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Positive Psychology And Older Adult Well-Being, Kenzie Delposen

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Positive Psychology is a new area of scientific study within the realm of psychology that focuses on the positives in life and the promotion of well-being. Well-being can be promoted though aspects such as flourishing, hedonic and eudaimonic perspectives, positive affect and emotions, happiness, and reappraisal. Older adults make up an ever growing percentage of our population. Despite this, there are still biases and negative viewpoints against aging and older adults. The decline in health and social connectedness in aging is not inevitable and resilience can be imperative to successful aging. It is important to ensure healthy aging so that …

Work Adjustment And Family Caregiver Engagement In The Healthcare Transaction, Cynthia Uecker

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Unpaid family caregivers in the U.S. now exceed 40 million people, and the question of how to effectively support the family caregiver is now decades old. Healthcare’s dominant perspective is reasonable because healthcare sees the family caregiver in the healthcare transaction. The research consistently reports caregivers cite lack of information and training as a primary reason for feeling the healthcare provider is non-supportive. This qualitative phenomenological study employed semi-structured interviews to explore whether non-supportive might represent a disconnect between caregiver and the healthcare provider purposes with respect to the caregiver role. The theory of work adjustment provides context for considering …

Structure And Demographic Correlates Of Individual Trait Responses To Emotions, Anita Adams

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

From a functionalist perspective, emotions inform people of their needs and influence responses to the environment. Responses to emotion encompass more than emotion regulation strategies. Individual differences emerge from the consistent way that people cope with their emotions, called trait responses to emotion (TRE). We hypothesized approach/avoidance and control/dyscontrol would characterize the dimensional structure of TRE and that dimensions would correlate with age, gender, and early life experiences. The present study developed a multidimensional model to explore TRE from a TurkPrime sample (N = 284). Participants completed a web-based battery of surveys with demographic, early life experience, and TRE questionnaires. …

Individual Differences In Social Decision-Making Preferences, Kelly R. Smith

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Most research on decision making to date has focused primarily on the individual decision maker and has not looked at social aspects of decision making. A review of decision making in older adults indicated that older adults rate their own decision-making competence as worse than younger adults, even though not all facets of decision making decline with age (Strough, Bruine de Bruin, & Peters, 2015). Because of social roles that contribute to gender differences, women are theorized to be more interpersonally-oriented than men, suggesting that they may prefer to make decisions with others (Eagly, 1983). As population age continues to …

Cultural Variability In The Association Between Age And Well-Being: The Role Of Uncertainty Avoidance, Smaranda Lawrie, Kimin Eom, Daniela Moza, Alin Gavreliuc, Heejung S. Kim

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Past research has found a mixed relationship between age and subjective well-being. The current research advances the understanding of these findings by incorporating a cultural perspective. We tested whether the relationship between age and well-being is moderated by uncertainty avoidance, a cultural dimension dealing with society’s tolerance for ambiguity. In Study 1 (N = 64,228), using a multilevel approach with an international database, we found that older age was associated with lower well-being in countries higher in uncertainty avoidance but not in countries lower in uncertainty avoidance. Further, this cultural variation was mediated by a sense of control. In Study …

The Impact Of Credible And Non-Credible Treatment Information On Depression Treatment Preferences In College Students, Sydney Hayden, Dr. Michael Bordieri, Phd

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

Previous research has demonstrated the importance of considering client treatment preference when providing treatment for depression. However, little research has focused on the impact of treatment information on client preference. This study investigated differences in treatment preference between potential clients that read credible treatment information and those that read non-credible treatment information. The study was conducted via an online survey that was administered to undergraduate students. Eighty participants were randomly assigned to either read credible treatment information or non-credible treatment information and treatment preferences was assessed via a free response item before and after information regarding treatments was given. Overall, …

The Experience Of Counseling Interns And Their Perceived Preparedness Of Multicultural Counseling: A Phenomenological Study, Bianca Maria Milz

