Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

The Effect Of Email Communication On Professor-Student Rapport, Academic Self-Efficacy, Resiliency, Motivation, And Spirituality, David J. Heim

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Student retention and success rates are an increasing concern among collegiate administrators and educators. This study examined the influence of a college instructor’s email communications on professor-student rapport, student academic self-efficacy, resilience, motivation, and success. Researchers hypothesized that the student participants who received the encouraging email communications from their professor would demonstrate higher levels of professor-student rapport, higher levels of academic self-efficacy, resiliency, and success compared to the students who receive standard email communications from their professor. Five scales were utilized in this study including Professor-Student Rapport Scale, Academic Self-Efficacy Scale, Academic Resilience Scale (ARS-30), Daily Spiritual Experience Scale (DSES), …

Assessing College Students' Knowledge Of Applied Behavior Analysis And Evaluating The Effects Of A Fact Sheet To Address Misconceptions, Hannah Goike

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

Previous research has indicated that college students consistently endorse misconceptions about behavior analysis (e.g., use of physical punishment, Applied Behavior Analysis [ABA] is only intended for people with autism). This study aims to assess college students’ knowledge of behavior analysis and identify the extent to which participants are likely to endorse common misconceptions. This study replicated Artzen et al. (2010) and extended it by adding questions related to the recent trends and reported misunderstandings in the field of ABA that stem from public misconceptions. The current study also evaluated the effects of a brief intervention for improving participant knowledge of …

Aromatherapies And Stress: An Examination Of Saliva Sclarea In Acute Stress Conditions, Emily J. Van Gundy

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

The use of essential oils as an alternative medicine in the United States is becoming increasingly popular as more accreditation is given to its therapeutic values. With this increase in use, we must continue to examine the uses of essential oils, including associated risks. One unavoidable aspect of life is stress, both acute and chronic. This study aims to better our understanding of the stress-reducing properties of the essential oil clary sage (salvia sclarea) after an experimentally induced acute stress experience. The Trier Social Stress Test was used to elicit an acute stress response. Participants were given the scent of …

Changes In Visual Scanning During Stimulus Equivalence Training, Katelyn Jones

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Stimulus equivalence-based training allows learners to gain new knowledge by deriving novel relations without being directly taught. This is an important skill that some individuals, especially in special populations, have as a deficit. One possible reason individuals may struggle with stimulus equivalence is a deficit in visual experience that promotes selective attention to stimulus properties. With the advancement of technology, visual tracking and visual scanning offers a means to assess visual behavior in detail while learning stimulus associations. Identifying individual differences, and deficits in visual scanning behavior should provide researchers with better means to design interventions, promoting appropriate visual scanning …

Transforming The Culture Of Care, Implementation Of Developmentally Supportive Care In The Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Taylor Ann Jones

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

The current study examines the implementation of the evidence-based practices of the neonatal integrative developmental care model in the neonatal intensive care unit and how these practices are implemented in reference to initiation method and frequency. In recent years, research examining the effectiveness of individualized, developmentally supportive care to infants in the NICU has demonstrated a variety of positive effects. Although great strides have been made in efforts to provide developmentally supportive care, wide variability and inconsistency remain in the quantity and quality of experience for infants and families in the NICU. Even though a hospital may incorporate developmentally supportive …

Expressions And Attributions Of Ableism For Disabilities That Were Caused Or Congenital, Hadlie R. Daigle

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

Ableism is a form of systemic oppression that prejudices disabled people. Ableist views perpetuate the idea that being non-disabled as the ideal and disability is a flaw or weakness to avoid. This research compared how different reasons for disabilities might lead to ableism toward auditory and cognitive disabilities. Some participants read about an individual who had cognitive disabilities (TBI) from congenital reasons, others due to illness, and then others due to a lack of caution leading to an injury resulting in TBI. Similarly, participants also read about individuals who had experienced an auditory deficit (deafness) due to these varying reasons …

