Master of Science (MS), Ohio University, 2018, Experimental Psychology (Arts and Sciences)

Religiosity is positively related to self-regulation, though more research is needed to understand the nature of this relationship. For example, relatively few studies have examined the link between religiosity and delay-of-gratification (i.e., resisting immediate temptation in favor of some objectively larger, delayed reward). Most of the limited research on this topic has conceptualized and operationalized religiosity as though it were a unidimensional construct. We review literature that, instead, suggests religiosity be treated as a two-dimensional construct – consisting of organizational (i.e., religious practice/community) and personal religiosity (i.e., religious belief) dimensions. Personal religiosity elements are more strongly associated with asceticism than are organizational religiosity elements. Therefore, we hypothesized that personal religiosity would lead to greater delay-of-gratification than would organizational religiosity. Furthermore, we hypothesized that cognitive construal level, rational-experiential processing, and/or deontological thinking would mediate this effect. Consistent with the former hypothesis, experimental results indicated that activating personal, but not organizational, religiosity concepts increased delay-of-gratification. We did not find support for the latter hypothesis. We discuss the implications of these findings and future research directions.

Committee: Kimberly Rios PhD (Advisor); Ronaldo Vigo PhD (Advisor); Keith Markman PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Cognitive Psychology; Psychology; Religion; Social Psychology; Social Research

PHD, Kent State University, 2022, College of Arts and Sciences / Department of Psychological Sciences

BACKGROUND: Globally, rates of cannabis use are rising. Societal changes toward greater acceptance and availability of cannabis are also underway. However, research on the temporal effect of cannabis use on mental health is limited and concerns may be warranted from a public health perspective. Thus, this study was designed to examine how cannabis use may confer psychological harm. Specifically, this study focused on the interplay between coping motives, delay discounting, frequency of use, and distress tolerance. METHOD: The recruited sample consisted of 57 undergraduate students (66.7% White, 71% female, Mage = 20.6, SDage = 2.9). Self-estimated patterns of cannabis use among participants ranged from ‘less than once per year' to ‘multiple times per day.' This study utilized a two-week longitudinal design that included a daily diary component to monitor cannabis use behavior between baseline and follow-up assessments. RESULTS: Coping motives did not demonstrate a significant effect onto later distress tolerance. However, a marginally significant interaction effect between coping motives and frequency of use was evident such that heightened coping motives were related to reductions in later-level distress tolerance among high-frequency users. Delay discounting was not predictive of later distress tolerance scores, regardless of cannabis use frequency. Exploratory analyses indicated that self-estimated cannabis use frequency was associated with total enacted cannabis use episodes during participation. CONCLUSIONS: Cannabis use may confer risk of lower distress tolerance levels when used for coping purposes among high-frequency users. Delay discounting does not appear to be a robust risk factor within the context of cannabis misuse. Findings offer important clinical, theoretical, and methodological implications.

Committee: Jeffrey Ciesla (Committee Chair); Douglas Delahanty (Committee Member); Eric Mintz (Other); Deric Kenne (Committee Member); William Lechner (Committee Member) Subjects: Clinical Psychology

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2017, Psychology

Individuals endorsing higher rates of delay discounting (DD) tend to discount the value of future rewards, such that the perceived value of the future reward, though larger than an immediate reward, is viewed as less valuable. In turn, DD is associated with engaging in poor health behaviors, such as unhealthy diet and low levels of physical activity, both of which may increase risk of developing cardiovascular disease (CVD). Individuals with elevated genetic risk for CVD and higher rates of DD, are likely to be especially vulnerable to developing CVD. This randomized controlled study examined rates of DD among young adults with a family history (FH) of early-onset CVD (i.e., adults with higher genetic risk for CVD; FH+) and without a FH of CVD (FH-). Associations of DD, perceived CVD risk, physical activity, dietary sodium and lipid intake, as well as health behavior intentions were assessed before, immediately following, and one week after a standard educational intervention. In addition, FH was evaluated as a moderator of these associations. High rates of DD were hypothesized to correlate with sodium and lipid consumption, and negatively correlate with perceived risk of developing CVD, level of physical activity, and intention to engage in healthy behaviors. Further, it was hypothesized that FH+ participants randomized to the experimental condition would report greater reductions in DD, sodium and lipid intake, and increases in physical activity, perceived disease risk, and health behavior intentions, compared to FH- participants in the experimental condition, and participants in the control condition. Fifty-four FH+ and 60 FH- adults between the ages of 18 and 40, with no personal history of CVD were randomized to view either an educational video about CVD, or a control educational video. Questionnaires assessed perceived risk of developing CVD, intention to engage in health behaviors, lipid and sodium intake, as well as physical activity. DD was assessed with (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Charles Emery PhD (Advisor); Melissa Buelow PhD (Committee Member); Julian Thayer PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Psychology

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2005, Physical Activity and Educational Services

Impulsivity has been identified as a core deficit of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) that underlies the academic underachievement as well as the behavioral and social difficulties correlated with the disorder. Part 1 of this two-part investigation involved a functional asessment of impulsivity, defined as choices that produce more immediate but smaller or less preferred reinforcers relative to a concurrently available response alternative that produces delayed but larger or more preferred reinforcers. Arithmetic problem choices associated with competing reinforcer dimensions (i.e., immediacy in relation to quality and rate of reinforcement and response effort) were presented under two delay conditions – delay to point delivery and delay to exchange of points for the terminal reinforcer. The results of Part 1 indicated that the majority of participants with and without ADHD allocated responding and time to the response alternative that resulted in immediate but smaller or less preferred reinforcers during the delay to exchange of points experimental condition. Additionally, the majority of participants with and without ADHD allocated responding and time to the response alternative that resulted in delayed but larger or more preferred reinforcers during the delay to point delivery experimental condition. Thus, the findings suggest that reinforcer immediacy was an influential dimension for participants with and without ADHD and that their choices were influenced more by the delay to the delivery of the terminal reinforcer than the delay to the delivery of the conditioned reinforcer. Part 2 addressed (a) the need for assessment-based interventions that focus on increasing academic productivity and accuracy and decreasing off-task behavior in a classroom setting and (b) the effects of an assessment-based intervention in conjunction with a commitment strategy on decreasing impulsive choice making to the terminal reinforcer in a classroom setting. Results o (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Nancy Neef (Advisor) Subjects: