Digital Commons Network^™

Neonate Psychophysiological Responses To Ambient Features Of The Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Dorothy De La Cruz-Schmedel

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

Hospital treatment environments have become a major concern in recent years. Noise and illumination are potential stress sources in hospitals. The purpose ofthis study was to examine the effects of hospital noise levels and ambient illumination on newborn infants (neonates). Noise levels and lighting were varied and the effect upon neonatal heart rate, respiration rate, blood pressure, and oxygen consumption were measured. These measures are sensitive tosympathetic nervous system reactivity such as that brought about by stressful environments. In addition, noise and lighting levels were measured to determine if differences existed across conditions. Psychophysiological responses to various noise and lighting …

Serial, Parallel And Delay Strategies In The Processing Of Structurally Ambiguous Language Constructions, Harvey Slutsky

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Through a set of two experiments, the present study attempted to determine which of three language processing strategies, that is, serial, parallel or delay is employed in parsing two kinds of structurally ambiguous visually presented sentences (transitive and verb complement). The study used a relatively new technique, a self paced syntactic decision task whose sensitivity to local parsing complexity was demonstrated in the first experiment through a partial replication of Ford's (1983) work with relative clause sentences. The findings showed Object relatives to be harder to process at the position of the main verb. The same findings from a followup …

The Effects Of Training Strategies On Assessor Behavior And The Accuracy Of Assessment Center Consensus Ratings, Todd A. Baker

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this research was to examine the effects of four training strategies (e.g., part, whole, individual, and team) on the accuracy of performance ratings and the occurrence of interactive behaviors in consensus meetings. The results were analyzed using a 2 x 2 factorial ANOVA design. Part and whole training strategies were directly compared with one another. Team and individual training strategies made up the other direct comparison. Undergraduates (N = 108) were randomly assigned to four training conditions. The subjects were grouped into teams of three assessors. In these teams the assessors needed to exchange information about assessee …

An Analogue Of Science, Michael Albert Minervini

Dissertations

There is no science of human behavior, not even an incipient one. The popular conception of applied behavior analysis as a genuine principle-driven technology is mostly an illusion. Two sorts of evidence support this conclusion. The first is an ever widening split between the field's basic and applied realms. The second, thus far unacknowledged, is that when the concepts of operant and respondent conditioning are extended to human behavior, they are often rendered as no more than metaphors. These metaphors are not confined to casual discourse or even to interpretation. In fact, they are the prevailing form of extension in …

Productivity And Affective Responses To Work Tasks And Leisure Activities In Type A And Type B Individuals, Susan Jean Paske

Masters Theses

The Type A Personality Index, a measure of whether an individual tends to be a Type A or a Type B personality, was given to 30 male and 30 female college students who then participated in a planting activity, presented as either a work task or a leisure activity. Productivity was measured by number of pottings, and affective responses to the activity in the areas of evaluation, power, and action were determined by Osgood's 12-scale short form semantic differential (OSD). No significant correlations were found between personality type and productivity or OSD scores in either the work or leisure conditions. …

Perceived Severity Of Informal Sanctions: A Case Study Of Convicted Dui Offenders In Cass County, North Dakota, Terry D. Stratton

Theses and Dissertations

It Is estimated that alcohol plays a factor in between 35 and 64 c'-rcent of all fatal crashes and between 6 and 25 percent for non-fatal accidents, resulting in alcohol .being involved in about half of the roughly 50,000 annual traffic fatalities in the United States. Clearly, drinking-and driving is a major contributor in both the severity and the frequency of traffic accidents.

The basic concept of deterrence states that people will refrain from behavior defined as socially-unaccc.ptable if the resulting perception and fear of penalties (or sanctions) against such action are adequately undesirable in comparison to the potential benefits …

The Incestuous Family: Development Of An Enmeshed Family Inventory, Loretta M. Petrie

Theses and Dissertations

A systems model has been proposed as useful theoretical framework for the study of incestuous families (Alexander, 1985) and is frequently used in the therapeutic treatment of the victim of sexual abuse and his or her perpetrator (Larson and Maddock, 1986). The purpose of this study was the construction and standardization of an instrument for assessing a multiaxial model of enmeshed and disengaged family systems which is based on the prior work of Minuchin et al. (1978) and Kog et al. (1987).

