DSpace Repository :: Browsing by Author "Black, Sheila R."

Browsing by Author "Black, Sheila R."

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Age differences in risky decision making: the effects of explicitness, personality, and working memory
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2017) Wood, Meagan Michelle; Black, Sheila R.; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
In the current study, I examined the effects of age, explicitness of instructional materials, and personality differences on risky decision making while playing the Game of Dice Task (GDT). Participants were randomly assigned to one of two instruction conditions: Explicit vs. Standard. In the explicit condition, the instructions were very straightforward, with respect to risk, while the instructions in the standard condition were not. To describe this game in more detail, in the GDT, participants decide how risky they wish to be on each trial. To optimize performance, participants should make “safe” rather than risky choices. Overall, older adults were riskier than younger adults on the GDT even though they self-report being more risk averse than younger adults in several different risk domains except for social. In regards to the instruction condition, there were no significant age differences in the standard condition. Younger and older adults perform similarly. However, there were age differences in the explicit condition. Older adults were riskier in the explicit condition than younger adults were. In addition, a 3-way interaction between age, instruction, and conscientiousness was discovered. Older adults who are low in conscientiousness perform similar to regular older adults in the standard and explicit conditions. However, the effect of instruction condition disappears for those who are high in conscientiousness.
Age differences in risky decision making: the effects of priming, personality, & working memory
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2014) Wood, Meagan Michelle; Black, Sheila R.; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
In the current study, we examined the effects of priming and personality on risky decision making while playing the Game of Dice Task (GDT). Participants were randomly assigned to one of three priming conditions: Risk Aversive, Risk-Seeking, or Control. In the Risk Seeking condition, a fictional character benefited from risky behavior while in the Risk Aversive condition, a fictional character benefited from exercising caution. In the GDT, participants decide how risky they wish to be on each trial. To optimize performance, one should make "safe" rather than risky choices. Although older adults self-reported being more cautious than younger adults, older adults made riskier decisions than younger adults on the GDT. However, there were no longer significant age differences on the GDT after controlling for working memory. More than likely, the aforementioned age differences were due to age-related changes in effective strategy usage, rather than age-related changes in the propensity to take risks. In addition, for young adults, certain personality traits significantly predicted risky decision making on the GDT. The findings from this study have implications for older adults' decision making in everyday situations. Older adults may make risky decisions and thereby jeopardize their financial and other resources, not because they intentionally want "to roll the dice," but because of an inability to strategize and fully comprehend the consequences of their decisions.
Decision making quality of younger and older adults in familiar and unfamiliar domains
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2010) Wayde, Ernest N.; Black, Sheila R.; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
The older adult population of the United States is expected to increase substantially in the next twenty years. Working memory, one of the cognitive resources crucial for decision making, declines with age. The decline in working memory might have a negative effect on the quality of purchasing decisions that older adults make. However, older adults have greater experience than younger adults and may be able to use past knowledge or schemas to assist them in decision making. By using a schema in familiar situations, older adults can conserve cognitive resources and thereby make high quality decisions. In this study, age-related changes in decision-making were examined as a function of age and familiarity. Participants consisted of 55 younger adults and 46 older adults. Participants were presented with purchasing scenarios and asked to choose between two products described in the scenario. In each instance, inferencing was required to select the optimal option from the two choices. Domain knowledge about the to-be-purchased product was also manipulated. Results support the hypothesis that younger adults generally make good quality decisions regardless of the domain while older adults make better quality decisions in the familiar domain as opposed to the unfamiliar domain. Current findings suggest that although adult decision making ability is compromised with age, older adults are able to use existing domain knowledge of a specific area to compensate for the lack of cognitive resources in order to make high quality decisions.
Differences in motivation, self-evaluation, and academic achievement for African American and Caucasian students using structural equation modeling
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2010) Raineri, Gina M.; Harrison, Patti L.; Thoma, Stephen; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
Structural equation modeling was used to determine if the relationships between motivation, self-evaluation, and academic achievement can be defined by a proposed structural model for a total sample (N=231) and for African American (n=144) and Caucasian (n=78) samples examined separately. The proposed model suggested that there are direct relationships between motivation and academic achievement, self-evaluation and academic achievement, and motivation and self-evaluation. Measurement models were tested to determine if the observed variables were appropriate measures for their respective latent variables. Structural models were then tested. Results indicated that the proposed model does not correctly define all of the relationships between motivation, self-evaluation, and achievement. For the total sample, as well as the African American and Caucasian samples, a direct path was found from goal orientation to achievement. For the ethnic samples, self-evaluation was directly related to motivation and goals; however, it was not part of the total sample model. There were differences in the models of achievement for the African American and Caucasian samples, as motivation was more predictive of achievement for Caucasian students and goal orientation was more significant in defining achievement for African American students. Results of this study should direct future research to consider further evaluation of models of achievement with different and larger populations of ethnic groups, as a significant difference was found for ethnicity on measures of achievement. Socioeconomic status and gender were also possible confounding factors that should be further investigated.
