Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

A Retrospective Insight Into Pakistan's Exchange Rate Regimes And Their Impact On The Economy, Lalarukh Ejaz, Madeeha Akhtar

Business Review

Nuclear tests carried out by Pakistan in May 1998 had a distinctive impact on the evolution of the exchange rate. This case describes what happened to the exchange rate before and after the nuclear tests and focuses on the overall impact of Pakistan’s transition from a hostile relationship with the US in the post-Cold War era to becoming an ally of the US in the war on terror. This case can be used to study the concepts of real and nominal exchange rates, the linkage between exchange rate policy and external balance, how exchange rate can be used as a …

Do Belugas (Delphinapterus Leucas), Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops Truncatus), & Pacific White-Sided Dolphins (Lagenorhynchus Obliquidens) Display Lateralized Eye Preference When Presented With Familiar Or Novel Objects?, Deirdre Yeater, Sara Guarino, Steve Lacy, Tricia Dees, Healther Hill

Psychology Faculty Publications

Lateralization of behaviors and information processing are common across species. Hypothesized to be crucial for more efficient responding to environmental stimuli, lateralization has been investigated for a number of topics. Cetaceans are proposed to be hemispheric specialists, given a small corpus callosum, complete decussation of the optic nerve, and the ability to respond to a different visual stimulus presented to each eye simultaneously. Research with cetaceans has shown strong biases in a number of behaviors, including swimming, foraging, social interactions, and responses to myriad visual stimuli. Given similar evolutionary pressures, different species of cetaceans should display similar lateralized preferences. Previous …

Implementing Integrated Care In Family Medicine: Description And Outcomes In An Underserved Population, Zach Radcliff

Theses and Dissertations

Introduction: Family physicians provide access to medical and behavioral healthcare for many underserved populations. Integrating behavioral health clinicians into primary care practices has been proposed as one of the most effective ways to increase access to necessary behavioral health services for many Americans. Integrated behavioral healthcare (IBHC) has begun to be implemented in family medicine practices but there is limited research examining the impact for patients and clinic staff. This study begins to fill this gap in the literature by examining the effects of implementing integrated behavioral healthcare in an urban family medicine clinic in a medically underserved area.

Objective: …

Risk Preference, Time Preference, And Salience Perception, Jonathan Leland, Mark Schneider

ESI Working Papers

A model of decision making is introduced that provides a unified approach for predicting choices under risk and over time. The model predicts systematic departures from expected utility and discounted utility using the same mathematical structure and the same psychological intuition and shows that a dozen diverse choice anomalies can be given a common underlying explanation. The model weights attribute differences both by their importance (consistent with expected utility and discounted utility) and by their salience or similarity (consistent with procedural models based on heuristics), and so provides a bridge between rational and heuristic representations of decision making.

A Flexible And Customizable Method For Assessing Cognitive Abilities, Andrea Civelli, Cary Deck

ESI Working Papers

Raven's Progressive Matrices are a broadly used tool for measuring cognitive ability. This paper develops and validates a set of nonverbal puzzles that can be viewed as an extension of or substitute for the well-known Ravens tasks. Specifically, we describe the characteristics of our puzzles and provide a calibration of the matrices in terms of response accuracy and response time as a function of these characteristics. Then we directly compare within-subject performance on our puzzles and Ravens tasks. Finally, we replicate a previous experimental paper, substituting our puzzles for the Ravens matrices, and show the two tools have similar predictive …

Minimal Frames And Transparent Frames For Risk, Time, And Uncertainty, Jonathan Leland, Mark Schneider, Nathaniel Wilcox

ESI Working Papers

It has been argued that behavior differs between transparent and nontransparent representations of a decision. However, the notion of a ‘transparent representation’ has not been precisely defined. We address this gap by providing formal definitions of ‘transparent frames’ for risk and time, establishing their uniqueness, presenting an approach to construct such frames, and comparing these framesto the ‘standard’ presentation format. Our typology of frames provides a logic for predicting systematic shifts in risk and time preferences as well as changes in the violation rates of rational choice theory. We conduct an experiment for choice under risk to investigate the framing …

Antidepressant-Like Effects Of Amisulpride, Ketamine, And Their Enantiomers On Differential-Reinforcement-Of-Low-Rate (Drl) Operant Responding In Male C57/Bl/6 Mice, Doug Smith

