Psychology Commons^™

Health-Related Quality Of Life Of Patients Following Selected Types Of Lumbar Spinal Surgery: A Pilot Study, Karen L. Saban, Sue M. Penckofer, Ida Androwich, Fred B. Bryant

Psychology: Faculty Publications and Other Works

Background

Over 500,000 spinal surgeries are performed annually in the United States. Although pain relief and improved health-related quality of life (HRQOL) are expectations following lumbar spinal surgery, there is limited research regarding this experience from the individual's perspective. In addition, no studies have examined the HRQOL of persons who have had this surgery using a comprehensive approach. The intent of this study was to address this deficiency by an assessment of both the individual and environmental factors that impact perceived HRQOL using the Wilson and Cleary Model for Health-Related Quality of Life in persons who have undergone lumbar spinal …

Adolescent Girls' Perception Of Residential Treatment Centers: A Qualitative Study Of How Treatment Works, Tyler Adam Money

Theses and Dissertations

RTCs play an increasingly significant role in the continuum of treatment of emotionally disturbed adolescents. However, outcome research in this area has lagged behind the growth of treatment centers. More specifically, there has been very little investigation of the relative efficacy of the many different aspects of residential treatment, which are referred to as mechanisms of change in other research. The present study attempts to develop a phenomenological understanding of RTC patients' experience of all of the interventions that make up residential treatment. Results suggest that patients view social support, non-therapist staff members, family involvement and family therapy, as most …

Psychometric Properties And Factor Structure Of The Computerized Ptsd Scale -Multimedia Version Among Adult Samples Reporting Trauma, Shawn Thomas Mason

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

This study investigated the psychometric properties of the Computerized PTSD Scale-Multimedia Version (CPS-M: Richard, Mayo, Bohn, Haynes, & lll Kolman, 1997), a self-administered adaptation of the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS: Blake, Weathers, Nagy, Kaloupek, Klauminzer, Charney, & Keane, 1990). The sample included 161 participants from both a veteran's hospital and from a large urban outpatient HMO system who reported a history of trauma. Indices of internal consistency reliability (i.e., inter-item correlations, item-scale correlations, coefficient alpha) and temporal stability fell in satisfactory ranges. To assess convergent and discriminant validity, correlations were calculated between the CPSM and the following instruments: Purdue PTSD …

The Effectiveness Of Musical Stimuli In Spatial Audio Displays: An Empirical Investigation Of The Effects Of Volume And Spatial Processing Detail, Matthew Crisler

All Theses

Audio displays have potential to convey spatial information to users without taxing their visual resources, but have been shown to annoy some users. Musical stimuli have the potential to reduce user annoyance, but their potential to be localized spatially is untested. These experiments tested how well musical stimuli can be localized at different volumes and when using different spatial processing techniques to manipulate the spatial information.
The two experiments presented participants with brief musical stimuli simulating spatial locations between -40¡ and 40¡ from the saggital plane and asked participants to report the perceived direction of the sound. In Experiment 1, …

Radial Outflow In Teleoperation: A Possible Solution For Improving Depth Perception, Joshua Gomer

All Theses

Practical experience has shown that operators of remote robotic systems have difficulty perceiving aspects of remotely operated robots and their environments (e.g. Casper & Murphy, 2003). Operators often find it difficult, for example, to perceive accurately the distances and sizes of remote objects. Past research has demonstrated that employing a moveable camera that provides the operator optical motion allows for the perception of distance in the absence of other information about depth (Dash, 2004). In this experiment a camera was constrained to move only forward and backward, thus adding monocular radial outflow to the video stream. The ability of remote …

Examining The Effects Of Fatigue On Decision-Making In Nursing: A Policy-Capturing Approach, Laura Mcclelland

