Digital Commons Network^™

Preference And Tranquility For Houses Of Worship, Thomas R. Herzog, Lauren E. Gray, Amy M. Dunville, Angela M. Hicks, Emily A. Gilson

Peer Reviewed Articles

Participants rated houses of worship for one of seven variables: preference, tranquility, age, visual richness, building care, potential for recovery from fatigued attention, and potential for reflection. Factor analysis of the preference ratings yielded four content categories: “contemporary,” “traditional,” “unusual architecture,” and “older red brick churches.” Preference was positively correlated with visual richness and building care in the contemporary and traditional categories and had a positive partial correlation with age in the traditional category. Tranquility was positively correlated with preference, building care, recovery, and reflection in the contemporary category but only with reflection in the traditional category. Tranquility was rated …

Contextual Risk, Maternal Negative Emotionality, And The Negative Emotion Dysregulation Of Preschool Children From Economically Disadvantaged Families, Eleanor D. Brown, Brian P. Ackerman

Psychology Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

How Priming Of Behavioral Symptoms May Affect College Students’ Decision To Diagnose, Caitlen Gilley, Sarah Stertz

The Journal of Undergraduate Research

Two disorders that have increased in diagnosis and in media awareness in the past two decades are Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and autism. Psychologists use priming as a tool to test availability of schemas and concepts. The current study focuses on how priming of ADHD and autism symptoms affects college students’ diagnoses of the corresponding disorder. Also considered is that the control group will diagnosis ADHD more often because of the vast media awareness of ADHD today. The participants in this study were male and female undergraduates at South Dakota State University. There was no significance found for the two …

Evaluation Of Bureau Practice For Illegal Drugs Use Among Teens, Sharon D. Heard

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The Bureau of Substance Abuse Treatment Recovery and Prevention, which oversees drug intervention services for Detroit residents, has found the city's illegal drug use among teens to mirror national rates. Illegal drug use is associated with addiction, major health problems, and stigma. Incorporating evidence-based screening during all teen health care visits would decrease missed opportunities to identify at-risk behaviors, the number of teens that do not receive intervention, and the stigma associated with screening. The purpose of this project was to develop evidence-based policy and practice guidelines for teen screening services for illegal drug use. The Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) model was …

The Never Ending Attraction Of The Ponzi Scheme, Pearl Jacobs, Linda Schain

Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

In the 1920’s, Charles Ponzi engaged in a notorious money making scheme. This scheme had been tried before but no one prior to Charles Ponzi had managed to swindle millions of dollars out of unsuspecting people. Thus, the scheme bears his name. In December 2008, Bernard Madoff, a major Ponzi schemer, was exposed. He managed to con investors out of over $65 billion over a thirty year period. Madoff was a highly respected financial expert. The investors were mostly well educated and supposedly financially savvy. How did this happen? This paper will examine some theories which may help explain both …

The Effects Of Implementing Restorative Justice In An In-School Suspension Program, Nikki Brown-Kersey

Dissertations

The purpose of the proposed study was to assess the effects of implementing an in-school suspension program with a Restorative Justice component on office referrals, suspensions and grade point averages. The combination of Restorative Justice and inschool suspension as an alternative to out-of-school suspension warrants empirical evaluation. According to recent research, neither Restorative Justice nor in-school suspension alone have enough empirical evidence to support their success and continued use in schools in isolation. The positive aspects of each combined may produce a more successful alternative to suspension. A group design procedure was used to assess if significant changes in the …

School-Based Juvenile Probation And Police Partnerships For Truancy Reduction, Leanne F. Alarid, Barbara A. Sims, James Ruiz

Contemporary Issues in Juvenile Justice

Truancy places students at risk in primary and secondary education and is linked to conduct disorder, drug use, and delinquency. To prevent truancy and reduce risk, school-based proba-tion supervision has emerged within school districts in partnership with local law enforcement officers in an effort to enforce probation conditions for truant youths and prevent future delin-quency. This research uses key information interviews of knowledgeable stakeholders to examine the delivery of school-based probation supervision. Home visits and court hearings were perceived to be effective at reducing truancy and tardiness. This study affirms that strong lead-ership, information sharing, and involvement of parents were …

