Digital Commons Network^™

Training Institute For The Adult Attachment Interview, Greg Moran

Data and Test Instruments

No abstract provided.

Information Literacy And Research-Intensive Graduate Students: Enhancing The Role Of Research Librarians, Marni R. Harrington

Western Libraries Publications

This article investigates how psychology graduate students find information for coursework and research, who teaches them how to find it, and whether differences emerge over the course of their graduate careers. Findings indicate that these graduate students are comfortable using campus libraries, prefer electronic resources, ask supervisors when they need assistance locating information, and have some interest in furthering their information literacy knowledge. Finally, the master’s students use different information management skills than do the PhD students, as evidenced by the use of bibliographic management software. Suggestions for furthering the role of research librarians focus on being more proactive, rather …

A Dissociation Between Perception And Action In The Material‐Weight Illusion, Gavin Buckingham, Jonathan S. Cant, Kai-Ling C. Kao, Melvyn A. Goodale

Psychology Presentations

We examined what forces are applied to objects that elicit this illusion when they are lifted.We predicted that:

(1) Forces on early trials will scale to each participant’s expectations of how much a particular block will weigh ‐ excessive force will be applied to the metal block and insufficient force applied to the polystyrene block.

(2) Forces on later trials will scale to the real weight of each block ‐ identical levels of force applied to all the blocks.

(3) MWI will persist throughout ‐ polystyrene block will feel the heaviest, metal block will feel the lightest.

Grasping And Lifting Different Materials, Gavin Buckingham, Jonathan S. Cant, Melvyn A. Goodale

Psychology Presentations

The material from which an object is made can determine how heavy it feels (Seashore, 1899). Interestingly, a metal block that has been adjusted to have the same size and mass as a polystyrene block will feel lighter than the polystyrene block. We recently showed that participants experiencing this material-weight illusion’ (MWI) do not apply forces that match their perceptual experience of heaviness ‐ just like in the size‐weight illusion ( Flanagan & Beltzner, 2000).

Our previous study showed that forces on early trials were scaled to each participant’s expectations of how much a particular block should weigh ‐ excessive …

Ruminative Thought Style And Depressed Mood., Jay K Brinker, David J A Dozois

Psychology Publications

Recent research has suggested that the measure most commonly used to assess rumination, the Response Style Questionnaire (RSQ; L. D. Butler & S. Nolen-Hoeksema, 1994), may be heavily biased by depressive symptoms, thereby restricting the scope of research exploring this construct. This article offers a broader conceptualization of rumination, which includes positive, negative, and neutral thoughts as well as past and future-oriented thoughts. The first two studies describe the development and evaluation of the Ruminative Thought Style Questionnaire (RTS), a psychometrically sound measure of the general tendency to ruminate. Further, the scale is comprised of a single factor and shows …

2009-2 Lucas, Keynes, And The Crisis, David Laidler

Department of Economics Research Reports

No abstract provided.

An Extended Model Of Expatriate Effectiveness: The Role Of Social Networks, Lily Jiao Li

Digitized Theses

Previous research on expatriate management has mainly focused on expatriate adjustment to a new environment. However, expatriate effectiveness, a pertinent issue for both organizations and individuals, has not been examined in depth. In addition, few studies have focused on the role of social networks in expatriate management. This dissertation addresses two issues arising from related gaps in the existing literature on expatriate management: the components of expatriate effectiveness, and the impact of expatriate social networks. An empirical study was also conducted to test the influence of social networks, which provide cultural information and social support, on expatriate effectiveness.

In order …

Are W Itty People Healthier? The Relationships Between Facets Of Humour And Health, Kim R. Edwards

Digitized Theses

For decades, physicians, theorists, and members of the media have popularized the old

adage that “laughter is the best medicine.” Despite arguments for the beneficial effects of humour, the evidence relating humour and health is weak and inconsistent. Two understudied areas o f research pertain to humour conceptualized as a creation ability (i.e., wittiness) and emotional temperament. Therefore, the purpose of this thesis was to investigate relationships between these humour dimensions (in addition to humour styles) and a series of mental health variables, illness symptoms, and health-related lifestyle behaviours. Two humour production activities and a variety of self-report questionnaires were …

A Gender-Informed Understanding Of Children In The Care Of Child Protection, Natalie George

Digitized Theses

The purpose of the present study was to explore the differential representation of children

by gender in child protection services. The sample of children was drawn from a large child protection agency in south-western Ontario consisting of 1,041 cases. Child protection files were reviewed to derive study data. Results indicated that there were significant differences by gender regarding the type o f maltreatment children experienced. Girls were more likely to be sexually abused, while boys were more likely to be neglected. Girls more often had psychological concerns, while boys exhibited more cognitive impairment. Further, boys were involved with more other …

