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Parental Divorce, Family Conflict, And The Well-Being Of College Students: Forgiveness As A Protective Factor, Kimberly Jorgensen

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Current literature cites that children with divorced parents are susceptible to maladjustment. This outcome is especially likely when family conflict exists. One purpose of the current study was to examine and clarify the relationships between parental divorce, interparental and parent-child conflict, and the health and well-being of children as they reach college age. Extant literature also supports the notion that interpersonal forgiveness has a special association with divorce, parent-child relationships, conflict, and mental health. This study therefore purported to examine the role of state and trait forgiveness with respect to the associations between parental divorce status, family conflict and college …

Conditional Discrimination And Reversal In Amnesia Subsequent To Hypoxic Brain Injury Or Anterior Communicating Artery Aneurysm Rupture, C. E. Myers, J. Deluca, Ramona O. Hopkins, M. A. Gluck

Faculty Publications

Human anterograde amnesia can develop following bilateral damage to the hippocampus and medial temporal lobes, as in hypoxic brain injury, or following damage to the basal forebrain, as following anterior communicating artery (ACoA) aneurysm rupture. In both cases, the mnestic deficit may be similar when assessed by standard neuropsychological measures. However, animal and computational models suggest that there are qualitative differences in the pattern of impaired and spared memory abilities following damage to hippocampus versus basal forebrain. Here, we show such a dissociation in human amnesia using a single two-stage task, involving conditional discrimination and reversal. Consistent with a prior …

Brain Integrity And Cerebral Atrophy In Vietnam Combat Veterans With And Without Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, Bruce L. Brown, Dawson W. Hedges, G. William Thatcher, Pamela J. Bennett, Shabnam Sood, David Paulson, Sarah Creem-Regehr, Steven Allen, Jamie Johnson, Brooke Froelich, Erin D. Bigler

Faculty Publications

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is associated with decreased hippocampal volume, but the relationship between trauma and brain morphology in the absence of PTSD is less clear. In this study, measures of brain integrity were determined by estimating gray and white matter regional brain volumes using structural magnetic resonance imaging in six patients with PTSD and in five controls with comparable trauma exposure but without clinical evidence of PTSD. The only statistically significant volume difference between groups was observed multivariately in the white matter of the right temporal lobe (superior temporal gyrus, fusiform gyrus, parahippocampal gyrus, white-matter stem, middle temporal gyrus, …

Mate Preference Necessities In Long- And Short-Term Mating: People Prioritize In Themselves What Their Mates Prioritize In Them, Norman P. Li

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

People were given highly constrained low budgets of mate dollars to allocate across various characteristics pertaining to their ideal partners and to their ideal selves for long- and short-term mating. First, results replicated findings from LI et al. (2002) and LI and KENRICK (2006). For ideal long-term mates, men prioritized physical attractiveness and women prioritized social status. For ideal short-term mates, both sexes prioritized physical attractiveness. Second, people's design of their ideal selves mirrored what the opposite sex ideally desired in their mates. For a long-term mating context, men prioritized social status in themselves and women prioritized physical attractiveness in …

The Roles Of Exercise Habits, Gender Stereotype Of Exercise, And Self-Esteem In Sexual Victimization, Nicole Rene Harder

Theses and Dissertations

Anecdotal evidence suggests that women who exercise regularly increase not only their physical strength but also their mental strength, which has been conceptualized as self-confidence, assertiveness, and self-esteem. Empirical investigation into this area of research, however, is scarce. One study found that self-reported victimization rates of female athletes were significantly lower when compared with another study's female non-athlete sample. More recently, research found significant differences in levels of self-esteem and sexual victimization rates between female collegiate varsity athletes and the general female college population. The current study is a subsequent analysis of the data used in the aforementioned study.

