The Effects Of Systemic Racism On The Academic Achievement Of African American Male Adolescents, Andre Rubin Fields

Dissertations

In the most recent decade, there has been a spiraling national trend of academic underachievement on the part of African American male adolescents. The empirical purpose of this study was to investigate what role, if any, systemic racism may be playing in the growing epidemic of academic underachievement in African American male adolescents. The results of the analyses utilized in this study found that there were significant correlations between perceptions of racism, coping behavior utilization, and psychological dysfunction. Specifically, canonical correlation analysis found that elevated levels of Cultural Mistrust, Cultural Race-Related Stress, and Individual Race-Related Stress leads to increased use …

An Attempt To Establish Approval As A Learned Reinforcer, Kelly T. Kohler

Dissertations

Approval does not function as a powerful reinforcer for many children with autism, making it difficult to reinforce appropriate behavior in a functional and consistent manner. The current study first assessed the effects of establishing approval (“Nice,” accompanied by a smile and nod) and nonsense words as discriminative stimuli, with the intent that they might also become learned reinforcers. We conducted several experiments to assess the effectiveness of approval as a reinforcer, including tests on learning new responses (receptive, expressive, freeoperant, and simple simultaneous discriminations) and tests on the performance of previously mastered responses (receptive and expressive responses). Despite the …

The Relationship Between Racial Ambiguity And Self-Concept In Multiracial Lndividuals, James R. Jobe

Dissertations

The present study examined the relationship between racial ambiguity and self-concept in multiracial individuals. Research as to the experiences of multiracial people is limited both in frequency and in scope. As multiracial individuals continue to grow in number, understanding their unique experiences will become more important to social scientists (e.g., psychologists, anthropologists, sociologists) across disciplines. The current study examined two hypotheses and explored a series of additional relationships. The theoretical framework that was utilized for this study was Symbolic Interaction Theory. This theory provided an effective way to understand how people use and make meaning of their surrounding social contexts …

The Use Of Response Interruption Redirection, Timeout, And Differential Reinforoement To Decrease Stereotypy, Jessica Korneder

Dissertations

Behaviors such as toe walking, hand flapping, nonfunctional vocalizations, and rocking are all examples of stereotypy. Stereotypy can occur at high rates in children with and without developmental delays (Smith & Van Houten, 1996). These behaviors can interfere with the acquisition of new skills (e.g., Dunlap, Dyer, & Koegel, 1983; Morrison & Rosales-Ruiz, 1997) and social interactions (Jones, Wint, & Ellis, 1990). The purpose of this study was to assess the effectiveness of response interruption and redirection (RIRD), time-out, and differential reinforcement of other behavior (DRO) in reducing vocal and motor stereotypy with children who engage in automatically reinforced high-rates …

Evaluation Of Novel Κappa Opioid Agonists Alone And In Combination With D-Amphetamine On Locomotor Activity In Sprague-Dawley Rats Evaluation Of Novel Κappa Opioid Agonists Alone And In Combination With D-Amphetamine On Locomotor Activity In Sprague-Dawley Rats, Mary Melissa Peet

Dissertations

Stimulant abuse is a widespread problem that often leads to detrimental health and social consequences. Currently, there are no FDA-approved pharmacotherapies available as a treatment option for stimulant abuse or the prevention of relapse. Drugs targeting kappa opioid receptors (KOR) are under investigation as a potential pharmacotherapy. KOR agonists have been shown to modulate dopamine levels within brain reward pathways, thereby producing anti-addictive effects. Traditional KOR agonists unfortunately tend to produce untoward side effects, including sedation, limiting their therapeutic utility. Structurally different from traditional KOR agonists, salvinorin A (salvA) may produce less sedating effects while still exerting anti-addictive properties. SalvA …

Assessment And Treatment Of Elopement In Young Children With Autism, Ivette Andrade

