Quantitative Psychology Commons^™

Assessment And Learning In Knowledge Spaces (Aleks) Adaptive System Impact On Students' Perception And Self-Regulated Learning Skills, Honda Harati, Laura Sujo-Montes, Chih-Hsiung Tu, Shadow J.W. Armfield, Cherng-Jyh Yen

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Faculty Publications

Adaptive learning is an educational method that uses computer algorithms and artificial intelligence (AI) to customize learning materials and activities based on each user's model. Adaptive learning has been used for more than 20 years. However, it is still unique, and no other system could bring more or even similar capabilities than the ones adaptive technology offers, including the application of AI, psychology, psychometrics, machine learning, and providing a personalized learning environment. However, there are not many studies on its practicality, usefulness, improving students' learning skills, students' perception, etc., due to the limited number of institutes investing in this new …

Ascertaining The Relationship Between Traditional Masculinity Ideology And Personal Growth Initiative In College Students, Christopher J. Ha

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

The emerging psychological field of men and masculinities is credited with the development and validation of an array of instruments to assess masculinity-related constructs, with many emanating from the gender role strain paradigm (GRSP; Levant & Powell, 2017; Levant & Richmond, 2007, 2016; Pleck, 1981, 1995). However, there is little research that employs a positive psychology framework while considering the potential positive aspects of masculinity. The majority of literature utilizing these measures focus on the pathological effects of masculinity. The goal of this study was to explore the relationship between traditional masculinity ideology (TMI) and personal growth initiative (PGI) in …

A Review Of Sample Size And Design Efficacy In Crossover Design In Peer-Reviewed Psychology Research, Kyle Moxley

Wayne State University Dissertations

A REVIEW OF SAMPLE SIZE AND DESIGN EFFICACY IN CROSSOVER DESIGN IN PEER-REVIEWED PSYCHOLOGY RESEARCHby KYLE C. MOXLEY November 2021 Advisor: Dr. Shlomo S. Sawilowsky Major: Education Evaluation and Research Degree: Doctor of Philosophy The present study seeks to investigate the efficacy of crossover research designs, and the application of crossover designs, in the field of behavioral sciences. Under ideal conditions, crossover designs are assumed to be more efficacious than parallel studies in that participants are given both treatments. However, the presence of carryover effects from treatments may influence outcomes (Jones & Kenward, 2014). To prevent carryover effects, researchers frequently …

The Relationship Between Sexual Assault And Ptsd, Beverley Priest

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

People who have experienced trauma, such as sexual assault, are more likely to develop posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Women are twice as likely to develop PTSD from a traumatic event than men, especially from a sexual assault. Alcohol abuse is associated with more cases of and more severity of PTSD symptoms. Intimate partner violence can strongly contribute to or worsen the symptoms of PTSD. The research questions examined the relationship between sexual assault (SA) and the subsequent development of (PTSD, SA and the presence of alcohol dependence/addiction and the subsequent development of PTSD, and SA) and the presence of intimate …

Intimate Partner Violence: Effects Of Emotional Abuse In Women, Judith Marie Watiti

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractEstimates by the U.S. Bureau of Statistics point to over 30% of women being victims of intimate partner violence (IPV) yearly. Severity and frequency of violence in childhood have been shown in several studies to predict adult interpersonal violence. Research has shown that emotional abuse predicts other forms of abuse, thus identifying it as a potential causal link to IPV. The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine whether emotional abuse mediates the relationship between history of childhood abuse and IPV. Social learning theory served as the theoretical framework for the study, in which 182 adult female participants from …

The Relationship Between Programming After Critical Incidents, Shootings, And Resilience In Police, Michelle Lise Vincent

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractThe purpose of this study was to examine whether there was a relationship between resilience, posttraumatic growth, and reintegration programming after a critical incident and/or line of duty shooting through the cognitive, self-efficacy and resiliency theoretical lenses. The research aimed to determine if police officers, who participated in reintegration programming, specifically in this study, Edmonton Police’s Reintegration After Critical Incident programming, produced higher scores in resilience as measured on the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC) and posttraumatic growth, as measured on the Post Traumatic Growth Inventory scale (PTGI), with Canadian police officers compared to police officers who do not participate in …

