Psychology Commons^™

A Behavioural Checklist For The Measurement Of Self-Esteem In The Classroom, Dawn Metcalfe

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The study sets out to develop a behavioural checklist for the measurement of self-esteem in the classroom. The importance of self-esteem to learning and adjustment to life's situation is well recognised by educational practitioners and theorists. This study examined the concept of self-esteem and the need for an objective instrument to measure the concept in children aged 6 to 12 years. The development of the instrument was in four phases and in every phase the input and feedback of classroom teachers was considered crucial The resulting instrument therefore comprises descriptions which are entirely teacher-generated. At several points in the process …

A Qualitative Exploration Of Women Survivors’ Disclosure Of Childhood Sexual Abuse, Joanne Dodgson

Dissertations

In clinical literature regarding adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse, disclosure of abuse is considered a vital aspect of healing (Courtois,1988; Herman, 1992). Despite the apparent significance of disclosure, few studies have been conducted to investigate this process. Integrating feminist and qualitative research perspectives, I sought to explore disclosure through the stories, language, and perspectives of women survivors. I was interested in learning about the following issues: (a) the ways in which survivors' disclosure unfolded, (b) the ways in which survivors understood and made meaning of their disclosures, and (c) the ways in which survivors' lives changed through the process …

Measuring Changes In Spontaneous Play Behavior In Preschoolers With Autism Associated With A Receptive Language Intervention, Jori Reijonen

Dissertations

Children diagnosed with Autistic Disorder have well documented deficits in the development of pretend play. When it occurs, spontaneous pretend play differs from play seen in other children in frequency, duration, and quality. The present study examined the effects of teaching preschoolers with Autism to follow one-part directions to play during discrete trial receptive language training sessions on spontaneous play skills.

Receptive language tasks were designed to teach simple pretend play skills (e.g., "Feed the doll with a spoon"). Spontaneous play was continuously sampled during free play sessions in the clinic and in the child's home before these receptive tasks …

Comment On: Sexualselection, Physical Attractiveness, And Facial Neoteny: Cross-Cultural Evidence And Implications, Bydoug Jones, L. E. Musselman, J. H. Langlois, Lori A. Roggman

Human Development and Family Studies Faculty Publications

Jones's paper is an interesting treatise on the importance of physical attractiveness for sexual selection, but several points raised in it are in need of further consideration.

An Alternating Treatments Comparison Of Two Intensive Interventions For Food Refusal., W H Ahearn, Mary Louise Kerwin, P S Eicher, J Shantz, W Swearingin

College of Science & Mathematics Departmental Research

We compared two treatment packages involving negative reinforcement contingencies for 3 children with chronic food refusal. One involved physically guiding the child to accept food contingent on noncompliance, whereas the other involved nonremoval of the spoon until the child accepted the presented food. Subsequent to baseline, an alternating treatments comparison was implemented in a multiple baseline design across subjects. After each child had been exposed to at least nine sessions of each treatment condition and percentage of bites accepted had increased to at least 80%, the child's caregivers selected the preferred treatment package. The results indicated that both treatments were …

Comparison Of Three Different Investigative Interview Techniques With Young Children, Mary Chapman

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Three programs for the testing of elementary school students' eyewitness testimonies were tested and compared. Three different types of investigative interviews were used. The first was the investigative interview currently in use by West Virginia Child Protective Services. The second was an interview procedure developed by Yuille et al. (1993) called the Step-Wise Interview. The third method was a modified version of the Step-Wise Interview, which included changes based upon recent literature. Students from developmental & experimental psychology classes were trained in one of the three techniques. First and second grade children first viewed a movie and were then interviewed …

Adolescent Suicide: The Implication Of Coping, Family Functioning And Their Interactions For Prevention And Intervention, Ronald F. Bobner, David M. Weis, Carolyn Ridenour, Pam Gulley Smith, Kathy Kormos, Ben E. Lanpher

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

It has become apparent over the past ten years that the role of the family has been identified as an increasingly significant variable with regard to adolescent suicide. Some authors go as far as to say that "family related factors appear to be, very little information is available about the family characteristics of youths that kill themselves. Furthermore, family characteristics of youths who attempt suicide are often described as a side feature of investigations of other factors, and these generally focus on the family characteristics only after an attempt has occurred. Little is known about those family factors that are …

The Kinetic Family Drawing As A Measure Of Minuchin's Structural Family Concepts Among Hispanic American Families With Substance-Abusing And Nonsubstance-Abusing Adolescents, José Osorio-Braña

Dissertations

Problem. There is a need for validation of new cultural-sensitive tests for assessing the Hispanic population in the United States that will take into account their cultural competence in the psychological evaluation practice. The purpose of this study was to explore the suitability of the Kinetic Family Drawings as a measure of Minuchin's Structural Family Theory among Hispanic American families with substance-abusing and nonsubstance-abusing adolescents.

