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- Creator:
- Rowley, Christina A.
- Description:
- Although early preventive interventions that curtail the negative effects of chronic stress in childhood are needed, few preventive interventions exist for young children. the current study aimed to address this gap by testing the feasibility of a preventive intervention that teaches diaphragmatic breathing, a relaxation technique that counteracts the effects of physiological stress, to four to six-year-old children and their parents in a one-time group session. It was hypothesized that (1) diaphragmatic breathing would be successfully taught to young children and (2) multiple families in one single session, and that (3) parents would react positively regarding the intervention’s feasibility and acceptability. Three parent-child dyads participated, and data were collected at pre-intervention, post-intervention, and two-week follow-up. Parents reported on perceived understanding, acceptability, and feasibility of the intervention, interventionists rated the families’ ability to replicate diaphragmatic breathing, and parents and children rated the children’s social, emotional, and physical functioning. Overall, parents indicated that the intervention is understandable, acceptable for stress management, and feasible to implement, and successfully replicated the diaphragmatic breathing technique. All participants reported improvement in the children’s overall functioning. the present study contributed to existing literature by piloting a novel preventive intervention for young children and uncovering some unique challenges, primarily associated with recruitment, of leading an early childhood preventive intervention in a group format.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Stapley, Ashley L.
- Description:
- Research suggests that a critical cognitive mechanism involved in false memory is semantic memory. Humans are highly susceptible to false memory error which poses a problem for the reliability of eyewitness testimony. To combat this problem researchers have investigated how metacognitive monitoring and warnings can mitigate false memory formation. Warning individuals about memory errors showed decreases in false recall and recognition; however, the efficacy of warnings is still debated. The current study seeks to determine the extent of the effects of semantic interference on eyewitness memory, and to study which methods of warning are most effective at reducing false memory errors brought about by semantic interference. Participants were given one of three different warning types before beginning the experiment. All participants watched the pilot episode of the television show 24 to simulate a witnessed event. Participants then completed a semantic interference task that was followed by a memory test and confidence measures. Results indicated that those in the semantically related semantic interference task (SIT) condition performed better on the memory test indicating that the task facilitated rehearsal rather than promoting internally generated information. Participants given a warning exhibited poorer performance with decreased memory accuracy and higher false memory errors. This indicates that the warning might have made individuals overconfident in their ability to discern false memories from veridical memories.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Identifier:
- 9780438379862
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Krupa, Lauren M.
- Description:
- This study examines the relationship between social anxiety and self-concept clarity. Previous research has shown that social anxiety and self-concept clarity are related, and that low self-concept clarity is a unique predictor of social anxiety. There has not been research on the mechanism behind this relationship, which is what the current study intended to do. Three research hypotheses were tested: (1) socially anxious individuals selectively attend to social threat information, (2) those with low self-concept clarity have increased social anxiety, and (3) information processing biases and self-concept clarity are both predictors of social anxiety, with self-concept clarity being the moderating predictor. In order to investigate attention biases, an Emotional Stroop task was used. The Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk) crowdsourcing platform was used to recruit 132 participants. Hypotheses 1 and 3 were not supported by the results. For hypothesis 1, social anxiety as measured by the Social Interaction Anxiety Scale (SIAS) and Social Phobia Scale (SPS) was not significantly correlated with reaction time on social threat word trials of the emotional Stroop task. For hypothesis 3, a hierarchical multiple regression found that while the first model with social threat trial reaction time on the emotional Stroop task and self-concept clarity, measured by Self-Concept Clarity Scale (SCCS) scores, as individual predictors was significant, the second model with the addition of the interaction term was not. Hypothesis 2 was supported in that self-concept clarity was significantly negatively correlated with social anxiety.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Identifier:
- 9780438379909
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Phillips, Kristen
- Description:
- Fibromyalgia (FM) is a pervasive chronic pain condition that affects almost every aspect of daily life. Symptoms can be debilitating and severe, leading to precautionary and inactive lifestyles for those diagnosed. Perceived social support from loved ones has been shown to alleviate these negative symptoms and encourage pro-healthy behaviors. However, older adults with FM may react to both physical and psychosocial symptoms by reducing their participation in leisure activities, further limiting available sources of social support. Therefore, the purpose of the current study was to evaluate the influence of FM status and leisure activity on social support. by conducting secondary analyses on a sample of 240 older adults with and without fibromyalgia, it was hypothesized that FM status would moderate the relationship between social support and leisure activity. Results revealed that participants with fibromyalgia did report significantly less available social support compared to the healthy control group. Additionally, a positive association between leisure activity and social support was found when controlling for FM status. However, FM status did not moderate the relationship between leisure activity and social support. Despite this lack of impact by FM status, these findings provide additional support to the current literature suggesting that social support is linked with both chronic pain and leisure activity.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Identifier:
- 9780438379749
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Fleming, Helena Elizabeth W.
- Description:
- This study was grounded in the I3 theory of aggression, which examines factors that make aggression more or less likely to occur. This study focused on intimate partner violence within the I3 framework. in particular, negative mood regulation (NMR) expectancies–which are people’s beliefs that they can improve their negative moods–were considered as a possible inhibiting factor for intimate partner violence. Participants were 186 men in romantic relationships, who completed the study online. They filled out measures of NMR expectancies and dispositional aggression, anger and hostility. They then completed a Stroop task, for which they indicated the color font in which words were presented. Participants were randomly assigned to either an experimental condition, in which some Stroop words had aggressive meanings, or a control condition, with all neutral words. Participants next were provoked by imagining scenarios in which their romantic partner flirted with another person, after which they were given the chance to behave violently by sticking pins into voodoo dolls representing their partner. Results showed NMR expectancies were negatively correlated with aggression, anger, and hostility. However, multivariate analyses predicting intimate partner violence were not significant. a major limitation of the study is that it was conducted online, and there was no way to control participants’ attention or limit outside distractions. Future research could be done in person and measure behaviors with participants’ actual romantic partners instead of using imaginary scenarios and symbolic aggression.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Identifier:
- 9780438379893
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Jurkiewicz, Olivia
- Description:
- Digital interactions can provide rich and novel information for psychological research. An influential form of digital communication is online reviews. Individuals supply critical judgments and opinions to facilitate the decision-making process of their fellow consumers. Psychological factors (emotional, social, and cognitive) extracted from review language may elucidate important direct or indirect signals of informational value during the decision-making process. Psychological semantics were extracted using latent Dirichlet allocation (a dimension reduction technique) and using the Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count (LIWC) dictionary from 3,000 and 50,000 randomly selected Amazon book reviews, respectively, to predict perceived informational value. The final regression model using the LIWC factors demonstrate that negative emotion and inhibitory language negatively influence perceived informational value, while social and analytic language positively influence perceived informational value F(6, 49985) = 14445.19, p < .001. The data-driven approach demonstrated that topical information in book reviews can be unhelpful, while impressions or thoughts about features of the book can be helpful. Both methods produced unique but complimentary results important in distinguish which emotional, social, and cognitive cues within language can impact helpfulness during the decision-making process.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Identifier:
- 9780438379695
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Jordan, Alejandra
- Description:
- Suicide by Cop (SbC) is a method of suicide in which an individual purposely engages in threatening behavior toward police officers in an attempt to be killed. Previous studies have found the prototypical SbC subject is male, mid 30s, with a history of suicidal ideation, disrupted relationships, and prior or current mental health concerns, although these studies have all relied on Officer Involved Shooting reports or public information as sources of data, which tend to only include cases involving lethal force. to address the dearth in knowledge of SbC cases involving no force or less than lethal force, the present study provides a detailed analysis of all identified SbC cases from the Los Angeles Police Department Mental Evaluation Unit’s database that occurred between 2010-2015. Results indicate that similar frequencies are seen with regard to subject characteristics as in previous literature; however, substantial differences are seen across incident and outcome characteristics. Chi square analyses resulted in 15 variables that significantly differentiate subjects across the No Force, Less Lethal Force, and Lethal Force groups. the results of the present study paint a more positive picture of SbC outcomes for police and subjects alike. Implications for training and considerations for police departments are discussed.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Identifier:
- 9780355839500
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Lopez, Michael D.
