Psychology Commons^™

Object-Based Warping In Three-Dimensional Environments, Joshua E. Zosky, Timothy J. Vickery, Kerri A. Walter, Michael D. Dodd

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Object-based warping is a powerful visual illusion wherein space between features within figural regions is regularly overestimated compared with those within ground regions. Originally, the effect was only examined in displays of two-dimensional (2D) stimuli. The present study sought to examine whether object-based warping persists in more naturalistic viewing conditions, where additional contextual cues are present. Stimuli were presented with either three-dimensional (3D) printed objects (Experiment 1) or 3D objects in virtual reality (Experiments 2–4). The testing metric was actual distance of features (dots) compared with estimated distances made by participants. Responses for the 3D printed stimuli were measured with …

Age-Differential Relationships Among Dopamine D1 Binding Potential, Fusiform Bold Signal, And Face-Recognition Performance, Monroe P. Turner, Håkan Fischer, Dinesh K. Sivakolundu, Nicholas A. Hubbard, Yuguang Zhao, Bart Rypma, Lars Backman

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Facial recognition ability declines in adult aging, but the neural basis for this decline remains unknown. Cortical areas involved in face recognition exhibit lower dopamine (DA) receptor availability and lower blood-oxygen-level-dependent (BOLD) signal during task performance with advancing adult age. We hypothesized that changes in the relationship between these two neural systems are related to age differences in face-recognition ability. To test this hypothesis, we leveraged positron emission tomography (PET) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to measure D1 receptor binding potential (BPND) and BOLD signal during facerecognition performance. Twenty younger and 20 older participants performed a face-recognition task during …

Don’T Let Covid-19 Disrupt Campus Climate Surveys Of Sexual Harassment, Kathryn Holland, Lilia M. Cortina, Vicki J. Magley, Arielle L. Baker, Frazier F. Benya

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Surveying a campus community about sexual harassment can be a daunting task during normal times. It’s especially daunting during a pandemic. Institutional leaders may balk at committing scarce resources to survey efforts. Some may wonder how to interpret results that look dramatically different from prior assessments. Also, they may worry about adding to the burdens of already stressed staff, faculty, and students. Indeed, these concerns and complexities came up recently within the work of the National Academies’ Action Collaborative on Preventing Sexual Harassment in Higher Education (1).

This Action Collaborative grew out of the 2018 National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, …

Attributions Of Blame In A Hypothetical Child Sexual Abuse Case: Roles Of Behavior Problems And Frequency Of Abuse, Kate Theimer, David J. Hansen

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Youth who are blamed for their sexual abuse may experience increased negative outcomes, such as amplified self-blame. Similarly, blaming nonoffending parents can impede their ability to support their child following disclosure. Understanding the factors that influence how people perceive victim, caregiver, and perpetrator responsibility is imperative for the protection and treatment of families who have experienced sexual abuse. Little research has explored victim and abuse characteristics that influence the perception of sexual abuse. As such, the purpose of this study was to examine the roles of behavior problems and frequency of abuse in the attribution of blame in a hypothetical …

An Integrated Relational Framework Of Depressed Mood And Anhedonia During Pregnancy, Rebecca L. Brock, Molly Franz, Erin L. Ramsdell

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Objective: The aim of the present study was to test a unified framework that integrates several theories into a cohesive model to explain the interplay between neuroticism and intimate relationship quality as risk factors for prenatal depression.

Background: There is a notable spike in risk for depression during pregnancy, and the processes unfolding in the interparental relationship during this important time in the family life cycle might serve to mitigate or enhance this risk. Yet there is a need for theory-driven research integrating multiple conceptual frameworks to explicate the role of intimate relationship quality in depression.

Method: In a sample …

Conjoint Behavioral Consultation With Latinx Families And Children: What Works For Whom?, Samantha Eastberg

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

Latinx students in the United States are at risk for unmet mental and behavioral health needs (Kataoka, Zhang, & Wells, 2002; Toppelberg, Hollinshead, Collins, & Nieto-Castañon, 2013) and are disproportionately referred for special education and disciplinary consequences (Moreno & Segura-Herrera, 2014). Effective approaches and interventions are needed to address behavioral and socioemotional concerns for Latinx students; Conjoint Behavioral Consultation (CBC) is one such approach. CBC is an indirect problem-solving approach designed to build socioemotional skills and decrease maladaptive behaviors in children (Sheridan & Kratochwill, 2008). Preliminary research demonstrates that CBC is effective for Latinx children and families (Clarke et al., …

Enhancing The Rewarding Effects And Subsequent Self-Administration Of Nicotine Through Appetitive Interoceptive Conditioning, Allissa Flynn

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

Nicotine is commonly considered to be the primary addictive constituent in tobacco products. Therefore, research focused on nicotine and its effects is necessary for understanding nicotine dependency and in developing potential cessation treatments. Research has confirmed the relevance of learning processes associated with nicotine and their influence on the development of addiction. Conditioning involving interoceptive stimuli is increasingly cited as playing a role in many diseases, psychopathologies, and drug addiction. The internal stimulus effects of nicotine can form associations with other reinforcing stimuli through a process of Pavlovian conditioning where nicotine is the conditioned stimulus. In this way, nicotine acquires …

Colombian Retrospective Study Of The Association Between Breastfeeding Duration And Eating Behaviors, Elsa Lucia Escalante-Barrios, Sonia Suarez Enciso, Jesús Estrada, Marilyn Anturi Linero, Alejandra Hérdenez

Department of Educational Psychology: Faculty Publications

The current retrospective cross-sectional study included 175 Colombian caregivers of children ranging between 24 and 59 months old (M=47.08, SD=7.08) enrolled in childcare centers located in the Caribbean region. 58% of the children are male, and all of them belong to low-income families. Breastfeeding duration ranged between children’s 0 to 37 months old (M=10.84, SD=8.48); 64 of them had exclusive breastfeeding for during their first 6 months (i.e., no fed with bottle). Results showed that the variance of Food Responsiveness explained by the model was 2% (R2=.02, F(3,161)=1.081, p=.359). Breastfeeding duration did not significantly predict Food Responsiveness (β=-.004, p=.219), as …

Simulating A Computational Biological Model, Rather Than Reading, Elicits Changes In Brain Activity During Biological Reasoning, Caron Clark, Tomáš Helikar, Joseph T. Dauer

Department of Educational Psychology: Faculty Publications

The creation and analysis of models is integral to all scientific disciplines, and modeling is considered a core competency in undergraduate biology education. There remains a gap in understanding how modeling activities may support changes in students’ neural representations. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of simulating a model on undergraduates’ behavioral accuracy and neural response patterns when reasoning about biological systems. During brief tutorials, students (n = 30) either simulated a computer model or read expert analysis of a gene regulatory system. Subsequently, students underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging while responding to system-specific questions and …

Anti-Atheist Discrimination, Outness, And Psychological Distress Among Atheists Of Color, Dena M. Abbott, Michael Ternes, Caitlin Mercier, Chris Monceaux

Department of Educational Psychology: Faculty Publications

Using a Concealable Stigmatized Identity (CSI) framework, the present study explored disclosure and concealment of atheist identity, anti-atheist discrimination, and psychological distress among participants (N = 87) identified as both atheists and people of color residing in the United States (US). Path analysis was utilized to examine the relationships among variables. Consistent with past CSI and outness research, the final model suggested small, significant associations between higher disclosure of atheist identity and more experiences of anti-atheist discrimination as well as between higher concealment and higher psychological distress. Unexpectedly, higher concealment of atheist identity was associated with higher anti-atheist discrimination …

Provider Reported Implementation Of Nutrition-Related Practices In Childcare Centers And Family Childcare Homes In Rural And Urban Nebraska, Dipti Dev, Aileen Garcia, David A. Dzewaltowski, Susan B. Sisson, Lisa Franzen-Castle, Zainab Rida, Natalie A. Williams, Carly Hillburn, Danae Dinkel, Deepa Srivastava, Christina Burger, Emily Hulse, Donnia Behrends, Natasha Frost

