Clinical Psychology Commons^™

The Integrated Model Of Self-Confidence: Defining And Operationalizing Self-Confidence In Organizational Settings, Kelsey Evelyn Perkins

Theses and Dissertations

Research suggests that self-confidence is related to success, educational achievement, negotiation, and personal well-being, among other things. It is commonly asserted that employees need to have some degree of self-confidence in order to succeed in the workplace. However, the practical and scientific literatures are lacking in providing a consistent definition and operationalization of the construct. The purpose of this research is to not only summarize the current state of literature on self-confidence, but to use that information to provide a coherent and theoretically-derived definition of self-confidence, so that it can be measured and studied in organizational contexts. This study explores …

Cognitive, Emotional, And Contextual Factors Related To Delusional Ideation, Sharanjit D. Pujji

Theses and Dissertations

Our beliefs profoundly influence how we interact and understand the experiences we have and the world around us. However, some individuals may develop 'false' beliefs (i.e., delusions) that are not grounded in consensual reality that may create adversities for the individual or others. Although various theories have been developed relating to the formation and maintenance of delusions, explaining their origins, meanings, and precise influence is a difficult task due to the highly individualistic nature of beliefs. The current study examined a number of likely candidate processes suspected of contributing to the formation and maintenance of delusional ideation in a sub-clinical …

Effects Of Motivation On Prospective Memory Performance In Huntington's Disease, Emily Jane Kellogg

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Prospective memory (PM) refers to memory for future intentions and involves several cognitive processes including memory, executive functions, and attention. PM has been studied extensively in clinical populations in which these cognitive processes are impaired but has only recently been studied in Huntington’s disease (HD), a neurodegenerative disease of the basal ganglia that is associated with neuropsychiatric, movement, and cognitive changes. The purpose of the present study was to further examine PM in HD, as well as investigate the influence of impulsivity on PM performance and whether a monetary incentive (either reward or loss) would improve PM performance. Results of …

An Evaluation Of Dating Violence Risk Factors For Division Iii Student-Athletes, Nicole Cantor

Theses and Dissertations

College students are at particular risk for dating violence (DV) perpetration and victimization. One group of college students who may be at increased risk is college student-athletes. Currently, no information exists on the dating and relationship behaviors of both male and female Division III student-athletes. The current study looks to identify both the frequency of DV perpetration and victimization among men and women along with specific risk factors for DV perpetration and victimization. We hypothesize that hazardous drinking and hostile sexism may be risk factors for DV perpetration and victimization among men and women. Among men, both hostile sexism and …

The Role Of Fathers In Behavioral Parent Training: An Exploration Of Parent-Related Factors In Parent And Child Treatment Outcomes, Brittany L. Jordan-Arthur

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Despite a well-documented need for parent training in the treatment and prevention of child behavior problems, as well as the well-documented benefit of including fathers in preventative and treatment interventions, surprisingly little clinical intervention research examines the role of fathers in such trainings. This research examined the role of father involvement in behavioral parent training by examining parent-related characteristics in relation to treatment outcomes for both mothers and fathers, examining differences between mothers and fathers, and examining the additive benefit of including fathers in treatment across two studies. Both studies utilized archival data obtained from a university- and community-based parent …

An Evaluation Of Suicide Risk Assessment And Management Trainings In Clinical Psychology Doctoral Programs, Maureen F. Monahan

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

It has been suggested that mental health professionals are insufficiently trained to assess and manage suicide risk (U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and Defense [USDVA/DOD], 2013; Goldsmith, Pellmar, Kleinman, & Burney, 2002; Jobes, Rudd, Overholser, & Joiner, 2008; Mirick, McCauley, Bridger, & Berkowitz, 2015; Silverman & Berman, 2014) and this problem may originate during graduate training (Feldman & Freedenthal, 2006; Mackelprang, Karle, Reighl, & Cash, 2014; Rudd, Cukrowicz, & Bryan, 2008; Schmitz et al., 2012). Unfortunately, however, this area has been inadequately studied (Battista, 2007; Cramer, Johnson, McLaughlin, Rausch, & Conroy, 2013; Department of Health and Human Services, 2012; Stuber …

Acceptance And Commitment Therapy As An Intervention For Adolescent Chronic Pain Related To Pectus Excavatum: A Case Study, Hayley N. Roberts

