Psychology Commons^™

Applying A Cognitive-Behavioral Model To Conceptualize Burnout And Coping For Teachers In Urban Schools, Daniel Camacho

Dissertations

Teachers in urban schools, facing a myriad of daily stressors and oftentimes without sufficient knowledge and skills to manage the social and emotional needs of their students and themselves, experience stress and burnout at levels that cause them to leave the teaching profession at alarming rates. Research pertaining to teaching stress, burnout, and coping has largely been devoted to enumerating the stressors that teachers experience, the impact of burnout on teachers and their students, and relating type of coping strategies that teachers employ. This body of literature falls short of illuminating what makes the teaching profession so inherently stressful, the …

Social Support And Well-Being Among Foster Care Youth: Self-Concept As A Mediator, Anne Kathleen Fuller

Dissertations

Youth in the child welfare system frequently undergo a variety of adverse experiences, including maltreatment, living in poverty, placement changes, school changes, and relationship disruptions. As a group, these youth exhibit poorer psychosocial functioning (e.g., elevated rates of mental health difficulties, poorer social and academic competence) than their peers, yet there is also evidence that a number of youth in foster care are functioning relatively well and can be perceived as demonstrating resilience. The present study examined self-concept as a mediator of hypothesized associations between social support and four domains of psychosocial functioning: internalizing problems, externalizing problems, social competence, and …

Sleep-Wake Disturbances In Adolescents With Spina Bifida: Prevalence And Associations With Bio-Neuropsychosocial Functioning, Caitlin Beth Murray

Dissertations

Sleep is a critical component of healthy development during adolescence, and when disrupted, has been linked to difficulties with physical status, psychological health, family functioning, neuropsychological symptoms, and academic performance. The overarching goal of this project was to examine sleep-wake disturbances in association with bio-neuropsychosocial functioning in a vulnerable pediatric population of adolescents with spina bifida (SB). Specifically, this study aimed to 1) examine sleep-wake patterns in adolescents with SB using a multimodal sleep assessment, 2) identify daily temporal associations between sleep and pain as well as sleep and mood, and 3) identify the relationship between sleep-wake disturbances and bio-neuropsychosocial …

Friendship Selection Patterns Among Low Income Minority Girls/Adolescents: Links To Obesity Risk, Kimberly Anne Rosania

Dissertations

Research suggests interventions for pediatric obesity fail because they do not consider the broader social context in which adolescents spend their time: the adolescent friendship network. A critical step to address friendship network barriers to reducing child obesity is understanding contexts that promote friendship network patterns that promote healthy weight (i.e., social inclusion of overweight youth, friendship clusters that are diverse in weight status). This study sought to understand whether community-based summertime programming could facilitate healthier selection patterns for a demographic disproportionately at risk for obesity: low-income girls of color. Participants were 42 African American and Latina adolescent females (M …

Expert Supervisors' Priorities When Working With Easy And Challenging Supervisees, Gulsah Kemer, L. Dianne Borders, Nedim Yel

Counseling & Human Services Faculty Publications

Using Kemer, Borders, and Willse's ( 2014) concept map as a conceptual model, the authors aimed to understand expert supervisors' priorities with their easy and challenging supervisees. Experts' priorities with easy and challenging supervisees were represented in different parts of the concept map, and they seemed to individualize their work with challenging supervisees.