Data …

The Role Of A Clergyperson Within An Assertive Case Management Outreach Team, Rachel Adrienne Lee Fayter

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Mental health consumer/survivors living in urban poverty are generally marginalized and devalued by society. To aid in the process of recovery they require a holistic form of treatment to meet their physical, emotional, psychological, and spiritual needs. The current exploratory study investigated the role of a pastor as part of a multidisciplinary team engaged in mental health outreach work and the impacts of this role for people experiencing urban homelessness. Multiple qualitative methods were used to collect data from different stakeholder groups. From multiple participant perspectives, the findings indicate that there are many unique spiritual, relational, and moral aspects of …

Embracing Life After Breast Cancer: Exploring The Holistic Health Of Survivors, Christine Yakiwchuk

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Health, from a holistic perspective, is more than physical well-being. The experience and treatment of breast cancer has an impact beyond physical health, with psychological, social, and spiritual factors playing a role in wellness. Physically, treatment such as surgery, radiation and chemotherapy often have disruptive side effects such as, fatigue, breast soreness, nausea, vomiting, hair loss and weight gain, as well as the possibility of losing one or both breasts (Mustain et al., 2002). Psychologically and emotionally, women may experience anxiety, depression, anger, guilt, fear and repression, psychological distress and persistent fears of recurrence (Glanz & Lerman, 1992). The goal …

The Role Of Christian Faith In The Acculturation And Identity Development Of Chinese Immigrant Youth, Lynn Chyi-Ing Liao

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Immigration is a life-altering experience that significantly contributes a context for identity formation, a critical and salient task during the years of late adolescence and emerging adulthood. Religion as a influential factor in the lives of youth has often been overlooked and considering the transnational quality of Christianity, it may have an important role to play in the acculturation and identity development of immigrant youth.

In this qualitative study, I chose to interview Chinese immigrant youth aged 18-23, who are recent immigrants and self-identify as Christian. The central idea of this exploratory inquiry is that each individual interprets experiences of …

Planting The Seeds: The Experiences Of Community Psychology Graduates As Agents Of Systemic Social Change, Peggy Ann Weston

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Social change is a part of human existence, but other than charismatic individuals such as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Gandhi, little has been published about the lived experience of social change agents. Time (era, passage of time, etc.) is often neglected as an important temporal factor of analysis in systemic social change (SSC) activities. The intent is to explore the experience of people working as SSC agents and discover what influences their work. A better understanding of this experience would contribute to more effective SSC work and perhaps address challenges facing change agents. The main research question, “What …

Pilot Study Of Psychopathology Among Roman Catholic Secular Clergy, Sarah Knox, Stephen G. Virginia, Jacquelyn Smith

College of Education Faculty Research and Publications

This pilot study gathered information regarding overall levels of psychopathology in a nationally selected, random sample of U.S. Roman Catholic secular (i.e., diocesan) priests using the Symptom Checklist-90-Revised (SCL-90-R; Derogatis, 2004). The study yielded a response rate of 45%. One-half of the participants reported marked psychological problems, with interpersonal sensitivity, anxiety, and depression most strongly correlated with the instrument’s overall index of psychopathology. Four dimensional scales were elevated (i.e., obsessive-compulsive, interpersonal sensitivity, depression, psychoticism), as were two indices (i.e., GSI, PST). Implications and directions for future research are discussed.

Empirically Certified Treatments Or Therapists: The Issue Of Separability, Merton S. Krause, Wolfgang Lutz, Stephen M. Saunders

Psychology Faculty Research and Publications

Forms of psychotherapy treatment are not neatly separable from one another in actual practice. They differ behaviorally in what they emphasize, but nevertheless they overlap and so cannot be unambiguously compared for effectiveness. Furthermore, forms of psychotherapy are not separable in practice from the therapists who apply them, so apparent differences in effectiveness between forms of treatment are always confounded by differences in effectiveness between therapists. Therapists, however, are separable from one another, and it is therapists not treatment forms that actually treat patients. Therefore, what should primarily be given preference in practice is not treatments empirically certified on the …

Acculturation And Depression Among Hispanics: The Moderating Effect Of Intercultural Competence, Lucas Torres, David Rollock