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

Elopement, leaving a caregivers side without permission or supervision, is a behavior that is more prevalent among children with autism as compared to their typically developing peers. With potentially fatal consequences (e.g., drowning, being run over, abducted), it is reported to cause high levels of stress for caregivers. In the present study, we evaluate the assessment and treatment of elopement using a multicomponent treatment package to address the multiple functions of elopement. The treatment consisted of an antecedent treatment procedure, blocking and differential reinforcement of other behaviors with extinction (DRO w/ EXT). An ABAB reversal design was utilized to assess …

Reducing Eating Disorder Risk Factors: A Controlled Investigation Of A Blended Task-Shifting/Train-The-Trainer Approach To Dissemination And Implementation, Lisa S. Kilpela, Kaitlin Hill, Mackenzie Kelly, Joanna Elmquist, Paige Ottoson, Thomas Hildebrandt, Carolyn Becker

Psychology Faculty Research

Recent advances in psychological intervention research have led to an increase in evidence-based interventions (EBIs), yet there remains a lag in dissemination and implementation of EBIs. Task-shifting and the train-the-trainer (TTT) model offer two potential strategies for enhancing reach of EBIs. The Body Project, an EBI found to prevent onset of eating disorders, served as the vehicle for this dissemination/implementation study. The primary aim of this study was to determine if training of peer-leaders for the Body Project could be task-shifted to undergraduate students using a hybrid task-shifting/TTT model. Our secondary aim was to determine if subgroups of participants evidenced …

Surviving The Death Of A Sibling : A Phenomenological Study Of Childhood Bereavement., Edith Crumb Gunter

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The loss of a sibling can be devastating to children, especially for children ages 7-12, who are at a critical juncture in their development. The loss can impede their development if their bereavement is not effectively addressed. For this reason, this dissertation evaluated four theoretical frameworks to provide a foundation for bereavement support for children: Assumptive World Theory, Dual Process Model, Meaning Reconstruction Theory, and Tasks of Mourning. Developmental theories and considerations were explored to gain knowledge of children’s levels of understanding, processing, and coping. Method: This study utilized a sample of five children ages 7-12 who had survived the …

Unnatural Pedagogy : A Computational Analysis Of Children's Learning To Learn From Other People., Baxter S. Eaves 1984-

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Infants rely on others for much of what they learn. People are a ready source of quick information, but people produce data differently than the world. Data from a person are a result of that person's knowledgeability and intentions. People may produce inaccurate or misleading data. On the other hand, if a person is knowledgeable about the world and intends to teach, that person may produce data that are more useful than simply accurate data: data that are pedagogical. This idea that people have special innate methods for efficient information transfer lies at the heart of recent proposals regarding what …

Can We Really Have An Integrative Theory Of Creativity? The Case Of Creative Cognition, Roni Reiter-Palmon

Psychology Faculty Publications

In this commentary to Glăveanu (2014), I address one specific issue raised – that of the need for a grand or unifying theory of creativity. I discuss whether our understanding of creative cognition has progressed sufficiently to allow for the development of, or inclusion in, a grand theory of creativity. Specifically, I argue that there are many gaps in our understanding of two major processes, problem identification and construction and idea evaluation and choice. I further provide some suggestions for how we can move the field forward on these individual aspects, and still strive for integration.

Effects Of Oxytocin On Human Aggression, Joseph L. Alcorn Iii

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

EFFECTS OF OXYTOCIN ON HUMAN AGGRESSION

Joseph Louis Alcorn III, B.S.

Advisory Professor: Scott D. Lane, Ph.D.

Human interaction is comprised of common, yet complex, behaviors and the outcomes of these social behaviors can beneficially or detrimentally impact individual and public health. One social behavior that can have profound detrimental outcomes is aggression. Aggression is a class of social behavior that is particularly prevalent in individuals with antisocial personality disorder (ASPD) and comorbid substance use disorder (SUD). Aggression in these individuals can manifest at maladaptive levels that place considerable burdens on public health and communities. Therefore, understanding the neurobehavioral underpinnings …

Change Detection In Rhesus Monkeys And Humans, Deepna T. Devkar, Deepna T. Devkar

