Digital Commons Network^™

Systems Isomorphisms In Stochastic Dynamic Systems, Rajesh Venkatachalapathy

Dissertations and Theses

The identification of isomorphisms between disparate systems is an important focus of systems science. Such isomorphisms have not only conceptual and pedagogical value to systems science, but they also provide pragmatic value to specific disciplines by suggesting new ways to model familiar phenomena and by serving as reference models that show how even simple models can generate complex behavior. Specifically, this dissertation looks at certain classes of stochastic dynamic systems (SDS) and shows that similar equations can model phenomena in sociology and psychology. In both disciplines, what is modeled by these SDS isomorphisms is a certain type of reliability, defined …

Improving Community College Students' Interest, Utility-Value, And Performance: How Does Future Time Persective Influence A Utility-Value Intervention?, Elsa Maria Mason

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The economic benefits of academic success and completion are long-lasting. Students who attend community colleges can stand to benefit a great deal by completing a 4-year degree or even a 2-year degree. Unfortunately, these students often begin their higher education journey not fully prepared for college-level coursework. Students often fail to see how their college coursework relates to their lives and in turn, don’t hold interest or perceive value for the course and consequently do not perform well. Using Eccles et al. (1983) expectancy-value theory this study tested how community college students would respond to a utility-value intervention in which …

Genomic Contributors To Individual Differences In Reward-Related Neural Activity, Lindsay Jane Michalski

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Aberrant reward-related behavior, including impulsive and risk-taking behaviors, is a common feature of externalizing psychopathology (e.g., attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, antisocial personality disorder, and substance-use disorders). Through imaging studies, these behaviors have been linked to dysregulated reactivity within a diffuse reward-related corticostriatal neural network, including the striatum, frontal regions (namely orbital, ventromedial, and dorsolateral cortices), the insula, and the hippocampus. Because variability in risk-taking behavior and related psychopathology is moderately-to-largely heritable (i.e., with estimates ranging from 40 – 80%), a genetically-informed approach is well-positioned to provide valuable insight into the etiology of reward-related neural and behavioral phenotypes that characterize externalizing …

Perceptual Precedence Or Increased Effort?: On The Mechanism Of The Small-Picture-Size Advantage In Category Learning, Toshiya Miyatsu

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

I have previously identified a novel perceptual manipulation that enhances learning of some complex natural categories, and the current dissertation aims to uncover its mechanism. Specifically, learning of categories of tropical fish was enhanced when learned through small pictures (about 2º) compared to large pictures (about 19º). Through analyzing the previous results and extant theories in various domains, I identified two potential mechanisms through which this small-picture-size advantage manifested. The perceptual precedence hypothesis postulates that the processing of local dimensions is prioritized in large pictures and the processing of global dimensions is prioritized in small pictures. Therefore, small picture size …

Perceived Helicopter Parenting And Self-Determination Theory In Emerging Adulthood, Emily Hivick

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

Self-determination theory encompasses three different elements, competence, autonomy and social belongingness (Deci & Ryan, 2000). Helicopter parenting is defined as extreme involvement in a child’s life to the point of making decisions for them while also being associated with high levels of parental support and high feelings of parental-child closeness (Padilla-Walker & Nelson, 2012). Research has shown that helicopter parenting has been associated with psychological and behavioral problems in young adults, (Odenweller, Booth-Butterfield, & Weber, 2014). The current study investigated the association between perceived helicopter parenting and self-determination theory components along with intrinsic motivation and academic and extracurricular engagement in …

Do Faces Facilitate Or Distract Children From Attending To Threats?, Sarah A. Skidmore

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

Threatening stimuli may produce an attentional bias in humans, capturing and holding attention to a greater extent than other types of stimuli. Humans rely on others to alert their attention to threats in their environment, and social stimuli, such as faces, have privileged processing compared to nonsocial stimuli. We wanted to explore whether task-irrelevant fearful or neutral faces facilitate, distract, or have no effect on the detection of threatening or neutral images (spiders and frogs, respectively). Three- to-five-year-old children (N=37) completed a visual search task in which they searched for threatening or neutral animals. Consistent with previous literature, we found …