Minuchin et al. (1978) suggest that enmeshment, conflict-avoidance, over-protectiveness and rigidity are four characteristics that are key to …

Comprehension Of "Absence" By An African Grey Parrot: Learning With Respect To Questions Of Same/Different, Irene M. Pepperberg

Sentience Collection

An African Grey parrot, Alex, learned to report on the absence or presence of similarity and difference between two objects. Alex was shown pairs of objects that were (a) totally dissimilar, (b) identical, or (c) similar or different with respect to one of three attributes (color, shape, or material). In the first two cases, he responded to the respective queries of "What's same?" or "What's different?" with the vocalization "none," and in the third case he responded with the appropriate category label ("color," "shape," or "mah-mah" [matter]). His accuracy was 80.9% to 83.9% for pairs of familiar objects not used …

Views Of Cesarean Birth Among Primiparous Women Of Mexican Origin In Los Angeles, Laura H. Cummins, Susan C. M. Scrimshaw, Patrice L. Engle

Psychology and Child Development

This study examined data from a larger project on the cultural context of first birth among low-income women of Mexican origin giving birth in Los Angeles. Data on knowledge of cesarean birth and perceptions of the cesarean birth experience were collected. In addition, differences in perceptions of the experience between women giving birth vaginally and those giving birth by cesarean as reported in the literature were assessed. Five hundred eighteen women were surveyed, of whom 58 had a cesarean birth. Statistical analyses revealed few significant differences between the two groups with regard to childbirth knowledge and attitudes, which may indicate …

The Effect Of Deliberate Faking Good And Faking Bad On Spiritual Well-Being Scale Scores In A Church Sample, Alice V. Moody

Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)

This study investigated the effect of faking (good and bad) on Spiritual Well-being (SWB) Scale scores. It is a true experiment with three levels of the independent variable: fake good, honest responding, and fake bad instructions. The sample consisted of 172 adults from a community church Sunday School class and a group for those overcoming some addiction and/or abuse. A demographic questionnaire was given along with the SWB Scale. An analysis of variance was run for each of the dependent measures: SWB and its two subscales, Religious Well-being (RWB) and Existential Well·being (EWB) . ANOVA and Scheffe post hoc test …

The Effect Of Social Context & Group Decision Making Formats On An Evaluative Task, Joyce Bowers

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

A review of the literature on decision making indicated a lack of research attention given to the effects of the dynamics of the social context surrounding participation on decision outcomes. The present study examined the relationship between social context and group decision making formats, and its implications for the effective implementation of group participation in decision making The effectiveness of three decision -making formats, the nominal technique, the interacting technique, and the consensus technique, were compared under conditions of cooperation and competition on the three decision effectiveness dimensions of quality, acceptance, and synergy.

Two-hundred and forty-eight undergraduate students, working in …

The Treatment Of Test Anxiety Using Stress Inoculation Training, James L. Mason

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to test the effectiveness of a stress inoculation training package based on recommendations provided in the Meichenbaum and Butler feedback loop model of test anxiety. The variables under investigation included the Test Anxiety Scale, the Study Habits scale of the Survey of Study Habits and Attitudes, and academic test scores (converted to standard scores). These measures were administered pre- and posttreatment. The sample consisted of 54 introductory psychology students who were self-identified as test-anxious. Through a randomization process, 26 students were assigned to the stress inoculation training group and 28 students were assigned to …

Self-Control In Mentally Retarded Adolescents: Choice As A Function Of Amount And Delay Of Reinforcement, Steven P. Ragotzy

Dissertations

Three severely mentally retarded adolescents were studied under discrete-trial procedures in which a choice was arranged between edible reinforcers that differed in magnitude and, in some conditions, delay. In the absence of delays, the larger reinforcer was consistently chosen. All subjects directed the majority of choice responses to the smaller reinforcer when the larger reinforcer was sufficiently delayed, although the value at which this occurred differed across subjects. Under conditions where the larger reinforcer initially was sufficiently delayed to result in preference for the smaller one, progressively increasing in 5-s increments the delay to both reinforcers increased percent trials with …

An Analysis Of Four Empathy Variables As Predictors Of Marital Satisfaction, Teck Seong Chee

Masters Theses

The objective of this study was to determine if empathy was predictive of marital satisfaction, and which, if any, of the four empathy variables from Davis' Interpersonal Reactivity Index (1980), would serve as predictors of marital satisfaction. Correlation and regression analyses were used to evaluate the relationships of fantasy, empathic concern, perspective taking and personal distress with marital satisfaction. Variables of secondary interest included those of sex. birth order, length of marriage and age married. Both Individuals and couples were used as units of analysis.

Empathic concern and perspective taking were found to be predictors of marital satisfaction. No significant …

Advertising In Restrooms, Karsten C. Hofmann

Dissertations and Theses

There is a common belief that the special situation one encounters in restrooms is likely to evoke negative associations between the setting and a potential product, and that these presumed associations make advertising in restrooms incompatible with the objectives of advertisers.