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Visual working memory (VWM) is the temporary retention of visual information and a key component of cognitive processing. The classical paradigm for studying VWM and its encoding limitations has been change detection. Early work focused on how many items could be stored in VWM, leading to the popular theory that humans could remember no more than 4±1 items. More recently, proposals have suggested that VWM is a noisy, continuous resource distributed across virtually all items in the visual field, resulting in diminished memory quality rather than limited quantity. This debate about the nature of VWM has predominantly been studied with …

A Mixed Methods Analysis Of The Family Support Experiences Of Lgbtq Latter-Day Saints, Mckay Stevens Mattingly

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

A burgeoning vein of research assesses links between familial support and psychosocial health among lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer or questioning (LGBTQ) individuals. This study is a cross-sectional, multi-method survey that examined these associations in highly religious families. Participants were 587 individuals who identified as LGBTQ, were affiliated with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (LDS), and were between the ages of 18 and 30. Reports of early support from families were significantly associated with various measures of psychosocial health, more consistently for men than women. In addition, participants provided written narratives in response to an …

The Effects Of Reminder Distinctiveness And Anticipatory Interval On Prospective Memory, Natalee Baldwin

All Theses

Prospective memory failures (or failures to remember a future intention) can result in a wide range of negative consequences. The use of reminders has been shown to improve the rate of PM successes. The aim of the current study was to examine the effectiveness of reminders based on their type (text or picture) and their timing. We hypothesized that successful PM performance would be successfully maintained over longer anticipatory intervals when paired with picture reminders rather than with simple text reminders because of the inherent distinctiveness of pictures. We also expected that performance for younger adults would be better than …

Do I Have Enough Money? An Examination Of The Roles Of Income And Income Perceptions On Nursing Turnover Intentions, Janelle Cheung

All Theses

Economic stress is an understudied, but potentially critical, concern that deserves more attention in the literature because it has important implications for employees and organizations. The present study sought to bring researchers and practitioners' attention to this area of research by examining the impact of income and income perceptions on turnover intentions. Very few published studies have investigated the mechanisms underlying the relationship between income and turnover intentions. As a novel contribution, the present study examined how perceived adequacy of current and future income each and simultaneously mediated the relationship between income and turnover intentions. Further, the study tested whether …

Trust In Self, Trust In Others: The Impact Of Emotions On Advice Behavior, Benjamin Slade

All Dissertations

This dissertation proposes that task-specific self-confidence, trust in motives, and trust in competency are the three main drivers for advice use and willingness to pay for advice. After developing this general argument, the paper then focuses on how emotions influence advice use and willingness to pay for advice. Furthermore, this paper argues that the influence of emotions on advice is partially mediated by task specific self-confidence, trust in motives, and trust in competency. This model elaborates on the underlying emotional mechanisms which may guide the mediation paths, and then tests this expected pattern with four different incidental emotions; regret, pride, …

Consumer Acceptance And Willingness To Pay For Genetically Modified Rice In China: A Double Bounded Dichotomous Choic Contingent Valuation Survey Calibrated By Cheap Talk, Jing Jin

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Considering population growth, limitations on land and water resources, and contamination to the ecosystem due to agricultural activities, current rice production in China is facing pressure to fulfill national demand. Self-sufficiency of rice has been a long-held political objective of the Chinese government and it is national goal to maintain the equilibrium between the national production and consumption or even achieve a supply surplus in rice. With the developing bio-technology of genetic modification (GM), scientists believe that using genetically modified cultivars may ease the pressure mentioned above. However, both the government and the people are very cautious about large-scale cultivation …

Understanding Service Utilization Disparities And Depression In Latino Parents And Children: The Role Of Fatalismo, Elizabeth Anastasia

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Research has repeatedly demonstrated a disparity between need and utilization of mental health services for Latino adults and children. The adapted Health Beliefs Model (Henshaw & Freedman-Doan, 2009) provides a useful framework for conceptualizing the roles of perceived severity and therapy expectations in the relation between demographic variables and service utilization. Cultural variations in perceptions of mental illness by Latinos may be linked with lower service utilization rates for Latino parents and children. It was speculated that fatalismo, a cultural construct similar to external locus of control, may be related to perceptions of mental illness and service utilization outcomes for …

