Psychology Commons^™

Housing Discrimination And Negative Attitudes Towards Ex-Offender Parents, Julie Wertheimer-Meier

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

While the Fair Housing Act prohibits housing discrimination because of race, gender, religion, sex, disability, family status, and national origin, it allows housing providers to discriminate on the basis of criminal history. Prior research shows that housing providers disproportionately deny housing to ex-offender applicants and single parent applicants with young children. An ex-offender parent’s inability to acquire safe and affordable housing decreases the potential for reunification with their children and increases the risk of lost custody or parental rights termination. This dissertation consisted of two experiments that examined the effects of negative attitudes towards ex-offender parents on those parents’ ability …

Adverse Childhood Experiences Among Adolescent Girls In Residential Treatment: Relationship With Trauma Symptoms, Substance Use, And Delinquency, Akemi E. Mii

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) refer to negative events during childhood or adolescence including abuse, maltreatment, and exposure to household dysfunction (Kalmakis & Chandler, 2014). ACEs are associated with negative outcomes including mental and behavioral health concerns and offending (Fox et al., 2015). The risk of negative outcomes associated with ACEs increases when an individual experiences polyvictimization (experiencing multiple types of adverse events; Felitti et al., 1998; Finkelhor et al., 2011). A majority of adolescents served by residential treatment programs (RTPs) have experienced polyvictimization (Briggs et al., 2013). Research examining juvenile offending and youth delinquency has focused on boys. Thus, research …

Constitutional Tension: The Role Of Framing, Regulatory Focus, And Anticipated Emotion When Establishment And Free Exercise Norms Collide, Katherine Kimble

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The conflict between establishment and free exercise norms regularly litters the media, particularly when religion is involved in areas of public life, such as schools, meetings, and displays on public property. Although the conflict is inherently psychological, no psychological research has yet delved into the issue. This dissertation reports on four studies that apply prospect theory, regulatory focus theory, and affective forecasting to explore the ways in which lay people perceive the establishment–free exercise tension. Prospect theory and regulatory focus theory offer competing hypotheses regarding the consideration of gains and losses related to each right and affective forecasting theory qualifies …

The Intersecting And Additive Nature Of Vulnerability: Dehumanizing Or Protecting?, Megan Berry-Cohen

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Recent research has examined how extra-legal factors such as emotions and stereotypes impact legal judgment decisions regarding traditionally vulnerable populations. Less work has explored not only what makes a group vulnerable, but how people perceive, interpret, and apply that vulnerability. The current research therefore integrates psychological theory and legal models to understand vulnerability and its implications. Three studies examined the roles of various factors, including dehumanization and empathy, in understanding how people respond to vulnerable individuals in general and then to women who have survived sexual violence.

In Experiment 1, I manipulated sex (female vs. male), age (older: 60 years …

Cognitive Effects Of Alcohol Use And Sleep Disruption In College Students, Taylor English

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Alcohol use and sleep disruption are highly prevalent amongst college students, yet their combined effects on cognitive functioning and subsequent classroom performance have not been fully examined. Alcohol use has been shown to negatively impact cognitive functioning, especially in college students without fully matured brain regions. This has led to decreases in academic functioning and increases in college dropout. Disruptions in sleep functioning can lead to both lapses in attention and an overall decrease in attention, which can negatively impact learning in a classroom environment.

Participants were 96 undergraduate students who were invited to participate based on responses from a …

Alcohol Use And History Of Traumatic Brain Injury In College Students: An Analysis Of Neuropsychological And Behavioral Factors, Jessie Tibbs

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Approximately 69,000,000 individuals sustain TBIs each year worldwide. Alcohol use is a known risk factor for TBI. Nearly 50% of individuals with TBI endorse binge drinking, alcohol-related negative consequences, or meet criteria for AUDs. One of the most pressing issues within the alcohol-TBI literature is predicting post-TBI alcohol-related problems, as this results in poorer recovery, rehabilitation, and functioning. Evidence for TBIs causing post-injury alcohol use in those without pre-injury problematic alcohol use is mixed; not all TBI survivors experience alcohol-related problems post-injury. Evidence is mounting that one of the most robust predictors of post-injury alcohol problems is childhood or adolescent …