The Role Of Psychological Capital And The Areas Of Worklife Model In Predicting Job Burnout, Sylwia K. Oles

Online Theses and Dissertations

Job burnout is a widely spread global phenomenon that has been linked to negative work outcomes. Various factors can either contribute to or hinder job burnout development. Previous research established the role of the six areas of worklife model as well as psychological capital on job burnout. However, the relationship among these variables has not been clearly defined. The purpose of the present study was to attempt to understand predictors of job burnout in order to reduce its occurrence. Data was collected with a sample of college students. Four areas of worklife (workload, control, reward, and values) as well as …

Going To The Movies: Immersion, Visual Awareness, And Memory, Matthew Whalen Moran

Online Theses and Dissertations

Immersion describes the extent of which one feels involved in a virtual experience. In immersive environments, observers report high levels of sensory interaction, story engagement, and an impression of reality. According to the concept of Inattentional Blindness (IB), many people can miss an unexpected stimulus or object even if it is in their field of vision while attending to a task. Can immersion affect susceptibility to IB, and can it affect memory performance? To answer this question, two model theaters were used in order to manipulate a person's assessment of being immersed in two experiments. A realistic condition used a …

The Development Of Mental Illness Stigma: The Role Of Perceived Social Support, Social Proximity, And Help-Seeking Behavior, Emily Kathryn Reed

Online Theses and Dissertations

The current study sought to explore the relationships mental illness stigmatization may have with perceived social support, proximity, and help-seeking behavior. Based on findings from previously conducted studies, hypotheses were formulated in order to further analyze how perceived social support, proximity, and help-seeking behavior may impact an individual's tendency to stigmatize mental illness. 203 Eastern Kentucky students participated in this study to test these hypotheses. These participants took part in an online study that measured their perceived social support based on their family environment, their proximity to those with a mental illness or mental illness in general, their attitudes regarding …

Relationships Between Levels Of Mindfulness And Subjective Well-Being In Undergraduate Students, Rikki J. Rosini, Amanda Nelson, Eve Sledjeski, Thomas Dinzeo

Modern Psychological Studies

College is often a period of unique demands and increased autonomy. The heightened stress associated with this period can contribute to mental health difficulties and maladaptive behaviors in a subset of students. The goal of the current study was to examine the role of mindfulness (i.e., awareness of, and appreciation for, the present moment and experiences) in experiencing negative emotions and lifestyle behaviors in 23 male and 19 female undergraduate students. Participants were randomly assigned to a mindfulness meditation condition or a cognitive activity control condition. Results suggest that higher levels of mindfulness are associated with better lifestyle habits, lower …

Moral Injury And Stress Response Patterns In United States Military Veterans, Emily L. Ferrell, John M. Huyser, Matthew Dykas

Modern Psychological Studies

During combat, veterans encounter situations that violate their moral principles resulting in moral injury. For example, if a soldier fails to prevent, witnesses, and/or performs acts that oppose their values, their moral integrity may be harmed. The present study’s aim was to examine such injuries and their association with stress response patterns in veterans. Participants completed questionnaires as part of a larger study examining PTSD in war veterans. The MIQ was used to assess participants’ degree of cognitive dissonance with their actions during war, the IES- R was used to assess responses to traumatic events, and the SRQ was used …

Effects Of An Lgbtq Identity And Support Systems On Mental Health: A Study Of 4 Theories, Aubryn Samaroo

Modern Psychological Studies

Sexual minority adolescents (LGBTQ) are at a higher risk of depression, suicidal ideation, and suicidal execution than are their heterosexual counterparts. This study aims to explain four theories – minority stress theory, social ties theory, interpersonal theory of suicide, and structuration theory – and their impact on identity and support systems for LGBTQ youth. Four members of the LGBTQ community at an elite university in the Northeastern United States were interviewed one-on-one for this study (25% lesbian, 50% queer females, and 25% bisexual female; mean age 20 years) and shared their experiences. Without support, LGBTQ youth are victims of harassment, …

Flocks, Swarms, Crowds, And Societies: On The Scope And Limits Of Cognition, Zachariah A. Neemeh

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Traditionally, the concept of cognition has been tied to the brain or the nervous system. Recent work in various noncomputational cognitive sciences has enlarged the category of “cognitive phenomena” to include the organism and its environment, distributed cognition across networks of actors, and basic cellular functions. The meaning, scope, and limits of ‘cognition’ are no longer clear or well-defined. In order to properly delimit the purview of the cognitive sciences, there is a strong need for a clarification of the definition of cognition. This paper will consider the outer bounds of that definition. Not all cognitive behaviors of a given …

