Counseling Psychology Commons^™

Teacher Support Mediates Concurrent And Longitudinal Associations Between Temperament And Mild Depressive Symptoms In Sixth Grade, Kathleen Moritz Rudasill, Patrick Pössel, Stephanie Winkeljohn Black, Kate Niehaus

Department of Educational Psychology: Faculty Publications

The combination of changes occurring at the transition to middle school may be a catalyst for the onset of depressive symptoms, yet teacher support at this transition is protective. Research points to certain temperamental traits as risk factors for developing depressive symptoms. This study examines student reports of teacher support and teacher reports of student–teacher relationship (STR) quality as mediators of associations between child temperament (i.e. negative emotionality at age 4½ : and emotional reactivity in elementary grades) and depressive symptoms in sixth grade. Results indicate (a) negative emotionality predicted emotional reactivity and depressive symptoms; (b) emotional reactivity predicted depressive …

Se Habla Inglés Aquí: Las Dificultades En El Tratamiento De La Depresión En Latinos En Los Estados Unidos, Melissa Kim Dundas

World Languages and Cultures

This project attempts to identify and bring to light the issues relating to treatment of Latinos and native Spanish speakers in the United States. The stigma surrounding depression is already strong in the U.S., and when minorities, who tend to have their own views of mental health disorders and who are less likely to seek treatment for any mental health disorder they might have, are added to the picture, the rates of treatment go drastically down. There are many factors that play into whether or not Latinos will seek treatment for depression, many of which revolve around language and culture, …

Fall To Grace, John C. Lyden

Journal of Religion & Film

This is a film review of Fall to Grace (2013) directed by Alexandra Pelosi.

The Ticking Of The “Biological Clock”: Worry About Future Fertility In Nulliparous Women, Karen E. Kersting

Theses and Dissertations

Abstract

Title: The Ticking of the “Biological Clock”: Worry about Future Fertility in Nulliparous Women

By: Karen Kersting, M.A., M.S.

A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at Virginia Commonwealth University.

Virginia Commonwealth University, 2013.

Major Director: Kathleen M. Ingram, J.D., Ph.D.

Associate Professor of Psychology

Department of Psychology

Modern women are waiting until later in their lives to have children than women of previous generations, a trend influenced by a number of factors including financial stability, dating norms, and career goals and responsibilities. As women age, their fertility may decline …

Predicting Substance Abuse Treatment Participation With The Personality Assessment Inventory: An Investigation Of How Personality And Interpersonal Factors Affect Treatment, Annese Baum Hutchins

Doctoral Dissertations

The prevalence of alcohol and drug abuse or dependence among Americans ages 12 and over is thought to be about 9.4% of the total population, or 22 million Americans (Karpiak & Norcross, 2005; Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Association [SAMHSA], 2003). According to Vuchinich (2002), substance use disorders (SUD) are the most common mental health problem in our society today. Additionally, estimates are that anywhere from half to 84% of all substance use disorder patients also experience a co-occurring disorder (Johnson, Brems, & Burke, 2002).

Traditional treatment facilities usually are focused primarily on either substance abuse treatment or psychiatric …

Regional Differences In Relational Aggression: The Role Of Culture, Katherine Amanda Czar

Dissertations

It is becoming increasingly clear that relational aggression has just as much potential to cause harm as overt verbal and physical aggression. Though the literature base on relational aggression is growing, far fewer studies have been conducted with late adolescents and adults as compared with children and early adolescents. Moreover, the role of culture in relational aggression has received limited attention. The current study aimed to examine the potential impact of one aspect of culture on relational aggression by focusing on North-South regional differences in the United States. Differing norms and expectations for social behavior between Northern and Southern U.S. …

