Psychology Commons^™

Attitudes, William A. Cunningham, Ingrid J. Haas, Andrew Jahn

Department of Political Science: Faculty Publications

This chapter reviews social neuroscience research that links social psychological attitudes and evaluative processes to their presumed neural bases. The chapter is organized into four parts. The first section discusses how attitude representations are transformed into evaluative states that can be used to guide thought and action. The next two sections address the related processes of attitude learning and change. The final section discusses applications of these concepts for the study of prejudice and political behavior.

A Concept Mapping Needs Assessment Of Young Families With Parental Cancer, Richard P. Durant

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

The purpose of this research is to investigate the support needs of young families living with and beyond a parental diagnosis of cancer. The sample includes 56 participants comprised of 31 professional stakeholders and 25 patient stakeholders affiliated with the Charles R. Wood Cancer Center. It was hypothesized there would be differences in how the groups of stakeholders rated needs in terms of importance, satisfaction, and utilization. Differences in ratings are thought to be barriers to effective program development. While not a formal research hypothesis, it was anticipated other program development barriers germane to naturalistic clinical settings would emerge from …

School-Based Juvenile Probation And Police Partnerships For Truancy Reduction, Leanne F. Alarid, Barbara A. Sims, James Ruiz

Contemporary Issues in Juvenile Justice

Truancy places students at risk in primary and secondary education and is linked to conduct disorder, drug use, and delinquency. To prevent truancy and reduce risk, school-based proba-tion supervision has emerged within school districts in partnership with local law enforcement officers in an effort to enforce probation conditions for truant youths and prevent future delin-quency. This research uses key information interviews of knowledgeable stakeholders to examine the delivery of school-based probation supervision. Home visits and court hearings were perceived to be effective at reducing truancy and tardiness. This study affirms that strong lead-ership, information sharing, and involvement of parents were …

Risk Factors For Running Away Among A General Population Sample Of Males And Females, Kimberly A. Tyler, Kellie J. Hagewen, Lisa A. Melander

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

The present study examines risk factors for running away and homelessness among a sample of more than 7,000 currently housed youth using the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health). Structural equation modeling results revealed that those with greater levels of family instability and those who ran away at Wave 2 were significantly more likely to run away and/or become homeless 5 years later at Wave 3. Family instability also had a significant indirect effect on running away and/or being homeless at Wave 3 through greater levels of problem behaviors and running away at Wave 2. Running away at …

Empathic Development Of Counselor Trainees For Difficult Clients Through Film And Narrative, Kristin Elisabeth Matson

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

This paper posits that to develop empathy, similar to cross-cultural counseling competencies, counselor trainees should be exposed to life experiences of various clients, especially those deemed challenging, and which counselor trainees indicate no desire to work. As it is impractical to expect counselors to experience every type of client, learning about populations through narrative or film may be an option (Gladstein & Feldstein, 1983; Kurkijan & Banks, 1978; Pearson, 2003). Specifically, empathy in masters level counselor trainees both pre and post exposure to narrative and film depictions of violent juvenile offenders was explored. Results indicated that exposure to juvenile offenders …

Studying Rape Through A Theorectical Lens: The Development Of A Serial Rape Model Using Fbi Data, Brooke Smith

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The current study assessed whether there is an empirical foundation for different theories of rape including the feminist, evolutionary, social disorganization, psychopathy, and rapist type theories. Using a data set from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on serial rapists collected in the early 1990's, the study included two phases. The first phase assessed whether FBI data supported the previously mentioned theories of rape by analyzing associations between individual variables that are thought to support each theory. Support was demonstrated for the evolutionary and psychopathy theories. Using MPlus statistical software to accommodate the multi-level nature of the data, the second …

Finding The Heart Of Medical Family Therapy: A Content Analysis Of Medical Family Therapy Casebook Articles, Richard Bischoff, Paul R. Springer, Daniel S. Felix, Cody S. Hollist

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

In an effort to identify the essential ingredients of medical family therapy, a content analysis of 15 peer-reviewed case studies in medical family therapy was conducted. The case studies were published from 1996 to 2007 in Families, Systems, & Health. Through a qualitative content analysis, three main themes emerged that describe the essence of the practice of medical family therapy: (1) The patient’s multisystemic experience of disease, (2) treatment is about caring, not just caregiving, and (3) elevating the patient as collaborator in the care team.