- Description:
- Humans assess formidability though a variety of cues including weaponry, group size, and incapacitation (Fessler, Holbrook, Snyder, 2012; Fessler & Holbrook, 2013a, Fessler & Holbrook, 2013b). These studies argue that formidability is heuristically represented in a potential foes size, height, weight, and muscularity. Meaning, the more formidable a possible antagonist is the larger he/she appears. Formidability has also shown a relationship to ratings of leadership. In the present study, I tested the following hypotheses: formidability and leadership are negatively affected by the presence of a physical injury, the effect of being injured/uninjured on leadership ability is mediated by formidability, and risk propensity moderates the effect of being injured/uninjured on formidability. Participants (246 men and 292 women) were recruited for an online survey in which they were asked to make judgments about either injured individuals (e.g., on crutches, wearing knee braces, wearing a neck brace) or uninjured individuals. Participants made estimates about the target stimulus’s formidability, leadership qualities, and risk propensity. the present study found that participants rated uninjured men as more formidable better leaders. Risk propensity did not act as a moderator between being injured/uninjured and formidability. However, formidability did serve as a mediator for the effect of condition type (injured/uninjured) on leadership ability.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Identifier:
- 9780438053236
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Ewing, Emily Lorraine
- Description:
- Previous research has found a consistent association between stressful life events and depressive symptoms. However, it is not well understood why some individuals are more vulnerable to depressive symptoms following a stressful life event than others. The present study addressed this gap through the examination of negative mood regulation expectancies and perceived stress levels as potential moderators of this relationship. One hundred and thirty-five students at California State University, Fullerton completed self-report questionnaires assessing a history of stressful life events, negative mood regulation expectancies, perceived stress levels, and depressive symptoms. The main effect of stressful life events on depression, as well as moderating effects of negative mood regulation expectancies and perceived stress levels, were tested through hierarchical multiple regression. Controlling for the effect of age, stressful life events were not significantly associated with depressive symptoms, though their effects approached significance. Further, also controlling for the effect of age, negative mood regulation expectancies and perceived stress levels did not moderate the relationship trend between stressful life events and depressive symptoms. However, negative mood regulation expectancies and perceived stress levels directly predicted depressive symptoms. The findings from this study suggest that, regardless of stressful life event histories, targeting levels of negative mood regulation expectancies and perceived stress may be important in clinical interventions for college students with depression.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Identifier:
- 9780438053748
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Valadez, Adrian M.
- Description:
- The purpose of the current study was to determine if members of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, etc. (LGBTQ+) community experience stereotype threat—a psychological phenomenon that hinders a marginalized individual in a multitude of tasks and stereotype boost —an effect that enhances an individual’s performance when a positive stereotype makes identity salient. the effects of stereotyping were measured using a mental rotation task, which has, historically, created a notable gap in performance between men and women. Participants completed the mental rotation while in one of three conditions: control (no identity salience), gender (gender identity salience), and sexual orientation (queer identity salience). It was hypothesized that participants in the control condition would perform similarly on the mental rotation task. When gender identity was made salient, it was predicted that queer men would higher mental rotation performance scores while queer women’s performance would be hindered—thereby demonstrating the effects of stereotype threat. Finally, it was hypothesized that when queer identity was primed, queer men’s performance would be hindered while queer women would experience an enhancement of mental rotation ability—an effect of both stereotype boost and Gay Inversion Theory. a factorial ANOVA analysis indicated that there were no present main or interaction. It is likely that recruitment challenges, priming methods, and reluctance to engage in psychological research contributed to a low sample size and power issues with the current data.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Identifier:
- 9780438054622
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Sudit, Anna
- Description:
- Researchers have found that parental involvement plays an important role in children’s learning and development. Students generally score higher on educational achievement tests, have better attendance at school, and are more likely to continue their postsecondary education when parents are actively involved in their schooling (Martinez, 2004). However, parental involvement requires the investment of time, and some parents are unable to be present at the school to attend PTA meetings or volunteer during a class. Parents who are busy during the day may only be involved with the child at home by helping with homework, discussing important academic concepts, and reading to the child. This study examines the relationship between children’s academic achievement and two types of parental involvement: in-school (formal) and at-home (informal). This study used data from the national Early Childhood Longitudinal Study – Kindergarten Cohort (ECLS-K), which included a sample of approximately 18,200 kindergarteners and their parents. This study examined whether both formal and informal parental involvement were positively related to students’ academic outcomes in math, reading, and science. Results of the study partially supported hypotheses. in addition, the current study examined whether parental involvement in both contexts, formal and informal, was better for students’ academic achievement than if the parent was only involved in one context. Results of the study did not support this hypothesis.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Identifier:
- 9780438054035
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Corbett, Benjamin E.
