Psychology Commons^™

Evaluation Of An Outpatient Training Service For Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders And Their Families, Britt Winter

Masters Theses

Autism spectrum disorders have a substantial impact on the lives of families and can result in a variety of enrichments to the family environment as well as certain specific stressors (Hecimovic & Gregory, 2005; Tidmarsh & Volkmar, 2003). One service that has proven effective for treatment of individuals with autism spectrum disorders as well as improvement in family dynamics is parent training (Schreibman, 1988). The current study examined 46 individual client files from an outpatient parent training clinic serving children with autism spectrum disorders. Parents were taught to implement interventions for skill acquisition with their children using a behavioral skills …

Functional Assessment Of Problem Behavior In Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Review Of 32 Cases, Jessa R. Love

Masters Theses

The prevalence of autism spectrum disorders among children aged 4 to 17 years is approximately 5.5 to 5.7 out of 1000 children (Centers for Disease Control, 2006). It is not uncommon for children with these disorders to display a wide range of problem behavior (e.g., Farrar-Schneider, 1992; Oswald et al., 1992). While a number of studies have reported aggregated data on the reinforcement functions of such problem behavior, none have reported the distribution of functions with a sample comprised solely of individuals on the autism spectrum. Thus, the purpose of this study was to examine individual client data from an …

The Effects Of A Still-Photo Computer Module Without Feedback On Ergonomic Behaviors, Rhiannon M. Fante

Masters Theses

The purpose of the present study was to examine the effects of a still-photo computer training module without feedback on safe positioning of individuals performing an assembly task and a lifting task using a multiple baseline design across behaviors and tasks. The study took place in an analogue office setting and participants were 6 college students. The dependent variable was the percentage of observations scored as safe and each session was recorded via a hidden camera. During each session, participants completed a 5 minute assembly task followed by 2 lifts and this task sequence was repeated a minimum of four …

Presenting Problems And Treatment Outcome Of College Counseling Center Clients: The Role Of Gender And Academic Major, Erik Lennart Timothy Fister

Masters Theses

The current study examined whether gender and/or academic specialization had any relationship to students presenting issues, symptom severity, and treatment outcome at a university counseling center. The participants were 484 clients and the data were collected at an East Coast university counseling center. Clients were included for the analyses if they were a new intake, clearly fit into one of six categories for academic major, and attended more than one session. Each client filled out both the Personal Information Form (PIF) and Behavioral Health Questionnaire (BHQ) at intake, and was administered the BHQ prior to each subsequent session. Based on …

School-Related Predictors Of Test Anxiety In Middle-School Students, Jayme Holt

Masters Theses

Test anxiety has been associated with many school-related factors. In the present study, the presence of an academic label was expected to be a better predictor of test anxiety than memory, study habits, or grade point average in a sample of middle-school students. A total of 48 middle-school students, 19 with academic labels, were administered the Survey of Study Habits & Attitudes (Brown & Holtzman, 1967), Test Anxiety Inventory (Spielberger, 1980), and the Children's Memory Scale (Cohen, 1997), while teachers supplied each student's current G.P.A. The hypothesis that an academic label would be a better predictor of test anxiety was …

Science And Application: A Comparison Of Graduate Training In Counseling And Clinical Psychology, Nupur Jain

Masters Theses

Often times, when considering training and careers in psychology, students have difficulty deciding whether to pursue clinical psychology or counseling psychology as a career. The decision made might be a result of limited or biased information. Additionally, students often fail to make important distinctions between counseling psychology and the professional field of counseling, which has implications for the career path they pursue. The purpose of the current literature review is to provide readers with the range of knowledge and ideas, including contrasting perspectives and viewpoints that have been established in this area.

Students also often fail to make important distinctions …

Evaluation Of Year Round Education: Does It Increase Isat Reading Scores In Third And Eighth Grade Students?, Kristy Marlett

Masters Theses

Little is known about how a modified school calendar influences student achievement in reading. The present study investigated how students performed on the ISAT reading test after the district switched to a year-round calendar when compared to scores when the district was using a traditional school calendar. In other words, this longitudinal study attempted to answer if performance on the ISAT is related to the type of calendar, gender, grade level, and receiving special education services. Participants were 900 students in the third and eighth grades of one Illinois school district that transitioned from traditional school calendar to Year Round …

The Relation Of Teacher Burnout To Teachers' Expectation Of An Elementary Student's Outcome, Megan Brianne Mcdowell

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to determine what aspect(s) of teacher burnout, if any, predicted a teacher's expectation for a student's academic outcome, a teacher's expectation for a student's behavior outcome, and the teacher's ability to work with that student. Thirty-four K through 6th grade teachers, from four rural Illinois schools, completed the Maslach Burnout Inventory - Educators Survey (MBI - ES; Maslach, Jackson, & Schwab, 1986) and the Teacher Expectation Questionnaire (TEQ; Aloia & Aloia, 1983). Results suggested that only the Emotional Exhaustion subscale of the MBI - ES predicted the three scales of the TEQ: Teacher's Expectation …

