Psychology Commons^™

Treatment Of Late-Life Insomnia, Christina S. Mccrae Phd, Joseph M. Dzierzewski Ms, Daniel Kay

Faculty Publications

Insomnia, defined as difficulty initiating and/or maintaining sleep at least 3 nights/week that is accompanied by complaints of sleep-related daytime impairment 1, 2, is the most common sleep disturbance in later life. Although insomnia can occur as an acute disorder (7 days or less), older adults are often afflicted with chronic insomnia (12 months or more3 ). Additionally, insomnia in older individuals is most frequently co-morbid in nature, occurring in the context of age-related medical/psychiatric conditions, increased medication usage, and/or polypharmacy. This chapter will focus on the conceptualization, assessment and treatment of late-life insomnia from a behavioral sleep medicine perspective. …

Validating The Attitudes Toward Sex Offenders Scale, Charmeka. Whitehead

Dissertations

This study investigated the reliability and validity of the Attitudes Toward Sex Offenders Scale (ATS) measurement by assessing attitudes of counselors in training towards juvenile sex offenders. The specific aims of this study were to determine (a) internal consistency of the ATS, (b) construct validity of the ATS based on exploratory factor analysis, and (c) the degree to which this instrument has convergent and discriminate validity. The intellectual merit of this study was to provide appropriate scale validation of the ATS so that it might be used to assess attitudes of mental health professionals who work with juvenile sex offenders. …

A Molecular Analysis Of Training Multiple Versus Single Manipulations To Establish A Generalized Manipulative Imitation Repertoire, Breanne K. Hartley

Dissertations

This study evaluates the necessity of training multiple versus single manipulativeimitations per object in order to establish generalized manipulative-imitation. Training took place in Croyden Avenue School's Early Childhood Developmental Delay preschool classroom in Kalamazoo, MI. Two groups of 3 children each were trained to imitate in order to determine the most appropriate number of manipulations required (per object) to establish a generalized manipulative-imitation repertoire. Three children received single-manipulations training, and 3 children received multiple-manipulations training. It was anticipated that the multiple-manipulations training group would acquire a greater amount of generalized manipulative-imitation because the training required that the children discriminate between …

Efficacy Of A Manualized And Workbook-Driven Individual Treatment For Social Anxiety Disorder, Deborah Roth Ledley, Richard G. Heimberg, Debra A. Hope, Sarah A. Hayes, Talia I. Zaider, Melanie Vandyke, Cynthia L. Turk, Cynthia Kraus, David M. Fresco

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Social anxiety disorder is a prevalent and impairing disorder for which viable cognitive-behavioral therapies exist. However, these treatments have not been easily packaged for dissemination and may be underutilized as a result. The current study reports on the findings of a randomized controlled trial of a manualized and workbook-driven individual cognitive-behavioral treatment for social anxiety disorder (Hope, Heimberg, Juster, & Turk, 2000; Hope, Heimberg, & Turk, 2006). This treatment package was derived from an empirically supported group treatment for social anxiety disorder and intended for broad dissemination, but it has not previously been subjected to empirical examination on its own. …

Descriptive Experience Sampling Of Individuals With Bulimia Nervosa, Sharon Jones-Forrester

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Despite 30 years of research, much remains unknown about inner experience in individuals with bulimia nervosa (BN); yet attaining a clearer understanding of inner experience in BN may prove to be crucial in uncovering the nature of this profoundly disruptive disorder. The present study used Descriptive Experience Sampling (DES) to examine inner experience in 13 participants with BN, replicating to some degree Doucette (1992) and Jones-Forrester (2006). Results in the present study were largely consistent with Doucette (1992) and Jones-Forrester (2006) but substantially different from beliefs about inner experience from the extant non-exploratory DES BN literature. Specifically, the present study …

Factors Associated With Physical Activity Behaviors Among Rural Adolescents, Kenli A. Urruty

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The "obesity epidemic" in the United States is a current health concern that has sparked research interest in physical activity as a means of weight management. However, little research has examined the physical activity behaviors of rural adolescents. The goal of the current study was to use a biopsychosocial framework to examine the physical activity behaviors of a sample of rural adolescents, and explore factors associated with physical activity participation.

