Psychology Commons^™

Alcohol Use, Dietary, And Exercise Behaviors: A Latent Profile Analysis Of Young Adult Lifestyle Behaviors, Ryan Wesley Grant

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

As individuals enter adulthood, their lifestyles and lifestyle behaviors begin to change drastically. These lifestyle behavior changes in emerging adulthood provide a foundation for future health behaviors that often persist through all of adulthood. The aim of this study was to use Latent profile analyses (LPA) to discover distinct profiles of homogenous groups of young adults based on alcohol, diet, and exercise behaviors. Overall, five distinct profiles for both males and females were identified: Moderates, Unhealthy Eaters, Medium Drinkers, Healthier Eaters and Exercisers, and Heavy Drinkers. Heavy Drinkers and Unhealthy Eaters were the highest risk groups and reported the highest …

The Effect Of A Training Clinic On The Self-Efficacy Of Counselors In Training, Jihene Ayadi

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The primary focus of this study was to examine the differences between trainees’ perceived self-efficacy when they graduate from a counseling program that has a community based mental health training clinic versus a program without a training clinic. A web-based survey was developed with the questions from the Counseling Self-Efficacy Inventory (COSE) (Larson et al., 1992) and 45 (N = 45) participants took the survey online. Participants were students enrolled and taking a practicum or internship class in a counseling program with a training clinic (WTC) or in a counseling program without a clinic (WTTC). Mann-Whitney Wilcoxon test, a non-parametric …

An Evaluation Of The “Opportunity To Mand” During Instruction For Learners With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Marilynn Vanessa Colato

Theses and Dissertations

This study evaluated whether providing the opportunity to mand during instruction affects the rate of acquisition of new skills for learners with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Additionally, researchers sought to compare the rate of acquisition utilizing the opportunity to mand as a consequence with an instructor-selected condition. A non-concurrent multiple baseline across participants was conducted to demonstrate the effects of providing the opportunity to mand as a reinforcer. Contingent on a correct response, participants were allowed to communicate to the researcher (either vocally or through PECs) a preferred reinforcer. All reinforcer selections were recorded and used to yoke reinforcer presentations …

Effects Of Critical Reflection On University Students’ Cognitive Achievement In Agricultural Mechanization, Patterson P. Hilaire

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Experiential learning continues to play a vital role in agricultural education and mechanization laboratories (Shoulders & Myers, 2013). An essential component of experiential learning is critical reflection. Critical reflection helps students process and construct meaning from laboratory experiences. A study conducted by Shoulders and Myers (2013) revealed that only 15.4% of the agricultural educators the researchers interviewed incorporated reflective practices laboratory experiences. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of critical reflection on students’ achievement following five agricultural mechanization laboratory activities. The results from this study revealed that critical reflection had a consistently positive effect on immediate …

A Phenomenological Study Of The Lived Experiences Of Counseling Students In A Co-Facilitated Experiential Group, Alexandra Meyers

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Research in the fields of experiential learning, group psychotherapy, and neuroscience has supported the inclusion of the experiential group in counseling training programs due to the potential for positive impact on students’ personal and professional development (Badenoch & Cox, 2010; Denninger, 2010). Investigations exploring counseling students’ experiences of the experiential group have been primarily limited to quantitative studies, while in-depth qualitative inquiry has been minimal. Additionally, an extensive review of the literature has found there have been no qualitative studies examining experiential groups co-facilitated by a course instructor and a doctoral student. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to …

When Essentialism Facilitates Intergroup Conflict Resolution: The Positive Role Of Perspective-Taking, Donna J. Yao, Melody M. Chao, Angela K. Y. Leung

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Essentialism, a fundamental belief of the fixedness of social group essences, is often associated with negative intergroup outcomes. However, research is yet to explore the role of essentialism in intergroup conflicts, despite their prevalence. To address this gap, we conducted the first direct examination on how essentialism influences conflict management toward out-group members. Moreover, we examined perspective-taking as a positive factor in improving conflict management among essentialist individuals relative to their non-essentialist counterparts in intergroup contexts. Results across three experiments provided little support to the negative effect of essentialism on intergroup (vs. intragroup) conflict management. Yet, we found that perspective-taking …