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

The purpose of this study was to acquire additional knowledge into the lived experiences of counseling interns and their perception of readiness for multicultural counseling. A phenomenological approached was used to understand the lived experiences and describe the essence of the phenomenon. Master’s level counseling interns (N=8) in CACREP accredited programs were surveyed in which they responded to five open-end question related to their experience. From those responses two themes emerged, participants described their perceived preparedness related to their mindfulness and education with diverse populations. The textural and structural descriptions of responses were combined (Creswell & Poth, 2018) to arrive …

Aging Intimately, Niamh Mcdonnell, Giulia Hjort

Capstones

We’re both familiar with grief after the loss of family members over 75. This project is our way of giving back in a small way by listening, but also as a way of remembering the people we unexpectedly lost. Each person we’ve met on this journey has inspired us in their own way, with their stories of resilience through grief and aging. All of our collaborators on this project are constantly learning, taking risks, and moving forward through loss and pain. They aren’t defined by their age. Rather, they embrace it with a willingness to reinvent their approach to romance …

Examining The Relationship Of Exercise And Sleep In Students Across Multiple Academic Disciplines, Taylor Zewe

Honors Projects

Students in college learn the importance of balancing their academic studies with their sleep and exercise habits. The amount of sleep and exercise a student recieves has been examined in previous research studies. In these studies it was found that exercise had a postive affect on the amount of sleep received. However, there is little research on the affect academic discipline has on sleep habits and/or exercise habits of students in college. The purpose of this study is to examine the sleep and exercise habits among students in multiple academic majors at Bowling Green State University.

Functional Analysis In The Home Setting Of An Older Adult With Neurocognitive Disorder, Emily Norton

Masters Theses

Currently within the behavioral gerontology literature there are no published studies that include a functional assessment in the home setting. The primary goal of the present study was to address this gap by conducting a functional analysis on a challenging behavior of an older adult with neurocognitive disorder in the home. This study occurred in two phases. During phase one, researchers conducted an antecedent functional analysis on the bizarre speech of an 81-year-old female with suspected dementia across four conditions (television on, no interactions initiated; television on, interactions initiated; television off, no interactions initiated; television off, interactions initiated). Results from …

The Impact Of A Multisensory Stimulation Environment Within A Memory Care Assisted Living Facility, Dana M. Prince

Dissertations

The use of Multisensory Stimulation Environments (MSSE) has grown increasingly more common in the United States (U.S.) as a nonpharmacological intervention for Behavioral and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia (BPSD). However, typical MSSE designs require a secluded room isolated from outside stimulation and demand direct supervision from the care provider during treatment. Due to projected shortages in the clinical workforce and the population of older adults on the rise, a study was designed to reveal the effectiveness of an open-floorplan MSSE to reduce the demand of care providers during the use of the MSSE while allowing subjects diagnosed with dementia to …

Children’S Cognitive Reflection Predicts Conceptual Understanding In Science And Mathematics, Andrew Young

Faculty Research and Creative Activities Symposium

The Cognitive Reflection Test (CRT; Frederick, 2005) is the dominant measure of adult individual differences in analytic vs. intuitive cognitive style. The task was designed to measure a person's tendency to override and inhibit an intuitive response that is incorrect and engage in deliberate reflection that leads to a correct response. The CRT is a meaningful predictor of a diverse range of adult psychological and behavioral outcomes, including conceptual change in science and math learning (Shtulman & McCallum, 2014; Gómez-Chacón et al., 2014). The present research employed a newly developed CRT for children, the CRT-D (Young et al., 2018), to …

Effects Of A School-Based Social-Emotional And Character Development Program On Peer, Family, School, And Neighborhood Contexts: A Cluster-Randomized Controlled Trial, Naida Silverthorn, Kendra M. Lewis, Niloofar Bavarian, David L. Dubois, Alan C. Acock, Samuel Vuchinich

Faculty Research and Creative Activities Symposium

Aims: To evaluate the impact of a school-based social-emotional and character development program on the various socializing contexts of youth. Methods: A matched-pair, cluster-randomized controlled trial included 1,170 students from 14, low-income, urban, Chicago Public Schools. Outcomes were assessed longitudinally for a cohort of youth followed from grades 3 to 8. Multilevel growth-curve modeling and endpoint analyses were conducted on indicators of peer, family, school, and neighborhood contexts. Results: Students in PA schools had slower rates of decline and higher end-point scores than students in non-PA schools across all of the contexts examined. For example, impacts were observed for positive …