A sample of 162 ninth- and tenth-grade students in a rural, western community were recruited for this study. Generally, the sample reported levels of physical activity for both genders that …

Lived Experiences Of Men In Nursing: Chickadees, Stepping Stones, And Muddling Through Maternity, Julie E. Klein

Theses and Dissertations

The profession of nursing is facing an imminent shortage of health care providers within its discipline. Registered Nurses comprise the largest group of health care professionals in the United States. The profession of nursing has experienced cycles of worker shortages in the past but this current situation is predicted to be unlike previous shortages. Efforts to alleviate previous nurse shortages focused primarily on efforts to glorify the feminine image of nursing to increase the recruitment of young women into the profession but the profession can no longer rely on an unlimited supply of women to become nurses because of an …

Teacher Education Admission Requirements And Student Teacher Evaluations: Relationships Among Grade Point Average, Praxis I Scores, And Student Teacher Final Evaluations, Alan C. Olson

Theses and Dissertations

Institutions of higher education attempt to select and prepare the finest K-12 teachers possible. National, state, and local influences also search for the best and brightest teacher candidates to become K-12 teachers. The result has been increased accountability measures to ensure quality. The selection process for admission to teacher education programs frequently involves quantitative measures such as cumulative grade point average (GPA) and Praxis I test qualifying scores for candidates to gain program admission, student teach, and ultimately become licensed educators.

The purpose of this study was to investigate if significant relationships existed among quantitative measures such as cumulative GPA, …

The First Anniversary: Stress, Well-Being, And Optimism In Older Widows, Mary E. Minton, Melody Hertzog, Cecilia R. Barron, Jeffrey French, Roni Reiter-Palmon

Psychology Faculty Publications

The first anniversary for older widows (n = 47) has been explored during Months 11, 12, and 13. Concurrent correlations show that optimism inversely correlates with psychological (intrusion and avoidance) stress as measured with the Impact of Event Scale (r = —.52 to —.66, p < .005) and positively correlates with well-being (physical: r = .36 to .46, p < .025; psychosocial: r = .58 to .72, p < .005; spiritual: r = .50 to .69, p < .005). Lagged correlation patterns suggest that higher levels of optimism at a given time are associated with higher life satisfaction and spiritual well-being at later times. Psychological stress is higher at Month 12 when compared to Month 13, t(43) = 2.54, p = .01, but not when compared to Month 11, t(43) = 1.49, p > .10. There are no significant differences in physiologic stress (salivary cortisol) or well-being during the first …

Brain‐Mind And Structure‐Function Relationships: A Methodological Response To Coltheart, Adina L. Roskies

Dartmouth Scholarship

In some recent papers, Max Coltheart has questioned the ability of neuroimaging techniques to tell us anything interesting about the mind and has thrown down the gauntlet before neuroimagers, challenging them to prove he is mistaken. Here I analyze Coltheart’s challenge, show that as posed its terms are unfair, and reconstruct it so that it is addressable. I argue that, so modified, Coltheart’s challenge is able to be met and indeed has been met. In an effort to delineate the extent of neuroimaging’s ability to address Coltheart’s concerns, I explore how different brain structure‐function relationships would constrain the ability of …

Effects Of Anxiety Reducing Interventions On Performance Anxiety In Graduate Nurses, Georgita Tolbert Washington

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Every new nursing graduate is challenged to successfully transition from student to professional nurse. The stress involved in that transition can manifest itself as performance anxiety, a type of anxiety occurring when someone is the focus of attention and is fearful of interactions or of being humiliated or embarrassed. It occurs only in specific situations. The new graduate's performance is the focus of attention and evaluation. Further, the need to interact with other professionals, patients, and families can create anxiety about performance. No studies have examined performance anxiety in graduate nurses.