Method. The Kinetic Family Drawing (KFD), the Structural Family Interaction Scale-Revised (SFIS-R), and the Family Adaptability and Cohesion Scales (FACES II) were administered to 141 families, 74 with an adolescent with substance-abusing problems and 67 …

Self-Concept Differences Between Bullied And Non-Bullied Children, Wendy Forrest

Theses : Honours

The purpose of this study was to compare bullied and non-bullied children in order to ascc1tain whether the two groups varied on specific self-concept factors. The theoretical position was that low self-concept was related to bullying and as such, bullied children would score lower on a stipulated self-concept test. The sample comprised fifty-three bullied and fifty-three non-bullied children from grades six to nine, selected from three large state city schools and six large state country schools with similar socio-economic status. The students were allocated to the "bullied" and "non-bullied" groups by class teachers using specified criteria. All fifty-three bullied children …

The Role Of Parental Authoritarianism And Religiosity In Child-Rearing Goals And Practices, Henry Akuoko Danso

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Do one's religion and authoritarian attitudes affect child-rearing techniques? Research suggests that factors such as religious orientation, educational attainment and authoritarian attitudes of parents are implicated in their child-rearing goals and practices (e.g., Wiehe, 1990). Also, parents' fundamentalist religious orientation is associated with an authoritarian norm of parenting, which involves greater emphasis on obedience and the use of punitive disciplinary practices (Ellison & Sherkat, 1993a; 1993b). 83 mothers and 71 fathers participated in a survey to examine how parents' religious orientation and their endorsement of right-wing authoritarian attitudes are linked to the kinds of goals they establish for their children, …

The Effects Of Simultaneous And Successive Tasks And Knowledge Of Results On Add And Non-Add Children, Pamela J. Bishop

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Computerized continuous performance tasks (CPT) are often used to diagnose attention deficit disorders (ADD) The purpose of the present study was to continue the evaluation of a CPT developed from a psychophysical perspective. Specifically, two versions of a monitoring task (simultaneous and successive) were examined in the context of three conditions of knowledge of results (KR); KR to correct detections, false alarms, and irrelevant KR. Thirty children diagnosed with ADD and 30 without ADD performed two 9-minute monitoring tasks. Parents of the children were also interviewed with an adaptive behavior scale to investigate whether ADD children exhibit social functioning at …

Assessing Pediatricians' Diagnostic Practices: An Analogue Study Of Responses To Adhd-Like Presentations In Preschoolers, Helle Augustesen

Dissertations

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) has been considered one of the most chronic behavior disorders observed in the preadolescent population and is one of the most frequently diagnosed childhood disorders in North America. Currently, however, there is little consistency in terms of identifying specific criteria which need to be present in a child's behavior to make a diagnosis of ADHD. This difficulty is even more pronounced in very young children of preschool age. This study utilized a three year old male child shown to 80 subjects on a videotape engaging in either a high or a low level of activity. …

Predictive Value Of Apgar Scores When Developmental Rates Are Established: An Elimination Of Corrections For Prematurity, Daniel M. Phillips Iii

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of the present investigation was to examine the relationship between Apgar scores and developmental delay after eliminating corrections for prematurity. Developmental assessments were taken at six and twelve months-of-age using the Clinical Adaptive Test (CAT) and the Clinical Linguistic and Auditory Milestone Scale (CLAMS). From these assessments, a rate of cognitive-developmental growth was established. Developmental rates then were used to predict developmental age when the infants were 17 months of age. The subjects were 52 preterm infants (gestational age< 32 weeks), who had moderate to severe I-minute and/or 5-minute Apgar scores. One- and 5-minute Apgar scores, grouped by moderate to severe range separately, were compared to developmental age assessments utilizing developmental rates and two existing methods of correction. No significant differences were found in CAT, CLAMS, and combined CAT/CLAMS developmental assessment means based on Apgar group. The Developmental Rates method, however, was significantly correlated with and predicted developmental outcome at 17 months of age. These findings suggest that Developmental Rates are a more accurate method of developmental age assessment and prediction.

