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Employee Expectations And Job Stress: A Study Of Attrition In The Employment Of Telemarketers, Jeff Cooper

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The present study investigated the factors associated with the extremely high attrition rate of a large midwestern telemarketing firm. Factors associated with employee expectations, stressful organizational characteristics, and job satisfaction were explored. The research strategy involved multiple questionnaires, dissatisfaction surveys, and a semi-structured interview, that were developed by the researchers based on information obtained from the company. Current and former employees of the company participated in the study. Results indicated the presence of stressful organizational characteristics that were common between current and former employees. Sale conversion rate pressure from supervisors and inadequate training were identified as the most salient factors …

An Evaluation Of The Responses Of Clinical And Non-Clinical Boys On The Social Skills Inventory For Youth, Rachel Frederickson

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the responses of adolescent boys on a newly developed measure, the Social Skills Inventory for Youth. Participants were recruited from two residential institutions, an outpatient clinic, a laboratory school associated with a medium-sized university, and two middle schools all located in the Midwest. Participants ranged in age from 11 to 17 years. A multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was conducted to determine if there were differences between boys diagnosed with AD/HD and appropriate nonclinical controls. Results showed a significant effect for group. However, only one subscale was found useful in differentiating between …

Child Sexual Abuse In Ireland: An Historical And Anthropological Note, Kevin Lalor

Articles

Child sexual abuse in Ireland has entered the public domain only in the last twenty years. This process was accelerated by a number of high profile cases which became public in the mid 1990s. Prior to the recent past, few references to child sexual abuse in Ireland exist. The first written evidence is found in the Penitentials of the early Christian period. Penance is specified for those that “misuse” children. Mention of adult child sexual relations is also found in the Brehon law texts. Historians, sociologists and anthropologists of childhood suggest that patterns of child rearing vary across time and …

School-Based Primary Prevention Programs For Eating Disorders, Suzanne D. Holmes

Graduate Research Papers

The primary purpose of this paper is to provide an extensive review of the literature and research related to anorexia nervosa, and to emphasize the importance of prevention programs in school settings and the role of school psychologists in the prevention and intervention process. Chapter two of this paper covers anorexia nervosa and the theories regarding its etiology, complications, co-morbidities, risk factors, and treatment. Because anorexia nervosa is a disorder which most frequently begins during adolescence, chapter three addresses the specific factors of adolescence that can lead to eating disorders.

Throughout the paper, there is an emphasis on the lack …

Psychological Well-Being In The Victims Of Bullying Among Primary School Children, Catherine A. Rice

Theses : Honours

A replication and extension of Rigby and Slee's (1993) study and an investigation of Seligman, Reivich, Jaycox and Gillham's (1995) theory of self-esteem was conducted in one private primary school in Western Australia. The aim of the study was to examine the relationship between the age and gender of victims of bullying with self-esteem of the students and their attitudes towards attending school (Rigby & Slee, 1993), and their explanatory style (Seligman et al., I 995). Four anonymous questionnaires: Peer Relations Assessment Questionnaire (Rigby & Slee, 1997), Self-Esteem Inventory (Coopersmith, 1989), Children's Attributional Style Questionnaire (Seligman, Kaslow, Alloy, Peterson, Tanenbaum …

Perceptions Of Elder Abuse Among Australian Elderly Individuals And General Practitioners, Marianela Cuevas

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Research available on elder abuse is limited. There continues to be a lack of uniformity in how to define and identify the problem, as well as how to intervene. One group which continues to be excluded from the process of gaining knowledge on the issue of elder abuse is the elderly themselves. As general practitioners are the primary source of health care for older people, their perspectives on elder mistreatment should be explored as well. The first objective of this study was to examine whether differences existed in the perceived severity of potentially abusive situations between three groups of older …

Does The Conceptual Nature Of Worry Contribute To Its Uncontrollability? : Unravelling The Complex Interactions Of Some Of The Properties Of Worry, Jacinta M. Willans

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This project aims to examine a particular property of worry that some therapists claim interferes with the treatment of clients who worry. Research has shown that worry is predominantly composed of concepts or thoughts rather than images (Borkovee & Hu, 1990). In particular this project aims to investigate whether the verbal linguistic nature of worry contributes to the sense that participants have that it is uncontrollable. Attempting to control an image results in a paradoxical effect of an increase in the frequency of the image (Wegner, Schneider, Carter & White, 1987). Does the same paradoxical effect occur when thoughts and …

