Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Gender Differences In Co-Rumination Processes In The Friendships Of Late Adolescents: Relations To Depression Vulnerability, Helen J. Day

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The primary aim of this study was to investigate gender differences in problem content and dyadic problem talk duration as potential contributors to previously documented depressogenic effects of co-rumination in late adolescence. Participants (N = 176 undergraduate students) included pairs of same-gender female (n = 37), same-gender male (n = 15), and cross-gender (n = 36) friends who completed self-report measures assessing individual depressive symptom severity, as well as within-dyad co-rumination habits and friendship quality. Dyads also participated in an observational problem talk task, which asked each dyad member to identify a current personal problem and discuss it with …

The Role Of Perceived Control And Cardiac Function Among Individuals With Binge Eating Symptomatology, Rachel E. Goetze

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The central aim of this study was to investigate the predictive role of perceived control in binge eating severity, mood reactivity, and possible concomitants with reduced cardiovascular function as measured by high frequency heart rate variability (HF-HRV/RSA). Participants (N = 75) included normal to overweight men and women who completed self-report measures assessing perceived control, binge eating severity, perceived stress, negative affect, and depressive symptom severity prior to a structured clinical interview and second experimental laboratory session. During this second experimental lab session, noninvasive electrical sensors were placed for physiological recordings to measure fluctuations in HF-HRV/RSA in participants randomized to …

Examining Links Between Social Anxiety And Relational Aggression In Adolescence: The Influence Of Rumination And Anger, Shannon L. Brothers

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Social anxiety is linked to more covert forms of aggressive behavior, particularly reactive and relational aggression in early adolescent and young adult samples. Adolescents with social anxiety and those who engage in reactive relational aggression are also more likely to have difficulties regulating emotions (e.g., anger) and show maladaptive cognitive coping styles (e.g., rumination). The goal of the present study was to assess the relationship between social anxiety and reactive relational aggression in adolescents (14-17 years), combining the form and function of aggression, and to examine trait anger and anger rumination as underlying factors that may explain the relationship between …

The Efficacy Of Equine Assisted Therapy In The Treatment Of Autism Spectrum Disorders, Amy Hofmann

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the effects of equine-assisted psychotherapies in children with an autism spectrum disorder. The CARS-2 and Children’s Sleep Habits Questionnaire parent-report questionnaires were used for evaluation, as well open-ended questions. A single researcher contacted and visited many PATH-certified centers in the United States. Facilities that participated were all located in the Mid-Atlantic to Northeast region. There were 16 participants, from 11 different farms, that completed both the initial and follow-up questionnaires which were given 7 weeks apart. A $25 Amazon gift card was used as an incentive to increase participation. Participating facilities also completed a questionnaire.

Overall, results …

Wireless Sensor System For Mild Cognitive Impairment Diagnosis, Ahmed A. Almaghasilah Mr

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Alzheimer’s disease (AD), which causes decline in the cognitive functions, is the

major lead of dementia. AD begins showing damage in memory, making patients

dependent on caregivers. Treating AD requires early diagnosis of its signs. The

initial sign of AD is mild cognitive impairment (MCI), which is the middle stage

between a healthy patient and one diagnosed with AD. The proposed sleep

monitoring system is capable of diagnosing MCI symptoms.

MCI patients are characterized with sleep fragmentation and sleep disorder. The

sleep fragmentation is defined as awakenings that interrupt the normal sleep. The

proposed system in this thesis uses force …

Behaviors And Perceptions Of Environmental Decision Making: The Role Of Information Dissemination Through Public Disclosures And Labels, Jordan R. Anthony

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Environmental decision making may be influenced by information and how this information has been disseminated. By recognizing that information needs to be salient to the individual (Cash et al., 2003, 2006), tailored and framed to the individual (Pelletier & Sharp, 2008), and recognizing that the information must be presented in a way that the individual is ready and able to accept the information (Teisl, Rubin, & Noblet, 2008) all serve as a means to improve the effect information has on environmental decision making. Through this work, two studies of contextual examples of how information dissemination affects environmental decision making are …