Psychology Commons^™

The Experience Of Generalized Anxiety Disorder Through The Lens Of Abraham Lincoln: The Effects Of Mental Health Stigma, Daryl Claude Medina

Senior Theses

Living with generalized anxiety disorder, also known as GAD, in the United States of America is difficult not only for the individual, but also for the people around him or her. Lifestyle changes have to be made, family dynamics need to be adjusted, and last but not least, all relationships must become flexible. In fact, these major life changes are never fixed and must continually adapt to the needs of the individual with generalized anxiety disorder since it is a lifelong medical condition. As with any other mental illness, dealing with generalized anxiety disorder takes great sacrifice in terms of …

Towards A Better Understanding Of Zebrafish Sleep Behavior, Kanza Musarrat Khan

Master's Theses

Sleep serves many vital functions in humans, ranging from energy restoration to memory consolidation and information integration. Sleep deprivation is linked to worsened physiological states and psychological conditions. Zebrafish are an emerging model in neurobehavioral research and have recently demonstrated great utility in the study of sleep. This teleost species possesses several of the same neurotransmitter and neuropeptide systems that are involved in the regulation of sleep and waking rhythms in higher order mammals. Previous study of these animals has revealed a differential gene and proteomic expression following sleep deprivation through changes in environmental stimuli. The present study sought to …

The Effect Of Boat Type On Bottlenose Dolphin (Tursiops Trucatus) Behavior In The Mississippi Sound, Maria Zapetis

Master's Theses

Increases in oceanic shipping are a global phenomenon, and a leading cause of concern for marine animal welfare. While it may be difficult to assess the effect of boat traffic on all species in all contexts, it is vital to report anthropogenic impacts where longitudinal data is available, and doubly so where a dearth of information exists. The purpose of this study is to describe how dolphin behavior changed in the presence of boats in the Mississippi Sound between 2006 and 2012, and more specifically, to detail how different boat types impacted dolphins’ behavioral states. This study is unique in …

Pragmatic Understanding Of Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops Truncatus) Use Of A Two-Way Communication System, Pepper Reid Hanna

Dissertations

Pragmatics focuses on how a communication system is used to achieve a communicative goal, the social context of the communication, and the organizational structure of communications (Horn & Ward, 2004; McLaughlin, 1998). There is evidence of pragmatics within animal communication systems. For example, context appears to be an important component in both signal production and a receiver’s response in vervet monkeys (Seyfarth et al. 1980).

MA Thesis: http://aquila.usm.edu/masters_theses/170/

The current study used an underwater keyboard to establish a two-way communication system between humans and dolphins. The purpose of this study was to determine if, under these conditions, dolphins displayed pragmatic …

A Comparison Of Three Reading Interventions For Three Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Alexandra D. Utley

Honors Theses

Brief experimental analyses (BEA) have been used in the present literature to identify the most effective reading strategy in increasing oral reading fluency (ORF) for typically-developing students. The current researcher extends the research by implementing three reading intervention to three children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) to study whether a BEA is effective in identifying the most effective reading intervention for children with developmental disabilities. There were three interventions implemented throughout the duration of the study: Repeated Reading, Phrase Drill, and Contingent Reinforcement. Additionally, the present study implements an extended intervention (EA) to test the accuracy of the BEA results. …

Exploring The Moderating Effects Of Drinking Context On The Relationship Between Harmful Drinking And Risky Sexual Behaviors Among College Females, Lauren A. Gardner

Honors Theses

Females are engaging in harmful amounts of drinking at higher rates than ever before. Because these rates are increasing, studying harmful drinking in the college female population is imperative. Previous studies have noted that an increase in harmful drinking correlates positively with an increase in risky sexual behavior. Although these correlations are evident, no previous study has looked at drinking context as a moderator between these two variables. The current study examined the degree to which drinking context moderates the relationship between harmful drinking and risky sexual behavior in college females. This study consisted of 387 female college students ages …

Comparison Of Suicidality Among Heterosexual And Sexual Minority Individuals, Ashley R. Pate