Reasonable' Perceptions Of Stalking: The Influence Of Conduct Severity And The Perpetrator-Target Relationship, Adrian J. Scott, Lorraine Sheridan

Research outputs 2011

Ex-partner stalkers are more persistent and dangerous than stranger stalkers, but are less likely to be convicted of an offence. This research considers whether the just world hypothesis (JWH) can account for this apparent contradiction. An experimental 3×3 independent factorial design was used to investigate the influence of conduct severity and the perpetrator–target relationship on perceptions of stalking. Three hundred and thirty-four students were presented with one of nine vignettes and asked to complete five scale items relating to the situation described. Conduct severity and the perpetrator–target relationship produced significant main effects for the combined scale items. The perpetrator's behaviour …

Identifying The Negative Stigma Associated With Having A Learning Disability, Kelsey Lisle

Honors Theses

Those with learning disabilities (LDs) can be characterized as a minority group, and like most groups of minorities they face a distinct stigma by the larger population. While there iscurrently a lack of research in understanding LD stigma, it has become increasingly important given the push for inclusive classrooms settings. In this study it was hypothesized that regardlessof a participants’ gender, when participants were given a hypothetical description of a person that included information indicating that the individual has a LD, the participants would rate that individual less favorably. Results were consistent with the hypothesis. Participants perceived the hypothetical LD …

Addressing Disproportionality In School Discipline Through Universal School-Widepositive Behavior Support, Kelly Lane

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

Suspensions are the most commonly used discipline strategy in schools and in many cases these lead to poor academic and behavioral outcomes for students. Suspensions are also implemented inconsistently as a consequence of disciplinary infractions; this has resulted in the disproportionate suspension rates of minority and special education students. Recently, school-wide Positive Behavior Support (SWPBS) has emerged as an alternative model to suspension. SWPBS is a proactive, school-wide approach to discipline, which focuses on teaching and reinforcing appropriate behavior to all students. The purpose of the current study is to examine the effectiveness of SWPBS on reducing disproportionate rates of …

Probation Officer Role Orientation, Helping Alliance, And Probationer Readiness For Change:The Impact On Juvenile Offender Recidivism, Wendy E. Wild

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

The aim of the present study was to investigate the individual and collective influences of officer role orientation, the helping alliance, and probationer readiness for change on the reduction of recidivism rates among juvenile offenders. Archival data from a sample of 33 officers and 314 juvenile probationers were examined. Data included an officer demographic form, a probationer demographic and recidivism form, the Subjective Role Orientation and Strategy Scale, the Dual Role Inventory-Revised Probationer Version, and the University of Rhode Island Change Assessment. Results demonstrated that the sample of probation officers overwhelmingly adopted a balanced approach to supervision. This limited a …

Personality Disorders And Retention In A Therapeutic Community For Substance Dependence, Douglas B. Samuel, Donna M. Lapaglia, Lisa M. Maccarelli, Brent A. Moore, Samuel A. Ball

Department of Psychological Sciences Faculty Publications

Although therapeutic community (TC) treatment is a promising intervention for substance use disorders, a primary obstacle to successful treatment is premature attrition. Because of their prevalence within substance use treatment facilities, personality disorder (PD) diagnoses have been examined as predictors of treatment completion. Prior research on TC outcomes has focused almost exclusively on antisocial personality disorder (ASPD), and the results have been mixed. The current study extends previous research by examining the impact of the 10 Axis II PDs on early (first 30 day) attrition as well as overall time to dropout in a 9-month residential TC. Survival analyses indicated …

The Psychological Foundations Of Behavioral Law And Economics, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

