Psychology Commons^™

Effectiveness Of A Parent Health Report In Increasing Fruit And Vegetable Consumption Among Preschoolers And Kindergarteners, Sanita Lisa Hunsaker

Theses and Dissertations

Patterns of fruit and vegetable consumption begin in childhood and persist into adulthood. Educating parents regarding appropriate dietary requirements for preschoolers is critical to supporting their appropriate growth and development. The purpose of this study was to determine whether a parent health report (including information about the child's fruit and vegetable consumption and recommendations regarding how to increase fruit and vegetable consumption) resulted in a greater fruit and vegetable intake in preschoolers and kindergarteners. Results from both the open trial and the randomized-controlled trial suggest that the parent health report may be a beneficial tool to increase vegetable consumption in …

Assessing Validity Of A Screener For Social, Emotional, And Behavioral Concerns: Analyzing Gender Differences In A Middle School Population, Kimberly Lowe

Theses and Dissertations

Systematic screening for social, emotional, and behavioral concerns (SEBC) identifies at-risk students and provides information to guide interventions that may prevent negative outcomes (Glover & Albers, 2006; Kauffman, 1999; Severson, Walker, Hope-Dolittle, Katochwill, & Gresham, 2007). However, the screening process may be influenced by the gender of the student (Young, Sabbah, Young, Reiser, & Richardson, 2010). This study further examined the influence of student gender on screening by assessing the congruency of gates one and two of a screening process based on student gender. Participants included 59 middle school teachers who nominated at-risk students on the Teacher Nomination Form (TNF; …

International Student Support Groups: Understanding Experiences Of Group Members And Leaders, Nathaniel W. Page

Theses and Dissertations

A multi-site qualitative study explored the group experiences of 6 group leaders and 10 group members who participated in 7 different university counseling center international student support groups. Data collection and analysis phases followed the process of hermeneutic interpretation articulated by Kvale and Brinkmann (2009), which resulted in nine major themes and ten sub-themes organized into four sections: (a) Recruitment and group design, (b) Experiences of group members, (c) Experiences of group leaders, and (d) Additional considerations. Implications for international student support groups are discussed.

Exploring The Effects Of Depression And Physical Activity On Pattern Separation Performance, Michelle I. Nash

Theses and Dissertations

Cognitive performance declines in depression and increases with physical activity. These changes may in part be due to changes in the level of neurogenesis (the generation and survival of adult-born neurons), which decreases with depression and increases with physical activity. Pattern separation (the formation of distinct neural representations of incoming information through orthogonalizing similar patterns of activation) has also been linked to neurogenesis. This project explores pattern separation within these two populations through three experiments.Experiment 1. Previous research has found impaired pattern separation among individuals with higher depression scores, but who have not been diagnosed with Major Depressive Disorder (MDD). …

Passing Or Failing Of Symptom Validity Tests In Academic Accessibility Populations: Neuropsychological Assessment Of “Near-Pass” Patients, Thomas Jeffrey Farrer

Theses and Dissertations

There is overwhelming evidence that the presence of secondary gain is an independent predictor of both performance validity and neuropsychological test outcomes. In addition, studies have demonstrated that genuine cognitive and/or psychological conditions can influence performance validity testing, both in the presence and absence of secondary gain. However, few studies have examined these factors in a large sample of academic accommodation seeking college students. The current study examined base rates of symptom validity test failure, the possibility of a “Near-Pass” intermediate group on symptom validity tests, the influence of diagnoses on performance indicators, and whether performance validity differed for “Near-Pass” …

A Controlled Comparison Of Errorless And Errorful Learning In Individuals With Moderate-To-Severe Traumatic Brain Injury, Joseph Edward Fair

