Matching Items (2)
Description
Humans require sufficient social understanding and connectedness to thrive (Baumeister & Leary, 1995). The current study evaluates the effectiveness of the Social Intelligence Institute's training program pilot. At a middle school in Phoenix, Arizona, students in a 7th and 8th grade class participated in this pilot program during the spring of 2013. Pre- and post-test questionnaires administered indicated changes in participants reported measures of Perspective Taking, Empathetic Concern, Interpersonal Expectations, and Relationship Self-Efficacy. The program consists of seven modules, each with several sessions, including instructional videos with reflection questions and class discussions. It was predicted that there would be a significant increase in mean scores for the dependent variables in the questionnaire mentioned above from the pre-test to the post-test. However, the null hypotheses were not rejected; statistical significance in t-tests of the measured variables were not met. Yet, the program was more effective for 8th graders than for 7th graders for Perspective Taking. This study of the SI pilot program demonstrates areas of improvement and provides support for wider implementation in the future.
ContributorsBailey, Jonathan Donald (Author) / Zautra, Alex (Thesis director) / Glenberg, Arthur (Committee member) / Short, Robert (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Department of Psychology (Contributor)
Created2013-12
Description
The purpose of this study was to examine executive cognitive functioning (ECF) and drinking induced disinhibition as potential mechanisms through which a family history (FH) of alcohol problems contributes to off-spring alcohol-related problems. We also examined the hypotheses that indirect effects of family history would be moderated by age of drinking onset, hypothesizing that indirect effects of family history through ECF and drinking induced disinhibition would be stronger among those with an earlier age of drinking onset. The sample included 177 college aged heavy drinking participants (66.2% men; 33.8% women; 78.8% Caucasian; 10.1 % African American; 6.9% Hispanic; 4.2% Multi-racial; 4.8% other) participating in a randomized controlled trial of naltrexone (vs. placebo) plus brief motivational counseling for drinking reduction. Measures of family history, self-control, working memory, and drinking induced disinhibition collected prior to randomization to treatment condition (intake assessment), were used to explore the hypothesized mechanisms of FH effects. Although FH was not related to either working memory or self-control, self-control predicted both drinking induced disinhibition and alcohol-related problems, with a marginal indirect effect of self-control on problems through drinking induced disinhibition. Age of drinking onset did not moderate relations between FH and measures of ECF (working memory and self-control). The findings suggest that self-control is a major factor contributing to the development of alcohol-related problems. Thus self-control may be an important target of intervention regardless of age of drinking onset or family history status.
ContributorsPerry, Elizabeth Danielle (Author) / Corbin, William (Thesis director) / Presson, Clark (Committee member) / Meier, Madeline (Committee member) / Department of Psychology (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2016-05