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Articles 1 - 30 of 45
Full-Text Articles in Psychology
The Female Perception Of Safety On A College Campus, Kimberly N. Miles
The Female Perception Of Safety On A College Campus, Kimberly N. Miles
Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects
Previous research has shown the prevalence of females on college campuses across the nation experiencing a generalized fear of being victimized or violently assaulted while on campus. This fear is generated by the knowledge of violent crimes towards women on campus, as well as the perception alone that there are assaults happening on campus. Studies have noted that this fear held by female students can significantly affect their academic progress and overall wellbeing while at school. This study chose to examine the female students of Western Kentucky University and their personal perception of safety on college campuses comparing students who …
Women’S Perceptions Of Muscular Body Image And Its Impact On Eating Disorders, Juliana Eovino
Women’S Perceptions Of Muscular Body Image And Its Impact On Eating Disorders, Juliana Eovino
Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects
According to the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders (ANAD, 2015), the largest majority of people with an Eating Disorder (ED) are female college aged students. The current study suggests this is due to the differences in society’s portrayal of gender. Media suggests women should strive for a thinness that is unrealistic and unattainable for most women. Participants for the current study take two surveys at separate times to measure how media portrayals of the female body affects eating disorders. The surveys are made up of either a media influence stressing the importance of muscularity or a thinness …
Impact Of Working Alliance On Clinical Outcomes In Veterans Enrolled In Suicide-Specific Group Therapy, Brittany N. Groh
Impact Of Working Alliance On Clinical Outcomes In Veterans Enrolled In Suicide-Specific Group Therapy, Brittany N. Groh
Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects
Suicide is a global issue that has led researchers to seek interventions that will have a significant impact on mental health and wellbeing. Veterans comprise the largest number of suicides annually compared to other groups. There is a higher prevalence of mental disorders due to combat related experiences that may play a role in increased rates of suicide. Examined clinical diagnoses in this study include posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, alcohol use and substance use. This study explores how group therapy and working alliance play a role in reducing suicidality in a group therapy setting. The first hypotheses is that …
Anxiety, Uncertainty, Distress Tolerance, And Eating Disorder Symptoms As Related To Non-Suicidal Self-Injury In Young Adults, Mandi L. Martin
Anxiety, Uncertainty, Distress Tolerance, And Eating Disorder Symptoms As Related To Non-Suicidal Self-Injury In Young Adults, Mandi L. Martin
Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects
Adolescents and college-aged individuals are particularly at risk for non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) and eating disorders. Research is lacking regarding the cognitive and emotional factors behind the formation and maintenance of both types of pathology. This study examines anxiety, intolerance to uncertainty (IU), and distress tolerance in relation to both constructs in two separate samples (Sample 1: n=364, 58.5% freshmen, 75.8% female; Sample 2: n=156, 52.6% freshman, 66.0% female) with 32.4% and 40% reporting any history of NSSI, respectively. Participants completed a packet of questionnaires regarding the variables of interest and were debriefed and referred as necessary. In the first sample, …
Ogden College Of Science & Engineering Newsletter (Fall 2015), Cheryl Stevens, Dean
Ogden College Of Science & Engineering Newsletter (Fall 2015), Cheryl Stevens, Dean
Ogden College of Science & Engineering Publications
No abstract provided.