Theses and Dissertations

The prevalence and sequelae of moderate-to-severe (M/S) traumatic brain injury (TBI) are significant and pervasive problems, and effective rehabilitation techniques are key. Errorless learning is regarded as a useful tool for memory impairments; however, the efficacy of errorless learning in a M/S TBI population is unclear. The primary goal (aim 1) of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of a single session of errorless vs. errorful learning in a group of M/S TBI survivors and matched controls. A secondary goal (aim 2) was to investigate the neural time course of errorless learning in participants with M/S TBI by analyzing …

The Effects Of Varied Opportunities To Respond Embedded In A Group Contingency Program, Teresa Donna Bolt

Theses and Dissertations

This study investigated the effects of using a group contingency program with three students with disabilities in a small group special education setting. These students exhibited both academic and behavioral difficulties. With the use of Class Wide Function-Related Intervention Team (CW-FIT) students increased their active engagement and correct responses, as well as decreased their disruptive behaviors; however, these behaviors did not maintain over time. CW-FIT with high opportunities to respond showed an even greater improvement than CW-FIT with low opportunities to respond. Increased opportunities to respond resulted in higher levels of active engagement and correct responses and decreases in disruptive …

Identifying Knowledge And Understanding Of Learning Disabilities In High School Students Classified With Learning Disabilities, Kylie Ann Roth

Theses and Dissertations

Research indicates that students with learning disabilities know little about their condition. The purpose of this study was to investigate the depth and breadth of high school students' understanding of their learning disabilities. Using semi-structured individual interviews, the researcher collected, transcribed, and analyzed data to determine 12 participants' knowledge of learning disabilities, about how they learn, and about their potential to succeed in school and adult life. Results indicate varying levels of self-knowledge and varying perceptions of future success.

Cultural Models Of Latino Immigrant Parent Knowledge Of Their Children's Specific Learning Disabilities, Harriet Faith Welling

Theses and Dissertations

The author investigated shared cultural models among nine Latino immigrant parents of children with specific learning disabilities aged 6-12 years old. Interview questions addressed what participants thought it meant to be educated, their descriptions of specific learning disabilities, and their reports of effective teaching methods for their children. Although many varying themes emerged from the interview data, three distinct cultural models surfaced from the data on education and disability. Implications include cultural beliefs informing IEP content, knowledge of cultural models enabling increasingly open communication between school and home, and culturally sensitive classroom instruction.

Longitudinal Association Between Self-Esteem In Adolescence And Posttraumatic Stress Disorder In Older Adults: A Cohort Study, John Anthony Blue Star

Theses and Dissertations

Background: Posttraumatic-Stress Disorder (PTSD) is less common in older adults than in younger adults, and little is known about specific risk factors for PTSD in older adults. We investigated the association between self-esteem in late adolescence and PTSD in older adults. Method: Using a cohort design, 1,436 individuals who had been assessed approximately 40 years earlier in their junior and senior year of high school with the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES) were evaluated for PTSD using the PTSD Checklist (PCL-17). Results: Fully controlled logistic regression models indicated that lower self-esteem in late adolescence predicted PTSD in the overall sample of …

Interactions Between Social Support, Acculturationand Health Among Mexican Immigrants, Christopher D. Anderson

Theses and Dissertations

The impact of acculturation and poor social support as potential risk factors for cardiovascular and metabolic disease amongst Mexican immigrants to the United States (U.S.) is a developing area of research. One theory is that acculturation to U.S. society is negatively associated with health due to the stress of immigration as well as the less healthy diet and lifestyle in the U.S. It is also theorized that positive social support is associated with better health during immigration due to the buffering effect relationships have on stress. Despite these theories, mixed findings have been found regarding the associations between acculturation and …

Electrophysiological Endophenotypes In Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Family Study, Ann Clawson

Theses and Dissertations

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a highly heritable neurodevelopmental disorder associated with altered neural connectivity and deficits in self-monitoring, response inhibition, and planning. One promising avenue of research to improve understanding of the symptoms and heritable nature of ASD may be the identification of neural endophenotypes of ASD. The error-related negativity (ERN) and post-error positivity (Pe), scalp-recorded event-related potentials (ERPs), reflect performance monitoring processes and may qualify as candidate endophenotypes of ASD. We collected ERP and behavioral data (error rates, response times) from 18 ASD probands and their families (mother, father, sibling) and 38 control youth and their parents to …