Engaging Wisdom: A Comparison Of Cognitive And Interpersonal Interventions On Elderly Mental Health, Kade Downs

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

In the United States the population of individuals over the age of 60 is large and expected to increase (Administration on Aging, 2009). Mental disorders (e.g., dementia) are especially prevalent in elderly populations (WHO, 2012). Considering the relatively small amount of research examining elderly populations in the United States, this prevalence highlights the potential and necessity for intervention research specifically designed for elderly individuals. This study examines the effectiveness of a cognitive as well as an interpersonal intervention on the mental health of a sample of individuals over the age of 60 at residential eldercare facilities. Results showed no significant …

Human Behavior During Spaceflight: Evidence From An Analog Environment, Kenny Mikael Arnaldi

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

Spaceflight offers a multitude of stressors to humans living and working in space, originating from the external space environment and the life-support system. Future space participants may be ordinary people with different medical and psychosocial backgrounds who may not receive the intense spaceflight preparation of astronauts. Consequently, during a mission, a space participant’s mood and behavior could differ from a trained astronaut. This study was an exploratory research project that used an artificial habitat to replicate an orbital environment and the activities performed by humans in space. The study evaluated whether the type of environment affects mood and temperament. Two …

Impulsivity, Venturesomeness, And Pride: Potential Moderators Of The Relationship Between Childhood Trauma, Substance Use, And Physical Aggression, Joshua P. Hatfield

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Impulsivity, venturesomeness, and pride variables were examined as potential moderators of the associations between childhood trauma and physical aggression, alcohol use and physical aggression, and drug use and physical aggression. Participants (n = 457) were college students recruited from a university in the Southeast. It was hypothesized that childhood trauma, alcohol use, and drug use would be associated with increased scores of physical aggression. In addition, it was hypothesized that impulsivity, venturesomeness, authentic pride, and hubristic pride would moderate these relationships. Linear, multivariate hierarchical regression analyses were used to examine these variables as potential moderators. Hypotheses concerning hubristic pride as …

Collaborative Models Of Care In The Appalachian Region Of Tennessee: Examining Relationships Between Level Of Collaboration, Clinic Characteristics, And Barriers To Collaboration, Jeffrey Ellison

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Decades of research have shown that there are significant advantages to maintaining close communicative and collaborative relationships between primary care and behavioral health providers. Fiscal, structural, and systemic barriers, however, often restrict the degree to which such interprofessional collaboration can occur. In the present study the authors examined relationships between primary care clinics in the Appalachian region’s characteristics (i.e., clinic type, rurality, and clinic size), barriers (i.e., fiscal, structural, and systemic) reported to using increased collaboration, and the level of collaboration used at a particular clinic.

For the present study 136 surveys were completed by providers working in primary care …

Reducing Eating Disorder Risk Factors: A Controlled Investigation Of A Blended Task-Shifting/Train-The-Trainer Approach To Dissemination And Implementation, Lisa S. Kilpela, Kaitlin Hill, Mackenzie Kelly, Joanna Elmquist, Paige Ottoson, D. Keith, Thomas Hildebrandt, Carolyn Becker

Psychology Faculty Research

Recent advances in psychological intervention research have led to an increase in evidence-based interventions (EBIs), yet there remains a lag in dissemination and implementation of EBIs. Task-shifting and the train-the-trainer (TTT) model offer two potential strategies for enhancing reach of EBIs. The Body Project, an EBI found to prevent onset of eating disorders, served as the vehicle for this dissemination/implementation study. The primary aim of this study was to determine if training of peer-leaders for the Body Project could be task-shifted to undergraduate students using a hybrid task-shifting/TTT model. Our secondary aim was to determine if subgroups of participants evidenced …

Chinese Outbound Tourists Food Consumption In The U.S.: An Extension Of The Theory Of Planned Behavior, Kaiyang Wu

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Although Chinese outbound tourists made enormous economic contribution to the U.S. restaurant industry, they seem to have the tendency to consume Chinese cuisine solely during their international trips. This study applies structural equation modeling (SEM) to evaluate different behavioral beliefs' impact on the intentions of Chinese outbound tourist unfamiliar ethnic food consumption in the U.S. Additionally, this research combines the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) and food neophobia, a food-related personality trait to better explain Chinese outbound tourists' food rejection behavior in the U.S.