Theses and Dissertations

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a widespread psychiatric disorder that affects millions of people worldwide and is hypothesized to occur due to impairments in several neurotransmitter systems, including the monoaminergic and glutamatergic neurotransmitter systems. Antidepressant medications targeting multiple monoamine neurotransmitters have been shown to be effective for the treatment of depression. Racemic amisulpride is an atypical antipsychotic that has been used at low doses to treat dysthymia, a mild form of depression, and functions as an antagonist at DA_2/3, 5-HT_2B, and 5-HT₇ receptors. Recent preclinical studies have suggested that the S(+) isomer may be more …

The Identity Formation Of South Asians: A Phenomenological Study, Shabana Shaheen

Theses and Dissertations

This research explores the lived experiences of South Asians college students. This research, through a qualitative study that is rooted in the philosophy of phenomenology, explores the essence South Asians’ identity formation. Qualitative data was collected through semi-structured interviews with South Asian college students. The data analysis was under a phenomenological lens that centered the lived experiences and the essence of these experiences in the results. Seven themes emerged from this phenomenological study: negotiating bicultural identity, model minority expectations, meaningful impact of religious spaces, understandings of intra-community tensions, racialization of Islamophobia, understandings of South Asian identity and efficacy of Asian …

How Does Alcoholics Anonymous Affect Drinking Outcomes? A Grounded Theory Perspective, Bryan Boyles

Theses and Dissertations

The mutual aid of Alcoholics Anonymous helps more people with alcohol-related problems than all forms of clinical treatment combined. Yet, efforts to understand AA’s action have been conducted, almost exclusively, from a clinical perspective. Thus far, the literature representing Alcoholics Anonymous from the perspective of its members is very limited. This study uses qualitative content analysis of the AA literature and a grounded theory approach to AA’s fellowship to provide an insider’s perspective of change processes associated with AA involvement. This understanding of the AA literature posits that Alcoholics Anonymous involvement results in life improvement, changes in spirituality, improved well-being, …

Predictors Of Vicarious Traumatization Among Trauma Clinicians And General Mental Health Providers: A Comparison, Shaina Gulin

Theses and Dissertations

Vicarious traumatization (VT) describes the gradual, transformative shifts in internal experience that occur as a result of cumulative exposure to clients’ trauma material. VT is thought to develop in the therapist due to empathic engagement with clients, resulting in profound disruptions in frame of reference. Because VT is conceptualized as a condition that develops due to frequent exposure to clients’ traumatic material, a rapidly emerging body of theoretical literature suggests that clinicians can safeguard against VT by maintaining a more balanced workload (i.e., a caseload of clients with a variety of presenting problems) and limiting the number of trauma cases. …

Taken Back By The Ballpark: The Role Of Nostalgia In The Minor League Baseball Spectator Experience, Mark A. Slavich

Theses and Dissertations

The use of nostalgia has become a feature in baseball ballparks in recent years, with research showcasing the prevalence of nostalgic stimuli including bricks, steel beams, and old-fashioned scoreboards popular in the past. The impact of such stimuli on spectators’ emotions and behavior had yet to be explored, though. Therefore, the purpose of the current study was to investigate the impact of nostalgia on minor league baseball spectator emotional and behavioral responses.

Data collection occurred at three minor league baseball games during June 2017. Utilizing the SOR framework (Mehrabian & Russell, 1974) as the theoretical foundation, a 39-item instrument was …

Understanding Over-The-Counter Medication Use And Decision-Making Among Community-Dwelling Us Older Adults: A Mixed-Methods Approach, Yoshita Paliwal

Theses and Dissertations

Introduction

Older adults are regular consumers of over-the-counter (OTC) medications. OTC medications are generally considered safe, and convenient to use without requiring a prescription. However, the safety of an OTC medication and the final health outcome depends in part upon consumers’ perceptions, beliefs, and their decision-making about OTC medication use. The main objectives of this study were: 1) to examine the prevalence and characteristics of OTC medication use among community-dwelling US older adults (65 years and older), 2) to explore older adults’ knowledge, attitudes, beliefs and experiences about OTC medications, and 3) to elicit the OTC medication decision-making process in …

