Psychology Commons^™

Ciis Today, Fall 2011 Issue, Ciis

CIIS Today

This volume is the Fall 2011 issue of CIIS Today, the Magazine of the California Institute of Integral Studies.

Practical Ways To Reduce Online & In-School Bullying, Elizabeth Englander

MARC Publications

The Massachusetts Aggression Reduction Center (MARC) is an academic Center at Bridgewater State University in Massachusetts. By running a training program for graduate and undergraduate students in higher education, MARC offers free research, programs and services to K-12 schools in Massachusetts. Everyone benefits: future educators receive unique field training, and K-12 schools receive high-quality, no-cost programs and services. One important characteristic of MARC’s mission is to transmute significant research findings into concrete, useable information for K-12 teachers in the field. The sheer amount of information available today about bullying and cyberbullying can make any educator’s head spin. But despite the …

The Creativity Effect (With C. Sprigman), Christopher J. Buccafusco

All Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Trauma Focused Treatment In Individuals With Intellectual Disabilities: A Group Treatment Approach, Kolina J. Delgado

Psychology Student Publications

Intellectual Disability is a condition that affects one's ability to learn and function independently. The condition is characterized by subaverage intellectual functioning and significant impairments in adaptive functioning, with onset occurring prior to age 18. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Text Revision (DSM-IVTR) uses the term Mental Retardations to describe these individual differences in cognitive and adaptive abilities. However, the term Mental Retardation has received significant criticism in recent years, and the term Intellectual Disability (ID) is being used with greater acceptance. In keeping with this trend, the term Intellectual Disability will be used throughout …

Attachments And Transitions: Impact Of An Attachment Intervention With At-Risk Parents And Infants, Katarzyna Peninska, Rosana M. Aguilar, June Madsen Clausen, Foster Care Research Group

Psychology

No abstract provided.

Impact Of Psychotherapy For Foster Children: A Repeated Measures Analysis, Emily Reich, Kimberlin Borca, June Madsen Clausen, Foster Care Research Group

Psychology

No abstract provided.

Cultural Norms Shaping Research Group Interviews With Chinese American Immigrants, Christine Ml Kwan, Kevin M. Chun, Catherine A. Chesla

Psychology

Practical knowledge on how to tailor research methods for Asian Americans is relatively scarce despite the rapid population growth of this ethnic group and the ongoing calls for greater cultural competence among researchers. Based on a 4-year qualitative study of family and cultural issues in diabetes management among Chinese American immigrants, this article presents data-based analyses of culturally nuanced group interview processes, and recommendations for conducting culturally appropriate group interviews. Group interview processes were prominently shaped by 4 cultural norms: sensitivity to social hierarchy, monitoring public display of strong emotions, face concerns, and emphasis on group harmony. Strategies for facilitating …

Types Of Prayer And Depressive Symptoms Among Cancer Patients: The Mediating Role Of Rumination And Social Support, John E. Perez, Amy Rex Smith, Rebecca L. Norris, Katia M. Canenguez, Elizabeth F. Tracey, Susan B. Decristofaro

Psychology

We examined the association between different types of prayer and depressive symptoms—with rumination and social support as potential mediators—in a sample of predominantly White, Christian, and female ambulatory cancer patients. In a cross-sectional design, 179 adult cancer outpatients completed measures of prayer, rumination, social support, depressive symptoms, and demographic variables. Type and stage of cancer were collected from electronic medical charts. Depressive symptoms were negatively correlated with adoration prayer (r = −.15), reception prayer (r = −.17), thanksgiving prayer (r = −.29), and prayer for the well-being of others (r = −.26). In the path analysis, …

Anti-Saccade Performance Predicts Executive Function And Brain Structure In Normal Elders, J. B. Mirsky, H. W. Heuer, A. Jafari, J. H. Kramer, A. K. Schenk, Indre Viskontas, B. L. Miller, A. L. Boxer

Psychology

Objective—To assess the neuropsychological and anatomical correlates of anti-saccade (AS) task performance in normal elders.

Background—The AS task correlates with neuropsychological measures of executive function and frontal lobe volume in neurological diseases, but has not been studied in a well-characterized normal elderly population. Because executive dysfunction can indicate an increased risk for cognitive decline in cognitively normal elders, we hypothesized that AS performance might be a sensitive test of age-related processes that impair cognition.