Detecting Between-Groups Heteroscedasticity In Moderated Multiple Regression With A Continuous Predictor And A Categorical Moderator: A Monte Carlo Study, Patrick J. Rosopa, Amber N. Schroeder, Jessica L. Doll

Psychology Faculty Publications - Archive

Moderated multiple regression (MMR) is frequently used to test moderation hypotheses in the behavioral and social sciences. In MMR with a categorical moderator, between-groups heteroscedasticity is not uncommon and can inflate Type I error rates or reduce statistical power. Compared with research on remedial procedures that can mitigate the effects of this violated assumption, less research attention has focused on statistical procedures that can be used to detect between-groups heteroscedasticity. In the current article, we briefly review such procedures. Then, using Monte Carlo methods, we compare the performance of various procedures that can be used to detect between-groups heteroscedasticity in …

Cognitive Training Enhances Auditory Attention Efficiency In Older Adults., Jennifer L. O'Brien, Jennifer J. Lister, Bernadette A. Fausto, Gregory K. Clifton, Jerri D. Edwards

USF St. Petersburg Campus Faculty Publications

Auditory cognitive training (ACT) improves attention in older adults; however, the underlying neurophysiological mechanisms are still unknown. The present study examined the effects of ACT on the P₃b event-related potential reflecting attention allocation (amplitude) and speed of processing (latency) during stimulus categorization and the P1-N1-P2 complex reflecting perceptual processing (amplitude and latency). Participants completed an auditory oddball task before and after 10 weeks of ACT (n = 9) or a no contact control period (n = 15). Parietal P₃b amplitudes to oddball stimuli decreased at post-test in the trained group as compared to those …

An Examination Of Relational Bullying In Award Winning Newbery Books, 1996-2016, Kaysey N. Wann

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Relational bullying, although covert in nature and difficult for adults to notice and identify, is becoming increasingly prevalent among young children and teens. The success of bibliotherapy as preventative and intervention practices for bullying shows that portrayals of relational bullying in quality children’s literature would be effective in reducing and preventing it. However, relational bullying is rarely portrayed in children’s literature. My goal was to find quality children’s realistic fiction literature that portrays relational bullying in Newbery award-winning books, and to bring them to the attention of teachers.

After creating a table to determine what types of bullying, if any, …

Predictors Of Academic Achievement Of Non-Traditional College Students: Opportunities To Catch-Up And Succeed, Angela Bardwell-Owens

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Non-traditional students make up approximately 20% of the undergraduate student population nationwide and are one of few segments of the student population that are not provided with targeted programs and services. To help this cohort achieve their goals whilst universities can increase their retention rates, this research begins a review of the non-traditional student literature to gain an understanding of what this population faces as far as barriers to their education. The literature also provides recommendations and further information in retention efforts to support the student during their academic years. Next, an analysis of non-traditional student support services at 4-year …

Understanding The Mental Health And Psychosocial Needs, And Service Utilization Of Syrian Refugees And Jordanian Nationals: A Qualitative & Quantitative Analysis In The Kingdom Of Jordan, International Medical Corps

CUP Faculty Research

International Medical Corps sought to enhance existing knowledge to develop a profile of coping mechanisms and help-seeking behaviors utilized among the Syrian refugee population in Jordan, along with identifying barriers to service utilization. Through this assessment, International Medical Corps also seeks to provide information that may contribute to a wider discussion as relevant national and international actors consider how to further promote Mental Health and Psychosocial Services in Jordan.