The Role Of Afrocentric Features In Mental Healthcare Utilization And Counselor Preferences In Black College Students, Randl B. Dent

Theses and Dissertations

Though mental health issues are prevalent in Black young adults, they underutilize mental healthcare services. This research examined the role of feature-based discrimination in mental healthcare (under)utilization. Study 1, a secondary analysis of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health, provided no evidence supporting a link between skin tone and mental healthcare utilization, when controlling for depression diagnosis. However, when controlling for depression symptoms, there was a trend such that Black young adults with darker, as opposed to lighter, skin tone utilized healthcare less. Study 2, an experimental study with 33 Black college students, showed 73% of the …

Pathways Linking Clinician Demographics To Mental Health Diagnostic Accuracy: An International Perspective, Julia Brechbiel

Theses and Dissertations

Significant research efforts have focused on examining the effect of patient factors on providing diagnoses across clinical settings; however, the influence of clinician demographics have received less attention. This study aimed to understand the impact of nonclinical factors such as clinician characteristics and response time on diagnostic accuracy. The study used data from a WHO field study of the ICD-11 development (n = 1822) that required clinicians to diagnose two case vignettes. Clinicians’ slower response times had a significant positive impact on their rates of diagnostic accuracy. However, there was no evidence that clinicians’ demographic features were directly related to …

Modeling Psychologists’ Openness To Performing Clinical Work With Telepsychology, Bradford S. Pierce

Theses and Dissertations

This cross-sectional study examined whether the Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA) and Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) apply to psychologists’ openness to using telepsychology, and to identify significant personal or environmental predictors of telepsychology adoption. A total of 1,791 licensed psychologists currently practicing psychotherapy in the United States were recruited to complete a previously developed 21-item pool. Personal and environmental characteristics were also collected. Path models representing the TRA, TAM, and a hybrid of both were tested. Also, a logistic regression was used to identify personal and environmental predictors of current use of telepsychology. Results indicated the TRA and TAM were …

Developing Conceptual Understanding And Procedural Fluency In Algebra For High School Students With Intellectual Disability, Andrew J. Wojcik

Theses and Dissertations

Teaching students with Intellectual Disability (ID) is a relatively new endeavor. Beginning in 2001 with the passage of the No Child Left Behind Act, the general education curriculum integrated algebra across the K-12 curriculum (Kendall, 2011; National Governors Association Center for Best Practices & Council of Chief State School Officers, 2010), and expansion of the curriculum included five intertwined skills (productive disposition, procedural fluency, strategic competence, adaptive reasoning, and conceptual understanding) (Kilpatrick, Swafford, & Findell, 2001). Researchers are just beginning to explore the potential of students with ID with algebra (Browder, Spooner, Ahlgrim-Delzell, Harris & Wakeman, 2008; Creech-Galloway, Collins, Knight, …

Using Restoration-Oriented Coping And The Dual Process Model With Bereaved Undergraduates, Farah J. Aslanzadeh

Theses and Dissertations

Approximately 60% of college seniors lost at least one family member or friend since beginning college (Cox, Dean, & Kowalski, 2015). Research reveals that bereaved students are more likely than their nonbereaved peers to struggle with academic problems and attrition (Cousins, Servaty-Seib & Lockman, 2017), highlighting the importance of identifying protective factors for this group of individuals. Researchers have identified restoration-oriented coping as a helpful coping mechanism in other samples (Caserta & Lund, 2007; Caserta, Lund, Utza, & de Vries, 2009). Despite qualitative evidence suggesting bereaved undergraduates often employ restoration-oriented coping, no research has formally assessed the effects of restoration-oriented …

The Justification Of Prejudice Toward Childfree Women, Annalucia Bays

Theses and Dissertations

Previous research suggests that women without children are perceived negatively by others and experience adverse outcomes in various settings. This study investigated psychosocial justifications of prejudice toward childfree women. Participants (N = 891) completed measures of right-wing authoritarianism (RWA), the internal (IMS-S) and external (EMS-S) motivations to respond without sexism, and prejudice toward childfree women (i.e., perceived disadvantages of being childfree, evaluations of childfree women, and perceptions of childfree women’s warmth). Most participants also completed one or more justification measures of hostile sexism (HS), benevolent sexism (BS), gender-specific system justification (GSSJ), and femininity ideology. Results indicated that greater RWA …

Managing Sociality Of A Captive Female Bornean Orangutan From Breeding To Post-Partum At The Smithsonian's National Zoo, Marie Vergamini

Theses and Dissertations

The Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ Orangutan Species Survival Plan® aims to maintain 100 Bornean orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus) in captivity. Because investment in breeding these lineages is high, properly managing sociality of potential mothers is essential. This study assessed how behaviors of a captive breeding female at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo changed from pre-gestation through the offspring’s sixth month of age to improve breeding recommendations.