All Dissertations

Some previous research has focused on better understanding factors that influence nurses' decision-making; however, previous research has not used policy-capturing as a methodology to examine the impact of fatigue on registered nurses' decision-making. The purpose of the current study was to examine whether the fatigue of working a 12-hour day shift influenced a sample of registered nurses' decision-making. Participants consisted of 69 registered nurses working a 12-hour day shift from 7 AM to 7 PM at a large southeastern hospital. The participants completed a general questionnaire and a policy-capturing questionnaire at the beginning and at the end of a 12-hour …

The Role Of Inspiration In Scientific Scholarship And Discovery: Views Of Theistic Scientists, Kari Ann O'Grady

Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative research study examined the ways those who identify themselves as theistic scientists and scholars experience inspiration, as defined as divine guidance or influence, in their scientific scholarship and discovery. It also explored participants' beliefs about how scientists and scholars can seek and prepare to receive inspiration in their work. Open-ended surveys of 450 participants from the behavioral and natural sciences and from a variety of religious backgrounds were analyzed for content themes in the areas of experiences with inspiration, preparing to receive inspiration, and further thoughts on inspiration in science. The themes extracted indicated that these scientists and …

Personality Predictors Of Motivation To Lead, Tracey Tafero

All Dissertations

In recent years, there has been a renewed interest in understanding the relationship between personality traits and leadership. Recent research suggests that some personality variables are related to leadership. However, research has rarely examined the process by which personality may impact leadership. This study explores the relationship between personality and motivation to lead, a proposed intervening variable between personality and leadership. In addition, this study looks at both broad and narrow measures of personality as predictors of motivation to lead. The current study both replicates and extends the findings of Chan & Drasgow (2001). Results reveal that facet-level personality scales …

Women's Perceptions Of Parents, Peers, Romantic Partner And God As Predictive Of Symptoms Severity Among Women In Treatment For Eating Disorders At An Inpatient Facility, Samuel B. Tobler

Theses and Dissertations

The present study examined whether perceptions of parents, peers, romantic partners and God were predictive of eating disorder symptom severity among women in treatment for eating disorders. The sample included 417 women (ages 12 to 56 years) at an inpatient treatment facility for eating disorders. Participants completed a battery of assessment measures at intake and discharge. Change scores were also computed on all measures. Measures included indices of eating disorder symptomology, parental relationships, peer relationships, romantic partner relationships, and religious well-being. Multiple regression analysis showed perceptions of peers and romantic partner to be significant predictors in all analyses; however perceptions …

Existing Practice And Proposed Changes In Cognitive Assessment Of Utah Students Identified As Deaf And Hard Hearing, Leah Voorhies

Theses and Dissertations

This study presented the past, current, and proposed practice of intelligence testing with a unique population, students identified as deaf and hard of hearing (D/HH). As a basis for describing the cognitive ability of Utah's D/HH students and to improve practice guidelines, 61 D/HH students served by Utah Schools for the Deaf and the Blind (USDB) were administered the Universal Nonverbal Intelligence Test (UNIT) standard battery and the Perceptual Reasoning Index (PRI) subtests from the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Fourth Edition (WISC-IV). Based on these data, composite score distributions were described and compared with national standardization samples. Participants' WISC-IV PRI …

Description Of The Trio/Upward Bound Students' Construction Of Vocations Using George Kelly's Rep Test Method, Maraia Sokia Weingarten

Theses and Dissertations

The Information Age is revolutionizing the way we communicate, acquire knowledge, and perform work. Society is shifting from occupations rooted in industrial production to those associated with knowledge and information, requiring the development of new skills for changing occupations and updating old educational methods. Educators need to be aware of economic and social changes and have a vision for how to design career education to respond to those changes. Individuals must also be prepared to learn on their own as careers evolve and change. The training necessary to adapt to the changing career culture needs to be made available to …

Organizational Recruitment Web Sites: The Influence Of Web Site Aesthetics On Initial Affective Reactions To The Site And Subsequent Attraction To The Organization, Rebekkah Wills

