Doctor of Psychology (Psy.D.), Xavier University, 2024, Psychology

There is long-standing evidence that acquired capability and emotion regulation are key to understanding the progression from self-harm to suicide (Law et al., 2015; Turton et al., 2021; Van Orden et al., 2010). However, recent literature suggests that emotion dysregulation alone is not a sufficient explanation for non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) and suicidality. Research has demonstrated that emotion-regulation self-efficacy (ERSE), or the belief in one's ability to regulate one's emotions (e.g., Gratz et al., 2020), is a factor in predicting the pathway between NSSI and suicidal behavior (Gratz et al., 2020). The purpose of this project was to examine the relationship between emotion reactivity, ERSE, NSSI, acquired capability, and suicidal thoughts and behaviors. Participants were asked to complete a screener and those who endorsed self-harm history were eligible to complete the follow-up questionnaire (N = 174). Findings indicated that ERSE is lower among people with history of NSSI and either suicidal ideation or suicide attempt history, as compared to those with only a history of NSSI. In addition, ERSE is negatively associated with emotion reactivity such that those with greater emotion reactivity have lower ERSE. ERSE predicted suicidal risk over and above emotion reactivity, acquired capability, and number of NSSI methods. Last, ERSE for positive affect predicted suicidal risk over and above emotion reactivity and acquired capability, such that those with lower ERSE have higher suicidal risk. Implications of these findings point to ERSE as a predictor for suicidal risk.

Committee: Nicholas Salsman Ph.D., ABPP (Committee Chair); Morrie Mullins Ph.D. (Committee Member); Anne Fuller Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Clinical Psychology; Psychology

Master of Arts in Psychology, Cleveland State University, 2021, College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences

Depression is marked by depressive affects which consists of dysphoric mood reflected by increased levels of negative affect (NA), and anhedonia which is characterized by decreased positive affect (PA). The dysregulation of affective states that characterizes depressive disorders may reflect emotion regulation deficits. Prior work has frequently linked maladaptive responses with depression, while evidence linking adaptive responses and depression has been mixed. Additionally, emerging evidence has shown a degree of specificity between emotion regulation and affect. Therefore, the present study examined whether emotion regulation responses show specificity with NA and PA across 7-day and 12-month periods within a large sample of those with various depression histories. Community dwelling and undergraduate participants (N= 241) completed self-report surveys to assess their trait emotion regulation tendencies, positive and negative affect, and a measure of their depression symptoms in-lab. They then engaged in a 7-day ecological momentary assessment protocol. Lastly, at 4-, 8-, and 12-months post-lab visit, participants completed self-report surveys to assess NA and PA over the past month. As expected, maladaptive responses significantly predicted increased NA and adaptive responses significantly predicted increased PA across all time points. Further, there was specificity as adaptive ER was more strongly linked to trait positive affect and maladaptive ER was more strongly linked to trait negative affect (p's< .001). Results suggest specific ties across maladaptive responses and negative affect as well as adaptive responses and positive affect, though they may be different across measurement type.

Committee: Ilya Yaroslavsky (Committee Chair); Eric Allard (Committee Member); Elizabeth Goncy (Committee Member) Subjects: Clinical Psychology

Psy. D., Antioch University, 2023, Antioch New England: Clinical Psychology

The purpose of this study was to explore several unknown issues regarding disclosure of nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) among users of social media. NSSI is a category of behaviors that cause intentional harm to the body without the intent to commit suicide. However, individuals who self-injure may unintentionally risk serious and even life-threatening harm. Moreover, the stigma and resultant shame associated with NSSI discourage reporting and thus complicate research into the behavior. This study examined the factors involved in individuals' decisions to disclose NSSI. The current study uses primarily descriptive statistics from an internet-based survey to explore the following questions: (a) Are there demographic differences between those who choose to disclose in real life (IRL) and those who do not? (b) Are IRL self-disclosers more likely than IRL nondisclosers to endorse pro-social and help-seeking motivations for disclosure over provocative motivations? (c) Do individuals who self-disclose IRL self-injure more frequently compared to IRL nondisclosers? (d) To whom are self-disclosers most likely to disclose? and (e) Are participants more likely to report SD-OL than SD-IRL? Disclosers and nondisclosers were demographically similar. Disclosers most frequently endorsed help-seeking motivations for self-disclosure. Disclosers were no more likely than nondisclosers to endorse high incidence of NSSI. Sixty-two percent of respondents disclosed IRL, and 57.3% of the sample disclosed online. Recommendations for clinical practice based on these results are discussed.

