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The Frequency And Severity Of Problem Behaviors Among Individuals With Autism, Traumatic Brain Injury, And Mental Retardation From The Utah Dspd Dataset, Melanie Kay Arp

Theses and Dissertations

The study reports on analyses of data collected from the Inventory for Client and Agency Planning (ICAP) for 5,859 children with Autism (n = 511), Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI, n = 522), or Mental Retardation (MR, n = 4826) whose legal guardians applied for support services through the Utah Department of Services for People with Disabilities (DSPD). Results indicate that the least to most frequent problem behaviors were (a) destructive to property, (b) hurtful to self, (c) hurtful to others, (d) socially offensive, (e) unusual habits, (f) withdrawal, (g) uncooperative, and (h) disruptive behaviors. The degree of severity varied from …

Facilitating Communication About Death Between Mothers And Adolescent Sons Using Fictional Children's Literature, Deon G. Leavy

Theses and Dissertations

Most children will experience the death of a loved one in their lifetime and will need to develop healthy grieving patterns. Communication between parents and children is a key ingredient in facilitating this development. Current opinions about bibliotherapy, using a book to assist in healing, suggest that books provide understanding about grief and death and open channels of communication. Although the use of bibliotherapy is gaining popularity, little research exists about its efficacy. Utilizing the book The Bridge to Terabithia, this study evaluated the facilitation of communication about death between 19 dyads of mother and adolescent sons. Their answers and …

Ciis Today, Fall 2005 Issue, Ciis

CIIS Today

This volume is the Fall 2005 issue of CIIS Today, the Magazine of the California Institute of Integral Studies.

“Apparently, I Am A Pedophile:” Living And Coping As A Child-Lover In The Netherlands, Andrew Extein

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The term “pedophile” is among the most loaded and controversial in Western culture. In my study I seek to gain a better understanding of the men that would fall into the category of “pedophile,” a phrase that is more often than not misused and misrepresented by our society. To gain this insight I have interviewed six self-identified child-lovers or pedophiles about their life experiences with these feelings, how they came to realize their feelings, how they came to terms with their feelings, how they express their feelings, and how they cope with their feelings. The paper discusses and defines certain …

The Big Ball Of Blame, Donelson R. Forsyth

Jepson School of Leadership Studies articles, book chapters and other publications

In 2005 a Saffir-Simpson Category 5 hurricane, Katrina, passed over Florida, strengthened in the Gulf of Mexico, and then set its sights on New Orleans. The hurricane caused destruction and death, for many residents were unable to evacuate to safety. Then this natural disaster escalated into a man-made catastrophe, as days passed and local, state and federal officials moved at a glacial pace to help. Some called it bureaucracy and poor planning. Others used stronger words: incompetence, injustice, racism and business as usual in an elitist America that takes better care of the wealthy than its poor. But whatever word …

Psychometric Assessment Of The Comprehensive Effects Of Alcohol Questionnaire: Comparing A Brief Version To The Original Full Scale, Lindsay S. Ham, Sherry H. Stewart, Peter J. Norton, Debra A. Hope

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

The current set of studies compared the psychometric properties of the original Comprehensive Effects of Alcohol Questionnaire (CEOA) to a 15-item version (B-CEOA) in a nonclinical undergraduate sample (N = 581), and attempted to replicate and extend the B-CEOA findings in an undergraduate sample referred to an alcohol intervention (N = 734). Psychometric assessment included construct validity, internal consistency, and concurrent validity, using both “positive” and “negative” expectancy items in all analyses. Results provided further support for the empirical validity of the original CEOA, and provided support for the use of the B-CEOA despite the reduction in the …

Psychological Patterns Among Roman Catholic Clergy Accused Of Sexual Misconduct, Thomas G. Plante, Arianna Aldridge

Psychology

A remarkable amount of international attention has focused on the sexual misconduct by Roman Catholic clergy in recent years. While the demographics and risk factor profiles of clergy sex offenders is now fairly well established, the psychological and personality profiles of these men are not. Very few empirical research studies have been published on the psychological and personality functioning of clergy who engage in sexual misconduct in the Catholic Church. The purpose of this study was to investigate the psychological profiles of 21 Roman Catholic clergy who have confronted credible accusations of sexual misconduct. Relative to national norms, MMPI-2 results …

Pathway Curvature And Border Visibility As Predictors Of Preference And Danger In Forest Settings, Thomas R. Herzog, Kristin M. Kirk