Graduate School of Professional Psychology: Doctoral Papers and Masters Projects

The most common chest wall deformity, Pectus Excavatum (PE), is a congenital deformity in which the sternum and adjoining chest wall cave inwards toward the spine (Lawson et al., 2003). While corrective surgical procedures have been shown to have positive effects on the physical and psychosocial well-being of patients with PE (Krasopoulos, Dusmet, Ladas, & Goldstraw, 2006), often surgical procedures, such as those done to correct PE, can result in what is known as Chronic Post-Surgical Pain (CPSP). CPSP has been shown to have great bearing on the patient’s overall well-being (Weinrib et al., 2017), meaning that while the corrective …

Why Giving Up The Keys Can Be Terrifying: Examining Driving Retirement Through A Terror Management Theory Paradigm, Perri Navarro

Dissertations

Driving retirement, or giving up the keys, is a current topic of interest in the gerontological literature. Most adults will outlive their ability to drive safely, yet do not plan for driving retirement, although planning for driving retirement appears to result in better outcomes. The current study examined the possibility that older adults avoid driving retirement because it is a mortality prime (reminder of death), as well as the possible role of implicit self-esteem in buffering against mortality concerns specifically in an older adult population. Participants in the current study (n=90) were randomly assigned into one of three …

Attentional Deployment, Cognitive Control, And Reappraisal In Schizophrenia, Kyle Robert Mitchell

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Recent studies posit that deficits in emotion regulation may lead to increased negative emotional experience in schizophrenia. While individuals with schizophrenia evidence a number of abnormalities in emotion regulation, it is unclear whether these deficits are discrete or related; furthermore, the mechanisms underlying these deficits are not clear. Cognitive control has been posited as an important mechanism supporting emotion regulation. The current study examined the relationship between attentional deployment and both lexical and self-reported indices of reappraisal, as well as the mediating role of cognitive control on this relationship in a sample of 22 individuals with psychotic disorders. A novel …

Differential Effects Of Mindful Breathing And Loving-Kindness Meditation Exercises On College Students' Mental Health, Sarah J. Bolognino

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Mindfulness and loving-kindness are two concepts with associated meditation exercises that have been evaluated as part of mindfulness-based treatment approaches (MBTAs) to improve mental health. A common MBTA, Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) includes multiple component exercises including mindful breathing meditation (MBM), and loving-kindness meditation (LKM). The purpose of the present study was to examine differential effects of MBM and LKM on the proposed process variables of social connectedness, cognitive fusion and experiential avoidance, present moment awareness, affect, and compassion for self and others, as well as across outcomes measures of general anxiety, social anxiety, depression, and wellbeing. Additionally the …

Examining The Sex Ratio In Autism Spectrum Disorder, Maya N. Matheis

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The higher prevalence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) among males compared to females is well documented but poorly understood. The ASD sex ratio may provide valuable insight into the underlying neurobiological mechanisms of the disorder. A review of studies examining the prevalence in ASD published in the last 5 years was conducted, revealing a mean male/female (M/F) ratio of 4. Literature examining the ASD sex ratio in relation to risk factors and associated features of ASD was also summarized. The study aimed to examine the ASD sex ratio and its association to various risk factors among an early intervention sample. …

Acculturation And Cross-Cultural Adaptation Among Refugees: The Moderating Role Of Emotions, Ezdehar Z. Alsahow

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

As a result of venturing across language and culture boundaries, individuals may

be exposed to different ways of living and thinking in which may trigger changes in the

way they conceptualize themselves and others. However, such experiences are not

identical for everyone, and the circumstances facing the crisis of refugees would appear

to be exceptionally difficult.

This paper aimed to address refugees’ attempt to acculturate and integrate into a

new society by examining potential moderating factors of emotional processes. The study

focuses on anger, anxiety, pride, and guilt; emotions that refugees carried with them

when they arrived to the new …

Cinematherapy With Inside Out: A Theoretical And Practical Guide, Jessica Rosenfeld

Graduate School of Professional Psychology: Doctoral Papers and Masters Projects

Since its release in 2015, the Disney/Pixar film "Inside Out" has received widespread critical and commercial acclaim. Despite the film's basis in established psychological theories, little has been published regarding its clinical applicability, particularly for adolescent and adult clients in traditional talk therapy. Through the use of cinematherapy, a deeper examination of the film is offered, and suggestions for treatment use are provided. Via the lens of modern psychodynamic (Intersubjectivity) and behavioral (ACT) techniques, this paper offers diverse options for integrating "Inside Out" in psychotherapy and proves that it contains clinical applicability for a wide range of practitioners.