Legal Responses To Nonconsensual Pornography: Current Policy In The United States And Future Directions For Research, Cynthia J. Najdowski

Psychology Faculty Scholarship

Technological advances have created new avenues for the perpetration of sexual violence. The widespread availability of cameras has made it easier to take covert recordings of an individual’s intimate body parts, and whether sexually explicit images are recorded with or without an individual’s consent, growing access to the Internet has facilitated the nonconsensual dissemination of those images. Yet criminal laws have not kept pace with technology in most jurisdictions across the United States, and victims of nonconsensual pornography typically have no avenue by which to seek justice. There have been efforts to reform laws in a variety of jurisdictions, some …

Parental Health, Parenting Behavior And Externalizing Behavior Problems Among Low-Income African American Preschool Children, Cassandra Lynn Esposito

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Externalizing behavior problems are highly prevalent in the preschool years. These behaviors are particularly common and problematic among children who are from low-income, minority backgrounds. There is evidence in the literature that describes parental health and parenting problems as risk factors for child externalizing behavior problems. The primary objective of this study was to better understand the relationship between parental health factors, parenting, and child behavior problems. Utilizing data from a low-income African American population, this study examined whether observed measures of parenting behaviors mediated the relationship between measures of parental health (e.g., depression, stress, and BMI) and child externalizing …

An Examination Of The Psychometrics Of The Cognitive Fusion Questionnaire And Its Relationship To Other Constructs, Barry Eye

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

More than one billion humans currently suffer from one or more mental health difficulties, the leading cause of disability in the world. Psychotherapy is well-established as efficacious and cost effective in the treatment of mental health difficulties, particularly the widely-used family of cognitive behavioral therapies (CBT). The most prominent, new CBT–acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT)–has shown efficacy equal to or better than traditional CBT across a range of such difficulties. ACT’s novel approach to language, defusion (the opposite of fusion), can help improve mental health by changing one’s relationship with their thoughts. Efforts to better understand this mechanism of ACT …

Estimate Of Undergraduate University Student Alcohol Use In China: A Systematic Review And Meta-Analysis, Ian Newman, Lanyan Ding, Yonghua Feng

Department of Educational Psychology: Faculty Publications

Objective: To develop an estimate of self-reported last 30 day alcohol use by university students in China.

Methods: A search of papers published in English and Chinese between 2006 and 2015, following pre-established selection criteria, identified 30 papers that were included in this meta-analysis. Nine moderator variables were preselected for this analysis.

Results: A total of 749 papers were identified in the keyword search, and 30 studies (28 in Chinese, 2 in English) met all selection criteria and were included in the meta-analysis. The self-reported last-30-day alcohol use for undergraduate university students was 66.8% for males and 31.7% …

Debunking The 'Gaydar' Myth, William Cox, Alyssa Bischmann, Janet Hyde, Patricia Devine

Department of Educational Psychology: Faculty Publications

Kids are often told that you can’t judge a book by its cover. Even so, people often believe they can rely on their gut to intuit things about other people. Stereotypes often influence these impressions, whether it’s that a black man is dangerous, a woman won’t be a good leader or a fashionable man is gay.

Perceived Credibility Of Child Witness Statements Based On Age And Gender, Beverly M. Griffor

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Although a great deal of empirical research and theoretical analysis has been done on in relation to jury perception of the credibility of child witnesses, virtually none of it has focused on the impact of age and gender of child witnesses alone on juror perceptions. This study expands on the existing body of knowledge on juror bias by exploring the connection between the perceived credibility of a child witness and the age or gender of that witness. Participants were given a choice between two children of different ages and/or genders. The participants were asked about the believability of the identified …

Mexican-Origin Youth's Risk Behavior From Adolescence To Young Adulthood: The Role Of Familism Values, Lorey A. Wheeler, Katharine H. Zeiders, Kimberly A. Updegraff, Sue A. Rodriguez De Jesus, Norma J. Perez-Brena

Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families, and Schools: Faculty Publications

