Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Understanding College Student Expectancies Of Simultaneous Engagement In Multiple Risk Behaviors: A Measurement Development And Model Testing Study, Shelby Whalen

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Risky behaviors, actions that may cause physical, psychological, social, or economic harm to oneself or others, are prevalent among college students. While significant research has focused on single high-risk behaviors of alcohol use, drug use, gambling, and gaming separately, students frequently engage in multiple high-risk behaviors simultaneously, such as drinking alcohol while gambling. Research shows that students have distinct and specific expectancies about what happens when they engage in a risk behavior, however, minimal research has examined students’ perceptions or reasons for simultaneous poly-risk behavior engagement. This multi-phase project characterized students’ outcome expectancies for simultaneous poly-risk behavior combinations, developed and …

The Memphis Gambling Screen: A Clinical Validation Study Of An Enhanced-Readability Self-Report Measure For Gambling Disorder, Natasha Bourgoin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Precise identification of gambling disorder can be difficult when commonly used screeners vary in clarity and diagnostic accuracy. The Memphis Gambling Screen (MGS) was developed as an enhanced-readability self-report measure to improve item comprehension and strengthen the diagnostic accuracy of DSM-5 gambling disorder. This study evaluates the psychometric properties and diagnostic accuracy of the MGS with a combined sample of individuals seeking treatment for problem gambling or substance use disorder and college students with a recent history of gambling (N = 232). Participants completed a demographic questionnaire, the MGS, and another commonly used measure, the Problem Gambling Severity Index …

"Always Online, Never At Ease: Fear Of Missing Out (Fomo) As A Partial Mediator Between Adverse Childhood Experiences (Aces) And Physical Health, Psychological Functioning, And Psychosocial Adjustment Among College Students", Evelyn Pensamiento

Psychological Science Undergraduate Honors Theses

Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) are potentially traumatic events, such as abuse, neglect, and household disruption, that occur during the first 18 years of life. ACEs have been found to be strongly linked to negative outcomes, such as poor physical health, poor mental health, low self-esteem, low emotion regulation, poor college adjustment, low life satisfaction, and low social connectedness, and high loneliness (Felitti et al., 1998; Carbonell et al., 2018; Cloitre et al., 2019; Mosley-Johnson et al., 2018; Yayan et al., 2019). Previous literature suggests that fear of missing out (FoMO) may help explain some of the negative consequences of ACEs …

Black Protection: Black Social Media Competency And Urban, Black Adolescents On Social Media, Taylor A. Williams

Dissertations

While urban, Black adolescents interact with racial identity content on social media, their identity is primarily shaped through offline experiences and later reflected or reinforced online. Through the concept of Black social media competency (B-SMC), this study examined the relationships between Black urban adolescents’ social media use, exposure to race-related content, and experiences navigating the digital environment. The study used a qualitative design, grounded in the phenomenological and ecological frameworks, with 21 adolescents recruited from two urban, Midwestern schools and programs to participate in semi-structured interviews, and data were analyzed using thematic analysis to identify patterns in how the participants …

Love’S Dialects: Proposed Additions In Emotionally Focused Therapy For Intercultural Couples, Nicola Heurich

Dissertations

Intercultural romantic relationships have become an increasingly prominent feature of contemporary society due to globalization, migration, and cross-cultural exchange (Livingston & Brown, 2017). However, these partnerships are also associated with elevated levels of relational distress and higher rates of conflict, separation, and divorce, underscoring the need for culturally responsive approaches in couple therapy (Bustamante et al., 2011; Genç & Su, 2021).

Research on intercultural couples remains limited both within and beyond Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT), and despite increased recognition of cultural factors, there is still insufficient guidance on navigating differing cultural contexts within a dyad (Linhof & Allan, 2018).