Method—The percentage of correct AS responses was evaluated in forty-eight normal elderly subjects and compared with neuropsychological test performance using linear regression analysis …

Multimodal Cuing Of Autobiographical Memory In Semantic Dementia, D. L. Greenberg, J. M. Ogar, Indre Viskontas, M. L. Gorno Tempini, B. Miller, B. J. Knowlton

Psychology

OBJECTIVE: Individuals with semantic dementia (SD) have impaired autobiographical memory (AM), but the extent of the impairment has been controversial. According to one report (Westmacott, Leach, Freedman, & Moscovitch, 2001), patient performance was better when visual cues were used instead of verbal cues; however, the visual cues used in that study (family photographs) provided more retrieval support than do the word cues that are typically used in AM studies. In the present study, we sought to disentangle the effects of retrieval support and cue modality.

METHOD: We cued AMs of 5 patients with SD and 5 controls with words, simple …

Egyptians' Attitudes Toward Secularism, Nouran Omar, Norhan El-Araby, Sherine Samir

Papers, Posters, and Presentations

This research study examined Egyptians' attitudes towards Egypt's possible evolution into a secular state. Our hypotheses were that Christianity, less religiosity in Islam, more religious tolerance, higher Westernization and more liberal thinking would predict more positive attitudes towards Egypt becoming a secular state. In addition, we conducted exploratory research on the demographics including gender and socio-economic status including education, to see whether they have a relationship with secularism attitudes. The convenience sample consisted of 234 individuals who completed a series of questionnaires either at an Internet website or on paper in our local neighborhoods. Our findings confirmed our hypotheses except …

The Egyptian Revolution: How Egyptians Were Freed From Fear Of Death, Alexandra Gazis, Eman Attia, Hamida Stelzer, Mahitab El Ramlawy

Papers, Posters, and Presentations

During the 18 days of the Egyptian revolution of 2011, people coexisted each day with death and all the linked fears surrounding it. Though death anxiety is a persistent matter and has a powerful effect on people's minds and psychological well-being, the shift of the Egyptian people's beliefs and feelings towards death and how it compelled them to action during the revolution led us to focus on the following: the comparison of the degree of death anxiety in people who participated at least once in the protests, with that of those who did not go at all. Our hypothesis is …

Personality Traits And Political Participation, Jessica Saleh, Tamima El Kahhal, Carine Abou Seif

Papers, Posters, and Presentations

The purpose of this study was to examine the Big Five personality traits in relation to political participation and activism at the American University in Cairo. Our hypothesis was that participants high on extraversion and openness to experience, and low on conscientiousness, agreeableness and neuroticism would be the most politically active. Questionnaires used to test this were the Big five Inventory (BFI), the Activism Orientation Scale (AOS), and a political participation questionnaire developed by our team. Convenience sampling was used to administer the questionnaires to our sample of 171 students. Results revealed positive correlations between extraversion and political participation, openness …

Baby Boomers At Work: Growing Older And Working More, Eve M. Brank

Nebraska College of Law: Faculty Publications

In the current chapter, I will first detail the legal framework for workplace age discrimination and court case examples that have largely mirrored race and gender discrimination law. Next, I will discuss the psychological research that details the consequences of age discrimination with a particular focus on the combined effects of stereotype assimilation and notions of deservingness of respect. Last, I will suggest that until we know the causes of age discrimination, we cannot legitimately address its consequences the same way we have addressed other forms of discrimination. Specifically, I will argue that legislating against age discrimination is inherently different …

Using Low-Stakes Repeated Testing Can Improve Student Learning: How (Some) Practice Makes Perfect, Sarah Grison, Steven G. Luke, Aya Shigeto, Patrick D.K. Watson

Psychology Faculty

Two studies in Introductory Psychology classes explored whether repeated low-stakes testing can augment learning. In Experiment 1, answering more in-class questions with student response systems (SRSs) predicted better learning when students had not read the text. In Experiment 2, taking online practice quizzes predicted better learning, especially when questions on a concept were grouped. Repeated low-stakes testing can aid learning, but we must develop evidence-based pedagogical tools to maximize effects.