Breaking The Cycle: A Longitudinal Study Of Factors That Disrupt Peer Selection And Influence Processes Among Urban Youth, Kelly E. Oconnor

Theses and Dissertations

Having friends who engage in problem behavior (i.e., aggression, substance use, delinquency) has consistently been linked to adolescents’ own engagement in problem behavior. There are, however, several key gaps in the literature on peer influence. Few studies have considered the influence of friends’ prosocial behavior and there has been limited research to identify promotive factors that influence urban youths’ affiliation with peers who engage in problem and prosocial behavior across early adolescence, a time of heightened susceptibility to peer influence. The purpose of this study was to identify modifiable promotive factors that reduce adolescents’ problem behavior by decreasing exposure to …

A Tale Of Two Tweets: What Factors Predict Forgiveness Of Past Transgressions On Social Media?, Andrew Dawson

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

As more and more of our lives take place online, we are developing a very public and permanent record of our past views and actions. It is increasingly common for public figures to have their current image tarnished by their mistakes and transgressions in what is often the distant past. Although factors such as the passage of time and age of the actor are typically given consideration in moral judgement, they may be swept away by identity and politics when the transgressions are viewed along partisan lines. Three experiments (N = 2,018) found that judgements of a public figure …

Measuring Intelligence With The Sandia Matrices: Psychometric Review And Recommendations For Free Raven-Like Item Sets, Alexandra M. Harris, Jeremiah T. Mcmillan, Benjamin Listyg, Laura E. Matzen, Nathan Carter

Personnel Assessment and Decisions

The Sandia Matrices are a free alternative to the Raven’s Progressive Matrices (RPMs). This study offers a psychometric review of Sandia Matrices items focused on two of the most commonly investigated issues regarding the RPMs: (a) dimensionality and (b) sex differences. Model-data fit of three alternative factor structures are compared using confirmatory multidimensional item response theory (IRT) analyses, and measurement equivalence analyses are conducted to evaluate potential sex bias. Although results are somewhat inconclusive regarding factor structure, results do not show evidence of bias or mean differences by sex. Finally, although the Sandia Matrices software can generate infinite items, editing …

Who Are We Missing? The Impact Of Requiring Parental Or Guardian Consent On Research With Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, Two-Spirit, Queer/Questioning Youth., Eli Cwinn, Courtney Cadieux, Claire V Crooks

Education Publications

PURPOSE: The purpose was to examine whether a requirement for parental or guardian consent systematically limits which lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, two-spirit, queer/questioning (LGBT2Q+) youth participate in research.

METHODS: A total of 60 LGBT2Q+ youth (aged 14-18 years) completed measures assessing gender and sexual minority identity, depression and anxiety, help-seeking intentions, and social support.

RESULTS: A substantial proportion (37.6%) of youth reported that they would not have participated in the research if parental or guardian consent was required. Those who would not have participated had more negative attitudes about their sexual and gender identity, less family support, lower levels of …

Applied Statistics, Alina Shevorykin

Open Educational Resources

No abstract provided.

Development And Validation Of A Multidimensional Scale For Measuring Public Confidence In The Criminal Justice System, Jimin Pyo

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Two studies were conducted with an aim of developing multidimensional measures of public confidence that are conceptually integrated, psychometrically sound, and useful in predicting individuals’ law related behaviors. Study 1 involves two-phased construction of scale in which a preliminary inventory was generated (Phase 1) and then finalized after evaluating psychometric properties based on 304 US adults recruited through Amazon’s Mechanical Turk (MTurk) (Phase 2). As a result, six multidimensional scales were constructed respectively for measuring efficiency-, finality-, fairness-, strictness-, accuracy-, and transparency-oriented confidence. Despite more complexity of factor structures than originally expected, results of psychometric evaluation six scales of confidence …

Predictors Of Social Distancing And Mask-Wearing Behavior: Panel Survey In Seven U.S. States, Plamen Nikolov, Andreas Pape, Ozlem Tonguc, Charlotte Williams