The Impact Of Callous-Unemotional Traits And Externalizing Tendencies On Neural Responsivity To Reward And Punishment In Healthy Adolescents, Yonglin Huang, Tingting Wu, Yu Gao, Yuyang Luo, Ziyan Wu, Shawn Fagan, Stephanie Leung, Xiaobo Li

Publications and Research

Both externalizing behavior and callous-unemotional (CU) traits in youth are precursors to later criminal offending in adulthood. It is posited that disruptions in reward and punishment processes may engender problematic behavior, such that CU traits and externalizing behavior may be linked to a dominant reward response style (e.g., heightened responsivity to rewards) and deficient punishment-processing. However, prior research has generated mixed findings and work examining both the sole and joint contribution of CU traits and externalizing problems related to functional brain alterations is lacking. In this pilot functional magnetic resonance imaging study, we measured externalizing behavior and CU traits in …

Visual Modulation Of Resting State Α Oscillations, Kelly Webster, Tony Ro

Publications and Research

Once thought to simply reflect passive cortical idling, recent studies have demonstrated that α oscillations play a causal role in cognition and perception. However, whether and how cognitive or sensory processes modulate various components of the α rhythm is poorly understood. Sensory input and resting states were manipulated in human subjects while electroencephalography (EEG) activity was recorded in three conditions: eyes-open fixating on a visual stimulus, eyes-open without visual input (darkness), and eyes-closed without visual input (darkness). We show that α power and peak frequency increase when visual input is reduced compared to the eyes open, fixating condition. These results …

The Demography And Practice Of Australians Caring For Native Wildlife And The Psychological, Physical And Financial Effects Of Rescue, Rehabilitation And Release Of Wildlife On The Welfare Of Carers, Bruce Englefield, Steve Candy, Melissa J. Starling, Paul Mcgreevy

Human-Animal Bonds Collection

The rescue, rehabilitation and release of injured and orphaned Australian wildlife is managed by over 20,000 carers, mostly voluntarily. These volunteers experience mental, physical and financial challenges that have not been researched adequately. This study collated the responses (n = 316) to a survey conducted among Australian wildlife carers who actively foster orphaned joeys for hand-raising and injured adult mammals for rehabilitation and release. It confirmed 86% of rehabilitators are female, 70% are over the age of 46 years and their prime motivation is an affinity with animals. The average time spent in the sector is 11.5 years, and the …

The Influence Of Depression And Anxiety On Working Memory In Children With Adhd, Angel David

Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)

Attention Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common disorders diagnosed in children (Feldman & Reiff, 2014). ADHD is known to impact a child’s working memory, with deficits ranging from mild to severe (Bedard et al., 2014). Research has explored the performance of working memory in children with ADHD and individual co-occurring disorders, finding that internalizing disorders such as depression and anxiety, both independently negatively impact working memory performance (Kofler et al., 2011; Saarinen et al., 2015; Skogan et al., 2013). However, there is limited research on how multiple co-occurring diagnoses in children with ADHD impact working memory. More …

The Relationship Between Socioeconomic Status And Mood Disorders, Jeannette German

Honors College Theses

Abstract

According to the Fundamental Cause Theory, socioeconomic status (SES) is comprised of multiple variables, including money, prestige, social status, and power (Phelan, 2010). The scientific literature has continued to reveal a robust relationship between SES and mental health outcomes. The same literature also highlights the role played by race, age, and gender in modulating this relationship. There are a multitude of models and theories from various disciplines that attempt to explain why and how SES impacts mental health. This literature review will include prominent theories and models in the field of psychology and public health. Specifically, the present literature …

How Supportive And Maladaptive Parental Responses Toward Adolescent Emotions May Affect Adolescent Depressive Symptoms, Kaylin Cash

