Browsing by Author "Merrill, Edward"
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Item Everyday Memory in People with Down Syndrome(MDPI, 2021) Yang, Yingying; Himmelberger, Zachary M.; Robinson, Trent; Davis, Megan; Conners, Frances; Merrill, Edward; Montclair State University; University of Alabama TuscaloosaAlthough memory functions in people with Down Syndrome (DS) have been studied extensively, how well people with DS remember things about everyday life is not well understood. In the current study, 31 adolescents/young adults with DS and 26 with intellectual disabilities (ID) of mixed etiology (not DS) participated. They completed an everyday memory questionnaire about personal facts and recent events (e.g., school name, breakfast). They also completed a standard laboratory task of verbal long-term memory (LTM) where they recalled a list of unrelated words over trials. Results did not indicate impaired everyday memory, but impaired verbal LTM, in people with DS relative to people with mixed ID. Furthermore, the laboratory verbal LTM task predicted everyday memory for both groups after taking into account mental age equivalent. Our research showed both an independence and a connection between everyday memory and the standard laboratory memory task and has important research and clinical implications.Item Rule-Based Category Learning in Down Syndrome(American Association on Intellectual Developmental Disabilities, 2014) Phillips, B. Allyson; Conners, Frances A.; Merrill, Edward; Klinger, Mark R.; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa; University of North Carolina; University of North Carolina Chapel HillRule-based category learning was examined in youths with Down syndrome (DS), youths with intellectual disability (ID), and typically developing (TD) youths. Two tasks measured category learning: the Modified Card Sort task (MCST) and the Concept Formation test of the Woodcock-Johnson-III (Woodock, McGrew, & Mather, 2001). In regression-based analyses, DS and ID groups performed below the level expected for their nonverbal ability. In cross-sectional developmental trajectory analyses, results depended on the task. On the MCST, the DS and ID groups were similar to the TD group. On the Concept Formation test, the DS group had slower cross-sectional change than the other 2 groups. Category learning may be an area of difficulty for those with ID, but task-related factors may affect trajectories for youths with DS.Item Self-Efficacy and Job Satisfaction in Teachers of Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder: a Mixed Method Study(University of Alabama Libraries, 2021) Eldred, Sophia Winston; Tomeny, Theodore S.; University of Alabama TuscaloosaObjective: The purpose of the current mixed-methods study was to examine self-efficacy and job satisfaction in general education and special education teachers of students with ASD. Method: Using a concurrent mixed methods research design, the quantitative portion of the study examined reports of self-efficacy pertaining to teaching students with ASD and job satisfaction from both general and special education teachers of students with ASD, and examined potential correlates to these constructs such as occupational stress, social support, knowledge of ASD, and school resources. The qualitative portion of the study employed semi-structure interviews to examine what factors influence teachers’ self-efficacy and job satisfaction. Results: Results revealed no significant differences in self-efficacy, job satisfaction, occupational stress, perceived social support or knowledge of ASD between general and special education teachers and no significant relation between self-efficacy and occupational stress, social support and school resources. However, analyses examining the potential relation of these variables with job satisfaction revealed statistically significant correlations between teachers’ job satisfaction and social support and their job satisfaction and levels of occupational stress. The qualitative data for the current study revealed four overarching themes related to overall teacher well-being: the impact of knowledge, experience and training; the importance of support; the impact of occupational stress; and the intrinsic rewards of teaching as protective factors. Following standard mixed methods methodology, quantitative and qualitative data was integrated and discussed.Item An upside of aging: aging effect in ambivalence(University of Alabama Libraries, 2019) Choi, Jaimie M.; Black, Sheila; University of Alabama TuscaloosaAmbivalence refers to a conflict between two contradicting values, principles, beliefs, or emotions. Heretofore, there have not been studies that have focused on age differences in ambivalence within the context of a dual system framework. According to dual process theory, there are two separate cognitive systems that are primarily responsible for either deliberative logical judgments (System 2) or responsible for fast, automatic, intuitive, visceral judgments (System 1). The current study investigated the impact of intra and/or intersystem conflict on decision making. Thus, in some instances the stimuli were configured in such a way as to elicit System 2 processing (only logical statements) and in other instances, the stimuli were configured so that System 1 processing would be elicited (only emotional statements). This study also investigated possible age-related changes in processing contradictory information and the ambivalence that often arises when considering opposing viewpoints. One of the unique characteristics of the current study is that I varied the extent to which participants would have to engage system 1 processing to resolve the experimenter-induced ambivalence associated with making a decision. The results of this study show that older adults generally experience less ambivalence compared to young adults, except in the condition in which they received two emotionally conflicting options (i.e., intrasystem conflict within system 1).