All Theses

The present study examined the potential relationship between specific characteristics of organizational recruitment web sites and applicant attraction to the organization. Cober, Brown, Keeping, and Levy (2004) proposed a conceptual model that suggests web site aesthetics influence the applicant's attitude toward the web site which in turn influences applicant attraction. The current study provides a partial test of this model by examining web site aesthetics, prior attitudes toward the organization, initial affective reactions to the web site, perceptions of web site usability and post-viewing attitudes toward the site and the organization. Participants (N = 159) included undergraduate students using the …

An Examination Of Variables Influencing Undergraduate Hospitality Management Majors' Moral Reasoning, Tamantha L. Brooks

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Identifying factors that facilitate moral reasoning among hospitality management majors are important since it provides insight into their capacity for ethical decision making. This study examines if the variables of age, education level, gender, ethics coursework, or supervisory experience influence hospitality majors' moral reasoning. Participants (n=449) included students taking required hospitality management courses from five Midwestern universities in the United States. The Defining Issues Test II (DIT2) instrument and a demographic supplement were used to collect data. Results showed that there was no correlation between age and moral reasoning; the level of education did not influence moral reasoning; moral reasoning …

The Effects Of Attentional Focus And Expertise Level On Self-Selected Exercise Intensity, Melissa Abo

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of being prompted to focus on self-talk versus bodily sensations on exercise intensity chosen by participants and level of enjoyment. One hundred and forty-two undergraduate psychology students ran on a treadmill for 20 minutes on two separate days, one week apart. One day they were asked to focus on their bodily sensations and on another day positive self-talk. The order of these assigned focuses was counterbalanced. Participant's current level of exercise activity (Stage of Change) was used as an independent variable. The dependent variables of interest were self-selected exercise intensity …

Gender, Attitudes, And Perceptions Of Workplace Incivility, Christopher C. Brady

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The purpose of the present study was to examine perceptions of workplace incivility as a function of observers’ gender, observers’ gender-related attitudes, and the gender of the instigator and target of the mistreatment. The study included data from 102 (65% female, 90% white) participants from various occupations and backgrounds across the United States. Participants completed a web-based survey that consisted of scenarios of uncivil interactions, gender-attitudes, and various demographic information. Results suggest that observers’ gender and gender-related attitudes are important factors in how they perceive workplace incivility. Results also suggest that the gender of those involved in uncivil interactions is …

La Pensée Du Témoignage : De La Scène Du Génocide À La Scène Judiciaire, Sélom Gbanou

Présence Francophone: Revue internationale de langue et de littérature

This paper intends to study the stories of witnesses of the genocide of the Tutsi people in Rwanda from the angle of both History and Justice. It analyses how the actual event is brought back by the victims’s stories and shows the tormentors that the lives they have undone have been redone in defiance of the effort to wipe out all traces, the basic idea of genocide. Furthermore, the witnesses report seems to be a judiciary scene where, trying to understand what has happened, the victims put themselves in the witness box of their conscience in order to find their …

Heritable And Experiential Effects On Boldness In A Tropical Poeciliid, Culum Brown, Fiona Burgess, Victoria Braithwaite

Sentience Collection

Consistent differences in human behaviour are often explained with reference to personality traits. Recent evidence suggests that similar traits are widespread across the entire animal kingdom and that they may have substantial fitness consequences. One of the major components of personality is the shyness–boldness continuum. Little is known about the relative contributions of genes and the environment in the development of boldness in wild animal populations. Here, we bred wild-caught fish (Brachyraphis episcopi) collected from regions of highand low-predation pressure, reared their offspring in the laboratory under varying conditions and tested boldness utilising an open-field paradigm. First-generation laboratory-reared fish showed …

Correlation Between Boldness And Body Mass In Natural Populations Of The Poeciliid Brachyrhaphis Episcopi, C. Brown, F. Jones, V. Braithwaite