Calibration Of Reading Self-Efficacy Beliefs Of Students With Reading Disabilities, Melissa Mickelson

Masters Theses

A study was conducted to measure self-efficacy calibration, or accuracy of performance beliefs, in reading by high school students with reading disabilities. This study examined participant's reading metacognitive skills, reading self-concept, reading comprehension, and reading self-efficacy. Fifty-two participants were placed into a group of students with reading disabilities and a comparison group of normal achieving students. These students completed all measures and group results were compared to determine the degree of calibration, metacognitive abilities, and self-concept of students with reading disabilities as compared to normal achieving students. Results of the study found that students with reading disabilities did not significantly …

Existential Anxiety And Religious Commitment, Daniel J. Pelak

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between Paul Tillich's theory of existential anxiety and religious commitment. The study attempted to determine if there was type of existential anxiety that religion might perpetuate or alleviate. Two hundred and twenty-nine individuals who endorsed a Christian or Catholic belief system completed a series of surveys on an internet website; participants were recruited through various Christian message boards or a standardized email that was sent to various church leaders; the measures of the assessment were Tillich's theory of existential anxiety, death anxiety, moral anxiety, meaninglessness anxiety, religious commitment, and personality …

An Examination Of The Relationship Between Prayer And Subjective Well-Being, Brandon L. Whittington

Masters Theses

The present study examined the relationship between types of prayer (adoration, confession, thanksgiving, supplication, reception, and obligation) and self-esteem, life satisfaction, and life meaning, while testing optimism, belief in prayer, and spiritual support as mediators. Linear regression analyses were conducted to examine relationships. Optimism was confirmed as a mediator between adoration and life satisfaction, thanksgiving and life satisfaction, and thanksgiving and self-esteem. Spiritual support was confirmed as a mediator between reception and life meaning. As hypothesized, optimism played a large role in predicting well-being, especially in adoration and thanksgiving, prayer focused on positive themes. Overall, prayer was shown to predict …

Factors Influencing Early Literacy Skill Acquisition Among At-Risk Kindergarten Children, Jill E. Feller

Masters Theses

The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 placed federal mandates on education in which all children will be expected to read grade-level text by the 3rd grade in the academic year of 2013-2014. Risk factors that can be linked to interventions in order to reach the goals of NCLB were investigated. In this study, the risk factors of parental involvement (Reading Minute Index), parental literacy interaction style (Home Questionnaire), and Overactive and Underactive problem behaviors (ASCA composite scores) were analyzed in relation to the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills kindergarten spring benchmarks.

This study was conducted in …

Traditional Versus Nontraditional Relationship Initiation As A Factor In Adolescent Dating And Sexual Behaviors, Jennifer Long

Masters Theses

Research on adolescent dating behaviors, particularly adolescent sexual activity and contraceptive use, is very important due to the health and social costs of teenage pregnancy, childbearing, and sexually transmitted diseases among the adolescent population. The primary purpose of this paper was to address the relation between type of relationship initiation (traditional versus nontraditional) and sexual behavior. Traditional relationships were defined as those initiated by males whereas nontraditional relationships were defined as those initiated by females. Study participants were 104 (62 female, 42 male) undergraduate students attending Eastern Illinois University psychology and sociology classes. The results indicated that significantly more relationships …

Individualism-Collectivism, Values, And Help Seeking Attitudes Among Indian And American College Students, Ateka Contractor

Masters Theses

The present study examined cross-cultural differences in individualistic and collectivistic values and behaviors, the cultural value dimensions of conservatism, openness to change, self-enhancement, self-transcendence, and attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help among American and Indian college students. Data were collected from 111 students at Eastern Illinois University in the U.S. and from 78 students of Mumbai University in India. Participants completed a demographic questionnaire, the Individualism-Collectivism Interpersonal Assessment Inventory, the Schwartz Value Survey and the Attitudes Toward Seeking Professional Psychological Help Scale. Statistical analyses were computed using I tests for independent means, 2 Way ANOVAs, multiple regression analyses and descriptive …

The Relationship Between Teachers' Training In Behavioral Interventions And Experiences And Attitude About Inclusion, Lisa Murfee

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether teachers' amount of training or years of experience influence their attitude towards inclusion. Bergren (1997) found that both regular and special education teachers agree that mainstreaming will positively benefit both special and regular education students. Van Reusen, Shoho, and Barker (2001) concluded from the results of their research that positive attitudes regarding inclusion appeared to be more highly related to levels of special education training, and knowledge of and experience with the special education population. A total of 148 teachers, out of 258, participated in the current study. Two hypotheses were …