Unraveling The Interplay: Religiosity, Sexual Health Knowledge, And Sexual Behaviors, Erinmarie Travis

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Limited research exists on the longitudinal effects of religiosity and sexual health education on adolescents' sexual risk behaviors and their transition into adulthood. This study used The National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health data to investigate these effects in a nationally representative sample. Linear regression analyses explored associations between religiosity, sexual health knowledge (SHK), and sexual risk behaviors (SRBs) during adolescence and emerging adulthood. Findings revealed significant associations between adolescent religiosity and SRBs, predicting SRBs during adolescence. However, religiosity's influence diminished in emerging adulthood, and SHK did not mediate the relationship between adolescent religiosity and SRBs. These results …

Evaluating The Normative Development And Efficacy Of The Life Functional Module, Kaitlyn A. Hui

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

The Life Functional Module (Dixon, 2020) is an all-encompassing assessment and curriculum designed to promote learner’s independence and well-being by teaching daily living, social, leisure, and other functional or meaningful skills. There is a wide variety of curricula that is currently used in applied-behavior analysis services and programming, including the Essentials for Living, Assessment of Functional Living Skills (AFLS), and the Verbal Behavior Milestones Assessment and Placement Program (VB-MAPP). However, there is a lack of research in empirical evidence in regards to the efficacy of these curricula (Ackley et. al, 2019; Padilla et. al, 2023). The first manuscript of this …

Evaluating The Interdependency Of The Peak Comprehensive Assessment As It Relates To Performance Estimation And Curricular Programming For Autistic Learners, Julia A. Busam

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Assessments are widely used by behavior analysts throughout the field of Applied Behavior Analysis when determining curriculum and intervention for individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). This thesis combines and discusses two collaborative manuscripts that revolve around the subject of one commonly used ABA assessment and curriculum. The PEAK Relational Training System (PEAK, Dixon 2014-2016) provides a wide-ranging assessment and training program that incorporates Skinnerian verbal operant learning and derived relational responding expressed in contemporary Relational Frame Theories (Hayes et al., 2001). The PEAK Comprehensive Assessment (PEAK-CA; Dixon, 2018) was developed to standardize and streamline assessments from all four PEAK …

Evaluating The Maintenance Of Verbal Relational Operants Following Peak Programming, Jenna Huskey

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

The Promoting the Emergence of Advanced Knowledge (PEAK) Relational Training System is an assessment and curriculum tool developed for basic and advanced language skills using behavior analytic approaches (Dixon, 2016). Maintenance describes the retention of performance following the progression of time. In the present study, the purpose was to determine if maintenance was achieved on previously mastered PEAK programs, both in terms of the content and the verbal relational operant (i.e., generalization to new, untrained content). De-identified data were analyzed for five autistic learners (six to fourteen years old) receiving ABA services at a Midwestern clinic. Programs were selected from …

Online Assignment Submission Delay As A Behavioral Indicator Of Procrastination, Ari L. Cunningham

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Procrastination has long been recognized as an important topic in higher education, and various tools for measuring procrastination have focused on either behavioral or subjective components of the phenomenon. This study examines how online assignment submission delay, used as an objective measure of procrastination, relates to several conceptualizations of procrastination and pacing style measured through self-report questionnaires. It was hypothesized that median assignment submission delay would have a positive relationship with the included self-report measures, a positive relationship with the deadline action pacing style, and a negative relationship with the steady pacing style. Data was collected from 66 students in …

Does Health Oriented Leadership And Access To On-Demand Mental Health Therapists Via Employee Assistance Programs Improve Employee Well-Being And Engagement?, Amber Rachelle Davis

Masters Theses

"Employee mental health effects are informally relevant in all facets of working adults’ lives. Considering the life-altering effects of the 2019 pandemic on work and society, mental health and work share applicability in conversations related to organizational outcomes. Based on the job demands-resource theory, personal demands are high in organizations where workers must adjust to returning to onsite work, in settings occupied by varying personalities, and ever-present political tension. These adjustments can be stressful for people and add new workplace challenges.