Sentience Collection

The boldness of individual Brachyrhaphis episcopi, collected from regions of high and low predation, was investigated using two independent assays: (1) the time to emerge from cover and (2) the propensity to leave shoal mates and investigate a novel object. A strong correlation between the two assays was revealed such that fish that emerged from shelter sooner were also more likely to approach a novel object. This is indicative of a boldness personality axis acting across both behavioural contexts. Fish from high-predation areas were bolder than those from low-predation areas and males were bolder than females. A significant correlation between …

Global Vor Gain Adaptation During Near Fixation To Foveal Targets, Jason A. Williams, Bruce Bridgeman, Tadg Woods, Robert Welch

Psychology and Child Development

Long-term rotational vestibulo-ocular (VOR) adaptation occurs during systematic dysmetria between visual and vestibular afferents, adjusting eye-rotation angular velocity to re-establish retinal stability of the visual field. Due to translational motion of the eyes during head rotation, VOR gain is higher when fixating near objects. The current study measures VOR in humans before and after 6min of exposure to a foveal near-target during sinusoidal whole-body rotation at 0.45 Hz. All of six participants showed post-exposure increases in open-loop VOR gain after fixating near targets, demonstrating a mean modulation increase of open-loop VOR gain from 0.86 before adaptation to 1.2 after adaptation. …

Témoigner : Les Voies De La Connaissance, Catalina Sagarra

Présence Francophone: Revue internationale de langue et de littérature

The author analyzes the narrations of Survivors of the genocide of the Tutsi, in 1994. A particular attention is paid to how the witnesses express two affects : guilt and responsibility. Their life stories explore these concepts which help them to carry out a search for Truth, which is deeply linked with the sufferings the horror of the past inflicted to them to the point of being haunted by the past. The Survivors ask themselves an array of questions, not always finding a satisfying answer which could bring them some peace. They address their questioning to different agents, telling them …

Maggy Corrêa : Passer Le Témoin, Avec Ou Sans Le Feu Sacré, Isabelle Favre

Présence Francophone: Revue internationale de langue et de littérature

In her book entitled Tutsie, etc., Rwandan Swiss author Maggy Corrêa recounts how in july 1994, she was able to rescue her mother from the Rwandan genocide of the Tutsi. This essay begins by examining the status of the testimonial genre within the literary institution. Then, based on Maggy Corrêa’s text, the analysis will demonstrate how Derrida’s concept of sacramentum can be traced in Corrêa’s adventure, and how this same notion proved to be absent from the United Nations’s discourse taking place in Geneva at the same time.

An Examination Of The Factors Of Influence On Rebellious Risky Behaviors In Adolescents, Audrey Roach

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Previous research indicates that the majority of today's adolescents are engaging in or have engaged in some type of rebellious risky behavior, such as consuming alcohol or using tobacco or other drugs (Haynie, 2003; Kann et al., 2000; Loper, 2000; Markey, Markey, & Tinsley, 2003; Patton, McMorris, Donath, & Catalano, 2004; Rickwood, 2005; Steinberg & Morris, 2001). In order to decrease levels of adolescent engagement in these rebellious behaviors, the factors of influence on these behaviors must be identified and understood. While studies in the past have focused on individual factors that influence adolescent involvement in these behaviors, the present …

Evaluation And Needs-Based Assessment Of Special Education Teachers' Knowledge Of Austism Interventions, Dawn Richardson

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is being increasingly identified in children, yet there are only a minimal number of studies examining the use of research-based intervention strategies in a classroom educational setting. This present study examined the use of Discrete Trial Training, Picture Exchange Communication System, Social Stories, Structured Teaching, and Video Self-Modeling by special education teachers with students with ASD. A questionnaire was completed by 91 special education teachers from the Green River Region Educational Cooperative, which encompasses 17 different school districts in the area of western and south central Kentucky. They answered questions about their level of training, knowledge …

An Examination Of The Role Of Anxiety And Obsessive-Compulsive Features In Muscle Dysmorphia Symptomatology, Christopher Chandler