Burnout In Academics : The Role Of Humour And Optimism As Stress Buffers, Natalie R. Fairclough

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The relationship between university lecturers' perceived stress, use of humour to cope with stress, optimism, pessimism, and burnout was investigated. Participants included 180 lecturers from a range of Perth universities and disciplines. Questionnaire packages were delivered to the participants at their universities and were later returned to the researcher by mail. A principle components analysis was first performed on the Life Orientation Test-Revised, a self-report instrument designed to measure optimism, and demonstrated support for a two-dimensional model of optimism and pessimism. A hierarchical multiple regression analysis was subsequently conducted to determine the ability of perceived stress, humour, optimism, and pessimism, …

How Do You Do Your Rage? : A Qualitative Investigation Into Contemporary Women's Experience Of Their Rage, Verena Homberger

Theses : Honours

Feminist researchers investigate women’s lives. This project is looking at a tiny thread embedded in a small section in the huge fabric of women's lives. The section is women’s capacity for violence, and the thread within it is women’s rage. This is a qualitative study of contemporary women experiencing and expressing their anger and rage. Discussions of violence within feminist literature have been largely restricted to accounts of male violence against women and children, and may have inadvertently endorsed the mainstream construction of femininity, which perceives rage in women to be an inappropriate emotion. In this project, I argue that …

Sequential Testing Effects Re-Visited : Is The Effect Of Test Presentation Contingent Upon Slide Linearity?, John D. Jones

Theses : Honours

Evidence regarding the potential mediating effects sequential test presentation has upon eyewitness suggestibility is divided. Bekerian and Bowers' (1983) research suggested that sequential test presentation reduced misinformation effects, whilst McCloskey and Zaragoza's (1985) results failed to indicate any effect of this presentation method. A possible reason for these conflicting results is that the respective research groups have used different sets of slides. Bekerian and Bowers' (1983) slides appeared to contain more thematic content (i.e., linear content), which in turn increased participants' resistance to misleading postevent information. Conversely, McCloskey and Zaragoza's (1985) slides appeared to lack this feature (i.e., they are …

Testing The Matching Hypothesis : Implementing A Minimal Stress Intervention By Matching Writing Task To Emotional Coping Style, Pamela D. Mcneill

Theses : Honours

The theory of inhibition and psychosomatic disease supports the concept that failure to express emotion is psychologically and physically stressful, and associated with long-term health problems. One aspect of this study was to investigate the discrepancy hypothesis proposing that specific emotional coping styles elicit patterns of discrepant self-report and physiological responses. The major focus of the study tested whether matching therapeutic writing tasks to specific emotional coping styles would significantly decrease stress and somatic symptoms, and whether mismatching such writing tasks to emotional coping styles would not decrease stress and somatic symptoms. Undergraduate students were identified as having an emotional …

Predictability Of Everyday Task Performance By Perceived Health, Self-Efficacy And Cognitive Ability, Joan Klinger

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This exploratory research investigated the relationship between a brief neuropsychological measure and everyday functional ability in older community dwelling adults. The association between these two areas is complex, as a specific functional domain often involves several of the cognitive skills typically assessed by a neuropsychological instrument. Whilst there is an extensive literature linking neuropyschological tests to everyday functioning in cognitively impaired older adults, little research has been directed at investigating the relationship between cognitive test performance and everyday competence in non-dementing older people who reside independently in the community. A brief cognitive instrument able to predict coping deficits in instrumental …

The Relationship Between Childhood Aggression And Impulsiveness, Mary Gail Glover

Graduate Theses

Previous research on the relationship between children's levels of aggression and impulsivity have been inconclusive. Studies of each of these behaviors independently have shown that they are correlated with many of the same factors. However, no studies have been found in which aggression and impulsivity have correlated specifically with each other. The purpose of the present study was to determine if a relationship exists between aggression and impulsivity in children. The participants of this study consisted of 115 children who had been tested at a center for behavioral analysis to determine diagnoses of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. They had been referred for …

Analysis Of The Ministerial Emphasis Survey Quantifying The Call Of The Church, Ray Doyel

