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Reciprocal Self-Disclosure In Mixed-Race And Same-Race Dyads, David Roger Sholis

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Sixty-four male teenage residents (32 white, 32 black) of a juvenile detention home were exposed to intimate self-disclosure from an experimental confederate posing as a volunteer at the facility. Subjects were assigned to one of eight conditions which varied subject race (white or black), confederate race (white or black), and content of confederate disclosure (depression or substance abuse). Following the confederate's disclosure, each subject revealed in return and then completed a questionnaire measuring various dimensions of attraction to the confederate. Subjects disclosed more intimately and gave higher ratings of liking, trust, and similarity to same-race partners. Also, black subjects reported …

Lithium Chlorine-Induced Food Aversions In The Toad (Bufo Americanus), Paul R. Vaughan

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

This research established that a strong and persistent food aversion can be produced in the toad (Bufo americanus), using lithium chloride­ prey pairings. No previous study has reported taste-illness aversions in amphibians. The first of three experiments established this aversion learning and also suggested that prior "safe" exposures to a prey had little effect on subsequent aversive conditioning to that food (mealworm). No effect on general eating behavior as measured by response to another prey object (cricket) was observed in the initial study. The second experiment tested the effectiveness of five different dosages of a hypertonic LiCl solution (.5 M …

A Comparison Of The Central & Peripheral Theories Of Work Decrement Through The Separation Of Stimulus & Response Components In The Mental Imagery Of A Motor Task, Bruce Jennings

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

A total of 180 introductory psychology students from Western Kentucky University were tested with their left hands on the rotary pursuit apparatus. Practice conditions consisted of the following: imagery of the rotor's light movements (stimulus component), imagery of pursuit-type arm movements (response component), imagery of both light movements and arm movements, imagery of the integrated task, and a no practice control group. Nine-minute rest periods were given to half of the subjects in each of these conditions. In addition to providing a better understanding of the processes underlying mental imagery through the breakdown of its components, differences between the stimulus …

An Investigation Into The Use Of Provisional Analysis As A Means To Increase The Use Of Program Evaluation Data, Jeffrey Quade

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

In recent years there has been an upsurge in the demand for program accountability. Program evaluation is often the prescribed procedure used to determine a program's effectivenss. During a program's evaluation, data on the program are gathered by program evaluators. However, in general, the evaluation data gathered are not used by program administrators. The purpose of the present investigation was to assess the impact of a procedure termed provisional analysis on increasing the use of evaluation data by program officials. Sixty-five volunteers from graduate courses in education and fifty-two volunteers from undergraduate educational psychology classes were randomly assigned to two …

Intertask Transfer Of Skill Acquisition & Work Decrement As A Function Of Degree Of Task Similarity Between Mental Practice Trials & Physical Performance, William White

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The focus of this study was on motor learning, or the human learning of movement. It is well documented that physical or mental practice of a motor skill followed by an adequate rest period can enhance subsequent performance of that skill. The literature shows that transfer of skill acquisition occurs as a function of the similarity of physical practice trials and the criterion task. In this study mental practice trials wele substituted for physical practice trials. It was hypothesized that the transfer of skill acquisition would also occur as a function of the similarity of mental practice trials and the …

A Study Of The Background, Level Of Job Satisfaction, Maturity, And Morale Of "Delayed Vocation" Catholic Priests, Thomas H. Hicks

Psychology Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Environmental And Psychological Factors Surrounding Children Of Cancer Patients: An Exploratory Study, Joan Strong Buell

Dissertations and Theses

This exploratory study examines five families in which one parent was ill with cancer and in which there was a 5-to 8-year-old child. To understand the adaptation to the illness (and, in the case of three families, to the death of the ill parent) of the focus child was the principal aim of the study. The circumstances existing around the time of the illness and death of the parent were seen as particularly important in determining how the child viewed these events. Areas such as substitute caregivers, family routines, information given to the child, and the child's participation in, apparent …

Relationship Between Attribution And Conditions Of Reward In Children, Rhonda Miles

Graduate Theses

Thirty-eight third grade students were given the Intellectual Achievement Responsibility (lAR) Questionaire in order to determine their internal and external attribution scores. From those scores, 28 subjects were chosen to test the hypothesis by performing two separate but related tasks under the conditions of self-and external rewards. A correlation using the Pearson Product- Moment Correlation Coefficient was computed in order to determine the relation between the subject's attribution level and performance under different conditions of reward. The results showed a higher relationship between attribution and self-reward when self-reward followed external reward. A Chi square test was also computed to determine …

