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Full-Text Articles in Psychology
Using Appropriateness Measurement To Detect Realistic Faking Of Personality Tests, Brian Holt
Using Appropriateness Measurement To Detect Realistic Faking Of Personality Tests, Brian Holt
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
Research has shown that personality tests are susceptible to faking and that test takers do indeed take advantage of this vulnerability. This faking creates a problem when organizations use personality tests as screening tools for candidates for employment. Among the methods available to detect faking, appropriateness measurement (i.e., examining how well a pattern of responses fit item characteristics) has not been thoroughly investigated. The present study examines whether the two most popular appropriateness indices, Z3 and F2, are capable of detecting response distortion among test takers instructed to answer honestly versus fake. The groups demonstrated differences between overall mean scores, …
Analysis Of Zebrafish Optic Tectum Visual Processing Before And After Optic Nerve Crush, Angela Mcdowell
Analysis Of Zebrafish Optic Tectum Visual Processing Before And After Optic Nerve Crush, Angela Mcdowell
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
The visual system processes information at various levels. Initial processing takes place in the retina, which then sends information to the optic tectum, the first visual brain center in lower vertebrates, for further processing. There were two main goals of this study. The first goal was to obtain tectal evoked responses (TER) from adult zebrafish and to compare them to previous electroretinogram (ERG) spectral sensitivity data (Bilotta & Harrison, 1999). The second purpose of this study was to examine neural regeneration in the adult zebrafish at various times post-crush and to compare visual processing of these subjects to the normal …
The Role Of Implicit Racial Attitudes And Universal Orientation In Cross-Racial Face Recognition, Gordon Campbell
The Role Of Implicit Racial Attitudes And Universal Orientation In Cross-Racial Face Recognition, Gordon Campbell
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
The "other-race" effect refers to the common observation that individuals are better at remembering faces of their own race than faces of another race. The relevance of the "other-race" effect to social interaction between people of different races and eyewitness identification of criminal suspects has spurred much research into uncovering the nature of the asymmetry between recognition of own- and otherrace faces. So far, however, many attempts to consistently demonstrate factors that contribute to the "other-race" effect have failed. One of the factors that may play a role in the "other-race" effect, but has yet to be shown to do …
Reading Mastery Versus Word Study Instruction As It Pertains To Third Graders' Reading Achievement Scores, Mia Sullivan
Reading Mastery Versus Word Study Instruction As It Pertains To Third Graders' Reading Achievement Scores, Mia Sullivan
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
This study was conducted in order to compare two phonics-based approaches to teaching reading. The two approaches were Reading Mastery (SRA Macmillan/McGraw-Hill, 1995) and Word Study (Bear et al. 1996). While Reading Mastery has been compared to other reading methods to examine the effectiveness of instruction with reading achievement measures, there are no studies that compare Word Study to other methods of reading instruction. The purpose of the present study was to compare Reading Mastery and Word Study instruction groups in terms of reading achievement scores. This study included 36 third grade students, 18 in each group. All students were …
Three Factors That Contribute To College Students' Acceptance And Tolerance Of Diversity: Religiosity, Moral Reasoning And Attributional Complexity, Tara Clemons
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
The responsibilities of teachers today include not only teaching academics but often include teaching about acceptance, diversity, and societal values as well. This study proposes that several factors, which may be involved in this teacher role of acceptance and tolerance of diversity, are connected—including the teacher's level of moral reasoning, attributional complexity, and religiosity. Subjects included 181 teacher education majors at Western Kentucky University. The subjects completed the Defining Issues Test, Attributional Complexity Scale, general diversity survey, and a measure of religiosity. Findings include a significant correlation between the level of attributional complexity and moral reasoning and attributional complexity as …
Behaviorally Disruptive Children's Reasoning About The Emotional Consequences Of Victimization, Kim Van Zee
Behaviorally Disruptive Children's Reasoning About The Emotional Consequences Of Victimization, Kim Van Zee
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
A sample of 58, 6 to 12 year-old children drawn from admissions to a local psychiatric hospital were read stories depicting acts of victimization and questioned about how both victims and victimizers would be feeling. Participants were randomly assigned to either imagine themselves as victimizers in the stories, or victimizers were presented as hypothetical characters. Acts of both physical and psychological harm were portrayed in which the victimizer either obtained a tangible gain or no gain was received. Children in the self-as-victimizer condition attributed fewer positive emotions and gave more moral rationales than did children in the hypothetical condition who …
Social Intelligence: Social Skills Competence And Emotional Intelligence In Gifted Adolescents, Lisa Corso
