Digital Commons Network^™

Interpretation Of Ambiguous Body-Related Stimuli In The Eating Disorders., Lori Ann Perrin

LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses

Clinical observations suggest that persons with an eating disorder are obsessed about body size and shape. This obsession with body size and shape has been hypothesized to lead to biased processing of body related information. Recent research indicates that individuals who are highly preoccupied with their weight tend to react to body related stimuli with negative emotions and tend to infer a negative meaning when information about their own body shape is presented within an ambiguous context. This study investigated this type of judgment bias in eating disorder and body dysphoric subjects. In addition, this study examined the ability to …

The Relationship Between Daily Stress And Neuropsychological Test Performance., Mark Edward Todd

LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses

Much research has focused on identifying the causes and risk factors associated with Alzheimer's disease (AD). Surprisingly, stress, which has been implicated in the course of a variety of other diseases, has been generally ignored in research on AD despite the fact that several different areas lend indirect support for a relationship between stress and the progression of AD. In this study, the effect of daily stress on the clinical course of AD was examined. Also, given that no study has examined the effects of daily stress on neuropsychological test performance, this relationship was examined as well. Forty-five out-patients with …

Adolescent Dissociation: The Development And Initial Validation Of The Adolescent Dissociation Scale., Colleen Mary Fitzmaurice

LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses

The present study attempted to develop and initially validate a self-report screening measure for adolescent dissociative experiences. The Adolescent Dissociation Scale (ADS) is a 49-item, empirically derived, self-report scale designed as a research, screening measure to examine the degree of dissociative experiences in the general population as compared to clinical subjects. Results obtained suggest the ADS is a reliable, highly internally consistent measure. Initial content, construct and discriminate validity were explored. The ADS was found to discriminate between high and low dissociative adolescents. The ADS also was positively correlated with other measures of dissociation.

A Normative Study Of The Diagnostic Assessment For The Severely Handicapped (Dash) Scale., Martha Lyle Hamilton

LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses

The prevalence of psychopathology in a large institutionalized population (N = 1259) of individuals with severe and profound mental retardation was examined, using the Diagnostic Assessment for the Severely Handicapped (DASH) scale. Over 60% of the sample exhibited at least one form of disorder according to newly established DASH criteria. Forty percent exhibited two or more disorders. Differences between severely and profoundly mentally retarded groups were found, especially in terms of the duration of symptoms. Profoundly mentally retarded persons had significantly more persistent symptoms. Items were examined for frequency and duration, and items of critical importance to diagnosis were identified. …

The Interview For The Diagnosis Of Eating Disorders-Iv: Application To Dsm-Iv Diagnostic Criteria., Vesna Kutlesic

LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses

The standard diagnostic system in the United States, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual III-Revised, has recently been revised (i.e., DSM-IV) to include recent research and clinical advances that have enabled further specification of the existing diagnostic criteria. One set of diagnostic criteria that is representative of this increased specification are the criteria for the eating disorders. The expansion of these criteria in the recent publication of DSM-IV creates a need for the development of a structured interview that would enable differential diagnosis among these diagnostic categories. Thus, the purpose of the current study was to develop and evaluate the psychometric …

Further Evaluation Of The Psychometric Properties Of The Toddler Behavior Screening Inventory., Alyson Powell Mccain

LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses

Many children display problematic behavior during the toddler period (12 to 41 months). Although many behavior problems are transient, some children continue to have difficulties through school age and beyond. Recent literature has identified risk factors correlated with continuity of behavior problems. Early identification and intervention with these children may reduce the likelihood of long-term difficulties. The first step in detecting children with problematic behavior is screening. The Toddler Behavior Screening Inventory (TBSI) is a 40-item instrument designed to be used for the rapid assessment of maternal-perceived toddler behavior problems. The present study further evaluated the psychometric properties of the …

Psychological Well-Being As A Predictor Of Adaptive Behavior In Older Adults., Heather Casper Jahnke

LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses

Six dimensions of psychological well-being were used to predict effective coping across three context domains. Participants rated themselves on dimensions of psychological well-being and the coping behaviors used for problems they reported in a health, financial, and isolation or loss of relationship context. For each participant, a close friend or family member also rated them along the same six dimensions to provide an alternate measure of well-being. The criteria for effective coping was based on the use of emotion-focused coping in situations perceived as uncontrollable and problem-focused coping in situations perceived as controllable. Results indicated that the personal growth dimension …

Aerobic Fitness And Leisure Physical Activity As Moderators Of The Stress-Illness Relation., Cindy Lynn Carmack

LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses

This study examined exercise as a moderator of the stress-illness relation by exploring leisure physical activity and aerobic fitness as "buffers" of the effects stress has on physical and psychological symptoms in a sample of 135 college students. Specifically, the goal was to provide information regarding the mechanisms by which exercise exhibits its "buffering effects" against minor stress. It was questioned as to whether both increased aerobic fitness associated with exercise and actual participation in the activity itself were necessary for the apparent buffering effects exercise has on stress or is one factor more important than the other. Existing data …

A Social Skills Measure For Adults With Mild Or Moderate Mental Retardation: Development Of The Measure Of Observable Social Skills (Moss)., Debra Farrar-Schneider

LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses

The literature on the history, definition, etiology, and assessment of social skills in mentally retarded adults was reviewed and the lack of adequate assessment measures was noted. Given the importance of social skills for mentally retarded individuals, especially in the area of community adjustment (e.g., residential and vocational placements), a behavioral checklist to assess these skills was developed. The Measure of Observable Social Skills (MOSS) was derived from reviewing social skills assessment and treatment literature, questionnaires, rating scales, and checklists. Two forms, each containing 47 different items, were developed and completed by caregivers of 212 mild to mentally retarded adults. …

The Influence Of Subject Sophistication On The Ability To Feign Mild Head Injury Symptoms., Roy Clayton Martin

LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses

The present study examined the effects that personal experience with head injury, task specific instruction and brain injury knowledge have on the ability to feign postconcussion symptoms and neuropsychological performance patterns seen in mild head injured patients. A sample of non-head injured and head injured college students served as the experimental subjects. These subjects were randomly assigned to conditions in which they were told to either do their best, feign deficits consistent with mild head injury without task specific instruction, or feign deficits while given task specific instruction. Subjects were also classified into one of two head injury knowledge groups …

A Validation Study Of The Adolescent Behavior Checklist Using Clinical And Non-Clinical Samples., Christina Duncan Adams

LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the discriminant validity of scores from the Adolescent Behavior Checklist (ABC), an adolescent self-report measure of ADHD symptomatology for adolescents ages 11-17 years (n = 60). Validity was assessed through correlational, univariate, and discriminant function analyses using three groups: (1) adolescents diagnosed with ADHD; (2) adolescents currently experiencing a mood and/or anxiety disorder; and (3) adolescents with no major psychological disorder. Convergent and divergent validity of the ABC factor scores was demonstrated through correlational results with: (1) parent- and adolescent-report of ADHD symptoms during structured psychiatric interviews; and, (2) scores on questionnaires …

Toward A More Functional Analysis Of Aggression, Robert A. Gable, Jo M. Hendrickson, Gary M. Sasso

Communication Disorders & Special Education Faculty Publications

Given the substantial and oftentimes irreversible human loss resulting from aggressive acts, the need for systematic, treatment-linked assessment of aggression in school-aged children and youth cannot be overstated. Based upon recent research, the authors provide a broadly framed model for the functional analysis of aggression in school-age children and youth. Our model incorporates multi-modal data collection and data triangulation to generate credible hypotheses regarding the function(s) of aggression. Three primary data sources—record review and interviews, naturalistic observation, and analogue assessment—form the cornerstone of the model. Key features of our approach to the assessment of aggression include operational definition(s) of target …

The Comparison Of The Test Of Cognitive Skills And The Wechsler Intelligence Scale For Children-Revised For Students With Learning Disabilities, Jennifer Louise Mcgiverin

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study investigated the criterion-related validity of the Test of Cognitive Skills (TCS) as an estimate of cognitive ability for students with learning disabilities. Research indicates that knowledge of scores from group ability tests significantly influences teachers' instruction and treatment of students. In contrast, school psychologists rarely consider group administered test scores and must devote substantial time to administering and interpreting individual intelligence measures. The present study compared the TCS to the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children - Revised (WISC-R) for students with learning disabilities in order to contribute to the valid use of the TCS by both teachers and …

The Relationship Between The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator® And Preferences For Prayer , David Michel Oliver

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Psychological Types And Temperaments: A Correlational Study Using The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator And The Temperament Inventory, Ronda F. Daugherty

Master's Theses

Problem

The purpose of this study was to determine whether there is a significant relationship between the construct of psychological types, as measured by the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), and temperaments, as measured by the Temperament Inventory (TI).

Method

A non-random sample of 113 individuals completed a demographic questionnaire, the MBTI, and the TI. The results of each preference score of the MBTI and the scores on each of the four temperaments from the TI were compared using a canonical correlation analysis.

