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The Relationship Between Self-Esteem And Social Influence: An Empirical Comparison Of Two Theoretical Models, Chauncy Thomas Brinton

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

The relationship between social influence and self-esteem was examined in two studies from the lens of two different theoretical approaches, Leary’s sociometer theory and Henriques’ Unified Theory of Psychology (HUTP). Whereas sociometer theory contends that self-esteem functions completely as a barometer of relational value, HUTP posits that human self-esteem should also be significantly influenced by the cultural context, especially the extent to which self-enhancement is justified. This conception leads to the prediction that socialization will influence self-esteem, after controlling for social influence. Specifically, individuals socialized to self-enhance should demonstrate higher levels of self-esteem after controlling for social influence. Two studies …

Recruitment And Retention Of African-Americans In School Psychology In A Social Justice Context: Practitioners' Perspectives, Marlana Ashe

Educational Specialist, 2009-2019

School psychology is moving toward more culturally competent practice; one way of attaining that is through increasing the number of culturally diverse practitioners. African-Americans in particular are needed. Various factors including a negative perception of psychology and lacking knowledge of school psychology contribute to the low numbers of members of this ethnic group in school psychology. Social justice issues, such as prejudice and disproportionality in special education seemingly affect minority groups’ interest in the field; however, little research has been conducted to examine this interaction. Effective recruitment and retention strategies to increase the number of African-American school psychologists in the …

Religion, Spirituality, And School Psychology: A National Survey Of Training Programs, Jessica Marie Bass

Educational Specialist, 2009-2019

As school psychologists strive to become culturally competent in our growing diverse society, an important piece that seems to missing from the typically accessed conceptualization of culture is religion and spirituality. The focus of this study was to survey NASP approved training programs to determine how these programs intentionally incorporate knowledge and skills and determine the competence of their graduate students in matters of religion and spirituality. All NASP approved school psychology programs were sent a survey and the program director served as the sole participant. Most programs do not believe that their students have been involved in casework involving …

Is It Cohesion Or Diversion? Domestic Instability And The Use Of Force In International Crises, Cigdem Sirin

Departmental Papers (PS)

This study asserts that cohesionary—rather than diversionary—motives primarily influence the propensity of political leaders to use external force in international crises in times of domestic turmoil. Specifically, I contend that mass violence leads political leaders to engage in cohesionary tactics to achieve and maintain social order in their country for political survival. Employing random effects probit analyses with International Crisis Behavior (ICB) data for one-hundred and thirty-nine countries from 1918 to 2005, I find that increased mass violence is more likely than other forms of domestic problems (be it an economic downturn or government instability) to instigate the external use …

Development Of A Math Interest Inventory To Identify Gifted Students From Underrepresented And Diverse Populations, Gabrielle M. Snow

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The current investigation supports the objectives of Project GEMS (Roberts, 2008), a grant funded program whose objectives include the development and validation of a protocol to identify students from underrepresented and diverse populations as gifted in the content areas of science, technology, engineering and mathematics. Identification of students from low-income and diverse populations as gifted has been a struggle with current assessment techniques (Baldwin, 2005). Project GEMS aims to address this problem through development of interest measures specific to the STEM areas for use within an identification protocol. The current project developed a measure to assess interest in mathematics. The …

Discrimination Of Arabs And Muslims In Simulated Hiring Decisions The Role Of Multiple Categorization, Perceived Job Fit, And Social Dominance, Lindsay Dhanani

HIM 1990-2015

Discrimination in hiring contexts has received a lot of attention from researchers in Industrial Organizational Psychology. However, discrimination against Arabs and Muslims in hiring contexts has been overlooked in the literature. The current study explores discrimination targeting Arabs and Muslims in the workplace. The theory of multiple categorization (Crisp & Hewstone, 1999) was applied to Arabs and Muslims in order to determine the relative effect of national origin and religious affiliation. Perceived job fit (Heilman, 1983) was also examined using an airport security position and a shipping and receiving clerk position. Participants rated mock resumes on several measures of hireability …

College Student Mental Health: The Relationship Between Depression And Emotional Intelligence Using The Student Relationships Assessment, Andre George Broquard

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose for conducting this study was to investigate the relationship between emotional relational intelligence (ERQ) and depression in college students. The significance of this study is based on the additional support that can be provided to students with increased information and understanding of emotional relational intelligence and depression. In an effort to help college students achieve their educational goals and aspirations, the researcher suggests that emotional relational intelligence can be beneficial. The relationship between depression and emotional relational intelligence may provide insight on how to support and care for college students who are struggling with depressive symptomology. The results …