Ethical Decision Making: The Lived Experiences Of African American Women Leaders In Western Kentucky, Greta G. Jones
Ethical Decision Making: The Lived Experiences Of African American Women Leaders In Western Kentucky, Greta G. Jones
Dissertations
The purpose of the phenomenological qualitative study was to determine the way in which 10 African American women leaders in organizations in Western Kentucky made difficult decisions based on their ethical values. African American. The constructs reviewed in the study include ethics, decision making, leadership, and African American women. Empirical Phenomenology was used as the methodological approach for this qualitative study in order to understand the lived experiences that shaped the ethical values in the workplaces among the women. According to the findings, the seven overarching themes that emerged from the participant narratives are: (1) professing Christian, (2) ethical foundation …
Motivational Differences In Why Sports Fans Attend Minor League Baseball And Roller Derby Events, Anissa S. Pugh
Motivational Differences In Why Sports Fans Attend Minor League Baseball And Roller Derby Events, Anissa S. Pugh
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
The aim of the current study was to examine the differences in sport fan motivation factors between mainstream (Minor League baseball) and atypical (roller derby) fans. Eighty-one fans (40 Minor League baseball and 41 roller derby) completed an 8 question demographic survey, a 26-item Sport Fan Motivation Scale, a 7-item Sport Spectator Identification Scale, and a 10-item Sport Fan Exploratory Curiosity Scale. It was believed that fans of Minor League baseball would be more motivated by the entertainment factor than roller derby fans. While roller derby fans would be more motivated by eustress, group affiliation and family factors at the …
Age And Context Dependency In Causal Learning, Katherine Danielle Lowry
Age And Context Dependency In Causal Learning, Katherine Danielle Lowry
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
The ability to make associations between causal cues and outcomes is an important adaptive trait that allows us to properly prepare for an upcoming event. Encoding context is a type of associative processing; thus, context is also an important aspect of acquiring causal relationships. Context gives us additional information about how two events are related and allows us to be flexible in how we respond to causal cues. Research indicates that older adults exhibit an associative deficit as well as a deficit in contextual processing; therefore, it seems likely that these deficits are responsible for the deficit in older adults’ …
The Effects Of Aging On Associative Learning And Memory Retrieval In Causal Judgment, Jessica Parks Arnold
The Effects Of Aging On Associative Learning And Memory Retrieval In Causal Judgment, Jessica Parks Arnold
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
Research has shown that detecting and judging causal relationships requires associative learning and memory. Retrospective revaluation of causal cues requires associative memory (Aitken, Larkin, & Dickinson, 2001) to bind multiple cues together and use these associations to retrieve unseen cues for revaluation of their associative value. The difficulty that older adults experience with respect to retrospective revaluation could occur because of their deficit in associative binding and retrieval (Mutter, Atchley, & Plumlee, 2012). Like retrospective revaluation, blocking requires cue – outcome associative learning, but unlike retrospective revaluation, blocking does not require binding two cues together nor does it require using …
Examining The Relationship Between Functions Of Self-Directed Violence And The Suicide Implicit Association Test, Cody D. Haynes
Examining The Relationship Between Functions Of Self-Directed Violence And The Suicide Implicit Association Test, Cody D. Haynes
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
Suicide and non-suicidal self-injury are concerning and prevalent phenomena in the United States; as a result, much research has been undertaken in order to investigate these topics (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2015a). Although the exploration of risk factors is a common approach, other novel approaches have been developed in order to better understand self-directed violence (Klonsky & May, 2013). One of these is a focus on functions served by these behaviors, which is theorized to contribute to grasping their etiologies and help provide effective treatment (Glenn & Klonsky, 2011). Another approach is investigating implicit cognition and selfassociations’ influences …
The Relationship Between Bilingualism, Cognitive Control, And Mind Wandering, Leah J. Shulley
The Relationship Between Bilingualism, Cognitive Control, And Mind Wandering, Leah J. Shulley
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
The unique linguistic experience of bilingualism purportedly produces cognitive control advantages. Although there is a significant body of evidence supporting this view, there are also several recently published research studies that failed to replicate bilingual advantages. Furthermore, there is some evidence of a publication bias that favors findings supporting a bilingual advantage. The purpose of this study was to address this discrepancy in the literature by examining performance of bilinguals and monolinguals on a variety of cognitive control tasks. A second purpose was to determine how bilinguals are able to achieve better performance if they do indeed have an advantage. …