Biting Language And Fighting Friends: Sarcasm In Conversation, Andrea E. Bowes

Digitized Theses

This thesis examines sarcasm in written dialogues between friends. Previous studies have

shown that the use of irony “mutes” a negative message, compared to a direct, literal counterpart (Dews & Winner, 1995). It is plausible, however, that with blatant aggressive sarcasm the negative communication would override any possible muting. We used a realistic conversational format that differs from traditional context building vignettes with sarcastic punch-lines. Male and female participants read the same dialogues between male-male and female-female friends and provided ratings of their impressions. Additionally, the participants were asked to produce continuations of the conversation. We find that muting effects …

Cognitive Representations Of Depression: Self-Other Differences And Effects Of Symptom Severity, Melissa Mohan

Digitized Theses

Using Leventhal’s Self-Regulation Model, this thesis investigated the impact of target person (self, other), and symptom severity (mild, moderate) on cognitive representations of depression. Participants rated several different vignettes that systematically varied the target person and symptom severity. As expected, moderate symptoms were viewed as more serious and debilitating, particularly after progressing from mild symptoms. A predicted self-positivity bias was also obtained, with many of the cognitive representations associated with depression being less extreme for the self, when compared to an other. In particular, participants ascribed a shorter timeline, more situational than dispositional causes, more self-help than professional help, less …

Cultural Differences In Prosocial And Self-Expressive Behaviour With Friends And Unfamiliar Peers, Rachel Lechcier-Kimel

Digitized Theses

The purpose of the present study was to examine, in Chinese and Canadian

children, how the context (friend, non-friends vs. mixed playmates) interacts with culture to shape the exhibition of prosocial and self-expressive behaviour in children’s peer interactions. Specifically, the three main objectives of this study were to examine (1) whether there were cultural differences in the levels of prosocial and self-expressive behaviour during free play peer interactions, (2) whether the context of peers affected the specific behaviours displayed and (3) whether gender differences existed in prosocial and self-expressive behaviour demonstrated to friends, non-friends and mixed playmates in Chinese and …

Psychopathic Traits And The Severity And Frequency Of Instrumental And Reactive Violent Offending, Jennifer L. Tapscott

Digitized Theses

The objective of this study was to test the validity of distinguishing between reactive and instrumental violence by determining whether these types of violence are related to different psychopathic traits. The files of 65 Canadian federal offenders were reviewed to determine frequency and severity of reactive and instrumental violent offending and frequency of nonviolent offending. Offenders self-reported their psychopathic traits using the Psychopathic Personality Inventory-Revised (Lilienfeld & Widows, 2005). As hypothesized, reactive offenses were more severe than instrumental offenses. Negative binomial regression indicated that rate of instrumental violent offending was negatively related to rates of both reactive violent offending and …

Dejä Vu And Recognition Memory In Temporal Lobe Epilepsy, Christopher B. Martin

Digitized Theses

Déjà vu is a uniquely curious experience with which many of us are familiar. The experience can be so transient and unpredictable that it typically subsides, just as quickly as it appeared, before one can engage in any meaningful introspective evaluation. At the core of the experience is an impression of familiarity that co-exists with the feeling that it is inappropriate. Currently, there is no consensus among researchers about which theory can best account for the cognitive and neural mechanisms that underlie the experience. The goal of the current study was to examine déjà vu in temporal-lobe epilepsy (TLE) within …

The Role Of Executive Dysfunction In Predicting Frequency And Severity Of Violence, Megan B. Hancock

Digitized Theses

The adverse consequences of violence on society are tremendous. The proportion of offenders incarcerated for violent offences is large, and the cost of keeping these offenders incarcerated is startling. Understanding and treating the causal underpinnings of violent crime is of the utmost importance for individuals and society as a whole. Several factors have been identified as potential contributors to violent crime, including cognitive deficits in executive functioning (Hoaken, Allaby, & Earle, 2007). To investigate this further, 77 offenders from Fenbrook Institution, a federal facility, were tested on a battery of executive functioning measures. Offenders were found to have broad and …

The Role Of Humor And Depression In Responses To Social Comments, Maria Sol Ibarra Rovillard

Digitized Theses

This study investigated how individuals respond to four different styles of social comments that were presented either with or without humor, or humorously by a depressed acquaintance. Using a brief scenario format, 264 participants completed questionnaires measuring their responses to these comments, as well as their own levels of depression, social interaction anxiety, and self-esteem. Results showed humor led to a higher willingness to interact in the future, and had other facilitative positive effects that were specific to each style of comments. Identifying the presenter as depressed hindered some of these facilitative effects of humor, had detrimental effects for self-defeating …