Does Psychopathy Predict Future Risky Sexual Behavior?, Jessica Jade Fulton

Dissertations

Risky sexual behavior (RSB), such as having sex with an unknown partner, is associated with a variety of negative consequences including sexually transmitted diseases and unplanned pregnancy. Previous research (e.g., Fulton, Marcus, & Payne, 2010) suggests that psychopathic personality traits as assessed by the Psychopathic Personality Inventory (Lilienfeld & Andrews, 1996) are associated with RSB. Self-Centered Impulsivity (SCI), which is characterized by impulsivity, irresponsibility, and reckless behavior, was positively associated with RSB among men and women. In contrast, Fearless Dominance (FD), which is characterized by fearlessness, manipulativeness, and social dominance, was positively associated with RSB among men but not women. …

Effects Of Gender Composition Of Target And Sender Dyads On The Tendency To Infer Lies, Byron J. Simoneaux

Doctoral Dissertations

Lying is so common in human behavior that some have labeled it a social skill. Despite the ubiquity of lies, humans have consistently been found to be poor lie detectors. Attempts have been made to improve the accuracy of human lie detection. Unfortunately, the most successful training only improves accuracy slightly above the level of chance. Because of its importance to society, considerable effort has been aimed at developing methods to help determine when people are lying. Researching how and why humans infer that another person is lying has the potential to advance the understanding of lie detection. Researchers have …

Proposed Dsm-5 Personality Traits And Substance Use: A Multi-Faceted Study, W. Reese Mayer

Doctoral Dissertations

In this study, the Brief Assessment of Traits – 37 (BAT37) was developed to measure the presence of the personality traits initially proposed for inclusion in the personality disorders section of the DSM-5. The structure of the measure was supported by the results of a pilot study and its construct validity was supported by correlations with theoretically-related scales from the PAI, DAPP-BQ, and HEXACO-PI-R. The BAT37 was administered to a sample of undergraduate college students and clients at a residential substance use disorder (SUD) treatment facility.

Several of this study's findings are relevant to the proposed changes to the personality …

Alexithymia, Emotional Intelligence, And Their Relation To Word Usage In Expressive Writing, Kate M. Pluth

Scripps Senior Theses

This correlational and experimental study examines how people with different levels of alexithymia and emotional intelligence write about their emotional experiences. Because research on expressive writing (writing about important emotional experiences) has found such far-reaching therapeutic benefits, and attributes much of it to expressive writing's linguistic properties, exploring how a person's emotional understanding relates to language matters. Sixty-eight participants engaged in Pennebaker's expressive writing paradigm, and their word usage was measured on a number of categories, as given by the Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count program. Results indicated that different levels of emotional intelligence and alexithymia correlated with certain parameters …

The Relationship Between Personality And Forgiveness Of Sexual Infidelity In Marriage, Karen Suggs Roper

Doctoral Dissertations

Discovery of sexual infidelity is often accompanied by a strong desire for infidelity relevant information (Peluso, 2007). This study explored how information and conceptualization of situational factors affects forgiveness in a spouse who discovers the extramarital sexual activity of his or her spouse. The current study focused on knowledge of details and how such knowledge affected rumination and motivations of revenge, avoidance, and benevolence. Popular literature currently promotes a process of healing that begins with a revelation of the details associated with the extramarital behaviors of the offending spouse. A unique objective of this study was consideration of the specific …

Assessing The Relationship Of Career Goal Autonomy And Intrinsic Content On Vocational And General Well-Being, Andrew E. Kerlow-Myers

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Self-Determination Theory (SDT; Ryan & Deci, 2000) argues that if the goals pursued in a life domain are not congruent with the needs of autonomy, competence, and relatedness, well-being in that domain will be negatively impacted or at best, stagnant. Goals are an important part of career interventions (Lent, Brown, & Hackett, 1994), yet no research to date has assessed the importance of need congruent goals in the career domain. The present study assessed the effect of career goal autonomy (CGA) and career goal intrinsic content (CGIC) on well-being in the career domain (vocational well-being; VWB) and two components of …

