Psychology Commons^™

Essays On Mental Accounting And Consumers' Decision Making, Ali Besharat

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation is structured in the form of two empirical essays, each investigating one type of irrational decision caused by mental accounting. The first essay, titled "Managing the Cost of Multiple Debt Accounts: A Behavioral Perspective", explores why many people pay off credit cards' with the lowest rate first when rationally speaking they should repay the debt with the highest rate most quickly. This essay suggests that irrationality emerges when people seek to close `mental accounts' associated with their credit cards and reduce the total number of outstanding loans rather than decrease the amount of total debt among all credit …

Irruptions Of The Sacred In A “World Of Shit”: Profanity, Sacred Words, And Cinematic Hierophanies In Stanley Kubrick’S Full Metal Jacket (1987), Joseph E. Bisson

Journal of Religion & Film

Full Metal Jacket remains embedded in the consciousness of the popular culture mainly because of its abundance of profane language, violent imagery, and salacious set pieces. The juxtaposition of profane language and imagery with sacred language and religious symbolism reveals that Kubrick’s Vietnam film has powerful religious overtones that comprise an important element of the film’s critique of homo religiosus and the modern human condition. By continually juxtaposing the sacred and profane, Kubrick created “cinematic hierophanies” that advanced a cultural critique that inventively integrated ideas from some of the mid-20^th Century’s greatest interpreters of myths -- Carl Jung, Joseph …

Levels Of Altruism, Martin Zwick, Jeffrey Alan Fletcher

Systems Science Friday Noon Seminar Series

The phenomenon of altruism extends from the biological realm to the human sociocultural realm. This paper sketches a coherent outline of multiple types of altruism of progressively increasing scope that span these two realms and are grounded in an ever-expanding sense of “self.” Discussion of this framework notes difficulties associated with altruisms at different levels. It links scientific ideas about the evolution of cooperation and about hierarchical order to perennial philosophical and religious concerns. It offers a conceptual background for inquiry into societal challenges that call for altruistic behavior, especially the challenge of environmental and social sustainability.

This talk was …

Predictors Of Latino Mothers' Involvement In Their Children's Education, Liza Maria Arango

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Parental involvement has a major influence on students' academic and overall success; however, Latino parents tend to be less involved than non-Latino parents. Additionally, Latino students have higher dropout rates than other ethnic groups, and their continued underachievement is of great concern to many educators. The purpose of this study is to better understand Latino mothers' involvement and identify the precursor factors that may influence these mothers' involvement in their children's education. Specifically, the study investigated specific family factors that may potentially impact Latino mothers' involvement at school and at home (i.e., mothers' number of years residing in the U.S., …

Senior Class Speaker 94th Commencement Address, Brenner Green

Commencement Addresses

Brenner Green told his classmates of his personal journey, and that "I’ve come to realize that the College’s mission and values are a big part of my journey. Conn “seeks to support and nurture intellectual, emotional, spiritual, creative, and physical development of its student body.” And that’s just what it did for me.

'I Am Rooted, But I Flow': Virginia Woolf And 20th Century Thought, Emily Lauren Hanna

Scripps Senior Theses

My thesis is about Virginia Woolf’s novels, Mrs. Dalloway, The Waves, and To the Lighthouse. I examine these novels in relation to the theories of Henri Bergson, William James, and Sigmund Freud, and the groundwork of Modernism. I relate Woolf's use of water imagery and stream of consciousness technique to Bergson’s theory of “la durée,” or psychological, subjective time, James’ “stream of consciousness” theory in psychology, and Freud’s theory of the “oceanic” feeling of religious experience.

Conversion Theory Through The Cognitive Science Of Religion Lense In A Christian-Muslim Context, Jennifer A. Garcia

Scripps Senior Theses

The Cognitive Science of Religion (CSR) in recent years is beginning to become more popular. This project evolves around the development of the field as well as critiques of the field. Because of the interdisciplinary nature of CSR, it lends an interesting way to understand religion as well as religious experiences. One of those religious experiences, conversion, is examined and explored through the use of conversion narratives from western women who were formally Christian but converted to Islam. Many themes arise out of this research that paves the way for trying to understand religious experiences. Overall, the project focuses on …