Psychology Faculty Research and Publications

In the present study the authors examined the relative contributions of typical acculturation indicators, general coping, and intercultural competence in predicting depression among 96 Hispanic adults. The results indicated that intercultural competence served to moderate the relationship between acculturation and depression. The combination of high acculturation and high intercultural competence was associated with fewer symptoms. General coping accounted for significant amounts of variance in predicting depression, over and above traditional acculturation variables alone, suggesting that an active problem-solving style was associated with a healthier outcome. The findings are discussed within the context of integrating competence-based variables into psychological conceptualizations of …

Historical Perspective: The Historical Development Of The Society For Occupational Health Psychology, Leslie B. Hammer, Irvin Sam Schonfeld

Publications and Research

The Society for Occupational Health Psychology (SOHP) is the first professional group of its kind in the United States. The development of the Society can be traced to the development of the field of occupational health psychology (OHP). OHP is an interdisciplinary partnership of the psychological and occupational health sciences. The goals of this partnership include the improvement of the quality of people’s working lives and the enhancement of the safety, health, and well-being of workers. To our knowledge the first time the term occupational health psychology became visible in the research literature is in 1986 in a book chapter …

Exploring The Ligand Binding Site On The Dopamine Transporter By Photoaffinity Labeling And Site-Directed Mutagenesis, Maria Laura Parnas

Theses and Dissertations

The dopamine transporter (DAT) is a neuronal presynaptic transmembrane protein that clears released dopamine (DA) from the synaptic space, regulating the neurotransmitter concentration and availability, DAT and the related serotonin (SERT) and norepinephrine (NET) transporters belong to the SLC6 family of Na+ and CI- dependent symporters, and are major targets for the action of several drugs, including the psychostimulant cocaine. DAT is predicted to possess 12 transmembrane spanning domains (TMs), with both N- and C-termini located intracellularly. Extensive research efforts to gain insight on the molecular aspects of DAT have been attempted, but the three-dimensional arrangement of the protein as …

Pain Affects Spouses Too: Personal Experience With Pain And Catastrophizing As Correlates Of Spouse Distress, Michelle T. Leonard, Annmarie Cano

Psychology Faculty Research Publications

Chronic pain has adverse effects on individuals with chronic pain (ICPs) as well as their family members. Borrowing from an empathy model described by Goubert et al. (2005), we examined topdown and bottom-up factors that may be related to psychological well-being in the spouses of ICPs. A diverse community sample of 113 middle-aged spouses of individuals with chronic pain (ICPs) completed measures on pain severity and spouse pain catastrophizing (PCS-S; Cano et al., 2005). Results showed that almost half (48.7%) of spouses reported chronic pain themselves and that pain in the spouse accounted for within-couple differences on psychological distress. That …

An Overview Of The Near-Death Experience Phenomenon, David San Filippo Ph.D.

Faculty Publications

Near-death experiences appear to be universal phenomena that have been reported for centuries. A near-death encounter is defined as an event in which the individual could very easily die or be killed, or may have already been considered clinically dead, but nonetheless survives, and continue his or her physical life. Reports of near-death experiences date back to the Ice Age. There are cave paintings, in France and Spain that depict possible after life scenes that are similar to reported scenes related to near-death experiences. Plato's Republic presents the story of a near-death experience of a Greek soldier named Er. In …

Paved With Good Intentions: A Definitional Study On The Issue Of Psychological Child Abuse, Anita Renee Fromm

Graduate Theses

Definitional issues concerning child abuse have long plagued the identification and treatment of this malady. This study examined the role of perpetrator intention in categorizing adverse parenting skills, as well as psychological child abuse potential. Exploitative parenting styles were displayed and rated in a variety of vignettes. Social service professionals and university students were participants in this vignette style questionnaire study. Results indicated that with a few exceptions, a constant perpetrator intention did not appear to alter subject perceptions that the scenarios presented adverse parenting skills and child abuse potential. The participants were indecisive concerning scenarios that represented excessive athletic …

African American Children's Inferences Based On Race, Sex And Age, Erica Hightower