Targeted Violence On Campus: A Comparison Of Exposure And Response To Bias And Otherwise Motivated Potential Pre-Incident Behavior On A College Campus, Kyle Siddoway

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Acts of targeted violence are of great concern to college administrators. Additionally, targeted violence motivated by bias (e.g., racism, sexism, homophobia, xenophobia, etc.) is occurring at an increasing rate on campuses across the country. Previous research has identified potential pre-incident behaviors which may serve as indicators that an individual is escalating towards violent action. However, very limited research has been conducted which examines pre-incident behaviors which occur in bias motivated violence or aggression. With an undergraduate population (n = 1342), this study utilized a survey asking about exposure and response to both otherwise and biased motivated potential pre-incident behaviors on …

Victim Or Offender? The Response To Sexually Exploited Minors, Taylor Petty

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Despite US Federal legislation mandating legal professionals treat anyone under the age of 18 involved in commercial sex acts as a victim and not an offender of prostitution, US States differ in their treatment of sexually exploited youth. One potential explanation for the differing treatment of sex trafficked youth could arise from the decision-makers emotional reaction towards these youth. Thus, I conducted two experiments to explore the impact of negative moral emotions on decisions involving child sex trafficking under varying case fact patterns. In Experiment 1, I manipulated youth sex, vulnerability background, and prior arrest history, and trafficker sex to …

Approaches For And Barriers To The Long-Term Execution Of A Recovery-Oriented Rehabilitation Model Of Treatment In A Community Day Psychiatric Rehabilitation Setting, Sarah Fischer

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This dissertation explores the process of creating, implementing, adapting and evaluating a program of care that is composed of specific program features that promote the acquisition of independent living skills, prosocial behavior, progress toward personal recovery goals, and more integrated community living. This program was created and implemented at a community mental health agency that provides integrated mental health care services for individuals with serious mental illness (SMI).

The goals of this dissertation were to (1) compare initial and long-term fidelity to the psychiatric rehabilitation model in order to establish the program’s ability to prevent drift, (2) explore the culture …

Individual Differences In Social Responsiveness, Social Experiences, And Oxytocin System Genetic Variation In Depression Symptom Severity, Grace Sullivan

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Social experiences including discrimination, low social support, and interpersonal conflict are reliable predictors of depression symptom severity (Costello, 1982; Monroe, Rohde, Seeley, & Lewinsohn, 1999; Phifer & Murrell, 1986). However, individual differences may buffer against or exacerbate risk (Pluess & Belsky, 2015). A more holistic and dimensional approach, in line with modern perspectives on mental health (Kircanski, LeMoult, Ordaz, & Gotlib, 2017), requires an investigation of individual differences that moderate associations of positive and negative social experiences with depression symptom severity. This dissertation assesses relative contributions of social experiences (low social support, discrimination, childhood trauma, and sexual objectification) to variation …

Development Of A Minority Stress Preventive Intervention For Sexual And Gender Minority Youth And Young Adults, Natalie Holt

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Mental health disparities amongst sexual and gender minority (SGM) individuals are spurred by exposure to minority stressors and sustained by mediators of problems with emotion regulation, social support, and cognitive processes. Emerging clinical research suggests empirically supported behavioral health treatments can be culturally adapted to address these mental health disparities, however less work has focused on the prevention of symptoms. The present study developed a brief preventive intervention targeting mediators of the minority stress model for SGM youth and young adults aged 17 to 26. Focus groups with 8 SGM participants informed development to ensure the content and delivery of …

Symptom Presentation Of Sexually Abused Youth: Associations With Abuse Attributions, Brittany Biles

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Child sexual abuse (CSA) outcomes are heterogeneous. Some victims display a combination of externalizing behaviors (e.g., aggression) and internalizing symptoms (e.g., depression), while others present with minimal symptoms (Domhardt, Munzer, Fegert, & Goldbeck, 2015). Among the factors that have been explored as relating to CSA outcomes are child characteristics (e.g., age; Dube et al., 2005), abuse-specific variables (e.g., abuse severity; Stroebel et al., 2012), and family variables (e.g., familial social support; Ryan, Kilmer, Cause, Watanabe, & Hoyt, 2000). Although much of the literature supports these factors as contributing to outcomes following CSA, conclusions have been inconsistent. Research has begun to …