The …

The Relationship Between Depression And Cognitive Proficiency Index Across Biological Sex, Angela N. Ferdinardo

Dissertations

Depression is a widely studied mood disorder, and understanding its effect on cognitive functioning has become an important area of research. While research has examined relationships among depression, working memory, and cognitive deficits, limited research has explored depressive symptoms and cognitive proficiency across biological sex. Depression manifests similarly in men and women, though men are more likely to experience irritability, impulsivity, and anger, while women tend to experience sadness, stress, and sleep disturbances (Johns Hopkins Medicine, 2023). Women are also more likely to seek treatment and cope differently than men. This study examined the relationship between depression and cognitive proficiency …

Sexual Grooming And Other Barriers To Disclosure Of Childhood Sexual Abuse, Lillian A. Steedman

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Child sexual abuse is a serious and prevalent problem in the United States and is associated with negative consequences across numerous life domains (e.g., psychological, physical, socioeconomic). Disclosure of sexually abusive experiences may facilitate victims’ abilities to obtain psychological, social, and legal support. It has been theorized that sexual grooming plays a role in decreasing the likelihood of disclosure and of disclosures being believed. Therefore, this dissertation examined associations among sexual grooming, other barriers, and disclosure decisions and timing. Participants were recruited and screened online for eligibility to participate in a survey examining details of the abuse, trauma-related shame, disclosure …

A Critical-Constructivist Grounded Theory Exploration Of The Mental Health Experiences Of Individuals With Intellectual Disabilities In Post-Secondary Settings, Alyssa L. Decker

Dissertations, 2020-current

Individuals with intellectual disabilities (ID) now have access to higher education, often through inclusive post-secondary education programs (IPSE), to increase employability and quality of life. IPSE programs, historically, have provided academic and life skill support and not mental health support within programs’ curricula. A recent review of IPSE programs reveals that if mental health services are included, they are often accessed through university health services. Transitioning from high school to college induces high levels of stress, which can exacerbate underlying mental health conditions. Mental health care is defaulted to an already overburdened college counseling center without the knowledge and skills …

The Augmented Matching Law, Matias A. Avellaneda

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Every living organism, including humans, has a finite amount of time available: 24 hours in a day, 365 days in a year, and a certain number of years in its life. At every moment, such an organism will be engaging in one of a multitude of possible activities, such as eating, sleeping, or reading this dissertation. We use the term choice to denote the way in which the organism distributes its time among all these activities, and some of these choice patterns are more beneficial to the organism than others, showcasing the importance of understanding the mechanisms underlying choice. A …

Vulnerability In The Dark Triad: Insecure Attachment And Relational Aggression In The Peer Relationships Of College Students, Summer Boggs

Dissertations

Research on relational aggression (i.e., a type of aggression in which the aggressor harms others by damaging their relationships, reputation, and/or feelings of social acceptance) with college students has identified several important correlates, including anxious and avoidant attachment styles. Moreover, the personality traits captured by the Vulnerable Dark Triad (VDT; i.e., borderline, the antisocial component of psychopathy, and vulnerable narcissism; Miller et al., 2010) have demonstrated positive relationships with both relational aggression and insecure attachment. This study examined the relationship between insecure attachment and relational aggression among college students (N = 560), testing VDT traits as partial mediators of …

Testing P300-Based Biometric Authentication Paradigms, Jordan Razzak

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Bench research suggests that P300 amplitude is greater in response to self-relevant stimuli compared to familiar stimuli. This effect could enable a novel method of biometric authentication based on the self-relevant P300. This dissertation aims to: (1) determine the optimal presentation paradigm for leveraging self-relevance in P300-based biometric authentication, and (2) investigate P300 responses from self-relevant stimuli versus stimuli learned over the course of a week.

Two presentation paradigms were compared – rapid serial visual presentation (RSVP) and matrix presentation (MP). Participant-specific RSVP and MP classifiers were trained by applying stepwise linear discriminant analysis to data collected during presentations of …

Pavlovian Conditioning And Self-Control: From Laboratory To Classroom Application, Saba Mahmoudi

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Impulsive choice, the preference for a smaller-sooner reward (SSR) over a larger-later reward (LLR), is associated with various challenging behaviors (e.g., gambling and substance-used disorders). Many interventions can reduce impulsive choice but those that produce long-lasting effects typically require long training durations or are difficult to implement in applied settings. This dissertation evaluated a novel Pavlovian training approach designed to promote self-control. In Experiment 1, procedures from Mahmoudi and Madden (2024) were replicated in the laboratory with the addition of a truly random control group. The study also assessed whether presenting the conditioned stimulus (CS) before a choice would increase …