The Role Of Spirituality In Treatment And Recovery From Eating Disorders, Carrie Caoili

Theses and Dissertations

This study explored the use of spiritual counseling with patients with eating disorders (ED), with the goal of better understanding the relationship between spirituality and patient recovery. The researcher wanted to gain insight into how patients' spiritual practices and experiences may influence treatment processes and outcomes in eating disorder recovery. The researcher collected interview data at the Center for Change, a patient treatment center for women with eating disorders. Open-ended survey questions from forty seven respondents from a diverse range of clients with different religious and ethnic backgrounds, living in different national regions were qualitatively analyzed. The researcher also followed …

A Career Course Follow-Up: Does A Student Development Elective Make A Difference?, Jamie Marie Hansen

Theses and Dissertations

Since its inception, work and career-related issues have been central to the aims and scope of counseling psychology as a discipline. One common career counseling intervention in the University setting is to offer elective, credit-bearing courses in career development and exploration to provide help and direction to college students as they decide on majors and prepare for careers. Much research has been conducted which suggests that the use of career courses in the university setting has strong, positive impact on students' career decision-making ability and other output variables. What is less established is the impact of these career courses on …

Aerobic Fitness, Executive Control, And Emotion Regulation In Preadolescent Children, Mark A. Lott

Theses and Dissertations

The present study evaluated direct and indirect associations between aerobic fitness, executive control, and emotion regulation among a sample of children aged 8-12 years. To evaluate these associations, the study employed a cross-sectional design and full-information maximum likelihood (FIML) structural equation modeling. Although the hypothesized factor analytic model failed to converge, an alternative exploratory model allowed for the evaluation of associations between primary study variables. Results supported a moderate direct association between childhood aerobic fitness and executive control, a strong direct negative association between executive control and emotion regulation, and a moderate indirect association between aerobic fitness and emotion regulation …

Expected Profiles And Temporal Stability Of The Look, Sierra Marie Baird

Theses and Dissertations

The LOOK is an iOS based iPad app designed to measure viewing time as an estimate of sexual interest. Participants used a 7-point Likert scale to rate 154 images based on sexual attractiveness. The images belonged to 14 differentiated gender and age categories from infants to elderly adults. Before rating each image participants were asked to complete an additional task of locating and touching a small dot found in one of the four corners of the screen. This was included to make sure that participants we attending to each image, and to add another level of information to the results.The …

Effect Of Latinos In Action Peer Tutoring On Elementary Student Oral Reading Fluency Scores, Darren M. Hansen

Theses and Dissertations

The Latino population is the largest minority group in the United States, making up 16.3% of the total population. As the Latino population of the US grows, the Latino student population within schools across the nation is also growing, accounting for 10.5% of the student population. While the Latino student population continues to grow, there is evidence that this group is not achieving academically at the same rate as other groups. Latino statistics in Utah showed a similar situation within public schools. Fifty-one percent of Latino fourth graders were reading below the expected levels, compared to 22% for Caucasian students. …

Neural Mechanisms Of Inhibitory Control: Predictors Of Eating Behavior In Obesity, Kaylie Carbine, Michael Larson

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Obesity is a prominent public health concern associated with increased risk of high blood pressure, chronic diseases, and mortality (National Institutes of Health, 2011). Understanding the neural underpinnings of obesity may prove beneficial for effective weight control interventions. Specifically, decreased ability to inhibit responses toward food-related cues may be associated with impulsive eating and subsequent weight gain (Batterink, Yokum, & Strice, 2010). Response inhibition is defined as one’s ability to withhold a prominent response in order to correctly respond to environmental or taskrelevant information (Ko & Miller, 2013). Weight and inhibitory control are negatively correlated, indicating that individuals with reduced …