Paper Prototyping Comfortable Vr Play For Diverse Sensory Needs, Louanne E. Boyd, Kendra Day, Ben Wasserman, Kaitlyn Abdo, Gillian Hayes, Erik J. Linstead

Engineering Faculty Articles and Research

We co-designed paper prototype dashboards for virtual environments for three children with diverse sensory needs. Our goal was to determine individual interaction styles in order to enable comfortable and inclusive play. As a first step towards an inclusive virtual world, we began with designing for three sensory-diverse children who have labels of neurotypical, ADHD, and autism respectively. We focused on their leisure interests and their individual sensory profiles. We present the results of co-design with family members and paper prototyping sessions conducted by family members with the children. The results contribute preliminary empirical findings for accommodating different levels of engagement …

The Effects Of Two Novel Anti-Inflammatory Compounds On Prepulse Inhibition And Neural Microglia Cell Activation In A Rodent Model Of Schizophrenia, Heath W. Shelton

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Recent studies have shown elevated neuroinflammation in a large subset of individuals diagnosed with schizophrenia. A pro-inflammatory cytokine, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNFα), has been directly linked to this neuroinflammation. This study examined the effects of two TNFα modulators (PD2024 and PD340) produced by our collaborators at P2D Bioscience, Inc., to alleviate auditory sensorimotor gating deficits and reduce microglial cell activation present in the polyinosinic:polycytidylic (Poly I:C) rodent model of schizophrenia. Auditory sensorimotor gating was assessed using prepulse inhibition and microglial activation was examined and quantified using immunohistochemistry and confocal microscopy, respectively. Both PD2024 and PD340 alleviated auditory sensorimotor gating deficits …

Policy Analysis Of Tennessee's 51-To-Life Law: Juvenile Sentencing Reform, Natalie P. Hurst

Honors Theses

In the state of Tennessee, juvenile offenders convicted as adults for first-degree murder must receive a minimum sentence of 51 years in prison before becoming eligible for parole. Tennessee’s minimum juvenile sentencing guideline is the strictest in the United States. In 2012, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that sentencing juvenile offenders to life is unconstitutional citing psychological evidence for a juvenile’s ability to be rehabilitated in comparison to adults (Miller v. Alabama, 2012). Tennessee’s 51-year minimum juvenile sentencing standard is a potential violation of this ruling because it has been shown that the life expectancy in prison …

Cost-Benefit Analysis Of Enhanced Mentoring For Delinquency Prevention, Allison Smith

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Youth with certain risk factors (e.g., from a minority group, low-income status, previous contact with the juvenile justice system) are particularly at risk for juvenile delinquency and associated problems (e.g., school failure, mental health problems). In addition, these problems are quite costly to youth, their families, and society as a whole. Mentoring programs have shown modest, but consistent, effects in the prevention and reduction of juvenile delinquency and associated problems. Previous research has identified promising enhancements (i.e., advocacy/teaching roles for mentors, rigorous match processes, comprehensive mentor training, ongoing mentor support) that may increase the effectiveness of mentoring in producing positive …

Evaluating The Effectiveness Of Motor Planning With Core Vocabulary: A Behavior Analytic Account, Alison Judith Karnes

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

As the prevalence of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) increases, it is important for practitioners to continue to improve evidence-based practices (EBP) for the treatment of ASD symptoms (i.e., impairments in social communication and repetitive behaviors and restricted interests; American Psychiatric Association [APA], 2013). It is estimated that 30-50% of individuals with autism do not acquire functional speech (Wodka, Mathy, & Kalb, 2013). These individuals would make appropriate candidates for Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC; Mirenda, 2003). One form of AAC is the speech-generating device (SGD). Over the last ten years, tablet-based technologies including iPad minisⓇ have been emphasized in the …

Officers’ And Community Members’ Evaluations Of Police–Civilian Interactions, Mawia Khogali