Reassessing The Architecture Of The Health Beliefs Models In Low-Income Diverse Families, Krista B. Highland

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Health beliefs contribute to health outcomes. These health beliefs extend to include health beliefs parents have regarding their children’s health. However, the role of parental health beliefs remains unexplored among a low-income population. This study aims to assess these beliefs and the effects they have on child health. Furthermore, this study aims to delineate potential belief differences between socioecological-level groups (e.g. population density, Latino identification, and insurance coverage).  The long-term goal is to understand the relationships among various personal health beliefs and parental health beliefs, psychosocial factors, community factors, cultural factors, organizational factors, and healthcare perceptions among this at-risk population. …

Cognitive Load Of Critical Thinking Strategies, Hanem Shehab

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Critical thinking is important for today's life, where individuals daily face unlimited amounts of information, complex problems, and rapid technological and social changes. Therefore, critical thinking should be the focus of general education and educators' efforts (Angeli & Valanides, 2009; Oliver & Utermohlen, 1995). Despite passively agreeing or disagreeing with a line of reasoning, critical thinkers use analytical skills to comprehend and evaluate its merits, considering strengths and weaknesses. Critical thinkers also analyze arguments, recognizing the essentiality of asking for reasons and considering alternative views and developing their own point of view (Paul, 1990). Kuhn and Udell (2007) emphasize that …

Bilingualism And Math Cognition, Michelle M. Guillaume

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Within cognitive psychology, the fields of bilingualism and math cognition have been investigated relatively separately from one another. Although there has been a substantial amount of research conducted in both areas, few studies have examined mathematical processes as they relate to bilinguals. A couple of the traditional effects found in the math cognition literature, the problem size and associative confusion effects, have been studied with bilinguals; however, bilingual categorization was not carefully controlled for in those studies. There have also been mathematical models applied to bilingual samples; one such model is the encoding-complex model, which has been extended to Chinese-English …

Out Of The Mouths Of Babes: Vocal Production In Infant Siblings Of Children With Asd, Rhea Paul, Yael Fuerst, Gordon Ramsay, Kasia Chawarska, Ami Klin

Communication Disorders Faculty Publications

Background: Younger siblings of children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are at higher risk for acquiring these disorders than the general population. Language development is usually delayed in children with ASD. The present study examines the development of pre-speech vocal behavior in infants at risk for ASD due to the presence of an older sibling with the disorder. Methods: Infants at high risk (HR) for ASD and those at low risk, without a diagnosed sibling (LR), were seen at 6, 9, and 12 months as part of a larger prospective study of risk for ASD in infant siblings. Standard clinical …

Common Core Thesis And A Qualitative And Quantitative Analysis Of Mysticism In Chinese Buddhist Monks And Nuns, Zhuo Chen

Masters Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

This study explored the phenomenological structure of mystical experience among 139 Chinese Pure Land and Chan Buddhist monks and nuns. Semi-structured interviews, thematic coding, and statistical analyses identified Hood’s Mysticism Scale as a valid tool for studying mysticism across religions and cultures. Stace’s common facets of mysticism as measured by Hood’s scale successfully described Buddhist experience as modified by Buddhist doctrines. Confirmatory factor analysis demonstrated that these facets could be formed into Stace’s three-factor structure. A mystical introvertive unity hypothesized to be separate from an extrovertive unity appeared instead to converge in the Chinese Buddhist context. These results lent strong …

Cultural Psychology And Cross-Cultural Psychology: The Case Of Chinese Psychology, Carl Ratner

Online Readings in Psychology and Culture

No abstract provided.

Counseling And Psychotherapy With Clients Of Middle Eastern Descent: A Qualitative Inquiry, Sara Boghosian

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

It is becoming increasingly important for clinical and counseling psychologists to have multicultural competence skills for treating an increasingly diverse client population. The psychology literature related to culturally competent treatment with persons of Middle Eastern descent is currently limited. In this study, qualitative methodology was utilized to explore the mental health attitudes and psychotherapy experiences of clients of Middle Eastern descent. Participants described culturally influenced mental health attitudes. Major themes included the severity of stigma associated with mental illness, the importance of family in responding to mental illness, and the process of grieving in Middle Eastern cultures. Study findings suggest …

What Is A Human Person? An Exploration & Critique Of Contemporary Perspectives, Emmanuel Cumplido