Effect of multiple fluency cues on feeling of knowing (FOK) judgments
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2017-12) Enam, Tasnuva; McDonough, Ian M.; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
Metamemory is the process of inspecting and judging our own memory. One type of judgment is feeling of knowing (FOK) judgments that are similar to making self-evaluations during learning for later performance. These judgments are influenced by various kinds of fluency cues. Perceptual fluency is the ease of processing perceptual information and does not predict later memory performance while conceptual fluency is the ease of processing conceptual information and accurately predict later memory performance. In academic settings, if students learn to distinguish between accurate and inaccurate cues, they can use the knowledge to use accurate cues effectively for future performance. Past studies investigated the effect of single fluency cue on JOLs. In reality, however, making self-evaluation takes time like FOK judgments paradigm and unlike JOL judgments paradigm that may not be generalizable. Students are also influenced by multiple fluency cues. The present study investigated how multiple fluency cues, font size (large versus small) and level of processing information (deep versus shallow), influence FOK judgments. Seventy eight younger adults studied word pairs in large or small font size and were either directed for deep or shallow level of processing information. Results revealed a significant interaction such that font size was only accounted for when information was processed at a shallow level. Furthermore, participants were overall underconfident in their predictions for their memory performance. Results are discussed in terms of applications in everyday learning, making decisions and in academic settings.
The effects of bilingualism on controlled and automatic processing during lexical access
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2011) Kolomyts, Yuliya; Ward, Thomas B.; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
The effects of bilingualism on individuals' controlled and automatic visual word processing during a semantic task were examined. Proficient bilinguals, intermediate bilinguals and monolinguals were presented with a semantic priming task where semantic relatedness of prime and target words was manipulated. Lexical stimuli were also manipulated in terms of the strength of association with their category meaning and their meaningfulness. Half of the lexical stimuli were presented at short SOA (automatic condition) and half - at long SOA (controlled condition). The results indicated that there was a strong category effect demonstrated by all language groups in both automatic and controlled conditions (strongly related words were processed faster than weakly related words). Monolinguals were found to outperform intermediate but not proficient bilinguals on controlled lexical task. Monolinguals also demonstrated a facilitation effect on automatic lexical task that was matched by proficient bilinguals but not intermediate bilinguals Consistent with the previous research was the finding that bilinguals' superior L2 skills tend to facilitate their L2 information processing.
The effects of unconscious thought and domain familiarity on younger and older adults' decision making
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2014) Wayde, Ernest N.; Black, Sheila R.; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
The current study examined age differences in decision making as a function of familiarity and time for deliberation. The primary goal was to determine circumstances under which older adults could make optimal purchasing decisions using intuitive thought processes. The participants made purchasing decisions regarding cell phone and houses. There were three phases involved in the process. In the acquisition phase, younger and older adult participants were presented with information related to purchasing decisions. Younger and older adults were given a limited amount of time to review the materials related to the purchasing decision. During the deliberation phase, participants were randomly assigned to a conscious condition in which they had a predetermined amount of time to deliberate or a distracted condition in which their working memory resources were taxed for the same amount of time. In the decision phase, participants were then asked to immediately choose which of the two options provided the best value for money. Results indicated that overall older adults made better quality decisions than younger adults. Older adult participants also made accurate decisions using the intuitive process of thinking. These results might be explained by the fact that the older adult participants were a unique group of older adults, given their overall cognitive abilities and level of education. Additionally, older adult participants might have been able to use intuition effectively in this study because of their extensive experience with purchasing products. Interestingly, older adults performed better than younger adults although younger adults had better episodic memory with respect to specific features associated with the products in the purchasing decision.
