Psychology Commons^™

A Model Of Freshman Use Of Microcomputers Related To Intellectual And Social Development, Daniel R. Judd

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between freshmen's use of microcomputers and their social and intellectual development in a university environment. A review of related literature describes the theoretical foundation of this research and identifies questionnaire items for measuring the critical variables of microcomputer use and student development. To conduct the study, data obtained from 400 freshman students prior to entering Utah State University (USU) in the fall of 1996 were compared to data collected from the same students during Spring Quarter of 1997. Correlational analysis was used to study changes in freshman students' use of …

Navajo Adolescent Pregnancy: Identifying Ecocultural Factors Among Adolescent Mothers And Their Infants, Jessiline Anderson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Understanding the adaptational responses and ecocultural niche of the Navajo adolescent mother from her perspective provides a richness of information about a little-studied population. The overall purpose of this study was to explore the ecocultural factors determined to be significant in the decision of a Navajo adolescent mother to remain in high school or drop out of high school. Thirty Navajo adolescent mothers recruited from two small reservation towns in eastern Arizona participated in the study. Navajo adolescent mothers in the study participated in a one and one half hour semistructured accommodations interview, and completed a Family Resource Scale and …

The Relationship Between Parental Employment Stability And Child Outcome Measures, Thomas Michael Wolfe

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The present study investigated the relationship between mothers', fathers', and parents' employment stability and five child cognitive and social outcome measures. A total of 179 children who attended Head Start between 1991 and 1995 participated in the study with their parents. Child outcomes were examined to determine if they varied as a function of employment stability categories. Children of parents possessing stable employment histories had significantly higher Woodcock-Johnson broad knowledge cluster scores than children of parents possessing unstable employment histories. Child outcomes generally did not vary as a function of employment stability categories. Number of employment changes was used to …

Effects Of Perceived Sugar Or Chocolate Intake On Self-Reported Food Cravings, Mood States, And Food Intake: A Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Study, Lara J. Schultz

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Many dieters and compulsive overeaters report that sugar and chocolate are the most commonly craved foods. Further, many individuals have proclaimed themselves to be "addicted" to sugar or chocolate. It remains unclear, however, what factors lead to report of specific food addictions. A number of researchers have suggested that highly repetitive consumption of sugar and chocolate may result from various physiological processes (e.g., neurochemical imbalances, glucose/insulin malfunctioning). However, there is also considerable evidence that psychosocial factors (i.e., expectancies, classical, and operant conditioning) play the major role in the development and maintenance of excessive sugar/chocolate intake. Empirical studies examining factors that …

The Perception And Analysis Of Authentic Graphical Elements : An Empirical Study Of Perceptual Skills And Analytical Tasks That Affect Graphicacy, Derek G. Borman

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

In this study, the idea that authenticity should be integral to graphicacy research was advanced. That is, graphicacy researchers should use graphical stimuli that most closely approximate graphs as they might be encountered in the real world (i.e., in text books, newspapers, journals, etc.). It was contended that because of the lack of task authenticity and experimental control inherent in past studies of the analytical tasks and perceptual skills underlying graph reading, there was a need for further study of these issues. To this end, a 24-item graphicacy test was devised, such that key graphical elements and specifiers were more …

Estimating R2 Shrinkage In Multiple Regression: A Comparison Of Different Analytical Methods, Ping Yin

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study investigated the effectiveness of various analytical methods used for estimating R² shrinkage in multiple regression analysis. Two categories of analytical formulae were identified: estimators of the population squared multiple correlation coefficient (ρ²), and estimators of the population cross-validity coefficient (ρ_c²). To avoid possible confounding factors that might be associated with a real data set such as data nonnormality, lack of precise population parameters, different degrees of multicollinearity among the predictor variables, and so forth, the Monte Carlo method was used to simulate multivariate normal sample data, with prespecified population parameters such as …

Interpersonal Aspects Of Attribution And Emotion, Chris L. Treadwell

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

In Weiner's attributional perspective on emotion, recipients appraise outcomes in terms of three attributional dimensions--locus, controllability, and stability. The specific pattern of inferred attributions determines the nature of the resulting emotional experience. Weiner further claims that a sender's own emotion may serve as a precipitating event for a receiver's resulting attributions and emotions. Parkinson critiques the notion that there are inflexible or unique links among senders' emotions, the attributions conveyed by senders' emotions, and the resulting attributions or emotions aroused in recipients. Parkinson implies instead that the nature of the interpersonal relationship between senders and receivers, independent of attributional inferences, …

"Billy Yank" On The Northern Plains: The Lives Of Union Soldiers On The Minnesota-Dakota Frontier From The Great Sioux Uprising To 1866, Darrin F. Boehm

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis will tell the generally forgotten story of the Civil War era soldiers on the Minnesota-Dakota frontier who fought in the Great Sioux Uprising from 1862 to 1865. It will also compare the frontier soldiers’ campaign experience with the experiences of Bell Irvin Wiley’s Civil War ‘'Billy Yanks.”