Committee: Martha Straus PhD (Committee Chair); Karen Meteyer PhD (Committee Member); Roger Peterson PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Clinical Psychology; Psychology; Psychotherapy

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Ohio University, 2022, Clinical Psychology (Arts and Sciences)

Food and alcohol disturbance, or “FAD,” involves compensatory behaviors (e.g., food restriction, self-induced vomiting, laxative use, diuretic use, exercise) intended to compensate for the caloric value of alcohol and/or to increase the intoxication effects of alcohol. FAD is linked to dangerous health consequences, such as blackouts and injury, and appears prevalent in college populations. However, due to FAD's recent introduction into empirical literature, relatively little is known regarding these potentially dangerous behaviors. In particular, there is a lack of research examining the temporal antecedents and consequences associated with FAD, which is crucial for clarifying clinical significance and identifying treatment targets. The current project addressed existing limitations by examining the temporal antecedents associated with compensatory FAD, evaluating compensatory FAD's utility as an emotion regulation strategy, and investigating the psychological distress and impairment temporally linked to compensatory FAD. Specifically, this study investigated: 1) if increases in negative affect, body dissatisfaction, and impulsivity precede compensatory FAD and if compensatory FAD is associated with greater alcohol quantity; 2) whether compensatory FAD is an effective strategy to regulate negative affect and body dissatisfaction; and 3) if engagement in compensatory FAD is prospectively associated with subsequent psychological distress and impairment. Approximately 30 adult women who engage in compensatory FAD completed an ecological momentary assessment protocol for three weeks. Results demonstrated that negative affect, body dissatisfaction, and impulsivity did not increase in the hours prior to compensatory FAD, nor did negative affect and body dissatisfaction decrease in the hours following FAD. Alcohol quantity also did not significantly differ across days when compensatory FAD was endorsed, relative to drinking days when compensatory FAD was not endorsed. Fin (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: K. Jean Forney (Advisor); Brian Wymbs (Committee Member); Nicholas Allan (Committee Member); Kate Hibbard-Gibbons (Committee Member); Berkeley Franz (Committee Member) Subjects: Clinical Psychology; Psychology

Doctor of Philosophy, University of Akron, 2021, Psychology-Industrial/Organizational

Empirical research in emotion regulation have tended to show that emotional acceptance and reappraisal are adaptive emotion regulation strategies that can positively impact emotional well-being. Interestingly, the two strategies differ quite dramatically in terms of what they try to accomplish and how they go about doing so. For instance, while reappraisal involves changing a current emotional state (Gross, 2015), acceptance involves willfully experiencing an emotional state without any effort to change it (Hayes, Strosahl, & Wilson, 2012). Despite their seemingly opposite nature, empirical studies to-date have produced little in the way of differences. The primary goal of the present investigation was to address multiple shortcomings of these past empirical studies in an attempt to show how the acceptance and reappraisal do indeed differ. I contend that an appropriate contrast of the two strategies requires both a more precise measurement approach, a long time-course of measurement, and consideration of cognitive-related outcomes. Through a call center simulation in which acceptance and reappraisal were experimentally manipulated, participants received calls from aggressive customers during two different sessions. Affect and physiological arousal, via skin conductance level, were continuously measured within the customer episodes. The study took a resource allocation perspective to examine how acceptance and reappraisal may impact attention when dealing with customer mistreatment. Integrating emotion regulation theory with goal progress theory (Martin & Tesser, 1996), the study also examined rumination as a consequence of aggressive customer behavior and antecedent of state anxiety. Results showed few differences between acceptance and reappraisal, yet indicated the clear negative emotional consequences of rumination. Rumination was shown to be a relatively immediate outcome of aggressive customer behavior that can quickly impact state anxiety prior to a subsequent (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: James Diefendorff Dr. (Advisor); Paul Levy Dr. (Committee Member); Jennifer Stanley Dr. (Committee Member); Andrea Snell Dr. (Committee Member); Maria Hamdani Dr. (Committee Member) Subjects: Psychology