An Examination Of Lifetime Traumatic Brain Injury And Anti-Inflammatory Medication Use In The Risk For Alzheimer's Disease, Mikaela A. Drewel

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the leading cause of dementia in individuals aged 65 years and older. There are a number of lifestyle and genetic factors that affect one’s risk for AD including traumatic brain injury (TBI), and genes such as those for Apolipoprotein E (APOE) and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). This study examined sex differences in how TBI history influences risk for AD, exploring genetic variants suspected to play a role in TBI recovery. Additionally, in following an inflammatory mechanism in TBI, the study also determined if nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) use reduced subsequent risk for AD. The study analyzed …

Effects Of Single-Session Interventions On Youth Internalizing Problems, Thomas K. Franzmann

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Anxiety and depression are among the most common mental health concerns young people face, and they often interfere with school, friendships, family life, and long-term well-being. Even though effective therapies exist, only about half of youth who need care ever receive it, and among those who do start treatment, the most common total number of sessions a young person attends is one. This gap between what young people need and what they actually receive raises a practical question for the field: can a single, well-designed meeting with a provider produce meaningful change for some youth and families, and what should …

Mindful Classrooms: Teachers Co-Designing And Implementing Mindfulness Interventions, Mary L. Phan

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Teachers play a critical role in supporting student learning and well-being, yet many experience high levels of stress, burnout, and increasing job demands. Stress can negatively affect teachers’ mental health, job satisfaction, and classroom environments, making it important to identify practical and sustainable ways to support teacher well being. Mindfulness practices, which encourage individuals to focus on the present moment with awareness and acceptance, have shown promise for reducing stress and improving emotional well-being. However, little is known about how mindfulness programs can be adapted to fit the realities of elementary school classrooms and whether teachers can successfully implement these …

Affective And Cognitive Factors Contributing To Male-Female Differences In Mathematics, Sarah N. Herod

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Math differences between men and women have been studied for several decades, with original theories suggesting a biological reason for the differences and more new ones suggesting multiple factors, such as self-efficacy, anxiety, and spatial ability, may be responsible for these apparent differences. Additionally, most research into math differences between the sexes involves the use of a composite score, rather than examining the different sub-domains of math separately. The purpose of the current study was to examine the relationship between sex and math performance within the context of an individual's belief and attitudes towards math and spatial information. Seventy-one participants …

Nicotine Aerosol Self-Administration And Reward Potentiation: Using A Preclinical Model Of Vaping To Investigate The Stimulus-Enhancing Properties Of Nicotine, Kiernan T. Callister

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Tobacco use is the leading cause of preventable disease and death in the United States and worldwide. Nicotine, the primary component of tobacco, is responsible for the addiction to tobacco and nicotine products, such as Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems (ENDS). The widespread consumption of these products is motivated by several complex properties of nicotine, such as its ability to increase the rewarding value of stimuli in the environment. Although reward enhancement has been demonstrated via smoking and other forms of nicotine intake, it is unclear if these effects extend to electronic cigarettes. The present study used an animal model of …

The Influence Of Shape Complexity And Exploratory Behavior On Grasping, Mckenzie Gunter

Dissertations

People can orient and configure their hands in many ways in order to grasp objects. The current study investigates how object shape and hand placement influence graspability of objects, and how experimentally imposed constraints on grasping type alter grasping behavior. In a recent study, Gunter and Hajnal (under review) found that the ratio of object curvature and maximal handspan is the variable that defines the affordance of graspability. The current study aims to extend these findings by employing a more precise measurement of finger placement in two experiments using 3D printed objects as stimuli. To capture varying complexities of object …

An Exploration Of The Psychological Impacts Of Code-Switching, Cristina Culler

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation is an interpretative phenomenological analysis of the lived experiences of four Black American adults who have frequently engaged in code-switching. Historically, code-switching has been perceived as a necessary skill that helps marginalized folx adopt the norms and practices of the dominant culture. As a result, code-switching has become a routine practice specifically for Black Americans who often occupy white spaces. Since code-switching has been perceived as a skill, the oppressive origins of code-switching often go unnoticed. Therefore, this dissertation examines code-switching through a critical lens that deems this practice a product of racist ideologies that prioritize whiteness. Through …