Senior Honors Projects

What is a Human Person? An Exploration and Critique of Physicalist Perspectives

Emmanuel Cumplido

Faculty Sponsor: Donald Zeyl, Philosophy

Answers to the question “What is a human person?” that have garnered the allegiance of people throughout millennia fall under two broad categories: “physicalism” and “dualism”. One of the earliest renditions of physicalism was the philosophy of the ancient Greek atomists. In their view, all of reality could be explained through two principles: atoms and empty space. As a consequence, people were thought to be nothing but assemblages of atoms in space. Plato’s Phaedo presents one of the earliest philosophical endorsements …

Cultural Brokering And Bicultural Identity: An Exploratory Study, Jorida Cila, Richard Lalonde, Zohrah Haqanee

Western Migration Conference Series

Abstract: Cultural brokering refers to a process where individuals mediate between two parties that are experiencing some type of cultural misunderstanding. Our exploratory study indicates that cultural brokering is a diverse experience that spans the boundaries of one’s family and includes various norms, values and traditions.

Hallowed Be Thy Name: The Effect Of Prayer On God-Schemata, Jennifer J. Healey

Senior Honors Theses

Religious ideologies and spiritual frameworks are first formed and later held together by the linking of encounters with the sacred, a spiritual Entity, ritualistic practices, and/or the recognition of spirituality in others or within one’s self. The concept of schemata, which are the mind’s processing frameworks wherein the individual connects information in a purposeful and meaningful way is fundamentally tied to this process of deliberating faith. According to the Christian faith, prayer molds this conceptualization of God. This study endeavors to establish the relationship between the subjective nature of schemata and its supernatural implications: how prayer influences one’s view of …

Signs And Symbols: Art And Language In Art Therapy, Malissa Morrell

Journal of Clinical Art Therapy

This paper is a preliminary attempt at theory building by exploring the use of art and language in art therapy through a theoretical inquiry model. Inductive and deductive processes are used to explore literature from the fields of psychology, art philosophy (particularly aesthetics), and linguistics. Concepts common to each of these disciplines are then further explored through the lens of bilingual therapy. Practical applications are discussed, along with suggestions for future research.

Cultivating Forgiveness And Compassion Through A Mindfulness-Based Program For Teachers: Results From Two Field Interventions, Kyla Haimovitze, Bryant Carlson, Kim A. Schonert-Reichl, Amishi P. Jha, Rona Wilensky, Margaret Cullen, Robert William Roeser

CUP Faculty Research

The aim of this research was to determine if a mindfulness-training (MT) program for teachers cultivated habits of mind (e.g., mindfulness, emotion regulation, compassion and forgiveness) conducive to effective teaching. Data were gathered in two randomized control trials. Results from pre- to post-test and follow-up showed that MT was associated with increases in mindfulness, efficacy for regulating emotion on the job, and the tendency to forgive others. Linguistic analyses revealed that teachers who underwent MT expressed more positive affect when discussing their most challenging student than those in the waitlist control group. Results warrant further investigation using behavioral-, observational-, and …

Effects Of Chronic Regulatory Focus And Product Type On Internet Purchase Decisions, Chad Ryan

Honors Projects in Marketing

This study draws on Regulatory Focus Theory (RFT; Higgins 1987) to explore factors that affect a consumer’s online purchase attitudes and intentions. According to RFT, consumers tend to be either chronically promotion- or prevention-focused. Promotion-focused consumers are concerned with positive outcomes. Conversely, prevention-focused consumers are concerned with avoiding negative outcomes. Promotion-focused consumers are more willing to take risks than prevention-focused consumers (Higgins 1997). Promotion-focused consumers also prefer hedonic shopping experiences (i.e., pleasurable), whereas prevention-focused consumers prefer utilitarian shopping experiences (i.e., task-oriented) (Arnold & Reynolds 2009). Because products that are purchased on the Internet cannot be seen or touched prior to …

Touching A Teddy Bear Mitigates The Negative Effects Of Social Exclusion, Kenneth Tai, Xue Zheng, Jayanth Narayanan

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

There is little empirical research to date that looks at how the deleterious effects of social exclusion can be mitigated. We examined how touching an inanimate object—a teddy bear—might impact the effect of social exclusion on prosocial behavior. Across two studies, we found that socially excluded individuals who touched a teddy bear acted more prosocially as compared to socially excluded individuals who just viewed the teddy bear from a distance. This effect was only observed for socially excluded participants and not for socially included (or control) participants. Overall, the findings suggest that touching a teddy bear mitigates the negative effects …

Deficits In Adults With Autism Spectrum Disorders When Processing Multiple Objects In Dynamic Scenes, Kirsten O'Hearn, Laura Lakusta, Elizabeth Schroer, Nancy Minshew, Beatriz Luna