Efficacy of an audio-based cognitive behavioral therapy for older adults with depression
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2010) Shah, Avani; Scogin, Forrest Ray; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
The purpose of this study was to develop and assess the efficacy of an audio-based cognitive behavioral therapy (ACBT) intervention for older adults with depressive symptoms. The process of developing this program included: 1) adaptation of a client and therapist manual developed for older adult caregivers (Dick, Gallagher-Thompson, Coon, Powers, & Thompson, 1996); 2) review of the ACBT program by older adults and cognitive behavioral therapists for acceptability; and 3) program revision. The revised program consists of 8 compact discs (CDs) and a workbook on the following topics: 1) introduction to CBT; 2) identifying and changing unhelpful thoughts; 3) addressing feelings; 4) relaxation; 5) engaging in pleasant events; 6) assertiveness; and 7) problem-solving. The next phase of this study entailed testing the efficacy of the ACBT program. Eligible participants (N = 34) were recruited from mainly medical settings and rural communities (e.g. above age 54 with a score greater than 9 on the Geriatric Depression Scale; GDS). Participants were randomly assigned to an immediate treatment group or a minimal contact delayed treatment group. The delayed treatment group waited four weeks to begin treatment while the immediate treatment group received a brief training session and 4 weeks to complete the ACBT program. Both groups received brief weekly contact calls to monitor mood. Outcome analyses assessed change in depression with the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD; Hamilton, 1967) and GDS. Intent-to-treat carry forward analyses revealed significant differences on only the HRSD by group and time. Analyses assessing change on the Somatization subscale of the Brief Symptom Inventory (Derogatis & Spencer, 1983) and GDS by group and time were not significant.
An examination of the effect of a commercially available cognitive training program on speed-of-processing
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2014) Presnell, Andrew Harrison; Scogin, Forrest Ray; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
This study examined the effect of a commercially available cognitive training product, Brain Age, on the objective and subjective cognitive abilities of 40 older adults. Of particular interest was the effect on speed-of-processing, as this type of training was implied by the game design. A 2 (time of measurement) x 2 (group) design was used to compare a weekly-contact control to a group playing the game three times a week for 30 minutes at a time over a four week period. The game play intervention showed significant improvement over the controls and within participants on a Stroop Color-Word test, a skill directly trained in the game. No other significant effects were found on objective or subjective cognitive measures, though some trends in the data suggest the possibility of small effects on some measures. Within the game play group, frequency and time spent playing did not significantly affect scores. These findings suggest that the effect of commercial products is largely isolated to skills trained and expectations about the benefits of these products should be modest.
An exploration of workforce diversity management principles & practices in nursing homes
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2014) Vinson, Latrice Danielle; Snow, Andrea Lynn; Crowther, Martha R.; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
There is a lack of research related to workforce diversity (WD) specifically in nursing homes. However, there is a need to understand how WD manifests in nursing homes because nursing homes have several distinct characteristics that are unlike other organizations. The study sought to explore WD among nursing homes. The study aims were to 1) examine how nursing home leaders understand and characterize WD; 2) identify specific diversity management practices currently being implemented in nursing homes; 3) examine how internal factors (i.e. profit status, chain affiliation, Medicaid census, culture change adoption, and workforce racial composition) influence WD management practices; and 4) demonstrate how external factors such as geographic location and community racial composition influence WD management practices. Survey methodology was used to survey 1,111 nursing homes across the Deep South (AL, GA, MS, TN). The 39-item survey included items on participant demographics, racial composition of the staff and residents, knowledge of and attitudes toward WD, culture change adoption, and diversity management practices. The final sample included data for 166 individuals. The sample was predominately Caucasian (90.1%) and 58% female with a mean age of 51 years. The results revealed that managers had positive to neutral attitudes toward diversity and tended to narrowly define diversity using terms more commonly associated with Equal Employment Opportunity/Affirmative Action (EEO/AA) programs, such as race, age gender, and national origin. Recruitment, customer service, and communication/interpersonal skills were most frequently reported as activities associated with diversity. Human resources personnel, administrators, and corporate officers were most likely to initiate diversity management programs. One in five leaders reported having diversity policies that addressed the concept of diversity beyond EEO/AA requirements. The influence of internal and external factors on diversity management perceptions and practices was examined with regression analyses. Among the internal factors, chain affiliation and increasing levels of culture change adoption were found to be significant predictors of diversity management principles and practices. The external organizational factors did not significantly predict diversity management. The current study has implications for long-term care management practice and policy development, as well as diversity management interventions.