From The Editor, Kathleen Moritz Rudasill

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

This is an exciting time for Gifted Children as we transition to an online, peer-reviewed format for the journal. This move will simultaneously improve our submission process and increase the visibility of research being conducted by members and colleagues of the Research on Giftedness, Creativity, and Talent SIG. In addition, Gifted Children will continue to provide book reviews and tools for researchers, as well as practitioner pieces. This issue, the first issue of Volume 5, marks the beginning of this transition; it is the first issue to be initially published online using Digital Commons software. The second issue of Volume …

Preschoolers’ Social Behavior And Context Coding System, Soo-Young Hong

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

Coding Guidelines

1. Observe during free play, small groups, routines/transitions, and outdoor play on two different days per child. Do not observe during large group activity.

2. Observe the target child’s behavior for 20 seconds and code for 30 seconds.

3. Context: a.) Coded as mutually exclusive subcategories.

4. Nature of Activity: a.) Coded as mutually exclusive subcategories. b.) If ‘Daily routines/transitions’ was coded, the Type of Activity should be coded as one of the four types relevant to daily routines/transitions (i.e., Personal care, Meal and snack, Clean up, or Transition activity).

5. Type of Activity: a.) The types of …

School-Based Extracurricular Activity Involvement And Adolescent Self-Esteem: A Growth-Curve Analysis, Lisa A. Kort-Butler, Kellie J. Hagewen

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Research on adolescent self-esteem indicates that adolescence is a time in which individuals experience important changes in their physical, cognitive, and social identities. Prior research suggests that there is a positive relationship between an adolescent’s participation in structured extracurricular activities and well-being in a variety of domains, and some research indicates that these relationships may be dependent on the type of activities in which adolescents participate. Building on previous research, a growth-curve analysis was utilized to examine self-esteem trajectories from adolescence (age 14) to young adulthood (age 26). Using 3 waves of data from National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health …

Body Image And Body Type Preferences In St. Kitts, Caribbean: A Cross- Cultural Comparison With U.S. Samples Regarding Attitudes Towards Muscularity, Body Fat, And Breast Size, Peter B. Gray, David Frederick

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

We investigated body image in St. Kitts, a Caribbean island where tourism, international media, and relatively high levels of body fat are common. Participants were men and women recruited from St. Kitts (n = 39) and, for comparison, U.S. samples from universities (n = 618) and the Internet (n = 438). Participants were shown computer generated images varying in apparent body fat level and muscularity or breast size and they indicated their body type preferences and attitudes. Overall, there were only modest differences in body type preferences between St. Kitts and the Internet sample, with the St. Kitts participants being …

Effects Of Sexual Assault Education On College Students' Rape-Supportive Attitudes, Jessica Ann Ueland

Honors Program Theses

Few studies have measured the effectiveness of sexual assault programming is in decreasing acceptance of rape myths. This study examined two research questions. First, would students in a class that included a sexual assault education component be more likely to demonstrate a change in degree of rape myth acceptance than students who were not in a class that included sexual assault education? Second, within the treatment group, would males demonstrate a larger change in rape myth acceptance than females? At the end of the course, the treatment group showed a significant decrease in rape myth acceptance; there was not a …

A Theory Of Mental Credit, Jason Soll

CMC Senior Theses

Many philosophical subjects attempt to analyze the basis of human welfare. Theories of desert, distribution of property, and happiness tend to dominate philosophical discourse. Mental credit, which is the mental acquisition of credit for one’s accomplishments and the satisfaction one derives from this credit, is absent from this discourse despite its underlying role in the way people think about their lives. Mental credit is an eternal cognitive good that deserves thoughtful attention and pious decisions for implementation. The following theory of mental credit seeks to serve as a unifying theory for the mental calculations that guide life’s most imperative decisions, …