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Research suggests that civilian characteristics such as race, gender, and age may influence use of force decisions by police. The purpose of the current research is to determine whether these civilian characteristics influence officers’ and community members’ evaluations of police-civilian encounters along dimensions of resistance, disrespect, and the appropriate use of force. It also examines whether perceptions of resistance and disrespect mediate the relationship between civilian characteristics and police use of force. Four-hundred thirty police officers and 571 community members participated in this study. Overall, this study provides the beginning of a much-needed line of research investigating the role of …

Mindfulness In Medicine: Modified Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (Mbsr) Program Among Future Doctors, Virtue Sankoh

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Medical trainees are at particular risk for stress-related illness, including mental health problems such as suicidal ideation, substance abuse, and mood disorders. A vast literature on mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR), consisting of mindfulness education and structured meditative practices, has consistently demonstrated that MBSR and related mindfulness-based interventions improve mental and physical health, as well as one’s overall sense of well-being. Moreover, theorists and researchers have begun to suggest further that mindfulness plays a particular role in social cognition, or social-emotional learning. Medical schools have long been interested in ways to improve the “soft skills” related to interpersonal connectedness that are …

“We Are All The Decline”: A Mixed Methods Analysis Of Presbyterian Clergywomen’S Talk About Denominational Decline, Miriam Shelton

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

In this study, I have used social representation theory and discursive methods to explore developmental challenges posed to the clergy by the social changes brought about by the loss of membership and resources in one mainline denomination. Analyzing the interviews of 37 Presbyterian clergywomen, I document a Presbyterian social representation of decline, the core of which aligned with a report on decline issued by the PCUSA (General Assembly Task Force on Membership Growth and Decline, 1991), shaped by themâta of death versus liveliness, moving versus stagnation, growth versus decline and decline as good versus as bad. One way in which …

The Measure Of A Man: A Critical Methodology For Investigating Essentialist Beliefs About Sexual Orientation Categories In Japan And The United States, Brian R. Davis

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Methods for studying laypeople’s beliefs about sexual orientation categories have evolved in step with larger theoretical and epistemological shifts in the interdisciplinary study of sexuality. The dominant approach to measuring laypeople’s sexual orientation beliefs over the past decade was made possible through an epistemological shift from a nature vs. nurture paradigm to a social constructionist theoretical model of psychological essentialism (Medin, 1989; Medin & Ortony, 1989; Rothbart & Taylor, 1992). Despite this shift, I argue that the forced-response scale-based survey methodologies typically used to operationally define essentialist beliefs about sexual orientation at best only partially realize the social constructionist potential …

Breaking Down Gesture And Action In Mental Rotation: Understanding The Components Of Movement That Promote Learning, Elizabeth M. Wakefield-Connell, Alana E. Foley, Raedy Ping, Julia N. Villarreal, Susan Goldin-Meadow, Susan C. Levine

Psychology: Faculty Publications and Other Works

Past research has shown that children’s mental rotation skills are malleable and can be improved through action experience—physically rotating objects—or gesture experience—showing how objects could rotate (e.g., Frick, Ferrara, & Newcombe, 2013; Goldin-Meadow et al., 2012; Levine, Goldin-Meadow, Carlson, & Hemani-Lopez, 2018). These two types of movements both involve rotation, but differ on a number of components. Here, we break down action and gesture into components—feeling an object during rotation, using a grasping handshape during rotation, tracing the trajectory of rotation, and seeing the outcome of rotation—and ask, in two studies, how training children on a mental rotation task through …

Working Memory And Mindfulness In An Rct Of Abbt And Ar, Anna M. Hall

Graduate Masters Theses

Working memory capacity (WMC) can be degraded by anxiety, stress, and worry, but can also be protected by mindfulness interventions (Jha et al., 2010). The current study was the first to investigate the relations between WMC, anxiety, and mindfulness within two interventions for Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) that promote mindfulness: Acceptance Based Behavioral Therapy (ABBT) and Applied Relaxation (AR). In this exploratory study, we analyzed a subset of participants from a RCT of ABBT and AR who had completed the Operation Span Task (OSPAN; n = 21). First, we found that pre- to post-treatment measures of WMC (e.g., OSPAN scores) …