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

Approximately 15 million children under age 6 are in childcare settings, offering childcare providers an opportunity to influence children’s dietary intake. Childcare settings vary in organizational structure – childcare centers (CCCs) vs. family childcare homes (FCCHs) – and in geographical location – urban vs. rural. Research on the nutrition-related best practices across these childcare settings is scarce. The objective of this study is to compare nutrition-related best practices of CCCs and FCCHs that participate in the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) in rural and urban Nebraska. Nebraska providers (urban n = 591; rural n = 579) reported implementation …

The Impact Of Responsive Feeding Practice Training On Teacher Feeding Behaviors In Tribal Early Care And Education: The Food Resource Equity And Sustainability For Health (Fresh) Study, Kaysha Sleet, Susan B. Sisson, Dipti A. Dev, Charlotte Love, Mary B. Williams, Leah A. Hoffman, Valarie Blue Bird Jernigan

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

Background: Establishing healthy eating habits early affects lifelong dietary intake, which has implications for many health outcomes. With children spending time in early care and education (ECE) programs, teachers establish the daytime meal environment through their feeding practices.

Objective: We aimed to determine the effect of a teacher-focused intervention to increase responsive feeding practices in 2 interventions, 1 focused exclusively on the teacher’s feeding practices and the other focused on both the teacher’s feeding practices and a nutrition classroom curriculum, in ECE teachers in a Native American (NA) community in Oklahoma.

Methods: Nine tribally affiliated ECE programs were …

Does Context Matter? A Multilevel Analysis Of Neighborhood Disadvantage And Children's Sleep Health, Carlyn Graham, Eric N. Reither, Gabriele Ciciurkaite, Dipti Dev, Jamison Fargo

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

Objectives: To determine how demographic, socioeconomic, and neighborhood characteristics are associated with bedtimes among US kindergarteners.

Design: Parents reported bedtimes of their children as well as personal, household, and residential characteristics via interviews in the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Kindergarten (ECLS-K) Class of 1998-1999. The ECLS-K links individual households to US Census tracts.

Setting: A random selection of 1,280 schools and surrounding communities in the US.

Participants: A random selection of 16,936 kindergarteners and their parents.

Measurements: The 2 outcomes were regular and latest weekday bedtimes of kindergarteners. Through a series of nested multilevel regression models, these outcomes were regressed on …

The Meanings And Ways Of Parental Involvement Among Low-Income Filipinos, Aileen Garcia, Maria Rosario De Guzman

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

Parental involvement in children’s education is an integral component of young children’s academic achievement. Although there is clear evidence regarding the benefits of parental involvement, little is known regarding its impacts, manifestations, and conceptualizations in non-Western societies. Given that parenting and child rearing are imbued with cultural meaning in many profound ways (Super & Harkness,1986), this study employed a phenomenological approach and used pakikipagkwentuhan, a data collection procedure drawn from indigenous Filipino Psychology to closely examine how low-income Filipino parents conceptualize parental involvement and its role in their children’s education. Thirty-one parents/caregivers were engaged in conversation and qualitative data …

Emotional Support And Mental Health Among Somali Men In A Rural Midwestern Town, Julie A. Tippens, Gilbert R. Parra, Patrick Habecker, Kimberly Gocchi Carrasco, Arthur R. Andrews Iii, Angela L. Palmer-Wackerly, Virginia Chaidez, Jordan Soliz, Lisa M. Pytlikzillig, Kirk Dombrowski

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

Perceived social support has been correlated with refugees’ positive mental health outcomes; yet, little is known about the perceived sources of support after secondary migration to new-destination rural towns. Somali refugee men (n _ 49) residing in a rural Midwest United States community were recruited using respondent-driven sampling to complete a self-administered structured survey in English or Somali using audio computer-assisted self-interview software. Questions assessed perceived sources of support, psychological distress, and happiness. Somali participants reported low utilization of both informal (30.4%) and formal (24.4%) supports when sad, stressed, or worried. Two thirds of participants reported low levels of …

Collaborative Care At A Distance: Student Therapists’ Experiences Of Learning And Delivering Relationally Focused Telemental Health, Paul Springer, Richard Bischoff, Kara Kohel, Nathan C. Taylor, Adam Farero