Peer Reviewed Articles

The authors investigated pathway curvature and pathway border visibility as predictors of preference and perceived danger in forest settings. Participants rated 56 forest settings containing pathways for one of four variables—mystery, visual access, pathway length, and pathway width—or for one of four additional predictors. Pathway curvature was unrelated to preference, danger, or mystery. Border visibility and visual access were positively related to preference, negatively related to danger, and positively related to each other. Preference and danger were negatively related. Danger was more strongly related to the predictors than was preference. Mystery had a modest negative relation with preference and substantial …

Are Successful Applicants To The Priesthood Psychologically Healthy?, Thomas G. Plante, Arianna Aldridge, Christina Louie

Psychology

The current investigation evaluated psychological and personality profiles of successful applicants to a major Roman Catholic religious order. The MMPI-2 and 16PF were administered to 68 applicants between 1990 and 2004 who subsequently entered seminary. Results indicate that these applicants to the priesthood were generally well-adjusted as well as being socially responsible, interpersonally sensitive and sociable. Findings also suggest some tendency for defensiveness and repression. Furthermore, dealing with perceived negative impulses such as anger and hostility may also be a concern for many of these men.

The Implications Of Conjunctive And Disjunctive Forgiveness For Sexual Abuse, Herbert W. Helm, Jonathan R. Cook, John M. Berecz

Faculty Publications

This article examines the relationship between forgiveness styles (conjunctive and disjunctive models) and sexual abuse. Surveys from 114 university students were analyzed for differences between non-sexually abused and sexually abused subjects on a number of psychological and physical well-being variables. A number of differences were found including higher levels of reported verbal and physical abuse for the sexually abused subjects. Only one sexually abused subject was found that fit the pattern of conjunctive forgiveness (one of reconciliation) towards the offender. The majority of sexually abused subjects preferred to keep their distance from the abuser, regardless of the extent to which …

Exploration Of Ideal Body Image Among African-American Women, Shannon Denise Nickens

Dissertations

Body image dissatisfaction is a pervasive problem, most notably among women, that is neither well understood nor well defined. Inconsistent and overly narrow definitions of body image make it difficult to draw conclusions regarding the degree and type of dissatisfaction across cultural and/or various ethnic groups. Thus far, research has largely focused on size, shape, and weight concerns, ignoring physical features that may be salient to women belonging to non-Caucasian ethnic groups. This study explored African-American (AA) preferences for weight, waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), and salient physical appearance attributes, as well as their identification with the ¿thin¿ ideal, racial identity salience, …

Aggression: Relationships With Sex, Gender Role Identity, And Gender Role Stress., Robin L. Leonard

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Sex, gender-role identity, and gender-role stress were assessed in terms of their relationship to observed gender differences in self-reported aggression. Physical and verbal aggression were explored, as well as the affective component of anger and cognitive component of hostility. The role of emotional intelligence in these relationships was also evaluated, as a possible correlate to the gender-related variables. The results indicated that both gender-role stress and gender-role identification were significantly associated with all components of aggression; however, only physical aggression was related to sex. Emotional intelligence was linked to sex and gender-role identity but not with gender-role stress. The results …

A Comparison Study Between Writing On Handheld Computers And Pencil-Paper In The Elementary Classroom, Ling-Chin Ko

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to compare the difference in writing effort associated with two methods, pencil and paper and handheld computers in the third grade classroom. The methods were compared in terms of the quality of the stories written, and the length of the stories in number of words, and time on task during writing of the stories. Three hypotheses were defined to identify the effect of writing efforts associated with the two methods, two classes and the effect on the interaction between the methods and the class. All three hypotheses were analyzed with a two-way MANOVA test. …

Attitudes Mediate The Association Between Childhood Disciplinary History And Disciplinary Responses, Mary Bower-Russa

Peer Reviewed Articles

According to recent estimates, childhood abuse victims are at 12 times higher risk for child abuse perpetration than those without such abusive histories. This study focused on delineation of the mechanisms by which intergenerational patterns of abuse may occur and, in particular, the role that disciplinary attitudes may play in mediating the relation between disciplinary history and risk for abusive parenting. Participants (n = 459) completed a series of questionnaires to assess childhood history, disciplinary attitudes, and disciplinary practices. Structural equation modeling indicated that the association between disciplinary history and disciplinary responses was partially mediated by attitudes, with more than …

Pyramidal Staff Training: Teaching Play And Manding To Children With Autism And Developmental Disabilities, Koji Takeshima