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The expectations of a church for its minister are broad and difficult to define. These expectations are perhaps most intently examined when the church is seeking to replace a minister. It is during this time that the church may attempt to measure in some way the expectations of the congregation. These expectations may be studied from different perspectives, ranging from the effectiveness of the minister to the leadership style of the minister. This research examined the Ministerial Emphasis Survey which was used by a mainline, Protestant denomination during an actual minister search. The study included participants from the congregation, the …

Farrowing Behaviour And Stillbirth In Two Environments: An Evaluation Of The Restraint-Stillbirth Hypothesis, D. Fraser, P. A. Phillips, B. K. Thompson

Reproductive Behavior Collection

A total of 59 farrowings were studied in either a conventional, narrow farrowing crate (0.43 m wide) or a much wider alternative design with sides spaced 1.2 m apart at the sow’s standing height but narrowing near the floor to limit the sow’s lying area. Using video recording, we monitored each “birth interval” (i.e. the period between two successive births) and noted the interval’s length, the sow’s posture and postural changes during the interval, and whether the interval ended with a live-born or stillborn piglet. The wide and conventional crates did not differ significantly in median interval between piglets (15.9 …

A Statewide Survey Linking Assessment To Interventions: Assessing Teacher Awareness And Training Needs Related To Students With Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Leann Pearson

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The present study, using a survey questionnaire developed by Luckett (1996), was completed by 211 kindergarten through sixth grade teachers in 33 school districts across Kentucky. The sample consisted of regular education, special education, and Title One teachers with one to thirty-one years of experience. Educational backgrounds of the predominantly female sample ranged from bachelor's to doctoral degrees. The survey included four distinct sections. Participants were questioned about (a) knowledge level with respect to the diagnostic criteria and diagnostic labels for Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, (b) intervention preferences for addressing ADHD student's behaviors in the classroom, (c) interventions which they would …

Personality Types Of Registered Nurses Employed In A Rural Community Hospital, Tina Snodgrass

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The purpose of this study was to identify the personality types of registered nurses in a rural community. An extensive literature review revealed that no studies, utilizing the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) to identify personality types, had been conducted with rural nurses. Jung's Psychological Type Theory was the theoretical framework for the study. The MBTI operationalizes Jung's theory and was utilized to determine the most frequently occurring personality types of the nurses. A descriptive study was conducted at a 68 bed acute care hospital. The sample consisted of 40 experienced registered nurses working in staff positions within the hospital. Sensing, …

The Relationship Between Health Locus Of Control And Health Behaviors Of Women Who Have Undergone Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting, Heather Ferrillo

Nursing Master’s Theses and Projects

Due to the increasing number of women who are diagnosed with heart disease and who are undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting, it is important to explore the psychosocial aspects involved in the recovery process of these women. This study examined the relationship between locus of control and health behaviors of women who underwent coronary artery bypass grafting.

Differences In Perceptual And Subjective Body Image Between Weight Cycling And Noncycling Graduate Students, Karen Casebeer

Dissertations

This research began as an exploratory investigation into body image differences between individuals who were weight cyclers and those who were noncyclers. Participants were fem ale and m ale graduate students (n= 444) who completed the Multidimensional Body-Self Relations Questionnaire (Cash, 1990a), the Contour Drawing Rating Scale (M.A. Thompson & Gray, 1995), and the Weight History Questionnaire (W H Q ), a researcher developed self-report survey of weight, dieting, and demographic information. Data gathered from the WHQ were used to identify pairs of individuals who were matched on cycling status, gender, age, and body mass index. Fifteen such pairs were …

Affective Orientation, Alexithymia, And Multidimensional Empathy In Counselors-In-Training, Terrilyn J. Krueger

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the predictive relationship between two affective measures, affective orientation and alexithymia, and five empathy measures in 67 master’s degree level counselor trainees. It was hypothesized that affective orientation would be predictive and alexithymia inversely predictive of five distinct dimensions of empathy: communicated, observed, emotional, cognitive, and relational. Communicated empathy was measured by trainees’ audio-taped responses to a client stimulus which were assessed by “blind” raters. Observed empathy was measured by practicum supervisors based on their observations of trainees with clients. Emotional, cognitive, and relational empathy were assessed by trainees’ self-reported responses about …