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

There is mounting evidence that telemental health is an effective delivery method for treating a variety of mental, emotional, behavioral, and relational health problems. While many of the therapeutic skills leading to the effectiveness of face-to-face treatments are transferable, the effectiveness of telemental health requires unique skills. The purpose of this phenomeno- logical study was to determine the experience of learning how to use videoconferencing to deliver relationally focused mental health care. Participants included 10 graduates of a COAMFTE-accredited master’s degree program emphasizing training in telemental health. Each student had practicum placements that required videoconferencing to deliver relation- ally based …

Ethics Based Training For Clinicians: Moving Beyond Ethical Decision Making Models, Bobbi J. Miller, Paul R. Springer

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

Clinical training in ethical decision making processes has relied heavily on teaching students to apply ethical codes and legal statutes to written scenarios using ethical decision making models. While an excellent academic exercise, this approach tends to remain abstract and does not prepare students for the complexities of making decisions during the process of therapy. Recently, experts in the field have called for reforms in ethical training, believing current models must move beyond cognitive exercises that detach students from the humanity of their clients and themselves. The described pedagogical approach bridges the gap by using a modified Objective Structured Clinical …

Promoting Higher Quality Teacher–Child Relationships: The Insights Intervention In Rural Schools, Kathleen Moritz Rudasill, Ray Reichenberg, Jungwon Eum, Jentry Stoneman Barrett, Yuenjung Joo, Emily Wilson, Martinique Sealy

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

Children’s relationships with teachers in kindergarten are crucial for academic and social success. Research shows that teacher–child relationships are predicated, in part, on children’s temperament. The “INSIGHTS into Children’s Temperament” intervention was intended to improve children’s and teachers’ understanding of their and others’ temperament, and has been shown to improve children’s social skills and self-regulation in urban, under-resourced schools. The current study is part of a replication of the effects of INSIGHTS with a sample in rural schools. The purpose was to test the effectiveness of INSIGHTS for promoting positive relationships between teachers and children in kindergarten. Two cohorts of …

Child Sleep And Socioeconomic Context In The Development Of Cognitive Abilities In Early Childhood, Caroline P. Hoyniak, John E. Bates, Angela D. Staples, Kathleen Moritz Rudasill, Dennis Molfese, Victoria J. Molfese

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

Despite a robust literature examining the association between sleep problems and cognitive abilities in childhood, little is known about this association in toddlerhood, a period of rapid cognitive development. The present study examined the association between various sleep problems, using actigraphy, and performance on a standardized test of cognitive abilities, longitudinally across three ages (30, 36, and 42 months) in a large sample of toddlers (N = 493). Results revealed a between-subject effect in which the children who had more delayed sleep schedules on average also showed poorer cognitive abilities on average but did not support a within-subjects effect. Results …

Parent Involvement And Its Influence On Children’S Stem Learning: A Review Of The Research, Julie Thomas, Juliana Utley, Soo-Young Hong, Hunkar Korkmaz, Gwen Nugent

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

A growing understanding that parents and teachers can effectively collaborate to help children succeed in school has led worldwide policymakers and school leaders to begin deliberate actions to increase parents’ participation in school life. For example, the Chilean Education Minister recently encouraged contracts between parents, schools, and the state to increase parental involvement. The Australian government has formed a Research Alliance for Children and Youth to develop and promote understanding of parent involvement (i.e., what it is, why it matters, how it influences learning) and to build evidence about what works. From a sociological perspective, a school’s organizational boundaries are …

Choosing Quality Early Childhood Curricula, Rachel E. Schachter, Shayne B. Piasta, Laura M. Justice

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

This article summarizes a study investigating the curricula and features of those curricula used by 497 early childhood educators across one Midwestern state. Curricula were identified and coded for quality features derived from the research, theory, and policy literatures. Results indicated that most educators utilized Creative Curriculum or High Scope (over 60%); however, these and many other curricula did not include all the key quality features. Importantly, most educators were utilizing curricula with no evidence of effectiveness for supporting children’s outcomes. Furthermore, limitations in the presence of key curricula features may indicate that curricula generally are not adequately supporting early …