Honors Theses

Previous research suggests that sexual minority individuals have a higher risk of suicidal ideation and suicide attempts than do heterosexual individuals. Little research has been done to determine what may cause these differences and how living in a conservative region may contribute to it. This study sought to compare risk factors for suicidal ideation among heterosexual and sexual minority college students in southern Mississippi. To do so, suicidal ideation was examined, as well as thwarted belongingness (TB) and perceived burdensomeness (PB) – two robust predictors of suicidal ideation. It was hypothesized that sexual minorities would have elevated TB, PB, and …

A Retro Development In Education: Evaluating The Feasibility Of Integrating Place-Based Education Into Mississippi Curriculum Standards, Colby K. Mcclain

Honors Theses

This thesis evaluates the feasibility of integrating place-based environmental education activities from Think Green, Take Action: Books and Activities for Kids into the Mississippi Department of Education’s (MDE) Frameworks for Science and Social Studies for K-5. As children develop and experience the world, their ability to understand and interpret the surrounding environments expand; however, Mississippi schools are not focused on experiential environmental education, even though experiencing and understanding the surrounding environment is vital in fostering eagerness to learn. Due to a growing disconnect between humans and the natural world, this thesis examined 37 place- and environment-based activities for children, sixteen …

Understanding Narcissistic Personality Traits And Aggression: The Roles Of Self-Esteem And Gender, Regis S. Junearick

Honors Theses

The present study investigated the established relationship between narcissistic personality traits and aggression (e.g., Barnet & Powell, 2016; Baumeister et al., 2000; Bushman & Baumeister, 1998). Specifically, the study aimed to understand this relationship in a more nuanced fashion and proposed that 1) the relationship is indirect through self-esteem (mediation) and 2) the relationship is stronger in males than in females (moderation). Participants were 269 undergraduate students from the University of Southern Mississippi. A battery of self-report measures [Narcissistic Personality Inventory (NPI; Raskin & Terry, 1988), Pathological Narcissism Inventory (PNI; Pincus et al., 2009), Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES; Rosenberg, 1965), …

Jealousy And Romantic Relational Aggression Among Dating College Students, Ashlee A. Bryant

Honors Theses

Most of the research on relational aggression has been conducted with samples of older children and early adolescents and has focused primarily on same-sex peer relationships (Goldstein & Tisak, 2004). The aim of this study was to contribute to the relatively meager research on relational aggression in the context of college students’ romantic relationships by exploring the role of interpersonal jealousy. Participants included 377 undergraduate student volunteers (64 men and 313 women) ranging in age from 18 to 58 who were recruited through the Department of Psychology’s subject pool (i.e., Sona). The data were collected in the form of an …

Identifying Behavioral Response Trends Following Aggression In Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops Truncatus), Breanna M. Cheri

Honors Theses

In group-living species, an individual’s response to aggression from another animal can reveal information about the complexities of their social relationships. The current study sought to categorize behavioral responses between conspecifics following direct aggression. Agonistic behavioral interactions were analyzed in a semi-captive group of bottlenose dolphins housed at the Roatan Institute for Marine Sciences, whose population dynamics mirror those observed in the wild. Interactions began at the onset of an aggressive behavior, and all concomitant behaviors between aggressor(s) and recipient(s) were coded chronologically for the length of each event. Results revealed five response types present following aggression: retaliation, reconciliation, avoidance, …

Attention To Context During Evaluative Learning And Context-Dependent Automatic Evaluation: A Cross-Cultural Analysis, Yang Ye, Yuk-Yue Tong, Chi-Yue Chiu, Bertram Gawronski

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Previous research has shown that changes in automatic evaluations can be limited to the context in which counterattitudinal information was acquired. This effect has been attributed to enhanced attention to context cues during the encoding of expectancy-violating counterattitudinal information. Drawing on previous evidence for cultural differences in attention to context and tolerance for inconsistency, the present research examined cultural differences in responses to conflicting evaluative information and the resulting context-effects on automatic evaluation. Study 1 revealed that both Canadian and Singaporean participants showed enhanced attention to context during exposure to counterattitudinal information. In a reanalysis of studies with Singaporean participants, …