Age Differences In The Impact Of Emotional Cues On Subsequent Target Detection, Brandon Wade Coffey
Age Differences In The Impact Of Emotional Cues On Subsequent Target Detection, Brandon Wade Coffey
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
Emotional cues within the environment capture our attention and influence how we perceive our surroundings. Past research has shown that emotional cues presented before the detection of a perceptual gap can actually impair the perception of elementary visual features (e.g., the lack of detail creating a spatial gap) while simultaneously improving the perception of fast temporal features of vision (e.g., the rapid onset, offset, and re-emergence of a stimulus). This effect has been attributed to amygdalar enhancements of visual inputs conveying emotional features along magnocellular channels. The current study compared participants’ ability to detect spatial and temporal gaps in simple …
Dynamic Tactile Information Is Sufficient For Precise Curvature Discrimination, Jacob R. Cheeseman
Dynamic Tactile Information Is Sufficient For Precise Curvature Discrimination, Jacob R. Cheeseman
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
Our tactile perceptual experiences occur when we interact, actively and passively, with environmental objects and surfaces. Previous research has demonstrated that active manual exploration enhances the tactile perception of object shape. Nevertheless, the factors that contribute to this enhancement are not well understood. The present study evaluated the ability of 14 older adults to discriminate curved surfaces by actively feeling objects with a single index finger and by passively feeling objects that moved relative to a restrained finger. The curvature discrimination thresholds obtained for passive-dynamic touch were significantly lower than those that occurred during active-dynamic touch. This result demonstrates that …
Examining Associations Between Infant Temperament, Parental Competence, And Family Resources And Their Effects On Parental Sensitivity, Victoria L. Greenwell
Examining Associations Between Infant Temperament, Parental Competence, And Family Resources And Their Effects On Parental Sensitivity, Victoria L. Greenwell
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
A sensitive parent-child relationship is essential in ensuring the healthy mental and physical development of an individual. Parental sensitivity can be affected by parent characteristics, such parental competence and resources as well as child characteristics, such as negative reactivity. The combination of how these parent and infant factors predict parental sensitivity has not been examined with both mothers and fathers. The current study involved 30, 4-month old infants and their mothers and fathers. Parents completed questionnaires measuring infant temperament and parental competence. They also participated in a demographic interview to measure family resources, as well as a dyadic parent-infant face-to-face …
Factors Affecting Academic Procrastination, John Paul Reynolds
Factors Affecting Academic Procrastination, John Paul Reynolds
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
This study sought to understand the relationships among locus of control, parenting style, academic procrastination, and financial independence with a population of undergraduate students. A sample of 61 students (39 females, 21 males, 1 other) completed measures of demographics, locus of control, parenting style, and academic procrastination. Participants were recruited within the last two weeks of the semester. Therefore, the sample probably contained a higher percentage of procrastinators than the general population. There were no significant correlations across the total sample. There was a significant positive correlation between higher scores on the Parental Authority Questionnaire authoritative scale and the Procrastination …
The Electrophysiology Of Written Informal Language, Taylor S. Blaetz
The Electrophysiology Of Written Informal Language, Taylor S. Blaetz
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
Language is an essential component of human behavior. It is ubiquitous, but more importantly, it is malleable and it is constantly changing. Part of the dynamic nature of informal communication is the introduction and adoption of new linguistic elements. Online communication provides a window into this informal public discourse; therefore, it may be useful for testing hypotheses about the processes underlying the acquisition and use of new words. The comprehension of informal language may lead to an understanding of how these new informal words are integrated into our mental lexicon. The current study was an electroencephalographic (EEG) investigation of the …
Effects Of Life Review On Happiness And Life Satisfaction In Older Adults, Molly C. White
Effects Of Life Review On Happiness And Life Satisfaction In Older Adults, Molly C. White
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
Life review involves a systematic, chronological review of an individual’s life from birth to death as well as an examination of the meaningfulness of life experiences and events. The purpose of the current study was to discover the effects of life review on happiness and life satisfaction in the older population. Participants from 71 to 85 years of age completed a demographics questionnaire, the Subjective Happiness Scale (SHS) and the Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS). SHS and SWLS were completed every other day from the beginning to the end of the data collection process. Once a consistent baseline was reached …
