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Tune In And Help Out?: Empathy, Modeling, Dependency, Perspective Taking, And Television And Their Relationship To Altruism In Children., William Edward Van Ornum

Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

School Phobia: A Review Of Some Issues, M. W. Boyce

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

It is now quite well established that children, usually said to be suffering from school phobia (Johnson et al, 1941). or school refusal (Morgan, 1959). have great difficulty in attending school as a result of a neurotic disturbance, and that this is quite distinct from truancy, which is more often part of an anti-social or conduct disorder (Warren, 1948; Hersov, 1960a). School phobia is a condition which involves more than a simple fear of school. Johnson et al (1941) claimed that the essential problem lay in an unresolved mutual dependency relationship between mother and child, with arousal of intense separation …

The Mental Health Needs Of The Moderately Mentally Retarded Individual And The Family, Carol Ann Baglin

Theses

The general setting for this study was a typical special education site serving the severely handicapped in Los Angeles County, between the ages of three to twenty-one. The discussions refer to those individuals whose psychological evaluations , using the Stanford- Binet Intelligence Scale , the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children Revised, or the Leiter International Intelligence Scale, place them within the range of the moderately retarded and cause them to warrant an educational setting that serves such individuals. The families reside in Los Angeles County and generally fall within the lower to middle economic strata , with approximately 55% qualifying …

The Influence Of Response Modality On Children's Imitation Of Helping And Coercive Behavior, Wallace Arthur Melcher

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

The present study examined the effects of adult, film mediated models on the prosocial behavior of school children. Also the effect of congruency and incongruency between the model's response and the response the children were asked to perform was investigated. Thirty third-grade students, 19 female and 11 male, were randomly assigned to three groups. The first group observed a short film of an adult model providing helping (positive) feedback to a young boy who was playing a marble maze game. The second group was treated identically to the first except that the model provided coercive (negative) feedback. The third group …

Contingency Contracting For The Treatment Of Marital Discord, Blake H. Tearnan

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

The effectiveness of contingency contracting for treating marital distress was tested using a within couple multiple baseline design across responses. Two distressed couples participated. Both couples experienced marginal improvements as measured by a spouse-tracking procedure, One couple demonstrated gains in self-reported satisfaction. The findings for a third dependent variable are inconclusive for both couples. Suggestions for further research are discussed.

A Comparison Of Three Treatments For The Outpatient Alcoholic, Michael J. Telch

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

The abuse of alcohol is a complex behavior pattern exhibited by approximately nine million people in this country (Tarter & Sugarman, 1976) and has become a field of interest to science, industry, and the helping professions.

Estimates of spontaneous recovery among alcoholics vary drastically. In 1971 the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism began sponsorship of a comprehensive alcoholism treatment program located in 45 community centers throughout the nation. Using a multiple criterion measure of improvement, their report (Rand Corporation, 1976) estimated the rate of spontaneous improvement for alcoholics to be as high as 53%. In reviewing the rates …

Using Differential Reinforcement To Train Instruction Following Behavior Through The Transfer Of Stimulus Control From Physical Guidance To Verbal Instructions, Jon Delongpre'

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

A differential reinforcement procedure was investigated as a means for transferring stimulus control from physical guidance to verbal instructions in the training of instruction-following behavior.· An eight year old, severely retarded female was trained to respond to nonsense verbal prompts which, through training, had become discriminative stimuli for (a) "clap your hands", (b) "raise your hand", and (c) "tap the table". The use of differential reinforcement of singular and paired verbal/ physical prompt components increased the response rates to levels above the 80% criterion level. Training of these responses was accomplished across behaviors in a multiple baseline format.

Abraham Maslow's Concept Of Self Actualizaton As Illustrated In The Life Of Jesus, Peter Minh Quang Chu

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

How to be authentic to the self is possibly the main goal of all human efforts. Self-actualization is an urgent and important problem because it is the last stage in shaping a man's personality. In self-actualization, a person becomes more fully developed, more fully mature, indeed, a more complete person by fully actualizing his potentialities. In self actualization, the person lives what he potentially and really is.

Loneliness: Origins, Manifestations, And Treatment, Andrea Schalman

Theses

This thesis explores loneliness as a multifaceted psychological and social phenomenon, examining its origins, manifestations, and potential avenues for treatment. Beginning with a historical overview, the work situates loneliness within cultural and theoretical contexts, noting how the experience has been interpreted through philosophy, literature, and psychology. Drawing heavily on psychoanalytic theory, the thesis considers the role of early childhood attachment, separation, and loss as central contributors to the development of loneliness. The impact of maternal deprivation, insecure attachment patterns, and unresolved separation anxiety are analyzed as formative influences that shape one’s vulnerability to chronic isolation.

