Psychology Commons^™

The Dance Of Storytelling: How Therapists Facilitate Clients' Narrative-Emotion Shifting In Emotion-Focused Therapy For Trauma, Mengfei Xu

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

This qualitative study replicated and extended Friedlander et al.’s (2020) case study of time-limited dynamic psychotherapy (TLDP; Levenson, 2010) by investigating therapist behaviors immediately preceding client narrative-emotion shifting from problem markers to change markers in four successful cases of emotion-focused therapy for trauma (EFTT; Paivio & Pascual-Leone, 2010). The primary goal was to identify therapist behaviors in the early, middle and late phases of treatment that uniquely preceded change shifts as identified by the NarrativeEmotion Process Coding System (NEPCS; Angus Narrative-Emotion Marker Lab, 2015).

Counterfactual Thoughts And Their Relationship With Justice Perceptions, Wei Yang Sim

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Justice perceptions have been shown to be important to work outcomes, but their cognitive precursors are less understood. Fairness Theory offers a potential mechanism to help explain how they are formed. An experiment with 292 student respondents was conducted to study the effects of justice (i.e., just, ambiguous, unjust) and target (i.e., supervisor, organization) manipulations on counterfactual thought generation (i.e., mental simulations of plausible alternative realities) with the objective of elucidating the mechanism by which justice perceptions are formed. Findings suggest that negative counterfactual thoughts are prevalent explanatory vehicles that are used by individuals to make sense of justice-related situations. …

The Grass Is Greener On The Other Screen : A Moderated Mediation Analysis Of Social Media Use, Upward Social Comparison, And Social Support On Depression And Social Satisfaction Among College Students, Phoebe Edgerton Long

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Over the past decade, levels of depression and levels of social media use have risen considerably among college students in the United States. As such, a growing body of research has examined the relation between social media use and negative mental health outcomes among this population. However, research on the link between social media and depressive symptoms produces mixed and at times contradictory results. One evidenced mechanism is upward social comparison, by which a person perceives a peer to be better off than they are on social media, and subsequently makes negative evaluations about themselves. This study seeks to confirm …

Value Alignment In Online Reviews: A Determinant Of Applicant Attitudes And Intentions, Henri T. Maindidze

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Of interest in this study is the way organizational values communicated in online reviews are recognized and interpreted by job applicants in relation to their personal values, with this comparison potentially influencing their attitudes and intentions in relation to the organization. An ancillary research question is whether quantitative or qualitative reviews have a greater impact on applicant attitudes and intentions. Drawing on signaling theory, I employed an experimental vignette design to examine whether person-organization (PO) fit perceptions explain the relationship between value alignment and an applicant’s recommendation intentions and organizational attraction. The main effect of value alignment on PO fit …

Verbal Barriers To Self-Compassion : The Frequency And Impact Of Frames Of Coordination And Opposition On Indices Of Distress And Well-Being, Shannon B. Underwood

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Background: Self-compassion has received increased attention as a process of change inevidence-based psychotherapies, owing to its relation with numerous positive health outcomes. Though several practices have been shown to increase self-compassion, our aim here is to evaluate the utility of one particular practice, namely loving-kindness or metta meditation (LKM). Despite evidence supporting biological and psychological benefits of LKM, other research has identified various nonspecific barriers and challenges associated with this practice that are linked with poor response to the practice itself. Relational Frame Theory (RFT) provides a behavioral and contextual perspective that may help clarify for whom LKM would likely …

The Moderating Role Of Food Cravings In The Relationship Between Weight Suppression And Binge Eating And Purging In Emerging Adults, Susana Cruz Garcia

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Weight suppression (WS), the difference between an individual’s current and highest adult weight, is predictive of bulimic symptoms and poor eating disorder treatment outcomes, but findings from non-clinical samples have been mixed. Cravings are strong urges for specific foods that are subjectively difficult to resist. Food cravings are now widely conceptualized as cognitive-affective states characterized by intrusive thoughts that are perceived as distressing and can interfere with adaptive functioning. Food cravings are known antecedents of binge eating, but little is known about how they interact with WS. This study examines the obsessive-compulsive aspects of food cravings as potential moderators of …