Doctor of Philosophy, University of Akron, 2020, Psychology-Industrial/Organizational

The emotion regulation literature has recently called for the advancement in the measurement of emotion regulation strategies at the person-level (Grandey & Gabriel, 2015). Furthermore, despite the academic literatures developing a nomological network of emotion regulation strategies, research has examined cognitive reappraisal in several domains, examining and defining it uniquely, making it difficult to determine its true adaptiveness and utility. The current study investigates the differences between different forms of cognitive reappraisal and examine their relationships to affect, well-being, performance, and interpersonal functioning. Specifically, a new measurement, the Reappraisal Tactic Questionnaire (RTQ), was designed to assess the use of reappraisal tactics at the person-level. Participants, who were recruited via social media, as well as college undergraduates participating for extra credit, completed the RTQ, as well as responded to a series of scales and inventories. The habitual use of eight specific reappraisal tactics, and their relationships with convergent and discriminant measures, as well as criterion measures including affective experiences, job satisfaction, and workplace effectiveness outcomes (e.g., job performance, OCBs, interpersonal functioning) were examined. Theoretical and practical implications will be discussed.

Committee: James Diefendorff (Advisor); Paul Levy (Committee Member); Andrea Snell (Committee Member); Dennis Doverspike (Committee Member); Rebecca Erickson (Committee Member) Subjects: Psychology

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2020, Psychology

Lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals experience disproportionately high rates of mental illness relative to heterosexuals (Gilman et al., 2001). Minority stress theory has linked this phenomenon with the numerous sexual orientation-specific stressors that LGB individuals experience (e.g., sexual orientation disclosure; Meyer, 2003). However, no studies to date have examined how these factors may contribute to psychopathology development in a sample of high-risk individuals. Moreover, few studies have investigated how trajectories of illness differ between sexual minority and heterosexual youth, and whether emotional processes affect symptom progression differently in each group. Thus, the objective of this investigation was to understand minority stress and affective processes in a high-risk sample of youth. I used data from a longitudinal study of 685 youth (aged 6-12 years at baseline) who presented to an outpatient psychiatric clinic for mood symptoms. Participants and their parents completed psychopathology assessments over eight years, and a subset of the broader sample were re-contacted to complete another assessment for the purposes of this dissertation (n = 34). Across two studies, I examined the relationship between sexual orientation, psychopathology (diagnoses, symptoms), and affective processes (emotion regulation, emotional context sensitivity). I found support for my prediction that sexual minorities would exhibit more psychopathology than heterosexuals, especially on measures of internalizing psychopathology (e.g., anxiety, depression). Moreover, this study showed for the first time that sexual minority youth diverge from their heterosexual peers with regard to anxiety and mood symptoms as early as 8.8 years of age, and that these divergence points differ depending on the type of psychopathology (i.e., mood earlier than anxiety) and informant (i.e., parent reports show divergence later than child reports). With regard to minority stress, I fou (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Mary Fristad Ph.D. (Advisor); Michael Vasey Ph.D. (Committee Member); Daniel Strunk Ph.D. (Committee Member); John Pachankis Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Behavioral Sciences; Clinical Psychology; Mental Health; Psychology

Psy. D., Antioch University, 2018, Antioch New England: Clinical Psychology

The relationship between mentalization, affect regulation, and the quality of object relations among individuals with an autism spectrum disorder was explored. The findings could be used as conceptual support for the use of psychodynamic psychotherapy in the treatment of people on the autism spectrum. The study consisted of a retrospective analysis of neuropsychological assessment standard scores on three measures (Mutuality of Autonomy Scale, NEPSY-II Theory of Mind subtest, and the CBCL Dysregulated Profile). Forty-four subjects diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder —aged nine to sixteen—were compared with a matched non-autism clinical sample. The results supported the hypothesis that individuals with an autism spectrum disorder have less capacity for mentalization compared to the comparison subjects and the general population. The findings did not support more affect dysregulation among those with autism compared to the comparison group, and did not find heightened affect dysregulation in comparison to the general population. Additionally, the study did not confirm that as mentalization capacity decreases affect dysregulation increases. As was hypothesized, the absolute level of object relations was in the average range among individuals with autism.