The infant Bornean orangutan was born September 2016. Results indicate that during breeding, the mother socialized most with two adult females. During pregnancy, the pregnant female socialized in less energy-consuming ways, i.e. grooming. …

The Effect Of Saha On The Expression Of Genes In Wild Type And Hdac2 Knockout Mouse Models And Its Potential Use As Treatment For Schizophrenia, Maryum K. Ijaz

Theses and Dissertations

The symptoms of schizophrenia have been categorized into three subsets including positive, negative, and cognitive symptoms. Although atypical antipsychotic use has shown promising reduction in positive and negative symptoms of schizophrenia, such as hallucination, delusions and flat affect, the cognitive subset of symptoms remains and has an adverse impact on those affected. Chronic treatment with the atypical/secondary antipsychotic clozapine is one example that has ameliorated hallucinations and delusions but results in cognitive memory deficits. When chronically given in conjunction with the HDAC inhibitor, SAHA, the cognitive memory deficits of mouse models decline. HDAC2KO mice were bred and used in chronic …

What's The 411 On Sex In The African American Church? A Qualitative Exploration Of African American Girls' Exposure To Sex Communication In The Church., Brittany Berry

Theses and Dissertations

WHAT’S THE 411 ON SEX IN THE AFRICAN AMERICAN CHURCH? A QUALITATIVE EXPLORATION OF AFRICAN AMERICAN GIRLS’ EXPOSURE TO SEX COMMUNICATION IN THE CHURCH

By: Brittany M. Berry, Ph.D.

A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at Virginia Commonwealth University.

Virginia Commonwealth University, 2017.

Major Director: Dr. Faye Z. Belgrave, Professor, Psychology

The purpose of this dissertation research was to explore sex communication with African American girls in the African American Church. This research was guided by two objectives: (1) to explore African American adolescent girls’ exposure to sex communication in …

Non-Medical Use Of Prescription Drugs, Stress, Cultural Orientation, Utilization Of Healthcare, And Protective Factors Among College Students In China, Cheuk Chi Tam

Theses and Dissertations

Background: Non-medical use of prescription drugs (NMUPD) refers to the use of prescription drugs which are traditionally utilized to manage pain or treat psychiatric problems but without a doctor’s prescription. In 2010, an investigation by the Substance Use and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) revealed that 5.3% of young adults (18 to 25-year-olds) in the United States reported past-month NMUPD. NMUPD has become a growing concern owing to associations with consequences such as college dropout, poor academic achievement, and health jeopardizing behaviors. College students' NMUPD has been well documented in the United States. Limited studies, however, have been conducted among …

Examining Health Behaviors In College Students With And Without Chronic Conditions, Duc-Thi J. Barsell

Theses and Dissertations

Many college students are in a developmental period in which they are transitioning from pediatric to adult health care. This time period can be challenging for all college students and especially for students with a chronic condition. The current study investigated the association between various health-related factors (health locus of control [HLOC], health literacy, health self-efficacy, and health-related quality of life [HRQOL]) and health behaviors in college students, as well as the moderating effect of having a chronic condition on those associations. These health behaviors were further operationalized as healthy lifestyle behaviors (preventative and wellness behaviors, dietary behaviors, physical activity) …

Recovery From Design, Cassandra J. Ellison

Theses and Dissertations

Through research, inquiry, and an evaluation of Recovery By Design, a ‘design therapy’ program that serves people with mental illness, substance use disorders, and developmental disabilities, it is my assertion that the practice of design has therapeutic potential and can aid in the process of recovery. To the novice, the practices of conception, shaping form, and praxis have empowering benefit especially when guided by Conditional and Transformation Design methods together with an emphasis on materiality and vernacular form.