Three-Factor Model Of Behavior Intervention : Psychometric Properties Of The Behavior Intervention Self-Efficacy (Bise) Scale, Ayaka Hisanaga-Probst

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

The present study theorized the dimensions of classroom behavior intervention, hypothesizing that preparedness to handle perceived challenging behaviors would split into three factors: internalizing behaviors, attention-related behaviors, and social behaviors. Based on this theory, a psychological measurement, the Behavior Intervention Self-Efficacy (BISE) scale was developed. The purpose of this study was to examine the psychometric properties of the BISE, investigating the factor structure, validity evidence based on the relationship with a similar scale, internal consistency, and test-retest reliability. Furthermore, the variability of the BISE responses was analyzed based on demographic characteristics of the school environment, training background, work experience, and …

Efficacy Of A Single Session Act-Based Intervention For Public Defender Attorneys: A Multiple Baseline Single Case Study, Lawrence Phillip Peterson

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Every day in the U.S., criminal courts render decisions that affect the people involved for the rest of their lives. Crucial to the functioning of these courts is the mental health of their public defender trial attorneys (Levin et al., 2012), who speak for the innocence and the rights of the accused. Since public defender work is highly demanding, both professionally and emotionally, their psychological distress is often high (Levin et al., 2012).It was reasoned that a brief training that teaches flexible responding skills could increase the psychological flexibility and decrease the general distress experienced by public defender attorneys. In …

Smartphones And Emotional Transfer : An Investigation Of Smartphone-To-Human Emotional Contagion, Stanislav Zavoyskiy

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

ABSTRACT

Suicidal Ideation Of Asian College Students In The Us : The Roles Of Family Perfectionism, Imposterism, Thwarted Belongingness, Perceived Burdensomeness, And Relational Meaning In Life, Shangyun Zhou

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Suicide is the first leading cause of death for college-age individuals (17-24) in the US who identify as Asian and Pacific Islanders. Family perfectionism – discrepancy, defined as the perception of a gap between one’s performance and the family’s high standards, was found to be an important risk factor in this population due to the strong emphasis on interpersonal contexts in many Asian cultures. However, the current literature has not provided clear empirical support for the mechanisms through which family perfectionism exerts its impact on suicidal ideation. To fill this gap, the current study attempted to integrate the Interpersonal Theory …

The Burnout Crisis In Education : A Systematic Review Of Interventions To Ameliorate Burnout And Promote Self-Care In School-Based Professionals, Jacqueline Sturdevant Blass

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

The purpose of this study was to systematically review available research on interventions that aim to reduce burnout and/or promote self-care in school-based professionals. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) was used to identify studies for inclusion. Six databases were reviewed and a total of 4,571 records were generated. The titles and abstracts of these articles were reviewed for the inclusion criteria, yielding 200 articles matching eligibility criteria. Additionally, 107 duplicates were removed, yielding 93 studies eligible for closer review. After reviewing these studies, a total of 59 studies were analyzed. Most studies included burnout as …

Value Congruence And Employee Engagement: An Exploration Of Mechanisms, Laura Santiago

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Employee engagement has been linked to a host of organizational outcomes such as turnover, commitment, and productivity, as well as employee outcomes such as depression, job satisfaction, and anxiety. As such, it is critical to understand how engagement can be fostered at work, or even predicted in applicants. Organizational culture has been linked to engagement, as well as person-job fit, but not enough research has been done on the link between organizational culture fit, or value congruence, and employee engagement. Specifically, not enough research has been done looking at why value congruence could lead to engagement. This study evaluates two …

Mindful Control Vs. Mindful Acceptance : An Experimental Evaluation Of The Acute Impact Of Intentions Guiding Mindfulness Practice On Psychological And Emotional Experiences, Eric Daniel Tifft