Long-Term Behavioral Health Care Unbundled: The Impact Of Comorbidity And Aggression On Caregiver Strain And Service Costs For Individuals With Intellectual Disabilities, Kristine Tevis

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Individuals with intellectual disabilities represent a unique population with an array of needs. High rates of comorbid mental and physical health conditions as well as the presence of disruptive behaviors pose significant challenges to service providers and funding entities. Existing cost models may underestimate these specialized needs and limit access to required services. Through secondary analysis of archival health data from individuals with intellectual disabilities at one agency in Nebraska (N=73), the current study examines how individual characteristics and aggression influence cost and caregiver strain from a systems theory perspective. Bivariate comparisons revealed that more severe aggression and more frequent …

Creating A “Good” Olmstead Plan For People With Serious Mental Illness: An Empirical Evaluation Of The Legal Frameworks, Andrea Avila

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Olmstead v. L.C. ex rel Zimring (1999) was a landmark US Supreme Court decision holding that unjustified segregation of people with disabilities is impermissible discrimination; specifically, if the clinician and client believe community integration to be appropriate, the state must have reasonable accommodations in place for the client to be in the community. Enforcement of the Olmstead decision for people with serious mental illness has taken many shapes, from the DOJ’s settlement agreements requiring substantive development of community mental health services and aggressive community integration protocols, to the Third Circuit approach which requires only lower census numbers in the state …

Neurophysiological Alterations Following Concussion: Controlling For The Injury Factor, Caitlin Masterson

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The topic of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) has rapidly gained attention not only in academic science but also in popular media. Unlike severe traumatic brain injury, mTBI is difficult to diagnose. There are no objective diagnostic criteria, and symptoms can vary greatly across individuals. Further, although individuals with mTBI are frequently compared to non-injured individuals, it cannot be concluded with certainty that any differences found between groups can be attributed solely to the head injury and not a more general injury-factor. Identifying a sensitive and specific physiological signal across similar injury groups is critical to establishing a criterion that …

Increasing Students’ And New Professionals’ Knowledge Of Child Sexual Abuse Outcomes: An Evaluation Of An Online Intervention, Kate Theimer

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Following disclosure, support from professionals (e.g., mental health clinicians, social workers, health care providers, teachers) can help increase resiliency in youth who experience child sexual abuse (CSA). Particularly, those who respond compassionately and competently, believe and report the abuse, do not blame the victim, and increase the family’s protective factors are best suited to decrease negative outcomes. Yet, research shows that many professionals are not adequately prepared to support families due to insufficient knowledge and misinformed beliefs (Pelisoli, Herman, & Dell’Aglio, 2015). Moreover, few assessments measure knowledge specific to the aftermath of CSA and few interventions aim to increase professional …

Factors Associated With Return To A Child Advocacy Center For A Subsequent Sexual Abuse Allegation: A Longitudinal Analysis, Jessica Pogue

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Child sexual abuse is a widespread problem impacting substantial numbers of youth (Finkelhor, Shattuck, Turner, & Hamby, 2014). There are many factors that make telling someone about sexual abuse difficult for children, which can mean disclosures are delayed and children are at-risk longer. After initial victimization, there is increased risk for children to experience subsequent sexual abuse victimization (Pittenger, Pogue, & Hansen, 2018). Using the framework of Bronfenbrenner’s bioecological model, the present study examined predictors to distinguish children who are at the highest risk of returning to a Child Advocacy Center (CAC) for a subsequent sexual abuse referral. It also …

The Objectification Equation: How Objectifying Experiences Add Up To Subtract Women And Girls From Pursuing Stem, Abigail Rose Riemer

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Women have long been underrepresented within science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) domains. The present work proposed a novel integration of objectification theory (Fredrickson & Roberts, 1997) and the social cognitive theory of agency (Bandura, 1989) to explain why few young women pursue STEM educational goals. A pair of complementary in-lab and ecological momentary assessment studies with a female college student sample (Study 1) and female high school student sample (Study 2) tested the proposed model and examined the relations between objectifying experiences, self-objectification, and goals as they occurred in the moment using a smartphone application. As hypothesized, more experiences …

The Influence Of Father And Mother Involvement On Adolescent Internalizing And Externalizing Symptoms, Chelsie D. Temmen

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Although much research has highlighted the importance of parents to adolescent well-being, very little work has focused on father involvement. Pleck’s model of father involvement introduces a framework to examine fathers’ influences on development. This study investigated Pleck’s model of father involvement and its relevance to describing mother involvement, examined the relations between mother and father involvement and adolescent internalizing and externalizing symptoms, and explored the moderating role of adolescent gender on the relationships between mother and father involvement and adolescent internalizing and externalizing symptoms.