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Previous studies (Madole, Eastman, Stone, & White, 2005) have suggested that children do not make inferences about people on the basis of race until around 8 years of age. The present study was a replication of a study performed by Madole et al. The distinction between the two studies was in the sample used, hi the previous study the majority of children used were Caucasian. The present study sought to examine whether African American children were more likely to make inferences on the basis of race than Caucasian children. Children ages 6 to 11 years were asked to perform an …

The Influence Of Children's Gender And Behavior On Parental Perceptions, Virginia Lowery

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Parents' perceptions of children's behavior may vary depending on the gender of the child and the type of behavior displayed. It is important to delineate which factor(s) influence parental perceptions because parental perceptions directly influence whether or not parents respond to their children's behavior and how parents choose to manage the behavior. The present study examined how the gender of the child and the types of behaviors (internalizing vs. externalizing) the child displays affect parental perceptions regarding the severity of the behavior. One hundred and three parents of children ages 1 V2 to 5 years in the Southeast region of …

Behaviorally-Based Disorders: The Historical Social Construction Of Youths' Most Prevalent Psychiatric Diagnoses, Christopher A. Mallett

Social Work Faculty Publications

The article discusses the historical social construction of the most prevalent diagnosis of youth in the U.S. The country's psychiatry controls the definitions of mental health disorders and diagnosis through required practice utilization of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. A research is conducted through a social construction theoretical paradigm to identify diagnostic classification systems, nosology changes, and critical time periods.

Examination Of The Relationship Between Parenting Styles And Parental Tolerance, Amanda Sowers

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Noncompliant behavior in children may be due to the developmental stage the child is going through, but persistent noncompliance can have long-term effects on the child ranging from academic problems to relationship problems (Forehand & Wierson, 1993; Kalb & Loeber, 2003). Parents' response to noncompliant behavior may be influenced by their parenting style. Parental tolerance is one factor that may differ among parenting styles. Parental tolerance can be defined by how annoyed the parent becomes by disruptive behavior displayed by children and the affect it has on the parent-child interaction (Brestan, Eyberg, Algina, Johnson, & Boggs, 2003). One new measure …

Hormone Effects On Fmri And Cognitive Measures Of Encoding: Importance Of Hormone Preparation, C. E. Gleason, T. W. Schmitz, T. Hess, R. L. Koscik, M. A. Trivedi, M. L. Ries, C. M. Carlsson, M. A. Sager, S. Asthana, S. C. Johnson

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

We compared fMRI and cognitive data from nine hormone therapy (HT)-naive women with data from women exposed to either opposed conjugated equine estrogens (CEE) (n = 10) or opposed estradiol (n = 4). Exposure to either form of HT was associated with healthier fMRI response; however, CEE-exposed women exhibited poorer memory performance than either HT-naive or estradiol-exposed subjects. These preliminary findings emphasize the need to characterize differential neural effects of various HTs. ©2006AAN Enterprises, Inc.

The Aggression Questionnaire As An Indicator Of Anger Expression By Abused Women In Therapy, Audrey Steakley

Graduate Theses

The present study examined whether adult women in therapy who have been physically abused express anger differently than their counterparts who have been sexually abused, and whether they are aware that they express anger in noticeable ways. The first hypothesis stated that physically abused women express anger directly and physically, whereas sexually abused women express anger indirectly, avoiding direct confrontation. The second hypothesis proposed that they are not aware how much they express their anger outwardly. Participants were female clients at a local counseling agency, with issues stemming from physical and/or sexual abuse. They voluntarily completed the Aggression Questionnaire (AQ) …

Perceived Spouse Responses To Pain: The Level Of Agreement In Couple Dyads And The Role Of Catastrophizing, Marital Satisfaction, And Depression, Laura Pence, Annmarie Cano, Beverly Thorn, Charles Ward

Psychology Faculty Research Publications

The primary objective of this study was to examine whether individuals with chronic pain (“participants”) and their spouses agree on perceptions of solicitous, distracting, and punishing spouse responses to pain. The second aim was to examine the role of participant catastrophizing (a negative mental set about pain), participant and spouse marital satisfaction, and participant and spouse depression in participant perceptions of spouse responses, spouse perceptions of their responses, and agreement between participants and spouses. Individuals with chronic musculoskeletal pain and their spouses (N=108 couples) completed questionnaire packets. Examination of overall group averages (participants vs. spouses) indicated little or no differences …