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Mindfulness meditation (MM) has gained attention from the mainstream media and scientific communities due to its benefits in ameliorating psychological suffering, aiding in the treatment of physical conditions, and promoting well-being. However, a growing body of research suggests that MM may also produce unintended, adverse effects. Research in emotion regulation suggests that how people use MM may be critical in understanding both the benefits and iatrogenic effects of such practices. Emotion regulation science suggests that efforts to avoid, suppress, or otherwise control unwanted internal experiences are ineffective long-term strategies and can backfire, thus potentiating psychological distress. Conversely, acceptance of difficult …

Community Perceptions Of Therapist Support After Media Coverage Of Anti-Black Violence, Adela Scharff

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Viewing media coverage of violent acts committed against Black individuals (i.e., police violence and other racially motivated violence) can lead to distressing mental health impacts including depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress symptoms. While several cognitive-behavioral and acceptance-based therapy techniques may help therapists to support Black clients in these moments, little is known about how these interventions are perceived by prospective therapy clients. Acceptability of these interventions may also differ by therapist race, and Black individuals of differing identities and with life experiences may hold different views. This therapy analogue study included N = 179 Black adult participants recruited in the …

Masculinity And Colorectal Cancer Screening Intent Among Men: Examining Moderated Mediational Effects, Michael G. Verile

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Masculinity has been theorized to affect engagement in health behaviors and may be helpful in predicting men’s colorectal cancer (CRC) screening intentions. Christy and colleagues’ (2014) proposed a model in which masculinity and social support predict men’s CRC screening intentions by way of engagement in health behaviors, cancer fear, and cancer-related stigma. This study examined how the theory might differ for males based on previous colonoscopy status. 422 men above the age of 45 were recruited using an online survey. Data were analyzed using structural equation modeling to test a modified version of Christy and colleagues’ (2014) theory. A modified …

Applying The Theory Of Planned Behavior To Intentions To Seek Couple Therapy : The Role Of Attachment, Relationship Satisfaction, And Expectations, Allison Ann Megale

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Although the negative consequences of relationship distress on mental health symptoms have been amply documented (e.g., Beach & Whisman, 2012), many distressed couples do not seek professional help (Cicila et al., 2014). While previous studies identified various barriers to help seeking, such as financial concerns and a lack of childcare (Williamson et al., 2019), there is limited knowledge of psychological factors that encourage distressed couples to seek help. Based on the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB; Azjen, 1991), the present study examined several predictors of a person’s intention to seek couple therapy. Participants were a convenience sample of 665 adults …

Acceptability And Feasibility Of Arfid-Ptp : A Brief, Virtual, Parent-Training Intervention For Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder In Children, Courtney Elizabeth Breiner

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Introduction. Avoidant/restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID) is a relatively novel feeding and eating disorder diagnosis with limited evidence-based treatment approaches. Current treatment approaches have been adapted from treatments for other restrictive eating disorders, however eating disorder treatment is notoriously inaccessible due to geographic, financial, and/or time constraints. The present study aims to establish the acceptability and feasibility of a two-session, parent-training approach, “ARFID-PTP,” for the treatment of ARFID disseminated via telehealth. ARFID-PTP was adapted into a brief, virtual format from other evidence-based treatment approaches. Methods. Participants (n=27) included children ages five to 12, inclusive who meet criteria for ARFID and …

Toward A New Approach To Job-Related Distress: A Three-Sample Study Of The Occupational Depression Inventory, Renzo Bianchi, James Sowden, Jay Verkuilen, Irvin Sam Schonfeld

Publications and Research

The Occupational Depression Inventory (ODI) was recently developed to assess depressive symptoms that individuals specifically attribute to their work. One purpose of the ODI is to respond to limitations of current assessments of job-related distress, most notably, assessments relying on the burnout construct. In this study, we conducted a thorough examination of the psychometric and structural properties of the ODI using exploratory structural equation modelling bifactor analysis and Mokken scale analysis. The study involved three samples of employed individuals, recruited in France (N = 3454), Switzerland (N = 1971), and Australia (N = 1485). Results were consistent across the three …

Taking A Heavier Toll? Racial Differences In The Effects Of Workplace Mistreatment On Depression, Ji Woon Ryu, Erik Gonzalez-Mulé, Ernest H. O'Boyle