Results

There is a significant relationship between the MBTI's psychological types and the TI's temperaments. A preference for …

An Integrated Model Of Job Satisfaction., Mark Stephen Nagy

LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses

A model of job satisfaction is proposed that integrates the components of discrepancy, equity, need, value and valence theories using a control theory framework. Data was collected from 341 full-time employees from a variety of organizations. The results indicated support for the proposed model. The results illustrated that discrepancies are largely involved in both facet and global evaluations of job satisfaction and that the interaction of discrepancies and importance is instrumental in explaining global satisfaction. The results also demonstrated that comparison others are involved in the evaluation of job satisfaction and that different comparison others are associated with present and …

Utilization Of A Sound Task To Differentiate Dementia Of The Alzheimer's Type, Depressed Elderly, And Elderly Controls, Linda J. Hanner

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The present study was designed to investigate the ability of persons with Dementia of the Alzheimer's Type (DAT) to associate meaning to sound. More specifically it addressed the question: will verbal and nonverbal scores on a sound task discriminate between subjects with Dementia of the Alzheimer's Type (DAT), depressed elderly, and elderly controls? The group of depressed subjects was included because of the differential diagnosis problems between DAT and depression in the elderly. A total of 120 subjects, 40 per group, participated in this study (N = 120). The DAT group was significantly older (78.02) than the elderly depressed (70.2) …

Art Therapy In The Paediatric Oncology Setting: An Assessment Of The Feasibility Of Art Therapy To Address The Psychosocial Needs Of Paediatric Cancer Patients, Anthea Carboni

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

It is well recognised that children with cancer have special needs. Art therapy has been shown to be effective in meeting some of these needs. An exploratory study was conducted to assess the feasibility of art therapy to address the psychosocial needs of paediatric cancer patients in a medical setting where art therapy has not been practised before. A qualitative research design was used to investigate the research questions, using interviews as the main instrument. Subjects were recruited from the oncology team of a metropolitan children's hospital. The sample of thirteen informants consisted of representatives from the medical, nursing and …

Front Matter

Modern Psychological Studies

No abstract provided.

The Effects Of Sodium Salicylate On Sexual Arousal In Adult Male Mice (Mus Domesticus), Andrew S. Manos

Modern Psychological Studies

Adult male rats produce 22-kHz vocalizations when exposed to a female conspecific. These ultrasonic vocalizations (USV) are a measure of the male's level of sexual arousal. Previous studies have shown that antipyretic drugs diminish the amount of USV made by male rats. Male mice also emit USV (70- kHz) indicative of sexual arousal. In this study, the effects of sodium salicylate, an antipyretic drug, were examined to see if USV were diminished in mice. Fifteen male adult mice were tested in a Treatment (Saline vs. Sodium Salicylate) x Dose (High vs. Low) design, with repeated measures across the treatments. Vocalizations …

The Bilateral Field Advantage On Verbal And Nonverbal Matching Tasks, Jennifer Reyburn

Modern Psychological Studies

Three experiments examined the bilateral field advantage (BFA) on both verbal and nonverbal matching tasks. The goal of the experiments was to determine which conditions would maximize the size and reliability of the BFA, and thus enhance its value as a possible diagnostic tool to assess callosal dysfunction. In Experiment 1, 27 right-handed college students performed two matching tasks (order of tasks varied across subjects; dots-letters, letters-dots, or letter and dot trials randomly interleaved). Results revealed a verbal BFA in all task order conditions (p<.01), but a significant nonverbal BFA only in the interleaved condition (p<.01). Experiments 2 and 3 reproduced the interleaved condition with different parameters. In both experiments the verbal BFA was significant (p<.01), but nonverbal BFA was significant only when four-dot patterns were used (p<.05). Results suggest the interleaved presentation of verbal and nonverbal stimuli is a reliable method of measuring the BFA.

Pluralistic Ignorance Concerning Alcohol Usage Among Recent High School Graduates, Jill S. Braddock, Tonia R. Wolf

Modern Psychological Studies

Recent high school graduates in a midwestern community estimated their classmates' attitudes toward alcohol use in contrast to their own positions. Attitudes were assessed on three levels: subjective comfort with others' drinking, approval of peer drinking and actual drinking practices. Pluralistic ignorance was found to be a significant factor at all three levels, p < .0005. Respondents reported that they were less comfortable, less approving, and drank less than close friends, lesser still than friends, and far less than peers. These findings provide support for "normative education" prevention programs that attempt to correct erroneous perceptions about alcohol use and abuse.

