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The Effects Of Contingency-Management On Probationary Students' Academic Behavior, Brian Delano Yancey

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of procedures designed to reduce student attrition. The contingency-management approach was presented as an alternative to other approaches which assume student attrition to be a function of personality differences, study-skills deficiencies, and ecological deficits. Forty undergraduate students on academic probation were referred to the Self-Management Course offered by the Psychology Department at western Michigan University. The Self- Management Course was designed to deliver behavioral consequences for study behavior more immediately than is normally the case. Students taking the Self-Management Course completed several worksheets, participated in group discussions, and attended a …

The Role Of Automatic Conditioned Reinforcement And Automatic Conditioned Punishment In Infant Vocal Behavior, Rick A. Smith

Masters Theses

Two female children, aged 11 and 14 months, were exposed to a procedure in which an experimenter-emitted vocal response was paired with a reinforcing stimulus (positive condition), a neutral stimulus (neutral condition), or a mild aversive stimulus (negative condition). An AB design was utilized to examine the effects of the pairing procedure on the subjects* vocal responding. Sessions were conducted in each subject’s home. Only one subject was exposed to the pairing with a neutral (control) stimulus, and with the mild aversive verbal stimulus. Responding during the post-pairing period remained constant in the neutral condition, but was markedly reduced in …

Personality, Sex, And The Neuropsychology Of Attention, Peter A. Williamson

Theses and Dissertations

The influences of sex and personality on attentional style were examined in two neuropsychological studies in which perfor mance and event-related potentials (ERP's) were employed. Pribram and McGuinness1 (1975) conceptions of Activation and Arousal were recast in a lateralized framework in which the former was seen as characteristic of left hemisphere function while the latter was identified more closely with the right hemisphere. Four equal groups of nine subjects were selected on the basis of sex and ex treme extraversion scores (I-E), while controlling for neuroticism, to participate in two lateralized attentional tasks. The first, a vigilance task designed to …

The Relationship Between Psychologists’ Judgments Of Artistic Quality And Judgments Of Emotional Adjustment From Children’S Human Figure Drawings, Karen Collier

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Children’s human figure drawings (HFDs) have frequently been used as a projective technique to indicate emotional problems. Despite the popularity of this technique, research has shown contradictory findings on its validity as a measure of emotional adjustment. As a reason for the inconsistent findings, researchers have suggested that the artistic quality of HFDs may interfere with successful interpretation of adjustment from the drawings. However, the issue of the possible influence of artistic quality has not been adequately researched.

The major purpose of this study was to determine if a relationship existed between psychologists’ judgments of artistic quality and judgments of …

Employee Perceptions Of Performance Appraisal Systems: Causal Determinants Of Fairness, Accuracy, And Acceptability, Michael Dale Secunda

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this research was to develop an initial model of employee perceptions of performance appraisal systems which would integrate available literature and provide a point of departure for future research endeavors. To accomplish these goals, this study had three objectives: (1) integrate the large body of literature to develop constructs that adequately describe employee perceptions of appraisal processes and systems, (2) integrate these constructs into a causal model that is consistent with current literature, and (3) test the model using linear structural modeling.

Seven constructs hypothesized as representing various aspects of employee perceptions were conceptualized and operationalized, and …

The Effects Of Goal And Feedback Specificity Of Task Performance, Emily Johnson Hawes

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

A three (goal type and level) by three (type and level of knowledge of results) factorial design was implemented with nine subjects per cell. Goal factor levels were: Numeric goal, percentage increase goal, and do best goal. Knowledge of results (KR) factor levels were: Numeric KR, percentage increase/decrease KR and no KR. KR manipulations affected perceived knowledge of performance standing„ but there were no significant effects on performance. Goal effects on performance were significant (p

Oculometric Indices Of Simulator And Aircraft Motion, James Raymond Comstock Jr.

