Digital Commons Network^™

The Relationship Between Social Support And Professional Burnout Among Public Secondary School Teachers In Northeast Tennessee, Jackie C. Walker

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Teaching is reported to be a stressful occupation and social support is thought to mediate stress. The purpose of the study was to identify relationships between the level of professional burnout and social support of high school teachers in Northeast Tennessee. In this correlational study, a sample of 228 secondary school teachers in Northeast Tennessee completed the Maslach Burnout Inventory and the Teacher Support Network Inventory (TSNI). Respondents' satisfaction with support and amount of support were ascertained from the TSNI. Data presentation included a demographic description of the sample and a description of teachers' work support, personal support, and recreational …

Acculturation And Response Style On Mexican Americans On The Millon Index Of Personality Styles, Alicia Stephens Guffey

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

This research investigated response style differences between highly acculturated and low acculturated Mexican-Americans on the Negative Impression (NI) and Positive Impression (PI) Scales of the Millon Index of Personality Styles (Millon, 1994). The MIPS is a questionnaire designed to measure personality styles of normally functioning adults. Research has suggested that culturally distinct response styles are common in less acculturated Mexican-Americans. If present, these culturally distinct styles could be misinterpreted and have a negative or harmful impact on the assessment of Mexican-Americans. Analyses of covariance on data from two culturally distinct groups of Mexican-American college students, with age, gender, educational level, …

Computerized Brainstorming And Decision Making, Virginia Louise Collins

Student Work

Abstract Computers are widely used in business and industry toda y and are frequently considered essential to efficient job performance. A great deal of research has been generated over the past decade regarding computer use in the work place. However, research has lagged regarding computer technology and group performance. The purpose of this study is to determine empirically if there are enhancements in the performance of groups and individuals when they use a computer to facilitate the problem solving process. It is hypothesized that the quality of solutions generated to a complex problem will be a function of the interaction …

Trainee Perspectives Of Basic Family Therapy Skills, Nancy Webb

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Much has been written about family therapy training and supervision from the perspective of teachers and supervisors. However, the perspective of family therapy trainees is not well represented in the literature. Research employing student responses is common, but results are offered from the perspective of the trainers of family therapy and the subjective experience of students is frequently left untapped. One area of training and supervision, basic therapy skills, offers no perspectives from family therapy trainees.

This research examined trainee perspectives concerning basic family therapy skills and made comparisons to trainer perspectives regarding the same skills. The findings indicate that …

Factor Structure Of The Anorexia Bulimia Inventory, Anne C. Dobmeyer

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The Anorexia Bulimia Inventory, a recently developed self-report questionnaire for the assessment of eating disorders, addresses two major limitations found in existing self-report eating disorder inventories. First, it comprehensively assesses the diagnostic symptoms of both bulimia and anorexia nervosa; and second, it assesses the frequently cooccurring problem areas (e.g., depression, anergia) that may be targeted in treatment planning for eating disorders. Although initial research on the psychometrics of the instrument appears promising, no research has yet investigated its factor structure. Therefore, the goal of the present study was to investigate the factor structure of the Anorexia Bulimia Inventory.

Principal axis …

Empirical Investigation Of Efficacy In Home-Based Mental Health Care, Ann L. Athorp

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The current study consisted of two experiments to examine the impact of home-based therapy on mental illness in multiproblem families. Review of the literature focused on the interplay between poverty and mental illness in defining multiproblem families and the utilization of home-based therapy with this population and others.

Experiment 1 focused on delineating the type and severity of psychological distress in families characterized as multiproblem. Subjects were 58 participants in the Community-Family Partnership, a Comprehensive Child Development Program located at Utah State University in Logan, Utah. In this sample, serious psychological distress was evident with depression in both women and …

Genetic Discrimination: Legislation Required To Keep Genetic Secrets, Burk Burnett

Seton Hall Journal of Legislation and Public Policy

No abstract provided.

Geochemical, Petrologic, And Structural Characterization At Multiple Scales Of Deformation Associated With The Punchbowl Fault, Southern California, Steven E. Schulz

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Three traverses across the exhumed trace of the Punchbowl fault zone in the Pelona Schist, southern California, were examined at the millimeter to kilometer scales to determine the morphology, deformation mechanisms, and geochemistry of the fault zone in schistose rocks. The Pelona Schist is predominantly a quartz-albite-muscovite-actinolite schist with associated minor metabasalts. The Punchbowl fault zone, which is exhumed 2-4 km, has 44 km of right lateral slip, and is composed of a fault core enveloped by a damaged zone.