Factors Associated With Participation And Retention In A Group Treatment For Child Sexual Abuse, Mollie Dittmer, Grace Hubel, David J. Hansen

McNair Scholars Research Journal

The current study examines factors associated with participation and retention in a child sexual abuse (CSA) outpatient program. Participation and retention are vital if children are to receive the intended benefits of treatment designed to promote healthy coping following CSA. However, little is known about factors that impede or encourage families to consistently attend sessions. Several factors possibly related to child participation and retention were examined, including demographic variables such as income level and education, characteristics of the abuse, and parent and family pretreatment functioning. Participants in the sample included 175 children and adolescents and their non-offending primary caregivers seeking …

Preliminary Development Of A Q-Sort Measure Of The Adlerian Concept Of Personality Priorities: The Adlerian Personality Priorities Q-Sort (Appqs), Dennis C. Roberts

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

No abstract provided.

School Counselors' Training, Knowledge, And Perceptions Of Non-Suicidal Self-Injury, Amy Reed

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

This investigation examined school counselors’ perceptions and levels of knowledge in regard to nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI), existing school prevention and protocol, resources and training opportunities available, as well as identified training needs. NSSI is the socially unaccepted, deliberate, self-inflicted harm of an individual’s body to reduce psychological distress with out the intention to die as a consequence (Simeon & Favazza, 2001). As a mental health professional in the schools, school counselors are often salient figures in adolescents’ educational environment. They are also many times the most appropriately qualified individuals to work with self-injuring adolescents in the school setting. While existing …

The Relationship Between The Level Of Support Group Participation And Psychosocial Factors In Prostate Cancer Patients Treated With Proton Therapy, Carol A. L. Davis

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Background. The role of support groups for cancer patients is known to be beneficial in helping people adjust to the disease, and cope with the myriad of effects that cancer has on quality of life. Although many people express interest in attending such support groups, few attend regularly. It is unclear what characteristics distinguish those who use such services from those who do not, especially among proton therapy patients.

Objective. To examine demographic and psychosocial characteristics associated with the Brotherhood of the Balloon (BOB) prostate cancer support group membership, a unique treatment-focused group originating at Loma Linda University Medical Center …

Socially Desirable Responding On The Mmpi -2, Mcmi-Iii, And Pai In A Substance Abuse Treatment Setting, James Brian Rutland

Doctoral Dissertations

Objectively scored measures of psychopathology are increasingly relied upon to aid in the diagnosis of mental disorders and treatment planning, and three commonly used measures are the MMPI-2, MCMI-III, and PAI. A difficulty with such measures, however, is that response sets are subject to both intentional and unintentional distortion by examinees. Underreporting of psychopathology and attempts to present oneself in an overly favorable light can be particularly difficult to detect. Therefore, scales and other indices have been developed to identify underreporting and defensiveness. Paulhus (2002) has developed and refined a model for this phenomenon of underreporting, which he calls Socially …

Confirmatory Factor Analysis Of The Protective Behavioral Strategies Scale (Pbss) Across Racial Groups, Sasha Joy Lambert

Dissertations

Alcohol consumption among college students, and the negative alcohol-related consequences that accompany that consumption, have been consistent concerns for colleges and the general public for several decades. Protective behavioral strategies are emerging in the literature as a potentially effective means of reducing harm to students; however, psychometrically sound measures for protective behavioral strategies are only in a development stage at this point. One such measure, the Protective Behavioral Strategies Scale (PBSS), showed particular promise in this area, but previous research suffered from sample limitations, particularly very low sampling of students of color. In the current study, additional items were added …

College Students Who Self-Injure: A Study Of Knowledge And Perceptions Of Self-Injury, Stacey Edwards Clinard