Social Intelligence: Social Skills Competence And Emotional Intelligence In Gifted Adolescents, Lisa Corso
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
Two schools of thought diverge into an ongoing debate as regards to the social intelligence of gifted youth. One view holds that the gifted are often maladjusted (Chronbach, 1960; Hollingworth, 1942). The contrary view is that they are more likely to be well adjusted, with overall above average social and emotional intelligence (Allen, 2000; Chesser, 2001; Kihlstrom & Cantor, 2000; Neihart, 1999). The current research is consistent with views supporting enhanced overall social and emotional intelligence of gifted youth. Some researchers have argued that emotional intelligence and social skills competence are subsets of social intelligence (Chesser, 2000; Greenspan, 1979; Kihlstrom …
The Viability Of The Implicit Association Test Applied To Attitudes Toward Individuals With Disabilities And Measurement Of Coworker Attitudes Toward Individuals With A Disability, Andrea Doyle
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
Attitudes toward individuals with disabilities were examined using two different methods: (a) the Implicit Association Test assessing general implicit attitudes and (b) a vignette study assessing coworker attitudes. The Implicit Association Test was used in an attempt to replicate Tringo's Hierarchy of Preference using five exemplar disabilities: (a) Cancer, (b) Paraplegic, (c) Mental Illness, (d) Alcoholic, and (e) HIV Positive. The results did not support a replication of the Hierarchy of Preference. Three dimensions of disabilities were manipulated for the vignette study. These dimensions were the overtness of the disability, the level of risk associated with the disability, and response …
Children's Understanding Of Racial Classifications As A Function Of Their Knowledge Of Inheritance, Jason Glerum
Children's Understanding Of Racial Classifications As A Function Of Their Knowledge Of Inheritance, Jason Glerum
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
Many studies have examined how children categorize various objects but few studies have looked at how children categorize race. Research shows that adults tend to essentialize race; that is, they treat race as a natural kind (Madole, Keleman, Glerum & Webb, 1999). Do children treat race in the same manner? This study examines how preschool children, second grade children, and fourth grade children treat race. Children were presented with stories and pictures describing a transformation to a person's racial characteristics (that is, a change in external appearance from white to black or black to white features) and asked to what …
Emotional Intelligence, Social Competence, And Success In High School Students, Amanda Crick
Emotional Intelligence, Social Competence, And Success In High School Students, Amanda Crick
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
The relationship between emotional intelligence, social competence, and success was investigated. Success was operationally defined as elected leadership within a school group, club, or organization. The study sample consisted of 31 males and 89 females ages fourteen to seventeen years (grades 9 through 11) from three counties in south-central Kentucky. Student participants were characterized as Leaders, Joiners, or Non-Joiners of school groups and were asked to complete the BarOn Emotional Quotient Inventory: Youth Version (BarOn EQi:YV) (BarOn & Parker, 2000), which assessed emotional intelligence, and the Social Skills Rating System - Secondary Student Form (SSRS) (Gresham & Elliott, 1990), which …
The Role Of Situational And Dispositional Factors On Sub-Optimal Performance, Shannon Walker
The Role Of Situational And Dispositional Factors On Sub-Optimal Performance, Shannon Walker
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
Pressure is known to decrease performance for well-practiced tasks. Research has found that pressure decreases performance for those with high self-consciousness when distracted, but the effects of pressure and distraction are not known for those with low self-consciousness. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to assess whether a distraction would improve the performance of those with low self-consciousness. A 2 (self-consciousness) x 2 (distraction) analysis of covariance (covariates emotional control, performance distance) factorial design was used to assess putting performance for 125 undergraduate participants. Results revealed that distraction negatively affected performance for both self-consciousness groups, but results indicated that …
Perceptions Of Fairness Of Discipline Events In The Work Place, Debra Phillips
Perceptions Of Fairness Of Discipline Events In The Work Place, Debra Phillips
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
Employees are concerned with the fairness of organizational outcomes they receive and the fairness of the decision-making processes used to determine how these outcomes are allocated in accordance with organizational policies. The present study focused on the distributive justice and procedural justice outcomes of disciplinary actions in work place settings. This study assessed the effects of three levels of the severity of rule violation, severity of punishment, and decision-making processes utilized. The results indicated that conditions allowing participation in the decision-making process resulted in perceptions of greater procedural fairness to employees, but did not influence perceptions of distributive fairness. The …
The Effectiveness Of Listening Previewing On Oral Reading Performance, Latisha Smith
The Effectiveness Of Listening Previewing On Oral Reading Performance, Latisha Smith