Business Faculty Publications and Presentations

Previous studies have found that workplace mistreatment positively relates to depression, a critical mental health disorder. However, it is unknown whether mistreatment affects all individuals’ depressive symptoms equally. Drawing from the hopelessness theory of depression and the stigma literature, we suggest that Blacks suffer from greater depression than Whites when they experience similar levels of workplace mistreatment because Blacks, as members of a racial minority group, are more likely to attribute workplace mistreatment to their race. This, in turn, causes them to make a pessimistic attribution (i.e., attributions that are internal, stable, and global) about themselves that, ultimately, leads to …

The Effects Of School-Based Art Therapy On Depressed Adolescents, Jasmine Nicolas

Nursing | Senior Theses

Depression in adolescents is associated with deficient behavioral and health outcomes (Fletcher, 2019). Art therapy has been shown to be effective in treating mental health condition such as depression. A student’s academic success heavily depends on treating their depression. Community health nurses can play a vital role in advocating for adequate mental health support to improve a student’s overall well-being and academic success. The literature review contains six articles on the prevalence and impact of depression among adolescents, art therapy as an intervention for improving psychological outcomes and resilience among adolescents, and experiences of adolescent clients in art therapy within …

The Role Of Mentoring In The Lives Of Underrepresented Youth, Nohely Camacho Morales

Social Justice | Senior Theses

Underrepresented youth (Latino, Black, Pacific Islander, and Native American) face challenges in school enrollment/completion and often lack feelings of belonging in educational and social institutions. One specific group of underrepresented youth who face unique struggles is unaccompanied youth. Mentoring, a non-parental relationship between a young person and someone who supports and guides youth, has been found to result in better well-being and health in adolescents and potentially lead to higher self-worth and better academic performance. In order to fill a gap in the literature examining the effects of mentoring on underrepresented youth and specifically unaccompanied youth, I conducted a mixed-methods …

Spiritual Well-Being Scale (Swbs): Measuring Spiritual Well-Being In International Contexts, Rodger K. Bufford, Raymond F. Paloutzian

Faculty Publications - Psychology Department

The Spiritual Well-Being Scale (SWBS) is a 20-item measure of self-perceived spiritual health. Developed in the 1980s, it includes 2 subscales with 10 items each. Responses are made on a 6-point continuum from Strongly Disagree to Strongly Agree with no neutral point; 9 of the items are negatively worded to minimize response biases. The US samples show good internal consistency and test-retest reliability. Content validity was established in construction. Expected correlations with religion and spirituality indices, social and psychological mea-sures, and physical functioning and demonstration of expected group differences support criterion validity. Factor analysis commonly shows 2 factors corresponding to …

Employing The Houseless As Corporate Social Responsibility, Nicholas A. Smith, Larry R. Martinez, Shi (Tracy) Xu, Anna Mattila, Lisa Yixing Gao

Psychology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Purpose

Many hospitality organizations see the benefits of engaging in corporate social responsibility (CSR), which can take many forms. This study aims to examine one relatively unique form of CSR: hiring individuals experiencing houselessness. This research aimed to investigate the impact of hiring individuals experiencing houselessness on customers’ behavioral intentions, attitudes toward an organization and perceptions of CSR actions.

Design/methodology/approach

Across two experiments, this study investigated the impact of employing individuals experiencing houselessness on customers’ perceptions of the employee and organization using organizational legitimacy theory.

Findings

Results demonstrate that employees known to be houseless elicited more positive employee and organizational …

Serious Conduct Problems And Callous Unemotional Traits In Offending Adolescents: Unique And Shared Contributions Of Parenting And Community Risk, Elizabeth R. Corning

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

A growing body of research has suggested that parenting behaviors influence the development of youth conduct problems (CP) and callous-unemotional traits (CU). However, few studies have examined how parenting impacts CP and CU growth over time, and whether these associations differ based on the presence of additional community-level risk factors. This study used data from the Pathways to Desistance project (N = 1,354) to investigate how distinct parenting behaviors (i.e., positive parenting, harsh parenting, and parental knowledge) impact the initial level and growth in CP and CU across four years among adolescents involved in the juvenile justice system. Interaction effects …