Dissertations

This study involved pyramidal staff training and the teaching of play and manding to children with autism and developmental disabilities in an early intervention program. The following training components were sequentially introduced to each technician: (a) a written procedure; (b) video modeling; (c) a slide show and checklist, combined with video modeling; and (d) feedback. The trainees improved their skills in teaching play as these training components were introduced, and the children's performance in play and manding subsequently improved. For the skills of teaching play, the core component of the training that resulted in the largest improvement varied across technicians. …

The School Counseling Psychology Program: A Qualitative Study., Daniel Vern Barnes

Theses and Dissertations

The service role and functions of school counseling and school psychology have been discussed extensively for several decades. The literature from each professional discipline is replete with calls to expand the training and service capacity of these school professionals. Simultaneously calls are made for even broader educational reform as it specifically relates to student pupil services. From within this context an integrated school counseling and school psychology program known as the School Counseling Psychology Program was organized and administered at Brigham Young University. This qualitative dissertation study highlights the perceived strengths and limitations of this integrated training program. The impact …

Student Psychological Distress In A Career Exploration Course, Roger H. Belisle

Theses and Dissertations

A gap in the literature exists on the connection between an individual's career and non-career domains. Even less research exists on the topic of career development and how it relates to an individual's mental health. Accordingly, this study sought to investigate the connection between career issues and mental health by exploring the psychological distress levels of students enrolled in a career exploration course. During the course, students completed a bi-weekly online survey, the Outcome Questionnaire (OQ-45). Results support the possible connection between career issues and mental health and also show that for certain populations, career guidance interventions may decrease an …

Facing The Caree/Family Dichotomy: Traditional College Women's Perspectives, Lisa Michelle Leavitt

Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study explored the experience of 32 traditional college freshmen women as they sought to choose a career with the idea of balancing career and family in the future. A traditional woman was defined as a woman whose central value system and cultural mores emphasize homemaking and childrearing as their primary role. Guided interviews were conducted to obtain in-depth descriptions of participants' experience. The interviews were transcribed and interpreted using a synthesis of qualitative methods based on Kvale's method. The six themes were as follows: 1. The concept of balancing careers and family life is not being discussed or …

An Exploration Of The Interactions Of Improvers And Deteriorators In The Process Of Group Therapy: A Qualitative Analysis, Laura Lee Hoffmann

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the interactions of individuals who showed symptom improvement and those who showed symptom deterioration during the course of 12-14 sessions of group process psychotherapy. Both general group themes, as well as themes specific to improvers and deteriorators were found. General group themes included (a) an initial difficulty distinguishing between improvers and deteriorators, and (b) a tendency for group to focus on past or future focus versus present group issues. Specific themes for deteriorators included (a) substantial early disclosure in the group process, (b) open praise of the process of group, (c) the stated expectation of sharing deep …

Perceived Impact Of The No Child Left Behind Act Of 2001 On Paraprofessionals, Heather Goodwin Nelson

Theses and Dissertations

Using the states' paraprofessional requirements, this study explored the effects of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) on the paraprofessionals' ability to assist in instruction as seen through the perceptions of paraprofessional and teacher teams. The literature review discloses data regarding the implementation of NCLB paraprofessional requirements into the accountability plans of the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Tables synthesize the assessments used by states to meet NCLB paraprofessional requirements. The Council for Exceptional Children performance-based standards for paraeducators provides the framework for the development of two survey instruments, which measured the perceptions of paraprofessionals …

Placemaking: A Democratic Project, Lynda H. Schneekloth, Robert G. Shibley

Reconstruction: Studies in Contemporary Culture

Democracy in a post-industrial society such as the United States is increasingly characterized as a system of governance orchestrated by the media to shape a mass of passive consumers who live in non-places. Because of the scale and structure of the political economy, we have come to understand the body politic as an adversarial system in which the primary responsibility of the citizen is to vote and consume. After 9/11, an additional alienating element, fear, has entered into our national imagination of passivity leading many people to believe that they are collectively powerless in the face of unknown terrors. If …

The Political Personality Of 2004 Democratic Presidential Candidate John Kerry, Aubrey Immelman, Adam Beatty

Psychology Faculty Publications

This paper presents the results of an indirect assessment of the personality of Sen. John Kerry, Democratic Party nominee in the 2004 U.S. presidential election, from the conceptual perspective of Theodore Millon.

Psychodiagnostically relevant information regarding Sen. Kerry was extracted from biographical sources and media reports and synthesized into a personality profile using the second edition of the Millon Inventory of Diagnostic Criteria (MIDC), which yields 34 normal and maladaptive personality classifications congruent with Axis II of DSM–IV.