The fault core is a region of extreme slip localization that records most fault displacement. Deformation in the fault core …

Cooperative Games: Promoting Prosocial Behaviors In Children, Abbie R. Finlinson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Children who develop more prosocial behaviors tend to be more competent socially than those children who develop fewer prosocial behaviors. Group games are especially effective in the facilitation of prosocial behaviors. This study compared the number of prosocial or positive behaviors and negative behaviors displayed during cooperatively and competitively structured game treatments using the Observational Checklist and the Teacher Checklist. We controlled for possible differences in teacher nuturance through the Caregiver Interaction Scale. Participants included 20 boys and 19 girls (mean age = 4 years 7.3 months) enrolled in one of two classes at Utah State University s …

Predictors Of Employment For Women In A Life Transition, Kathryn Higley

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This research explored the association between positive employment outcome (getting a job above poverty wage) and several intake variables for women in transition. The variables (self-esteem, anxiety and/or depression, pretreatment change, family functioning, community/social support, and counseling and assertiveness classes) were identified from the literature for their probable association with positive employment outcome. The intervention of taking an assertiveness class was statistically associated with positive employment outcome. The other variables appear to be linked to positive employment outcome in the direction hypothesized, although none of them reached statistical significance.

The demographic variables of family size and employment status at intake …

An Implementation Study Of Nonsecure Residential Juvenile Sex Offender Programs In Utah, Katrina Holgate Miller

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

An inventory, the Juvenile Sex Offender Program Provider Implementation Tool (JSSOPIT), was constructed from guidelines stipulated by the Network on Juveniles Offending Sexually (NOJOS), Medicaid, and the Utah Department of Human Services. Seven nonsecure residential programs for juvenile sex offenders in Utah were evaluated with the JSSOPPIT for implementation in six areas: (a) target population, (b) intake criteria and procedures, (c) treatment constellation, (d) supervision, (e) aftercare, and (f) staff qualifications and training. Favorable implementation was found in several areas, including an appropriate risk level in the target population; youths' understanding of treatment goals, treatment regimen, and physical environment; and …

Parenting Styles And Family Communication As Correlates Of Juvenile Delinquency, Montone White

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The goal of this study was to examine parenting styles and family communication as correlates of juvenile delinquency. A review of the literature was completed in the areas of parenting styles, family communication, and juvenile delinquency. The literature that was reviewed for this study was examined mainly from juvenile perceptions. This study was approached from a general systems theory perspective.

A sample of juveniles (N = 78) from Weber County, Utah, involved in the juvenile justice system completed a survey assessing their perception of parenting styles and family communication. The survey was a 25-item questionnaire measuring kindness, unkindness, communication, …

Frequency And Perception Of Mathematics Activities In Family Child Care And Parent-Child Routines, Annette Kari Eddy

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The study examined the frequency of preschool mathematics activities at home and in the family child care setting. Provider perception and parent perception of the activities were also surveyed. Twenty-one family child care providers, 38 parents, and 42 preschool children participated in the study. Providers and parents participated in a telephone interview in which they completed either the Day Care Activities Checklist (DAC) or the Parent/Child Activities Checklist (PCAC). Research assistants administered the TEMA-2, a mathematical assessment suitable for preschool children, to the children in the study.

Family child care providers in this study reported engaging in mathematics activities statistically …

Demographic Influences On Attitudes Toward Adolescent Sexuality In A Rural Wyoming County, Michael J. Dalton

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

A countywide survey in Uinta County, Wyoming, was conducted from December 1992 through March 1993. A stratified random sampling method was used in which 647 surveys were distributed with an overall response rate of 59.5%. This study employed analysis of variance (ANOVA) to address four research questions contending that the independent variables o f education, socioeconomic status, employment, and family stat us would differentially account for variation in the dependent variables, which were responses to survey items indicating the "appropriate age" to teach children about human reproduction, consequences of sexual activity, birth control methods, HIV/AIDS prevention, and sexually transmitted diseases. …

Mean Length Of Utterance In Relation To Gender And Preschool Activity Area, Angela Sisson Thompson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Factors influencing language development and use are many. Teacher influences such as teacher:child ratio and teaching experience can affect the types of language children produce. Classroom influences including activities, size of the room, and length of the day also play a role in the development of language. All of these areas need to be considered in order to provide the best possible language environment for the preschool child.