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

In a series of three experiments on the effects on eye-scan behavior of both simulator and aircraft motion, the sensitivity of an oculometric measure to motion effects was demonstrated. "Fixation Time", defined as the time the eyes spend at a particular location before moving on (saccade) to another fixation point, was found to be sensitive to motion effects in each of the experiments conducted. The first experiment studied differences between simulator motion and no-motion conditions during a series of simulated Instrument Landing System (ILS) approaches. The mean fixation time for the no-motion condition was found to be significantly longer than …

Beyond 'Formal' Vs. 'Informal' Education: Uses Of Psychological Theory In Anthropological Research, Claudia Strauss

Pitzer Faculty Publications and Research

For at least the last ten years cross-cultural research on the cognitive consequences of education has been dominated by the theoretical dichotomy between "formal" and "informal" education. The paradigm of formal education is the style of schooling developed in the industrialized West. It has been defined as any form of education that is deliberate, carried on "out of context" in a special setting outside of the routines of daily life, and made the responsibility of the larger social group. "Informal education" refers to education that takes place "in context" as children participate in everyday adult activities. It is the predominant …

Book Review Forum On Bradd Shore's Sala‘Ilua: A Samoan Mystery, Thelma S. Baker, James R. Bindon, Jacob Wainwright, Bradd Shore

Pacific Studies

No abstract provided.

Richard M. Moyle's Review Of Steven Feld's Sound And Sentiment: Birds, Weeping, Poetics, And Song In Kaluli Expression, Richard M. Moyle

Pacific Studies

No abstract provided.

Memory For An Event In Two- And Five-Years Olds, Evelyn Harm Haeden

Student Work

The present study focused on the development of memory in young children. The subjects were eighty-three two- and five-year old children who participated in immediate recall memory tasks for toys, pictures in a story and nonstory context, and ingredients used in making graham cracker cookies. These children were tested in their own homes. Long term memory for toys and ingredients was also assessed at one week. Parents were asked to record children's spontaneous comments in a scripted diary for the week following the experimenter's visit. At the end of the week, a photograph of the experimenter and child, which had …

Easterbrook's Hypothesis And Eyewitness Cue Utilization, Mark R. Hill

Master's Theses

Although well-supported and historically-important, the Yerkes-Dodson research cannot incorporate current findings on the relationship of arousal and selective attention. Easterbrook's hypothesis suggests that arousal produces a narrowing of attention which selects among available stimuli. Whether information is processed depends on the level of arousal and the nature of the task. As arousal increases, Easterbrook predicts more attention directed to central tasks, while superfluous stimuli are progressively removed. The present investigation studied the predictions of Easterbrook' s hypothesis on.incidental memory in a simulated eyewitness case. College students were aroused to either resting, 50, 65, or 85 percent maximum heartrate by their …

The Repeated Acquisition Procedure As A Means Of Analyzing Instructional Stimulus Control And Rule-Directed Behavior, Jeffrey S. Danforth

Masters Theses

Pre-school children were taught to emit four-response chains using the repeated acquisition design. Experiment 1 examined the effect of instructional stimuli. Many errors were made in Control Learning, followed by few errors in Control Relearning. Instructional cues resulted in few errors in the morning learning session, but many relearning errors were made. Experiment 2A determined if two-trial cuing with instructional stimuli would improve relearning performance. The result was fewer relearning errors, but the criterion required more learning trials. In Experiment 2B a rule was taught relevant to two-trial cuing. In Experiment 3 a child was told that the morning and …

Behavioral Management Of Multiple Food Aversions Of A Multiply Handicapped Child, Steven A. Stang

Masters Theses

Several behavioral treatments utilizing the delivery of preferred food with praise contingent upon consumption of nonpreferred foods were evaluated with a multiply handicapped child who exhibited multiple food aversions. Behavioral assessments of food preferences were used to identify preferred and nonpreferred foods and to monitor changes in the subject's preferences for nonpreferred target foods relative to other foods.

Following the implementation of treatment contingencies, a modest increase in the consumption of one nonpreferred target food, and substantial increases in consumption of a second nonpreferred target food, milk, other foods appearing on the lunch menu, and essential nutrients were observed. In …

Two Apparently Effective Strategies For Increasing Employee Compliance, Ann M. Backe

Masters Theses

The present study investigated the controlling aspects of employee participation on compliance to store procedures through the use of a total participative group and a group trained in the technical and beneficial aspects of the procedures. Five grocery store cashiers comprised the Participative Group and six cashiers comprised the Value- and Skill- Trained (VST) Group. The researcher conducted one meeting with the members of the Participative Group to design procedures to decrease the number of checks returned to the stores because of non-sufficient funds. Following the development of the new procedures, the Participative Group received technical training on the procedures. …

Effects Of Positive, Negative And Balanced Emphases On Perceived Effectiveness Of Performance Appraisal, Joseph Andrew Hammond