Use Of The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (Moca) In A Rural Outreach Program For Military Veterans, Michelle M. Hilgeman, Eugenia M. Boozer, A. Lynn Snow, Rebecca S. Allen, Lori L. Davis

Journal of Rural Social Sciences

The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) is a free, easily accessible screener ideal for rural areas where resources are limited. We examined administration and scoring by Veteran Community Outreach Health Workers (VCOHWs); compared positive screening rates using two cutoff scores; and examined predictors of education-adjusted scores in N = 168 rural military Veterans from the Alabama Veteran Rural Health Initiative. Accuracy of administration (95 percent) and scoring (68 percent) was calculated and recommendations are offered. Higher than expected rates of positive screens were observed (40 percent using 24/30 cutoff) in this relatively young (M = 55 years) community-dwelling sample. Age, education, …

Nursing Campus Therapy Dog, Deborah A. Hall

Nursing Theses and Dissertations

An acknowledged bond has existed between humans and animals throughout history. Therapeutic physical and psycho-social effects of these bonding relationships have been noted in health care settings. Professional nursing education is known to be one of the most demanding and stressful fields of study. Students begin to experience extreme stress early in their nursing education. An animal-assisted intervention with a therapy dog is an innovative and inexpensive action that can help decrease the stress, anxiety, and depression students experience in higher education.

The focus of this dissertation portfolio was an animal-assisted intervention with a nursing campus therapy dog. The initial …

A Matter Of Time: Exploring Survival Analysis Through Cybersecurity, Rachel Whitman, Ana Kriletic, Daniel Svyantek

River Cities Industrial and Organizational Psychology Conference

Despite the impact of employee behavior on organizational security, the topic of cybersecurity historically remains the responsibility of Information Security Management researchers and Information Technology professionals. However, the exponential increase in the prevalence and repercussions of cyber-related incidents invites collaboration between the fields of I-O Psychology and cybersecurity. The proposed presentation discusses the potential for I-O Psychology to contribute to cybersecurity efforts while demonstrating the fundamentals and applicability of survival analysis.

The Effect Of Viewing Advertisements Depicting Information And Communication Technology On Older Adults' Technology Self-Efficacy, Hollie Brianne Coleman

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Information and communication technologies (ICTs) are an important part of society today. Older adults often report ICTs as difficult to use and unhelpful; however, ICTs can support older adults’ ability to stay in touch with family and friends across long distances and help increase their quality of life. Unfortunately, training programs targeted at teaching older adults to use ICTs are often costly and time-consuming. The current study attempts to determine whether advertisements depicting older adults using ICTs can be used to increase self-efficacy without the use of training programs.

A within subjects experimental design was completed using an independent variable …

Sex And Senesce: A Exploration Of Aging Women’S Sexual Selves, Cordray Mccann

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The sexual lives of women over the age of 50 are often forgotten from just about every medium. This research hopes to uncover how aging women interpret their current sexual selves, sexual histories, and changing bodies. In thinking about this, four women were interviewed about their life stories surrounded love, passion, and sex. Each of these women told brave accounts of their lives and through their narratives, we were able to draw theoretical conclusions about bodily shame, age performativity, and prescribed stereotypical roles. These four stories, told individually as to support each woman's personal narrative are vastly different yet intersect …

Socioemotional Selectivity And Psychological Health In Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Patients And Caregivers: A Longitudinal, Dyadic Analysis, Suzanne C. Segerstrom, Edward J. Kasarskis, David W. Fardo, Philip M. Westgate

Psychology Faculty Publications

Objective: Socioemotional selectivity theory predicts that as the end of life approaches, goals and resources that provide immediate, hedonic reward become more important than those that provide delayed rewards. This study tested whether these goal domains differentially affected psychological health in the context of marital dyads in which one partner had been diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a life-limiting disease.