Beliefs And Coping With Life Stress Among Uconn Students, John Paul Beninato

Honors Scholar Theses

Previous studies of religion and coping have looked at how an event can strengthen or weaken beliefs. However, few studies have explicitly examined the linkages between beliefs, coping strategies, and well-being. In an attempt to look at this more closely, the present study surveyed 193 undergraduates that believe or do not believe in God to see how they report coping with stress. The relationships between beliefs in God, worldview beliefs, different levels of life satisfaction, psychological well-being, and coping methods after a stressful event were also assessed in this study. We expected that stronger beliefs in a benevolent world, control, …

Using Music To Study: Variables That Affect A Student's Incorporation Of Music In Their Academic World, Kelly Perez

Honors Scholar Theses

This study reports relationships made between a student’s personality and his or her preferences to use music while studying. Other behaviors regarding music in a non-academic setting are also discussed. Data from 67 participants suggest that highly organized individuals show a tendency to use music for studying and to make use of playlists they created. They use music to enhance their mood. Many of the dimensions that describe agreeable people are related to using music for academic purposes, but also highly correlated to studying with other people. The results suggest that the way we use music in our lives is …

Designing An "Information-Experience" Using Creativity Science Theory And Tools, Stephanie Belhomme

Creativity and Change Leadership Graduate Student Master's Projects

An “information-experience” encapsulated by a technological/digital audio-visual tool presents data and potentially meaningful information to prompt actionable knowledge concerning: “unspoken creative process elements;” their profound impacts on both how well our “physiology of creativity” functions; but also on how well foundational creative thinking and behavioral prerequisites (energy, motivation, imagination, and ownership) are leveraged.

The product: 1) introduces the user to one component of the CPS (Creative Problem Solving) Facilitation Process - Exploring the Challenge; 2) features a content specific component which prompts exploration of the many correlations between societal, organizational / community, human physiological / behavioral data, and the direct …

Altered States Of Consciousness & The Creative Individual: Breaking The Affective Thinking Skills Paradigm, Dana M. Calanan

Creativity and Change Leadership Graduate Student Master's Projects

This project focuses on the affective side of creative thinking and creating a bridge to the cognitive side. It presents the personal transformation of the author using non-drug induced altered states of consciousness. The finished project includes the beginnings of a holistic creative problem solving model and a workshop which will assist those wishing to become more creatively productive or are looking for a way to creatively self-heal.

Keywords: Creative healing, shamanism, psychedelia, holistic creativity, creative problem solving, Thinking Skills Model, altered states of consciousness, affective thinking skills.

Promoting Healthy Body Image In College Men: An Evaluation Of A Psychoeducation Program, Justin Henderson

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Current psychological research indicates that men are increasingly dissatisfied with their bodies (e.g., McCabe & Ricciardelli 2004; Olivardia, Pope, Borowiecki, & Cohane, 2004). The consequences of body image concerns range from mild discontent (e.g., body dissatisfaction) to the more pathological (e.g., muscle dysmorphic disorder, steroid use, and eating disorders). College-age men are at particular risk of body image disturbances. Drawing from body image research and theory, a one session prevention intervention was designed for college men to address this growing concern. The prevention intervention was intended to serve as a preliminary step into men’s body image prevention programming. The intervention …

Humor Me To Heaven: Humor's Redemptive Role In The Works Of Eudora Welty, Flannery O'Connor, And Marilynne Robinson, Stephanie Johnson

Masters Theses

Humor is the topic of many psychological, social, and cultural studies, but this project examines humor under a new lens. Humor's unique qualities explored in this study prove that humor is capable of more than just causing laughter; the nature of humor allows it to unveil truths about humanity, both spiritual and physical, through exposing man's flaws. This quality is especially important to consider when analyzing humor in the context of literature, in which humor also works as an aesthetic element. This study searches several short stories by Eudora Welty and Flannery O'Connor along with Marilynne Robinson's Gilead to reveal …

Knowledge, Attitudes And Skills Related To Disabilities Among Psychologists - Are We Competent To Practice In This Multicultural Domain?, Sharon M. Mclennon

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

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Ministry Of Memories: Keys To Pastoral Care Of Non-Cognitive Persons, Reginald Corfield

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This work is intended to examine and study the theological and moral reasons to provide pastoral care to persons who have limited or no cognition. Dementia, Alzheimer's, certain other medical conditions and the aging process cause a loss of brain function that affects memory, thinking, behavior and judgment. Most Clergy wrestle with the fact as to whether there is any purpose in ministering to such persons especially when there is no verbal or non-verbal response. This paper involves surveys, research, collection of historical and biblical data and medical science to evaluate the disease process and explore ways in which to …