Over the past decade, psychological research has enjoyed a rapidly expanding influence on legal scholarship. This expansion has established a new field—“Behavioral Law and Economics” (BLE). BLE’s principal insight is that human behavior commonly deviates from the predictions of rational choice theory in the marketplace, the election booth, and the courtroom. Because these deviations are predictable, and often harmful, legal rules can be crafted to reduce their undesirable influence. Ironically, BLE seldom recognizes that its intellectual origins lie with psychology more so than economics. This failure leaves BLE open to criticisms that can be answered only by embracing the underlying …

Dangerous Psychopaths: Criminally Responsible But Not Morally Responsible, Subject To Criminal Punishment And To Preventive Detention, Ken M. Levy

Journal Articles

How should we judge psychopaths, both morally and in the criminal justice system? This Article will argue that psychopaths are generally not morally responsible for their bad acts simply because they cannot understand, and therefore be guided by, moral reasons.

Scholars and lawyers who endorse the same conclusion automatically tend to infer from this premise that psychopaths should not be held criminally punishable for their criminal acts. These scholars and lawyers are making this assumption (that just criminal punishment requires moral responsibility) on the basis of one of two deeper assumptions: that either criminal punishment directly requires moral responsibility or …

Effects Of Sexual Assault Education On College Students' Rape-Supportive Attitudes, Jessica Ann Ueland

Honors Program Theses

Few studies have measured the effectiveness of sexual assault programming is in decreasing acceptance of rape myths. This study examined two research questions. First, would students in a class that included a sexual assault education component be more likely to demonstrate a change in degree of rape myth acceptance than students who were not in a class that included sexual assault education? Second, within the treatment group, would males demonstrate a larger change in rape myth acceptance than females? At the end of the course, the treatment group showed a significant decrease in rape myth acceptance; there was not a …

A Study Of Positive Emotions And Turnover Intentions Among Hong Kong Police Officers : The Mediating Role Of Psychological Capital And Work Well-Being, Chun Lok Lui

Lingnan Theses

With reference to Fredrickson‘s (2001) broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions, the current study investigated the mechanism of how positive emotions contribute to desirable outcomes to the organization through psychological capital (PsyCap), which is a positive, state-like, and performance-related resource comprising self-efficacy, hope, optimism and resilience. To date, only few studies have been done particularly on the relationships between PsyCap and positive emotions among Chinese employees. Studies on PsyCap of police force are even rarer. The main purpose of this study was to investigate the underlying mechanism relating positive emotions and work outcomes, specifically to examine the separate roles of positive …

Studying Rape Through A Theorectical Lens: The Development Of A Serial Rape Model Using Fbi Data, Brooke Smith

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The current study assessed whether there is an empirical foundation for different theories of rape including the feminist, evolutionary, social disorganization, psychopathy, and rapist type theories. Using a data set from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on serial rapists collected in the early 1990's, the study included two phases. The first phase assessed whether FBI data supported the previously mentioned theories of rape by analyzing associations between individual variables that are thought to support each theory. Support was demonstrated for the evolutionary and psychopathy theories. Using MPlus statistical software to accommodate the multi-level nature of the data, the second …

Predictors Of Recidivism In A Predominantly Hispanic Sample Of First-Time Juvenile Offenders, Yvette Valenzuela

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Prior studies have identified risk factors that predict recidivism among serious and chronic juvenile offenders. The current study was conducted to identify risk factors in a related but much larger group -- first time juvenile offenders. The aim was to develop a risk assessment tool that could identify (a) high-risk juveniles when they are first referred to the juvenile justice system, so that they can be targeted for intervention, and (b) low-risk juveniles who probably do not need intervention. Participants in the study were 321 first-time juvenile offenders at the El Paso Juvenile Probation Department (EPJPD). Eighty-nine percent of the …

Personal Beliefs And Public Print: The Influence Of Pre-Existing Attitudes And Pretrial Publicity Information On Final Verdicts, Sara Marie Locatelli