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Although Muscle Dsymorphia (MD) has received more attention in recent years, it still lacks an official classification. The current study incorporates trait anxiety and obsessive-compulsive features into an etiological model of MD in the hopes of establishing them as reliable predictors of such MD symptomatology as drive for muscularity, social physique anxiety, and negative body attitude (self). This model was based upon previous research that has linked trait anxiety and obsessive-compulsive features to eating disorders (ED). In this model, it was predicted that trait anxiety and obsessive-compulsive features would predict overall MD symptomatology, drive for muscularity, social physique anxiety, and …

Relationship Between Premenstrual Symptom Severity And Catastrophic Thinking, Candon Deanne Norton

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD) is proposed as a cluster of severe emotional, physical and behavioral symptoms that affect a small percentage or women during the late luteal phase of their menstrual cycle and cease shortly after the onset or menses. Although some researchers hypothesize there is a difference in the amount or pain actually experienced during the premenstrual phase, others argue that there muy be differences in how women interpret the 'normal' fluctuations and bodily changes of the premenstrual phase. Perhaps women who experience severe premenstrual symptoms anticipate their symptoms and become hypervigilant in monitoring normal bodily sensations, which results …

The Effects Of Domain Knowledge And Scene Content On Change Detection Using A Change Blindness Paradigm, Marianne T. Baskin

Master's Theses - Daytona Beach

This thesis was designed to determine how domain knowledge or scene content affects change detection. Twenty-four participants of medical professionals and non-medical professionals performed a change detection task using a flicker paradigm intended to be similar to saccadic movements or blinks. Each participant viewed 24 pictures on a computer screen, each picture flickering with a blank gray screen alternating between the original and modified version of the picture, and was asked to indicate when a change was detected by depressing a key. Twelve of the pictures were medical X-rays while the other 12 were everyday scenes. Reaction time, number of …

Mental Training For Combat Sports, Randy Borum

Mental Health Law & Policy Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Exercise Makes You Feel Good, But Does Feeling Good Make You Exercise?: An Examination Of Obese Dieters, Robert A. Carels, Carissa Coit, Kathleen Young, Bonnie Berger

Psychology Faculty Publications

Whereas exercise-induced mood enhancement has been well documented, the relationship between mood and exercise participation is less well understood. Mood states influence evaluative judgments that could plausibly influence a decision to exercise. Further, most exercise-mood research is limited to normal weight adults in response to a single exercise session. The current investigation examines the influence of (a) morning mood on exercise, (b) exercise intensity/duration on mood enhancement, and (c) daily change in mood on exercise days compared with nonexercise days in obese behavioral weight loss program (BWLP) participants. Participants (N=36) recorded morning, evening, and pre- and postexercise mood, as well …

Are Some Children Weight Blind? The Stigma Of Obesity And Its Influence On 3rd-6th Grade Children, Madeline Rex-Lear

Psychology Theses - Archive

The aim of this research was to examine when the buffering effects (if any) of ethnicity, sex, age difference, and personality affect the stigmatization of overweight children, and to determine if some children can indeed be weight-blind. A total of 315 3rd- 6th grade children (boys = 157) completed an online computer survey measuring their perceptions of thin, medium and heavy children of different ethnicities and sex. Children also provided measures of their personality and attitudes toward weight. Finally, height and weight were collected for each child. Results revealed an overwhelming weight bias, which was only weakened by higher levels …

Police In Peril: Determining The Work-Induced Stressors Affecting Officers And The Subsequent Use Of Individualized Coping Strategies, Ami Möller

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Identifying what stressors affect an officer and how he or she copes is essential in maintaining psychologically healthy officers. Studies have found that police officers consider the organizationally based aspects of the job to greatly influence their level of stress. The present research used the Police Stress Survey and COPE Inventory to identify common stressors and coping strategies among forty-five officers in the state of Indiana. The study attempted to determine whether or not a chronic overall stress -produced by frequent organizational stressors existed, and if this stress led to an increased use of maladaptive coping strategies. Results indicated a …