The Place Of The Psyche In A Constructed World, Kenneth J. Gergen

Psychology Faculty Works

The vast majority of social constructionist writings have been critical of psychological science-on both ideological and conceptual grounds. The constructionist emphasis on microsocial processes also functions oppositionally to psychological accounting. The existing animus grows, however, from a realist metaphysics and a correspondence view of language, neither of which constructionism endorses. Viewing the relationship between constructionism and psychological science in more pragmatic terms, we find three significant ways in which constructionism contributes to a more fully enriched and broadly effective psychology. First, critical constructionism functions to denaturalize psychological accounts, opening them to reflexive deliberation, and democratizing the field more generally. Second, …

Ethical Dilemmas Faced By Independent Practitioners As A Result Of Managed Care, Caren Renee Debernardo

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study surveyed licensed psychologists in private practice regarding their perceptions of ethical issues associated with managed care. Surveys addressing ethical issues were mailed to 1,000 members of the American Psychological Association's (APA) Division oflndependent Practice (Division 42). Forty-two percent of the surveys were returned. The responses were summarized using descriptive statistics and analyzed to compare opinions of psychologists as a function of theoretical orientation, geographical location, specialty, population of location area, years in practice, and level of state and national organizational involvement. The results of the study identified a number of ethical concerns including compromised confidentiality, inadequate diagnosis and …

A Test Of The Ecological Validity Of The Test Of Variables Of Attention In Screening For Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, Kenneth L. Hoffman

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a chronic disorder of childhood. The essential are developmentally inappropriate degrees of tures of it ttention, impulsivity, and hyperactivity. The current study tested the ecological validity of a continuous rformance test (CPT) that is commonly used to assess ADHD. Forty-·eiqht children between the ages of 6 and 14 were administered lhc Test of Variables of Attention (T.O.V.A.). The partic ' parents completed The Attention Deficit Di Evaluation Scale-Home Version (ADDES-HV) and the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). The children's teacher completed The Attention Deficit Disorders Evaluation ScaleSchool Version (ADDES-SV) and the Teacher's Repo Form (TRF). Pearson …

Family Breakdown, Little Hope For The Future: Restrictive Moralities To The Rescue?, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

This article reviews the recent text, Posterity Lost: Progress, Ideology, and the Decline of the American Family by Richard T. Gill and published (1997) by Rowman & Littlefield. The review highlights recurring political psychological Issues of conceptualization, levels of analysis, and causality.

Trends. Human Rights And Mental Health: What Happens When The Right Are Wrong?, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

In this analysis the author discusses the moral and ethical criteria of those who seek to prevent human rights violations.

The Progression Of Β-Amyloid Deposition In The Frontal Cortex Of The Aged Canine, Takao Satou, Brian J. Cummings, Elizabeth Head, Kristy A. Nielson, Fletcher F. Hahn, Norton W. Milgram, Peter Velazquez, David H. Cribbs, Andrea J. Tenner, Carl W. Cotman

Psychology Faculty Research and Publications

Brains from 41 aged canines (≥10 years of age) were examined immunohistochemically to characterize the laminar distribution and age-related progression of β-amyloid (Aβ) in frontal cortex. We classified the Aβ patterns into four distinct types. Type I was characterized by small, faint deposits of Aβ in deep cortical layers. Type II consisted of diffuse deposits of Aβ mainly in layers V and VI. Type III had both dense plaques in superficial layers, and diffuse deposits in deep layers. Finally, Type IV had solely dense plaques throughout all layers of cortex. We compared the A …

Right Medial Temporal-Lobe Contribution To Object-Location Memory, B Milner, Ingrid Johnsrude, J Crane

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

An important aspect of normal human memory, and one humans share with many other species, is the ability to remember the location of objects in their environment. There is by now strong evidence from the study of epileptic patients undergoing brain surgery that right temporal-lobe lesions that encroach extensively upon the hippocampal and parahippocampal gyrus impair the delayed, but not the immediate, recall of the location of objects within a random array. These findings have now been extended to a multiple-trial, spatial-array learning task; by including not only patients tested after unilateral anterior temporal lobectomy but also those with a …

A Political Psychological Primer Of Virtual Reality Sequelae For Mental Health Professionals, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

This paper describes a number of sequelae stemming from virtual reality (VR) and VR technology (VRT) based on theoretical and empirical research in the behavioral sciences, social sciences, humanities.

Sex, Drugs, And Rock And Roll: Does Science Matter?, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

The author discusses the subverted perspective that science has further human knowledge.

A Bias Of Intelligence Testing, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

This article describes a bias of intelligence testing that is explicated less often, yet is more profound than the biases commonly presented in psychology textbooks.