Re/Negotiating Race And Racialization For International Students Of Color In The Us, Christina W. Yao, Evangela Q. Oates, Kaleb L. Briscoe, Kathleen J. Buell, Jennifer N. Rutt

UNL Office of Research and Innovation, Social/Behavioral Sciences Research Consortium

Race in the US is shaped by a history rooted in settler colonialism, colorism, and nativism. Yet, international students are typically excluded from most conversations about race and racialization. Using Fries-Britt, George Mwangi, and Peralta’s (2014) emergent framework on learning race in US contexts, we examined international students of Color’s racialized experiences at a predominantly White institution, including how their racialized experiences were often shaped simultaneously by issues of race and racism in the US as well as preconceived notions of what their US collegiate experiences would be. Findings indicated that most students did not expect to experience racism in …

The Value Of Mentoring In Living Out Your Calling, Megan Benzing

CGU Theses & Dissertations

The COVID-19 pandemic has altered the way people think about the role that their job plays in their life. There is a greater desire for purposeful work and engaging in a role that positively impacts society, or more simply, to perceive and live a calling. One perceives a calling when they know the occupation that they were destined for or that fits with their values, where their strengths and passions are leveraged, and the job is prosocial in nature. However, perceiving this calling is only a piece of it, as one needs to work in a role where they actively …

Assessment Of Founders In Venture Capital Investment Decisions, Gregory Gerald Hennessy

CGU Theses & Dissertations

This manuscript documents a research project that employs grounded theory to determine what criteria contemporary investors in early-stage startups use to assess founders. One of the first questions posed by entrepreneurship researchers - even before entrepreneurship had formalized as a field - was, what criteria do investors consider when making investments in startups? Initially, the central concern was whether it was the founder(s) or the business model, often characterized as the “jockey” or the “horse.” From the start, it was generally accepted that the founder was the primary consideration, especially in early-stage ventures. Nonetheless, while business model considerations were parsed …

Moral Outrage Moderates The Relationships Between System Perception, System Justification, And Intergroup Helping Behavior: A Multigroup Approach, Michael Edward Knapp

CGU Theses & Dissertations

Helping behavior is proposed to be a universal experience where a wide range of behaviors are used to benefit another person or group (Aknin et al., 2013; Nadler, 2002). Often these behaviors are motivated by positive values or emotions (Dovidio et al., 2012). However, when social status is salient, the members of a group may shift their motivation to help others from recipient benefit to retaining power and status for themselves instead (Nadler & Chernyak-Hai, 2014). The intergroup helping as status relations (IHSR) model proposes that higher status group members are motivated to retain their groups’ higher status through specific …

The Structure Of Working Memory: A Review And New View Of Psychometric Models, Kevin Pablo Rosales

CGU Theses & Dissertations

Beginning in the 1970s, a great deal of research in cognitive psychology, developmental psychology, psychometrics, and cognitive neuroscience has investigated the structure and function of working memory (WM), defined as the ability to actively maintain and manipulate information in the service of complex cognition (Baddeley & Hitch, 1974). It is well established that WM is a limited capacity system and individual differences in WM capacity are strongly associated with important cognitive abilities and outcomes, such as general intelligence (Engle et al., 1999) and academic achievement (Swanson & Berninger, 1996; Ramirez et al., 2013). For this reason, WM is a central …

Lived Experiences Of African American Women Encountering Barriers In Executive Level Advancement In The Business Services Industry, Sheriley Yvonne Smith

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

It is unknown how African American Women (AAW) perceived experiences involving the experience of the barriers faced when attempting to advance to executive levels in their corporate jobs. Existing literature showed that AAWs experienced several forms of discrimination, including racism, oppression, and limitations which were critical to examining their work experience and progressing up the corporate ladder. The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to develop an understanding of lived experiences of AAWs when they apply for and fail to reach executive positions in the business services industry. The glass ceiling theory (GCT) and intersectionality theory (IT) were used …