In this study, the researchers examined the mean length of utterance (MLU) values of preschool children while participating at three areas in a preschool classroom: art, dramatic play, and snack. Gender differences …

Maternal Beliefs And Management Strategies Of Peer Interactions As Correlates Of Social Competence In Korean Children, Sunhee Ahn

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study investigated the links between the family and peer systems by examining whether mothers' beliefs about social skills and management practices of peer interactions were related to their children's social relations with peers. The sample was comprised of 185 mothers of preschool children, ranging in age from 44 to 81 months, who resided in Seoul, Korea. Children of the participating mothers were enrolled in center-based preschool programs. Mothers were asked to complete the Maternal Beliefs Scale, the Mothers' Management Strategies Scale, and demographic measures. Using the Child Behavior Scale, teachers rated the social competence of each child whose mother …

Attachment, Identity Development, And Sexual Behavior Among College Students, Diana D. Coyl

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The prevalence of nonmarital sexual behavior among adolescents continues to rise, as does the number of sexually transmitted diseases, AIDS, and unwanted pregnancies. College-age adolescents appear to be even more susceptible to these problems. Sound theoretical knowledge would seem useful in designing more effective prevention programs. The purpose of this study was to identity theoretical factors that contribute to or decrease such behaviors.

Two hundred fifty-two single college students completed measures designed to examine relations among identity development, attachment patterns, gender, and sexual behavior in older adolescents. Attachment and identity measures were used to explore variations in sexual behavior relating …

An Investigation Of Criterion-Related Validity And Clinical Sensitivity Of The Internalizing Symptoms Scale For Children, Lisa Ann Mcclun

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The need for a self-report instrument that assesses internalizing problems in children ages 8 through 12 is evidenced in the lack of such an instrument, and in the prevalence of internalizing problems in children. A new self-report instrument, the Internalizing Symptoms Scale for Children (ISSC), has been proposed and developed to fit this need. The present study evaluated the criterion-related validity, clinical cutoff points, and discriminating power of the ISSC. Two groups of child subjects, clinic-referred and general-school-population, were recruited and administered the ISSC, and a parent of each subject completed the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). Each case within the …

Effect Of Ph, Fat Level, And Various Browning Agents On Composition, Color, Texture, And Sensory Characteristics Of Dark-Cutting Beef Patties, Igor V. Moiseev

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Extra lean (3.3% fat) and lean (20.0% fat) hamburgers in three pH groups (≤ 6.0; 6.01-6.49; 6.50-6.92) were evaluated for cooking-temperature profile, total process lethality, and physical properties after cooking to 71°C by double-side frying on an electric grill. Neither cooking-temperature profile nor cooking time was affected by hamburger fat content or pH. Double-side frying to 71.1°C internal temperature was adequate for more than 6-log destruction of viable E. coli O157:H7 and Salmonella at the geometrical center of extra lean and lean hamburgers. The coldest spot was on the circumferential surface, as indicated by the presence of a red ring …

An Interpersonal And Cognitive-Behavioral Approach To Childhood Depression: A School-Based Primary Prevention Study, Tracy Black Cecchini

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Depression represents a serious mental health problem that affects the lives of many children. Depression is frequently cited as the most recurrent emotional problem facing younger populations. Left untreated, depression can have several negative ramifications on later adjustment, including suicide, substance use, academic and social difficulties, low self-esteem, and an increased risk for other mental health problems.

The search for effective treatments for depression has extended into several arenas. Schools play an important role in the lives of children and provide an ideal setting for early detection and remediation of depression at every stage. Schools are increasingly being encouraged to …

An Investigation Of Social Skills And Antisocial Behaviors Of At-Risk Youth: Construct Validation Of The Home And Community Social Behavior Scales, Paul Caldarella

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The major purpose of this dissertation was to investigate the construct validity of a new parent rating scale, the Home and Community Social Behavior Scales (HCSBS), that was used to measure the social skills and antisocial behaviors of at-risk youth in Northern Utah. The results indicate that the HCSBS possesses strong internal consistency with high alphas. Convergent validity with both teacher ratings and student self-ratings of social competence and antisocial behavior appeared slight. Discriminant validity was indicated by the near zero correlations between the HCSBS and the KTEA. The instrument appeared able to detect group differences as indicated by the …

The Efficacy Of Guided Imagery For Recovery From Anterior Cruciate Ligament (Acl) Replacement, Deborah D. Durso-Cupal

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

As an exploratory, developmental injury intervention study, this research investigated the efficacy of providing psychological intervention in the form of relaxation and guided imagery to a group of orthopedic patients recovering from major knee surgery. Utilizing a prospective, experimental research design with 30 subjects randomly assigned to either an intervention, placebo, or control group, this study employed physiological as well as psychological outcome measures. Intervention consisted of 10 individual mental practice sessions for intervention group members as an adjunct to physical therapy. Content of these sessions was intentionally designed to facilitate physiotherapy goals. Imagery protocols with which to deliver these …

Acculturation, Family Variables, And Cognition Of A Subgroup Of American Indian Children Ages 3-9, Michael Alan Cummings

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

A study was conducted to examine the relationship between specific family variables and measures of cognitive abilities for preschool and young school-aged children of an American Indian ancestry. More specifically, the study used two cognitive measures, the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children and the Embedded Figures Test, and examined the influence that 23 family variables and cultural background (acculturation) had on measures of spatial abilities.