Committee: Theodore Ellenhorn PhD, ABPP (Committee Chair); E. Porter Eagan PsyD (Committee Member); Gina Pasquale PsyD (Committee Member) Subjects: Clinical Psychology

Master of Arts (MA), Bowling Green State University, 2018, Psychology/Clinical

Emotional eating, or overeating in response to a mood state, is related to various negative physical and mental health outcomes, including obesity and Binge Eating Disorder (BED). According to the affect regulation model of emotional eating, emotional eating behavior is conceptualized as a maladaptive strategy to regulate affect. However, inconsistent concurrent and discriminative validity of emotional eating self-report measures found in experimental and naturalistic studies call the affect regulation model into question. Psychophysiological measures shown to behaviorally indicate emotion dysregulation, such as trait level Heart Rate Variability (HRV), might confirm a decreased ability to regulate affect is related to emotional eating behavior. A secondary analysis of data from an experimental study of emotional eating examined relationships between different measures of emotion dysregulation and emotional eating. To validate the affect regulation model of emotional eating, lower trait levels of HRV were expected to be associated with higher scores on the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS), higher food intake following a negative mood induction, and higher scores on the Emotional Eating Scale (EES). Hierarchical linear regression models did not find these relationships to be significant, though both trait level HRV and self-reported emotion dysregulation were associated with changes in the Positive and Negative Affect scale (PANAS). Results of the current study showed trait level HRV and the DERS subscales to be good indicators of an emotional response to the mood induction. Although it remains unclear whether affect regulation is truly central to emotional eating behavior, obstacles to resolving this question are revealed and discussed.

Committee: Dara Musher-Eizenman Ph.D. (Committee Chair); William O'Brien Ph.D. (Committee Member); Abby Braden Ph.D (Committee Member) Subjects: Psychology

Doctor of Philosophy, University of Akron, 2018, Psychology-Industrial/Organizational

Current theories of emotion regulation at work recognize that regulation is a goal directed, dynamic, self-regulatory process that spans the duration of the customer service interaction (e.g., Diefendorff & Gosserand, 2003). Despite notable growth in the field and well-developed theory, very little is known about how affect and emotion regulation unfold spontaneously over the course of a customer service interaction. The current study sheds light on these processes by investigating two substantive questions, each of which is a new contribution to the emotion regulation at work literature. The first question assesses affect and emotion regulation (suppression and reappraisal) that occurs in response to specific, negative customer behaviors (micro-events) embedded in the interaction. The second question considers how activated individual identities (self-construal) influence emotions and emotion regulation. Through a call center simulation in which self-construal (interdependent versus independent) was experimentally manipulated via a priming task, participants received calls from difficult customers. Continuously measured affect and emotion regulation were recorded in response to two quantitatively different negative micro-events (uncivil and hostile) embedded in the interaction. Changes in affect and emotion regulation were examined by comparing pre- and post-event periods and by using a discontinuous growth curve analysis approach. Results indicate modest benefits of activating an interdependent self-construal with regard to emotion regulation, but not affect. Micro-event order emerged as an important influence of both affect and emotion regulation. Implications for the advancement of theory and practical use of findings are discussed.

Committee: James Diefendorff (Advisor); Dennis Doverspike (Committee Member); Joelle Elicker (Committee Member); Maria Hamdani (Committee Member); Paul Levy (Committee Member) Subjects: Psychology

Master of Arts, Miami University, 2017, Psychology

The present study sought to validate and examine family savoring as a family socialization process and test its relation to adolescent positive emotion regulation and depression. The first two aims focused on developing an observational account of family savoring and examining whether it is distinct from additional family socialization processes (parental warmth and family expressiveness of positive emotions). The final three aims investigated: i) whether observed family savoring uniquely accounts for variance in adolescent positive emotion regulation, ii) if observed family savoring is inversely related with adolescent depression, and iii) if adolescent positive emotion regulation mediates the relation between observed family savoring and adolescent depression. Eighty-four adolescents (Mage= 14.01, 60.7% girls) their primary female caregiver (Mage = 41.19, 88% mothers) completed a series of questionnaires and engaged in a Plan a Day Trip interaction task. Results validated the observational account of family savoring and demonstrated that it is a related, yet distinct construct from other family socialization processes of positive affect. Furthermore, results revealed that observed maternal savoring in a future oriented task predicted higher adolescent effective positive emotion regulation which, in turn, was related to decreased adolescent depressive symptoms. These findings may inform therapists to encourage families to model appropriate strategies for regulating positive emotions through frequent discussion and attention to positive life events.