Training Games: An Application Of Game Theory To Clinical Psychology Graduate Training, Benjamin David Cornell

Graduate School of Professional Psychology: Doctoral Papers and Masters Projects

Contents

Groundwork - 4

Game Theory - 4

Game Theory and the System of Clinical Psychology Graduate Training - 6

Psychological Payouts, Reconciling Game Theory and Clinical Psychology - 8

Games in the Training of Psychotherapists - 15

Prisoners’ Dilemmas, Internship and Graduate Applicant Selection - 15

The Strategic Implications of Learning, Nash Equilibria - 21

Commitment Moves, “The Frame,” Psychotherapy, Supervision - 24

Mechanism Design, The Match - 27

Intra-systemic Conflict, Program Design - 30

Conclusion - 34

Works Cited - 36

Clinician Bias In The Diagnosis Of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: How Clinician Characteristics And Training May Relate To Diagnosis, Renee Boeck

Dissertations

As our understanding of PTSD has advanced, changing demographics in the United States over the past few decades have led to a growing awareness of the mental health needs of an increasingly diverse and multicultural population. Research on ethnoracial differences in PTSD has had mixed results and additional research exploring possible contributing factors is needed to better explain observed differences. This study explored the presence of and contributing factors to clinician bias in the diagnoses of PTSD based on race and context. It examined whether clinicians were more likely to diagnose PTSD in a Black or White man due to …

Examining The Relationship Between Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms And Posttraumatic Growth: Pathways To Thriving In The Face Of Adversity, David Strasshofer

Dissertations

Research has largely focused on the negative physical and psychological consequences of trauma exposure. In contrast, posttraumatic growth is a relatively recent addition to our understanding of people’s response to life’s struggles. Posttraumatic growth (PTG) is conceptualized as positive changes in a person’s life following a cognitive struggle in the aftermath of trauma. However, PTG research is a relatively nascent line of empirical inquiry and there are several major unanswered questions about the construct and its utility. Part of this is due to conflicting findings related to the relationship between PTG and psychological distress and adaptive significance. The current study …

Development And Validation Of The Exercise Appearance Motivations Scale, Leah S. Boepple

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Exercise rooted in changing one’s appearance is associated with increased disordered eating and body image pathology. There are a limited number of scales assessing appearance-based exercise, and those that do are methodologically flawed. The aim of the current work was to develop a psychometrically sound measure of appearance-based exercise (Exercise Appearance Motivations Scale (EAMS)). Female undergraduate students (N = 650) completed an online survey designed to assess the EAMS’ psychometric properties. Factor analysis and hierarchical regressions were used for measure development and validation. Five factors of the EAMS were identified through factor analysis: muscularity, appearance, societal pressures, shape/weight, and avoidance/shame. …

Children With Adha Or Anxiety Disorders: Are Common Or Specific Variables Associated With Decreased Performance On Intelligence Indices?, Franziska Noacklesage

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Although overall psychopathology has been linked to lower intellectual functioning, research has yet to investigate whether one or multiple specific underlying symptom clusters significantly correlate with working memory (WM) and processing speed (PS) deficits. The current study investigated these relationships as they apply to Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and anxiety disorders. As such, one goal of this study was to investigate the extent to which common and specific symptom clusters would predict ADHD and anxiety diagnoses compared to a control group when PS and WM were partialled out. A further goal was to determine if one could differentially predict ADHD from …

Police Officer Perspectives On Public Views Of Police, Current Events Involving Police, And The Impact On Police-Community Relationships, Donjae Catanzariti

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

The media has presented current tensions between police officers and the communities they serve, particularly the Black community. These tensions have led to calls for reforms in law enforcement and the criminal justice system. However, there has been little focus on the police perspective. Thus, this study sought to address the gaps in the literature by shedding light on the perspective of police officers through the following research question: a) How do police officers perceive the public’s view of them? b) How do police officers’ think the public’s view of them impacts the relationship between police officers and the communities …

Teacher-Directed Violence: The Role Of Disempowerment In Turnover, Eric A. Peist

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Teacher turnover is a significant issue in education, creating great economic cost and affecting students in the form of academic performance and instructional continuity. While many factors impact turnover, the effects of teacher-directed violence have rarely been explored. Violence directed against teachers has been linked to negative outcomes, such as emotional distress and professional disengagement. The construct of empowerment, or disempowerment, can help researchers to better understand the relationship between teacher-directed violence and teacher turnover, allowing for an ecological approach that explores the context around teachers’ experiences of violence. The current study uses mixed methods to analyze this relationship, based …