This general proposition was questioned on theoretical grounds. It was argued that the specific situation in a restroom would be conducive to advertising goals in a number of ways. In addition, while negative associations may occur with certain kinds of products, others were hypothesized to be unaffected. In particular, the potential value of restrooms for communicating public education issues …

Contributors: Vol 11 No. 3, The Jonathan Nāpela Center For Hawaiian And Pacific Islands Studies

Pacific Studies

Contributors list of Vol. 11 (1988): Pacific Studies Full Issue 3

Performance Appraisal Ratings As A Function Of Source Of Ratings And Purpose Of The Appraisal, Richard J. Tannenbaum

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

This study investigated the effects of purpose of appraisal ratings and source of appraisal ratings on four dependent measures: leniency, halo, variability, and construct validity. The purpose factor was comprised of four different levels: merit pay, performance improvement, research only, and no defined appraisal purpose. The rating source factor was comprised of two different levels: incumbent self-ratings, and supervisor ratings. One hundred and nineteen nursing assistants provided the self-ratings, and 39 nurses provided the supervisor ratings. Both sets of ratings were made using a 13-dimension graphic-type rating scale. Analysis of variance procedures were used to test the effects of appraisal …

Preschoolers' And Third Graders' Sorting Preferences And Strategic Knowledge Of Taxonomic Associative And Perceptual Organizational Strategies, Helene Ann Hembrooke

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

This study investigated strategic use and metamemory concerning taxonomic, associative, and perceptual organizational strategies. Preschool and third grade children were asked to sort stimuli which varied orthogonally along three dimensions; taxonomically, associatively, and perceptually. Free recall was assessed. Each child also completed one of two metamemory tasks; a paired comparison or a peer teaching task. The order of the memory/metamemory tasks was counterbalanced within age groups. The results showed that older children sorted by taxonomic and associative attributes while younger children exhibited no sorting preference. Older children recalled significantly more pictures, although no significant age differences in recall clustering were …

Effects Of Gender & Body Size On Ratings Of Physically Demanding Task Performance, Carolyn Hill

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of gender and body size on ratings of physical performance and effort. Participants (N=250) viewed the videotaped performance of one of four actors (large man, small man, large woman, and small woman) lifting, moving, and stacking 25 pound bags of feed. However, instead of containing feed, the bags contained a light weight (three pound) packing material. Participants rated the actor's performance either immediately or one week after viewing the videotape. Although the actual performances were identical, a 2 (Gender) x 2 (Body Size) x 2 (Time of Rating) ANOVA revealed …

Relationship Between A Gifted Child's Label And Perceived Family Environment, Anne Hall

Master's Theses

This study investigated the relationship between the number of years in which a child has been labeled as gifted and family members' perceptions of their family's social environment. Second, possible differences between gifted childrens' and siblings' perceptions of their family's environment were investigated. A significant negative relationship was found between the number of years of labeling time and mothers' perceived level of cohesion, organization and control in the family environment. A significant positive relationship was found between the number of years in which the gifted child had been labeled and the gifted child's growing orientation to achievement and with unlabeled …

The Bender Visual Motor Gestalt Test As A Group Screening Instrument For Social Maturity, Andrea Davis

Master's Theses

This study investigated the use of the Bender Visual Motor Gestalt Test (BVMGT) as a measure of social maturity. A group BVMGT was administered to 80 second grade children and scored using the Koppitz Developmental Scoring System. The Social Domain of the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scale (VABS) served as the measure of social maturity. It was hypothesized that there is a significant positive relationship between VABS performance and BVMGT performance, also that there is a significant positive relationship between BVMGT performance and gender. The hypotheses were not supported. The VABS, variability within the subjects, age, halo effect, and scoring system …

Maternal, Obstetric, And Neonatal Correlates Of Short-Term Neurodevelopmental Outcome In Newborn Infants With Intraventricular Hemorrhage, Richard Elghammer

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The attempt to identify risk factors or correlates of intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) has been constrained by conflicting research findings, changing hypotheses about the etiology of IVH, and by the exceedingly complex nature of this neurological disorder. In addition, few studies have investigated the possibility that antenatal factors might predispose the infant to IVH. Thus, research aimed at identifying IVH correlates from all time periods in which stress could occur to the neonate needs to be undertaken. This study was conducted for the purpose of identifying and quantifying correlates of IVH by constructing an interactive statistical model to predict the occurrence, …

The Influence Of Nursing Experience And Education On Nurses Inferences Of Patients' Suffering, Patricia A. Coots