Patterning Of The Electromyographic Response On A Simple Verbal Conditioning Task, Truman G. Reid

Graduate Theses

Twenty-four subjects from the University of Texas of the Permian Basin volunteered to participate in an experiment designed to determine if patterning of EMG responses occur when recorded from the Frontalis, or the Flexors of the preferred arm on a paired-associate verbal conditioning task. Six groups of four subjects each were provided either positive, negative reinforcement, or no reinforcement depending on their respective group. Groups one (PRF), and three (PRA) were positive reinforcement groups. Groups two (NRF), and four (NRA) were provided negative reinforcement. Groups five and six were control groups. Positive and negative reinforcement con sisted of subjects being …

Single...Chance Or Choice, Karen Robinson

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

"It is said to be the largest unrecognized minority group in America, but it has no lobbying efforts, central organization or focus. The group is singles - divorced, widowed or never married - and there is an estimated l 190,000 of them in Kansas City Area." One out of every three adults in the United States is single. That is 43 million. Yet in spite of their great numbers, single people find that social pressures still call for "settling down" and raising a family.

An Observational Study Of Scent-Marking In Coyotes, Canis Latrans, Michael C. Wells, Marc Bekoff

Ethology Collection

Urination and defaecation patterns of free-ranging coyotes (Canis latrans) were studied in the Grand Teton National Park, Jackson, Wyoming, for two years. The vast majority of urinations by adult males and females were involved in 'marking,' and differentiating between 'marking' and 'elimination' may not be necessary. Our results may be summarized as follows: 1) Raised-leg urinations (RLU) performed by males were most frequently used in marking. (2) Females marked throughout the year using the squat (SQU) posture. (3) Snow tracking and reading snow sign resulted in a gross underestimate of the relative frequency of SQU's and a large overestimate in …

An Observational Study Of Coyote (Canis Latrans) Scent-Marking And Territoriality In Yellowstone National Park, Joseph J. Allen, Marc Bekoff, Robert L. Crabtree

Ethology Collection

Free-ranging coyotes (Canis latrans) living in neighboring packs were observed in the Lamar Valley of Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, from Jan. to May 1997. Through direct observation, we recorded the location of coyote scent marks and information regarding the identity of the marking animal. Patterns of scent-marking were then analyzed spatially and demographically. All of the evidence from the present study supports a strong relationship between scent-marking and territoriality in these coyotes, and all predictions were met. A preponderance of scent marks was found in the periphery of territories. Most of those marks were raised-leg urinations (RLUs) and forward-lean urinations …

Locus Of Control: Effects On The Reported Gains Made In Assertion Training, Eugene Earl Campbell

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Forty-nine Cache Valley residents, between the ages of 18 and 45, who volunteered to participate in an assertion training class were assigned to one of seven groups. Subjects were administered pre- and posttests and a two month follow-up evaluation. Measures included Rotter's Internal-External Locus of Control Scale, the Rathus Assertive Scale, and the Berger Self-Acceptance Scale. The results obtained indicate that self-acceptance and assertiveness changed as a result of assertion training and that these changes were maintained at follow-up. No difference between internals and externals was observed as a result of semi-structured assertion training.

The Effectiveness Of Electronic Games (Atari) Reinforcers For Increasing Appropriate Behavior In Handicapped Children, James M. Payant

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Ten subjects ranging from 9 to 16 years in age with IQ's ranging from 23 to 62 were randomly selected as contingent or noncontingent subjects for two experiments. Five subjects received contingent access to two electronic games for performance within a specified learning session, while five subjects received noncontingent access to the games. These experiments were designed to determine the effect on performance, attending, and compliance skills in the classroom, when contingent access to the electronic games was based on performance. The development of fine motor skills and/or eye-hand coordination skills as a result of game usage was examined. The …

Cause And Perceived Seriousness Of Deviant Behavior And Attribution Of Responsibility, Mary Kathryn Morris

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between differing stated causes of deviant behavior which is commonly labelled mental illness, and the perceived seriousness of these behaviors in determining judgments of the degree of responsibility attributed to described deviant individuals. This was accomplished by having subjects rate four different vignettes as to degree of perceived seriousness and degree of responsibility for behavior.

