Psychology Commons^™

¿Qué Dijo El Médico?: Creating A Procedural Preparation Booklet For Spanish-Speaking Patients And Families In The Pediatric Hospital Setting, Caitlyn Bockbrader

Honors Projects

The purpose of my Honors Project is to demonstrate the need for and creation of a resource that supports Spanish-speaking children’s ability to cope through commonly stressful medical procedures. In developing this project, I conducted a literature review on the efficacy of preparation booklets in lessening pre-procedural anxiety, cultural considerations for the Hispanic community, and current barriers to equitable language access in healthcare settings. My final product was designed to answer the following question: How can the psychosocial outcomes of Spanish-speaking children in U.S. hospitals be improved through the use of Child Life procedural preparation materials? In answering this question, …

The Relationship Between Religious Coping Styles And Eating Disorder Risk In Christians In A University Setting, Meghan E. Aubuchon

Honors Theses

Existing research on eating disorders and religion is beginning to gain momentum in the present day, but research is lacking on the topic of religious coping and eating disorder risk. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between two known styles of religious coping—positive and negative—and eating disorder risk in University of Mississippi students, faculty, and staff who identify as Christian. A survey consisting of basic demographic questions, the EAT-26, and the Brief RCOPE was distributed via emails sent by the office of IREP to students, faculty, and staff at the University of Mississippi. A total of 330 participants were …

A Grounded Theoretic Analysis Of College Students’ Attitudes Regarding Indoor Plants And Pets As Moderators Of Daily Stressors, Lydia Dill

Honors Projects

This study explores college students' attitudes toward indoor plants and pets, and how this may impact college students’ experience with stress. Through in-depth interviews and grounded theory methodology, three key themes emerged: Plant Ownership as a Method of Establishing Structure, Plants as Ornamentation, and Pets as a Source of Comfort. Plant ownership helps students create routines and emotional stability, while plants also enhance living spaces aesthetically. Pets provide emotional support, offering companionship and support, particularly during academic pressures. The study builds on previous research by examining both indoor plants and pets together, highlighting how each fulfills unique emotional, psychological, and …

Examining The Impact Of Workplace Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion Programs On Marginalized Groups: A Focus On Lgbtqia Employees, Lisa Garcia Rodriguez

Theses & Dissertations

Research Focus. The research aims to understand the experience of LGBTQIA individuals in the workplace and identify strategies for promoting their inclusion. The study will draw on prior research and best practices for promoting the inclusion of individuals in the workplace to contribute to the development of more inclusive work environments that benefit both employees and organizations. Examining the impact of workplace diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) on marginalized groups, the question to be answered is: What are the impacts of diversity, equity, and inclusion DEI initiatives in the workplace, and how can organizations create more equitable and inclusive environments? …

Toward An Insider Threat Education Platform: A Theoretical Literature Review, Haywood Gelman, John D. Hastings, David Kenley, Eleanor Loiacono

Research & Publications

Insider threats (InTs) within organizations are small in number but have a disproportionate ability to damage systems, information, and infrastructure. Existing InT research studies the problem from psychological, technical, and educational perspectives. Proposed theories include research on psychological indicators, machine learning, user behavioral log analysis, and educational methods to teach employees recognition and mitigation techniques. Because InTs are a human problem, training methods that address InT detection from a behavioral perspective are critical. While numerous technological and psychological theories exist on detection, prevention, and mitigation, few training methods prioritize psychological indicators. This literature review studied peer-reviewed, InT research organized by …

Nondisclosure Of Trans Group Status Among Transgender Individuals, Alexander Williams

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The purpose of the study was to investigate motivations for concealment of transgender group status beyond a qualitative scale. Additionally, the study aimed to identify the role one’s identity centrality, salience, and valence played in concealment behavior and attitudes. It was hypothesized that factors found in the extant literature (i.e., gender dysphoria, lack of connection, safety, stigma, and discrimination concerns) would apply presently. It was hypothesized that those individuals with low identity centrality, salience, and valence would be less likely to disclose their trans status. Results indicated that the previously named factors for concealment were present among participants with particularly …