Three Measures Of Coping In Video Games (Civ-Iii): The Development, Construct Validation, And Profile Analysis Of The Civ-Iii, Chelsea M. Hughes

Theses and Dissertations

Video games provide a competitive, goal-oriented environment. They involve individuals who often seek intentionally to frustrate their opponents’ goals. The gaming community is made up of players who vary in their interpersonal style, learning histories, and skill levels. In this rich and dynamic environment, stress is a common experience. Given the prevalence of gameplay in the population and the frequency of gameplay among gamers, it is important to examine coping responses to stressors, particularly maladaptive ones. The present research entails three studies. In Study 1, I use exploratory factor analyses to develop three scales purported to measure maladaptive coping strategies …

Predictors Of Barriers To Psychosocial Treatment For African American Families Of Children With Adhd, Stephanie A. Wilson

Theses and Dissertations

African American families of youth with Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) traditionally have lower rates of ADHD treatment compared to nonminority groups. These treatment disparities underscore the importance of better understanding the barriers to treatment for these families. Therefore, in a sample of 67 African American caregivers of children with ADHD, the current study examined (1) factors that predict barriers to treatment for African American families of children with ADHD and (2) whether caregiver impairment mediates comorbid behavior problems and barriers to treatment for African American youth with ADHD. Analyses revealed that caregiver impairment predicted barriers to treatment and mediated the relationship …

Sticking To The Recipe: How Do Adherence And Differentiation To A Cbt Protocol Affect Client Outcomes In Youths With Anxiety?, Ruben G. Martinez

Theses and Dissertations

Objective: Understanding the pathways through which treatments work to change symptom and diagnostic outcomes is important to the development and delivery of evidence-based treatments. This study assessed the extent to which adherence (therapist’s delivery of prescribed therapeutic interventions) and differentiation (therapist’s delivery of non-prescribed therapeutic interventions) to Coping Cat, a CBT program, affected client symptom and diagnostic outcomes. Method: The Therapy Process Observational Coding System for Child Psychotherapy – Revised Strategies Scale (McLeod et al., 2015) was used to characterize therapeutic interventions delivered within and outside of the Coping Cat program with youths aged 7-15 receiving treatment in one efficacy …

Bridging The Empathy Gap: Effects Of Brief Mindfulness Training On Helping Outgroup Members In Need, Daniel R. Berry

Theses and Dissertations

Witnessing others in need can be felt similarly to experiencing it oneself (empathy) and motivates assistance of those in need (prosocial action). It is well-documented that empathy can occur automatically, but when those in need are not members of a social ingroup, empathy and prosocial action are undermined. One major ingroup—outgroup division in American and in other countries is based on race. Although most condemn racial discrimination, empathy and prosocial action are often lower, however unintentionally, in interracial contexts. In light of this empathy gap, it is important to identify psychological factors that could bolster empathy and prosocial action toward …

To Help Or Not To Help? Assessing The Impact Of Envy And Gratitude On Prosocial Behaviors, Anna Maria C. Behler

Theses and Dissertations

Envy is an other-oriented but negative emotion; no research has examined the influence of envy on prosocial behavior. Study 1 examined whether envy and gratitude would promote or inhibit prosocial behavior. I hypothesized that envy would result in less helping behavior than a neutral condition, whereas gratitude would increase helping behavior. Results supported the hypothesis that envy inhibits prosocial behavior. There was not enough evidence to suggest that gratitude promoted helping.

Study 2 examined how envy and gratitude affected prosocial behavior when participants were given the choice to help or harm others. I hypothesized that experiencing envy would result in …

Building A Bond: Longitudinal Relations Between Interpersonal School Climate, Student Awareness And Reporting Of Violence, And Peer Victimization And Aggression In Adolescents, Kathryn Behrhorst

Theses and Dissertations

High prevalence rates and negative outcomes of peer-based aggression and victimization during early adolescence underscore the need to identify causes and consequences of these outcomes. Limited research has examined the impact of environmental and contextual factors, such as school climate, on peer aggression and victimization. Few studies have addressed relations between school climate and specific subtypes of physical and relational aggression and victimization. Although school climate has been assessed via interpersonal subsystems (i.e., student-student and student-teacher relationships), little research has incorporated the role of student awareness and reporting of violence and safety concerns. Further, studies are needed that consider the …