The subjects were 76 undergraduate students enrolled in either introductory psychology and/or introductory anthropology. The subjects were divided into four groups. Each group of 19 subjects received the same four vignettes. Each vignette gave a …

A Peer-Managed Self-Control Program For Reduction Of Alcohol Consumption In High School Students, Richard Allan Carpenter

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Three treatments designed to reduce the consumption of alcohol by native American high school students were assessed and compared. Self-referred and staff-referred clients were randomly assigned to three treatment groups: (1) alcohol education and a peer-assisted self-control procedure, (2) a peer-assisted self-control procedure, and (3) a self-monitoring only procedure. All three treatments were conducted by trained peer counselors for 14 weeks. The alcohol education and peer-assisted self-control and the peer-assisted self-control demonstrated reductions in peak blood alcohol concentration, frequency of drinking incidents, and alcohol consumption. The self-monitoring only group demonstrated changes only in frequency of drinking incidents. No significant differences …

The Effects Of Psychodiagnostic Information And Therapist Accountability On Psychotherapeutic Outcome, Alan Leonard Zohner

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of psychodiagnostic information provided by the Symptom Checklist-90-Revised (SCL-90-R) and the Hopkins Psychiatric Rating Scale (HPRS), and therapist accountability on the psychotherapeutic outcome measures of goal attainment scaling (GAS), number of client-therapist sessions, length of treatment, therapist ratings of client improvement, and type and frequency of client termination. The subjects of this study were 72 persons who sought services at Bear River Community Mental Health Center, Logan, Utah, and who, subsequently, were assigned to one of eight participating therapists at this center. These clients were divided into three treatment groups …

Locus Of Control, Sex, Personal Adjustment And Vascular Stress Response, Kevin Timothy Larkin

Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

Diagnostic Considerations In The Identification Of The Hyperactive Child, Barbara Jagoda Draheim

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

The hyperactive disorder of childhood and the enumeration of its features were described in two papers published in the mid-1950's, by Laufer and his colleagues (Laufer, 1957; Laufer, Denhoff & Solomons, 1956). It was a list that has since become familiar; short attention span, impulsivity, irritability, low frustration tolerance, poor academic achievement, and visual-motor difficulties. Like many who have since searched for definers of the syndrome, Laufer and his colleagues remarked upon the perplexing variability displayed by these children, and they noted that no single symptom could be considered diagnostic. They described the development of "secondary psychological difficulties" due to …

The Effects Of Public Progress Charts Upon Self-Pacing In A Psi Course In Social Studies In A Traditional Middle School, Lynnette Hager-Godat

Dissertations and Theses

The present study investigated the effects of public progress charts on self-pacing in a social studies course taught by the PSI method in a middle school (grades 5-8). It was found that public progress charts significantly enhanced a student's rate of progress, t(45) = 5.06, p < .01. Student satisfaction with the PSI method was measured and it was found that students liked the PSI method.

Metaphorical Interpretations Of The Neurotic Paradox, Mark J. Weaver

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This is a theoretical/philosophical paper which is intended to bring to the reader's attention an emerging literature and discussion which holds potentially productive consequences for the understanding of man. This thesis does not offer completed formulations or empirical groundings. The purpose is to create a basis for dialogue.

This paper will initially specify a current conflict in psychology around the different metaphors used to define the image of man. A theoretical/philosophical basis for viewing the process of generating models of man and his behavior as essentially "metaphorical" is then presented. A specific category of human behavior known as the neurotic …

Biofeedback: A Possible Substitute For Smoking, Earl Eugene Griffith

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Numerous agencies have accumulated evidence since 1964 which implicates habitual cigarette smoking as a causal or facilitating factor in the development of many circulatory and respiratory diseases. This study sought to identify those psychological variables which possibly contribute to the maintenance of cigarette smoking and therefore, had two main purposes. First, this study investigated the individual and simultaneous physiological changes, i.e., Electroencephalography, Electromyography, Heart Rate, Blood Pressure and Skin Temperature that occurred during and immediately after the smoking of one cigarette. Second, the study investigated the hypothesis that smoking frequency would decrease when individuals were trained via biofeedback procedures to …

Inter- And Intra-Sensory Modality Stimulus Scaling: A Method For The Determination Of The Relative Salience Of Stimuli In Poison-Based Aversion Learning By Pigeons, David L. Pounds

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

One of the most rapidly expanding areas of research in psychology has been poison-based aversion learning (PBAL). The PBAL paradigm typically involves: exposing an animal to a novel substance; inducing illness following ingestion of that substance; and then providing access to the substance at a later time. The initial reaction to the novel substance is generally to reduce consumption, a finding labeled neophobia. The reduction of substance intake on test day is called learned aversion.