The study also examines the …

In Search Of The Sources Of Rationality: A Study Of The Work Of Jerome Bruner, Keith Weeks Lyou

Theses

Unavailable.

Closet Woman: A Study Of Societal Changes, The Infantalized Woman And The Ways In Which Psychotherapy Can Effect Change, Alice Beck Simmons

Theses

This 1978 Master’s thesis by Alice Beck Simmons investigates the psychological phenomenon of the "infantilized woman" within the context of middle-class American society. The study posits that traditional cultural attitudes toward marriage, family, and sexuality systematically repress female potential, resulting in women who mature physically but remain emotionally dependent and child-like. The author defines "infantilization" as a condition characterized by low self-esteem, a lack of personal identity, and an inability to function or make decisions without relying on another person.

The paper traces the origins of this condition through developmental stages, arguing that parental reinforcement of dependency and the repression …

Effects Of Race Of Examiner On A Projective Test, Oliver W. Slaughter

Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Perceived Velocity Of Apparent Movement: Evidence For A Distance/Time Rule, Kathleen Ann Carlson

Dissertations

No abstract provided.

A Validation Study Of The Family Environment Scale: Family Incongruence Score, Linda Joanne Neale

Dissertations and Theses

This study investigated the validity of the family incongruence score, a statistic which quantifies the discrepancies between family members' perceptions of their family system using answers given on the Family Environment Scale. Based on findings concerning incongruence in other environments, it was hypothesized that high family incongruence scores would be associated with more problems in the family system.

The Relationship Of Weight Loss To Self Concept In The Mentally Retarded Adult, Pauline Bunting Wall

Dissertations and Theses

The major part of this study was a treatment program designed to motivate mentally retarded adults to lose weight within a small group setting. Subjects were tested pre- and posttreatment on the Tennessee Self Concept Scale to ascertain any improvement in self-esteem. A 50-question diet quiz was constructed by the experimenters and administered pre- and posttreatment to find out if the subjects would improve their knowledge of health and nutrition through the study.

The Threat Index And Two Forms Of Resistance To The Concept Of Death, Henry E. Miller Jr.

Dissertations and Theses

Many investigators of death attitudes have emphasized the limitation of self-report measures of the fear of death in that responses are often unreal and highly questionable due to defenses and ego maneuvers. The Self-Administered Threat Index (SATI) introduced by Rainey and Epting (1977) appears to meet most criticisms of other investigators.

The present study was a partial replication of the Golding, et al. (1966) study with the SATI replacing the Sarnoff Fear of Death Scale. Forty-six introductory psychology students, both males and females, performed a tachistoscopic recognition task, completed the SATI and the Semantic Differential and were administered a brief …

Modes Of Representation, The Epistemic Subject And Developmental Word Association Phenomena, Ellen M. Gerschitz

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This study was devised to investigate the developmental syntagmaticparadigmatic word association shift. In syntagmatic associations the stimulus and associative response are of different grammatical form classes and appear to be grammatically continuous, as response may follow stimulus in an utterance (e.g. cat-meows). These are the predominant responses of children before the ages of six to eight. Older children and adults shift to making paradigmatic associations in which stimulus and response are from the same form class and may be substituted for one another in an utterance (e.g. cat-dog). This shift was explained in terms of underlying symbolic mediational processes and …

Early Social Isolation And Subsequent Self-Punitive Behavior, Timothy Scott Strongin

Psychology ETDs

Sixty-six albino rats obtained from Simonson Laboratories were weaned at 21 days and randomly assigned, using a split litter technique, to groups of 1 (isolation) or 5 (control) where they were housed for 62 days. At the end of the rearing period, subjects were individually housed and given one five-minute habituation trial daily, for 6 days, to a standard plexiglass alleyway. On the seventh day, a standard, one-way instrumental avoidance paradigm using .6 ma shock was instituted. After achieving an acquisition criterion of 8/10 successive, successful shock avoidances, subjects were exposed to Brown's vicious circle paradigm using 0, .4, .6, …

Alcohol Consumption As A Function Of Applied Labels And Conception Of Alcoholism, Thomas Mitchell Boyd

Psychology ETDs

Much speculation but little experimental research has been directed toward the influence of the label "alcoholic" on drinking patterns. If, as has been theorized, attribution of behavior to a stable as opposed to an unstable determinant leads to maintenance of that behavior, then labeling drinking behavior as alcoholic, particularly among persons conceiving of alcoholism as a disease, may have a stabilizing influence on drinking behavior. Thirty-one subjects were first divided according to whether they regarded alcoholism as a "disease" or as a "bad habit." They were then randomly labeled as either "alcoholic or pre-alcoholic" or "social drinker," purportedly on the …