Work stress was found to be an antecedent for burnout (Tummers & Bakker, 2021), and leaders play an essential …

“You Do Not Need To Be Skinny Or Look Like An Athlete To Still Live A Healthy Life”: Exploring Anti-Fat Bias Within Health-Related Undergraduate Programs, Maddie Katz

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Anti-fat bias negatively influences well-being, particularly for fat people. This bias is present in healthcare and fitness contexts, where emphasis on bodies and weight are salient. Healthcare and fitness professionals often re-learn anti-fat bias in their education through a weight-centric paradigm of health, which frames weight as a primary indicator of health (good or bad), an individual responsibility, and a direct reflection of individual behavioural choices (i.e., diet and exercise). The failure to control one’s weight within societally acceptable levels is seen as a moral failure rather than resulting from complex factors relating to the social determinants of health (i.e., …

Social Interaction, Social Cognition, And Personality In Gartersnakes And Ball Pythons, Morgan Skinner

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Snakes are often considered non-social animals. However, this is mostly an untested assumption and the limited research that has been done has shown that snakes interact socially when given the opportunity. Here, the complexity of snake social interactions was explored through a social cognition and personality lens. Group and individual behavioural assays were used to explore flexibility and consistency in social interactions. The results provide evidence that elucidate the function, development, and evolution of these behaviours in snakes. In the first experimental chapter, chapter 2, social network analysis was used to provide a detailed description of aggregation behaviour in 4 …

Is Trust A Zero-Sum Game? What Happens When Institutional Sources Get It Wrong, Andrew Dawson

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, trust in mainstream institutions is on the decline while people are increasingly turning to alternative media and conspiracy theories. Previous research has suggested that these trends may be linked, but the exact nature of the relationship is unclear. In a fractured informational environment, is trust a neutral process, where each source is judged independently, or is it in fact a zero-sum competition, where a loss for one side is a gain for the other? Across three experimental studies (N = 2,951) we examined how people react when a source makes a serious error, …

Parental Evaluations And Choice Of Math Apps For Their Young Children: Exploring The Impact Of Individual Differences, Nicola Urquhart

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Well-designed math apps can have positive effects on young children’s math abilities (Bang et al., 2023; Griffith et al., 2019; Outhwaite et al., 2023), but research indicates that many commercially available math apps are not well designed (Dubé et al., 2019; Meyer et al., 2021). Studies also find that parents struggle to identify relevant features from app store descriptions (Montazami et al., 2022; Pearson et al., 2023). The purpose of the present research was to investigate how parents evaluate the apps themselves, and to test whether individual differences can affect parental app evaluations and decisions. In two parts of Study …

Predictors Of Canadians’ Psychological Well-Being In Retirement: A Mixed Methods Approach, Jessica Miller

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

In prior decades, retirement research focused on the negative effects of the life transition—such as negative psychological well-being caused by factors such as difficulties adjusting to retirement, feelings of a role loss, or the financial effects of retirement. However, there is considerable agreement across recent research studies that post-retirement years are marked by positive psychological well-being due to a variety of factors. For example, retirees often spend more time in roles (such as volunteer positions) that provide life satisfaction. The present study uses both quantitative and qualitative methods to examine factors related to well-being in retirement among individuals living in …

Grammatical Aspect, Temporal Adverbs, And Situation Models, Valerie Hemeon

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Grammatical aspect and temporal cues have been shown to impact discourse processing. To explore this further, we contrasted temporal adverbs that move narrative timelines forward or backward. Although previous research has examined timelines independently, it was yet to be explored how timeline adverbs impact discourse processing when grammatical aspect and temporal cues are also manipulated. The experiment involved a sentence-completion task which allowed us to measure availability of target discourse concepts in situation models. Results showed main effects for grammatical aspect, temporal shifts, and narrative timeline directions. Three two-way interactions were found. The results demonstrated support for the iconicity assumption …