Family Perspectives

During the peak of adolescent development, teenagers experience a variety of influences that can either improve or exacerbate mental health. Specifically, the way in which an adolescent manages his or her emotions can greatly influence mental health stability. Emotional regulation can decrease the risk of experiencing depressive symptoms. Adolescents may learn how to manage their emotions through a variety of sources, but one of the most influential sources is likely to be their parents. When parents inflict negative philosophies and responses toward negatively expressed adolescent emotions, adolescents are more likely to learn unhealthy emotional regulation skills. Consequently, poor emotional regulation …

The "Safe Adventure" Of Sex, Mckell Jorgensen, Laura Waters Black

Family Perspectives

No abstract provided.

Torn Apart: A Closer Look At Our Cover Image, Sandra Rios

Culture, Society, and Praxis

No abstract provided.

Examining The Relationship Of Exercise And Sleep In Students Across Multiple Academic Disciplines, Taylor Zewe

Honors Projects

Students in college learn the importance of balancing their academic studies with their sleep and exercise habits. The amount of sleep and exercise a student recieves has been examined in previous research studies. In these studies it was found that exercise had a postive affect on the amount of sleep received. However, there is little research on the affect academic discipline has on sleep habits and/or exercise habits of students in college. The purpose of this study is to examine the sleep and exercise habits among students in multiple academic majors at Bowling Green State University.

Undergraduates And Stress, Mahra Crone

Honors Projects

America is facing a serious mental health crisis, which may be an effect of increased chronic stress. Students, in particular, are vulnerable to this hazard as most face a moderate to extreme amount of stress. The programs which colleges and universities have put into place are outdated. Ineffective treatment of mental health crises leads to disastrous consequences. The present study analyzed the effects of major and grade level on stress level and sources of stress for undergraduate universities at both a large, public university and a small, private college. The author found that a student’s grade level and choice of …

Biological And Psychological Implications Of Mindfulness Meditation For College Students, Kelsey Madison Dietrich

Honors Projects

The purpose of this capstone project was threefold: investigate the psychological implications of mindfulness meditation for college students enrolled in a semester-long course introducing these practices, investigate the biological implications of mindfulness meditation for these students, and create the Peer Education “Mindfulness” presentation for the Wellness Connection to introduce mindfulness meditation methods to a greater quantity of college students. The following paper describes the two components of this capstone project that examine the implications of mindfulness meditation opportunities available for college students specifically at Bowling Green State University in Bowling Green, Ohio.

Creative Arts-Based Parents Training Program For Parents Of Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Jung Eun Park

Expressive Therapies Dissertations

This study evaluated the impact of the Creative Arts-based Parents’ Training (CAPT) program. The 6-week long, creative arts therapy-based program and its impact on parental stress and sense of competence for parents of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) was examined. Korean Parenting Stress Index Short-Form (K-PSI-SF) and Korean-Parenting Efficacy Test (K-PET) were used as quantitative measurements. Qualitative data were also collected for the experimental group (n = 17) using questionnaires, art journaling, and a 30 min focus group interview. The control group (n = 15) only participated in quantitative measurements. There was no difference in age between …

Behavioural Risks In Female Dogs With Minimal Lifetime Exposure To Gonadal Hormones, Melissa J. Starling, Anne Fawcett, Bethany Wilson, James Serpell, Paul Mcgreevy

Physiology Collection

Spaying of female dogs is a widespread practice, performed primarily for population control. While the consequences of early spaying for health are still being debated, the consequences for behaviour are believed to be negligible. The current study focused on the reported behaviour of 8981 female dogs spayed before 520 weeks (ten years) of life for reasons other than behavioural management, and calculated their percentage lifetime exposure to gonadal hormones (PLGH) as a proportion of their age at the time of being reported to the online Canine Behavioral Assessment and Research Questionnaire (C-BARQ). We found that 23 behaviours differed between entire …

Knowledge Level And Attitudes Of University Faculty Regarding Assistance Animals Compared To The General Population, Anna R. Ledonne

