Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Closedmindedness As A Predictor Of Individual Decision-Making Behaviors, Annette I. Jolin

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to examine whether closemindedness is related to decision-making behaviors. The decision-making variables in this study were: Pieces of Information, Decision Change, Decision Confidence, Decision Accuracy and, post hoc, Decision Appropriateness. The measures of decision-making behaviors were obtained from four decision situations developed by the experimenter. Closemindedness was assessed using Rokeach's (1960) Dogmatism (D) scale.

The Ontogeny And Organization Of Comfort Behavior In Adelie Penguins, Marc Bekoff, David G. Ainley, Anne Bekoff

Ethology Collection

No abstract provided.

A Validation Study For The Position Of Bank Teller Utilizing The Job Matching System, Richard Dennis Newcomb

Master's Theses

This study attempted to validate the Job Matching System utilizing both objective and subjective proficiency measure. The participants were tellers from two area banks. It was found that the Match Index scores (r) that were obtained from the administration of the Life Activities Inventory could be used to predict success on the jo (with success defined as above or below average proficiency levels_ whether objective or subjective it was shown that the Job matching System, with certain notation, did not show adverse impact for any of the minority groups included in this study. Certain limitations upon the results of this …

The Bender-Gestalt Test As A Measure Of Creative Production, Craig Logan House

Dissertations and Theses

This study attempted to define creativity in terms of objective, visible products of behavior. An existing psychological instrument, the Bender-Gestalt Test (BGT) was modified in presentation and scoring methods into a test of creative production. This test was chosen because of its similarity to some existing tests of creative production and its theoretical relationship to the associative model of creative production. It was combined with the Making Objects Test (MO) and the Remote Associations Test (RAT) into a three test battery and administered to 90 college students. The three tests were scored and the results correlated with each other to …

The Interruption Of The Developmental Tasks Through Pregnancy In The Female Adolescent, Suzanne Epstein, Kathleen Perkins

Dissertations and Theses

There is much information about the incidence of adolescent pregnancy yet little attention has been directed to how this process will interrupt the working towards or completion of the developmental tasks of adolescence. It is our belief that completion of these tasks is crucial in relation to moving into the next stage, adulthood.

Public interest and concern for the contemporary needs of pregnant adolescents and school age parents as a special group is still fairly novel. Survey findings revealed that adolescent parents still have great need for infant day care services, direct financial assistance, housing arrangements, education, and parenting education. …

An Investigation Of The Consistency Of Stimulus Overselection Of Autistic Children, Patricia O'Meara Walker

Dissertations and Theses

A review of the literature indicated that not all of the research in the area of overselectivity of autistic children has been in agreement. It does seem evident that some autistic children overselect. This could be the result of an attentional factor or a modality preference. This has important implications for the education of autistic children. In the light of the inconsistency of autistic children's reactions to sensory stimuli this investigator believed there was a need to determine if overselection is consistent before referring to the overselected modality as a preferred modality or comparing overselected modalities with the child's mode …

The Influence Of A Diverse Relaxation Training Program Upon A Measure Of Anxiety, Julie A. Joseph

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Fourteen subjects from among the student and staff population complaining of anxiety, volunteered to participate in a relaxation training program. The subjects were referred by the University Counseling Center, the Office of Undergraduate Advisement, or responded to an article and advertisement published in the school newspaper. Assignment to control or experimental groups was based on date of response and availability for participation. The experimental group, which consisted of eight subjects, received training in deep muscle relaxation, electromyography, skin temperature, and concomitant biofeedback, and systematic desensitization over a three week period. The controls received no relaxation training. Both groups were administered …

Children's Test Behavior And Examiner Bias On The Wechsler Intelligence Scale For Children, Charesa Mae Kirchner

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study was designed to investigate the effect of chi1dren 1s test behavior on examiners' scoring, questioning, and confidence in test resu1ts. The variables under investigation were leve1 of inte11igence and extraversion-introversion as operationally defined in terms of sociabi1ity, response speed, and persistence. E1even-year-old male accomplices read scripts containing responses to the Verba1 Scale of the WISC and operationally defined test behaviors. The test responses to the Verba1 Scale of the WISC were designed to yield superior (IQ= 128) or average (IQ= 97) test scores by varying the quality of test responses. Extravert-Introvert test behaviors independent of the scoring of …

The Relationship Of A Counselor-Guided Meditation To Counselor Presence As Defined In Psychosynthesis, David Bradley Green

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study was designed to investigate the relationship, in a counseling session, of an initial guided meditation by a counselor to presence, a core condition of counseling and psychotherapy as defined in psychosynthesis. Presence consists of two variables--the quality of the therapeutic relationship and the ability of the counselor or therapist to disidentify from his or her personality and become identified as a 11 Self. 11 The quality of the therapeutic relationship was measured by the Barrett-Lennard Relationship Inventory. Counselor disidentification-"Self"identification was assessed by the number of distracting thoughts, feelings, and body sensations experienced by the counselor during the counseling …