Why Am I The Only Black Student? An Examination Of The Expected Level Of Engagement At Indiana Universities For High Achieving African American Students Based On Precollege Factors, Zoretta Ward-Holloway

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to investigate the individual and school level precollege factors, including student engagement levels, associated with high achieving African American graduates of varied high school types to ascertain whether a relationship/pattern emerges that provides a profile and helps to explain the interactions between multiple levels of ecological factors that impact academic success in high school and expected level of engagement in college. The Beginning College Survey of Student Engagement (BCSSE) instrument was used to consider self-reporting archival data of high-performing African American students as a means of gathering the voices of students. BCSSE instruments from …

The White Peacock – A Masculinity Study, Katherine Pollert

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

At the beginning of the twentieth century, the feminist movement in England was making significant progress, effectively influencing the leading artists and scholars of the time to consider the nature of female oppression and to do their part to invoke change. Among these figures, D.H. Lawrence emerged as a provocative voice on gender and sexuality. To this day, his work remains a source of significant contention, often due to the controversial representation of gender and sexuality in his novels. For decades, feminist critics have debated Lawrence’s characterization of women, some accusing his work of misogyny, with others praising his careful …

Ephemeral Legacy, Allison Hall

Master's Theses

Recently, my thoughts have centered on the problem of legacy. How do we forge bonds with other humans? What happens on an interpersonal level when these humans pass away, or when we pass, and they continue in life? How do queer spaces consistently offer deeper phenomena of interpersonal legacies; how does death operate as generational catalyst? I am particularly interested in putting these questions in the context of queer spaces. In queer culture, kinship is formed in ways that break from typical western notions of kinship. Despite being incoherent to western notions of family, queer bonds are extremely strong (Bradway …

Exploring Mindfulness Within Leadership Development: A Phenomenological Study, Amardeep Kaur

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Leadership is a key to success in a complex, rapidly changing world. While scholarly and organizational interest in mindfulness is growing within the leadership and leadership development space, it remains largely unexplored from the leader's perspective. This phenomenological study explored how leaders perceived and described their mindfulness experiences within their leadership development. This exploratory research used a transcendental phenomenological approach (Moustakas, 1994) to capture their self-expression through in-depth, semi-structured interviews. Day's (2000) conceptual framework on leader and leadership development guided the study. The participants were recruited from organizations based in the U.S. that offer mindfulness-based programs, snowball sampling techniques, and …

Cognitive Interviewing Within A Mixed Methods Practice: Utilization And Methodological Exploration Of Cognitive Interviewing, Jack Riley Hebner

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

Cognitive interviewing (CI) is a memory-enhancing technique used to extract more valid data from participants by addressing cognitive needs. Present research applied CI to program evaluation, theorizing that more quality data would be retrieved, especially when utilizing a mixed methods approach. The program chosen to further explore this technique and provide potentially invaluable evaluation data was the Educational Psychology Department at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (EDPS). The sample consisted of 32 individuals, consisting of graduate students and faculty across all programs.

The overall evaluation focused on inter-program and inner program understanding which is operationalized as the ability to relay how …

Computer Use Frequency And Cardiovascular Health In Middle-Aged And Older Adults, Meilan Hu, Shu Fen Diong, K. T. A. Sandeeshwara Kasturiratna, Andree Hartanto

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

With increased computer usage amongst midlife and older adults, concerns are emerging with regards to the potential adverse health effects of computer use given the sedentary habits it may encourage. The current study aims to investigate the relationship between computer use and cardiovascular risk in midlife and older adults. From the National Survey of Midlife Development in the United States II: Biomarker Project (2004–2009) and the National Survey of Midlife Development in the United States (MIDUS II), 2004–2006, we examined five cardiovascular risk biomarkers—high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, triglycerides, interleukin-6, and C-reactive protein—in relation to self-reported general …