Serving Syracuse Youth Through Mentorship, Neha Rauf

Renée Crown University Honors Thesis Projects - All

This project seeks to explore the use of mentorship as an intervention mechanism for at-risk youth in Syracuse, living with the consequences of poverty and community violence. The first part is an interview-based study that analyzes the effects on youth and mentors that participate in mentorship programs in Syracuse, New York focusing on the reciprocal nature of those benefits. While mentors guide urban youth through academic, social, and personal challenges, this study finds the principal benefits to the mentees interviewed were exposure to new opportunities and improved interpersonal and communication skills. Furthermore, the mentors themselves felt the relationship was an …

A Multiple Regression Analysis Of Locus Of Control And Psychological Flexibility Regarding The Total Mental Well-Being Of Muslims, Hawazan Abdulaziz Binzaqr

Dissertations

This study was designed to investigate the relationships between mental health, psychological flexibility, and locus of control within the Muslim population, and how these variables are related to demographic characteristics such as gender, level of spirituality, and marital status. The sample of 235 participants was taken from the worldwide adult Muslim population. Mental health was measured by PROMIS-57 survey, psychological flexibility was measured by the AAQ-II survey, and locus of control was measured by the MHLC survey. All data were self-reported via online form. There was an inverse relationship between level of spirituality and poor mental health (high PROMIS-57 scores) …

When Deception Gets Personal: An Exploration Into Personality's Link To Deception, Jason T. Weber

Honors Theses

Most of our understanding of deceptive behaviors comes from cognitive (Vrij, Fisher, & Blank, 2015) or social psychological (Ekman, 2009) perspectives, and furthermore comes from forensic deception detection research and strategies (Vrij, 2008). One psychological domain that has not had as much investigation in relation to deception is personality. The present study examines the connection between personality traits and one aspect of deceptive behaviors – motivations to lie. College students completed self-report surveys online regarding personality, their lying habits, and basic demographic questions. Additionally, participants read several lying scenarios and rated the likelihood of lying. In a sample of 292 …

Developing A Leadership Curriculum 'Innovation, Creativity And Leadership', Pamela Zh Pauwels

Creativity and Change Leadership Graduate Student Master's Projects

Growth and innovation are key drivers to a company’s long-term success. Creativity (creative thinking) is a necessary condition for innovation. Supervisors and managers who are able to build a positive work environment that enables creative and innovative behavior have a competitive advantage. This Master's project focuses on the development of an in-company leadership curriculum to provide leaders and supervisor with theoretical background and a “ toolbox ” to develop their own and their team’s innovative and creative behavior. A pilot version of curriculum was well received and validated the need to gain more understanding on the topic of creativity and …

Story Problem Solving, Brian D. Kalina

Creativity and Change Leadership Graduate Student Master's Projects

This project paper will explore and define the relationship between the Creative Problem Solving (CPS) and the timeless concept of storytelling. Since the beginning of time, people have been sharing stories to relate their experiences and their solutions to overcome challenges and obstacles. CPS is a more modern methodology that aids people in their approach and their ability to generate plans and solutions to overcome challenges and obstacles. Therefore, the premise of this project is to seek answers to the questions; (1) How might we look to stories as frameworks for solving our problems? and (2) How might we marry …

Psychophysical Analysis Of Three Separate Anisotropic Patterns In Vision : Putting Visual Reference Frames In Conflict To Study The Class 1 And 2 Oblique Effects And The Horizontal Effect., Eleanor O'Keefe

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation describes and investigates a debate about differences in the visual system’s anisotropic sensitivity to orientation as well as where and how the brain encodes visual orientation information. Three different visual perceptual patterns are discussed: the Class 1 and 2 oblique effects and the horizontal effect. The oblique effect is the ability to perceive cardinal orientations more easily than oblique orientations, and is found using narrowband stimuli. In the horizontal effect, oblique orientations are perceived most easily, horizontal orientations are perceived worst, and vertical orientations fall in-between, and is found using broadband stimuli. While the majority of authors refer …