Department of Psychology Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

People with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) process visual information in a manner that is distinct from typically developing individuals. They may be less sensitive to people's goals and, more generally, focus on visual details instead of the entire scene. To examine these differences, people with and without ASD were asked to detect changes in dynamic scenes with multiple elements. Participants viewed a brief video of a person or an inanimate object (the "figure") moving from one object to another; after a delay, they reported whether a second video was the same or different. Possible changes included the figure, the object …

Valuing And Defending: A New Natural Law Approach To The Family, Stephen Wade Francis

Theses and Dissertations

Social science theories applied to the family make certain assumptions in the analytic categories of value-neutrality vs. value-ladenness, positivism vs. hermeneutics, and determinism vs. moral agency. New natural law, a different theory from the body of classical forms of natural law, provides a unique approach to the study of the family. New natural law provides a defense for the traditional conjugal family as well as provides difference conclusions and implications for empirical research.

Loving The World And Our Children Enough--Nurturing Decidedly Different Scientifc Minds, By Design, Stephanie Pace Marshall

Publications & Research

Wise world-shaping and problem-solving requires that we and our children think in decidedly different, integral and wise ways. This transformation requires a fundamental shift in consciousness and the emergence of global minds that can creatively live into a new worldview of an interconnected planet and a sustainable and interdependent human family. "The fullness of our humanity and the sustainability of our planet rest with the nurturing of decidedly different minds."

Language And Culture, Chi-Yue Chiu

Online Readings in Psychology and Culture

Language pervades social life. It is a primary means by which we gain access to the contents of others' minds and establish shared understanding of the reality. Meanwhile, there is an enormous amount of linguistic diversity among human populations. Depending on what counts as a language, there are 3,000 to 10,000 living languages in the world, although a quarter of the world’s languages have fewer than 1,000 speakers and half have fewer than 10,000 (Crystal, 1997). Not surprisingly, a key question in culture and psychology research concerns the role of language in cultural processes. The present chapter focuses on two …

Collective Intelligence Ratio: Measurement Of Real-Time Multimodal Interactions In Team Projects, Paul Kim, Donghwan Lee, Youngjo Lee, Chuan Huang, Tamas Makany

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

PurposeWith a team interaction analysis model, the authors sought to identify a varying range of individual and collective intellectual behaviors in a series of communicative intents particularly expressed with multimodal interaction methods. In this paper, the authors aim to present a new construct (i.e. collective intelligence ratio (CIR)) which refers to a numeric indicator representing the degree of intelligence of a team in which each team member demonstrates an individual intelligence ratio (IR) specific to a team goal.Design/methodology/approachThe authors analyzed multimodal team interaction data linked to communicative intents with a Poisson‐hierarchical generalized linear model (HGLM).FindingsThe study found evidence of a …

Culture, Timothy B. Smith, Melanie Domenech Rodríguez, Guillermo Bernal

Faculty Publications

This article summarizes the definitions, means, and research of adapting psychotherapy to clients’ cultural backgrounds. We begin by reviewing the prevailing definitions of cultural adaptation and providing a clinical example. We present an original meta-analysis of 65 experimental and quasiexperimental studies involving 8,620 participants. The omnibus effect size of d 5 .46 indicates that treatments specifically adapted for clients of color were moderately more effective with that clientele than traditional treatments. The most effective treatments tended to be those with greater numbers of cultural adaptations. Mental health services targeted to a specific cultural group were several times more effective than …

On The Need For Embodied And Dis-Embodied Cognition, Guy Dove

Faculty and Staff Scholarship

This essay proposes and defends a pluralistic theory of conceptual embodiment. Our concepts are represented in at least two ways: (i) through sensorimotor simulations of our interactions with objects and events and (ii) through sensorimotor simulations of natural language processing. Linguistic representations are “dis-embodied” in the sense that they are dynamic and multimodal but, in contrast to other forms of embodied cognition, do not inherit semantic content from this embodiment. The capacity to store information in the associations and inferential relationships among linguistic representations extends our cognitive reach and provides an explanation of our ability to abstract and generalize. This …

Introduction, Mika Ishino, Gale Stam

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Home Literacy Factors Affecting Emergent Literacy Skills, Robyn Valerie Cassel

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to identify factors in the home literacy environment using the Stony Brook Family Reading Survey (SBFRS) in order to understand the extent to which these factors predict phonemic awareness and other basic reading skills, as assessed by selected subtests from the Woodcock-Johnson III (WJ III). The present study used archival data to examine the home literacy habits of a sample of parents and preschool children ages 3-5 years (range in months= 36-67) from a private and a public preschool with a combination of high- and low-income backgrounds and various ethnicities. Using exploratory factor analyses …