Social-Emotional Outcomes In Emerging Adults With Adhd: The Influence Of Self-Compassion On Peer Rejection, Rejection Sensitivity, And Psychological Distress, Alia Hussain

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Emerging adulthood, the developmental period ranging from 18 to 29 years, is a critical stage of development in which individuals grow their social skills, set and achieve life goals, learn to live independently, and further develop brain regions involved in higher-level cognition, shaped by their environment and experiences throughout emerging adulthood. Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder associated with adverse interpersonal outcomes. Approximately 5 to 8% of emerging adults are reported to have an ADHD diagnosis and may be at higher risk than typically developing emerging adults for unfavourable developmental outcomes. This heightened risk may be attributed to their …

The Influence Of Visual Perspective On The Cognitive Effort Required For Mental Representation, Jeffrey P. Hong

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Mental representation is the process by which an individual simulates an event in their mind’s eye. This process is the foundation of the ability to remember the past, engage in prospective thinking, or imagine fictitious scenarios. An individual can mentally represent any event through their own eyes—the first-person perspective or from the viewpoint of an external observer—the third-person perspective. The perspective of representation influences outcomes related to memory, visuospatial processing, affect, social cognition, clinical diagnoses, and language processing. In turn, an individual’s tendency to favour either perspective is shaped by related factors.

The current research consists of four experiments, designed …

Dancing Around And Through Harm: Examining The Lived Experiences Of Women Of Colour With Gender-Based Violence In The Toronto & Kitchener-Waterloo Latin Dance Communities, Lexi Salt

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Given the systemic nature of gender-based violence in Canada, as well as the increasing popularity of Latin dance, it is important to better understand the particular and culturally-specific ways gender-based violence manifests itself within the Latin dance community. This research study examines the lived experiences of women of colour with gender-based violence in the Toronto and Kitchener-Waterloo Latin dance communities. Two groups of participants took part in semi-structured interviews: 14 women of colour dancers, and six “Power Players”, leaders in the Latin dance community who are in a position of power (e.g., instructors, organizers, DJs). The data was analyzed using …

Overcoming The Unseen: Understanding Diverse Canadian Workers’ Well-Being During The Beginning Of The Coronavirus Pandemic, Tyler M. Pacheco

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Canadian workers were severely affected by the onset of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The rapid spread of the pathogen across Canada resulted in several work-related consequences (e.g., temporary/indefinite layoffs and business closures, mandatory working-from-home) that could have impacted workers’ well-being during this turbulent period. Research available at the start of this dissertation process, and even more recently published studies, primarily explored general trends in workers’ negative well-being during COVID-19, not examining the distinct realities that diverse workers, including more marginalized ones, may have experienced. Across three manuscripts, several theories from diverse disciplines (positive, developmental, community, and industrial-organizational psychology, public health) …

Religious And Spiritual Struggles Among Satanists, Trevor Flick

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

As Satanism represents a unique religious demographic, the present study sought to determine the prevalence of religious and spiritual struggles among modern Satanists and resulting anxiety or depressive symptoms. A sample of 693 self-identified Satanists were surveyed about their experiences of religious and spiritual struggles, perceptions of their Satanist identity, and anxiety and depressive symptoms. Results indicated that Satanists predominantly struggle with interpersonal and ultimate meaning struggles. Ultimate meaning and moral struggles were predictive of both anxiety and depressive symptoms. Interpersonal struggles also predicted anxiety symptoms. Individual perceptions of Satanist identity did not have a significant influence on the relationship …

Tiktok And Self-Diagnosing Mental Illnesses: Perceived Reliability Factors, Vulnerabilities, And Dangers, Micah Moulder

Undergraduate Honors Theses

TikTok’s popularity and ease of use with short-term consumption allow for greater access to online information. However, this information is not regulated nor fact-checked. Therefore, many users can acquire and spread the wrong messages, behaviors, and ideas surrounding mental illness. The purpose of this research was to examine the effects and factors of TikTok on self-diagnosing mental illnesses. A large literature was conducted to examine the effects of social media and the harms of self-diagnosing on users. Two studies were then developed and administered to determine the relationship between self-diagnosing and TikTok. Correlations, t-tests, and descriptive statistics were used to …