Success Indicators Of College Students With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Megan M. Prickett
Success Indicators Of College Students With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Megan M. Prickett
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
This study examined the executive functioning skills as students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) entered college. The participants consisted of 95 college students with ASD who attended the Kelly Autism Program (KAP) on Western Kentucky University’s campus in Bowling Green, Kentucky. The individuals in the sample were categorized three groups: individuals who graduated from college, individuals who were still attending college, and individuals who dropped out of college. The results indicated that the executive functioning skills of inhibiting and initiation were statistically significantly different between the three groups and additional skills were significantly different when comparing only the group that …
Impact Of A Teacher Training Program To Increase Informative Praise And Decrease Commands And Negative Comments, Lauren A. Binford
Impact Of A Teacher Training Program To Increase Informative Praise And Decrease Commands And Negative Comments, Lauren A. Binford
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
Research has found that many children who come from a low socioeconomic background often begin their schooling careers behind most students. Head Start programs around the nation are utilized to close the gap in achievement, by providing those students with the educational support necessary to prepare them for future schooling. However, when assessed with the Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS), Head Start programs have been found to be weaker in the area of Instructional Support. As a result, teachers are falling short in the way they provide feedback, incorporate higher thinking skills, and foster language development. In order to strengthen …
Suicidal Thoughts And Behavior Among Black College Students: Examining The Impact Of Distress Tolerance And Social Support On Suicidality, Anisha L. Thomas
Suicidal Thoughts And Behavior Among Black College Students: Examining The Impact Of Distress Tolerance And Social Support On Suicidality, Anisha L. Thomas
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
The purpose of this investigation was to examine the role of distress tolerance in suicidality among Black college students. It was hypothesized that (1) individuals with low levels of distress tolerance would report higher levels of suicide ideation; (2) individuals with high levels of distress tolerance would report greater suicide attempts; (3) social support would moderate the relationship between distress tolerance and suicide ideation; (4) social support would moderate the relationship between distress tolerance and suicide attempts; and that (5) family and peer support would act as distinct buffers against suicidality. These hypotheses were tested by surveying 47 undergraduate university …
Training Evaluation Investigating Core Self-Evaluations And Perceptions Of Training Transfer, Thomas P. Patterson
Training Evaluation Investigating Core Self-Evaluations And Perceptions Of Training Transfer, Thomas P. Patterson
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
Although training evaluation is understood as an important way of determining the effectiveness of a training program, additional research in the area of training transfer and core self-evaluations (CSE) could provide insight on measuring the effectiveness of training programs. Training transfer differences and CSE were examined in training courses offered in a workforce development program. The goals of the study were to: (1) evaluate the validity of using CSE as a means of predicting perceptions of transfer, (2) test the previous findings that utility reactions measures are a stronger predictor of transfer than affective reactions measures, (3) determine which type …
Impact Of A Teacher Training Program To Increase Cognitively Stimulating Talk: Pretest And Immediate Post-Test Results, Laura E. Fisher
Impact Of A Teacher Training Program To Increase Cognitively Stimulating Talk: Pretest And Immediate Post-Test Results, Laura E. Fisher
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
The literacy skills that students develop in preschool are an imperative aspect of school readiness and later academic success. Research has established that some students begin their educational experience at a disadvantage due to the low socioeconomic status (SES) of their family and, as a result, low levels of conversation between parents and children, restricted access to books, and low values placed on literacy. Past research supports that shared book reading is one of the most beneficial activities in which teachers can partake in order to optimize their students’ language development. The Head Start program is intended to alleviate the …
Ogden College Of Science & Engineering Newsletter (Summer 2015), Cheryl Stevens, Dean
Ogden College Of Science & Engineering Newsletter (Summer 2015), Cheryl Stevens, Dean
Ogden College of Science & Engineering Publications
No abstract provided.