Masters Theses

The central theme of the research is the experimental manipulation of three different appraisal processes, namely positive, negative, and balanced appraisals to determine which evaluation tool would be perceived as most useful in motivating and stimulating employees to improve on their performance. Subjects were randomly assigned to groups and presented with scripts exemplifying three appraisal approaches and asked to evaluate the perceived effectiveness of each approach in producing a desired performance outcome. The results showed significant differences between the balanced approach and the other two approaches. However, there was no significant difference between the means of the positive versus negative …

The Effects Of An Instructional Package On Study Question Completion Skills Of High School Students, Jeffery David Montgomery

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to empirically evaluate the effects of an instructional package on study question behaviors. The instructional package, incorporating contingent reinforcement, modeling, feedback, contingency contracting and a programmed instruction format was implemented to train four study question answering behaviors identified through task analysis. Each subject demonstrated ability to perform the four behaviors with increased accuracy on experimental measures following training. Results indicated that the instructional package was effective in training increased accuracy in each instructional behavior for each subject. Generalized performance of these behaviors in the classroom environment, assessed through comparison of classroom grades and study …

A Short Data Based Inservice Program For Teachers Of Direct Instruction, Patricia Mckeen Salvi

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to empirically determine the effectiveness and practical aspects of a researcher developed inservice training program. This training program was used with three middle school teachers to improve theirs kills in Direct Instruction Decoding teaching techniques. The training program utilized verbal instructions, modeling, positive and corrective feedback, and checkouts to determine the teachers' mastery of each skill area trained. The trainer employed a multiple probe design, and the training proved to be effective in improving each teacher's performance across each skill area trained. The inservice program proved to be practical in that it could be …

Derivation And Test Of Predictions Of A Discrete Latent State Model For Signed Number Addition Test Performance, Kentaro Yamamoto

Dissertations and Theses

This study is an investigation of the performance of a discrete latent state model devised by Paulson (1982) to account for signed-number arithmetic test data gathered by Birenbaum and Tatsuoka (1980). One hundred twenty nine students took a test which consists of sixteen item types with four parallel arithmetic items of each type. The present study utilizes the five addition item types of four items each; hence, there are four parallel subtests. Responses to the addition items can be analyzed in terms of two components: the sign component (is the sign correct?), and the absolute value component (is the size …

Locus Of Control In Voluntary And Involuntary Psychiatric Patients, Christopher B. Karegeannes

Retrospective Theses and Dissertations

Psychiatric inpatients, consisting of 32 males and 33 females between the ages of 15 and 58 completed Rotter's (1966) Internal-External Locus of Control (I-E) Scale. The scale was administered individually to the patients at both admission and discharge, at the Crisis Stabilization Unit (CSU) in Orlando, Florida. Analysis of variance was used to determine whether there were significant differences due to commitment status (voluntary and involuntary), diagnosis (thought and affective and other disorders), and change scores (admission versus discharge). The hypothesis that involuntary patients would produce significantly higher scores was not confirmed. Further, no significant difference was found due to …

Locus Of Control As A Function Membership In Alcoholics Anonymous, Christine B. Philput

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

This study was undertaken to examine locus of control in recovering members of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA). Variables that might affect locus of control, such as sex, age, job, previous psychiatric treatment, and length of membership in AA were examined. One hundred and fifty-three members of AA took the 24-item Levenson IPC (L-IPC) Scale, and a one-page questionnaire covering the variables of interest. A control group of 212 also took the L-IPC along with the Rotter, Nowicki-Strickland, and Marlowe-Crowne scales. Results reveal that AA members were more external than controls on the I subscale, more internal on the P subscale, and …

Social Sensitivity In Adolescents And Adults With Learning Disabilities, Patricia Anne Jarvis

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of the present study was to investigate social sensitivity and self-concept in students with learning disabilities and their non-disabled peers. Thirty students each from Junior and Senior public high schools and a community college in Tidewater, Virginia participated in the study with 15 learning disabled and 15 non-disabled students from each of the three grade levels (N-90). Students were individually assessed in 50 minute interviews for their accuracy in interpreting the thoughts and feelings of actors in tape-recorded stories depicting two adults in happy, angry, anxious, and sad interactions. A questionnaire measuring self-concept in learning situations as a …

The Development Of Learned Helplessness In Retarded And Non-Retarded Children, Jennifer Miller Schwartz

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Studies have suggested that, when mental ages are equal, mentally retarded children exhibit more symptoms of learned helplessness following experience with failure than do non-retarded children, i.e., low IQ, leads to helplessness. The present study hypothesized that IQ alone did not lead to helplessness, but that chronological age played an important role in its development. It was thought that perhaps the different levels of helplessness present in the two populations was due to the age difference necessary to make their mental ages equivalent. To test this possibility, l05 retarded, average and bright children (MA= 5.25 - 17.33 years; CA= 6.25 …