Honors College Theses

Assistance animals are becoming a greater presence on college campuses. The purpose of the following study was to explore university faculty’s confidence in defining different types of assistance animals, their knowledge of legal mandates, and their attitudes regarding assistance animals. A survey was issued to university faculty utilizing an online program and included measures from a previous study done by Schoenfeld-Tacher, Hellyer, Cheung, and Kogan (2017), as well as added questions to more specifically address the research questions and sample. This study was used to compare faculty knowledge and the knowledge of the general population. 91 participant responses were analyzed. …

Human Milk Omega-3 Fatty Acid Composition Is Associated With Infant Temperament, Jennifer Hahn-Holbrook, Adi Fish, Laura M. Glynn

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

There is growing evidence that omega-3 (n-3) polyunsaturated fatty-acids (PUFAs) are important for the brain development in childhood and are necessary for an optimal health in adults. However, there have been no studies examining how the n-3 PUFA composition of human milk influences infant behavior or temperament. To fill this knowledge gap, 52 breastfeeding mothers provided milk samples at 3 months postpartum and completed the Infant Behavior Questionnaire (IBQ-R), a widely used parent-report measure of infant temperament. Milk was assessed for n-3 PUFAs and omega-6 (n-6) PUFAs using gas-liquid chromatography. The total fat and the ratio of n6/n-3 fatty acids …

The Healing Power Of The Arts - Drama Therapy And The Use Of Theatre In The Treatment Of Trauma, Brooklyn Snyder

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

Theatre is an incredibly valuable therapeutic tool. In this thesis, I explore the ways in which trauma can reshape individuals lives, both cognitively and physically, impeding their sense of self, ability to trust, engagement, and many other seemingly ordinary aspects of day to day life that those of us unaffected by trauma take for granted. Additionally, I cover how employing theatrical tools, like improvisation and role play, can act as a beneficial treatment option for those who have suffered a traumatic past. Drama therapy allows individuals to reconnect with their bodies and their minds, gain new perspectives on their experiences, …

Altered Motor, Anxiety-Related And Attentional Task Performance At Baseline Associate With Multiple Gene Copies Of The Vesicular Acetylcholine Transporter And Related Protein Overexpression In Chat::Cre+ Rats, Craig P. Mantanona, Johan Alsiö, Joanna L. Elson, Beth M. Fisher, Jeffrey W. Dalley, Timothy Bussey, Ilse S. Pienaar

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

© 2019, The Author(s). Transgenic rodents expressing Cre recombinase cell specifically are used for exploring mechanisms regulating behavior, including those mediated by cholinergic signaling. However, it was recently reported that transgenic mice overexpressing a bacterial artificial chromosome containing choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) gene, for synthesizing the neurotransmitter acetylcholine, present with multiple vesicular acetylcholine transporter (VAChT) gene copies, resulting in altered cholinergic tone and accompanying behavioral abnormalities. Since ChAT::Cre+ rats, used increasingly for understanding the biological basis of CNS disorders, utilize the mouse ChAT promotor to control Cre recombinase expression, we assessed for similar genotypical and phenotypical differences in such rats compared …

Climbing The Corporate Ladder And Within-Person Changes In Narcissism: Reciprocal Relationships Over Two Decades, Bart Wille, Joeri Hofmans, Filip Lievens, Mitja D. Back, Filip De Fruyt

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Prior research demonstrated that narcissism fosters the attainment of higher managerial ranks in organizations. However, it is not known whether climbing the corporate ladder also fosters the development of narcissism over time. Whereas prior work consistently adopted a unidirectional perspective on narcissism and career attainment, this study presents and tests a bidirectional perspective, incorporating long-term development in narcissism in relation to and in response to long-term upward mobility. To this end, a cohort of highly educated professionals was assessed three times over a 22-year time frame. Extended latent difference score modeling showed that, over the entire interval, within-person changes in …

Cholesterol Efflux Capacity And Its Association With Metabolic Syndrome In A Multi-Ethnic Population (Dallas Heart Study): A Cross-Sectional Study, Oludamilola Akinmolayemi