Economics Faculty Scholarship

This paper presents preliminary summary results from a longitudinal study of participants in seven U.S. states during the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to standard socio-economic characteristics, we collect data on various economic preference parameters: time, risk, and social preferences, and risk perception biases. We pay special attention to predictors that are both important drivers of social distancing and are potentially malleable and susceptible to policy levers. We note three important findings: (1) demographic characteristics exert the largest influence on social distancing measures and mask-wearing, (2) we show that individual risk perception and cognitive biases exert a critical role in influencing …

Jangle Fallacy: Is Grit Distinct From Other Psychological Constructs?, Natasha Godkin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This paper assessed the redundancy of the construct of grit (Crede, Tynan, Harms, 2017) compared to other similar constructs using structural equation modeling to remove the effect of measurement error. A series of models regressed grit and its subdomains (passion and perseverance of effort) on self-control, conscientiousness, achievement striving, and resilience. The R-squared values for these models ranged from 0.62 to 0.89. It is concluded that the concept of grit is mostly redundant with other constructs and is therefore an example of a Jangle fallacy (Kelley, 1927). The unique aspect of grit is mostly related to its passion …

Implicit Bias And Voluntarily Childfree Adults, Virginia Elizabeth Powell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This quantitative study aimed to determine if there is a negative bias towards voluntarily childfree adults or an association of negative views and attitudes with voluntarily childfree adults, controlling for other participant characteristics such as race, religion, or sexual orientation. At this stage in the research, voluntarily childfree adults are generally defined as legal adults who have the intention to remain childfree for the rest of their lives, due to reasons other than fertility issues. A negative view or bias is defined as any attitude which is not a desirable interpretation of behavior or lifestyle. A negative bias against voluntarily …

Intersectionality Between Sex/Gender And Race/Ethnicity On Cognitive Trajectories And Development Of Alzheimer’S Disease, Justina Frances Avila-Rieger

Psychology ETDs

The current study examined the interactive effects of race/ethnicity and sex/gender on cognitive trajectories of older adults. Participants were a total of 5258 non-Hispanic White (NHW), Black, and Hispanic men and women in the Washington/Hamilton Heights/Inwood Columbia Aging Project. Multiple-group latent growth curve modeling was used to examine trajectories across sex/gender by racial/ethnic groups and to determine the relationship between specific socio-cultural/health indicators and cognitive decline, including childhood socioeconomic position, years of education, adult income and occupation, cardiovascular risk factors, and marital status. Sex/gender differences in baseline cognitive test performance varied as a function of race/ethnicity and racial/ethnic differences in …

Editorial, Your Null Hypothesis Must Be False: Test It Anyway, Frank Corotto

Georgia Journal of Science

A historical criticism of null hypothesis testing is that a null hypothesis cannot be correct in the first place. The reason that many nulls cannot be correct is that what makes a null hypothesis a null hypothesis is its infinite precision. Only an infinitely precise hypothesis can be used to generate an infinitely precise prediction, such as t will be zero. It is around that infinitely precise prediction that we would construct a probability density function. If you are thinking, I just want to know if the difference is significant, and if you mean important, a null …

The Effects Of Undesirable Distractors On Estimates Of Ability, Kathryn N. Thompson

Masters Theses, 2020-current

Distractors, or the incorrect options, are an important part of the multiple-choice item. Previous literature has supported the inclusion of distractors when estimating abilities. While the effects of well-functioning distractors on estimates of ability have been examined, research has neglected to examine the effects of undesirable distractors on estimates of ability. Undesirable distractors are defined as distractors that are opposite of what test-developers expect or want distractors to behave. For instance, an upper lure distractor is one that high ability examinees select rather than selecting the correct answer. A simulation study was employed to determine these effects by varying undesirable …

Propensity Score Matching And Generalized Boosted Modeling In The Context Of Model Misspecification: A Simulation Study, Briana G. Craig