Dissertations

Pretrial publicity (PTP), defined as any news story about a case not yet in trial, has been shown to affect trial outcomes. Results, however, are mixed, with studies finding strong effects, others weaker effects, and some no effects. These differences are sometimes attributed to methodology and study stimuli. In the present research, the effect of participant attitudes was explored. Participant attitudes can have a strong influence on perceptions about a piece of information, and could explain differences in use of PTP as well as findings that judicial remedies to alleviate PTP effects are ineffective. Participants were exposed to one of …

A Training Curriculum For Assessing And Treating Sex Offenders With Mental Illnesses, Shawna Elizabeth Walker Boles

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

The purpose of this paper was to develop a continuing education program to teach sex offender-specific treatment providers (SOSTP) in the community how to appropriately assess, treat and manage adults with severe mental illness who are also sex offenders (SMISOs) in an outpatient setting. This paper begins with an overview of the most relevant literature associated with the treatment of sex offenders and a presentation of some of the current programs developed to treat sex offenders with severe and persistent mental illnesses. This review also outlines the paucity of resources and the need for SOSTPs to receive expanded training to …

Life Experiences That Contributed To The Independence And Success In The Lives Of Foster Care Alumni, Dawn Elizabeth Montgomery

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

The purpose of this qualitative study was to determine the factors which helped these foster care alumni to persevere and to succeed. The intent was to provide a framework for equipping youth in foster care more effectively by building on their strengths and the resources available in foster care. The study’s method incorporated the interviewing of ten ethnically diverse individuals who had experienced the foster care system. Based on their insights and the themes which emerged, the WARRIORS Model was created. This acronym represents the key themes derived from the interviews: Wounded, Advocacy, Reality of Belonging, Resources, Inspired to Succeed, …

Artful Liars: Malingering On The Draw-A-Person Task, Dennis P. Carmody, Angela M. Crossman

Publications and Research

Malingering is a form of deception in which one fakes illness to earn (positive or negative) reinforcement. The purpose of the current research was to explore the ability of naïve participants to malinger distress on a clinical, projective measure (Draw-A-Person; DAP). In two experiments, individuals first drew figures of a man, woman, and self. Then, they imagined they were in a motor vehicle accident and drew the figures again as if they were falsely claiming distress from the accident. In Experiment 1, 65 undergraduates participated and in Experiment 2, 70 undergraduates and 40 high school students participated. The drawings were …

Psychopathy: Correlates Of The Mmpi-2-Rf And Ppi-R, Katherine Achsah Lisa Hall

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The present study sought to examine the utility of the MMPI-2-RF (Ben-Porath & Tellegen, 2008) in assessing psychopathic personality traits. In past studies, the Restructured Clinical scales (RC4, RC9, RC7, and RC2) have been positive predictors of psychopathic characteristics. The aim of this study is to validate and build upon the previous research by re-examining the Restructured Clinical scales (RC4, RC9, RC7, and RC2) and investigate the MMPI-2-RF fear scales (Behavioral-Restricting Fears & Multiple Specific Fears), High-Order Scale (Behavioral/Externalizing Dysfunction), Externalizing Scale (Juvenile Conduct Problems and Substance Abuse) and the Personality Psychopathology Five scales (Negative-Emotionality/Neuroticism-Revised & Introversion/Low Positive Emotionality-Revised). It …

Simulated Subaverage Performance On The Block Span Task Of The Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scales-Fifth Edition, Alyse Ann Barker

LSU Master's Theses

As clinical psychologists and neuropsychologists routinely assess individuals in medicolegal and criminal forensic settings, they are faced with the challenge of evaluating and testifying on the validity of these psychological and neuropsychological assessments. Individuals possess various motives for manipulating their responses or performance on psychological and neuropsychological assessment instruments. Malingering refers to poor effort on psychological and neuropsychological tests when an external incentive is present to reward poor performance. Malingering can be assessed by stand-alone measures of effort or measures derived from the response profiles of traditionally administered neuropsychological and psychological tests. Using a dataset from the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scales-Fifth …

Growing Up Policed In The Age Of Aggressive Policing Policies, Brett G. Stoudt, Michelle Fine, Madeline Fox