Use of cognitive behavioral therapy, progressive muscle relaxation, and …

The Bite Detector: A Device For The Behavioral Treatment Of Overweight And Obesity, Jenna Scisco

All Theses

Overweight and obesity are primary health concerns worldwide and particularly in the United States. Currently, the most effective treatments are behavioral interventions, and a reduction of eating rate is one behavioral method that may help individuals eat less and lose weight. Additionally, adaptive eating behaviors, such as intuitive eating, have been identified as healthy body weight predictors. The purpose of Study 1 was to examine the accuracy of the bite detector, a wrist-worn device designed to detect bites of food. Participants (N = 21) ate a meal in the laboratory, and the sensitivity and positive predictive value (PPV) of the …

Reading Between The Lines: Reactions To Gendered Managerial Communications, Melissa Waitsman

All Theses

Some of the earliest research on women in the workplace demonstrated that women are not perceived as competent leaders and managers. Several decades have passed since that time, but, on average, American women still earn less than their male counterparts, and women still occupy only 12 Chief Executive Officer positions in Fortune 500 companies, up from 2 in 2007 (Fortune, 2008). Recent research suggests that negative stereotypes about women's managerial competence persist, particularly in regards to their assertiveness and forcefulness, two core managerial characteristics.
Current research on gender differences indicates that females are significantly more concerned with social relationships in …

The 'I' In Team: Effects Of Performance Appraisal Type On Teamwork Variables, Brandy Brown

All Theses

The following research examined the effects of performance appraisal condition on teamwork variables. As more reliable models of teamwork emerge, there remains a noticeable lack of information regarding team motivation and feedback in an organizational context. This paper first reviews the current findings on team motivation, feedback, and performance appraisals and then applies that topic to teamwork processes. The researcher proposed that individual, team, and dual (individual and team feedback) performance appraisals would have different effects on teamwork processes and performance. Positive effects on team orientation, mutual trust, and team performance in the team and dual performance appraisal conditions were …

A Comparison Of Methods For Teaching Auditory-Visual Conditional Discriminations To Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders, Laura Lee Grow

Dissertations

Early and intensive behavioral intervention (EIBI) is an approach to treating the behavioral deficits and excesses observed in children with autism spectrum disorders. The magnitude of improvement in the overall functioning of children receiving EIBI has stimulated additional research and widespread clinical dissemination through the publication of EIBI curricular manuals. Many EIBI manuals recommend teaching conditional discriminations using the simple/conditional method. Initially, component simple discriminations are taught in isolation and in the presence of a distracter stimulus. Finally, conditional discriminations, which include stimuli previously taught as simple discriminations, are presented to the learner. Although the simple/conditional method is often recommended …

Well-Being On Planet Earth, Ed Diener, William Tov

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

The Gallup World Poll allows a look at how humanity is flourishing, based on the answers of survey respondents sampled from across the globe. Several conclusions are clear. First, how people are doing depends enormously on the society in which they live, and nations vary from doing very well to extremely poorly. In terms of subjective well-being, nations vary greatly, in both judgments of overall life and in positive and negative emotions. The best predictors of global life judgments were income and ownership of modern conveniences, whereas the best predictors of emotions were social factors such as the control of …

Parties’ Perceptions Of Apologies In The State Administrative Tribunal And Equal Opportunity Commission Of Western Australia, Alfred Allan, Dianne Mckillop, Robyn Carroll, Deirdre Drake, Maria Allan

Research outputs pre 2011

Complainants' and respondents' experiences of the settlement of equal opportunity complaints of discrimination or harassment were investigated. The aim was to gather information on the nature and value of apologies in the settlement process. One specific aim was to learn about parties' perceptions about the value of ordered apologies...

Alpine Time Machine, Fred B. Bryant

Psychology: Faculty Publications and Other Works

No abstract provided.