Masters Theses, 2020-current

In the absence of random assignment, researchers must consider the impact of selection bias – pre-existing covariate differences between groups due to differences among those entering into treatment and those otherwise unable to participate. Propensity score matching (PSM) and generalized boosted modeling (GBM) are two quasi-experimental pre-processing methods that strive to reduce the impact of selection bias before analyzing a treatment effect. PSM and GBM both examine a treatment and comparison group and either match or weight members of those groups to create new, balanced groups. The new, balanced groups theoretically can then be used as a proxy for the …

Measuring Intergroup Forgiveness: The Enright Group Forgiveness Inventory, Robert D. Enright, Julie Johnson, Fu Na, Tomaz Erzar, Matthew Hirshberg, Tina Huang, John Klatt, Chansoon (Danielle) Lee, Benjamin Boateng, Preston Boggs, Tung-En Hsiao, Chelsea Olson, Mei Ling Shu, Jacqueline Song, Peiying Wu, Baoyu Zhang

Peace and Conflict Studies

Until recently, researchers operationalized and measured the psychological construct of forgiveness at the individual, rather than the group, level. Social psychologists started applying forgiveness to groups and examining the role intergroup forgiveness may have in conflict resolution and peace efforts. Initial attempts to define and measure forgiveness at the group level either assumed individual and group capacities were the same, or insufficiently described what intergroup forgiveness meant. We developed a new measure of intergroup forgiveness, and a novel group administration process, that operationalized the construct in a philosophically coherent way. Our conceptualization of intergroup forgiveness was rooted in what groups, …

Differential Patterns Of Theta Activation Underlying Various Cognitive Control Strategies, Jarrod Eisma

Biomedical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

In this study, EEG was recorded from 157 participants at the University of Arkansas as they performed three computer tasks that tested inhibitory control (Go/Nogo Task), proactive and reactive control (AX-Continuous Performance Task), and resolving response conflict (Global/Local Task- modified Flanker Task). Time-frequency analysis (ERSP) was the primary focus of this study, in order to take advantage of the temporal and frequential characteristics of EEG recordings. The ERSPs and following statistical analysis showed significantly higher midfrontal theta band (4-8 Hz) power values for target trials (those that required more cognitive control) than control trials, which indicated that the procedure was …

The Effectiveness Of Implementing A Collaborative Mental Health Approach On Quality Of Life For Individuals Of Low Socioeconomic Status, Tyler Z. Tooley

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

The ultimate purpose of this study is to provide insight and education to mental health clinicians, politicians and the general public of the numerous effects poverty has on mental health, in addition to the most beneficial ways to combat those insidious effects. The specific barriers met by individuals of low socioeconomic status severely affect psychological and physical health, as well as social and environmental relationships, which therefore diminish overall quality of life. The aim of this study is to examine the effectiveness of implementing a collaborative mental health approach for low income individuals on length of engagement in services and …

Exploring Differential Effects Of Therapeutic Alliance Across Treatment Therapies, Alexandra T. Tonigan

Individual, Family, and Community Education ETDs

Effects of therapeutic alliance has been widely studied for depression, anxiety, and interpersonal problems and been found to have small to moderate positive outcomes. Consistent findings are lacking, however, regarding the relationship between therapeutic alliance, treatment therapy, and client characteristics, in alcohol use disorder (AUD) treatment.

The current paper utilizes data from Project MATCH to assess the differential effects of therapeutic alliance on 12-month alcohol abstinence across clients receiving Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Motivational Enhancement Therapy (MET), and Twelve Step Facilitation (TSF) treatment. Moreover, higher order interactions were explored to determine whether such effects differed across client characteristics. This research …

Can Ratings Of Item Location Enhance Statistical Item Parameter Estimation? Extending The Feasibility Of Unfolding Irt Models, Michael Mckenna

Dissertations

Research and development of modern psychometric methods such as item response theory have drastically changed the way we understand and carry out the measurement of psychological constructs. Despite this, there has been relatively little adoption by psychological researchers to incorporate these methods into their research. While multiple explanations are surely valid, one oft stated reason is the large sample size requirements of these methods. The sample size requirements of item response theory are needed so that effective estimation of item parameters can be carried out. In an attempt to make these modern measurement methods more accessible and feasible to psychological …

