Psychology Commons^™

Memory Consolidation In Developmental Disorders, Laszlo A. Erdodi

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

The relationship between memory and adaptive functioning was studied in sample of 268 children with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD, n = 83), autism spectrum disorder (ASD, n = 62), velo-cardio-facial syndrome (VCFS, n = 21), and low birth weight (LBW, n = 38) and neurotypicals (n = 64). Children with ASD and VCFS demonstrated a relative weakness in facial and visual memory, while no between-group differences were found during the auditory verbal learning task of the TOMAL. Learning curve analyses showed that after the first trial of the visual span test, all groups performed at the same level, but the …

The Relationship Between Adult Attachment And Trauma, Lauren Earls

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Prior research has suggested a complex relationship between childhood interpersonal traumas perpetrated by attachment figures and the experience of trauma in adulthood. Very little is known, however, about how various forms of childhood interpersonal abuse and neglect affect trauma sequelae and adult romantic attachment in women during the childbearing years. Using a sample of postpartum women (N = 104), this study examined the associations between a history of attachment-related traumas (operationalized as childhood interpersonal abuse and neglect) and complex trauma sequelae believed to be unique to victims of interpersonal traumas; the possible role that adult romantic attachment anxiety and avoidance …

Deconstructing The Time-Out: What Do Mothers Understand About A Common Disciplinary Procedure?, Amy K. Drayton

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Problem behavior is extremely common throughout childhood, and time-out (TO) is one of the most common disciplinary tactics used by parents to address problem behavior. However, despite the prevalence of use and five decades of research demonstrating the efficacy of time-out, parents rate time-out as one of the least useful behavior modification techniques. This discrepancy between parental opinion and empirical data may be due to the fact that all research conducted thus far has used adults highly trained in empirically-supported time-out procedures. No research has examined the degree of similarity between time-out conducted by untrained parents to empirically-supported time-out procedures. …

The Impact Of Prior Sexual Victimization And Victim Identification On Threat Recognition In A College Sample, Katherine Porter

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Previous research on sexual assault has demonstrated a pattern of revictimization, in which victims of childhood sexual assault are at an increased risk for adult sexual assault (e.g., Tjaden & Thoennes, 2000). Previous findings indicate that participants with a history of sexual assault take longer to identify and respond to risks (Marx et al., 2001; Soler-Baillo et al., 2005; Wilson et al., 1999), are less likely to respond in assertive ways (VanZile-Tamsen et al., 2005), and are more likely to indicate that they would be compliant in risky sexual situations (Naugle, 1999).

The present study attempted to replicate and expand …

The Influence Of Poverty On The Development And Maintenance Of Conduct Disorder And Perpetuation Of Crime And Violence, David Saunders-Scott

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Jamaica has one of the highest murder rates per capita in the world, as well as a high rate of other crimes. With this study, I examined how factors such as income, socialecological factors of poverty (S-E factors of poverty), and symptoms of conduct disorder (CD) were related to criminality in a sample of 79 male Jamaican parolees and probationers. Participants ranged in age from 18 to 74 years old and were all of African descent. I interviewed participants using the World Health Organization Composite International Diagnostic Interview (WHO-CIDI), a survey to assess S-E factors associated with poverty, and the …

Factors Contributing To Disability In A Chronic Low Back Pain Population: A Comprehensive Analysis Using Continuous Ambulatory Monitoring, Kevin N. Alschuler

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Disability in chronic low back pain patients has been established as a function of variables across three areas: pain, cognitive-behavioral variables, and social variables. New technology has improved the ability to accurately measure physical activity, a significant component of disability, through the use of actigraphy for real-time ambulatory monitoring. The current study assessed between and within patient changes in physical activity as a function of current pain, anticipated pain, pain sensitivity, depression, pain anxiety, catastrophizing, and significant others' responses. Time-series and ordinary least squares regression analyses of 20 participants revealed that patients change their physical activity based on both their …

Faith-Based Sexual Education: A Comparison Of Comprehensive And Abstinence-Only Programs, Leanna Fortunato

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

This study sought to evaluate the effects of faith-based sexual education programs. Participants (ages 13-18, N = 128) were surveyed regarding their religious and sexual attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors prior to completing a sexual education program at their church, synagogue, or religious institution and again after completing the program. The sexual education programs were divided into three groups based on program content and duration: abstinence-only-short, comprehensive-short, and comprehensive-long. The first goal was to assess the within-group effects of attending an abstinence-only or comprehensive sexual education program. Participants from all three groups showed an increase in the degree to which they …

Diagnostic Efficiency Of The Computerized Ptsd Scale – Multimedia Version (Cps-M) In Assessing Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, Jennifer Boss Mainka

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

The most commonly used interview for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS), a semi-structured interview patterned after the DSM-IV criteria (Blake et al., 1990). The Computerized PTSD Scale – Multimedia Version (CPS-M: Richard, Mayo, Bohn, Haynes, & Kolman, 1997) is a computerized interview that is modeled after the CAPS. This study examined how well the CPS-M agreed with the CAPS diagnostically in a clinical sample. Ninety veterans completed the test protocol consisting of paper-and-pencil measures, the CPS-M, and the CAPS interview. Correlations between the CAPS and CPS-M were high at the item, subscale, and full-scale levels. …