The Influence Of Texting And Virtual Peers On Adolescent Alcohol Use, Eric Steven Gregory
The Influence Of Texting And Virtual Peers On Adolescent Alcohol Use, Eric Steven Gregory
Dissertations
The Social Development Theory has guided substance abuse prevention planning and programming for the past two decades. One of the key risk factors cited in and targeted by Social Development Model strategies is that of the influence of peers on adolescent substance use. With the advent of modern cellular technology, the manner in which adolescents currently interact has shifted in preference from that of traditional face-to-face to interaction through text messaging. Recent research has suggested a link between the frequency of adolescent texting behavior and adolescent substance use. This shift in interaction may influence the mechanisms of peer influence and …
Physical Activity As A Contributing Factor To Engagement In Self-Harm Behaviors Among Youth, Shannon Danielle Boone
Physical Activity As A Contributing Factor To Engagement In Self-Harm Behaviors Among Youth, Shannon Danielle Boone
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
This study explored the potential for physical activity to be an effective, healthy coping strategy alternative to self-harm behaviors. Regression analyses were performed to assess how physical activity level related to risk factors (i.e., emotional dysregulation, self-esteem, and depression) and self-harm behaviors. The relationship between selfharm and exercise motivations was also examined. Participants were recruited from two high schools (n = 95) and one university (n = 72) in the southeastern region of the United States. Analyses were run using the following measures from a survey packet: adapted Exercise Questionnaire (Helmerhorst, Brage, Warren, Besson, & Ekelund, 2012), Exercise Motivations Inventory—Second …
The Effects Of Problem-Based Learning On Mathematics Achievement Of Elementary Students Across Time, Brittany Marie Crowley
The Effects Of Problem-Based Learning On Mathematics Achievement Of Elementary Students Across Time, Brittany Marie Crowley
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
The present study specifically evaluated the long-term effects of problem-based learning (PBL) instruction on the mathematics achievement of students who demonstrated higher ability in the subject area than their comparable peers. Subjects included 65 students from six south-central Kentucky elementary schools who participated in Project Gifted Education in Math and Science (Project GEMS), a grant partially funded through the Jacob K. Javits Gifted and Talented Students Education Program. The students were assigned to one of three conditions – PBL-Plus, PBL, or Control – based upon school of attendance. The participants were then administered baseline testing in the fall of the …
Eye Movements Of Highly Identified Sport Fans, Michele N. Murdock
Eye Movements Of Highly Identified Sport Fans, Michele N. Murdock
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
Individuals who are highly identified with a sport team have a strong psychological connection with the team (Wann et al., 2001). Sport team identification can be beneficial to communities and individuals. It provides entertainment, helps form group affiliation, and improves self-esteem. Because team identification is important to people, they notice environmental cues related to the team. Individuals are more likely to attend to a stimulus that is liked or one that is familiar. When an individual has accessible attitudes toward an object, he or she is more likely to attend to and notice the object (Roskos-Ewoldsen & Fazio, 1992). The …
A Review Of Court Cases Involving Discrimination In Physical Ability Testing: 1992-2015, Casey L. Biggs
A Review Of Court Cases Involving Discrimination In Physical Ability Testing: 1992-2015, Casey L. Biggs
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
Organizations that employ physically demanding jobs want to ensure their selection procedures distinguish qualified applicants from unqualified applicants. However, such selection tools typically result in adverse impact against various protected groups and often lead to litigation. Various factors influence the court’s decision to rule in favor of the plaintiff or the defendant. The purpose of the present study is to identify those factors. The ADA (1990) created strict guidelines for plaintiffs and defendants to follow to be credible in a discrimination case. This study will specifically determine the impact of the ADA guidelines and three additional factors that influence court …
Can Quantitative Assessment Of Moral Identity Be Improved?, David Adrion Baker
Can Quantitative Assessment Of Moral Identity Be Improved?, David Adrion Baker
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
According to results from Aquino and Reed (study 5, 2002) and Hall and Derryberry (2010), high means and very low standard deviations of the average score for each question for both the internalization and symbolization scales of the Moral Identity Scale (MIS) are common. This study attempts to measure the extent to which a person considers morality to be a central part of his or her self-concept. Because participants may feel pressure to respond in a certain way on the MIS, the role of social desirability to respond favorably is very plausible. The current study, therefore, attempts to reduce socially …
Using Critical Incidents: The Development Of A Behaviorally Based Training Program For Supervisor Citizenship Behavior And Feedback Skills, Jody J. Lecheler
Using Critical Incidents: The Development Of A Behaviorally Based Training Program For Supervisor Citizenship Behavior And Feedback Skills, Jody J. Lecheler
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
It has been argued (Greer, 2013) that supervisors are a critical component in organizational effectiveness. Supervisors are required to hold many roles within the organization (Evans, 1965). Specifically, employees often see supervisors as representatives of the organization, while the organization depends on supervisors to maintain production (Greer, 2013). Many supervisors also fill a variety of other organizational roles such as mentor, trainer, motivator, disciplinarian, evaluator, and leader (Evans, 1965). For these reasons, effective supervisors are crucial to organizational success. The present study developed a behaviorally based training program for supervisors for a poultry processing organization. The training program content included …