Past studies suggested that American Indian children, as a group, perform above the standardization sample on measures of visual-spatial skills, have higher simultaneous processing skills, and are more field independent. It was anticipated that at …

The Interactive And Combined Effects Of Domain-Specific Knowledge And Strategic Knowledge On Reading Comprehension, Eric J. Gee

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The literature in reading comprehension has demonstrated that both domain-specific knowledge and strategic knowledge are vital to good comprehension. However, few studies have actually compared the effects of the two types of knowledge on reading comprehension. Fewer studies have examined the effects of combining the two strategies even though cognitive theories indicate that true comprehension occurs when certain procedures act upon knowledge constructed from the text being read and "link" that knowledge with knowledge in the long-term memory.

This study compared subjects receiving strategic knowledge and content knowledge to subjects receiving strategic knowledge only, subjects receiving content-knowledge only, and a …

An Investigation Of The Parenting Stress Index In The Context Of Generalizability Theory, Jim D. Sharpnack

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This present study examined the application of generalizability theory (GT) to the Parenting Stress Index (PSI) long and short forms for families having children with disabilities. The purpose of the study was to evaluate the dependability of parenting stress data scores gathered from families having children with disabilities. The data for the present study came from an extant data set collected by the Early Intervention Research Institute (EIRI; Contract #800-85-0173) at Utah State University. The EIRI studies represented attempts to assess the benefits and cost of conducting early intervention programs. The EIRI data were recoded at the item level for …

Parental Compliance Of Psychological Recommendations Following An Outpatient Child Assessment, Shannon J. Pratt

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

There is a dearth of studies investigating methods by which parental compliance may be enhanced. The primary purpose of this study was to investigate the relative efficacy of four conditions--high information, prompting, incentive, and comparison control--in increasing parental compliance. The self-help recommendation was to obtain a book or video from a local library. Parents were from a small, rural, northern Utah community; their children were diagnosed with externalizing behavior problems. Chi-square analyses were utilized to assess statistically significant differences, and effect sizes were computed to assess magnitude of association. The incentive intervention influenced parental compliance to a greater degree than …

An Examination Of Cognitive And Behavioral Characteristics Of Kainaiwa Children Diagnosed With Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, Deborah Faith Pace

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The present study examined the scores of 450 Kainaiwa children from Kindergarten to grade 3 on social, behavioral, cognitive and cultural measures. The subjects consisted of children in three different classification groups: Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS), Special Education, and Regular Education. The purpose of the study was to examine group membership to determine whether or not children who were diagnosed as FAS presented unique intellectual, behavioral, social and cultural characteristics from those of their regular and special education peers.

These results support the conclusion of previous research that FAS children differ significantly from their special and regular education peers. No …

An Investigation Of The Temporal Stability Of Self-Reported Internalizing Symptoms In Elementary-Age Children, Kurt David Michael

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Over the past two decades, a great deal of research has been devoted to the understanding of internalizing disorders in children. Internalizing disorders encompass a wide variety of problems, including depression, anxiety, social withdrawal, and somatic complaints. It has been suggested that the existence of internalizing disorders in children has negative effects upon their self-esteem, academic achievement, physical health, and future adjustment. However, because internalizing disorders are, in great measure, subjective perceptions of internal distress, they are often not readily or reliably identified by external observers. As a result, several researchers have stressed the importance of eliciting the child's perspective …

Preliminary Development And Content Validation Of A Rating Scale For Assessing Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder In Children, Melissa Lea Holland

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is currently one of the most frequent problems for which children are referred to mental health clinics in this country, affecting approximately 3-5% of the childhood population. Although adequate assessment and identification of this disorder is imperative, most of the currently existing measures to assess for ADHD in children are inadequate . The present research study involved the development and content validation of a new behavior rating scale prototype for assessing ADHD in the school-age (K-12) population.

This research was conducted in five distinct steps: (a) item development; (b) development of the prototype; (c) content validation …

The Relationship Between Graduate Students' Education In Research Ethics And Their Attitudes Toward Research Misconduct, Perry Sailor

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

A mail survey of a nationwide sample of department heads in university departments of mechanical engineering, physiology, and psychology was conducted, in order to determine what these departments were doing to educate their Ph.D. students in research ethics. Department heads were also asked to supply names of the Ph.D. students in their departments. Based on the survey responses, departments within each discipline were then divided into those placing a relatively high versus low emphasis on teaching research ethics. Random samples of students in each emphasis category for each discipline were then surveyed and asked to rate the seriousness of 44 …