2011-2012 Unlv Mcnair Journal, Cyndy Anang, Sajar Camara, Pamela Cornejo, Carla Antonieta Farcello, Ilse Anahi Garcia, Natiera Magnuson, William L. Mccurdy, Lorena Munoz, Maxym V. Myroshnychenko, Ricardo Rios, Theodore Waldeck, Barbara Wallen, Ana Zuniga, Brenda M. Aguilar, Tiffany Alexandra Alvarez, Daniel N. Erosa, Paige C. Espinosa, Carla Antonieta Farcello, Julienne Jochel Paraiso, Nathaniel Derek Phillipps, Carmen Vallin, Jacent N. Wamala, Ernesto Zamora-Ramos

McNair Journal

Journal articles based on research conducted by undergraduate students in the McNair Scholars Program

Table of Contents

Biography of Dr. Ronald E. McNair

Statements:

Dr. Neal J. Smatresk, UNLV President

Dr. Juanita P. Fain, Vice President of Student Affairs

Dr. William W. Sullivan, Associate Vice President for Retention and Outreach

Mr. Keith Rogers, Deputy Executive Director of the Center for Academic Enrichment and Outreach

McNair Scholars Institute Staff

Influence Of Rap And Hip-Hop Lyrics On Male Body Image And Attitudes Toward Wwomen, Lorena Munoz

McNair Poster Presentations

Rap and hip-hop music are a widely popular and accessible genre of media. Its popularity and controversial lyrics raise questions as to the effects it may have on its audience. This study proposes to investigate the influence of rap and hip-hop music will be correlated with higher mean levels of thin-ideal appearance internalization (INT-GEN), negative attitudes towards women, and cultural expectations of masculinity compared to published normative data. Participants will complete online measures addressing questions about their body image (e.g. drive for muscularity) and attitudes toward women (e.g. objectification and misogyny). Future research should compare the influence of rap and …

Interpretations And Anxiety During Initial Encounters In A Formal Business Networking Setting, Justin Hunter

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

Many business professionals explore opportunities to develop relationships with others in their industry during coordinated business networking functions to potentially increase their clientele and strengthen their presence in their respective industry. This study analyzes initial interactions among business professionals during a business networking function utilizing symbolic interactionism and the theory of anxiety/uncertainty management. Both theories have been separately implemented in an abundance of theses over several decades to analyze the nature and implications with interpersonal communication among strangers; however, there is a significant lack of research dedicated to how strangers engage during initial business interactions at networking functions. This study …

A Study Of Positive Emotions And Turnover Intentions Among Hong Kong Police Officers : The Mediating Role Of Psychological Capital And Work Well-Being, Chun Lok Lui

Lingnan Theses

With reference to Fredrickson‘s (2001) broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions, the current study investigated the mechanism of how positive emotions contribute to desirable outcomes to the organization through psychological capital (PsyCap), which is a positive, state-like, and performance-related resource comprising self-efficacy, hope, optimism and resilience. To date, only few studies have been done particularly on the relationships between PsyCap and positive emotions among Chinese employees. Studies on PsyCap of police force are even rarer. The main purpose of this study was to investigate the underlying mechanism relating positive emotions and work outcomes, specifically to examine the separate roles of positive …

A Qualitative Approach To Spiral Of Silence Research: Self-Censorship Narratives Regarding Environmental And Social Conflict, Christopher John Ryan

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

The purpose of this research is to seek narratives of self-censorship from in-depth interviews of 19 participants acquired through a purposive (criterion) sampling protocol. The primary research question driving this study is “What types of sanctions contribute to people choosing to self-censor their strongly held beliefs, values, and opinions.” Previous research conducted on the topic of self-censorship (generally under the rubric of the spiral of silence theory) has been predominantly quantitative and consideration of sanctions influencing self-censorship have been limited to fear of social isolation. I suggest that ostensibly important sanction variables have not been utilized within these existing frameworks. …