Data came from 52 intact heterosexual families where the mother, father, and adolescent child (ages …

The Role Of Visual And Verbal Processes In False Memory Susceptibility On The Misinformation Effect, John E. Kiat

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The goal of this dissertation is to investigate links between susceptibility to misinformation on the misinformation effect paradigm and individual differences in visual and verbal source monitoring ability. Results from four studies are reported. The first three studies assess links between individual differences in perceptual misinformation endorsement levels and visualization (Word-As-Picture) as well as verbalization (Picture-As-Word) errors on the memory test of a source monitoring task in which a set of objects were initially presented either as pictures or words during study. In Study 1, this picture-word source monitoring task and a misinformation effect paradigm, with a True/False test format, …

A Multifactorial Model Of Threat Assessment Activity Applied To Educational Settings, Maria Rosa Viñas-Racionero

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The current study proposed a multifactorial model of threat assessment activity(MFTA) in order to assess the effectiveness of threat management interventions for preventing problematic physical approach and violence in institutes of higher education (Scalora & Bulling, 2007; Scalora, Zimmerman, & Wells, 2008; Scalora, Plank, & Scheoneman, 2009). In order to answer this overarching goal, the current study analyzed a sample of 332 cases reported to a Police Department of a Midwestern University between 2006 and 2016. The MFTA model was statistically tested via a structural equation model. Overall, the results of this study suggested that the MFTA model provided …

How Can Teens Be Reasonable? Reasonable Expectations Of Privacy In The Digital Age, Lori A. Hoetger

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The Fourth Amendment only protects against government intrusions into spaces or information that receive a reasonable expectation of privacy—a subjective expectation of privacy that society is willing to recognize as reasonable (Katz v. United States, 1967). Judges are tasked with determining when a reasonable expectation of privacy exists. But as evidenced by justices’ confusion at oral arguments in recent Supreme Court cases, judges do not always fully grasp new technology. The current dissertation aims to guide courts attempting to navigate the new terrain of expectations of privacy in wired communications.

Scholars have expressed concern over the impact the ubiquity …

Cross-Cutting Mechanisms That Contribute To Developing Anxiety-Related Alcohol Use Problems Among College Students, Vincenzo Roma

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Drinking behaviors among college students have become problematic as evidenced by 20% of students who endorse five or more problems associated with alcohol use. Alcohol use problems are associated with numerous anxiety problems and can begin as early as young adolescence. The period for risk of developing emotional problems peaks during the transition to college. Despite the relationship between anxiety and alcohol use problems, little is known about the cross-cutting mechanisms that explain their relationship and comorbidity. Researchers have proposed affective (i.e. anxiety sensitivity and distress tolerance) and alcohol-specific motivations (i.e. expectancies, valuations, peer influence, and drinking motives) as vulnerabilities …

Ptsd And Dysfunctional Parenting: Emotional And Biological Mechanisms, Molly Franz

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Women are disproportionately at risk for developing PTSD following exposure to trauma. Among its many harmful effects, PTSD is associated with a range of negative family outcomes, including impairments in parenting behaviors. Despite the prevalence of PTSD and its impact on parenting, little is known about the mechanisms responsible for this association. The present project addressed this gap by examining the impact of PTSD on dysfunctional parenting behaviors in a lab setting. Based on prior theory and empirical evidence, I expected that a diagnosis of PTSD would be associated with more dysfunctional parenting (i.e., harsh/overreactive and lax/permissive behaviors) during routine …

The Wounded Warrior: Resilience Factors Minimizing Suicide Risk In Veterans With Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, Christina Hein