Death Anxiety And Religious Orientation, Dennis Wagner

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

A sample of the general population from a small mid-South town was divided according to orthodoxy, devotionalism, denomination and denominational upbringing. Degree of death anxiety was assessed by the Templer Death Anxiety Scale. A multiple regression analysis of the data indicated that non-orthodox individuals or individuals having no religious affiliation had significantly lower death anxiety than their heterodox or religiously affiliated counterparts. Devotionalism, denomination and denominational upbringing were not significantly related to death anxiety. Several covariates were found to be related to death anxiety: death of a family member or friend (within one year), education, and father living or dead. …

Peer Facilitators: An Exploratory Study, Jeffrey Haskins

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Seventh grade males were trained as peer facilitators ;or a group of sixth grade males (peers) as part of an experimental guidance program. Training of peer facilitators was implemented through a modified short term human relations development model. Measures of personal, social, and overall adjustment, as assessed by the California Test of Personality, were obtained for the facilitators and group members before and after the peer facilitator program. No significant pre- and post-test differences were obtained on the select personality variables for either group. A method for assessing facilitative responsiveness was developed using written peer stimulus statements. In comparison to …

Proximity Of Reinforcement & The Protestant Ethic Effect, Sharon Miller

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Twelve food-deprived male rats were trained to barpress for food pellets in one of three operant chambers. The chambers were of standard size, double in length, or triple in length. After training, cod cup full of pellets was placed in the corner opposite the operant bar, and the eating behavior of the rats in this choice situation was observed. The dependent measure was the percentage of the total amount of food consumed that had been obtained by barpressing. Individual comparisons between the mean percentage of food earned over the four test sessions revealed that those rats in the longest chamber …

Leniency Error As A Function Of The Rater's Need For Social Approval, Danny Bean

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The effects of the rater's need for social approval (N-SA) on leniency error in ratings was investigated. Each of 19 supervisors rated the performance of a common set of 12 workers. Using an ANOVA procedure (Guilford, 1954) leniency error was identified. The effects of N-SA as measured by the Personal Reactions Inventory (Crowne & Marlowe, 1960) and the Least Preferred Coworker (Fiedler, 1967) were partialed out of the ratings. When the ANOVA was repeated on the partialed ratings, it was hypothesized that reduced leniency error would result. Contrary to expectations, there was virtually no reduction in leniency error. The low …

The Application Of Behavior Modification Techniques To Two Geriatric Patients, Beth A. Schneider

Graduate Theses

Behavior modification techniques were applied to the behavioral problems of two geriatric nursing home residents. For the first subject, providing reinforcement for a competing activity effectively reduced both disruptive behavior defined as requests for cigarettes, attacking a fellow resident or unauthorized removal of charts, and time spent in the hallway. Similarly, for the second subject, offering reinforcement for out-of-bed behavior had the desired effect of increasing time spent out of bed. However, positive changes in behavior failed to generalize beyond the experimental situation, possibly due to an inability to exercise adequate control over the environment. Suggestions for establishing a totally …

The Role Of Prior Learning And Direct Reinforcement In Observational Learning And Vicarious Reinforcement, Larry D. Olsen

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

A Comparison Of Attitudes Toward Community Colleges With Attitudes Toward Four-Year Colleges, Robert L. Gillespie

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Purpose. The purpose of this research was to determine if the attitudes of high school seniors toward community colleges and four-year colleges were significantly different according to socio-economic measures, and to see how they compared with their teachers'attitudes. (Abstract shortened.)

A Study Of Stimulus Control Functions Following Discrimination Training Using A Drl Schedule Of Reinforcement, Kathleen M. Krafft

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

Training And Generalization Of Restauranting Skills: Programming Primary Reinforcement For Community Travel, Richard Aart Van Den Pol

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

Emotion And Cognitive Perceptions In Response To Cinematographic And Non-Cinematographic Media, Stefani Nervig

Psychology ETDs

While the controversy continues over the extent to which responsibility for increases in social violence and aggression can be attributed to television and motion pictures, the accumulated evidence leaves little doubt that these media have come to have a tremendous influence on individual and social behavior. Both survey and experimental evidence have shown the film media to be capable of changing attitudes and values and of stimulating imitation and the observational learning of social behavior (Liebert, 1972; Robinson, 1972). These effects are most prominent, it would appear, in children and adolescents, but they are found also in older age groups.

A Behavioral Systems Analysis Of Job Performance In A Food Co-Operative, Harry M. Kent

Dissertations

No abstract provided.