Executive Cognitive Functioning As A Risk Factor In Recidivism A Longitudinal Study Of Federally Incarcerated Offenders, Megan Janae Lau

Digitized Theses

The cost of crime should not be underestimated; considerable resources have been

directed towards implementing various remediation programs in hopes of reducing recidivism. While support for the efficacy of these programs exists, it remains that they are not effective for all individuals. To explain this variability, one factor that has begun to gather research interest is executive cognitive functioning (ECF). This study investigated the relationship between ECF and recidivism, as well as institutional misconduct, in a sample of 81 male offenders. No significant differences in ECF were found between institution conformists and non-conformists, or recidivists and non­ recidivists; however, early …

Examining The Relationship Between Time-Related Diversity Variables And Team Conflict, Erin C. Marcotte

Digitized Theses

This research sought to extend the team diversity literature to examine the relationships

between three time-related individual difference variables and team conflict. This study answers the call for team research that incorporates time and outcome variables other than performance or deadline adherence. The present longitudinal study of engineering project teams (N=72), explored how diversity in regards to polychronicity, time urgency and pacing styles affect task and relationship conflict in teams over time. Based on results, polychronicity diversity was positively related to task conflict at Time 1 and relationship conflict at Time 3, while time urgency diversity was negatively related to …

Exploring The Roots Of Attachment Within The Family: Evidence Of The Role Of Non-Shared Social Experience, Kathleen A. O'Connor

Digitized Theses

This study examined patterns of attachment shared between 50 mothers and their 2

children when each was 12 months old, and explored the extent to which maternal sensitivity, interactive behaviour, and sibling gender might account for concordance in sibling attachment relationships. Concordance was highest (62%) when based on 2-way secondary attachment classifications, and decreased when Disorganization was considered. Global sensitivity scores could not distinguish between the quality of maternal interaction with concordant-secure and non-concordant infants. Examining the content of maternal interaction suggested that, contrary to theoretical prediction, mothers of non-concordant infants interacted similarly with each, while mothers of concordant infants …

From Maternal Sensitivity To Maternal Interactive Behaviour: Exploring The Development Of Attachment In Infants Of Adult And Adolescent Mothers, Tara E. Morley

Digitized Theses

This study explored the maternal contribution to attachment relationships for both adult

and adolescent mothers. Past research has focused on the relationship between maternal sensitivity - responding appropriately and promptly to infant signals - and attachment security. However, recent research has identified the need for a multi-dimensional assessment o f the maternal contribution to attachment relationships (Raval et al., 2001). Domains of conceptually related aspects of maternal interactive behaviour were created as part o f this study. This multi-dimensional description was then applied to describe the behaviour of 49 adult and 49 adolescent mothers during interactions with their infants. Results …

Job Promotions, Rater Gender, And The Attractiveness Bias, Leah Sheppard

Digitized Theses

Past research has indicated that women discriminate against attractive female

applicants during selection procedures. The current study tested two hypotheses postulating: 1) that this discrimination occurs during promotion procedures; and 2) that this occurs due to perceived competition. Male and female undergraduate students were asked to rate the suitability of an attractive or unattractive female target for a promotion, either in the context of their own workplaces or outside of their own workplaces. They also rated how likeable they perceived the target to be. Generally, the results indicated that attractive targets received higher ratings of likeability, but this did not …

Influence Of Testosterone And Androgen Receptor Polymorphism On Visual-Spatial Cognition In Adult Men, Janani Sankar

Digitized Theses

The nature of the relationship, if any, between visual-spatial cognition and androgens in humans remains controversial. Possible associations between spatial ability, testosterone (T), and the length of the CAG polymorphism in the androgen receptor gene were investigated in 106 healthy undergraduate males. Using multiple linear regression, T concentrations and CAG repeat length significantly contributed to the prediction of performance on the Paper Folding Test. Some differences between left- and right-handed participants were observed. A secondary objective was to study the association between salivary T, CAG repeat length, and depressive affect across the entire mood spectrum in the same sample of …

The Effects Of Early Nutritional Stress On Physiology, Cogniton And Song Production In European Starlings (Sturnus Vulgaris), Tara M. Farrell

Digitized Theses

Song is a phenotypic expression of male quality. According to the developmental stress hypothesis, birds subjected to stressful environments while their song system is developing should advertise this with a more simple song. The first aim of this study was to investigate whether song learning was reflective of learning abilities in general. The second aim was to determine what underlying physiological systems could be affected by stress early in development that may be responsible for altered song learning. A nutritional stressor was enforced in developing European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) and song learning was measure in addition to learning in general. …