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Veterans experience high rates of both posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and suicidal behaviors when compared to the general public. Moreover, PTSD is a significant predictor of suicidal behavior among clinical and non-clinical adult populations. Joiner’s Interpersonal-Psychological Theory (IPT) of suicide (Joiner et al., 2005) identifies three etiological factors that greatly increase risk of suicide, with PTSD potentially increasing risk of suicide by exacerbating these three components of IPT. Conversely, prior work has also identified resilience factors that may serve to buffer against the risk of suicide, particularly by counteracting the three components of IPT. These resilience factors fall into primary …

The Development Of Case Conceptualization Ability In Clinical Psychology Graduate Students, Grant Shulman

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Case conceptualization is a core clinical skill across various schools of psychotherapy. Yet, surprisingly little research has examined how student therapists develop their case formulation abilities. The present study examined 110 conceptualizations written by 27 therapists throughout their graduate training. The majority of conceptualizations were collected during a student’s second or third year of clinical training. Conceptualization quality was measured with the Case Formulation Content Coding Method, and examined five primary aspects: Complexity, Precision of Language, Coherence, Multiculturalism, and Overall Quality. Additionally, the types of hypothesized mechanisms were recorded. Hierarchical linear modeling examined the contributions of time in training, previous …

Aging And Biases In Spatial Memory: A Dynamic Field Approach, Gregory J. Degirolamo

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Spatial cognition encompasses a wide variety of abilities and requires the interaction of several regions of the brain, including the hippocampus, striatum, and pre-frontal cortex (PFC). (Packard & McGaugh, 1996; Reuter-Lorenz et al., 2000). Given that these areas atrophy in later adulthood (Golomb et al., 1993; Raz et al., 2003; Aizenstein et al., 2006), it raises the question of how spatial cognition changes with age. It has been found that increased task complexity leads to an age-related decline in performance (Nagel et al., 2009). Other factors that lead to a decline in memory performance in older adults include whether the …

Predictors Of Return To Work After Multidisciplinary Rehabilitation Evaluation For Prolonged Post-Concussion Symptoms, Michelle C. Capozzoli

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Mild traumatic brain injuries (mTBI) comprise the majority of TBI’s sustained. For most individuals with mTBI, post-injury sequelae resolve within approximately three months after injury, yet a minority experience prolonged post-concussion symptoms (PCS) associated with poor long-term functioning, including inability to return to work (RTW). Research on RTW following mTBI has found moderate support for pre-injury and post-injury factors on employment outcomes, while injury factors have largely demonstrated a weak relationship. However, critical factors that may predict long-term outcome in mTBI are often not included in these studies, such as pre-morbid psychopathology, prior TBI, occupational decision-making latitude, litigation-seeking, and insurance …

Weapon-Involved Violence And Mental Illness: An Empirical Examination Of The Policy Assumptions For Firearm And Other Dangerous Weapon Prohibitions, Heath J. Hodges

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

High-profile incidents of weapon-involved violence have galvanized public outrage, legislative proposals, and executive orders concerning individuals with mental illness and weapon access, particularly firearms. A review of public surveys and policy polls reveals multiple assumptions about the relationship between mental illness and violence, which have informed firearm prohibitions aimed at the mentally ill. However, few of these assumptions have been empirically investigated. With community (n = 154) and forensic psychiatric samples (n = 80), this study utilized a series of questionnaires to assess policy opinions, psychopathic traits, experiences with firearms, and perpetration rates for weapon-involved violence. Mental health …

N400, P600, And Late Sustained Frontal Positivity Event-Related Brain Potentials Reflect Distinct Psycholinguistic Processes During The Comprehension Of Contextually Ambiguous Narrative Discourses: Implications For The Neural Organization Of The Language Processing System, Patrick S. Ledwidge

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Two studies were performed to investigate the temporal structure and organization of the language processing system during the comprehension of coherent contextually ambiguous narrative discourses. In Study 1, participants read short discourses that were contextually ambiguous if read without a descriptive title (Untitled group) or unambiguous with the title (Titled group). Participants identified the title of the discourses after reading 1-3 sentences. Given the unfinished next sentence, they performed a cloze procedure on the sentence-final word. For the Titled Group, cloze probability was greater to the last word of sentence 3 (Critical Word 3) than sentences 2 (Critical Word 2) …