This thesis covers enlistment procedures, food, clothing, shelter, discipline, disease, boredom, combat, the “galvanized” Yankees, the Dakota landscape, and the role of the cavalry. This story of the frontier soldiers’ expeditions against the Sioux on the northern plains is told using direct quotations from frontier soldiers’ diaries and manuscripts, along with …

The Development Of The Metacognitive Elements Of Study Scale, Tiffney Jo Yeager

Theses and Dissertations

Current theories suggest that metacognitive skills are an important aspect of effective studying. However, few learning and study questionnaires assess the metacognitive components of studying and those that do often assume that certain strategies are more appropriate than others, regardless of the person or the task. The questionnaire developed in this research was designed to measure the metacognitive elements of study strategies, regardless of the type of strategies used. This questionnaire should provide additional information regarding a person's metacognitive skills, beyond what is assessed by other measures of studying ability.

The new questionnaire (Metacognitive Elements of Study Scale; MESS) was …

The Lived Experience Of Graduate Nursing Students In Distance Education, Nancy L. Mosbaek

Theses and Dissertations

This study explored the lived experience of graduate nursing students enrolled in an interactive television course offered through distance education. Areas of focus were the technology of distance education, instructional strategies, the learning community, and communication. The qualitative research methods of interviewing, observation, and artifact/documentation review were employed. Students reported returning to school for both personal and professional reasons; self-satisfaction was most frequently mentioned. The need to work in a changing health care system was the major professional reason given. Due to multiple role responsibilities which made the participants time- and place-bound, distance education was reported to be the only …

The Integration Of Military Adolescents In A Civilian High School, Terri L. Eide

Theses and Dissertations

This study identifies those factors that affect the integration of military and civilian adolescents in a public high school. The convenience sample includes 85 students from military families and 129 students from civilian families. They range in age 13 to 18 years of age. Subjects completed a questionnaire about their sense of belonging to the school environment, individual attachment to the school and others, and peer group association. The analysis revealed that adolescents from military families experience a slightly lower level of integration within the public high school studied than students from civilian families. Additionally, race, as well as military …

The Effects Of Thought Suppression On Later Recall Of Valenced, Self-Referenced Adjectives, Danial S. Sturgill

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the effects of thought suppression on later recall of valenced material. According to Wegner's (1994) theory of ironic mental processes, effortful attempts at thought suppression result in an increased accessibility of the to-be-suppressed thought under conditions of high cognitive load. Participants (N = 180) received an induced-sadness manipulation before being asked to concentrate on associations between visual images (either a white bear or an brown rabbit) and 28 adjectives (14 positively-valenced, 14 negatively-valenced). After a five minute period of suppressing thoughts of one of the visual images, participants were asked to remember as many of the 28 …

Clients' Assessment Of The Affective Environment Of The Psychotherapy Session: Relationship To Session Quality And Treatment Effectiveness, Stephen M. Saunders

Psychology Faculty Research and Publications

This study investigated clients' affective experience during therapy. Clients (N = 268) completed Therapy Session Reports (TSR) in an early session of treatment. The two sections of the TSR that assess how the client felt and how the client perceived the therapist to be feeling were combined and factor analyzed. Six stable and meaningful factors were derived (Client Distressed, Client Remoralized, Reciprocal Intimacy, Therapist Confident Involvement, Client Inhibited, and Therapist Distracted). Affect scale scores were created and compared to session quality and treatment effectiveness. Clients' affective experience was highly correlated with patient‐rated session quality. The association between clients' affective …

Trends. Serbs And Kosovar Albanians: Birds Of A Feather, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

The author discusses how Albanians and Serbs are alike in the throes of similarly deep and powerful psychological processes.

Trends. Pinning The Tail On The Donkey: A Legacy Of The Legacy Codes, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

The author discusses a Taiwanese-born U.S. citizen that was alleged to have spied against the US and for the People's Republic of China.

Mentor Relationships In Clinical Psychology Doctoral Training: Experiences Of Midlife Female Students, Kelley Dickson Carmichael

Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)

The literature is clear that mentoring can be an important element in the professional development of clinical psychology trainees. In this qualitative study of female graduate students between the ages of 40 and 55, it was discovered !hat mentoring was a rare occurrence. Eleven advanced psychology students and graduates offered perspectives on graduate training through the lens of their life experiences. This study informs us that although women in midlife value education and enjoy relationships, they are unlikely to engage with faculty in traditional mentor relationships. Many women noted that faculty did not appear available or invested in mentoring. This …

Mentoring Across Stages Of Psychology Graduate Student Development: A Theoretical Model, Laura L. Zorich

Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)

Developmental stage theories have often been used to explain human behavior during the last century They became especially popular following Erikson's ( 1968) theory of psychosocial development, which was viewed as a comprehensive model of psychosocial development Throughout the last thirty years, developmental theories have become increasingly specific as researchers have focused more narrowly on limited and focused dimensions of human development. The focus of this dissertation will be on graduate student development and the impact of the mentoring relationship on this development. Specifically, the question of how mentors impact and promote the development of graduate students is addressed. A …

Why Behavior Can't Be The Sole Arbiter Of Foreign Policy Goodness: The Ghosts In And Out Of The Machine And Yugoslavia, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

This article highlights a common fallacy in the critique of foreign policy initiatives.