Mate Preferences In The Us And Singapore: A Cross-Cultural Test Of The Mate Preference Priority Model, Norman P. Li, Katherine A. Valentine, Lily Patel

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Sex differences have been found in mate preferences across several decades. Especially for long-term partners, men tend to value physical attractiveness and women tend to value social status. However, the sexes both value various other traits even more highly. Such findings thus diminish the importance of the sex differences and challenge the theoretical importance that evolutionary psychologists place on physical attractiveness and social status. Using a budget allocation methodology to examine mate preferences in both the US and Singapore, we found not only the usual sex differences, but also evidence that men prioritize physical attractiveness and women prioritize social status …

Parental Precaution: Neurobiological Means And Adaptive Ends, Jennifer Hahn-Holbrook, Colin Holbrook, Martie G. Haselton

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Humans invest precious reproductive resources in just a few offspring, who remain vulnerable for an extended period of their lifetimes relative to other primates. Therefore, it is likely that humans evolved a rich precautionary psychology that assists in the formidable task of protecting offspring. In this review, we integrate precautionary behaviors during pregnancy and postpartum with the adaptive functions they may serve and what is known of their biological mediators, particularly brain systems motivating security and attachment. We highlight the role of reproductive hormones in (i) priming parental affiliation with young to incentivize offspring protection, (ii) focusing parental attention on …

“I Would Feel Uncomfortable If My Child’S Teacher Were Gay”: Examining The Role Of Symbolic Homophobia And Political Affiliation, Michael Moore, Amy C. Moors

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Symbolic homophobia is a general negative disposition towards lesbian, gay, and bisexual individuals, which is demonstrated in symbolic forms of prejudice rather than overt actions. Stigma towards lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals has transformed from overt forms of prejudice to slightly less blatant more subtle forms in recent years (Schafer & Shaw, 2009). Based on previous research, it is has also been shown that conservatives will have higher levels of symbolic homophobia. (Linneman, 2004), Thus, in order to assess the more nuanced forms of prejudice in relation to political affiliation, Study 1 created a scale to assess symbolic homophobia. …

Maternal Defense: Breastfeeding Heightens Aggression By Reducing Stress, Jennifer Hahn-Holbrook, Julianne Holt-Lunstad, Colin Holbrook, Sarah M. Coyne, E. Thomas Lawson

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Mothers in numerous species exhibit heightened aggression in defense of their young. This shift typically coincides with the duration of lactation in nonhuman mammals, which suggests that human mothers may display similarly accentuated aggressiveness while breast feeding. Here we report the first behavioral evidence for heightened aggression in lactating humans. Breast-feeding mothers inflicted louder and longer punitive sound bursts on unduly aggressive confederates than did formula-feeding mothers or women who had never been pregnant. Maternal aggression in other mammals is thought to be facilitated by the buffering effect of lactation on stress responses. Consistent with the animal literature, our results …

First Elderly Client In Therapy: Factors That Influence Student Interest In Geropsychology, Cristina E. M. Filippelli

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

In the coming decades, the elderly population in United States (U.S) is expected to grow significantly (U.S. Bureau of the Census, 1996). Consequently, the number of older individuals seeking mental health services will be greater than at any other time in the history of the U.S. The field of clinical psychology, however, is unable to meet the mental health needs of the current elderly population, and this gap is expected to widen in coming years. There is an ongoing discussion within the field of professional psychology as to how to train more clinicians to work with the elderly population (Gatz …

Life Experiences That Contributed To The Independence And Success In The Lives Of Foster Care Alumni, Dawn Elizabeth Montgomery

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

The purpose of this qualitative study was to determine the factors which helped these foster care alumni to persevere and to succeed. The intent was to provide a framework for equipping youth in foster care more effectively by building on their strengths and the resources available in foster care. The study’s method incorporated the interviewing of ten ethnically diverse individuals who had experienced the foster care system. Based on their insights and the themes which emerged, the WARRIORS Model was created. This acronym represents the key themes derived from the interviews: Wounded, Advocacy, Reality of Belonging, Resources, Inspired to Succeed, …