An Investigation Into The Curricula (Type And Quality) Used By Early Childhood Educators, Rachel E. Schachter, Shayne B. Piasta, Laura M. Justice

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

Most preschool-aged children spend time in Head Start and other center-based care. Thus, early educators’ use of a quality curriculum is essential to maximizing children’s learning. We examined the curricula utilized by educators working in diverse settings with children ages 3 to 5, focusing on key features of quality curriculum identified from the literature. Most educators (75%) reported using formal curricula. Creative Curriculum and HighScope were the most common; 6% of educators reported no curriculum use. There was a lack of consensus regarding what constitutes curriculum with 16% of participants reporting the use of materials generally not considered curriculum (e.g., …

Comparison Of Urban And Rural Physical Activity And Outdoor Play Environments Of Childcare Centers And Family Childcare Homes, Danae Dinkel, Dipti Dev, Yage Guo, Ami Sedani, Emily Hulse, Zainab Rida, Kayla Abel

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

The purpose of this study was to examine the physical activity environment in childcare programs across type (childcare centers [CCCs] and family childcare homes [FCCHs]) and geographic location (urban and rural) as assessed by physical activity best practices according to the Go Nutrition and Physical Activity Self-assessment in Child Care. Results showed CCCs compared with FCCHs reported higher achievement of best practices. Further, urban childcare programs (CCCs and FCCHs) reported higher achievement of best practices in comparison to rural childcare programs. There is a need to deliver targeted interventions that promote children’s physical activity in FCCHs and CCCs in rural …

Eastern North Carolina Head Start Teachers’ Personal And Professional Experiences With Healthy Eating And Physical Activity: A Qualitative Exploration, Virginia C. Stage, Lorelei Jones, Jocelyn Bayles, Archana V. Hegde, Dipti Dev, L. Suzanne Goodell

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

Objective: Explore the interrelationship between teachers’ personal and professional socio-ecological structures while examining Head Start (HS) teachers’ experiences with (1) trying to eat healthy and engage in physical activity (PA) and (2) promote healthy eating and PA in their classrooms.

Design: In-depth semi-structured interviews were collected from March through June 2017. Researchers designed the data collection and analysis methods using a phenomenological approach. All interviews were recorded using digital audio and transcribed verbatim.

Setting: Seven HS centers in two rural eastern North Carolina counties.

Participants: Teachers (n 15) who had recently participated in a healthy eating and physical activity …

Does Context Matter? A Multilevel Analysis Of Neighborhood Disadvantage And Children's Sleep Health, Carlyn Graham, Eric Reither, Gabriele Ciciurkaite, Dipti Dev, Jamison Fargo

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

Objectives: To determine how demographic, socioeconomic, and neighborhood characteristics are associated with bedtimes among US kindergarteners.

Design: Parents reported bedtimes of their children as well as personal, household, and residential characteristics via interviews in the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Kindergarten (ECLS-K) Class of 1998–1999. The ECLS-K links individual households to US Census tracts.

Setting: A random selection of 1,280 schools and surrounding communities in the US.

Participants: A random selection of 16,936 kindergarteners and their parents.

Measurements: The 2 outcomes were regular and latest weekday bedtimes of kindergarteners. Through a series of nested multilevel regression models, these outcomes were regressed on …

Developing A Brief Behavior Rating Scale For Progress Monitoring Of Depression In School Settings, Evan H. Dart, Prerna G. Arora, Tai Collins, Kevin Stark, Clayton R. Cook, Mylien T. Duong, Carolyn A. Mccarty, Beth Doll

Department of Educational Psychology: Faculty Publications

Frequent formative assessment of students’ functioning, or progress monitoring, is a critical component of multi-tiered systems of support as data inform data-driven decisions about response to treatment. Progress monitoring tools for students’ academic and behavioral functioning are readily available and widely researched; however, despite the documented prevalence of depressive disorders among youth and that schools have been put forth as an ideal location for the delivery of mental health services, there are currently no progress monitoring tools to examine students’ response to interventions that target depression. To address this gap, this study sought to develop a progress monitoring assessment of …