The Role Of Head Trauma In Emotion Dysregulation Among Victims Of Partner Violence, Aleksandra Fryc

Senior Honors Projects

The project I completed explores the relationship between head trauma and emotion dysregulation, or the inability to modulate the intensity and/or duration of emotional responses in a flexible manner in order to meet individual goals and situational demands (Gratz & Roemer, 2004), among victims of domestic violence. The rationale and importance of the project included the possibility that the findings of this study can inform future research in topics including head trauma, emotion dysregulation, and domestic violence. Despite evidence linking emotion dysregulation to both domestic violence and head trauma, no investigations to date have examined whether head trauma stemming from …

The Role Of Dreams, Intuition, And Social Influences On Conscious Decision-Making Processes, Robert Bouffard

Senior Honors Projects

The average person makes approximately 35,000 conscious decisions per day, which, accounting for the daily amount of sleep a person gets, is equivalent to a decision madeevery two seconds. Upon realizing the frequency, I sought to find a distinctive connectionbetween the conscious and unconscious when it pertains to how people make decisions. I hypothesized that people make decisions regarding their personal relationships with the help of intuition, which I considered to be the ultimate link between our dreams and our conscious thought. I also believed the concept of intuition was entirely dependent on our processing and decoding of dreams. In …

The Relations Of Religiosity, Social Support, And Acculturation Attitudes Among Refugees, Carolyn H. Casada

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Refugees are entering the United States in increasing numbers. Identifying factors that promote successful acculturation is an important task for those working to help refugees. As religiosity and social support have previously been linked to better mental health outcomes in refugees, they should be considered when examining acculturation. Using the Duke University Religious Index, the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support, and the Acculturation Attitudes Scale, this study examined the relations between religiosity, perceived social support, and acculturation strategies. Additional variables examined were number of migrations, language of religious services currently attended, and religious services demographics. Hypotheses were that scores …

Trauma And Its Shadow: The History Of Flashbacks, David Becker

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The flashback is a concept born in cinema, adopted by science and embraced by popular culture as a metaphor for memory—everyday recollections, psychedelic illusions, and traumatic intrusions—that informs and influences our relationship to the past. This creative thesis traces the one-hundred-year timeline of the concept of flashbacks, focusing on its expansion into the field of psychology. How did a film term end up in the pages of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), the primary tool used by psychologists to diagnose mental illness, such as Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)? Flashbacks gained psychological complexity in Hollywood during the …

Beyond Right Or Wrong: The Influences Of Thinking Disposition And Item Difficulty On Student Behavior During High-Stakes Testing, Kristina Lindquist

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

A hallmark of clinician decision making is the ability to know when to make quick decisions and when decision making should be slowed to account for complicating factors. Throughout the physician training process, multiple choice test items are used to assess student knowledge however, these items do not assess the process used by a student to arrive at the answer choice. If an important characteristic of decisions in clinical practice is timing, then decision timing could be an important consideration for medical school assessments. The purpose of this study, therefore, is to investigate factors that may affect the amount of …

Elucidating The Lasting Influence Of Early Pubertal Timing On Disordered Eating Symptoms, Megan Marie Shope

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Objective: Extant data indicate that girls who mature earlier than their peers are at increased risk for disordered eating symptoms. Nonetheless, whether early pubertal timing exerts differential effects across key disordered eating symptoms (e.g., body weight/shape concerns vs. binge eating) and whether pubertal timing effects are present after the completion of puberty (i.e., in adulthood) remains relatively unclear. Additionally, leading theories posit that pubertal increases in adiposity and psychosocial factors (e.g., perceived pressures for thinness) likely underlie the predictive effects of earlier maturation on disordered eating risk, yet few studies have empirically tested this possibility. The current study aimed to …

Difference Of Opinion: Spousal Influence On Cancer Risk-Reducing Behavior, Wendy C. Birmingham, Maija Reblin, Wendy Kohlmann, Tyler Graff