Positive And Negative Affect Differentially Predict Individual Differences And Intra-Individual Changes In Daily Cognitive Failures In Younger And Older Adults, Ysabel A. Guevarra, Nadyanna M. Majeed, Nur Eva Alisha Binte Mohamed Hisham, Andree Hartanto

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

(1) Background: Cognitive failures, including lapses in attention, memory, and executive functioning, can negatively affect daily performance and well-being. Negative and positive affectivity have been implicated in cognitive functioning, yet their relationship with cognitive failures remains underexplored. This study investigates the impact of positive and negative affect on cognitive failures, using daily diary methods to examine both within-person and between-person associations in a sample of younger adults from Singapore and adults across the lifespan from the United States (US). (2) Methods: Participants (Singapore: N = 253, US: N = 1726) completed daily diaries over seven (Singapore) or eight (US) consecutive …

The Personality Profile Of Libya’S Muammar Gaddafi, Aubrey Immelman

Psychology Faculty Publications

This research report, prepared for the France 5 television documentary “Le Monde en face: Kadhafi, la folie d’un dictateur,” presents the results of an indirect personality assessment of Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi from the conceptual perspective of personologist Theodore Millon.

Facilitate The Awesome:Creating Capacity For Teen Programs In Youth Development, Michael L. Wallace, Ashley M. Hall, Gary Frank Varrella, Pamela Watson, Kelly Anne Stewart, Brian Brandt

Journal of Youth Development

A critical need exists for adults who are properly prepared to meaningfully engage with adolescents. While utilizing teens in leadership and teaching roles has been gaining popularity and application, a developmental and skills-based approach for improving “trusted adult” capacity to engage with adolescents has not been comprehensively addressed in other programs or curricula. The “Facilitate the Awesome” short course focuses on advancing adult knowledge and skills related to supporting the physical, emotional, and social needs of adolescents. In an evaluation of 113 participants statistical significance was established for all the learning variables tested, using a sign test and estimated effect …

Appreciative Inquiry: Guiding Principles For Majority And Minority World Teams Conducting Research In Majority World Countries, Kendall Cotton Bronk, Lindsey C. Blom, Seren Fryatt, Flomo Mau Maiwo, Yabadel Appleton

Journal of Youth Development

The vast majority of youth development research takes place in minority world cultural contexts. To understand and nurture the optimal development of young people living in majority world countries, cross-cultural research teams are uniquely suited to conduct careful and culturally sensitive research in these settings. However, this is difficult. Navigating research in a new language, a different cultural context, and a far-away geographic location is challenging, and the risks of getting it wrong are high. We argue that the guiding principles of Appreciative Inquiry can help teams navigate many of the challenges inherent in conducting youth development research in majority …

From “At-Risk” To “Aspiring” Youth:Locating Positive Youth Development In Kenya, Kennedy Karani Onyiko, Justine Amadi Orucho, Lawrence Asige, Dennis Omuse Obushe, Aden Ang'aba Esokomi, Faith Inyele Olita, Simon Kitiyo

Journal of Youth Development

The youth population bulge in Kenya comes with so many challenges such as poverty, gender inequalities, political inequities, the absence of adequate health and medical resources, low educational attainment, homelessness, increased involvement in violence, drugs, and alcohol, poor physical and mental health, a lack of key life skills, premature sexual involvement. Using inductive or “bottom up” thematic analysis, we explored experiences of the youth aged 18-34 (n=36), youth workers (n=26) and administrators of youth programs (n=22) on existing youth development programs and their alignment to the positive youth development principles. Six key findings from the study sufficed as follows: (1) …

The Association Between Sports Camp Participation And Perceivedcompetence And Independence Among Visually Impaired Youth, Mary A. Keene, Justin Haegele, Xihe Zhu