Immersive Cultural Plunge: How Mental Health Trainees Can Exercise Cultural Competence With African American Descendants Of Chattel Slaves A Qualitative Study, Clandis V. Payne

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This qualitative study utilized ethnographic techniques to explore the potential for change in mental health trainees resulting from the participation in an in vivo Immersive Cultural Plunge (ICP) within the African American Descendant of Chattel Slave community. The ICP combined Multicultural Immersions Experiences (MIE) of Cultural Immersion (CI) and Cultural Plunge (CP) to contribute to the developing body of research utilizing MIEs that incorporate contextual, experiential, and historical knowledge to teach the skill of cultural sensitivity. During the 12- hour ICP the participants experienced an orientation, a lecture, a tour/community interaction, a multimedia presentation within an African American community. In …

A Study Of Object Play In Captive Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops Truncatus), Victoria L. Johnson

Honors Theses

Behaviors related to play are positively reinforcing as they promote the continued exhibition of play behaviors in a variety of animal species. Play in animals is thought to contribute to the development and practice of skills animals require across their lifespan (i.e., foraging, mating, etc.). In bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus), several categories of play can be observed such as solitary play, social play, locomotor play, predatory play, and object play. The aim of the present study was to observe how variables of age-class, sex, object type, and play sociality influenced dolphin object play by utilizing video data from a …

The Role Of Motivation In Complex Problem Solving, C Dominik Guess, Madison Lee Burger, Dietrich Dörner

Psychology Faculty Research and Scholarship

Previous research on Complex Problem Solving (CPS) has primarily focused on cognitive factors as outlined below. The current paper discusses the role of motivation during CPS and argues that motivation, emotion, and cognition interact and cannot be studied in an isolated manner. Motivation is the process that determines the energization and direction of behavior (Heckhausen, 1991).

Three motivation theories and their relation to CPS are examined: McClelland’s achievement motivation, Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, and Dörner’s needs as outlined in PSI-theory. We chose these three theories for several reasons. First, space forces us to be selective. Second, the three theories are …

Subjective Expected Utility And Sexual Coercive Behaviors: Examining The Role Of Decision Processes, Alcohol Consumption, And Rape-Supportive Attitudes Among College Males, Antover P. Tuliao

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Prior studies have established the role of rape-supportive attitudes and alcohol consumption in sexual coercive behaviors among college students. However, less research has examined the role of more proximal variables such as decision processes. Utilizing the subjective expected utility (SEU) model of decision making, this study aimed to examine how decisions are made in a date-rape scenario utilizing a vignette methodology. The SEU model posits that decisions to engage in a behavior are contingent on perceived utility of the action, perceived probability of the utility occurring, perceived cost of the behavior, and the perceived probability of the cost occurring. Higher …

“The Golden Rule”: A Portable Escape Room Designed To Promote Empathy And Playfulness In Challenging Social Contexts, Isabella Gomati

Creativity and Change Leadership Graduate Student Master's Projects

The development of a Portable Escape Room (PER) board game aims to promote empathy as one of the key skills that, for a society in constant change, is necessary to face and solve complex social challenges. The development of a PER is a way of addressing the need for both innovative and accessible tools that can be used in different sectors of the economy. The PER not only encourages creative collaboration, but it also introduces the possibility of playfulness as a bridge for learning and problem-solving in a variety of scenarios. The product itself encompasses an excellent example of a …

Odd Symptom Network During Preschool, Tess E. Smith, Christine A. Lee, Michelle M. Martel, Marni E. Axelrad

Psychology Faculty Publications

Several different conceptualizations of Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) symptoms have been proposed, including one undivided set of symptoms (DSM-IV-TR; APA 2000); two domains of symptoms subdivided into affective and behavioral; and three domains of symptoms subdivided as angry/irritable, argumentative/defiant, and spiteful. The current study utilizes a novel approach to examining the division of ODD symptoms through use of network analysis. Participants were 109 preschoolers (64 male) between the ages of three and six (M = 4.34 years, SD = 1.08) and their parents and teachers/caregivers, who provided ratings of ODD symptoms. Results are consistent with one-, two-, and three- …