Friendship Networks, Perceived Reciprocity Of Support, And Depression, Ryan Francis Huff

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Using social network analysis as a theoretical framework, the current study examined the associations between self-reported egocentric network characteristics and depression among a sample of United States college students. It is important to understand factors related to depression among this population due to the severity of its potential outcomes (e.g., suicide and interpersonal problems at school). Drawing inspiration from a recent study conducted by Christina Falci and Clea McNeely (2009), the current investigation used OLS regression to test for both linear and curvilinear relationships between egocentric network size and depression. Potential interactions between network size, density, and gender were also …

Sustaining Voice Through Leadership: How Do Deaf Leaders Sustain Voice In Challenging Dominant Systems, Darlene Goncz Zangara

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

The vehicle in communicating cultural identity, recognition, and justice is voice. Reclaiming or sustaining one's voice is to stand up for what one believes in, or to preserve one's identity and place in society. The deaf individual or any other marginalized individual is expected to proceed through a series of deliberations to determine favorable actions that will be persuasive, with the goal of embracing the voice of the marginalized. The deaf individual's voice or meaningful intentions will need to be effectively interpreted into mainstream American society's language and paradigms. This requires one to reconstruct the meanings and mediate the facts …

Socio-Economic Stability And Independence Of Appalachian Women, Michele Dawn Kegley

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This study researched Appalachian women who were in emotional, social, or economic reliant relationships with male spouses and became socio-economically stable and independent. This effort is to give Appalachian women voice and learn from their accounts of how they led change by financially, physically, and socially providing for themselves and their dependent children. Research is limited to a particular group of white middle class Appalachian women in the North-Central sub-region of Appalachia. This group was chosen because they have been largely overlooked in the literature. However, this study does not answer questions of all women‘s experiences and barriers in Appalachia. …

Risks And Safety For Australian Children On The Internet: Full Findings From The Au Kids Online Survey Of 9-16 Year Olds And Their Parents, Leila Green, Danielle Brady, Kjartan Olafsson, John Hartley, Catharine Lumby

Research outputs 2011

This report presents the AU findings for research in Australia which parallels the EU Kids Online project (see www.eukidsonline.net). Specifically, it includes selected findings, calculated and interpreted for Australia only, but with some comparisons made with the survey data and analysis reported in Livingstone, S., Haddon, L., Görzig, A., and Ólafsson, K. (2011). Risks and safety on the internet: The perspective of European children. Full Findings. LSE, London: EU Kids Online, and comparisons with some country reports of the 25 nations participating in EU Kids Online II. The Australian research was funded by the ARC Centre of Excellence for Creative …

The Impact Of Structured Group Counseling On Resiliency, Self-Efficacy, And Racialidentity Among African American Female Teenagers, Lashonda B. Fuller

Dissertations

African American female teenagers are at-risk for low academic achievement as well as personal and social problems. These concerns have the potential to impact their psychological development including resiliency, self-efficacy, and racial identity. This is an issue that needs focused attention. Therefore, the purpose of this dissertation was to determine if a structured group counseling model effectively impacts African American female teenagers‟ resiliency, self-efficacy, and racial identity. The researcher conducted four structured counseling groups over a period of 20 weeks; however, the teenagers participated in consecutive 10 week sessions. The treatment was applied to two groups simultaneously, and the groups …

Understanding The Dimensions Of Spirituality In Caucasian Lesbian, Gay, And Bisexual College Students, Michele L. Mcgrady

Dissertations

Spiritual development is a critical task for college students, but there is a paucity of information about how college students understand the construct of spirituality. Historically, organized religion has been oppressive to the lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) community. Furthermore, little is known about the spiritual understandings and spiritual experiences of lesbian, gay, and bisexual college students. This quantitative investigation sought to understand the underlying dimensions of spirituality for Caucasian LGB college students through the use of multidimensional scaling. Sixty Caucasian LGB college students were recruited through purposeful and snowball sampling. Findings indicate three dimensions of spirituality for this sample: …