Social Skills And Executive Functioning In Children With Epileptic And Non-Epileptic Seizures, Ashley J. Levan

Theses and Dissertations

Prior studies have demonstrated that a sizeable percentage of children presenting to the epilepsy monitoring unit for evaluation of paroxysmal events (seizures) are found to have non-epileptic seizures (NES) (Asano et al., 2005). The importance of identifying NES cannot be overstated since misdiagnosis often leads to treatment with antiepileptic drugs, which may have side effects that may negatively impact cognition (Chen, Chow, & Lee, 2001) and perhaps even cognitive development. While studies in adults with epilepsy or NES have demonstrated impaired executive functioning and social outcome compared to healthy peers, less work is present among pediatric populations (Cragar, Berry, Fakhoury, …

P300 Latency In Alzheimer’S Disease: A Meta-Analysis And Meta-Regression, David Payne Bennett, Dawson Hedges

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Developing a biomarker for accurate assessment and detection of Alzheimer’s disease was the goal of our research. The P300 component of the event-­‐related potential has been indicated to apparently change with the progression of Alzheimer’s disease. As measuring the P300 is non-­‐invasive and relatively easy, we sought to investigate abnormalities in the latency of the P300 in probable Alzheimer’s disease compared to healthy controls. Should such abnormalities be present, they would constitute a strong foundation for clinically significant biomarkers.

Adaptation Of D2 Dopamine Receptors Following Acute Ethanol, Brian Behnke, Scott Steffensen

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The purpose of my experiment was To study the effects that ethanol (EtOH) has on the D2 receptors (D2R) in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) and ventral tegmental area (VTA), in order to determine if D2 is a key contributor to an alcohol addictive state.

Memory Processes In Autism, Storm Atwood, Dr. C Brock Kirwan

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The prevalence of autism, a neurodevelopmental disorder impairing social interaction, communication, and behavior, has risen from 1 in 110 affected to 1 in 88 affected (Centers for Disease Control, 2012). The rise in prevalence of autism has increased the awareness of autism and increased the desire and need for more research. In general, it has been found that memory performance remains largely unchanged in autism. For example, a recent study on recognition memory in autism found that there was no difference in the ability of an autistic participant versus a control participant in identifying whether a stimulus was old or …

The Effects Of Genes On The Stress Response, S. Andrew Aston

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) acts as one of the primary coordinators of the physiological, behavioral, and autonomic stress response. CRH secreted from the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) of the hypothalamus initiates the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis response by signaling the secretion of adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) from the anterior pituitary. ACTH then travels to the adrenal glands, leading to the release of cortisol Thus, CRH plays a key role in preparing an individual to adaptively respond to a stressful situation.

Marital Satisfaction, Error-Observation, And The Brain: Harmful Or Beneficial Effects Of Spouse Observation?, Chelsea E. Romney, Michael Larson, Jonathan Sandberg, Patrick R. Steffen, Scott Baldwin

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

Introduction

Rewarding marital relationships are associated with many positive outcomes in one’s physical and mental health, including improved cardiovascular functioning, decreased depression risk, higher self-reported levels of happiness, and overall lower rates of mortality. The purpose of this study was to observe the differences in performance monitoring between males and females (while being observed by their spouses) using error-related brain activity (ERN). ERN is a response-locked, negative deflecting event-related potential (ERP) that occurs 50-100 milliseconds following an error. Heightened (i.e., more negative) ERN amplitude is associated with stressful or anxiety-provoking situations. Conversely, dampened ERN amplitude (i.e., less negative ERN) may …

The Effects Of Loss Aversion And Investment Type On The Sunk Cost Fallacy, Veronika Tait, Harold Miller Jr

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

The sunk-cost fallacy (SCF) occurs when an individual makes an investment with a low probability of a payoff because an earlier investment has already been made. It is considered an error because a rational decision maker should not factor in now-irretrievable investments, as they do not affect current-outcome likelihoods. Previous research has measured the tendency to commit the SCF by using hypothetical scenarios in which participants must choose to make a future investment or not after making an initial investment. Loss aversion, the preference for uncertain over certain losses, may be related to SCF. In this study, participants were asked …