Attachment And Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Symptom Severity In Physically And Sexually Abused Adolescents, Lauren Woods

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

The relationship between symptoms associated with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and attachment was assessed. All students (n=109) at a residential school were screened for a history of physical or sexual abuse. Thirty-seven subjects who reported such a history, ranging in age from 11 to 19, were assessed using the Children’s Post-Traumatic Stress Reaction Index (CPTSD-RI), Bell Object Relations and Reality Testing Inventory (BORRTI), Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment (IPPA), Revised Children’s Manifest Anxiety Scale (RCMAS), and Children’s Depression Inventory (CDI). Results indicate that attachment difficulties were common in this sample and that current diagnostic criteria for PTSD did not …

A Child's Perception Of Bullies In Grades 3-4, And 7-8, Kristine E. Nebeling

Theses & Honors Papers

The study was conducted to determine if differences exist in bullying behavior between elementary and middle school students. The sample consisted of 192 children: 57 third graders, 29 girls and 28 boys; 40 fourth graders, 26 girls and 14 boys; 47 seventh graders, 20 girls and 27 boys; and 48 eighth graders, 26 girls and 22 boys . A rural school district in central Virginia was used. A likert scale survey containing 10 questions was administered to determine the perceptions children hold regarding fear of bullying, the number of bullying experiences, why children are bullied, and what adults do or …

The Relationship Between Intelligence And Perceptual Motor Performance In Fourth Grade Students, Jaima Andrea Knox

Electronic Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of the present study was to determine the relationship between intelligence and perceptual motor performance in fourth grade students. An intact fourth grade class consisting of ten males and ten females was administered tests reflecting their intelligence and perceptual motor performance levels.

Auditory Verbal Memory Acquisition In Children 7 To 11: An Analysis Of Acquisition, Intrusion Errors, And False Positives Over Trials, Jane Louise Mathews

Theses Digitization Project

No abstract provided.

Contributing Factors Of Aggression In Elementary School Age Boys, Annmarie Mikles

Theses Digitization Project

No abstract provided.

The Costs Of Eating: A Behavioral Economic Analysis Of Food Refusal., Mary Louise Kerwin, W H Ahearn, P S Eicher, D M Burd

College of Science & Mathematics Departmental Research

Behavioral economic concepts were applied to the analysis and treatment of pediatric feeding disorders in a clinical setting. In Experiment 1, children who chronically refused food were presented with varying amounts of food on a spoon (empty, dipped, quarter, half, and level). Each child exhibited a different but orderly demand function of response (acceptance, expulsion, and mouth clean) by cost (increasing spoon volume) for a constant pay-off of toys and social interaction. In Experiment 2, physical guidance or nonremoval of the spoon for food refusal was initiated at the smallest spoon volume with low levels of acceptance, and was subsequently …

Application Of The Relational Model Of Therapy In Cross Cultural Counseling With Children, Nancy L. Wolfe

Theses Digitization Project

The purpose of this study was to examine the origins of the Multicultural Relational Model of therapy and demonstrate the application of this model in the clinical setting. Subjects were two ethnic minority children, a Hispanic boy, age nine, and a mixed-race boy, age 10, who was adopted by an African American family.

Parenting For Emotional Growth: Lines Of Development, Henri Parens, Md

Parenting for Emotional Growth

In developing the Parenting for Emotional Growth Textbook, we planned to structure the units in such a way that the same issues, be it the development of self and relationships, of aggression, etc., would be addressed in the same sequence at the various stage levels of the child's development. Thus, in the Textbook, the issues will be ordered in the same sequence in all of the units.

While using the textbook for classroom or workshop preparation or for individual study, some users have sought to follow one or another particular line of development through the length of its …

Parenting For Emotional Growth: A Curriculum For Students In Grades K Thru Twelve, Henri Parens, Md

Parenting for Emotional Growth

The PEG Curriculum has 3 distinctive features:

• It addresses the mental health domain of parenting. We emphasize that we are talking about the emotional aspects of rearing 'the human child', whatever the child's race, ethnicity, or religion, because all human infants have the same basic emotional and psychological needs. This course of study for parenting consists of three sub-domains of study: (a) human emotional and behavior development; (b) strategies for optimizing the child's development; and (c) other pertinent parenthood issues.

• The curriculum materials extend from the kindergarten level through 12th grade. In a unique collaboration between mental health and …

Parenting For Emotional Growth: Textbook, Henri Parens, Md

Parenting for Emotional Growth

This textbook, on which the Parenting for Emotional Growth Curriculum, Workshops, and Lines of Development are based, is highly detailed and is based in psychodynamic theories that address parenting issues pertinent to optimizing the child's psychological development, mental well-being, and abilities to adapt constructively. The presentation of materials is organized by the rationale that when parents know, understand, and can positively handle the child's evolving emotional and experiential needs and psychological developments, the parents' rearing strategies tend to better optimize their children's developmental potential than when such knowledge, understanding, and handling are lacking. It is exactly because this …

Kinetic Family And Human Figure Drawings Of Child And Adolescent Sexual Offenders, Lyle Curtis Miller

Dissertations

Problem. Juvenile sexual offenders constitute a significant percentage of the total offender population. This study sought to determine whether the KFD and the HFD can be useful in identifying male juvenile sexual offenders by identifying specific characteristics in their drawings that differentiate them from the general population.