Contingency Management Techniques And Smoking Cessation In College Students, Laurie Athey

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine smoking cessation using different criteria for delivery of monetary reinforcement for college students from Rowan University, Glassboro, NJ. Participants participated in a 4 week study using a single subject reversal design (ABAC) in which baseline phases were alternated with either fixed criterion or shaping using an escalating schedule of reinforcement. The order of administration of intervention phases was determined randomly. Each intervention phase lasted 5 days (Monday-Friday). Results showed that contingent reinforcement for reduced carbon monoxide levels was effective in reducing smoking. However, additional studies need to be completed for longer periods …

Patient Handling Safety For Nursing Staff, Don Nielsen

Dissertations

The effectiveness of video scoring and feedback about the scoring of the components of safe patient transfers was observed among eight nursing staff members in a skilled nursing department within an acute care hospital.

An ABCA (and sometimes ABCDA), multiple baseline across individuals design was utilized in the study. The dependent variable under investigation was the percentage of safe lifting components. Following baseline measures, nursing staff participated in an information phase during which they reviewed and discussed components of safe patient transfers. A video scoring phase was introduced, during which, participants viewed and scored a model video of a patienttransfer. …

A Delphi Survey Of Experts’ Opinions Regarding Prevention Of Impairment In Professional Psychology Training, Kin-Ming Chan

Dissertations

This study sought to identify the most important measures that may be implemented in professional psychology training to prevent the future impairment of professionals. An adjunctive research question of this study addressed how these important measures can be successfully implemented. A 2-round Delphi method was conducted. Twenty-eight experts in impairment prevention participated in the first round study, and 20 of them continued to participate in the second round. In the first round, the experts rated the importance of an original list of 38 preventive measures, suggested additional important preventive measures, and provided considerations for successful implementation of their most important …

Perceived Similarity And Relationship Success Among Dating Couples: An Idiographic Approach, Catherine J. Lutz, Angela Christine Bradley, Jennifer L. Mihalik, Erika R. Moorman

Psychology Faculty Publications

This study utilized an idiographic approach to investigate the relation between similarity on valued characteristics and relationship success. College students (N = 247) rated their current romantic partner on perceived similarity in personality, attitudes, interests, and religious affiliation; the importance of similarity in these dimensions; and relationship satisfaction. Relationship status was assessed 6 weeks later. Results revealed significant similarity by importance interactions for religion and interests in predicting satisfaction. Participants with high perceived similarity in religion or interests reported greater satisfaction than did their low similarity counterparts, but only to the extent that they rated this type of similarity …

Counselor Education And Peace Building: Current Status And Future Direction, Jenny Ritha Keller

Dissertations

Counseling professionals are informed and guided in professional development, research and practice by the relevant professional organizations that endorse the field’s professional, ethical, and competency standards. Amidst the contemporary professional proclamations of multicultural- and social justice counseling as professional grounding principles, is also the directive to promote and engage in peace building. Although the notion of peace building appear to be conceptually congruent with the multicultural and social justice counseling competencies; peace building concepts and issues, and research on nonviolence, reconciliation, democratization, and conflict transformation, are as yet unchartered notions in the counselor education literature.

The purpose of this study …

Examination Of The Impact Of Age, Family Conflict, And Perceived Parental Involvement On Treatment Adherence For Children And Adolescents With Cystic Fibrosis And Diabetes, Blake M. Lancaster

Dissertations

The success of medical interventions for patients with diseases that require consistent adherence to a medical regimen is largely contingent upon the patient’s ability to consistently follow medical recommendations. Medical regimen adherence significantly influences the patient’s health and impacts the health care providers’ ability to treat any disease or medical problem. Adherence levels are particularly low in the pediatric population among young patients with diabetes and cystic fibrosis. Researchers and clinicians hypothesize that levels of adherence are particularly low during adolescence (ages 11-15) because this may be the period in which primary responsibility for daily adherence is transferred from the …