Impact Of Test-Wiseness Training On Kindergarteners' Performance On Early Reading Measures, Keath A. Murray

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of test-wiseness (TW) training on kindergartners' performance on an early reading measure. Scores obtained from kindergarten students who receive TW training for two of the kindergarten probes from the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS) were compared to scores of kindergarten students did not receive TW training. Approximately 52 kindergarten students were randomly assigned to 2 conditions. In one condition, 26 students took an initial probe, received brief TW training 2 weeks after the initial probe followed by a second, alternate-form "practice probe", and then a third alternate-form …

"Who Will Cry For The Little Boy?:" An Autoethnographical Analysis Of The Lived Experiences Of An Adopted Person, Timothy R. Terrentine

Masters Theses

What becomes of the little boy who knows well abandonment and pain, yet simultaneously discovers predestinated purpose and unconditional love? This autoethnographical analysis examines the life of an adopted person who has spent his developmental years dealing with specific tensions associated with adoption and all that lie within. Using relational dialectics (Baxter, 1993,2004; Baxter & Montgomery, 1998) and existing adoption research (Carp, 2003; Herman, 2003), the author weaves his story of a history of tensions, a presence of negotiated relationships, and a future of hope with emerging tensions. Through a specific process of discovery and analysis; existing as well as …

Training Parents To Treat Noncompliance In Children With Developmental Disabilities Using Guided Compliance, Christine Bennett

Masters Theses

Noncompliance with parental directions is a critical target for children with developmental disabilities for several reasons, including the frequency of the problem and its impact on caregivers. Three decades of research have shown the effectiveness of guided compliance with children with developmental disabilities; however, only a few studies have examined the effects of parent-implemented guided compliance with this population (Handen, Parrish, McClung, Kerwin, & Evans, 1992; Smith & Lerman, 1999; Tarbox, Wallace, & Penrod, 2003). Three children with developmental disabilities and one primary caregiver for each participated in the present study. Parents were trained in three-step guided compliance (i.e., command, …

The Effects Of Self-Monitoring On Safe Postural Performance, Nicole Gravina

Masters Theses

The purpose of the present study was to examine the effects of self-monitoring on safe positioning of individuals performing a typing task and an assembly task using a multiple baseline design across behaviors and tasks. The study took place in an analogue office setting with seven college student participants. The dependent variable was the percentage of observations scored as safe and each session was recorded via a hidden camera.. During baseline, participants received information regarding safe positions and then completed a typing task and an assembly task during nine-minute sessions. In the self-monitoring phase, participants recorded whether a targeted posture …

Reducing Wait Times In A Hospital Pharmacy To Promote Customer Service, Julie M. Slowiak

Masters Theses

The quality of service received by a customer affects their satisfaction with the organization. To increase the probability that customers will return to an organization, it is critical that customers are satisfied with the organization's services. The amount of time customers spend waiting in line can affect their satisfaction with an organization's services (Gail & Lucey, 1997). This study examined the effects of a single intervention versus a combined intervention package to reduce wait times in a hospital's outpatient pharmacy. Customer satisfaction ratings were collected to determine the effect of a reduction in wait time on customer service satisfaction with …

A Market Analysis Of Consumer Behavior For Companies In A Self-Insurance Group, Bismarck J. Manes

Masters Theses

This study examined variables that influenced the purchase of costly safety equipment by small business owners. Participants were 21 members of a self-insurance group (SIG) comprised of auto recyclers. Eight sets of variables were examined: (a) marketing tools (video, graphic safety data, and price discount), (b) business demographics, (c) worker’s compensation history, (d) personal history, (e) available technology, (f) safety management practices, (g) safety products purchased in the past, and (h) interest in safety services provided by the SIG. Purchasers (N=7) and nonpurchasers (N=14) were divided into groups, and independent t-tests were calculated for each variable. Only one of 45 …

The Effects Of Contingency-Specifying Statements On Impulsive Behavior: Specifying The Dimension Of The Reinforcer, Susan Frances Makdisi

Masters Theses

This study replicated and extended research conducted by Douglas J. Navarick (2001) by investigating the effects on impulsive behavior of presenting participants with a contingency-specifying statement (CSS), or a question evoking a CSS. One-hundred two subjects categorized as impulsive, self-controlled, or neutral, based on their number of impulsive responses on a computer program, were divided into three groups: a control group and two experimental groups. Results demonstrated that impulsive behavior decreased when subjects generated accurate and complete CSSs, either with or without the assistance of corrective feedback on verbal or impulsive behavior. Implications for future research on impulsive behavior are …