Journal of Youth Development

Research on sport camps for visually impaired youth is limited. The purposes of this study were to examine if visually impaired campers’ self-perception of their perceived competence and independence changed as a result of attending a one-week sports camp. Forty visually impaired campers ranging from 10-15 years of age, who attended a one-week sports camp, completed a survey study from two outcome measures of the American Camp Association Youth Outcomes Battery. A bivariate correlation analysis and descriptive analyses were conducted. The campers reported relatively high levels of perceived competence (5.48 ± .57) and moderate levels of perceived independence (4.94 ± …

Examining The Activity-Related Correlates Of Latine Parent Support Of Adolescents In Organized Afterschool Activities, Fuko Kiyama, Sandra Simpkins

Journal of Youth Development

Objective: This study examined the relations between Latine parent perceptions of their seventh grade adolescents’ organized afterschool activity and their support of adolescents’ participation in these organized afterschool activities; and, whether these relations varied based on the organized afterschool activity’s ethnic cultural features.

Background: Although parent support bolsters adolescents’ success in multiple contexts, including organized afterschool activities, we know little about what promotes parent support. Method: Using data on Latine parent perceptions (N = 143) of their support (17 items), of organized afterschool activities (8 items) and ethnic cultural features (7 items), linear regression models were used to evaluate the …

Resilience And Grit: What They Are And Why They Matter For Youth Development Professional, Christine Wood, Claire Sponseller, Saundra Wever Frerichs, Mark W. Demorra

Journal of Youth Development

The challenges faced by youth can hinder them from reaching their full potential or help them grow and develop as they overcome their challenges. Grit and resilience provide young people with the skills, confidence, and perseverance to overcome challenges, pursue their goals and thrive. In this article, the authors examine the complex constructs that make up resilience and grit, draw connections to positive youth development practices, and propose a model of how these constructs can be enacted by youth development professionals in their work. The article offers specific educational practices that can support young people in developing the skills and …

Do Horse Breed Association Youth Programs Promote Life Skills And Goaldevelopment For Youth With Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder?, Julius Culwell, Makenna Foster, Molly Christine Nicodemus, Molly Friend, Holly Evans, Dean Jousan, Katherine Agbigail Holtcamp, Clay Cavinder, Toree Williams

Journal of Youth Development

Almost 10% of American youth are diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). While not a learning disability, this diagnosis results in youth being labeled academically “at-risk.” While equine assisted services (EAS) promote an emotionally safe learning environment for at-risk youth, program availability is limited. Horse breed associations, however, offer programs nationwide for all youth, although these programs do not have a therapeutic intention. Therefore, the objectives of this study were to utilize a survey to determine program participation and associated development of life skills and goals for ADHD youth. A survey was developed with the following: 15 fixed-response multiple-choice …

Mental Health Services In A Camp Setting: Choices, Challenges, Change, Johnathan Meier, Erinn J. Victory, Rebecca I. Laquaglia, Matthew J. Kasopsky, Jeongwi An, Gabriella R. Johnson, Andrew D. Mendonsa, Stephanie Mcwilliams

Journal of Youth Development

The prevalence of mental health issues among youth, with nearly half meeting diagnostic criteria for a mental health disorder and suicide being a leading cause of death, underscores the urgency for effective intervention (National Institute of Mental Health, 2023). Summer camps, hosting millions of children annually, are urged by the American Camp Association to establish mental health support, ranging from trained counselors to licensed therapists (ACA, 2009; 2022). At the 2023 National Scout Jamboree, mental health services were offered for the first time. During the Jamboree, 82 participants received individual or group mental health services in the Mental Health Clinic. …

Study Abroad Angst: A Literature Review On The Mental Health Of International Students During Covid-19, Daisuke Akiba, Michael Perrone, Caterina Almendral