Exploring effects of early-life exposure to frightening media content and of long-term television use on enjoyment, avoidance, and mean world perception in adults aged 65 and over
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2015) Andrews, Michael David; Greer, Jennifer D.; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
This study used Cultivation Theory (Gerbner, 1969) and Social Cognitive Theory (Bandura, 1986) to examine if a relationship existed between viewing a single frightening media program as a child, teen, or young adult, lifetime television use, and viewing habits later in life. A convenience sample of adults aged 65 and over was recruited to participate in an online survey. The respondents were predominantly white, well-educated, middle- to upper-income women, and were 72 years old on average. It was hypothesized that a Vivid Triggering Event Memory (VTEM) of seeing frightening or disturbing content as a child would be related to avoidance of or enjoyment of similar content at their current age. Contrary to the hypothesis, results showed that the presence of a VTEM had no relationship to either avoidance or enjoyment of watching scary movies. It was also found that a VTEM was not related to general Lifetime Television Exposure (LTE), meaning a memory of a frightening event as a child didn't lead people to avoid television long term. LTE, however, was significantly related to avoidance and enjoyment of frightening content at their current age. Those who reported watching more television in general throughout three stages of their life (youth, middle age, current age) reported less avoidance of frightening content and more enjoyment of the genre at their current age. They also reported watching more frightening content throughout their lifetime. This study also explored VTEM and LTE in relation to Mean World view. Neither VTEM nor LTE independently was found to be significantly related to Mean World perception in older adults in the study. However, the two constructs produced an interaction that mirrors the mainstreaming effect found in previous Cultivation studies. Respondents who did not watch a lot of television over their lifetime but who had a high VTEM generally had as high a Mean World score as respondents who watched a lot of television. In other words, the only group with a significantly lower perception of the World as a frightening place was those who watched less television and had low VTEM scores.
How does memory self-efficacy affect source memory within a reality monitoring task?
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2020) Kraemer, Kyle Rhoads; Black, Sheila R.; McDonough, Ian M.; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
The ability to correctly identify the source of a memory is of vital importance to a person’s everyday life. According to the source monitoring framework, memories do not contain source labels, and inferences about the source of a memory must be drawn from the quality of a memory itself. Thus, errors in source memory can occur either due to the quality of the memory in question or due to the inference drawn from characteristics of the memory trace. Recent research has shown the effects of beliefs and expectations on memory, including memory self-efficacy, or belief in one’s ability to succeed in memory tasks. However, the proposed mechanisms through which memory self-efficacy affects memory vary widely and have not been systematically investigated and compared. The current studies demonstrate that the correlation between self-efficacy and memory ability extends to reality monitoring tasks. However, they yield an overall lack of evidence that self-efficacy increases engagement with reality monitoring tasks during encoding. While some evidence suggests that memory self-efficacy shifts the characteristics used to draw reality monitoring inferences, the effects were relatively small, and the shifts in memory self-efficacy did not impact memory accuracy. These findings suggest investigation of other sources of the memory self-efficacy/performance relationship, such as metacognitive awareness. These results have implications for basic research in memory, as well as for practical applications of memory research, such as memory training interventions and eyewitness testimony.
The impact of posttraumatic growth, transformational leadership, and self-efficacy on psychological symptoms among combat veterans
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2017) LaRocca, Michael Andrew; Scogin, Forrest Ray; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
Previous research has established self-efficacy and posttraumatic growth as essential to post-deployment adjustment among veterans, and perceived transformational leadership is well known for its positive effects on follower outcomes across contexts. However, little is known regarding how transformational leadership may relate to self-efficacy and posttraumatic growth in fostering psychological wellbeing among combat veterans. The purpose of this dissertation was to examine the role of posttraumatic growth and transformational leadership in predicting PTSD and depression symptoms among combat veterans, as well as how post-deployment coping self-efficacy may mediate these relations. Regression analysis revealed post-deployment coping self-efficacy and perceived transformational leadership as predictors of fewer psychological symptoms. In addition, mediation modeling using bootstrapping resampling revealed that post-deployment coping self-efficacy mediated the relation between transformational leadership and both PTSD and depression. These findings may aid in the prediction of PTSD and depression symptoms among veterans, which may then influence pre-deployment leadership training among military personnel as well as clinical treatment protocols for veterans.