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a multi-component risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD) and type 2 diabetes. MetS has been found to be associated with increased risk of incident CVD, cardiovascular morbidity and mortality, and prevalence atherosclerosis. Cholesterol efflux capacity (CEC) is a measure of the functional property of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C). In addition, it characterizes the ability of HDL-C to accept cholesterol from extra-hepatic cells in the periphery to the liver and has been shown in clinical studies to be inversely associated with atherosclerosis cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) and incident cardiovascular disease (CVD) . Low HDL-C is one of the …

Insuring The Integrity Of Global Registries, Aardhra Meenakshi Venkatachalam

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Data quality is a priority in public health because it is used for public health program planning and implementation, research, as well as policy. The information gleaned from the data allows us to assess health status, and improve health needs. This paper evaluated methods for cleaning, managing and addressing missing data in the Lagos State Ambulance Service registry. The techniques included screening, data organization, diagnostic phase, treatment phase and a missing data phase to holistically handle the data. The percentage of systemic errors was reduced through the use of the 5-step method. Missing data was informative for state of origin, …

Relations Between Self-Regulation, Divergent Thinking, And Perceived Stress In Emerging Adults, Haven Wright

Honors Theses

This study investigated the relationships between self-regulation and stress, self-regulation and creativity, and perceived stress as a mediator for the relationship between self-regulation and creativity. Questionnaires were administered to undergraduate students to individually access each construct. Creativity was measured through divergent thinking and self-regulation was measured through the SRS and effortful control. Regression analyses were run to determine the relationships between the constructs. A negative association was found between effortful control and stress. Individual positive relationships were found between effortful control and all of the creative thinking styles except convergent-unpleasant. Lastly, the indirect effect of effortful control on the convergent-unpleasant …

Anxiety Symptoms As A Predictor Of Head And Neck Cancer Survival And Potential For Mediation By Cancer Treatment Response., Tyler D. Pollitt

College of Arts & Sciences Senior Theses

BACKGROUND:

Head and neck cancers (HNC) are associated with high rates of depression, which seems to affect overall survival. However, little attention has been paid to the effects of anxiety on overall survival, though anxiety has been shown to activate inflammatory pathways implicated in cancer symptom development and progression. Here it was hypothesized that higher pre-treatment anxiety levels in HNC patients would predict poorer overall two-year survival and a higher likelihood of subsequent HNC treatment failure. Additionally, we expected that the relationship between higher pre-treatment anxiety and poorer two-year overall survival would be mediated by treatment failure.

METHODS:

Patients (n …

Renaming Me: Assessing The Influence Of Gender Identity On Name Selection, Sharon Obasi, Richard Mocarski, Natalie Holt, Debra Hope, Nathan Woodruff

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Our identity is our name connected with a specific face and body. Yet, our name, a critical aspect of the “names-body-identity” nexus is rarely selfselected. The naming of a newborn is often the purview of family and the name selected is often linked to the sex assigned to the child. Assigned sex, however, may differ from gender identity. Renaming, the process of selecting and using a new name, can be instrumental in expressing an authentic gender identity. Thus, gender identity and renaming were examined among transgender and gender nonconforming (TGNC) adults using an online survey. Participants indicated that the recognition …

The Feedback-Related Negativity Is A Time-Dependent Brain Mechanism That Facilitates Aversive Learning: Implications For The Reinforcement Learning Frn Hypothesis, Eric Rawls

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Organisms encode rewarding and aversive experiences through reinforcement learning, capitalizing on prediction errors (PEs), which adapt action strategies over time. Computational theories are explicit that PE signals should update action weights continuously over the course of a behavioral task, an important time-dependent variation that is eschewed in traditional neuroscience studies that average over large numbers of trials. I examined variation in reaction times and feedback-locked cortical activity over time as a function of PE to critically examine theories indicating that PE signals drive time-dependent learning. We recorded EEG while participants completed a novel reinforcement task that varied prediction error on …