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Archived data was utilized for the present study which examined self-injurious behaviors in a college population. College students, who engage in non-suicidal self-injury, or NSSI, were expected to evidence a higher knowledge base for the behavior than those who do not. The demographic variables of gender and sexual orientation were predicted to be over represented in the NSSI group. Further, this study examines the perceived riskiness of the behavior in individuals who self-injure, as well as their perceptions of others who engage in NSSI. The survey consisted of four sections: demographics, knowledge ofNSSI, experience with NSSI, and perceptions ofNSSI. Individuals …

Gender Differences In The Prevalence Rates Of Self-Injury Among Individuals Who Suppress Thoughts, Kristina Isaacs

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

A previous study (Najmi, Wegner, & Nock, 2007) has concluded that thought suppression and self-injury are related. Gender differences have been contradictory among those who self-injure. However, it has been found that females score higher than males on thought suppression scales (Wegner & Zanakos, 1994). Based on these findings, it was hypothesized that females would suppress their thoughts more than males. It was also hypothesized that females who suppress their thoughts would think about and engage in self-injury more than males who suppress their thoughts. Participants completed both the Self-Injurious Thoughts and Behavior Interview (SITBI) and the White Bear Suppression …

The Theories Of Deindividuation, Brian Li

CMC Senior Theses

Has it ever occurred to you to wonder why a soldier would sacrifice his life by jumping on a bomb to save the rest of his brigade? Or why an individual in a gang might display respectable behavior when alone but swear and vandalize when in the group? The phenomenon of people getting pulled into crowds and adopting the group’s mentalities and behaviors has been recognized but not fully researched. However, it has been recorded in early literature and research that it is human nature to want to fit into a group, for example in Abraham Maslow’s (1943) paper, A …

Exploring The Relationship Between Religious Faith, Mental Health Help Seeking Attitudes, And Preferences For Counselor Characteristics Among Black American Churchgoers, Darryl P. Plunkett

Dissertations

Empirical data has shown that Black American churchgoers have generally higher baseline rates of religious involvement than the general U.S. population, as well as higher rates of religious involvement than most Black Americans (Chatters, Taylor & Lincoln. 1999). Researchers have noted the influence of religion on the help seeking attitudes of Black Americans (Abernethy, Houston, Mimms, & Boyd-Franklin, 2006) and have also identified counselor characteristics preferred by Black Americans when seeking help for mental health problems (Atkinson, Furlong, & Poston, 1986). However, Black American churchgoers are rarely identified as the target population in empirical studies and little is known about …

Scarred Images: Using Appearance As A Motivator To Reduce Driving Under The Influence Of Alcohol, Mary-Theresa Mcnabb

Dissertations

In response to continued driving under the influence of alcohol (DUI) amongst young adults and increased drinking and driving amongst females, the current study aimed to decrease such risky behavior using threats to appearance as a deterrent. One hundred and thirty-three undergraduates at the University of Southern Mississippi completed a threepart study after sequential assignment to one of three groups, a no-photo group, a crash scene photo group, or a personalized-photo group. Baseline measures were taken concerning participants' alcohol-related behaviors. One week later all groups were given statistical information commonly available in DUI prevention pamphlets together with strategies to avoid …

Spiritual Struggles And Self-Discrepancy, Robert Carlisle

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Spiritual Struggles occur when a person's spirituality has been threatened and must be modified or changed. Researchers explain that there are three types of struggles - divine, interpersonal and intrapersonal. In this study it was proposed that religious discrepancies could lead to spiritual struggles. There are two major types of discrepancies: actual/ideal and actual/ought. Actual/ideal discrepancies exist when there is a difference between what people think they ideally should be like and what they are actually. An actual/ought discrepancy is a difference between what people think they ought to be and what they actually are. It was proposed that religious …

Effects Of Age And Promotion In The Use Of Psychological Resources Of Promoted Employees, Janet M. Thorne-Chan