Modification Of Affective State - Dependent Learning, Lois E. Griffin

Electronic Theses & Dissertations

Two experiments using male and female college students tested the hypotheses that state-dependent learning (SDL) would be demonstrated by manipulating affective states and that presentation of a discriminative stimulus (SD) would modify SDL so as to significantly increase the amount of transfer between affective states. Subjects were instructed to imagine feeling "angry" and "relaxed". Anger was defined as an increase in heart rate of 10 beats per minute above baseline and relaxation was defined as a decrease in heart rate of 10 beats per minute below baseline. Subjects learned word lists in both anger and relaxation conditions and were tested …

Shadowing Interference In A Dichotic Listening Task With Categorized And Uncategorized Word Lists, David Coleman

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The purpose of this thesis was twofold: to investigate the effects of categorized versus uncategorized material on selective attention and to test predictions derived from Filter Theory (Broadbent, 1958), Response Selection Theory (Deutsch and Deutsch, 1963), and Attenuation Theory (Treisman, 1969). Subjects performed a dichotic-listening task in which they shadowed a list of words presented to one ear (i.e., relevant message) while trying to ignore a simultaneously presented list of words on the other ear (i.e., irrelevant message). Lists were 16 words in length and consisted of either categorized words (C) or uncategorized words (U) presented at a rate of …

Dynamic In-Patient Therapy: A Team Approach, Le Van Cao

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

The paper reports on the philosophy and clinical results of an individualized but concentrated team approach to hospitalized patients undergoing a psychological crisis. The team focuses on the patient’s key vital coping technique as the source of his vulnerability and assists the patient toward constructive self-understanding. The approach favors maximum therapeutic benefit from a short hospital stay. Follow-up of the first fifteen cases managed by this method discloses a significantly low percentage of relapse and rehospitalization, and demonstrates that even such relapses can be turned to therapeutic benefit.

The Correlation Between Expressive Language Delay In Children And Their Motor Abilities, Gail G. Cunningham

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of the present study was to determine the correlation between expressive language delay in children and their gross and fine motor skills. Twenty children five years through six years, eleven months with a diagnosed expressive language delay, were selected to participate in the study. Each was screened on the basis of normal hearing, receptive vocabulary skills, motor functioning, and an expressive language delay of one year or more. After screening procedures, each child was administered the Preschool Language Scale-PLS (Zimmerman, et al., 1969) and the short form of the Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency-BOMP (Bruininks, 1978). …

Social Interaction: The Relationship Between Facial Attractiveness And Verbal Influence Style, Laurie Jean Lee

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this study was to determine if male and female communicators utilize different styles of persuasion with an attractive versus an unattractive female target. Forty undergraduate students were asked to persuade a female confederate in either an attractive condition or an unattractive condition to eat M&M's. Perceptions of attractiveness and personality assessments were checked by a post-experimental questionnaire. Influence attempts were rated and categorized by the use of the Social Interaction Scoring System. Individual responses were then factor analyzed to identify profiles of persuasive communication. These behavioral profiles were then statistically compared across experimental conditions by analyses of …

The Relationship Between Ego Identity Status, Conformity Behavior, And Personality In College Students, John Harold Ryan

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The relationship between conformity behavior and the four identity statuses as operationalized by Marcia was studied in 80 college students. Also, various personality characteristics were studied relative to their discernability by identity status and their relationship to conformity behavior. As sex difference was a major consideration in the study, the sample was divided into 40 males and 40 females ranging in age from 18 to 25 years. Statistical analysis indicated there were no significant differences between identity statuses relative to conformity for either males or females. In addition, very few personality characteristics were indicative of conformity for either sex. However, …

An Analysis Of The Hiskey Nebraska Test Of Learning Aptitute For Navajo Children With Suspected Learning Difficulties, Susan Louise Sawyer

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of the study was to evaluate the appropriateness of the Hiskey Nebraska Test of Learning Aptitude as a measure of ability for Navajo students with suspected learning difficulties. Item analytic procedures were employed for the 61 students in the younger group (ages 5-10) and for the 57 students in the older group (ages 11-17).

Using Hoyt's analysis of variance routine, reliability estimates of .87 (younger group) and .81 (older group) were obtained. The majority of the items discriminated in the appropriate direction for both subtest and total test scores.

It was concluded that the Hiskey Nebraska Test of …