Role-Differentiated Bimanual Manipulations Efficiency: The Difference In Speed For Rdbms Based On Age, Toy-Type, And Infant Hand Preference, Sarai Mikal Cortina

Theses and Dissertations

Role-differentiated bimanual manipulation (RDBM) is a complex behavior requiring the complementary movement of two hands to achieve a common goal. The current study investigated the relation of RDBM efficiency (speed to complete a successful RDBM) with hand preference, toy type (simple/difficult), age, and hand used to perform the RDBM. This study observed 46 infants between the ages of 9 to 14 months, each with a different hand preference category. Changes in RDBM efficiency across time were examined across different hand preference groups for RDBMs performed on simple toys using the right hand. The analysis revealed that early-right preference infants had …

Examining The Performance Of The Alignment Method In Dif Analyses, Paulius Satkus, Christine E. Demars

Department of Graduate Psychology - Faculty Scholarship

The alignment procedure is a new method for multiple group invariance models. An important advantage of alignment over the traditional methods is that alignment does not require full measurement invariance to estimate group means and variances (Muthén & Asparouhov, 2014). Simulation studies have supported that alignment performs adequately in situations when few items are noninvariant (or function differentially across groups – DIF). In most other studies, the tests were simulated to represent attitudinal surveys (e.g., fewer items, continuous data). In this study, we evaluated how alignment would perform with a typical educational cognitive test – 40 items scored dichotomously. Different …

A New Perspective To Measuring Employee Growth: Developing A Successful Aging At Work Scale, Stanimira K. Taneva, Georgi P. Yankov

Personnel Assessment and Decisions

The aging of the world’s population has become a grand societal challenge, which requires an urgent response from researchers, professionals, and the wider society. One way to respond to this challenge is by supporting individuals in sustaining longer and healthier working lives, that is, age successfully. Although the advantages of promoting and enabling successful aging at work have been widely acknowledged, no single instrument for measuring this construct has been published so far. We develop and test in three consecutive samples a two-dimensional successful aging at work scale. This novel instrument is rooted conceptually in the most recent theoretical developments …

Identifying Construct-Irrelevant Variance And Construct Under-Representation As Support Of External Evidence Of Validity, Jennifer Case

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Test validity has commonly been defined in terms of a test measuring what it is supposed to measure, however there has been a century of discussion and debate on test validity and what qualifies as evidence of test validity. Some argue in favor of restricting test validity evidence to that which is internal to the test, such as the test items, while others argue that external information, such as the relationships with other variables, also offers evidence toward test validity. Cronbach and Meehl’s groundbreaking paper in 1955 introduced the concept of the nomological net, which is the construct’s lawful relationships …

Resilience In Adult Women Who Experienced Early Mother Loss, Elizabeth Schmitz-Binnall

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

The primary purpose of this dissertation study was to explore levels of resilience in adult women whose mothers died when the participants were children. The death of a mother during an individual’s childhood is an adverse event that can affect all areas of that person’s life. It is intuitive to believe that early mother death would cause long-term effects on the overall resilience levels of the individuals; however, there has been minimal research exploring resilience in this population. With a sample of 245 women throughout the United States, this study used the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale 25 (CD-RISC-25) to begin investigating …

Atheoretical Versus Theory-Based Approaches In Promoting Safer Adhd-Medication Prescribing For Adults, Kathleen A. Fairman

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Gaps between treatment guidelines and medical decisions persist despite interventions with physicians, which are mostly atheoretical. The purpose of this retrospective cross-sectional study was to compare atheoretical and theory-based logistic regression models of a binary outcome: potentially unsafe prescribing of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) medications to adults. Social cognitive theory and self-determination theory provided the framework for the study. Predictors were framed as social cognitive theoretical constructs: knowledge (e.g., physician specialty) and environmental influence (e.g., interventions). Atheoretical hypotheses were based on legislation mandating meaningful use of electronic health records and computerized decision support (CDS). Theory-based hypotheses were derived from literature …