Disgust Sensitivity, Sexual Trauma History, And Female Sexual Functioning, Tara Mcgahan

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Sexual dysfunctions are a common problem for women that negatively impact quality of life (Laumann, Paik, & Rosen 1999). A history of sexual trauma is associated with an increase in sexual difficulties (Neumann et al., 1996). One common reaction to unwanted sexual contact is disgust (Whealin & Barnett, 2010). However, the role of disgust in the relationship between sexual trauma and female sexual dysfunction has not been examined. This study explored how disgust and a history of sexual trauma related to different domains of sexual functioning (desire, arousal, lubrication, orgasm, satisfaction, and pain). Furthermore, this study assessed whether disgust mediated …

Determining Multidimensional Gender: Development And Psychometrics Of A Measurement Instrument, Karyl Lounsbery

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Gender identity is often thought of only as a binary construct, masculine and feminine, despite the fact that there are many people who do not see themselves as fitting this dichotomy (Rochman, 2006). Within the counseling field, it is likely that every counselor will eventually see someone who will be struggling with issues of gender identity (Ehrensaft, 2011). The introduction of the Arkansas Multidimensional Gender Scale (AMGS) will show there is a much broader scope of gender identity, more in line with the idea that all gender identities are normal and that there are as many gender identities as there …

Power Evokes Reluctance For Group-Relevant Advocacy Among Marginalized Groups, John C. Blanchar

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Marginalized groups face difficulties voicing their interests. They are perceived as more self-interested, biased, and excessive for advocacy relative to majority groups. While such accusations are intimidating in their own right, powerful members of marginalized groups may be especially sensitive to reprisals in response to advocacy. The present research highlights the ironic role of power on group-relevant advocacy among marginalized groups; identity-based pressures dissuade advocacy because it is personally costly. An Internet study and one lab study examined the effect of high and low power primes on women's self-reported and actual willingness for group-relevant advocacy. Data support my hypothesis that …

Concordance Of Vocational Interest And Efficacy Of Female College Students Pursuing A Traditional Career Path, Priscilla A. Walton

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Women make up a considerable portion of the 21st century workforce. Despite the increase in the labor force, the Census Bureau continues to reflect that the majority of women are employed in what are defined as traditionally female occupations (Watson, Quatman & Edler, 2002). Even though the proportion of women in the work force has increased, women continue to be underrepresented in high-paying, high status professions that have been traditionally male dominated (Betz, 1994). Significant research has been devoted to understanding the unique variables which affect women's career choices and behaviors. According to Fitzgerald, Fassinger, and Betz (1995), women's vocational …

Exploring The Morality Of Arthur Miller And Elia Kazan To Show How It Affected Their Work, Friendship And Society, Dale D. Parry

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The purpose of this study is to explore the moral convictions, or the lack of same, in the personal character of Arthur Miller and Elia Kazan and to show how those convictions affected not only their work and personal friendship but society as well. They first met in 1946 when Harold Clurman of the Group Theater passed to Kazan a Miller play that he had read entitled All My Sons. With the success of the play, the two became fast friends and collaborators in profession and ideology. Each had in common the Great Depression, problem fathers, marital instability and Communism. …

Problem Solving In Latino Families, Eliza Torres

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this dissertation is to learn if the quality of problem solving, parent engagement, and child engagement improve as a result of participating in a parenting intervention. The quality of problem solving was coded by independent observers watching a 5-minute videotaped task. Parent and child engagement were also coded by an observer and were evident in behaviors such as making eye contact, using good social skills, using humor, minimizing problems, and showing empathy were also rated by individual coders who were blinded to treatment/control groups. Each parent-child pair had a total of three scores, one for each variable …

Expatriates' Acculturation Strategies: Going Beyond "How Adjusted Are You?" To "How Do You Adjust?", Matthew Lineberry

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Expatriates' degree of adjustment to living and working in a foreign country is well-accepted as an important outcome variable in expatriate management research. However, measures of degree of adjustment do not capture the breadth of strategies expatriates may use to achieve such adjustment, which may be critical for understanding whether expatriates have achieved a healthy and productive orientation to life abroad. Borrowing from research on immigrant populations, this study examines the construct of expatriate acculturation strategies, which characterize expatriates' mode of adjustment along two independent dimensions reflecting maintenance of one's home culture and engagement of the host culture, respectively. One …

The Role Of Dysregulation In Pediatric Obsessive Compulsive Disorder: An Examination Of Symptom Severity, Impairment And Treatment Outcome, Joseph F. Mcguire