The Hard Embodiment Of Culture, Dov Cohen, Angela K. Y. Leung

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

The way humans move and comport their bodies is one way they (literally) carry their culture. In pre-wired embodiments, body comportment triggers basic, evolutionarily prepared affective and cognitive reactions that subsequently prime more complex representations. Culture suffuses this process, because (1) cultural artifacts, affordances, and practices make certain body comportments more likely, (2) cultural practices, rituals, schemas, and rules promote the learning of an otherwise underspecified connection between a given body comportment and a particular basic reaction, and (3) cultural meaning systems elaborate basic affective and cognitive reactions into more complex representations. These points are illustrated with three experiments that …

Culture, Psyche, And Body Make Each Other Up, Dov Cohen, Angela K. Y. Leung, Hans Ijzerman

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

The commentaries make important points, including ones about the purposeful uses of embodiment effects. Research examining such effects needs to look at how such effects play themselves out in people's everyday lives. Research might usefully integrate work on embodiment with work on attribution and work in other disciplines concerned with body–psyche connections (e.g., research on somaticizing versus “psychologizing” illnesses and hypercognizing versus hypocognizing emotions). Such work may help us understand the way positive and negative feedback loops operate as culture, psyche, and body make each other up.

The Impact Of Knowledge, Attitudes, And Peer Influence On Adolescent Energy Drink Consumption, Alyson C. Ward

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Adolescents are labeled as sensitive to caffeine, though despite this predisposition, consumption is high among this population. Energy drinks are a current trend in soft-drink-like beverages and are marketed to 11-35 year olds. However, unlike soft drinks, energy drinks are not regulated by the Food and Drug Administration, and therefore do not have to limit their caffeine content.

This cross-sectional, correlational study sought to identify the role that knowledge, attitudes, and peers play in adolescent energy drink consumption. Adolescents (n = 199), ages 18 to 21, at a university in the west were surveyed. Descriptive statistics revealed that 25% …

Cell Phone Use And Psychosocial Development Among Emerging Adults, Torrey B. Morrill

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The cell phone has rapidly become an integral, and, for some, an essential communication tool that is being used worldwide. With cell phone ownership becoming so widespread, especially among the younger generation, society is starting to see and question the impacts of cell phone use on adolescent development.

Relations between cell phone possession, cell phone use, and psychosocial and identity development were investigated using Erikson's Psychosocial Theory and Marcia's Adolescent Identity Paradigm. A sample of 705 college students, ages 18-24, completed a questionnaire that measured the amount and type of cell phone use, identity development (Extended Objective Measure of Ego …

Perspectives Of Parents Who Have A Child Diagnosed With An Autism Spectrum Disorder, Lori Ann Kalash

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to understand the experiences and perceptions parents of a child with an autism spectrum disorder have had. The study addressed the following research question: What were the parents' experiences and perspectives with regard to their child's diagnosis and treatment options?

For this interview study, 12 parents of children diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder were ultimately selected and interviewed. The audio recorded interviews were transcribed and then examined for "significant statement" sentences. Next, clusters of meaning were developed into themes. These "significant statements" and themes were then used to create the formulated meanings …

School Emergency Preparedness In North Dakota Public School Districts, Steven Wayne Swiontek

Theses and Dissertations

The basis for this study was to determine: (1) If school districts in North Dakota have an emergency response plan; (2) How comprehensive their emergency response plan is; (3) How well prepared school districts in North Dakota are for any type of disaster; and (4) The extent to which North Dakota LEAD Center school emergency response training and resources have impacted school emergency preparedness in North Dakota.