The Effects Of Classwide Function-Related Intervention Teams On Preschool Behavior, Krystine Alycia Jolstead

Theses and Dissertations

Challenging behavior in preschool is a serious concern for teachers. In recent years, positive behavior support (PBS) has been shown to be effective in reducing such behaviors. Class-Wide Function-related Intervention Teams (CW-FIT) is a specific program for implementing PBS principles in classroom settings. CW-FIT is a group contingency that utilizes social skills training, teacher praise, and positive reinforcement to improve student behavior. Students are taught specific social skills and then work in teams to earn a group reward based on the use of these skills. CW-FIT has been shown to be effective in elementary classrooms but has not yet been …

Student Perceptions Of Book In A Bag As An Integrated Social Skills Instruction Program, Hans Ryckaert Gaul

Theses and Dissertations

Positive behavioral support and social emotional learning (SEL) are important ingredients in fostering student success and mitigating the incidence of aggressive and harmful behaviors. Although schools provide the ideal environment in which to implement these interventions, there are obstacles to doing so. These obstacles include the amount of time and resources an intervention takes, as well as the social validity of the intervention. To determine social validity, those who implement interventions must consider stakeholder groups’ perceptions and buy in towards the intervention. Because students are typically the primary target population, their perceptions of proposed interventions are particularly important. Each month …

Utah Elementary School Teachers’ Perceptions Of Students’ Problematic Behaviors And Critical Social Skills, Kimberly Weed

Theses and Dissertations

Teachers are faced with the dual task of teaching academic skills and managing students’ problematic behaviors. Randomly selected kindergarten through sixth-grade teachers (N=295 of 1,144; 26% return rate) in rural, urban, and suburban Utah were asked to identify students’ five most problematic behaviors, as well as students’ five most desired social skills which supported social-emotional wellbeing and academic achievement. Teachers’ responses were summarized and information will be used to enhance universal Tier 1 social skills interventions, part of school-wide positive behavior support in Utah’s elementary schools. The top five problematic behaviors identified by participating teachers included (a) defiant and refuses …

Sertraline Effects On Cerebrospinal Fluid Monoamines And Species-Typical Socioemotional Behavior Of Female Cynomolgus Monkeys, Carol A. Shively, Thomas C. Register, James Dee Higley, Stephanie L. Willard

Faculty Publications

Rationale—Although widely prescribed, little is known about selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) effects on social behavior and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) monoamines in female primates.

Objective—To determine the effects of sertraline on agonistic and affiliative behavior.

Methods—21 adult female cynomolgus monkeys were housed in small, stable social groups, trained to participate in oral dosing, and began a 5-week cumulative dose response study. Serial doses of 0, 5, 10, 15, and 20 mg/kg of sertraline were administered orally for one week each. Behavior was recorded daily during 10-minute observations before and 4 hours after dosing. On the 7th day of dosing, circulating …

Examining Masculine Gender-Role Conflict And Stress In Relation To Religious Orientation, Spiritual Well-Being, And Sex-Role Egalitarianism In Latter-Day Saint Men, Loren B. Brown

Theses and Dissertations

This study investigated two aspects of masculine gender role strain—gender role conflict and gender role stress—and their relationship to religious orientation, spiritual well-being, and sex-role egalitarianism among Latter-day Saint (LDS or Mormon) men. To investigate these variables, a sample of 201 LDS undergraduate men who were predominantly White/Caucasian and single completed the Gender Role Conflict Scale, Masculine Gender Role Stress Scale, Intrinsic/Extrinsic Religious Orientation Scale-Revised, Spiritual Well-Being Scale, and the Sex-Role Egalitarianism Scale. As predicted, LDS men who reported higher levels of religiosity and spiritual well-being reported lower levels of gender role strain. This study also found that participants who …