- Description:
- This study investigated the relationship between experienced stress and perceptions of stress in law enforcement officers; whether or not physical exercise, social support, and alcohol use serve as moderating variables between experiences of stress and perceptions of stress; and whether simply asking about stress primes officers to feel more stressed out. Previous research has shown a discrepancy between officers’ experience of stress and their reported perception of stress suggested that this discrepancy might be explained by coping mechanisms. Additionally, previous research has indicated that engaging in particular coping mechanisms may increase the salience of stress. Data were collected from 30 active duty law enforcement officers who ranged in age from 22 to 61 (M = 42.3, SD = 11) and were mostly white, college-educated, and male. Three separate Pearson’s r correlations found no significant relationships between coping mechanisms and perceived stress. Three separate multiple regressions were conducted with experienced stress and each coping mechanism as independent variables and perceived stress as the dependent variable. the models including physical exercise and alcohol use were significant, with experienced stress as the only significant predictor for both models. Additionally, a paired samples t-test comparing pre- and post-survey stress levels resulted in findings that were inconsistent with what might be expected based on prior research. Limitations and directions for future research implementing community based participatory research in law enforcement populations are discussed.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Identifier:
- 9780438054707
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Piercy, Brooke
- Description:
- Anxiety is one of the most prevalent mental health disorders both globally and in the United States. Early-life stressors such as poor socialization and isolation, as well as diets high in fats and sugars have been shown to increase levels of anxiety and play a detrimental role on mental health. the present study sought to analyze the effects of both poor nutritional diet and social isolation on anxiety levels using an animal model. Eighty male Sprague-Dawley rodents at age five weeks at the beginning of testing were used to measure anxiety behaviors on the Elevated Plus Maze (EPM). Rodents were placed into one of four testing groups to assess anxiety: A control group, a high-fat and high-sucrose diet group, a socially isolated group, and an experimental condition in which social isolation and a high-fat, high-sucrose diet was given. It was hypothesized that Sprague-Dawley rodents living socially isolated and receiving the high-fat, high-sucrose diet would experience the high levels of anxiety, rodents living socially isolated would experience more anxiety than those receiving only the high-fat, high-sucrose diet, and rodents receiving the high-fat, high-sucrose diet would have higher levels of anxiety than the control group. Results showed that overall poor nutritional diet was not contributing to increased levels of anxiety in young male rodents, while social isolation was partially contributing to increased anxiety levels. Although many non-significant results were found, the importance of socialization and proper nutritional diet is explored, as well as the possible resiliency of young rodents to early-life stress.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Identifier:
- 9780438053847
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Tenbrook, Sean
- Description:
- Music is generally considered a powerful tool to experience emotions. However, there is mixed research on whether it can hinder or enhance our emotional states. the present study aimed to explore this concept further. Moreover, the purpose of this study was to examine music’s effects on emotional experiences and the potential mechanisms facilitating emotional catharsis when listening to music. These mechanisms included absorption, whether someone was a music major or not, mood-congruent music (sad), non-mood congruent music (happy), or white noise (control). a total sample of 68 students at CSUF was utilized, 40 being non-music majors and 28 being music majors. the Faces Scale and a Music Absorption Scale were used to measure emotional states before and after the musical intervention and to measure musical absorption levels, respectively. an independent samples t test was conducted, and it was found that musicians had significantly higher levels of musical absorption. an ANCOVA was performed, and the results found that music did facilitate emotional catharsis, but there were no major differences between musicians and non-musicians overall. However, the happy music did provoke the most emotional release, regardless of music major status. Interestingly, when listening to sad music, music majors experienced significantly more emotional release, therefore suggesting that if given specific conditions, facilitation of emotional catharsis through music can be effective and powerful. Implications of research findings, limitations and future directions are discussed
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Identifier:
- 9780438054912
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Sebastian, Trevor
- Description:
- Yoga has become an increasingly popular form of exercise in the West with promising findings of improved physiological and psychological well-being. However, researchers have expressed concern in its efficacy in a clinical setting. This study aimed to provide further evidence regarding yoga’s therapeutic efficacy in comparing both meditation and light cardio, along with further understanding whether the breathing (pranayama) or physical (asana) aspects of yoga contribute to its effectiveness. Participants (N = 48) were randomly assigned into either yoga, meditation, or walking conditions and completed five sessions at 30 minutes in length over the course of the week. Differences in reduced levels of stress, anxiety, and depression, along with improvements of mood between yoga, meditation, and walking interventions were assessed through a one-way ANOVA. Significant differences were not found between the interventions, failing to reject the null hypotheses. Considerations were made regarding yoga’s efficacy as a complementary therapy where other therapies, such as meditation or other forms of exercise, may be more appropriate. Limitations and implications for future research were also discussed.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Identifier:
- 9780438054950
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Silvas, Rebecca
- Description:
- There is limited literature on how factors like race and disguise jointly impact eyewitness identification. Both of these factors are very likely to occur simultaneously in a crime in which an eyewitness may need to identify the perpetrator. Researchers agree on the well-established existence of the other-race effect (ORE) Malpass & Kravitz, 1969; Meissner, Susa, & Ross, 2009, and the negative effects of disguises on facial recognition (Righi, Peissig, & Tarr, 2012; Fletcher, Butavicius, & Lee, 2008). the present study sought to explore the relationship between these factors. This study examined facial recognition amongst Asian, White, and Latinx participants using faces from all three races either wearing a disguise (hoodie and sunglasses) or no disguise. to investigate how quality and quantity of interactions with other races impacted facial recognition and the ORE, participants also completed an Interracial Contact Questionnaire. There was a significant main effect for disguise across all participants. Overall, all three races performed poorer on disguise trials than non-disguise regardless of the race of face. the relationship between accuracy and experience with other races was found to be nonsignificant. in the present study, we did not find evidence of the ORE, which may be the result of these disguises decreasing accuracy to below chance levels. It is also possible that an ORE might be found using more sensitive measures of performance. Future studies should consider the limitations of this study to further explore the effect of hoodies on face recognition.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Machia, Tiffany
- Description:
- Since the advent of the Internet, researchers have sought to determine whether the Internet may advance users’ well-being or if Internet use is associated with a variety of negative outcomes, including emotional distress. Additionally, although social support literature tends to indicate that social support is associated with increased emotional well-being, the research on the impact of social support on the relationship between Internet use and depression has yielded inconclusive results. Existing literature also neglects the role that offline social support and the different types of social support (emotional, companionship, informational, and tangible) have on this relationship. the current study sought to explore the relationships between Internet use, types of offline social support, and depression. a sample of 164 undergraduate students at California State University, Fullerton completed a series of measures of their Internet use patterns, perceived offline social support, and depression. Results of a linear regression indicated that Internet use did not significantly predict levels of depression. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses indicated that all types of social support (emotional, companionship, informational, and tangible) did not moderate an Internet use-depression relationship. However, all types of offline social support were found to be significant predictors of depression. Specifically, increases in the various types of social support were positively associated with depression. Findings of this study are in direct opposition with prior research. Possible explanations for this discrepancy are discussed.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Castaneda, Marlon
- Description:
- Intergroup bias was evaluated using moral dilemmas in which killing one person was necessary to save five others. The five people had demographic characteristics that placed them in varying degrees of proximity to the decision-maker: atheists, elderly, strangers, cousins, siblings, and children. A total of 253 university students rated both how right and how wrong killing the target was to save the at-risk groups. Theoretically, ratings of right captured the benefits of saving the five people, while ratings of wrong emphasized the costs of killing the target. Averaged across all scenarios, ratings of right increased from strangers to children; ratings of wrong decreased but to a lesser extent. Moral identity and religiosity were also measured to see if intergroup bias varied with these personality factors. Moral identity had no correlation with the ratings. However, religiosity correlated with the ratings and suggested a deontological bias in which participants applied a moral rule that prohibits killing regardless of any perceived benefits. For all proximity levels, religious groups’ ratings of right were lower, and their ratings of wrong were higher, compared to the non-religious group, illustrating an aversion to killing the target regardless of the at-risk group. However, the religious groups and the non-religious group showed a similar increase in ratings of right towards genetically related, at-risk groups. Therefore, intergroup bias was still present in conjunction with the religious deontological bias.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Benedicto, Samantha
- Description:
- Restricted and repetitive behaviors (RRBs) are a core symptom of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The most common RRBs are hand flapping, finger tapping, body swaying, or out-of-context waving. RRBs disrupt attachment between parent and child. The purpose of the current study was to create a rating scale that measures RRBs during observation of parent-child interactions to allow researchers to objectively score RRBs to yield ratings with higher reliability and validity than current measurements. The Repetitive Behavior Scale-Observation (RBS-O) was created to assess 30 RRBs. Participants were 26 ASD children, who interacted in the lab with their mothers in a problem-solving task. Researchers rated children’s RRBs. Analyses of the RBS-O revealed the difficulty of witnessing these RRBs during a short time period, particularly in a laboratory setting. Only 33% of items on the original measure were observed and scored. I removed items that were not scored, as well as those with no variability in scoring. Items with low item whole correlations were also removed, leaving a final sixitem measure. Inter-rater reliability was high and concurrent validity with an existing measure of parent-reported observable behaviors was high as well. Limitations, however, include the low number of behaviors observed and short testing period.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Eum, Sharon
- Description:
- I examined acculturative stress among Korean immigrants living in the U.S. Acculturative stress is a stress individuals experience as they adjust to a new culture. Acculturative stress damages mental health. I investigated how acculturative stress, conflicts between parents and children, depressive symptoms, and the belief individuals have that they can alleviate their negative emotional states are associated with each other. The participants were 103 immigrants of Korean descent who completed questionnaires. The participants had options to respond to the survey in English or Korean, in person or online. A MANOVA revealed that there was no significant difference in scores between languages. Correlational analyses showed that acculturative stress was significantly positively correlated with intergenerational conflict related to education and career, intergenerational conflict related to dating and marriage, and depressive symptoms. Acculturative stress was also significantly negatively correlated with negative mood regulation expectancies (NMRE). Multivariate analyses showed that years of residence in U.S., intergenerational conflict related to education and career, and NMRE all significantly predicted acculturative stress. Furthermore, NMRE and acculturative stress significantly predicted depressive symptoms. Tests of NMRE as a moderator were not significant. Korean immigrants in this study were experiencing acculturative stress and depressive symptoms. Clinical interventions targeting raising NMRE may build Korean immigrants’ resilience to acculturative stress.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Panah, Sadie S.
- Description:
- Individual differences in the perception of harmony between religious and American identity may moderate how these identities jointly relate to adjustment and may explain mixed findings on religious identity and adjustment for immigrants. Christian, Jewish, and Muslim immigrants (N = 232) living in the U.S. completed online surveys in English via Amazon Mechanical Turk. Religious-American identity predicted increased symptoms of anxiety and decreased satisfaction with life when immigrants perceived their religious and American identities to be neutral or conflictual, but not when they perceived those identities to be harmonious. Moreover, results revealed that Muslims are more likely than Christians and Jewish individuals to perceive low harmony between their religious and American identities. These findings are important in terms of expanding the results of previous research with perceived harmony between ethnic and host cultures to harmony between religion and host (American) culture and how these identities relate to adjustment.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Lynn, Justin T.
- Description:
- Previous research has documented that human females report a number of preference changes for sexual partners and sexual activity during the high- relative to low-fertility days of the ovulatory cycle. Less studied, however, are the effects of female fertility on their male partner’s perceptions, desires, and behaviors. the present work was designed to examine women’s reports of their partner’s mate retention tactics and sexual jealousy, as well as men’s self-reports of these behaviors, to determine predictable patterns in association between these behaviors and their partner’s cycle phase. in this study, 25 heterosexual couples (Mage = 22.9) participated. Each received a questionnaire containing measures to assess self- and partner-ratings of mate retention behaviors and sexual jealousy at high and low-fertility phases of the ovulatory cycle. It was hypothesized that (1) males in pair-bonded relationships should display changes in behavior that are contingent on the ovulatory phase of their partner’s menstrual cycle, specifically that (1a) males would employ more mate retention tactics during the high-fertility phase, (1b) males would report more sexual jealousy during high-fertility, and (2) these behavioral changes would be moderated by ratings of individual physical attractiveness.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Hewawasam, Shehanie R.
- Description:
- There is growing interest in studying the role of protective factors in risk assessment and management. the goal of the present study was to explore the role of the strength and vulnerability items found on the Short-Term Assessment of Risk Treatability (START) and to determine how they work in conjunction with one another. the data was drawn from a sample of inpatients ( n = 527) from a maximum-security forensic psychiatric hospital. Logistic regression analyses indicated that the vulnerability scale was a better predictor of the clinician’s final risk rating on the START. Rule adherence, material resources, impulse control, and external triggers were found as significant predictors among the strength items; whereas, conduct, substance use, and social skills were found as significant predictors among the vulnerability items. Factor analysis was conducted to explore the underlying structure that exists among the 40 strength and vulnerability ratings and resulted in a three-factor solution. These newly identified factors were tested as predictors of final risk ratings, and while they were stronger than the original scales, they also did not account for a large degree of variance and only the factor comprised solely of vulnerability items was a significant predictor. Future research should focus on conceptualizing and improving upon definitions to the strength and vulnerability items to increase the effectiveness of predicting future violent outcomes.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Ansari, Aryan
- Description:
- Immigrants face many psychosocial stressors when leaving their culture of origin and acclimating to a new host culture. Ethnic minorities have less positive attitudes about mental health, even though they may actually be a population that should seek psychological help. The current study examined psychological help-seeking intentions in Iranian-Americans using an acculturation framework. Forty-three participants completed an online survey that assessed psychological help-seeking and acculturation. Results indicate that positive attitudes toward seeking psychological help are not related to acculturation in the present sample of respondents. This may indicate a fundamental difference between Iranian-Americans and other ethnic minorities. However, consistent with existing research, Iranian-American females expressed more positive attitudes toward psychological help-seeking than did their male counterparts. Findings also revealed that Iranian-Americans’ tolerance to mental health stigma was significantly related to their intentions to ultimately seek psychological help.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Peterman, Emilee
- Description:
- This study examined relationships between non-physical and physical intimate partner violence (IPV) and five different Latino cultural constructs among 87 Latina college students. the cultural constructs under investigation included machismo, caballerismo, marianismo, familismo, and fatalism . Correlational analyses were used to investigate relationships among IPV and these cultural values. Results indicated no statistical relationship between IPV and the cultural beliefs. Participants reported high endorsement of several cultural beliefs (caballerismo, familismo, the marianismo subscale “Family Pillar,” and fatalism ) and very little experience of IPV. Results from this study dispute previously held theories regarding a positive association between culture and intimate partner violence among Latinas (Bauer, Rodriguez, Quiroga, & Flores-Ortiz, 2000; Cuevas, Sabina, & Picard, 2010; Gonzalez-Guarda et al., 2013; Gonzalez-Guarda et al., 2010; Mattson & Ruiz, 2005). These findings have important implications for both future multicultural research and clinical work. for instance, future research might reconsider the assumption that Latino cultural beliefs influence whether or not a Latina experiences an abusive relationship. Additionally, while results did not support the hypothesized relationships, participants highly endorsed several cultural beliefs, which demonstrates that counselors, social workers, and other clinicians should not dismiss the importance of culture when working with this population.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Hutchison, Katelynn
- Description:
- Fibromyalgia is a multisystem condition that impacts a range of functionality. One function that is particularly impacted is physical movement due to pain. This study examined the relationship between objectively measured and self-reported levels of physical activity (light, moderate, vigorous) among individuals with fibromyalgia. the total sample included 35 participants, 20 participants had Fibromyalgia and 15 participants were in the control group. the method used to collect objective physical activity was accelerometry. Tests used for collecting subjective reports of physical activity included the Rapid Assessment of Physical Activity (RAPA), and the Sedentary Behavior Questionnaire (SBQ). Based on previous research, we hypothesized that the correlation between objective and subjective measures of physical activity would be weaker among participants with fibromyalgia comparted to control participants. the implications of this study were that subjective and objective reports of PA were weaker among those with FM compared to control participants. However, among the sample population of older adults with FM, the difference between groups was not significantly different.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Huizar, Jael
- Description:
- Among all the standardized tests available to assess competency to stand trial, the MacArthur Competence Assessment Tool-Criminal Adjudication (MacCAT-CA) and the Evaluation of Competence to Stand Trial-Revised (ECST-R) are unique in that they are among the most extensively developed tools. While developed for the same purposes, they differ in both the theoretical foundation and the approach to assess competence. These differences have fostered questions regarding whether outcomes on each test could potentially vary when used with the same defendant. the purpose of this review was to provide an in-depth understanding of each test by exploring what is known about the psychometric properties of each test; as well as what is known about the way each instrument works across various populations. the research available offers some basis to make tentative recommendations for the clinical utility of these tests that are offered herein. Below follows a discussion of the limitations and recommendations for use of each in clinical practice. While recommendations for clinical use of the tests are provided, any suggestions offered should be considered tentative, as there is a lack of consensus in the field regarding how the instruments should be used.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Braman, Colin
- Description:
- Many researchers who study the link between media violence and increased aggression in participants use self-report scales to measure attitudes towards media violence (ATMV). Few researchers, however, use scales measuring ATMV that have strong psychometric properties. It was the purpose of this study to create a valid and informative measure of ATMV using the Nominal Response Model (NRM) under an item-response theory (IRT) framework. The scale is referred to as the Attitudes toward Media Violence Scale (ATMVS). The result of the study was a 20-item scale consisting of four functioning subscales measuring different dimensions of ATMV. The subscales were entitled “Children and Media Violence,” “Media Violence and Behavior,” “Realism,” and “Media Violence in Education.” The subscales of the ATMVS were found to have convergent validity by being positively correlated with a theoretically similar measure of parental attitudes toward children viewing television violence (Parental Concern Scale). Discriminant validity for each of the subscales was established by showing no correlation with a measure of self-esteem (Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale) theoretically unrelated to ATMV. Future research should seek to expand the number and variety of items within each subscale and to analyze the scale using multidimensional IRT.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Jain, Purnima
- Description:
- There is growing research interest in studying the role of ambivalence over emotional expression (AEE) and anger in adjustment to symptoms of chronic pain. the present research involved studying the mediating effect of AEE between anger and chronic pain in a target sample of patients with FM, and the interaction between intrusive thoughts and AEE in predicting pain. Participants completed standardized measures of AEE, pain, and anger. the variables age, duration of FM, depression, and pain disability were controlled for their effects on the outcome variable of pain magnitude. the present thesis had statistical analyses based on 21 female participants with FM with a mean age of 52.62 with an average of 12.77 years of diagnosis with FM. Correlation analyses showed that there were significantly positive correlations between: Anger and pain, AEE and anger, AEE and pain. However, there was no significant correlation between intrusive thoughts and pain or intrusive thoughts and AEE. Baron and Kenny’s model of mediational analysis (1986) and Olkin and Finn’s test of mediation (1986) were used to test the relationship between AEE, anger, and pain. Olkin and Finn’s test of mediation revealed that AEE mediated the relationship anger and pain. However, there was no significant interaction between intrusive thoughts and AEE in predicting pain. Another finding suggests that with the present data, AEE and depression were significant predictors in determining pain. the objective of the present research was to suggest anger management as an adjunctive treatment to help patients manage symptoms of FM.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Armenta, Angel David
- Description:
- Based on the theory of aversive racism (Dovidio & Gaertner, 1986), the current thesis addressed whether or not mock jurors show bias toward mother defendants who differ on ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and attractiveness. A 3 (Ethnicity—Black, White, or Hispanic) X 2 (socioeconomic status—low or high) X 2 (defendant attractiveness—attractive or non-attractive) between participants design was created. Participants acted as mock jurors and read a trial packet where a murder has taken place. After the trial description, mock jurors were asked to render a verdict, recommend a sentence, answer various culpability questions, and personality ascriptions. In addition, participants were asked to take a short survey measuring attitudes. It was hypothesized, in accordance with the theory of aversive racism, that we will find no main effects for juror decisions based solely on the ethnicity of the defendant. Only when ethnicity is coupled with other perceived negative variables (e.g. low SES or being unattractive) will we see jurors demonstrate bias. The results of the study suggested that jurors did not bias their guilty verdicts based on the aforementioned variables, but did express bias toward the Black and Hispanic, low SES, unattractive defendants by recommending significantly longer sentencing. The jurors also demonstrated bias in their defendant culpability ratings and trait ascriptions toward the Black and Hispanic defendants. The theoretical implications of this bias toward mother defendants accused of filicide and the limitations of the study were discussed.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Zavala, Corrine Julia
- Description:
- Intimate partner abuse (IPA) is a serious health concern for women worldwide, negatively affecting the psychological and physical health of millions of women each year. While the immediate physical repercussions of IPA, such as hospital visits, traumatic brain injuries, and femicide, have been investigated by the literature, there is a large gap in the research regarding the long-term health consequences of IPA. the Allostatic Load Model, originally proposed by McEwen and Stellar (1993), has outlined 26 neuroendocrine, immune, metabolic, cardiovascular, respiratory, and anthropometric biomarkers that are primary and secondary mediators of physiological processes. Chronic stress, such as that of IPA, can dysregulate these biomarkers and culminate into severe medical disorders. a meta-analytic review of existing literature on the relationship between severity of IPA and level of biomarker dysregulation was conducted. the available data within the six biomarker categories were meta-analyzed in order to illuminate current gaps and create a foundation for future research. Results showed that groups of women who experienced severe IPA exhibited more biomarker dysregulation. This small yet significant effect was found across biomarker categories. Psychopathology was not able to be analyzed as a moderator due to lack of studies investigating both AL biomarkers and battered women's mental health symptoms. Such knowledge can aid researchers and helping professionals to understand, treat, and prevent the wide-spanning effects of IPA.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Garcia Peraza, Paulette D.