The impact of stereotype threat in two educational environments
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2015) Smith, Gabrielle P. A.; McCallum, Debra M.; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
Research has shown stereotype threat to be an effective barrier to the educational pursuits of African American scholars. This dissertation examined the impact of stereotype threat on the academic performance of Black students attending two large public institutions in Alabama (one HBCU and the other PWI). Additionally, this research explored stereotype threat with special consideration to the possibility of potential moderators. The results suggest that, in conjunction with certain moderators, stereotype threat not only impacts performance on items from GRE tests, but does so differentially for students depending on the type of institution they attend. Also, this research implies that GPA, aspects of racial identity and stigma consciousness serve as moderators of the relationship between stereotype threat and performance. Further research is needed to understand the mechanism(s) underlying stereotype threat as well as the individual differences, situational circumstances or other mechanism(s) that buffer against or amplify the phenomenon.
Implicit measurement of challenge and threat as motivational responses to stereotype threat
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2011) O'Mally, Jamie; DeCoster, Jamie; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
Stereotype threat occurs when people identify with a stigmatized group and experience depressed performance on a task because they become anxious in their desire to disprove a negative stereotype (Steele, 1997). Recent research using a Biopsychosocial (BPS) model has shown that physiological responses to challenge and threat may be an important aspect to consider in understanding the underlying motivational states that influence performance (Vick, Seery, Blascovich, & Weisbuch, 2008). However, physiological data are expensive and time-consuming to collect. The primary goal of this dissertation was to determine whether an implicit cognitive measure could be used in place of physiological equipment to effectively examine motivational responses to challenge and threat. In Study 1, four modified implicit measures were explored to determine which measure would be most effective in examining underlying motivations for challenge and threat. The modified Stroop task demonstrated patterns consistent with stereotype threat effects in Study 1 and was selected for use in Study 2. In Study 2, the relation between performance on the Stroop task and physiological measures of challenge and threat was examined. Additional measures of interest in this study included: working memory, state anxiety, math abilities, and perceptions of task performance. Results indicated that there were no significant effects of stereotype threat conditions on performance on the Stroop or physiological measures. However, stereotype threat significantly influenced state anxiety and perceptions of performance.
An interpretive phenomenological analysis of religious coping and relationship with god among older adults with functional impairments
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2014) Harris, Grant Michael; Allen, Rebecca S.; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
This study represents a qualitative exploration of several phenomena within religious coping. The aims of this study were threefold. First was to evaluate the nature of older adults' relationship with God and their God-person interaction style. In addition, we sought to understand how control and acceptance were experienced in this context. Second, this study aimed to explore participants' understanding of a standard measure of religious coping. Third, this study aimed to explore potential areas of divergence in the nature of study phenomena between African American and White participants. Guided by hermeneutic phenomenology, 25 interviews were conducted (13 African American, 12 White). Cognitive interviews evaluating understanding of a survey measure (RCOPE) of one's relationship with God were conducted to qualitatively inform quantitative research with this oft-used measure and to explore racial/ethnic divergences within its factors. Results of phenomenological analyses included a thorough description and interpretation of one's relationship with God (themes included: intimacy with and presence of God), the use of one's relationship with God when coping (themes: communication to and from God, reliance on God, God provides), and the experience of incorporating this relationship throughout the coping process (themes: My part, faith, God's will, God's time, relinquish, acceptance and control). Emergent themes were discussed within the framework of the motivational theory of lifespan development and the transactional theory of stress and coping. Participants' coping represented both primary and secondary control processes as well as problem-, emotion-, and meaning-focused coping. One's perception of God's will and God's time were interpreted as essential elements with significant implications for one's ability to accept one's situation. African Americans reported a distinct intimacy with God defined by God's enhanced knowledge of them. Novel understanding of participants' comprehension and response-formation processes of an RCOPE subscale were explored. The need for another factor was delineated through the exploration of participants' construct-incongruent comprehension of the collaborative coping items. The factor would be less indicative of a relationship defined by equality. This factor was salient among African Americans. Furthermore, adding a factor assessing relinquishing prior to reaching one's level of perceived restraints was indicated from the results.