Engagement in risk behavior has implications for individuals' academic achievement, health, and well-being, yet there is a paucity of developmental research on the role of culturally-relevant strengths in individual and family differences in risk behavior involvement among ethnic minority youth. In this study, we used a longitudinal cohort-sequential design to chart intraindividual trajectories of risk behavior and test variation by gender and familism values in 492 youth from 12 to 22 years of age. Participants were older and younger siblings from 246 Mexican-origin families who reported on their risk behaviors in interviews spaced over eight years. Multilevel cohort-sequential growth models …

Bitter Taste Preference And Psychopathy: A Partial Replication Of Sagioglou And Greitemeyer, 2016, Lauren A. Waymire

Honors Program Theses

In this study, we did a partial replication of Sagioglou and Greitemeyer’s 2016 study concerning bitter taste preferences and malevolent personality traits. Undergraduate students (n=40, mean age=19.40, 75% females) completed a laboratory component consisting of 24 samples of 8 different solutions (sucrose, sodium chloride, quinine, and citric acid with a higher and lower concentration of each) for 3 iterations, as well as PTC testing and tongue staining in order to count fungiform papillae. This was followed by a survey component that utilized HEXACO (which assesses six major domains of personality) and the IPIP-NEO scale for psychopathy (measured with the factors …

Play It Again! Individualized Music Improves Social Interaction Of Women, But Not Men, With Dementia, Emily Farrer

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Dementia is tragic both for patients with the disease and for their family members. As this neurodegenerative disorder progresses, cognitive functions deteriorate, agitation and aggression increase, and mood worsens (McDermott, Orrell, et al., 2014; Spiro, 2010; Vasionyté & Madison, 2013). Non-pharmacological approaches, such as active music therapy or passive music listening, can be effective in reducing these symptoms. However, no past studies have examined how music listening affects the social interactions of patients with dementia. As such, this study examined whether nursing home residents with dementia are more engaged and interactive if they listen to individually selected music for 15 …

Episodic Salutary Experiences (Ese): A New Type Of Positive Affect And Its Relationship To Physical Health, Natalie Nusinow

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Prior work has shown that positive affect is related to and can foster physical health. Recently, a subtype of positive affect has been identified, known as episodic salutary experiences (ESE). These experiences seem to be a type of positive affect or, alternatively, may produce a type of affective state that has not previously been studied. ESE is defined as spontaneous episodes of inner peace and lack of conflict that are noticeably different from one’s normal state. A cross-sectional study was undertaken to determine if ESE is associated with physical health, and if so, which aspects of ESE are most close …

Disordered Eating Habits And Theory Of Mind In Undergraduate Students, Stephanie Kuhlman

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Theory of mind, the ability to ascribe mental states to oneself and others, has intimate connections with mental disorders like autism and schizophrenia. Recent research has suggested a connection between eating disorders and theory of mind ability, but these findings have been mixed. The idea that disorders lie along a continuum (Johns & van Os, 2001) leads to the hypothesis that people with disordered eating habits will have a lesser theory of mind ability than those without. Data was collected on 25 undergraduate students at Butler University. Results showed a positive correlation between theory of mind and negative eating attitudes. …

Adult Attachment Style And Inter-Parental Discrepancy On Pediatric Behavior Assessment Scales, Laura Beliech Harris

Doctoral Dissertations

The process of diagnosing pediatric psychopathology is an important and sometimes complex endeavor. Diagnoses are useful for facilitating communication among providers, setting therapy goals, and intervention selection. However, beyond their utility, diagnoses potentially can influence client-therapist rapport, therapeutic alliance, and therapy outcomes in a negative manner, as well as leading to stigma and discrimination against the client (child). Best practice for pediatric psychological evaluations includes obtaining data regarding the child's behavior in multiple settings and from multiple respondents. This is most often accomplished through administration of standardized objective pediatric behavior assessment instruments. However, collecting data from multiple respondents in this …

Why Do Hills Look So Steep?, Frank H. Durgin, Z. Li

Psychology Faculty Works

No abstract provided.