Dissertations

There is little research on the personal experiences of employees as they make a career transition due to promotion. The purpose of this study was to examine how newly promoted employees use their psychological resources to cope with transition. The Career Transition Inventory (CTI) was administered to 32 hairstylists from 14 different salons in the Midwest. The five scales of the CTI (Readiness, Confidence, Control, Support, and Independence) were used to identify how psychological resources were used by promoted employees. The CTI scales were compared to the variables of Age and Promotion since these variables are mentioned in the literature …

An Expanded Conceptualization And A New Measure Of Compulsive Buying, Nancy Ridgway, Monika Kukar-Kinney, Kent B. Monroe

Marketing Faculty Publications

Drawing on the theoretical foundation of obsessive‐compulsive spectrum disorder, this article develops an expanded conceptualization and new measure of consumers’ proclivity to buy compulsively. Compulsive buying is defined as a consumer’s tendency to be preoccupied with buying that is revealed through repetitive buying and a lack of impulse control over buying. This measure includes dimensions of both obsessive‐compulsive and impulse‐control disorders. By measuring income‐dependent items or consequences of compulsive buying separately from the compulsive‐buying scale, we develop a measure that has a strong theoretical foundation, well‐documented psychometric properties, and an ability to be applied to general consumer populations.

Family Functioning As A Risk Factor In The Development Of Juvenile Delinquency, Zeenat Ismail, Zaeema Riaz

Business Review

The purpose of the present research was to determine the difference between the family functioning of juvenile delinquents and non delinquents. After detailed literature review it was hypothesized that score on the variable of Communication, Rigidity in Value and Norms, Affective Expression and Parental Control among family members of juvenile delinquents will be high as compared to non delinquents. Sample of the present research consisted of 240 adolescents divided into two groups of 120 delinquents and 120 non-delinquents from lowsocioeconomic status. Family Assessment Measure-Ill was administered in order to measure level of Communication, Value and Norms, Affective Expression and Parental …

Effect Of Comorbid Psychiatric Disorders On Measures Of Group Cohesion In Substance Abusers, Sharon Bradford Robbins

Doctoral Dissertations

Substance dependence and treatment have been the focus of research for a number of years. Recently more attention has been directed toward identifying the most appropriate treatments for people with more complicated substance disorders, those with substance dependence and mental illness. The current study examined three aspects of group cohesion, a necessary condition for effective outcomes, in 64 substance abusers with a comorbid mental illness. The rated aspects of group cohesion included overall group climate, individual group members' self-worth, and each member's perception of the relationship with the group leader. Groups were divided according to profiles based on results from …

Sleep Habits And Patterns Of College Students And Their Relationship To Selected Personality Characteristics, Steve M. Jenkins

Doctoral Dissertations

College is a time of adjustment when many students have a newfound responsibility for many aspects of their lives, including sleep habits and patterns. College students often have sleep schedules that vary greatly, which can result in sleep disturbances. Previous research indicates that college students report significantly more sleep disturbances than the general population. Poor sleep quality has been linked to myriad psychological, physiological, and cognitive difficulties, including mood and anxiety disorders, cardiovascular disease, and poor academic performance. Oftentimes, sleep disturbances can be corrected with basic psychological interventions. Considering the deleterious effects that poor sleep can have on college students, …

Psychopathy And The Five Factor Model In A Noninstitutionalized Sample: A Domain And Facet Level Analysis, Scott R. Ross, Catherine J. Lutz, Steven E. Bailley

Psychology Faculty Publications

The current study examined the relationship of the Five Factor Model (FFM) of personality to primary and secondary psychopathic dispositions in a noninstitutionalized sample. Previous investigations suggest that Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, and Neuroticism are basic personality traits that characterize psychopathy. However, few studies have examined the relationship of the FFM to primary and secondary psychopathic attributes, respectively. In the current study, the relationship of the FFM using the NEO-PI-R to primary and secondary psychopathic dispositions was investigated in a sample of young adults. Previous findings were extended by (1) addressing the relationship of higher and lower order FFM traits (i.e., facet …