Predictors Of Pre-Service Teachers’ Strength-Based Teaching Practices With Els (English Learners), Stephany M. Panza

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The increasing number of English learners (ELs) in U.S. school classrooms highlights the importance of utilizing pedagogical approaches that build upon their preexisting cultural and linguistic strengths. Strength-based teaching practices, grounded in positive psychology represent a systems-levels approach to promoting positive academic and socio-emotional outcomes for ELs. In this study, a sample of 21 pre-service teachers attending Northeastern teacher preparation programs completed a series of surveys identifying their EL teaching experience, EL coursework, multicultural attitudes, and intercultural self-efficacy. These predictors were examined to determine their cumulative impact and unique contributions to an adapted Strength-Based Practices Inventory (SBPI), which captured pre-service …

Diabetter Together: Outcomes Of A Randomized Controlled Trial Evaluating A Peer Mentor Behavioral Intervention For Young Adults With Type 1 Diabetes During The Transfer From Pediatric To Adult Care, Marisa E Hilliard, Charles G Minard, Samantha A Carreon, Wendy L Levy, Sarah K Lyons, Randi Streisand, Tricia S Tang, Siripoom V Mckay, Sridevi Devaraj, Barbara J Anderson

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Objective: Transition between pediatric and adult health care is complex, with high risk for loss to follow-up and suboptimal health outcomes for young adults with type 1 diabetes. This trial evaluated the efficacy of DiaBetter Together, a 12-month strengths-based behavioral intervention delivered by trained peer mentors. The intervention aimed to help young adults navigate the transfer process to promote optimal glycemic outcomes, shorten time to adult care follow-up, and improve psychosocial outcomes.

Research design and methods: Using a single-site randomized clinical trial design, we compared the 12-month intervention to usual care among n = 100 young adults aged 17-25 years …

Navigating The Dark Side: Emotional Labor's Impact On Hr Professionals' Wellness, Esmeralda Amelia Rendón

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative descriptive study was designed to document and describe how female-identifying human resource (HR) generalist practitioners serving as sole or primary employee relations practitioners in small- to medium-sized organizations across the United States experience and manage emotional labor in their roles, cope with its demands, and how these experiences impact their wellness and perceptions of organizational support. Despite the centrality of emotional labor (EL) in human resource professionals’ (HRPs) roles, little was known about how HRPs in these underresourced environments cope with these demands. Data were collected through semistructured virtual interviews with eight participants and analyzed using Braun and …

Gender And Professional Identities In Businesswomen’S Negotiation, Chi-Ying Cheng, Amy J. Lim, Yi Wen Tan, Fiona Lee

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Gender roles and expectations for women have been shown to account for why women tend to negotiate ineffectively in business settings. Drawing from the psychological literature on multiple identities, this paper examines how individual differences in perceived compatibility between gender and professional identities–captured by the construct Gender-Professional Identity Integration (G-PII)–shape businesswomen’s negotiation behaviors. Two studies examined how G-PII interacts with identity cues and cue valence to influence negotiation outcomes. We found that those who perceived their gender and professional identities as compatible (high G-PII) exhibited an “assimilation” effect–they negotiate more effectively when their professional identity was primed by professional identity …

When The Best-Fit Model Is Not Best: The Glass Slipper Fallacy And Latent Growth Mixture Modelling, Jonathan L. Chia, Markus Wettstein, Andree Hartanto

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Despite the use of latent growth mixture modelling (LGMM) to study longitudinal changes, existing practices may inadvertently impede this very investigation. Although subgroup trajectories may theoretically differ in their structure (e.g., some subgroups being linear, some curvilinear), the current convention advocates overreliance on the baseline model to derive subsequent profile trajectories, which may obscure these structural differences. In this article, we provide a brief description of extant LGMM practices, after which we explicate the pitfalls of the current approach. Finally, we provide a principled approach for LGMM research moving forward. Specifically, we recommend specifying a set of theoretically plausible models …

Global Prevalence Of Depression Among University Students: A Comprehensive Umbrella Review, Gilda Yun Kai Sam, Xun Ci Soh, Harshitha Balaji, Gabriel X. D. Tan, Shu Fen Diong, Meilan Hu, Andree Hartanto, Nadyanna M. Majeed