An Overview Of Parallel Distributed Processing, Jonathan P. Heyl

Modern Psychological Studies

Parallel Distributed Processing (PDP), or Connectionism, is a frontier cognitive theory that is currently garnering considerable attention from a variety of fields. Briefly summarized herein are the theoretical foundations of the theory, the key elements observed in creating simulation computer programs, examples of its applications, and some comparisons with other models of cognition. A majority of the information is culled from Rumelhart and McClelland's (1986) two volume introduction to the theory, while some concerns from the field and the theorists' accompanying responses are taken from a 1990 article by Hanson and Burr.

Memory For Frequency Of Complex Sounds, Jennifer R. Lewis

Modern Psychological Studies

This study examined whether different testing conditions hamper or enhance the ability to remember frequency of events. Subjects were presented a series of computerized sounds during the acquisition phase and estimated during the testing phase how many times they had heard each sound. Subjects were placed into one of four conditions: (a) no labeling, subjects simply listened to the stimuli; (b) labeling, subjects devised a description for each sound; (c) continuous distractor, subjects performed a simple mathematical task for the entire acquisition periods; and (d) intermittent distractor, subjects performed the mathematical task between the sounding of stimuli. Results indicated that …

Attachment And First Sexual Experience, Chrystal Goings-Vogelsang

Modern Psychological Studies

This investigation examined the relationship between first sexual experience and attachment tendencies. Subjects' first sexual experiences were examined as a function of Bartholomew's four attachment categories: secure, fearful, preoccupied, and dismissing (Bartholomew & Horowitz, 1991). It was hypothesized that if a person's first sexual experience was negative, then he or she would score significantly lower on the secure attachment subscale. Results indicated (a) that college females who had a fearful attachment style were more likely to report that their first sexual partner pressured them into sex, b) that college females who were more dismissing in their attachment style were less …

Spontaneous Alternating Behavior, Attention, And Exploration: The Effects Of Colchicine Lesions In The Rat Hippocaompal Formation, David E. Wagoner Jr., Zhenique M. Israelian

Modern Psychological Studies

This study investigated perseverative behavior, attention, and exploratory behaviors via discrete lesions of the rat hippocampal formation. It was hypothesized that lesions which interrupted input to the hippocampus and output to cortical and subcortical regions would induce these behaviors. Forty-four male Long-Evan rats were randomly divided into four treatment groups: cerebral spinal fluid, and three colchicine lesioned groups, 10-COL, 15-COL, and 25-COL. The animals were compared based upon performance in a standard Tmaze to test perseveration. Behaviors were also observed in an activity chamber to measure locomotion, attention, and exploration. Animals in the 25-COL group demonstrated a significant increase in …

Memory Decrement And Proactive Interference, William J. Thornton, Bennett L. Schwartz

Modern Psychological Studies

We hypothesized that subjective expectations were responsible for the release from proactive interference (PI) rather than the actual change in taxonomic subcategories. The experimental conditions included informing or not informing subjects of the change in taxonomic subcategory, crossed with whether the taxonomic subcategory was actually changed or remained unchanged. The interest in whether a release would be seen when the subjects were informed of a change, yet no change was actually administered, was most specific. Significantly higher recall was found for the condition in which subjects were informed of a change, but no actual change occured (I-NC) than in the …

Effectiveness Of A Homophobic Intervention Upon Graduate Counseling Students, Bryce Thull

Student Work

This study compared the homophobic attitudes of graduate level counseling students before and after a presentation exploring homophobia. The attitudinal scores of both the control and experimental groups were pre-tested and post-tested by the Index of Attitudes toward Homosexuals (IAH) and compared by an Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA). The outcome indicated that the IAH post-test scores of the experimental group receiving the homophobic intervention were significantly reduced (p < .001) compared to the IAH post-test scores of the control group that did not receive the intervention. The results demonstrate that a specific presentation about homophobia may be effective in reducing negative attitudes toward homosexuals.

On Lexical And Syntactic Processing Of Bangla Language By Computer., Probal Sengupta Dr.

Doctoral Theses

A distinctive intelligent trait of human beings is the ability to carry out meaningful communication through language. The communication may be direct as in spoken conversation or indirect as in written form, through the audio-visual media, etc. Linguistic ability in humans have fascinated scholars ever since man first learnt to use language. Linguistics, the branch of study involved in studying the nature of human linguistic communication, is perhaps as old as language itself. The invention of the computer added a new dimension to linguistics. Making the computer emu- late human linguistic behaviour was taken up as a challenge by computer …

The Communicator - Vol.6 No. 2 - Summer, 1994, Nova Southeastern University

The Communicator

No abstract provided.