The personality profile yielded by the MIDC was analyzed on the basis of interpretive guidelines provided in the MIDC and Millon …

Pathways To Ptsd, Part Ii: Sexually Abused Children, Julie B Kaplow, Kenneth A Dodge, Lisa Amaya-Jackson, Glenn N Saxe

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

OBJECTIVE: The goal of this research was to develop and test a prospective model of posttraumatic stress symptoms in sexually abused children that includes pretrauma, trauma, and disclosure-related pathways.

METHOD: At time 1, several measures were used to assess pretrauma variables, trauma variables, and stress reactions upon disclosure for 156 sexually abused children ages 8 to 13 years. At the time 2 follow-up (7 to 36 months following the initial interview), the children were assessed for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms.

RESULTS: A path analysis involving a series of hierarchically nested ordinary least squares multiple regression analyses indicated three direct …

An Evaluation Of A Service-Learning Approach To Assist In Achieving The Goals Of A Comprehensive Guidance Program, Kathryn Ann Stott

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative study was twofold: (a) to investigate how a service-learning class assisted in achieving the goals of a comprehensive guidance and development program in a junior high school, and (b) to examine the effects of a service-learning class on junior high school students. Thirty students who had been in the service-learning class participated in semi-structured interviews. Parents and teachers were also interviewed to cross-validate student perceptions. Interviews were transcribed and analyzed to identify core meanings. Using phenomenological analysis, eight major themes were identified: personal awareness, social skills development, learning skills, career interests, character education, application of …

Cultural Differences In Body Image Shame Between Mainland American And Indigenous Hawaiian Children, Joshua James Boyd

Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)

The present study investigated the level of body image shame in Mainland United States 4th and 5th grade children to indigenous Hawaiian 4th and 5th grade children using two cards (1 and 6) from the Thurston-Cradock Test of Shame. The hypotheses of this study were:

I. The mainland sample would score higher on overall shame than the Hawaiian sample.

2. The Hawaiian sample responses would reflect a neutral and/or effective resolution of shame and body image in their stories, whereas the mainland sample would present stories demonstrating higher shame themes with less effective resolution.

3. Hawaiian males/females would have lower …

Supportive And Challenging Social Factors In A Decision To Be Sexually Abstinent, Evan Alvord

Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)

Several studies have examined the intrinsic factors, including fear of pregnancy or sexually transmitted diseases, which motivate adolescents to choose sexual abstinence. Currently, little research has been dedicated solely to the extrinsic/social factors, which may also be influential in the decision to abstain from pre-marital sex. Four social factors were presumed to be especially influential, supporting a decision to be sexually abstinent and four social factors were presumed to be significant, challenging the choice to adopt a sexually-abstinent-untilmarriage life style. The proposed supportive social factors include: (a) Parental influence, (b) Peer influence, ( c) Religious affiliation/membership, ( d) Personal relationship …

Spring 2005, Full Issue

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

Full Issue

How Males And Females Feel About Body Image, Hannah Briscoe, Cadey Kuehnel

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

We wanted to see if the participants have a low or high body image. The participants were asked questions determining how they feel about their body image and others around them. Our hypothesis is that the younger participants will have a lower body image then those older, males will have a higher body image than females and seniors will have a higher body image than freshmen. The subjects were from the Human Subjects Pool at Lindenwood University consisting of general psychology, Anthropology, and Sociology classes. Our findings were significant with our hypothesis.

Are You Up To Date?, Amanda Coleman, Amanda Friedhoff

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

If an individual is up to date on current events, it makes it easier to carry on or even start a conversation with another individual who is also up to date. The researchers feel that individuals aged 40 and over are more up to date on current events than those ages 18- 25. In the current study, 46 participants; 26 participants aged 18-25 years old and 20 participants aged 40 years and older, recruited from the St. Charles area, took a ten question questionnaire on current events. The participants were divided by age and gender, so the study had a …

Suicide As Covered In The Media, Jamie Gonzalez

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

The media plays an important role in shaping the public about suicide. The media has a professional and moral obligation to report incidents of suicide in an appropriate manner. The Center for Disease Control has set forth requirements for the media; making recommendations about how incidents of suicide are best reported. In 1989, the CDC established these guidelines, yet many national newspapers are not following these requirements. This study explained that the media has not made any progress in this area since the CDC’s recommendations. Thirty-six articles from three national, daily newspapers were critiqued with questions from the CDC’s requirements. …