Design: ALS patients (N = 102) being treated in three multidisciplinary clinics and their spouses (N = 100) reported their loneliness, financial worry and psychological health every 3 months for up to 18 months.

Main …

The Effects Of Language Brokering Among The Korean Population, James J. Kim

Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)

Children of immigrant families frequently are immersed in a process called language brokering (LB) in which they interpret and translate between various linguistic and cultural parties for their families. Previous studies that investigated correlations among LB, mental health and behavioral outcomes revealed both positive and negative effects of well-being and development. The current study expanded this research by examining the relationship of LB, acculturation, hope, and resilience among 53 Korean adults. This study revealed a significant negative relationship between the frequency of LB and levels of hope. Additionally, the results did not demonstrate any significant relationships between the frequency of …

An Interprofessional Collaborative Approach To The Development Of A Content Valid Interview Questionnaire For Persons With Hearing Loss And Their Communication Partners, Nancy A. Delich, Stephen D. Roberts

JADARA

An assessment instrument needs to be valid in order for data to be accurately interpreted and applied. Currently, few rigorous content evaluations have been conducted on hearing-related questionnaires. This study describes a multiphase approach for obtaining content validity evidence in the development of a questionnaire that explores quality of life for persons with hearing loss and their communication partners. A panel of 15 interprofessional experts evaluated 41 questionnaire items for content relevance and content clarity. Findings revealed an overall scale of .99 for content relevance and .85 for content clarity, indicating high content validity for the revised 40-item questionnaire.

Paws For Thought: The Importance Of Dogs In A Seniors Social Intervention, Elisa Maria Concetta Papotto, Jessica Lee Oliva Dr

People and Animals: The International Journal of Research and Practice

As Australia faces an aging population with an unprecedented life expectancy, it is the community’s obligation to ensure seniors are offered resources to support their well-being. Studies investigating loneliness in aged-care facilities attest to the therapeutic properties of dogs for residents’ sense of well-being. Consequently, this study aimed to ascertain the effectiveness of a community-based dog lover’s initiative for the self-management of well-being among senior citizens. Our qualitative research investigated whether community gatherings including dogs would produce greater feelings of subjective well-being among senior citizens compared to community gatherings without dogs. A conventional content analysis provided support for the supposition …

The Intersection Of Aging And Pet Guardianship: Influences Of Health And Social Support, Ranell L. Mueller, Elizabeth G. Hunter

People and Animals: The International Journal of Research and Practice

Studies of the human-animal bond show many positive health effects for pet guardians including a sense of companionship, reduced depression and loneliness, and higher activity levels, yet few studies have examined factors such as how the pet guardians’ health, age, and social networks influence their relationship with and ability to care for their pet. These health factors may affect the ability of older adults to care for their pets, therefore inhibiting them from reaping positive benefits associated with pet guardianship. This qualitative study involved 21 in-depth interviews with older adults, aged 60+, who were pet guardians. Four themes emerged from …

Recent Trends, Current Research In Cyberpsychology: A Literature Review, Amarjit Kumar Singh, Pawan Kumar Singh

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

Cyberpsychology refers to the study of the mind and behavior in the context of interactions with technology. It is an emerging branch, which has focused on the psychological aspects connected to the increasing presence and usages of technology in modern lives. This paper traces recent advancement and trends of Cyberpsychology is an emerging domain of knowledge and goes on the give a literature review of the same. An analysis of the recent research and literature covering 300 most relevant research papers from the period of 2012 to 15, August 2019 was conducted to determine and shape the research pattern based …

Medical Aid In Dying: Knowledge, Attitudes, And Beliefs Of Licensed Psychologists, Christine Caroline Merz

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Medical aid in dying (MAID) is a process by which individuals with terminal illness can voluntarily ingest a lethal dose of medication provided to them by their physician to intentionally end their life. MAID is currently legal in eight U.S. states and several other countries. Licensed psychologists and other mental health professionals are implicated in MAID laws in the form of psychological evaluation that is required for select patients. Little is known about the knowledge and attitudes of psychologists regarding MAID, including views on legal and ethical acceptability, and professional competence to conduct psychological evaluations for patients requesting MAID. The …