- Description:
- Latinxs and first-generation college students (FGCS) make up a considerable portion of students on college campuses. in the university system, these students face unique challenges such as more career barriers and less career knowledge, which may impact their academic persistence and self-efficacy. Despite their challenges and presence in universities, researchers understudy these populations. the aim of this thesis is to fill the gap in literature, and examine cultural identity and social support as predictors of career decision self-efficacy (CDSE) for Latinx FGCS. Data were obtained from a larger study on the experiences of FGCS. Participants for the current study were 137 Latinx FGCS. Results of the study partially supported the hypotheses. Social support predicted CDSE. More specifically, peer support, but not sibling support, predicted CDSE. Furthermore, ethnic, national, and bicultural identity did not predict CDSE. These findings suggest that social support relates to the CDSE of Latinx FGCS. Future studies should continue to investigate variables that relate to CDSE. an implication of this study is that students may benefit from a collegial campus culture, where students support each other.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Sakurai, Ryota
- Description:
- Since the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011, the mental and physical health condition of people living in Fukushima under the threat of nuclear radiation has been a major concern. This uncontrollable situation is very stressful for them. However, few studies have investigated individual difference characteristics that may help people cope with stress. One such construct studied in the West is negative mood regulation expectancies (NMRE). NMRE represent one’s cross-situational belief that one has the ability to stop or moderate one’s unpleasant feelings. the current study addressed NMRE’s relationships with depression, anxiety, and somatic symptoms among 5th graders (N = 75) and their parents in Fukushima. the results showed that NMRE negatively correlated with all symptoms among both parents and children. Moreover, NMRE buffered the effect of parent symptoms on child symptoms. Children with high NMRE maintained a low level of symptoms even when their parents had a high level of symptoms. the results of the current study were consistent with what studies on NMRE demonstrated in the West, and the results also enhanced the validity of NMRE in Japan. Assessing NMRE has potential clinical applications for treating disaster survivors.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Ludwig, Justin Michael
- Description:
- The present study addressed the roles that oxytocin and empathy play in moral judgment on actions involving the killing of one person to save the lives of a larger number of people. Additionally, the study sought to determine whether trait empathy and gender made independent contributions to moral judgment. the 385 participants were randomly assigned to conditions that used pictures to prime oxytocin- or testosterone-related states, or to a control condition that presented abstract art. Moral judgments were made on a total of 16 scenarios and participants rated feelings of both Right and Wrong on separate scales (bivariate measurement). Overall judgments were calculated as R–W. the Interpersonal Reactivity Index was used to measure four forms of empathy. Based on manipulation checks, the pictures failed to prime the intended states, although the oxytocin pictures increased ratings of emotional arousal. Pictures did not affect judgments. Females had lower overall R–W values than males, reflecting greater disapproval of harmful action. However, on the separate scales a different pattern emerged: both genders rated the actions as both wrong and right, but females rated the actions as more wrong than males whereas males rated the actions as more right than females. Hierarchical regression analysis showed that empathic concern (higher in females) and gender independently predicted R–W ratings. the gender effect was interpreted in terms of tend-and-befriend behavioral dispositions that are aroused more strongly in females than males in response to stress independently of feelings of empathy.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Durkee, Patrick
- Description:
- Throughout vertebrate evolution, asymmetries in the ability to inflict costs and defend resources (i.e., formidability) likely impacted individual fitness and collecting information about formidability (e.g., size, strength, fighting ability) would have been crucial. Accordingly, the human mind should possess mechanisms that can efficiently and accurately track formidability. Previous research has demonstrated that men and women can accurately judge the formidability of others from minimal cues; however, the speed and automaticity of such assessments have not yet been documented. Thus, in the current study, participants underwent a battery of tasks designed to further examine formidability assessment mechanisms. Results suggest that assessments of formidability are automatic (i.e., do not need to be prompted) and fast (i.e., accurate with only 33 milliseconds of exposure). With a few interesting exceptions, theoretically–relevant characteristics of the raters ( N = 187) and targets (N = 64) did not influence these assessments. Additionally, eye–tracking data highlight the salience of upper–body musculature as a cue to strength. Taken together, these findings provide further evidence for the existence of formidability assessment mechanisms and demonstrate the importance of evolutionarily–relevant cues in person perception.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Cuellar, Katherine
- Description:
- As acculturation can be a positive and negative experience, the negative aspects of the acculturation experience have come to be thought of as “acculturative stress” (Berry, 2005). Research has consistently found that greater acculturative stress is linked to more negative health outcomes. Although little research has been conducted regarding prevalent mental health conditions in Arab Americans, the most common mental illness was depression (Gilbert, McEwan, Mitra et al., 2008). However, few studies have examined how an underlying component of depression, affect, is influenced by acculturative stress. This study explored the relationship between acculturative stress and affect. It was hypothesized that greater acculturative stress will be associated with greater negative affect in a sample of Arab American adults. Second, it was hypothesized that higher acculturative stress will be associated with decreased positive affect. Third, it was hypothesized that higher ethnic identity would buffer the relationship between acculturative stress and affect, resulting in lower levels of negative affect. Fourth, it was hypothesized that higher ethnic identity would buffer the relationship between acculturative stress and affect, resulting in higher levels of positive affect. A total of 138 Arab American participants were recruited from a college campus of a midwestern university. The results demonstrated that acculturative stress was not positively associated with negative or positive affect. Moreover, affect and acculturative stress with ethnic identity as a moderator showed no significant relationship.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Luu, Grace
- Description:
- There are many open questions about holistic processing and its role in visual expertise. Although a person is an expert within a visual domain, there is still much debate about the differences between novices and experts in holistic processing. This study aims to investigate the relationship between visual expertise (e.g., bird experts) and perceptual grouping cues (e.g., alignment of the background). This will be explored to help understand how grouping cues affect holistic processing of non-face objects, like birds. Previous work has suggested that holistic processing is best characterized as the automatic tendency to process all object parts as a whole (e.g., Richler, Palmeri, & Gauthier, 2012). the purpose of this study is to explore whether grouping cues differentially affect objects within a person’s category of expertise (e.g., West Coast birds) compared to individuals who have limited to no experience within the same category of expertise. Participants will complete a Visual Discrimination Task (VDT) and the full version of the composite paradigm; the background rather than the object itself will be manipulated in the composite paradigm, which should disrupt grouping cues (and thus holistic processing) (Curby et al., 2013). It is hypothesized that the manipulation of the background will reduce holistic processing of birds within the category of expertise for experts only.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Page, Brittany Elizabeth
- Description:
- The present study sought to determine the level of accuracy in the public perception of atheists as immoral. Moral profiles of atheists, deists, and theists were evaluated and compared within the Moral Foundations Theory framework. Data were analyzed from 492 respondents to an online survey who completed the Moral Foundations Questionnaire (MFQ) and responded to several moral scenarios and religious identity questions. Using moral scenarios in concert with the MFQ provided insight into how the belief groups applied their moral priorities when making moral judgments. in contrast to atheist stereotypes, atheists had moral profiles similar to those of theists and deists, with all groups giving much more priority to the “individualizing” foundations than to the “binding” foundations. However, in between-groups comparisons, theists gave the highest priority to the binding foundations of purity, in-group loyalty, and authority/respect, whereas atheists gave the highest priority to the individualizing foundation of fairness/reciprocity. the MFQ did not predict moral judgment in a scenario where killing one person would save many others. Theists rated this action as more wrong than right, whereas atheists and deists rated it as equally wrong and right (maximum moral ambivalence). Moral judgment appears to result from an interaction between moral dispositions measured by the MFQ and situational details that potentially activate one or more of an individual’s higher priority dispositions, e.g., purity/sanctity in theists, which may have increased their aversion to violating a basic moral prohibition.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Light, Elizabeth
- Description:
- Tonic immobility is a temporary state of motor inhibition that occurs while an individual is fully conscious, thought to develop as a result of extreme panic or fear. Studies of sexual assault have often found that survivors of sexual trauma report experiencing some level of tonic immobility during their assaults. Research has posited many potential predictors of this intense response, including assault severity, age difference and relationship between survivor and perpetrator, peritraumatic assault characteristics, prior victimization, and survivor substance use. This study examined the predictors of tonic immobility in 41 female sexual assault survivors through the use of an online survey. Assessments included the Tonic Immobility Scale, Sexual Experiences Survey, Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, Sexual Assault Severity Scale, Peritraumatic Dissociation Experiences Questionnaire, and the Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist. the relationship between the survivor and perpetrator, sexual assault severity, and certain assault characteristics were found to significantly predict the emergence of tonic immobility. However, age difference between survivor and perpetrator, prior victimization, and substance use did not significantly predict the tonically immobile response. Future directions include the collection of additional data assessing the relationships between tonic immobility and individual difference variables and the replication of this study using an interview format.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Park, Jonathan
- Description:
- Dynamic systems (e.g., families, student-teacher, etc.) present themselves as a powerful means of assessing multiple informants and how they interact with each other across a given period of time. the current study sought to propose a novel statistical methodology for the simultaneous linking of tests across both informants and time. This was accomplished through the application of multi-test parameter linking under Item Response Theory. Data were taken from the Fullerton Longitudinal Study and assessed the construct of Positive Family Relationships (PFR)—a measure of how well family members get along and support each other—and assessed mothers and children from 9- to 17-years of age. the procedures yielded theta (&thetas;) scores which represent equated scores of mother- and child-reported PFR. the &thetas;s were found to be highly correlated with the original summed scores. Furthermore, discrepancies between the summed scores and the ?s are likely the result of the removal of measurement error associated with developmental and/or interpretational differences amongst the measures. the methods presented in this paper allow researchers to confidently apply survey-based data to the assessment of dynamic systems.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Dawson, Robert
- Description:
- There is an urgent need to understand emerging health risks in the growing population of older adults in the U.S. Many older adults may be consuming alcohol beyond the recommended limits for their age, putting themselves at risk for serious health complications. Using participants from the MIDUS and NSDE studies, the prevalence of risky drinking was studied in a sample of older adults aged 50+. Risky drinking criteria were based on the NIAAA recommendation for adults 65 and older: no more than seven drinks per week and no more than three drinks in a day. Utilizing a sample of drinkers, logistic regression analysis examined if gender, age, education level, physical health, purpose in life, and total daily stress over seven days predicted participants’ classification as risky drinkers. Results found that 31% of the sample’s drinkers were found to be consuming more than the recommended limits for their age. Additionally, total daily stress was associated with education level and physical health was associated with age. These findings confirm the prevalence of risky drinking in older adults, which has been described as a “silent epidemic”, and suggest there may be unexplored factors that contribute to this risky behavior. More research should be directed at investigating the different factors that contribute to risky drinking behaviors in older adults, as drinking and drug use behaviors are projected to grow in the population of older adults.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Navarrete, Irvin I.
- Description:
- In the United States, 82.3% of adults 65 and older report using alcohol. Although previous research has found a decrease in drinking with older age, recent studies suggest that the rate of alcohol consumption among older adults is on the rise. Older adults are drinking more often but in lower quantities. Studies on alcohol suggest that age and gender influence consumption yet little is known about the quality of social support and its effect on these trends. Research on social relationships indicates that many metrics of social support do not consider the quality of social support and assume that all social support is positive. the present study used secondary data from the Midlife Development in the United States survey, a national study of health and well-being, for information about alcohol consumption and social relationships. the independent variable was the quality of social support (support and strain). It includes relationships with spouses/partners, friends, family, and overall social support. the dependent variable was alcohol misuse. Age, gender, marital status, depression, physical and mental health acted as potential covariates. Four logistic regressions were conducted, and show lower levels of overall and family social support increase the likelihood of alcohol misuse among older adults, but spousal, family, and friend social support and strain did not significantly predict misuse. Gender and marital status factor in to quality of relationship for overall, family, and friend social support and strain. Future research may focus on interventions to better address alcohol misuse among older adults.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Ponce, Lisa Nicole
- Description:
- The current study sought to examine if pictures representative of a moral scenario would increase empathic responses and subsequently affect an individual’s level of moral support for an individual in need. University undergraduates evaluated scenarios opposite of the typical deontological versus utilitarian paradigm. Scenarios within the current study examined a participant’s level of moral support to help an individual in need with either a relatively high or low cost of causing harm to others. Each participant rated how RIGHT and how WRONG they felt an action would be given each scenario (bivariate measurement) with ratings ranging from 0 to 5 on each scale. the analysis focused on whichever scale (“key questions”) favored the interests of the person (or animal) at issue. Participants were then asked to complete the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) to measure self-reported affective and cognitive components of trait empathy. Results from the 2 x 2 Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) indicated no significant difference between the picture and no picture groups. Females showed significantly higher ratings of moral support and higher trait empathy than males. However, trait empathy did not correlate with these ratings. Thus, increased trait empathy among females was not responsible for increased ratings of moral support. Instead, a contributing factor may be stronger tend and-befriend behavioral dispositions in females that could function independently of current feelings of empathy. Oxytocin secretion and socialization of gender roles would help explain stronger tend-and-befriend behavioral dispositions in females than males.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Phan, Diana Kim
- Description:
- Although overt racism has diminished considerably over the past few decades, subtler forms of racism continue to perpetuate in contemporary society. The theory of aversive racism is a contemporary form of subtle racism that postulates an individual may hold egalitarian values but still have feelings of prejudice at an implicit level. This theory has been used to explain prejudice by jurors toward African American and Latino defendants, but has yet to examine Asian defendants as targets of prejudice. The purpose of this thesis was to examine prejudice toward Asian defendants by mock jurors from an aversive racism perspective. A 2 (Race: White or Asian) x 2 (Crime: embezzlement or computer hacking) x 2 (SES: low or high) between-subjects study was conducted. Participants read a trial vignette describing the crime the defendant had allegedly committed. They were then asked to render a verdict, recommend a sentence, and rate the defendant on various culpability and trait measures. Results showed mock jurors perceived the high SES Asian defendant more positively in regard to personal traits. Additionally, mock jurors found the defendant who committed embezzlement more culpable for their crimes and perceived the defendant more negatively in terms of personal traits. Similar to previous research, mock jurors ascribed more negative traits to defendants of low SES. Limitations and future directions are discussed.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Herrera, Clara
- Description:
- Having a better understanding of how Latinos with chronic pain and obesity cope with pain can be valuable for public health professionals in determining appropriate treatment with this at risk population. Although Latino adults are more likely to have higher levels of pain and pain intensity compared to non-Latino white adults, they are less likely to utilize pain medications. Beyond that, pain coping among Latinos is not well understood. Studies that have examined the types of coping strategies used for persistent pain found that religion and social support are among the most frequently used strategies among Latinos. However, studies on coping with pain using religion and social support have found mixed results on whether these methods are helpful. The objective of the present study was to learn whether religious beliefs and social support as coping strategies to manage chronic pain in low-income obese Latinos are beneficial or detrimental. The present investigation used secondary data from a study conducted by the Cal State Fullerton Fibromyalgia and Chronic Pain Center, which included about 100 adults ranging in age from 40 to 79 years old. Controlling for age, gender, BMI, and pain, a series of hierarchical linear regression analyses revealed that social support, but not religious coping, significantly predicts levels of depression and mental and physical functioning. In all cases, those with more support had better outcomes. Higher perceived social support could be a potential protective factor against depression and associated with better mental and physical health for individuals with chronic pain.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Hernandez, Janette Angela
- Description:
- The present study sought to explore possible differential vulnerability in MexicanAmerican males exposed to trauma. A primary aim of the study was to examine the prevalence of PTSD between Mexican-American/Mexican males and non-Hispanic White males. The constructs of fatalism and machismo were tested as possible mediators between Mexican-American/Mexican identity and PTSD symptoms severity score, as well as between Mexican-American/Mexican identity and the symptoms of avoidance and negative cognition and mood. Participants were male undergraduate students (N = 166) who identified as Mexican-American/Mexican or non-Hispanic White from two local universities. Although support was not found for all hypotheses, higher education status and acculturation to the U.S. may represent potentially protective factors for trauma. Further research is needed to explore ethnoracial differences in assessing the risk for PTSD and symptom presentation.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Sierra, Jeane Marie
- Description:
- Mothers play important roles within the family. For this reason, it is important to study mothers’ experiences of minor, daily stressors and assess how stress impairs families by spilling over to children. Currently, very few studies in the literature assess the degree to which stress spills over from a mother to a child. In the present study, I examine the relationship between maternal stress spillover and the academic, social and behavioral outcomes of school-aged children. Additionally, I assessed whether the mother-child relationship quality moderated the relationship between maternal stress spillover and academic, social and behavioral outcomes. The sample included 25 motherchild dyads recruited from a private school in Southern California. Children’s ages ranged between eight and 11 years old (M = 9.52, SD = 0.9). Data were collected via surveys and five consecutive daily diary reports. The results of the study indicated that, contrary to my hypothesis, maternal stress was not related to academic achievement, nor overall classroom mood and behavior. Interestingly, maternal stress was negatively correlated with child frustration and child conflict with adults. Finally, the results indicated that the quality of the mother-child relationship did not moderate the relationship between maternal stress and child outcomes.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Barnes, Amanda
- Description:
- The Trivers-Willard Hypothesis states that parental investment is a function of parental condition and that parents invest in the sex of offspring that offers the greatest reproductive returns. Parental investment is a cost/benefit strategy: parents in worse condition should invest in the sex with the least risk of not reproducing at the cost of high reproductive returns (females) and parents in better condition should risk investing in the sex with the greatest potential returns and highest reproductive variance (males). Tests of this hypothesis in humans have yielded mixed results, with greater support coming from small, economically homogeneous societies. We address two methodological issues that have arisen in tests of the Hypothesis: the lack of a standardized metric by which condition is operationalized and the tendency to treat a modernized population as though it does not have social, cultural, and ethnic differences. This projects seeks to redefine the metrics that are used to operationalize condition, to analyze sex-biased investment in a heterogeneous, modernized population by applying the concept of ecologically-valid reproductive subpopulations, and to investigate whether parents in this population bias their investment in ways that conform to the Trivers-Willard Hypothesis. We tested a sample of 105 mothers across four ZIP Codes. Results suggest that there is no difference in maternal investment based on child sex, nor is there an association between maternal condition and parental investment. However, these conclusions are limited by a small sample size; further research will be required.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Cruz, Ryan
- Description:
- Previous literature on depression has mainly focused on at-risk populations while more resilient populations, such as athletes, remain largely under-examined. Literature on athletes has consistently shown that this group had lower depression levels and better overall psychological well-being in comparison to non-athletes. The current study attempted to examine the underlying dynamics, particularly social support and social identity, inherent in participation in sport and the athlete experience that may contribute to the buffering effects against depression. It is possible athletes jointly experience social support and develop a sense of social identity through sport that increases their levels of collective self-esteem and personal self-esteem. Participants were 102 student-athletes and 107 non student-athletes enrolled in a California State University. Findings indicated that student-athletes reported lower levels of depression and higher levels of both collective self-esteem and personal self-esteem compared to their non student-athlete counterparts. In addition, collective self-esteem and personal self-esteem mediated the relationship between athlete status and depression. Both findings were consistent with research hypotheses.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology
- Creator:
- Wright, Mason
- Description:
- Among American college students, there is a widely acknowledged, intimate relationship between alcohol consumption and sex. Though the intuitive understanding has long been that this is a causal relationship wherein alcohol produces a “disinhibitory effect” and therefore leads to riskier behavior otherwise avoided, recent empirical research has revealed that the connection is much more dynamic. In the present review, two theories in particular are discussed: alcohol expectancy, a primarily psychological explanation, and alcohol-induced myopia, a model of cognitive impairment. These theoretical models have informed campus administrators and health promotion coordinators how to better target and implement intervention efforts and health promotion campaigns. Such programs are addressed, highlighting the efficacy of goal setting, personalized feedback, and expectancy challenging. It is suggested that intervention efforts continue to be developed based on constructs of expectancy and myopia.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Fullerton
- Department:
- Department of Psychology