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
To successfully function in today's society, a skill that is arguably necessary is that of reading. Educators are constantly in search of effective reading interventions to use with students. This study examined the effects of listening previewing on the oral reading fluency of third grade students from regular education classrooms. Twelve participants were assigned to one of two groups: Experimental Group or Control Group. Results indicated that the listening previewing procedure was superior to reading practice only when the progress monitoring data was collected on previewed probes. The findings imply that improvements in oral reading fluency due to the listening …
Effects Of Restricted Spectral Rearing On The Development Of Zebrafish Retinal Physiology, Lee Dixon
Effects Of Restricted Spectral Rearing On The Development Of Zebrafish Retinal Physiology, Lee Dixon
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
Research has shown that rearing in abnormal lighting environments affects both visual behavior and retinal physiology in zebrafish larvae. These studies, however, used only darkness and constant white light as the experimental rearing conditions. The purpose of the present study was to assess the effects on the development of zebrafish retinal physiology of rearing larvae in restricted spectral lighting environments. Larvae were reared in one of seven different lighting environments: cyclic white light (the control group), constant blue light, constant green light, constant orange light, cyclic blue light, cyclic green light, and cyclic orange light. Assessment of retinal physiology was …
Lucky Pennies And Four Leaf Clovers: Young Children's Understanding Of Superstitions, Christy Bryce
Lucky Pennies And Four Leaf Clovers: Young Children's Understanding Of Superstitions, Christy Bryce
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
The development of organized, explanatory systems of knowledge is an integral part of human nature; it allows us to categorize objects and events and to make predictions based on our experiences. In our society, the quest for answers to the questions "How?" and "Why?" begins early in life. By the preschool years, children are actively seeking and providing explanations for an abundance of physical and social events, and they are developing knowledge of causal forces at work in the environment (Bullock, Gelman, & Baillargeon, 1982; Rosengren & Hickling, 1999). Paradoxically, at about the same age at which children demonstrate they …
Distributive Justice And Punishment In Team Sports, David Bucur
Distributive Justice And Punishment In Team Sports, David Bucur
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
Distributive justice outcomes of punishment in an intercollegiate team sport setting were investigated. Male intercollegiate athletes (#=148) participating in the NAIA National Soccer Championship Tournament responded to one of eight scenarios and reported perceived fairness to player, fairness to teammates, deterrence to future player misconduct, and deterrence to future teammate misconduct. The results indicated that athletes perceive consistent distribution of punishment as more fair than conditional distribution of punishment; consistently distributed punishment is perceived to be more likely to deter future misconduct than conditional punishment; punishment, in general, is perceived as more fair when the violation committed is severe as …
Test-Relief Reliability Of The Universal Nonverbal Intelligence Test With Children Diagnosed With Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Julia Pendley
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
The Universal Nonverbal Intelligence Test (Bracken & McCallum, 1998 [UNIT]) is a relatively new intelligence test that is administered in an entirely nonverbal way. Research supports the use of this test with special populations such as those with learning disabilities, those who are intellectually gifted, as well as with those who have speech/language impairments (Bracken & McCallum, 1998). One population not accounted for in the test's standardization sample are children diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). This study investigates the test-retest reliability of the UNIT with children diagnosed with ADHD. Another main focus of this study involves determining the …
Training Practices In School Consultation: Twenty Years Later, Terri Owens
Training Practices In School Consultation: Twenty Years Later, Terri Owens
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
Consultation has long been noted in the literature as a preferred role of school psychologists (Curtis & Zins, 1980; Gutkin & Curtis, 1982). Yet, few studies have examined University training practices in the area of consultation. This study, in part, replicated a study conducted by Meyers, Wurtz, and Flanagan (1981) that examined training practices 20 years ago. Currently, Program Directors from school psychology training programs in the United States were asked to describe how their training program addressed consultation. The number of courses offered in consultation, the methods used to teach consultation, and the models of consultation taught to school …
The Incorporation Of Emergent Literacy Into Head Start Classrooms, Emily Seeger
The Incorporation Of Emergent Literacy Into Head Start Classrooms, Emily Seeger
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
Emergent literacy may be described as the process of learning about the environment that leads to the development of meaning and concepts, including concepts about the functions of reading and writing. Research supports certain practices that promote emergent literacy in young children, and federal legislation outlines requirements for Head Start programs with regard to specific activities that should be promoted to enhance children's emergent literacy skills. This study asked teachers from 318 Head Start programs in the Southeast United States to complete a survey that asked specific questions targeting the emergent literacy practices used in classrooms, as well as familiarity …