Home Literacy Factors Affecting Emergent Literacy Skills, Robyn Valerie Cassel

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to identify factors in the home literacy environment using the Stony Brook Family Reading Survey (SBFRS) in order to understand the extent to which these factors predict phonemic awareness and other basic reading skills, as assessed by selected subtests from the Woodcock-Johnson III (WJ III). The present study used archival data to examine the home literacy habits of a sample of parents and preschool children ages 3-5 years (range in months= 36-67) from a private and a public preschool with a combination of high- and low-income backgrounds and various ethnicities. Using exploratory factor analyses …

Using The Timeline Followback To Identify Time Windows Representative Of Annual Posttreatment Drinking, Christopher J. Gioia

Theses and Dissertations

Using 12-month post treatment Timeline Followback drinking reports, data extrapolated from shorter time windows (e.g., 1 month, 6 months) were used to estimate total annual drinking. The objective was to determine whether data from a shorter time window would provide an estimate of annual drinking sufficiently consistent with the full year report such that it can be used in place of the full report. Data for this study were obtained from problem drinkers who voluntarily participated in a randomized controlled trial of a mail-based intervention. Complete follow-up data were obtained for 467 of the 825 participants who completed a 12-month …

Attitudes Toward Psychological Tele-Health: Current And Future Psychologists' Opinions Of Internet-Based Interventions, Jonathan Perle

Theses and Dissertations

Over the past 20 years, with the development and expansion of computer- and internet-based services (e.g., psychoeducational, intervention, and testing programs), the integration of technology with the treatment of mental health disorders has sparked one of the most debated topics in the mental health profession. With no clear end for this debate in sight, many believe that clinicians wish to reach a consensus and adopt a universal stance on computer-based psychological services so that discussion and research can be shifted to make meaningful contributions for the future. Although paramount, many licensed psychologists have yet to state their stance of whether …

The Poreh Nonverbal Memory Test, Chelsea Kalynn Kociuba

ETD Archive

Nonverbal memory focuses on the remembrance of information that cannot be described or put into a verbal component, such as remembering a person's face, identifying abstract stimuli, or remembering objects. Because nonverbal memory focuses on the remembrance of things that cannot be put into words it is a difficult construct to measure accurately. One area that is of great importance in the assessment of nonverbal abilities is spatial memory (Reynolds & Coress, 2007, Foster, Drago, & Harrison, 2009). Most of the tasks that have been developed to assess this construct employ verbally mediated clues allowing the examinee to compensate for …

The Impact Of Socioeconomic Status On Second Grade Reading Levels, Amanda Jill Knight

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

The purpose of this study is to examine if low SES students respond differently to Tier I and Tier II interventions than Non-Low SES students. The study also seeks to determine the effect Tier I and Tier II interventions have on a group of second grade students. Forty-four Tier I and Tier II Caucasian second grade students from a rural Ohio elementary school were included in this study. No significant differences were found between the reading levels of low-SES and Non-Low-SES students prior to or afterimplementation of RTI. Significant differences were found between the AIMSweb fall and winter benchmarks as …

Mental Health Services And Alternative Schools, Chasity D. Johnson

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

With the number of children being placed into alternative school settings growing, it is of interest to know if mental health services are a beneficial addition to the traditional alternative programs. To research this issue, case studies of 48 children who had attended an alternative school were assessed. Participants included 48 students, half of whom had received only alternative school services while the other half had received alternative school services in addition to mental health services during their alternative school placement. Findings show no significant correlation between the hours of mental health services received and any of the following variables: …

Transition From High School To College : The Experiences Of Girls In Rural West Virginia, Leanne Arbor Olson

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

A degree in higher education is increasingly important in our competitive economic environment, but a 30% gap exists between high-income and low-income students attending college (Bloom, 2005; Corrigan & Hartle, 2007). Rural and urban schools contend with issues of poverty and educational resources, while suburban schools work with "ample resources and stable populations" (Truscott & Truscott, 2005, p. 245). The purpose of this study was to better understand the enabling and constraining factors of five girls from rural, West Virginia as they transitioned from high school to college. Collaborative enthographic case study allowed the five students to be involved in …

The Application Of The Lamaze Method In The Management Of Acute Pain: A Comparison Of Non-Pharmacological Pain Management Techniques, Emily Marie Selby-Nelson

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Pain is a primary concern in health care. Considering the limitations of pharmacological interventions, identifying the effectiveness of alternative pain management is crucial. Utilizing a pre-post design, different psychological approaches to acute pain management were tested. Participants included 85 college females who were randomly assigned to one of four conditions (Long Lamaze, Brief Lamaze, Acceptance of pain, and a Control group). Participants first underwent an Algometer pain task, then received training or control interactions once a week for four weeks, and were tested again on the pain task. Amount of time participants were able to withstand the pain administered in …