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Pediatric OCD is frequently complicated by co-occurrences with ADHD, mood and anxiety disorders. Although each of these disorders is associated with impaired self-regulation, there has been little examination of impaired self-regulation (i.e., dysregulation) in youth with OCD. Dysregulation is characterized by affective, behavioral and cognitive problems, and can be assessed using the Child Behavior Checklist-Dysregulation Profile (CBCL-DP). Dysregulation may help account for the varied yet related findings identified for symptom severity, impairment and treatment outcome in pediatric OCD. This study examined the role of dysregulation on symptom severity, impairment and treatment outcome in a large sample of youth with OCD. …

What Propels Sexual Homicide Offenders? Testing An Integrated Theory Of Social Learning And Routine Activities Theories, Heng Choon Chan

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Sexual homicide is a rare occurrence. Little is known about the offending perspective of sexual homicide from a criminological standpoint. Recently, Chan, Heide, and Beauregard (2011) proposed an integrative theoretical framework using concepts and propositions of Social Learning Theory (differential association, definitions, differential reinforcement or punishment, and imitation) and Routine Activities Theory (a motivated offender, an attractive and suitable target, and the absence of a capable guardian or guardianship) to elucidate the sexual homicide offending dynamics. According to this integrative model, the individual-level view of the sexual murderers is explained by …

Art And Space: Impacting The Workplace, Erin V. Mccool

Senior Honors Theses

Art in its various forms and applications has always been a part of the human experience. Art can be intrusive, thought provoking, or simply beautiful. Although art comes in many different styles and forms, art continues to capture our imagination. The purposes of this thesis are to discover how art affects human activity in the workplace as well as the qualities that make artwork in the workplace successful. Based on the findings of this study, artwork will be created for the Center for the Advancement of Faculty Excellence at Liberty University in order to create a lively, creative environment. By …

From Immortal To Mortal: Objectification And Perceptions Of A Woman's Soul, Nathan A. Heflick

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Abstract

Objectification most literally refers to perceiving a person as an object. Research shows that when people focus on a woman's appearance, compared to her personality, she is perceived of as more of an object (e.g., lower in human nature traits). These objectification effects, however, rarely occur for male targets. Moreover, humans, unlike objects, are typically believed to have a soul, that is, some part of the self that outlasts the death of the physical body and extends into a post-mortem existence (e.g., Heaven). In turn, I hypothesized that women, but not men, would be perceived as having less soul …

Predator-Based Fear Conditioning: A Novel Approach To The Study Of The Neurobiology Of Memory, Joshua D. Halonen

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This series of experiments developed novel paradigms involving the integration of conventional and ethologically relevant forms of reinforcement in the study of fear conditioning in rats. Experiment 1 compared the effects of foot shock, immobilization and predator exposure, alone and in combination, on the expression of conditioned fear memory and extinction. The combination of all 3 reinforcers produced a significantly stronger fear memory and greater resistance to extinction, compared to when each reinforcer was administered alone. Furthermore, whereas conditioning with foot shock, alone, resulted in rapid extinction of the fear memory, the combination of immobilization and cat exposure, or all …

Sexuality And Body Image, Ryan Sallans

Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Queer Center

Ryan Sallans discusses the relationship between body image and sexuality; Sallans breaks down sexuality into five main categories: sensuality, intimacy, sexualization, sexual health and reproduction and sexual identity. His talk looks at how the mass media idealizes the hourglass shape for women’s bodies, only 8 percent of women actually have that body type; GLBT Center; LGBTQ Center; Ryan Sallans; 171717ththth Annual LGBTIQQ Symposium; Connected CommunitiesConnected Communities

Diagnosing The Demonic, David W. Appleby

Faculty Publications and Presentations

One of the most difficult tasks for a therapist is to determine whether a client’s difficulty is psychologically based or spiritually based. Scripture shows us that virtually any physical, psychological, or social symptoms might be attributed to demonic spirits. The enemy attacks on all possible fronts, which complicates the whole process of diagnosis. The most accurate diagnoses come not from looking only at symptoms, but at predictive life experiences. If the individual has opened certain doors there is an increased probability that demonic involvement is present. These include (1) generational curses, oaths, and soul ties, (2) occult involvement, (3) trauma …

Ciis Today, Spring 2012 Issue, Ciis

CIIS Today

This volume is the Spring 2012 issue of CIIS Today, the Magazine of the California Institute of Integral Studies