Method. KFDs, HFDs, and demographic information were collected from 401 male general subjects and 49 male juvenile sexual offenders ages 8 to 17. Forty-three KFD and 30 HFD dependent variables involving emotional and behavioral indicators and sexual symbols were analyzed by Chi-Square Analysis and Discriminant Analysis. Significance was set at .05.

Results. …

Future Directions In Education And Inclusion Of Students With Disabilities: A Delphi Investigation, Joanne W. Putman, Amy N. Spiegel, Robert H. Bruininks

Department of Educational Psychology: Faculty Publications

This article reports on a survey of 37 educators regarding future directions in the education of students with disabilities. The survey used the Delphi technique. For the decade of the 1990s and after the year 2000, respondents’ predictions included the following: The movement toward increasing inclusion will occur; the belief will prevail that people with disabilities have a right to participate in inclusive environments; students with mild disabilities will be educated in general classrooms; teachers will increase their use of instructional approaches such as cooperative learning and instructional technology; and researchers will focus on matching instructional needs with learner characteristics.

Exploring Young Children's Knowledge Of Their Social Network, Their Social Competence, And Links To Their Social Behaviour, Natalie C. Leitao

Theses : Honours

The primary focus of this study is to explore young children's knowledge of their social network and their social competence and the links with their social behaviour. The secondary focus is to investigate ways in which young children may be helped to articulate such knowledge. The six participants were pairs of five-year old children selected from three pre-primary classes located in a common school. Each pair comprised a socially able and a less socially able child as selected by their class teacher. Self-reports, dialogue-interviews, video-taped vignettes and dolls were used to help the participants talk about their knowledge of their …

Toward An Objective Measure Of Moral Development For Children, Ruth S. Smith

Dissertations

Problem. Research on moral development in school-age children has been hampered by the lack of measurement tools based on a comprehensive model that includes moral cognition, moral emotions, and moral behavior. This study presents the first step toward the development of an objective measure of moral development for children in grades 3-6.

Method. One-hundred-twenty-one items covering different theorized determinates of moral development were administered to 187 children enrolled in grades 3-6. Either cluster or factor analysis was applied to determine the scales. Reliability was appraised by item analysis and validity was assessed by: (1) parent, teacher, and self ratings of …

The Identification Of Individuals With Disabilities In National Databases: Creating A Failure To Communicate, Kevin S. Mcgrew, Bob Algozzine, James E. Ysseldyke, Martha L. Thurlow, Amy N. Spiegel

Department of Educational Psychology: Faculty Publications

The purpose of this study was to analyze similarities and differences in how students with disabilities are identified in national databases. National data collection programs in the United States Departments of Education, Commerce, Labor, Justice, and Health and Human Services, as well as databases from the National Science Foundation, the American Council of Education, and the College Board, were examined. Nineteen national data collection programs were selected as being potentially useful in the extraction of policy-relevant information on the educational status and performance of students with disabilities. Among these 19 programs there was significant variability in the disability categories used. …

A Survey Of The Sources Of Information That Influence Adolescents' Knowledge And Attitudes About Sex And Dating Relationships, Laura Park

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This study was an initial attempt to understand the impact of parents, peers, the media, and sex education curricula on shaping adolescents’ knowledge and attitudes about dating relationships and sexuality. In addition, participants’ descriptions of what constitutes a “good” date and a “bad” date were investigated. One hundred participants (48 females, 52 males) aged thirteen to sixteen participated; half of the sample were early adolescents (13-14 years) and the other half were middle adolescents (15-16 years). All participants were asked to describe experienced or hypothetical “good” and “bad” dates. For “good” dates, respondents identified engaging in fun, recreational activities, whereas …

Effects Of Caffeine Consumption On Cardiovascular Indices, Attention, Task Performance, And Memory Retention In Children, Suzanne L. Keller

Dissertations

Caffeine is one of the most commonly used drugs in the western world today. Average intake of caffeine in the United States has been estimated at greater than 200 mg daily per person. Although plagued by inconsistencies, and methodological problems, research suggests that this level of caffeine ingestion may have significant effects on cardiovascular functioning, and behavioral processes such as attention, cognitive processing, memory, and task performance.

Although children consume significant quantities of caffeine, very little research has been done on the effects of caffeine in children. The limited findings suggest that caffeine consumption may affect the cognitive and behavioral …