller

Dissertations

This dissertation demonstrated the use of behavioral systems analysis tools in the development of a useful service in a non-profit association. The purpose of this study was threefold: (1) to design a placement system that would add value to the field of behavior analysis by placing behavior analysts in appropriate jobs, internships, and graduate programs; (2) to develop a data collection infrastructure that would assist the Association for Behavior Analysis (ABA) in the assessment of the trends related to the human resources of the field; and (3) to advance the knowledge and methodology of behavioral systems analysis.

Six objectives were …

A Behavior Systems Analysis Approach To Designing A Hlgh-Impact Knowledge Management System, Jacalyn S. Smeltzer

Dissertations

Behavior systems analysis is an approach to designing and managing systems that incorporates the human-performance-technology model of systems analysis and considers the basic principles of behavior when analyzing causes of performance deficiencies and in selecting interventions to address those deficiencies. Behavior systems analysis focuses on three major conditions that influence behavior: (1) the motivation of the individual, (2) the immediate environmental cues, and (3) the consequences of behavior (Malott & Garcia, 1987; Suarez, 2001). The present study used behavior systems analysis to design a knowledge management system (independent variable) for a small business, a consulting firm in the employer-provided training …

Effects Of The Selective Dopamine D3 Receptor Antagonist, Nafadotride, On The Development Of Behavioral Sensitization To Cocaine, Yu Liu

Morehead State Theses and Dissertations

A thesis presented to the faculty of the College of Science and Technology at Morehead State University in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the Degree of Master of Arts by Yu Liu on April 3, 2003.

Strategy Uses And Study Time: Relationship With Memory Performance In Older Adults, Karen A. S. Doolittle

Master's Theses - Daytona Beach

The overall purpose of this study was to foster a greater understanding of age-related memory loss as it pertains to the aging workforce's ability to remain productive and effective in a time of complex change, and to recommend some adjustments that can be made to compensate for these memory declines. The specific intent of this current project was to test one premise of Ericsson and Chase's Skilled Memory Theory, namely that memory skill is a skill that can be developed through enhanced encoding and through practice. By introducing participants to the simple mnemonic strategy of chunking and by allowing two …

Situational Context And Personality Influences On Motor Performance: A Test Of Self-Determination Theory, Trena N. Thompson

Master's Theses - Daytona Beach

This research attempted to predict motor performance through consideration of an individual's personality orientation and the manipulation of motivation through priming a specified situational context. The effect of the personality orientation and situational prime on self-handicapping was also analyzed. Hypotheses were derived from key concepts of self-determination theory, specifically causality orientation theory, and previous work by Hodgins and colleagues (in press). The results of the study indicated that motor performance was not predicted by personality, situational prime, or the interaction of the two variables.

Identifying The Function Of Aberrant Behavior: Comparing Variations Of The Experimental Functional Analysis, Kathryn M. Potoczak

Dissertations

The advent of the experimental functional analysis has had a significant effect on the field of behavior analysis in shifting the focus from topography-based interventions for aberrant behavior to treatment based on function. The original method developed by Iwata, Dorsey, Slifer, Bauman, and Richman in 1982 utilized attention, demand, alone, and play conditions in a multielement design. Its effectiveness in determining the function of aberrant behavior using both antecedents and corresponding contingencies of reinforcement is well established, and it is the most prevalent method of functional assessment used today.

However, an alternative to the Iwata et al. (1982) procedure exists. …

Obedience To Authority As Obedience To Authority: Current Perspectives On The Milgram Paradigm, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

This article considers political implications of the Milgram obedience studies and of how these studies have fared in professional and lay discourse. A point of departure for the article is a volume edited by Thomas Blass on the studies.

Analysis Of Impulsive Behaviors Among Prison Inmates Convicted Of Violent Crimes, Inmates Convicted Of Non-Violent Crimes And Undergraduate College Students, Lonnie Kishpaugh Sr.

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Sudden explosive episodes of rage and human aggression by individuals occur daily in our society. While impulsive aggressive behavior is included in several established psychological disorders, the etiology of such behavior has been widely debated.

This study tested the hypotheses that prison inmates who have committed violent crimes were no more likely to exhibit impulsive behavior, than like numbers of prison inmates who had committed non-violent crimes, or college students who have no criminal record. Groups of 20 each of the respective populations were randomly administered the Kipnis Impulsiveness Scale in accordance with instructions from the manual.

With an alpha …

An Examination Of Perceived Stress And Coping Patterns Of Pastoral Wives In The Nigerian Union Mission Of The Seventh-Day Adventist Church, Olufunmilayo Janet Ola

Dissertations

Purpose of Study. Most studies examining stress and coping patterns of pastoral wives have been conducted from an advanced country background. Even though all the researchers agreed that these pastoral wives do experience a certain amount of stress, very little is known about pastoral wives in third-world countries who are faced with poverty, illiteracy, diseases and cultural restraints. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine perceived stress and coping patterns of pastoral wives of the Nigerian Union Mission of the Seventh-day Adventist church.

Methodology. A quantitative method of collecting data was used in this study. The two psychological …