Faculty Publications

Marriage is consistently associated with better health outcomes. Spouses' attempts to influence partners' lifestyle and general health behaviors may contribute to this effect, although partners may not be aware of this influence. Spousal worry of a cancer diagnosis for an at-risk partner may factor into attempts to influence. An examination of spousal worry and influence on lifestyle choices, general health behaviors, and cancer screening adherence for partners at higher risk of colorectal cancer may shed light on spousal influence and partners' perceptions of influence. Methods: A mixed-method design assessed cancer worry and spousal influence for risk-reducing behavior in first-degree relatives …

Exploring The Impact Of Positive Peer Views Of Girls On School Engagement In Middle School Girls, Christine E. Hansen

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study focused on the types of messages female middle school students receive about their gender from their peers. Specifically, it looked at microaggressions, which are sexist messages from peers, and microaffirmations, which are positive and affirming messages from peers. There were four goals of this study. First, to check if the Students Affirming Girls in Middle School scale (SAG-MS), a scale created for this study, could consistently measure microaggressions and microaffirmations. Second, to look at the relationship between when girls experience puberty and microaggressions and microaffirmations. Third, to measure any differences in the number of microaggressions and microaffirmations girls …

Youth Prevention Programs: A Framework For Conducting Mediation Meta-Analyses, Morgan A. Kawamura

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Often for prevention program designs, researchers are interested in understanding the processes through which a program impacts a targeted outcome. Mediation analysis assists in identifying not only how a program influences an outcome, but also which intermediate variables (i.e., mediators) cause the effects between a program and an outcome to occur. Mediation analysis explains why a program works, which is useful for program developers in creating effective prevention and intervention-based programs.

To make use of mediation analysis findings for preventive intervention programs, researchers need a comprehensive understanding of the mediators between various programs and outcomes. However, a comprehensive examination into …

Sherwood's "Creative Approaches To Cbt: Art Activities For Every Stage Of The Cbt Process" (Book Review), Julianne Burnett

The Christian Librarian

No abstract provided.

Jantz' "Healing The Scars Of Emotional Abuse; Revised And Updated Edition" (Book Review), Vonda Henderson

The Christian Librarian

No abstract provided.

Associations Of First Trimester Co-Use Of Tobacco And Cannabis With Prenatal Immune Response And Psychosocial Well-Being, Kristin Ashford, Amanda Fallin-Bennett, Andrea Mccubbin, Amanda T. Wiggins, Sheila Barnhart, Joshua A. Lile

Perinatal Research and Wellness Center Faculty Publications

PURPOSE: This study aims to describe the association of first trimester co-use of tobacco and cannabis with maternal immune response and psychosocial well-being, relative to tobacco use only.

METHODS: A preliminary midpoint analysis included 138 pregnant women with biologically verified tobacco use, 38 of whom (28%) also tested positive for recent cannabis use. Maternal perceived stress (Perceived Stress Scale), depressive symptoms (Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale), and serum immune markers (IL-1β, IL-2, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, TNFα, CRP, MMP8), were collected, although cytokine data were only available for 122 women.

RESULTS: Participant average age was 29.1 years, approximately half had a high …

Constructed Response Formats And Their Effects On Minority-Majority Differences And Validity, Filip Lievens, Paul R. Sackett, Jeffrey Dahlke, Janneke Oostrom, Britt De Soete

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

The inflow of immigrants challenges organizations to consider alternative selection procedures that reduce potential minority (immigrants)-majority (natives) differences, while maintaining valid predictions of performance. To deal with this challenge, this paper proposes response format as a practically and theoretically relevant factor for situational judgment tests (SJTs). We examine a range of response format categories (from traditional multiple-choice formats to more innovative constructed response formats) and conceptually link these response formats to mechanisms underlying minority-majority differences. Two field experiments are conducted with SJTs. Study 1 (274 job seekers) contrasts minority-majority differences in scores on a multiple-choice versus a written constructed response …