Ellmer School of Nursing Theses & Dissertations

A primary dimension of nursing is caring tor patients who suffer. This study examined the inferences made about patients' suffering oy 65 registered nurses employed in acute care health facilities. Utilizing The standard Measure of Inferences of Suffering Questionnaire. the purpose of the study was to explore the influence of nursing education and experience on the degree of pain and psychological distress inferred by the nurses. Analysis of Covariance was used to test for group differences on the basis of nursing education when number of months of nursing experience was controlled. Although nursing education did not influence nurses' inferences of …

Inter-Rater Reliability: A Question Of Measurement In Social Science Research, Lani Kai Eggertsen Goff

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

Erik Erikson (1968) set forth the framework for the conceptualization and adolescent identity formation in the late 1960's. The assessment of identity invokes a subjective measurement of a youth's process and current standing regarding sociopsychological development. According to Adams (1987) throughout Erikson's writings a "conscious sense of individual identity," a process of "ego synthesis" and formation of sense of social "ideals and social identity" are central considerations when discussing identity.

The Effects Of Participation In A Development Group Upon The Psychological Adjustment Of Pregnant Adolescents And Adolescent Mothers, Bernard E. Wazlavek

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Pregnant adolescents and adolescent mothers are a population at risk to a variety of negative social, economic, and psychological consequences. Numerous group interventions have been designed to improve the psychological adjustment of pregnant adolescents and adolescent mothers. However, there has been a paucity of research evaluating the efficacy of these interventions. This research was designed to evaluate the efficacy of the development group intervention. The primary objective of this research was to evaluate the effects of this intervention upon the psychological adjustment of the participants.

Thirty-two subjects (16 experimental and 16 comparison) enrolled in two alternative public high schools in …

The Emotional Effects Of Injury On Female Collegiate Gymnasts, Nancy J. Albert

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this study was to examine affective changes which result from injury in female collegiate gymnasts, using the Profile of Mood States (POMS) instrument (McNair, Lorr, & Droppleman, 1971 ).

Twelve female gymnasts, comprising the Utah State University gymnastics team, completed the POMS twice per month for four months during their 1986-87 competitive season . A comparison group of 12 non-athlete female college students, matched with the gymnasts by age, year in school, and major, completed the POMS on the same schedule as the gymnasts. Injury was defined as orthopedic damage to the gymnast's body as a result …

The Relationship Between Congruence Among Communication Channels And Degree Of Mental Health, Karen R. Seibel

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Writers from a number of theoretical backgrounds have asserted that agreement in the emotional messages conveyed by various verbal and nonverbal communication channels is related to the communicator's psychological health. If this conjecture is accurate, then congruence among communication channels could be used as a behaviorally based assessment tool. However, empirical research to test this theoretical and clinical assumption is relatively lacking. The present study was designed to test the hypothesis that individuals who display congruence (agreement) between verbal (language), verbal/vocal (language plus paralinguistic cues, or speech) and nonverbal (facial) channels of communication will show a greater degree of mental …

Stereotypes Of The Arabs Among Egyptians, Maha Tahlawi

Archived Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Beliefs Of Accounting Faculty/Business Deans At Small Schools Regarding Selected Aacsb Undergraduate Business Administration Accreditation Standards, Leonard J. Sliwoski

Theses and Dissertations

Problem. The study identified and compared beliefs of accounting faculty, accounting chairpersons, and deans of business at small colleges and universities concerning the perceived appropriateness of the 1985-86 AACSB personnel and curriculum accreditation standards for undergraduate business administration programs in relation to undergraduate accounting education.

Procedures. A total of 1,008 accounting faculty, accounting chairpersons, and deans of business were sent a survey depicting components of the above-mentioned accreditation standards. They were asked to express their beliefs concerning the appropriateness of these components in relation to undergraduate accounting education. There was a response rate of 57 percent with 575 questionnaires returned. …

Development And Testing Of The Stress Adaptation Scale For Parents With Chronically Ill Children (Sasp), Carolyn M. Rutledge

Ellmer School of Nursing Theses & Dissertations

This research study consisted of four phases used to develop and test the Stress Adaptation Scale for Parents with Chronically Ill Children (ASP). The first phase dealt with developing the items on the SASP from a review of the literature and the researcher's professional experience. The SASP was then divided into the six categories of health care, social, personal, familial, financial, and spiritual. In phase II, content validity was evaluated by a panel of experts. In phase III, stability over time and face validity was demonstrated using 26 parents of chronically ill children. The SASP achieved a Pearson's r=.85 with …