There were 120 school districts and their superintendents that participated in the Emergency Preparedness in North Dakota Public School District's survey. School administrators who completed the Emergency Preparedness Survey were asked to indicate …

The Relationship Between Procrastination And Intrapersonal Intelligence In College Students, Christa Grant

Theses and Dissertations

Procrastination is ubiquitous, encompasses many domains of life, i.e., school, work, and home, and for many people has negative results. Therefore, researchers, educators, psychologists, and counselors need to discover ways to alleviate the problem. When Gardner's multiple intelligences are used in pedagogical implementation in elementary and high schools, researchers have found positive results. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships between procrastination and intrapersonal intelligence as well as the other dimensions of multiple intelligence among students in higher education in order to illuminate possible solutions to the problem of procrastination. Because intrapersonal intelligence is associated with the …

Mothers' Perceptions Of Website Information In Solving Behavioral Problems In Children With Disabilities, Heather Collins

Theses and Dissertations

This research investigated the needs of mothers in regard to designing an educational website for parents/caregivers of children with disabilities. This research was designed to provide information to inform outreach efforts of Brigham Young University's Family HOPE (Happiness, Optimism, Promise, and Excellence) Project. This project assists families struggling with child behavior problems. Results from this study provided an initial understanding of the potential for a website to offer support to families not directly served through the Family HOPE project. Participants included 26 adult females, 25 mothers and one female caregiver. Each participant was the primary caregiver of a child with …

[Accepted Article Manuscript Version (Postprint)] Perceptions Of The Authenticity Of Reality Programs And Their Relationships To Audience Involvement, Enjoyment, And Perceived Learning, Alice Hall

Communication and Media Faculty Works

This study investigated whether perceptions of reality programs’ authenticity are associated with viewer involvement, enjoyment, and perceived learning.240 viewers completed a survey about their impressions of the reality program they watch most frequently. Four dimensions of the perceived authenticity were identified: cast eccentricity, representativeness, candidness, and producer manipulation. Perceptions that the cast was not eccentric, that they were representative of people the respondents could meet, that they were behaving candidly, and that the producers were manipulating the show were associated with cognitive involvement. Cast representativeness was also positively associated with social involvement. Cognitive and social involvement were each associated with …

Assessment Of Perceived Positive And Negative Outcomes In Risky Adolescent Dating And Peer Situations: A Descriptive Analysis Of Risk And Benefit Perception, Sarah Helms

Theses and Dissertations

Peer and dating violence perpetration and victimization are common experiences placing adolescents at-risk for maladaptive outcomes, yet little research has focused on specific problematic situations associated with these types of violence and other related risk-taking behaviors. Further, prevention programs have typically focused on changing beliefs, attitudes, and skill-deficits, with little attention to adolescents’ motivations or perceptions of costs and benefits associated with risky situations, despite support for this type of research in other health-related fields (e.g., substance abuse, behavioral medicine). The current study assessed adolescents’ perceptions of potential positive and negative outcomes associated with risky dating and peer situations, many …

Ethnic Effects On Biological, Psychosocial And Disease Care Factors In African-American Youth With Type 1 Diabetes, Priscilla Powell

Theses and Dissertations

Person-oriented and variable-oriented analyses were conducted to investigate sociodemographic differences in biological, psychosocial and disease care factors in youth with type 1 diabetes. Additionally, diabetes knowledge was evaluated as a potential mediator of SES effects on HbA1c and disease care. The sample included 349 youth, age 9-17 years (79.9% Caucasian, 71.3% lived with two biological parents, M SES = 46.24). Person-oriented t-tests confirmed commonly reported ethnic differences in HbA1c and disease care behaviors. However, variable-oriented analyses controlling for confounding sociodemographic influences showed most disease care effects attributed to ethnicity were better explained by SES. While diabetes knowledge was not a …

Examining The Mindfulness – Stress Resistance Relation: The Mediational Role Of Autonomy, Melissa Holt

Theses and Dissertations

Mindfulness – a receptive attentiveness to present experience – has been shown to promote more adaptive emotion regulation (Brown, et al. 2007) and predict autonomy - motivation to behave in a self-directed manner. In turn, autonomy has been shown to predict self-regulation (Ryan & Deci, 2000). This suggests a psychological pathway from mindfulness to autonomy to emotion regulation. To better understand the regulatory potential of a mindful disposition and the possible mediating role of autonomy in healthy adult participants (N = 69), a laboratory social evaluative threat was used called the Trier Social Stress Task (Kirschbaum, et al., 1993). Results …