Links between elements of the HEXACO personality test and creativity in word choice for story generation tasks
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2019) Kennedy, Evan Scott; Ward, Thomas B.; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
This study used the new HEXACO personality inventory to explore personality differences in creative generation, particularly in connection with the new Honesty-Humility (HH) dimension, which has shown some promising connections with creativity in previous literature and may explain some contradictory results that have appeared in the Five Factor Model (FFM) creativity research with regards to the Agreeableness (A) subtrait, from which HH is derived. These avenues were explored through creative-generation story tasks judged by the Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count (LIWC) program and human coders, as well as self-report (Creative Behavior Inventory) and psychometric (Guilford's Alternate Uses) measures. Participants were also given the full HEXACO personality inventory. Multiple regression analyses were conducted to look specifically at the patterns of correlation among LIWC ratings and human coding of participants’ stories, the CBI and AUT, and HEXACO trait scores, with a special concern for HH and A. In addition to the expected connections between Openness to Experience and all three measures of creativity, the analyses also showed the hypothesized negative connections between the AUT and HH, and nonsignificant correlations between A and both AUT and rated creativity. Further consistencies and inconsistencies with the previous literature, and suggestions for future research in this area are discussed.
Mental health policy outcomes: an examination of older adults' mental health service use, 2002-2012
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2018) Ford, Katy Lauren; Kim, Giyeon; Allen, Rebecca S.; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
The underutilization of mental health services (MHS) by older adults – and especially by racial/ethnic minority elders – is a well-recognized problem. Though several national-level mental health policies have been enacted and implemented over the past decade, rates of underutilization remain high. Guided by the Socio-Ecological Theory of public health policy, we aimed to examine individual- and community-level factors that have fostered the most successful implementations of national mental health policies in recent years. This dissertation conducted a multilevel growth curve analysis in order to examine older adults’ MHS use using a large, nationally-representative panel survey (the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey – Household Component, or MEPS-HC). We considered MHS use in the MEPS-HC for the period of 2002-2012, during which members of MEPS Panels 6-17 provided responses. This analysis revealed that rates of older adults’ MHS use did not increase significantly over our examination period, regardless of race/ethnicity or rurality of location. Only insurance status was a significant predictor of change in MHS use rates over the years 2002-2012. Our findings highlighted several important issues for policy implementation and future research of MHS use and mental health policy, and we make suggestions for ensuring greater efficiency and efficacy of efforts to improve older adults’ MHS use in the coming decade.
Priming of landmarks during object-location tasks: effects on self-efficacy of older adults
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2016) Kraemer, Kyle Rhoads; Black, Sheila R.; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
Computer-based training programs are a new way that many personal skills are being developed, maintained, or enhanced. However, in order for a computer-based training program to be effective, users must be highly motivated to complete the required tasks. One way to improve motivation for continuing tasks is through increasing self-efficacy, or a person’s perceived ability in an area. While older adults might greatly benefit from computer-based training programs for memory, low self-efficacy for both memory and computer use can be a barrier to motivation, limiting potential benefits. However, a person’s self-efficacy can be improved by experiencing success in a task. The current study investigated whether priming a landmark could be used to generate such success in an object-location memory task, ultimately enhancing older adults’ self-efficacy. Participants were 62 older adults and 59 younger adults who were shown a series of videos of virtual rooms and had to make memory judgments about where they had seen certain items in those rooms. Half of the participants were primed for spatial landmarks for specific objects in the virtual environment, while half were not. While many previously established effects were replicated, priming of landmarks did not significantly impact memory or self-efficacy. However, exploration of secondary analyses emphasized the importance of improving self-efficacy in older adults for these types of tasks. Specifically, self-efficacy in older adults was lower than younger adults, even after controlling for memory performance. Considerations of the importance of self-efficacy for memory performance and motivation in older adults are explored.
Psychopathy and the role of anxiety in childhood populations
(University of Alabama Libraries, 2009) Kubak, Franz Alexander; Salekin, Randall T.; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
The study examined the relationship between psychopathy and anxiety in 147 community boys. Children and their guardians completed self- and parent-report measures of child psychopathy (APSD) and child anxiety (MASC). In the literature, the psychopathy and anxiety association has been conceptualized as nonexistent, more a function of fearlessness, and a consequence of the impulsive lifestyle of psychopathy. The study suggested that anxiety may also be a reaction to fluctuating affective and interpersonal features that may diminish with age. Structural equation modeling was used to examine these hypotheses. The inverse relationship theory and the lifestyle consequence theory were not supported in the young (ages 8-14) community sample. However, the expected association with fearfulness and psychopathy was present, although it was limited to the impulsive lifestyle features. As posited, higher levels of self-report anxiety were associated with higher levels of psychopathy, including callous-emotional features. Age was not shown to be a significant moderator of the relationship. Regardless, there was a clear developmental distinction that conflicted with previous theory as well as the adult psychopathy literature. The current results suggest that anxiety may have important implications for the development and treatment of psychopathy in children.

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