Teachers' Beliefs Towards Grade Retention In A Rural Elementary School, Sarah Elizabeth Terry

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

This study examined the beliefs of kindergarten through fourth grade teachers regarding effects of retention on academic, emotional, and social areas, as well as alternative interventions to retention. The teachers were asked to take a web-based pre-survey on grade retention. After completing the initial survey they were then asked to watch a web-based PowerPoint presentation on research-based evidence regarding retention before taking a web-based postsurvey. The results of this study revealed that teacher‟s beliefs towards grade retention were not significantly changed when presented with a research-based PowerPoint presentation regarding the negative effects of retention practices, as measured by the pre …

Effects Of A Universal Positive Behavior Intervention On School-Wide Behavior, Kelly Renae Tanner

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

This study examines the effects of a positive behavior intervention on the behavior of students in a single elementary school located in a rural area of West Virgina. A Single Group Pretest-Treatment-Posttest Design was utilized with the frequency of Office Discipline Referrals (ODR’s) as the dependent variable. Data were analyzed using the Chi Square statistic. Results showed no significant difference in pre-treatment and post-treatment conditions.

West Virginia School Psychologists' Attitudes Toward Gay And Lesbian Students, Lauren B. Winter

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Given the alarming rates of harassment of gay and lesbian students in our nation’s schools, it is important to ascertain the attitudes of school personnel toward homosexuality. Particularly important are the attitudes of school psychologists. The present study examines the attitudes of West Virginia school psychologists toward gay and lesbian students, and how their contact with, knowledge of, and level of religiosity affect these attitudes. Results indicated that respondents’ attitudes toward homosexuality were positively correlated with contact and knowledge and negatively correlated with religiosity. Contact was the strongest predictor of positive attitudes. There were no significant differences between demographic variables, …

University-Community Engagement: The Fresno Story Of Targeted Neighborhood Revitalization, D. Schecter, Ellen N. Junn, K. Coles

Office of the Provost Scholarship

In this article we take a closer look at a developing university-community engagement project being undertaken between California State University, Fresno, and the City of Fresno. A history of the project is provided, along with a review of the relevant literature and a summary of what pieces of the puzzle we feel should be in place for a successful collaboration of this sort. These include what structures should be institutionalized for successful collaboration at the university, in the partnering organizations, and in the community.

Decisional Strategy Determines Whether Frame Influences Treatment Preferences For Medical Decisions, Erin L. Woodhead, E. B. Lynch, B. A. Edelstein

Faculty Publications

Decision makers are influenced by the frame of information such that preferences vary depending on whether survival or mortality data are presented. Research is inconsistent as to whether and how age impacts framing effects. This paper presents two studies that used qualitative analyses of think-aloud protocols to understand how the type of information used in the decision making process varies by frame and age. In Study 1, 40 older adults, age 65 to 89, and 40 younger adults, age 18 to 24, responded to a hypothetical lung cancer scenario in a within-subject design. Participants received both a survival and mortality …

Brain Activity Elicited By Positive And Negative Feedback In Preschool-Aged Children, Xiaoqin Mai, Twila Tardif, Stacey N. Doan, Chao Liu, William J. Gehring, Yue-Jia Luo

CMC Faculty Publications and Research

To investigate the processing of positive vs. negative feedback in children aged 4–5 years, we devised a prize-guessing game that is analogous to gambling tasks used to measure feedback-related brain responses in adult studies. Unlike adult studies, the feedback-related negativity (FRN) elicited by positive feedback was as large as that elicited by negative feedback, suggesting that the neural system underlying the FRN may not process feedback valence in early childhood. In addition, positive feedback, compared with negative feedback, evoked a larger P1 over the occipital scalp area and a larger positive slow wave (PSW) over the right central-parietal scalp area. …

Modeling Elementary Aged Students' Fluency Growth In Written Expression: Predicting Fluency Growth For Girls And Boys In General Education, Adrea J. Truckenmiller

Psychology - Dissertations

Research on evidence-based writing intervention practices as well as reliable and valid assessments of elementary-aged students' writing fluency has been lacking compared to other academic areas (i.e., reading). Performance feedback interventions targeting writing fluency are gaining empirical support (Eckert et al., 2006); however, growth trajectories for elementary-aged students' writing fluency over a short period of time and contributing variables have not been explored. The purpose of this study was to model students' writing fluency growth as it relates to: (a) instructional practices, (b) sex differences, and (c) individual student's initial level of writing fluency. A total of 133 third-grade students …