Evaluating Increasing And Decreasing Prompt Hierarchies With Developmentally Disabled Adults, Sophie Rubin

Masters Theses

Individuals with developmental disabilities were taught conditional discriminations in the form of an auditory visual matching to sample task using two teaching strategies: the increasing prompt hierarchy and the decreasing prompt hierarchy. A multielement design was used to compare these prompt hierarchies in terms of accuracy, rate of acquisition, number of errors, number of edible reinforcers, and number of praise statements delivered. The results indicate that the increasing prompt hierarchy consistently resulted in an increased number of steps, errors, edibles, and praise statements compared to the decreasing prompt hierarchy. However, differing results were obtained on the accuracy measure across participants. …

Student Evaluations Of Teaching: The Role Of Empathy And Instructions To Students, Shana L. Cunningham

Masters Theses

The current study examined the effects of instructions given to college students before evaluating their professors. The results of a previous study by Addison and Tabb (2004) indicated that an effect could be produced when student participants were given explicit instructions for evaluating videotaped student lectures. The present study was designed to examine these effects in a situation more generalizeable to actual student evaluations of teaching. Specifically, this study investigated student evaluations of a guest lecturer in a classroom environment. Results indicated significant differences among the instructional groups on specific rating scale items. The current study also yielded a significant …

The Changing Landscape Of Teaching And Teachers' Stress: A Revisit And Update, Mike Devillez

Masters Theses

During the late 70s and into the 80s, there was a considerable amount of research devoted to the study of stress and teaching. During that time, it was well established that teaching can be a stressful profession. Since then, studies that examine stress and burnout in the profession of teaching have become more infrequent, although teaching has undergone rapid change. For example, new educational legislation, No Child Left Behind that has recently been passed directly impacts teachers and their approaches toward teaching. This study seeks to understand the current educational environment and the possible contribution to teacher stress. Results of …

The Individualized Education Plan: Involvement And Satisfaction Of The Regular Education Teacher, Alison Dirksmeyer

Masters Theses

A total of 376 general education teachers in grades kindergarten through high school completed a questionnaire about their involvement and satisfaction with the Individualized Education Plan (IEP) process. The results from the current study suggest that many regular education teachers are not actively involved or satisfied with the IEP process. For example, less than half of the teachers surveyed indicated that they were completely or actively involved in determining IEP goals and less than one-fifth reported that they felt a major responsibility for helping students in their classroom achieve IEP goals. Many areas of dissatisfaction were also noted in teachers' …

Oral Reading Fluency, Fluency Training, And Reading Comprehension In Sixth Graders, Lindsay B. Eck

Masters Theses

This study examined the relationships among a measure of oral reading fluency and two measures of reading comprehension in sixth grade students at two urban schools in the Midwest. In one of the schools, fluency training was added to the usual curriculum. Participants, all sixth grade students in the two schools, were administered the DIBELS Oral Reading Fluency (ORF) indicator and two district-assigned reading comprehension measures during the third and fourth quarters of the school year. Results indicated that ORF scores were significantly correlated with comprehension scores, although to a lesser degree than typical for earlier grades. Fluency training had …

A Comparison Of Two Phonological Awareness Interventions Between Samples Of Head Start Children, Kevin D. Farrell

Masters Theses

Phonological processing skills are an accurate predictor of pre-readers' reading performance years later. Historically, children have not been required to demonstrate phonological processing skills until kindergarten. Due to the importance of these early reading skills, it is critical that deficits within this area are remediated utilizing research based interventions. Recent research has demonstrated that preschool age children could be taught some early reading skills through direct instruction techniques known as Picture Sorts and Sound Boxes. However, little research exists on the efficacy of such methods with a Head Start population. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects …

Explicit Timing As An Intervention For Children With Adhd, Monica Fischer Girten

Masters Theses

Explicit timing is a procedure that alerts students of their time limits when completing academic tasks. Research on this procedure first emerged in the mid 1970's, and has focused on the effectiveness of this technique for increasing academic response rate. Empirical studies have demonstrated that the explicit timing procedure can increase response rate for a variety of academic skills including mathematics performance, writing composition and reading. However, few studies have focused on the effectiveness of this procedure on special populations, such as students with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). The purpose of the current study was to determine whether explicit …

Using Social Stories To Correct Social Skills Deficits In A Student With A Learning Disability, April Larson-Evangelista

Masters Theses

Social stories have been deemed an effective intervention for people with autism (e.g., Richard, 2000). The purpose of the present study was to investigate the use of social stories with a participant not diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder. The participant was an 8 year-old second-grade girl of average intelligence who was diagnosed with a learning disability in mathematics. Upon consulting with her classroom teacher, two social skills were identified as the target behaviors to be addressed in the present study. The first prominent behavioral concern was violation of others' personal space or standing too close to others. The second …