Teachers' Attributions For Children's Performance: The Effects Of Sex Of The Performer, Sex Typing Of The Task, And Grade, Joan Elizabeth Albrecht Riedle

Psychology ETDs

Seventeen teachers from each of the fourth, sixth, and ninth grades completed questionnaires which presented information about children from the teachers’ grade level whose academic performances varied along three within-subjects factors: sex of the child, sex-typing of the task, and outcome. Teachers also classified possible explanations (attributes) for the children’s performances along internal/external and stable/unstable dimensions. The attributes were defined consistently with their theoretical definitions, with the exception that the unstable attributes were rated as more internal than the stable attributes. On objective ratings of the attributes, girls’ successes were attributed to effort and the specific task, negatively implying that …

Variables Effecting College Enrollment Or Nonenrollment, Randy Jay Mendelson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this study was to determine the reasons why students did not enroll at Utah State in the fall quarter of 1978 when they had listed the university as their first choice among institutions to attend. An equally important purpose was to determine whether or not there were differences in the personal characteristics of the enrolled and nonenrolled groups.

Both students who entered U.S.U. in the fall quarter of 1978 and those who failed at that time to enroll served as samples for the study. A random sample of 150 students per group, 300 students altogether, was employed …

A Comparative Study Of Kibbutz Children's And City Children's Concepts Of Family And Self Within The Family, Rachel Tal

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this study was to determine if any significant difference existed between kibbutz and city children in terms of their concept of family and concept of self within the family.

The subjects chosen for the investigation consisted of 51 pupils in the third and fourth grades from two communities in Israel. The two communities were a kibbutz community and a middle class small suburb community. Raw score data were obtained for the investigation from two testing devices. The Draw-A-Family Test (DAF) was used here in order to gain insight to the subjects' perception of the two concepts under …

A Test Of Two Theories Of The Necker Cube Reversal Illusion, Phillip Powers Woodson Jr.

Master's Theses

The Necker cube reversal illusion was used to test the satiational and constructional theories of this illusion in an experimental paradigm. The paradigm involved one group of 51 university students who were tested under three experimental conditions. All three test sessions involved their watching a Necker cube for a continuous 2 minute period. Each session was separated by at least a 1-day interval. One session involved the plain cube. Another session involved a fixation mark in the center of the cube and a third session had the mark sequentially appearing in four different locations in the central region of the …

Field Dependence And Recall Of Related And Unrelated Lists Of Words, Lynda L. King

Master's Theses

This study dealt with the particular cognitive style known as field-independence and field-dependence as an influential factor upon the number of words recalled from categorized and uncategorized lists of words across three trials. After being tested for cognitive style using Witkin's Group Embedded Figures Test, 6 subjects from each of three identified styles, field-independent, medium, and field-dependent, were given a related (categorized) list of words while 6 different subjects from each of the cognitive styles were given an unrelated (uncategorized) list of words. Each word list was presented three times with recall after each trial for every subject being recorded. …

Criteria For The Selection Of Students Into A Counseling Program: A Review Of Literature, Douglas N. Reeder

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

In his paper, "Graduate Education in Psychology - A Passionate Statement" Carl Rogers (1957) has stated, 'We are doing an unintelligent, ineffectual and wasteful job of preparing psychologists, to the detriment of our discipline and society. “” He further stated, 'We should be selecting and training individuals for creative effectiveness in seeking out and discovering the significant new knowledge which is meeded." He then examines ten implicit assumptions on which programs of graduate education appear to be based, showing them to be totally inadequate in training future psychologists. It is time to reevaluate the purpose, procedure, and content of graduate …

A Behavioral Study Of Maternal-Infant Interaction With Focus On Infant Attachment And Infant Cognition, Bruce Mcnickle

Student Work

This study examined the interactions between 15 maternal-infant dyads using an operant learning format with special emphasis on the relationship of infant attachment to maternal behaviors, specifically the securityinsecurity dimension of infant attachment. Observations of maternal-infant interactions were made each month from infant ages 9 months to 12 months. Maternal and infant behaviors were coded and each category was scored for frequency and duration of behavior with an Esterline-Angus Event Recorder. Maternal ratios of responding and latency in responding to infant behaviors were calculated from the Esterline-Angus charts. Infants were administered several cognition tests and an attachment test, while mothers …

Utah High School Sophomore Attitudes Toward Women's Roles And Non-Traditional Vocational Career Choices, Ellen S. Walch

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Role behaviors for men and women in our society are undergoing change. Research data to reveal student attitudes toward these role behaviors and choices were needed for the development of strategies to eliminate sex bias and sex stereotyping in our educational programs and ultimately in the socialization process.