Results of this study showed safety concern, acceptance of table manners, perceived communication gap and food …

A Narrative Study Of Male Accompanying Partners: Adaptation To A Nontraditional Role In Dyadic Partnerships, Donald J. Bernard

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Although the traditional conceptual paradigm of an accompanying spouse, sometimes referred to in social science literature as a trailing partner, emanates from a predominantly female perspective, an emerging trend involves men functioning in that role. With America's changing workforce due to the increased labor force participation of women, a postmodern family structure has emerged as the role of men as breadwinners-in-chief in the traditional nuclear family has been steadily eroded. The academic literature on the traditional pattern of wives trailing their husbands to new geographical for better employment and income is voluminous. However, studies on the emergence of males accompanying …

Oppositional And Anxiety Behavior Profiles In A Clinical Sample Of Youth With Selective Mutism, Rachele Diliberto

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Children with selective mutism often present as a very heterogeneous population, with both anxious (APA, 2000; 2013; Kristensen 2000; Manassis et al., 2007; Steinhausen & Juzi, 1996; Yeganeh et al., 2003) and oppositional symptoms (APA, 2013; Andersson & Thomsen, 1998; Kolvin & Fundudis, 1981; Krohn, Weckstein, & Wright, 1992). This study sought to identify anxiety and oppositional behavior profiles in a clinical sample of children with selective mutism. Also, this study sought to determine both discriminant and concurrent validity for these profiles and examine their association with family expressiveness, conflict and control. Participants (n=57) included youth receiving treatment at the …

Hemispheric Asymmetry In The Perception Of Musical Pitch Structure, Matthew Adam Rosenthal

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Both the left and right hemispheres contribute to the perception of pitch structure

in music. Music researchers have attempted to explain the observed asymmetries in the perception of musical pitch structure by characterizing the dominant processing style of each hemisphere. However, no existing characterizations have been able to account for all of the empirical findings. To better explain existing empirical findings, this dissertation characterizes the left hemisphere as dominant in temporal pitch processing (i.e. with respect to the sequential ordering of pitches) and the right hemisphere as dominant in non-temporal pitch processing (i.e. without respect to the sequential ordering of …

Possible Benefits Of Playing Music Video Games, Amanda Pasinski

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Music video games, such as Rock Band, are an emerging and popular genre of video game that allows non-musicians a taste of what it is like to be a musician. For most people, developing musicianship (or the process of becoming competent with a particular musical instrument) to an expert level is a long and difficult process that can take up to 10 years or over 7,500 hours to complete. Yet musicians tend to outperform non-musicians on a variety of tasks--showing greater motor coordination, better synchronization skills, and better pitch and tempo discrimination--and possibly show differences in related cognitive processes. However, …

Digital Behavior Intervention Plans: Effects On General Education Teacher Fidelity Of Implementation, Christopher G. Holcomb

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Students with disabilities often have behavior that interferes with classroom learning. Serious problem behaviors are identified as the most significant factor interfering with learning in the classroom. Unfortunately, chronic behaviors often lead to a student dropping out of school. Current research typically focuses on areas of intervention for these students with little attention towards teacher fidelity of implementation of these interventions. Because of this, student's behavior intervention plans may not show effectiveness (e.g., progress monitoring, data driven decisions). It is important that researchers begin to explore systematic improvements in fidelity of implementation of behavior intervention plan components for general education …

Who Or What Should I Be Like? The Self-Assessment Of Sexual Desire, Caroline Maykut

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The construct of sexual desire has been notoriously difficult to capture and measure, in part as a function of questionable methods of sexual desire assessment. Due to problems finding an accurate, objective marker of sexual desire, research has relied on self-report. One notable difficulty with self-reported desire assessment is the lack of information on the context in which these assessments are made. The only available data focuses on relative assessment of sexual desire within couples, and ignores broader social and cultural contexts. The present study investigated men and women's perception of sexual desire discrepancies between themselves and other people and …