The Relationship Between Self-Perceived Gender Typicality, Self-Esteem And Psychological Distress In College Students, Godswill O. Chuku

Master's Theses or Doctor of Nursing Practice

The role of gender identity in the gender differences observed in psychological distress has been established in research with researchers acknowledging the importance of a multidimensional conceptualization of gender identity. Gender typicality is one aspect of gender identity that has been identified to be related to psychosocial adjustment such as self-esteem in adolescents. Self-perceived gender typicality describes how typical people feel they are in relation to their own gender group. By asking college students to fill out an online survey on gender typicality, self-esteem and psychological distress, the present study explored the relationship between self-perceived gender typicality and psychological distress …

An Evolutionary Based Examination Of Sexting Behavior Among College Students, Scott Ploharz

Master's Theses or Doctor of Nursing Practice

Previous research has viewed the sending and receiving of sexually natured text and picture messages as risky and dangerous behavior. It is through this lens that previous research has examined the reason individuals choose to engage in sexting, and the possible effects of the behavior. The current study is the first to examine the possible adaptive reasons that individuals may choose to engage in sexting. A total of 218 participants from Fort Hays State University completed measures of their sexting behaviors, attitudes towards sexual activity, and risk tolerance. It was hypothesized that an individual participants’ endorsement of a sex consistent …

The Moderating Effects Of Stress On The Relationship Between Self-Control, And Desire For Control, On Impulsive Purchasing, Katelynn Reed

Master's Theses or Doctor of Nursing Practice

The current study examined the effect of self-control and desire for control on impulsive purchasing with stress as a moderator. Self-control has been found to be lower in individuals who engage in impulsive purchasing (Baumeister, 2002b), whereas little to no research on the effect of desire for control on impulsive purchasing has been completed. Stress has been found to relate with self-control and desire for control (Galla & Wood 2015; Leotti, Iyengar, & Ochsner, 2003). This study hopes to fill the research gap by exploring if stress moderates self-control and desire for control’s effect on impulsive purchasing. Participants were recruited …

An Interrogation Of Turnover Antecedents At An Automobile Manufacturer In Northwest Ohio, Emily Boyle

Honors Projects

The manufacturing industry is one of the largest industries in Northwest Ohio. With the growing influence of Lean/Six Sigma manufacturing systems, the industry is becoming much more automated and team-oriented. The manufacturing facility in question is a Tier 1 and 2 automotive manufacturer that is a part of one of the largest global companies in this sector and uses many Lean and Six Sigma processes across three shifts. In recent years, this company has seen a trend of high turnover and it is a constant point of contention for both supervisors and Human Resources. The current study aimed to determine …

A Meta-Analysis Of The Longitudinal Relationship Between Adolescent Depression And Academic Achievement., Rachel E. Buehner

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Researchers in the fields of both education and mental health endeavor to develop and implement interventions which will bring children and adolescents greater academic success and optimally address mental health issues. Educators seek to target risk factors which might impede a student’s success in the classroom, while mental health providers seek to reduce issues within a child’s environment which might be risk factors for depression. Evidence for a cross-sectional relationship between adolescent depression and academic achievement is well-supported, with depression and achievement being negatively correlated in adolescents. The longitudinal relationship between these two variables is not fully understood, however. While …

Man/Boy., Nick Hartman

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Verisimilitude, or the appearance of being true, is a concept I turn upside down; relating it to a guise I wear as a contemporary male in a society dictated by learned social behavior and gender norms. Cultural iconography and expected gender norms are tropes I confront within my artwork. Drawings of seemingly everyday objects act as meditations or a fetishized repetition of supposed unobtainable objects and ideals that deal with masculine societal norms. Manliness, machismo, masculinity… it is all a culturally learned and expected pose placed on all men. Coming to the realization that I do not necessarily fit …