Publications and Research

Spray-painted atop an old tenement building in the East Village of Manhattan is a large fossilized graffiti image of a tyrannosaurus rex that reads: “NYC EATS ITS YOUNG.” With its ribs exposed and mouth open, this image represents symbolically what many young people in the neighborhood already know intimately and have experienced: New York City (NYC) is not an easy place to grow up. Their social safety nets are being dismantled and the public institutions they rely on every day often fail them. In NYC, public school budgets are being slashed each year even though the high school dropout/push-out rates …

Drug Courts Work, But How? Preliminary Development Of A Measure To Assess Drug Court Structure And Processes, Blake Barrett

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The high prevalence of substance use disorders is well-documented among criminal offenders. Drug courts are specialty judicial programs designed to: 1) improve public safety outcomes; 2) reduce criminal recidivism and substance abuse among offenders with substance use disorders; and 3) better utilize scarce criminal justice and treatment resources. Drug courts operate through partnerships between the criminal justice, behavioral health and public health systems. Offenders participate in an intensive regimen of substance abuse treatment and case management while under close judicial supervision. Drug courts' effectiveness in reducing criminal recidivism and drug use has been documented through numerous primary studies as well …

Getting Into Character: Cultivating Identities In A Teen-Theatre Peer-Education Program, Valerie A. Futch

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This study investigated the role of community theatre participation on adolescent and young adult identity development. The theatre program, known as The SOURCE, focuses on sex-education through a peer-education model. The experiences of young adults, who are now aged 18-34, were examined through interviews (N=20), identity maps (N=9), and a survey (N=64) in order to understand how participation in this group influenced their development. While much of the literature documents the successes of such programs while youth participate, few document the longer-term impacts of such participation (Saldaña, McCammon, Omasta, & Hines, 2011). Data reveal how such involvement informed the youths' …

The Economics Of Being Young And Poor: How Homeless Youth Survive In Neo-Liberal Times, Jeff Karabanow, Jean Hughes, Jann Ticknor, Sean Kidd, Dorothy Patterson

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Based upon in-depth interviews with 34 youth in Halifax and seven service providers in St. John's, Montreal, Hamilton, Toronto, Winnipeg, and Calgary, the findings of this study suggest that labor occurs within a particular street context and street culture. Formal and informal work can be inter-related, and despite the hardships they experience, young people who are homeless or who are at-risk of homelessness can respond to their circumstances with ingenuity, resilience and hope. Often street-involved and homeless young people are straddling formal and informal work economies while mediating layers of external and internal motivations and tensions. The reality is that …

Criminal Offending Among Respondents To Protective Orders: Crime Types And Patterns That Predict Victim Risk, Carol E. Jordan, Adam J. Pritchard, Danielle Duckett, Richard Charnigo

Office for Policy Studies on Violence Against Women Publications

Research has shown that respondents to protective orders have robust criminal histories and that criminal offending behavior often follows issuance of a protective order. Nonetheless, the specific nature of the association between protective orders and criminal offending remains unclear. This study uses two classes of statistical models to more clearly delineate that relationship. The models reveal factors and characteristics that appear to be associated with offending and protective order issuance and provide indications about when a victim is most at risk and when the justice system should be most ready to provide immediate protection.

Out Of The Frying Pan, Into The Fire: Trauma In The Lives Of Homeless Youth Prior To And During Homelessness, John Coates, Sue Mckenzie-Mohr

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Anecdotal evidence from those who work with homeless youth indicates that trauma permeates these young people's lives. This paper presents the findings from a study of 100 homeless youth regarding the presence of trauma in their lives, both before and during homelessness. Participants living in the Maritime Provinces volunteered to take part in a semi-structured interview lasting one to two hours. The interview questionnaire was conducted by a trained interviewer, and was composed of standardized and adapted survey instruments, as well as questions regarding demographics, experiences prior to becoming homeless, assistance received while dealing with stressors, and current needs. The …