Following demonstrations of cue-to-consequence specificity (i.e., the differential associability of some stimuli with certain consequences) in PBAL research with rats, recent research has focused on …

The Effect Of Item Format On Computation Subtest Scores Of Standardized Mathematics Achievement Tests, Larry Carcelli

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The effect on childrens' scores of different item formats used in standardized mathematics achievement tests was investigated. Second grade students were given a mathematics computation test using formats derived from five standardized achievement tests. Identical content was tested with each format. Differences in test scores between types of formats were statistically significant at p < .001 (F = 45.25). These results indicate that what a student appears to know is substantially influenced by the format of the particular test used in measuring achievement. These differences are not accounted for by the normative scaling of the different tests. Greater attention should be given to the effect of test item format in selecting and administering achievement tests.

Autoshaping Infant Vocalizations, Alexander Mcnaughton Myers

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

A series of five experiments was conducted to determine whether operant or respondent factors controlled the emission of a particular vocalization ("Q") by human infants 16 to 18 months old. Experiment 1 consisted of a pilot investigation of the effects of an autoshaping procedure on three infants' vocal behavior. All three subjects demonstrated increased emission of the target sound during the CR period. Experiments 2 through 4 attempted to replicate the findings of Experiment 1 under controlled conditions, and failed to do so. Experiment 5a presented infant subjects with a discrete-trial operant procedure (having the identical temporal parameters as the …

Marital Roles And Their Relationship To Marital Happiness And Self Concept, Gary L. Devries

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Marital roles have become a subject of major concern in recent years. Many critiques consider traditional marriage roles to be responsible for hindering appropriate social-emotional development of the wife, in particular, and also the husband. Past research in assessing the relationship between marital roles and the happiness and well-being of husbands and wives is limited in quantity and generally is inconclusive or controversial. This study was designed to clarify the relationship between marriage roles and two dependent variables, marital happiness and self concept.

The sample population consisted of 124 volunteer couples selected from the teaching staffs of eight school districts …

Retention And Attrition Factors Of Nonreturning Students At Utah State University, Amy L. Jordan

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this study was to determine the factors which affected the decision of students not to return to Utah State University after completion of the previous quarter. The factors were determined by a mailed questionnaire which was a modification of the Withdrawing/Nonreturning Student Survey developed by American College Testing (ACT).

One hundred twenty-two former Utah State University students who had attended fall quarter, 1979 but failed to register for winter quarter were randomly chosen for the study. The students were asked to complete the questionnaire and return it to Utah State University. The return rate through the mail …

A Humanistic/Existential Approach To A Universal Symbol, Linda Sweeney

Theses

This paper explores the therapeutic potential of the universal heart symbol in the context of humanistic–existential art therapy. The author situates the work within a tradition that emphasizes creativity, spirituality, and the search for meaning, presenting the heart as a transcultural and archetypal image capable of guiding clients toward self-discovery. Unlike symptom-focused or diagnostic approaches, this perspective underscores the transformative role of symbols and imagery in facilitating psychological growth and healing.

The heart, as both biological organ and cultural metaphor, is shown to occupy a central place in human imagination and artistic expression. Across history and across cultures, it has …

Social Validation: An Investigation Of Factors That Influence Social Validity Ratings, Dianne J. Smart

Student Work

The expansion in social validation literature has initiated a growing concern surrounding several methodology issues. In particular the need has arisen for social validation research to incorporate reliable and valid measurement scales and to explore the effects of extraneous variables on judges’ ratings. The current study socially validated the effects of a consultant training program and investigated the effects of four variables on judges’ ratings: judges' position, judges' program affiliation, viewed consultant-trainee's level of training and an individual consultanttrainee factor. Teaching-Parent and consultant judges from three different training sites viewed videotapes of consultant-trainees before and after training. The judges rated …

Biological Sex Differences In The Brain, Catherine Pearce

Whittier Scholars Program

This project is a research paper that documents anatomical brain differences between males and females as well as analyzes historical scientific hypotheses and findings concerning the human brain. “The goal of this project was to originally to study and document the structural and functional differences between male and female brains, and any philosophical implications, it has expanded into more of an overview of the general topic of biological sex differences. The more I researched, the more I realized that there are many factors related to this topic that are too important to be ignored, even though their involvement in actual …