Publications and Research

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic presented unique and unprecedented challenges for international students, those studying at institutions of higher education outside of their home countries, due to their distinct circumstances and vulnerabilities. This literature review examines the multifaceted mental health burdens they experienced and highlights the need for targeted support and interventions. Methods: A rigorous search across three databases (i.e., PubMed, PsycINFO, and ERIC) yielded 50 empirical studies for inclusion in this literature review. A six-phase thematic analysis framework was employed to identify and synthesize key themes. Results: Seven prominent themes emerged: (1) academic and professional disruptions; (2) challenges navigating international …

Climate Change And Its Effects On Maternal Mental Health, Sara Cordero

Undergraduate Research Symposium Lightning Talks

Climate change refers to long-term shifts in temperatures and weather patterns primarily caused by human activities, which have facilitated more climate crises, such as floods, wildfires, hurricanes, etc. They tend to have the greatest effect on vulnerable populations, such as women and children. This study is aimed to view how climate change-related environmental stressors impact the mental health and well-being of mothers. A scoping literature review approach was used by analyzing scientific databases (i.e. APA-Psycinfo, Scopus, PRIMO) to find peer-reviewed papers that studied the effects of extreme weather events and climate change on maternal mental health. Results suggest that hurricanes, …

Partisan Prejudice: The Role Of Beliefs About The Unchanging Nature Of Ideology And Partisans, Crystal L. Hoyt, Jeni L. Burnette, Meghan Moore

Jepson School of Leadership Studies articles, book chapters and other publications

Although there is a tendency to think all forms of essentialism—the belief that characteristics are inherent and unchangeable—are similar, some theories suggest different foundations and outcomes. We investigated if belief systems about the stability of political ideology (trait essentialism) and the fundamental nature of partisans (social essentialism) predict prejudice in opposite ways and if they do so via differential relations with blame. Across six studies (N = 2,231), we found that the more people believe the trait of political ideology is fixed (trait essentialism), the more they think that Republicans and Democrats are inherently different (social essentialism). Crucially, despite …

Hans Holbein's Portrait Of Henry Viii: England's Own Personal Jesus, Amy Pitsor

Best Integrated Writing

Pitsor explores the possibility that Holbein’s late-stage change in the composition of the portrait from a three-quarter view of Henry to a frontal view held a motive to present Henry as the head of the newly established Church of England and as equal to the pope, and possibly to Christ himself.

La Falta De Los Supermercados En El Oeste De Dayton: Cómo Obtienen Los Estudiantes Comida Fresca En Los Desiertos Alimentarios (Un Ensayo Expositivo-Argumentativo, Catherine Iacobacci

Best Integrated Writing

After having learned about how poverty can affect children’s educational outcomes in one of her classes, Iacobacci wanted to learn more about how the issue affected the area where she lived and went to school. What she found out was incredibly shocking, and only furthered the idea that students are struggling with opportunity gaps, not achievement ones. Unfortunately, due to discriminatory loan practices from long ago, children from the 21st century are suffering physically, emotionally, and academically.

The Journey Within: My Travel Journel, Devonique Jones

Best Integrated Writing

This project is a multigenre research exploration that delves into Jones's personal journey of self discovery and growth during her first solo trip.

Investigation Of Ndv In Southern African Waterfowl Reveal Insightful Geographic And Biodiversity Trends To Help Contain The Virus, Lauren Goodwill

Best Integrated Writing

This study assesses the infection rates and trends of Newcastle disease in southern African waterfowl, a project carried out by Emily Murphy in Dr. Jeffrey Peters’ laboratory

Analysis Of The Integration Of Race And Cultural Concordant Doulas Into The Birth Experience Of African American Women, Cherissa Garcia

Best Integrated Writing

Garcia's study looks at how integrating race and cultural-concordant doulas into the birth experience of African American women would impact outcomes. She found similar studies that provided strong evidence to support doula integration. However, most did not select study populations that appropriately reflected the African American women at increased risk of poor outcomes. As a result, Garcia designed a study that looked at race and cultural concordance between doulas and patients from a wide range of SES backgrounds and varying degrees of pregnancy risk.