The purpose of the study was to collect research data to determine Utah high school student attitudes toward women's roles and non-traditional vocational career choices. The survey instrument used to collect the data was constructed, pilot tested, factor analyzed, and revised prior to its administration to the sample. The revised instrument contained …

The Effects Of The Physical Attractiveness Stereotype On Therapists' Perceptions Of Clients, Todd S. Larsen

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of the present study was two-fold: (1) to determine whether the ratings a client receives on measures of likeableness, psychological effectiveness, and prognostic outcome differ as a result of the client's perceived level of physical attractiveness (high or low) and, (2) to determine whether the level of professional training in clinical/counseling psychology possessed by the raters mediates these effects.

To achieve these purposes, four groups of subjects (varying in level of training in clinical/counseling psychology) listened to the same 12-minute audio-tape excerpt of an actual initial interview with a client. Half the subjects in each group viewed a …

The Effects Of Abrupt And Graduated Temporal Reductions On Academic Behavior, James Pezzino

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The author investigated the effects of abrupt and graduated temporal reductions on academic performance. Six elementary school children who were referred to a remedial special education classroom received token reinforcement contingent on the number of correct math problems answered during daily sessions. A multiple baseline across subjects design with replication of baseline and experimental conditions was employed. The design also balanced the order of exposure to an abrupt reduction in time limits (20 - 5 - 20 min.) and a graduated sequence of time reductions (20 - 15 - 10 - 5 - 20 min.). Children also performed copying tasks …

Effects Of Varying The Opportunity To Attack During A Fixed-Time Schedule, Phillip G. Muller

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Three White King pigeons were exposed to a fixed-time 120-second food delivery schedule and a live target pigeon. In order to evaluate whether induced aggression can take place in time periods other than immediately after food delivery, the target bird could be attacked (l) throughout the interfood interval; (2) after fixed post-food times had elapsed, or (3) after random post-food times had elapsed. When target availability was continuous or limited to random 30-second periods of the interfood interval, attacking was greatest after food delivery and decreased thereafter. Attacking did not predominate in any 15-second target access period occurring 15, 45, …

The Institutionalization Of The Aged, Cynthia E. Allen

Honors Theses

This study, "The Institutionalization of the Aged", deals with several aspects of institutionalization in order to determine how both the physical and psychological needs of the elderly are currently being met and how the present situation can be improved. The topics covered include the process of entering an institution, the problems of institutional living, the types of programs available in institutions, the process of leaving an institution, and some possible improvements in institutional life. These topics are studied by researching the current literature on aging that deals with institutionalization. From the research, it appears that the elderly have many special …

A Sex Comparison Of Job Satisfaction For Middle Management: Individual And Organizational Influences, Lesley J. Harlow

Retrospective Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

The Use Of Tolerance For Ambiguity And Empathic Listening Skills To Predict Conscientious Crisis Intervention Volunteers, Lois Murphy

Retrospective Theses and Dissertations

It was hypothesized that the personality variable Tolerance for Ambiguity and empathic listening skills would significantly differentiate conscientious from nonconscientious crisis intervention volunteers. A group of 20 conscientious and a group of 20 nonconscientious volunteers from a local crisis intervention center were given a test of Tolerance for Ambiguity and a test of empathic listening skills that measured Interest, Understanding, and Response-ability. Results of t-tests between the groups and correlations between the variables indicated that Tolerance for Ambiguity was not a significant differentiator between the two groups. However, it was found that conscientious volunteers had significantly higher levels of Interest …

Effect Of Sensor/Display, Target And Scene Characteristics On Detection Time In The Development Of A Target Acquisition Model, Brian Lee Silbernagel

Retrospective Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

An Analysis Of Pre And Post Employment Interview Opinions Held By Applicants In A University Job Placement Center, Robert J. Mcavoy

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

Increasing Audience Participation In Seminars, Linda J. Parrott

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

Effects Of Cue Presence, Duration And Association With Reinforcement On A Punishment Procedure, Elias Robles Sotelo

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

Communication Effectiveness And Implications For Job Satisfaction In A Retail Merchandising Corporation, Elisa S. Wierenga

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

A Behavioral Analysis Of Ethical Systems, Glen R. Peterson

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

Improving Customer Service In A Large Department Store Through The Use Of Training And Feedback, Mark G. Brown

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to increase the frequency of four specific customer-service behaviors in three full-time department store salespeople. Each related to the steps involved in a sales transaction, the behaviors recorded were: approaching and greeting customers, being courteous, and appropriately closing the sale. These four responses were defined as exceptional customer service behaviors. A training program had only a slight impact on improving service, but feedback produced a substantial improvement in the frequency of all four targeted customer-service behaviors Removal of feedback produced a small decline in performance; but the percentage of exceptional customer-service behaviors increased to …