Specific Worries In Siblings Of Children With Down Syndrome, Laura M. Holsen '99

Honors Projects

In this exploratory study, 13 children who had siblings with Down syndrome and 11 children with typically developing siblings were interviewed about general anxiety and specific worries concerning their sibling. Parents completed corresponding measures regarding the child participant's anxieties as well as a general measure of child behavior. Results indicated that siblings of children with Down syndrome had more sibling-specific worries and slightly heightened internalizing behavior as compared to controls. Parents of siblings with Down syndrome reported more worries than did the control parents.

Loneliness And Coping: Examining Predictors Of Active And Passive Styles Of Lonely Individuals, Betsy C. Garver '99

Honors Projects

This study sought to extend research on loneliness and coping. Emotional loneliness is a state that results from the lack of a personal, intimate attachment with another person, and social loneliness results from the lack of engaging in a social network, in which a person shares common interests with a group. Active coping involves making a plan and following it, while passive coping involves using passive techniques such as self-blame or distancing to solve the problem. In addition to replicating the prior finding of Russell et al. (1984) that emotionally lonely individuals were more likely to engage in active coping …

Trends. Tragedies Of School Shootings In The United States: A Matter Of Experts, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

The author discusses the opining of experts after the Columbine school shooting.

Plus Ca Change, Plus La Meme Chose: Online Communication As Still Offline, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

This article continues a series on the psychology of virtual reality (VR). As opposed to previous articles that focus on putative psychological consequences of VR technology (VRT), the present article posits that such consequences may be apocryphal.

Trends. A Profile Of Racial Profiles, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

The author discusses profiling as an approach to prevent crime and to apprehend criminal perpetrators.

Mental Health As Global Health: A Joint World Health Organization-European Commission Initiative, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

This article describes a current international mental health conference and a rationale for this conference.

Adult Attention Disorders: The Effect Of External Auditory Stimulation Of Attention And Comprehension During Reading, Angela M. Reining '99

Honors Projects

This study examined the underarousal/optimal stimulation theory of ADHD. This theory states that an optimal level of arousal is maintained through moderation of incoming sensory stimuli (Zentall & Zentall, 1983). It is proposed that some of the deviant behavior displayed by hyperactive children represents a functional set of responses to conditions of abnormal sensory input. Attempts to correct this imbalance in arousal through chemical and sensory stimulation have been relatively successful. A recent study supported this theory by demonstrating the positive effect of music on children doing arithmetic problems. Using college students with a tendency toward attention disorders, the present …

Mentoring As A Manifestation Of Generativity Among University Faculty, Jeffery L. Lucas

Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)

This study examined the relationship between both generative concern and behaviors and satisfaction with life among university professors who mentor and those who do not_ Generative concern is an attitude or personality tendency to want to help others. Generative behavior are helping acts that generative individuals provide to others. A total of 75 university faculty completed surveys which consisted of demographic questionnaire, the Loyola Generativity Scale (LGS). Generative Behavior Checklist-Revised (GBC-R). and the Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS). Pearson correlations were conducted between generativity and satisfaction with life_ Mentors consistently scored higher on measures of generativity. As predicted, significant positive …

Captive Psychologies: From The Experience Of The Speaker Of The Cypriot Parliament, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

This article describes inferred psychological attributions related to the recent attempt by the Speaker of the Cypriot Parliament to free three United States soldiers captured by supporters of Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic.

Raping And Killing Versus Raping And Impregnating: An Atrocity Primer For Ethnic Cleansing In The Balkans, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

This article describes political psychological aspects of rape as a tool of ethnic cleansing. In the article, rape denotes only the forced sexual behavior by males against females.

Children's Attitudes Toward Television Advertising: A State Of The Art Review, Heidi L. Haskins

Honors Theses

The issue of children and advertising came to light in the 1970s and has continued to be a topic of much discussion ever since. In started in the 1970s when the Action for Children's Television petitioned the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to eliminate all commercials from children's TV programs. Then in January 1973, the major networks agreed to reduce commercial time in children's weekend programs from 16 minutes an hour to 12 minutes an hour. In 1991, the Better Business Bureau estimated that children in the U.S. watch an average of 3.5 hours of television every day, and the average …

Trends. The Politics Of Science And The Science Of Politics: Adult-Child Sex And Child Sexual Abuse, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

The author discusses the "A meta-analytic examination of assumed properties of child sexual abuse using college samples" that was published in the Psychological Bulletin.