Speculations About The Direct Effects Of Intention On Physical Manifestation, Imants Barušs

Psychology

A possible mechanism by which mental acts may be synchronized with physical states is postulated. It is argued that a layer of deep consciousness, similar to David Bohm’s implicate order, underlies and gives rise to both subjective, intentional consciousness and objective, physical manifestation. The influence of volition at the level of intentional consciousness can be conceptualized in the context of the Kochen-Specker theorem as the exercise of the unconstrained choice of observables, and, at the level of deep consciousness, as modulation of the activity of the creation and annihilation operators of a quantum field. The discrete nature of observations …

Characteristics Of Spontaneous Musical Imagery, Mike Wammes, Imants Barušs

Psychology

This study follows upon Steven Brown’s 2006 article in The Journal of Consciousness Studies about the “perpetual music track,” a form of constant musical imagery. With Brown’s assistance, a Musical Imagery Questionnaire was developed and administered to 67 participants with the intention of establishing relevant scales for quantifying the presence and extent of spontaneous musical imagery in individuals. In addition to the Musical Imagery Questionnaire, the Six Factor Personality Questionnaire, as well as the Transliminality Scale, which is a measure of openness to psychological material, was used in order to explore the correlations of spontaneous musical imagery to personality constructs. …

Risk Assessment For Suicide Behaviour : Clinical Challenges, Amresh Srivastava, Charles Nelson

Data and Test Instruments

This is an audio-visual about risk assessment of suicide behavior. Part 1. Reformulating the concept of RISK and a New instrument for assessment: Risk assessment is an important clinical responsibility, which can be ‘life-saving’. Literature on risk factors has become voluminous; however a traditional risk assessment does not take into account the most relevant factors. This reflects the prevailing conceptualization of risk, which has not been fully and completely tied to clinical outcomes. Psychopathology is currently understood in biopsychosocial terms. A more progressive conceptualization of risk should consider the interplay of both, risk and protective factors. The present work proposes …

Terrible Beauty: Globalization, Consciousness, And Ethics, Paul Nesbitt-Larking

Data and Test Instruments

No abstract provided.

Security, Subjectivity And Space In Postcolonial Europe: Muslims In The Diaspora, Catarina Kinnvall, Paul Nesbitt-Larking

Data and Test Instruments

In this article, we call into question the assumptions that undergird conceptions of boundary, territory, community and ethno-cultural belonging in the constitution of European security. Both the term ‘human security’ as defined by development and human rights scholars and ‘securitisation’ as conceptualised by critical security studies concern the socio-psychological aspects of security. Yet, few attempts have been made to seriously discuss the psychological effects of securitisation on subjectivity and space. There is, as we will argue, a tendency in much literature to use concepts of ‘existential security’, ‘fear’, ‘needs’ and the ‘politics of belonging’ – obviously connected to the human …

Shared Features Dominate Semantic Richness Effects For Concrete Concepts, Ray Grondin, Stephen J. Lupker, Ken Mcrae

Psychology Publications

When asked to list semantic features for concrete concepts, participants list many features for some concepts and few for others. Concepts with many semantic features are processed faster in lexical and semantic decision tasks [Pexman, P. M., Lupker, S. J., & Hino, Y. (2002). The impact of feedback semantics in visual word recognition: Number-of-features effects in lexical decision and naming tasks. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review,9, 542–549; Pexman, P. M., Holyk, G. G., & MonFils, M.-H. (2003). Number-of-features effects and semantic processing. Memory & Cognition,31,842–855]. Using both lexical and concreteness decision tasks, we provided further insight into these number-of-features …

First Episode Is The Best Episode: Lessons And Limitations In Duration Of Untreated Psychosis (Dup) And Outcome In Schizophrenia, Amresh Srivastava, Larry Stitt, Meghana Thakar, Gurusamy Chinnasamy, Nilesh Shah

Psychiatry Presentations

Background: Early intervention in psychosis is an opportunity. Research ahs shown that if any thing community members can do to prevent psychosis is to report early. This has opened newer vistas for understanding the complexity of brain and behaviour in schizophrenia. At the same time it has raised the bar of expectations regarding its correlation to outcome. It finally narrows down to meaningful public campaign for awareness, which will decide success of research to clinics in schizophrenia management. Duration of untreated psychosis (DUP) has emerged as a reliable predictor of outcome and provides credence to development of early intervention services. …