Influencing Others: How Can We Benefit Society?, Caleb Roten

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Understanding both how we perceive others and how others perceive us through social situations is vital for improving communication and thus improving relational connections. Successful interactions with people are crucial in many circumstances, especially in interview-type situations, due to the creation of cognitive biases upon such interactions. Whether the goal is to impress a hopeful romantic partner, interview for a job, negotiate a raise, interview for a scholarship, or any number of various reasons to strive for a successful social interaction, understanding how information about the people we meet and connect with is extremely important. Many cognitive examinations have been …

Nursing Care During Natural Disasters, War Zones, And Mass Casualty Incidents: Implications For An Educational And Professional Overhaul, Erin N. White

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Emergency situations around the world are inevitable. Any nurse who practices for any period of time is sure to encounter situations like these. Their hospital may be flooded with traumatic and severely life-threatening patient cases where supplies can become scarce. In these situations, a nurse and all other healthcare personnel are expected to act effectively, efficiently and in a highly organized way. Despite this need, many hospitals fail to implement effective disaster preparedness programs and plans. This leaves healthcare workers at a loss for how to treat patients, communicate within and outside of the hospital, coordinate transport, and all the …

Acculturative Stress, Depression, & Anxiety Among Arab Americans, Sally Kafelghazal M.S.

Theses and Dissertations

Arab Americans, those who themselves or their ancestors have immigrated fromthe Middle East or North Africa to the United States, experience a lot of stress as a result of balancing varying cultures, known as acculturative stress. Due to the underrepresentation and misrepresentation of Arabs in Americans, as well as the taboo that exists in the Arab culture regarding poor mental health and seeking mental health services, the mental health impacts of acculturation stress among this population are scarcely studied. This dissertation aims to further understand ways in which acculturative stress impacts early generational Arab American adults, including immigrants and refugees, …

Giving People The Words To Say No Leads Them To Feel Freer To Say Yes, Rachel Schlund, Roseanna Sommers, Vanessa K. Bohns

Articles

We examine how to structure requests to help people feel they can say no (or yes) more voluntarily. Specifically, we examine the effect of having the requester provide the request-target with an explicit phrase they can use to decline requests. Part of the difficulty of saying no is finding the words to do so when put on the spot. Providing individuals with an explicit script they can use to decline a request may help override implicit scripts and norms of politeness that generally dictate compliance. This should make individuals feel more comfortable refusing requests and make agreement feel more voluntary. …

The Effects Of Physical And Emotional Child Abuse On Social Functioning, And Help Seeking Behaviors In Adulthood, Beatrice Chambers

Master's Theses or Doctor of Nursing Practice

Child abuse is very common in today’s society, and of great social concern. Reports indicate at least one in seven children have experienced child abuse or neglect in the past year in the United States. Further, in 2020, 1,750 children died of abuse and neglect in the United States alone. The number may be even higher since not every victim who died from abuse would have that indicated as the cause of death (Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 2022a). The purpose of the current study was to investigate the effects of physical and emotional child abuse on social functioning …

Cognitive Fusion, Self And Other-Blame, And College Adjustment Outcomes, Olivia B. Tipton

Master's Theses or Doctor of Nursing Practice

College students from socioeconomically challenging backgrounds are more likely to drop out of college before being awarded a bachelor’s degree. A challenging background predicts difficulties in emotion regulation, which may affect adjustment to college and, subsequently, persistence in college until a bachelor’s degree is awarded. Previous research has identified cognitive fusion, a state in which one unquestioningly believes the literal content of their thoughts, and inflexible usage of self and other-blame as predictors of negative social, psychological, and academic outcomes. The present study used self-report data collected from emerging adult college students at a small midwestern university to assess whether …