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Depression has become a major concern for educational institutes due to its increasing incidence and detrimental impacts on students’ well-being. However, its global prevalence in the context of tertiary education remains unclear. This umbrella review summarised existing meta-analyses and systematic reviews to examine the worldwide prevalence of depression among university students. Several sociodemographic and methodological factors, including differences in depression prevalence before, during, and after COVID-19, were examined as moderators. Structured and exhaustive searches were conducted in five bibliographic databases and five journals, alongside two sources of grey literature. A total of 61 meta-analyses and systematic reviews were included in …

Artificial Intelligence (Ai) In Forensic Psychology: An Umbrella Review Of Potentials And Pitfalls, Ysabel Thereze Ang Guevarra, Nur Eva Alisha Binte Mohamed Hisham, Andree Hartanto

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming increasingly embedded within forensic psychological practice, shaping how criminal risk, legal responsibility and public safety are assessed. AI tools are now used in recidivism prediction, behavioural analysis, deception detection and investigative support, high-stakes domains where errors can have profound consequences. Despite this rapid adoption, the existing literature remains fragmented, with most reviews confined to narrow subdomains and offering limited integrated synthesis of AI′s broader role in forensic psychology. Thus, this umbrella review addresses this gap by synthesising findings from 43 reviews obtained from five major databases, namely EBSCOhost ERIC, EBSCOhost PsycInfo, PubMed, Scopus and Web …

Caring With Ai: The Efficacy Of A Customised Chatgpt-Delivered Self-Compassion Intervention On College Students' Well-Being And Academic Functioning, Tracy Xi Chen, Chi-Ying Cheng, Andree Hartanto

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

College students face various challenges, including academic pressure, social stress, and the transition into adulthood, which can lead to increased anxiety and other mental health issues. By recognizing personal struggles as part of a shared human experience and responding with kindness, self-compassion serves as a powerful strategy for enhancing resilience, facilitating better well-being and performance outcomes. Although effective, Compassion-Focused Therapy often requires substantial resources and time, limiting its applicability to college students. To overcome these barriers, the current study designed and evaluated Your Self-Compassion Companion, a ChatGPT-powered AI chatbot intervention grounded in self-compassion theory and delivered over three weekly 20-min …

The Ambivalent Wisdom Of Moral Disgust, Brandon Yip

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

This paper has two aims. First, to provide a positive account of moral disgust. I suggest that moral disgust is a response to acts that are socially corrosive, namely, acts that undermine the normative structure to which an agent is attuned. I support this analysis with two lines of evidence: (1) moral disgust serves the important function of guarding normative structures from socially corrosive actions and (2) the analysis provides an illuminating explanation of moral disgust in a wide variety of cases. The secondary aim of this paper is to probe the normative implications of my positive account. I suggest …

An Evaluation Of Staff Training To Teach Implementation Of Functional Analysis Of Inappropriate Mealtime Behavior, Lauren Marie Lightner

Theses and Dissertations

Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID) along with other feeding disorders are prevalent in both neurotypical children along with children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and other developmental disabilities. Children with feeding challenges often exhibit inappropriate mealtime behavior (IMB) to avoid consuming non-preferred foods. It is pertinent to determine the function of IMB in order to create an efficacious treatment; one such assessment is the functional analysis (Iwata et al. 1982/1994). Iwata et al. (2000) taught students how to implement a functional analysis of self-injurious behavior using behavioral skills training. Since the assessment’s development, it has been extended to various …

Predicting Student Belonging In Computing Education: A Multimodal Machine Learning Approach Using Eeg And Survey Data, Hannah Moshtaghi

Master's Theses

Measuring students’ sense of belonging, characterized by feelings of acceptance, inclusion, and encouragement from teachers, remains a significant challenge in computing education. Prior research has associated this multidimensional construct with positive academic outcomes and has identified instructors’ growth- and fixed-mindset messaging as a potential influence. However, belonging is a complex and deeply personal experience that is difficult to capture through direct observation alone. Current measurement methods rely on self-report surveys, which may not capture every aspect of an experience that can also involve emotional and cognitive responses.

This thesis investigates whether combining EEG data recorded during a belonging questionnaire with …