Gerodiversity - How Facing Adversity Across The Lifespan Can Foster Workplace Resilience, Ashley M. Stripling, Jodie E. B. Maccarrone

Faculty Proceedings, Presentations, Speeches and Lectures

Symposium Topic: Older Women Who Work: Examinations of Grey and Grit

• Chair: Lisa Hollis-Sawyer, PhD, Northeastern Illinois University
• Participants: Mary Gergen, PhD, Penn State University; and Ellen Cole, PhD, The Sage Colleges. When Just Getting by Is Getting Old: Women Working in Later Life to Pay the Bills
  - Monica Teixeira, MA, Columbia College. The Impact of Aging and Authentic Leadership in a Higher Education Latina Leader
  - Julie Hicks Patrick, PhD, West Virginia University. Appalachian Grit and Older Working Women
  - Niva Piran, PhD, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada. Missions Continued: The Meaning of Work in Older Women’s …

The Impact Of Food Security Status On The Food Shopping Behavior And Patterns Of 2018 Brighter Bites Participants At Baseline, Sarah A. Crulcich

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Households with children continue to have a greater prevalence of food insecurity compared to the national average. While the national food security rates have improved in recent years, it remains stagnant among children. The purpose of this study was to conduct a cross-sectional regression analysis on food shopping patterns and behavior among Brighter Bites participants stratified by food security status to offer more insight into how these households obtain fresh produce. We used baseline survey data from Brighter Bites participants completed during fall 2018. The results indicate that food insecure Brighter Bites households shop more frequently for produce at locations …

Depression Mediates The Association Of Disordered Eating Behaviors And Sexual Function In Female Service Members And Veterans, Whitney S. Livingston

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Poor sexual function is comprised of diminished sexual desire and arousal, presence of sexual pain, inability to reach orgasm, and low satisfaction. Worse sexual function is associated with disordered eating behavior; however, the mechanism through which this association exists remains unclear. Theory of sexual function suggests that depression mediates the association of disordered eating behaviors and poor sexual function in female service members and veterans, but this has yet to be tested empirically. The purpose of the current study was to examine whether depression mediated the association of disordered eating behaviors and sexual dysfunction.

Participants (N=511) were partnered …

Let It Rest: Sleep And Health As Positive Correlates Of Forgiveness Of Others And Self-Forgiveness, Loren Toussaint, Andrew J. Gall, Alyssa Cheadle, David R. Williams

Faculty Publications

Objective: The present study examined forgiveness of others, self-forgiveness, sleep, and health in a nationally representative sample of United States adults. It was hypothesised that sleep would mediate the associations of forgiveness of others and self-forgiveness with health.

Design: A nationally representative survey of 1,423 United States adults.

Main Outcome Measures: Measures included forgiveness of others, self-forgiveness, sleep quantity, sleep quality, psychological distress, life satisfaction, and self-rated physical health.

Results: Forgiveness of others (β = .20, p < .001) and self-forgiveness (β = .11, p < .01) were associated with sleep and forgiveness of others (β = .24, p < .001) and self-forgiveness (β = .27, p < .001) were associated with health. Sleep was associated with health (β = .45, p < .001) and also acted as a mediator of the associations of forgiveness of others (β = .09, p < .01) and self-forgiveness (β = .05, p < .01) with health.

Conclusions: Forgiveness of others and self-forgiveness may attenuate emotions such as anger, regret, and rumination and provide …

Personality And Technology: Big Five Personality Traits As Descriptors Of Universal Acceptance And Usage Of Technology Utaut., Shohar Bano, Ubaid Ullah Shah, Dr. Sabha Ali

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

Presently, information professionals are progressively dependent on information and communication technologies to complete their everyday tasks. As, result dependence on PC frameworks, programming and data innovation-related technologies are increasing for better working and providing quality services. Therefore, to understand, analyze and evaluate the acceptance and use of this technology several models of technology acceptance and use have been formulated in information science literature. Using eight such models, Venkatesh, Morris, Davis and Davis proposed a unified model called the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology or (UTAUT) model. The UTAUT model has been studied and analyzed in various spheres …