The Effect Of Cognitive Load On Illusory Correlation, Jason Simpson
The Effect Of Cognitive Load On Illusory Correlation, Jason Simpson
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
This study investigated two theories of illusory correlation in social judgment by examining how varying the level of cognitive load during encoding of social stimuli affected the amount of illusory correlation. If the level of illusory correlation increases in a monotonic relationship with increasing cognitive load, then this type of increase would provide evidence for the distinctiveness-based view of illusory correlation (Hamilton & GifFord, 1976); however, if levels of illusory correlation show a curvilinear relationship, this relationship would provide support for the differentiated meaning view (Haslam, McGarty, & Brown, 1996). Cognitive load was manipulated by having participants perform an auditory …
Faking Integrity Tests: More Than A Mindset?, Christopher Corthern
Faking Integrity Tests: More Than A Mindset?, Christopher Corthern
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
Personnel selection procedures often include integrity tests to aid in the attempt to hire the best possible candidates for a given job. Meta-analyses of integrity test validity coefficients have found evidence of incremental validity in the prediction of many performance criteria, but questions remain regarding the nature of the construct they actually measure. The classical interpretation of higher integrity scores being linked with higher job performance is that honest people are more productive. This study surveys another possibility: those that score highly on these measures may possess higher degrees of a problem solving ability related to intelligence that allows them …
The Influence Of Victim And Perpetrator Intoxication On Juror Perceptions Of Hostile Environment Sexual Harassment, Jewel Mack
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
Once unnoticed and unreported, sexual harassment claims have risen within the last two decades. Although guidelines published by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission provide a definition of sexual harassment, researchers continue to examine variables affecting individual perceptions of sexual harassment. In addition to gender differences in perception, the present researcher examined the impact of perpetrator and victim intoxication on perceptions of sexual harassment. Results indicated that female participants were no more likely than male participants to label behaviors as sexual harassment when provided information on intoxication. However, when no information regarding the intoxication status of the perpetrator or victim was …
Modeling Organizational Culture In A Financial Institution, Lauren Rogers
Modeling Organizational Culture In A Financial Institution, Lauren Rogers
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
Ideal versus current organizational culture perceptions, differences in perceptions of culture between hierarchal levels and departments, and the strength of organizational culture were investigated in the current study. Organizational culture was measured by Cooke and Lafferty's (1987) Organizational Culture Inventory. There were differences in culture perceptions between ideal versus the current culture, hierarchal levels, and departments. The organizational culture was perceived to be weak in comparison to the four desirable styles indicated by the OCI profile.
An Investigation Of The Relationship Between Motivation, Test Preparation And Test Performance, Cassidy Walton
An Investigation Of The Relationship Between Motivation, Test Preparation And Test Performance, Cassidy Walton
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
The relationship between motivation, test preparation, and test performance was investigated using two samples, lire fighter applicants and college students. Motivation and test preparation were measured by Arvey and Stickland's (1991) Test Attitude Survey; test performance consisted of selection test scores or class examinations. The results indicated that the relationship between motivation, test preparation, and test performance varied depending on the sample (i.e., fire fighter applicants or college students) and the context (i.e., written or Physical Ability Test, class exam, or final examination). The results for fire fighters indicated that motivation was related to written test performance but not to …
An Investigation Into Traits Common To Structured Ministers And Traits Common To Musical Ministers, Matthew Cullum
An Investigation Into Traits Common To Structured Ministers And Traits Common To Musical Ministers, Matthew Cullum
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
This study examines behaviors and preferences that are characteristic of different positions of service inside a nonprofit church organization. Interviews with incumbents in the Structural Ministry and the Musical Ministry involved with the churches of Christ in Nashville, Tennessee, were conducted to identify traits and behaviors common to these distinct groups. The traits and behaviors identified in these interviews were then used to predict college students' future membership into these positions. The NEO-FFI (Costa & McCrae, 1992) was also administered in order to assess the incremental value of a professionally developed instrument. The instrument successfully identified group membership, although some …