Committee: Aaron Luebbe PhD (Advisor) Subjects: Psychology

Psy. D., Antioch University, 2016, Antioch Santa Barbara: Clinical Psychology

The purpose of this study is to examine the lived experience of achieving integration through the fine art form of dance, using a phenomenological method coupled with narrative and arts-based research. Research material illustrating the various manifestations of integration will be derived from interviews of ten professional dancers representing the non-dominant cultural discourse. Through the application of theoretical underpinnings of somatic psychology, interpersonal neurobiology, psychoneuroimmunology, and relational psychotherapy, this qualitative research seeks to articulate the esoteric healing forces derived from creative movement that fortifies self and fosters resilience within individuals. While dance might constitute an effective processing and coping mechanism for handling everyday stress, this may be especially true for those dealing with histories of childhood adversity and trauma. Healing, integrative properties of dance may aid the individual in navigating both current life challenges as well as coping with the struggle for re-integration in the aftermath of trauma. The electronic version of this dissertation is available free at Ohiolink ETD Center, www.ohiolink.edu/etd

Committee: Sharleen O'Brien PhD. (Committee Chair); Chris Howard PsyD (Committee Member); Paula Thomson PhD (Other) Subjects: Art Education; Clinical Psychology; Communication; Cultural Anthropology; Dance; Developmental Psychology; Early Childhood Education; Education Philosophy; Ethnic Studies; Fine Arts; Gender Studies; Glbt Studies; Health; Kinesiology; Mental Health; Minority and Ethnic Groups; Neurobiology; Performing Arts; Personality Psychology; Physical Education; Psychobiology; Psychology; Public Health; Social Psychology; Spirituality; Therapy

Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 2016, Psychology

A growing number of epidemiological studies have highlighted the disproportionately high rates of mental illness that lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals experience relative to their heterosexual peers (e.g., Gilman et al., 2001). One explanation for these alarming statistics may lay with the sexual orientation-related discrimination that LGB individuals experience in almost all aspects of their lives (e.g., Bostwick et al., 2014; Hatzenbuehler et al., 2010). Such discrimination may alter LGB individuals' sense of self and of group and may interfere with behavioral expressions of their sexuality, eventually leading to the development of mental health problems (Bostwick et al., 2014; McCabe et al., 2010). However, very few studies to date have experimentally examined how discriminatory events influence the decision to self-disclose one's sexual orientation and the role emotion regulation might play in buffering against some of the negative mental health outcomes associated with discrimination. With the present studies, I sought to answer this question by using an affective science framework. In Study 1, I validated four two-minute film clips as valid procedures for inducing group-based emotions (including pride and shame) in LGB Americans (N = 80) in an online study. I used two of these clips in a second online study (Study 2; N = 148) and found that participants who viewed the discriminatory clip were significantly less likely to spontaneously disclose their sexual orientation in a written reflection task than those who viewed the affirming clip. However, I found no differences in sexual orientation disclosure between participants instructed to immerse themselves in the content of the film and those instructed to distance themselves. These studies comprise a first step towards understanding the affective and cognitive mechanisms underlying discrimination's immense effects on LGB mental health and thus provide future directions for interventions with this po (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Amelia Aldao Ph.D. (Advisor); Jennifer Cheavens Ph.D. (Committee Member); Jennifer Crocker Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Clinical Psychology; Experimental Psychology; Glbt Studies; Psychology

Psy. D., Antioch University, 2015, Antioch Santa Barbara: Clinical Psychology

The purpose of the current study was to explore the lived experience of adolescents who engage in nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI). Phenomenological interviews inquired about emotionality, conflict styles, and parental relationships among a clinical population of six adolescents. All participants met criteria for the proposed diagnosis of NSSI found in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). Nine central themes emerged as significant: identification with an alternative to the dominant culture, inhibition of affect, difficulty managing conflict, suicidality, negative emotionality, feeling numb, negative internal monologue, self-harm as a temporary coping skill, and maternal conflict. The affect regulation function was clearly supported, as adolescents demonstrated low distress tolerance, poor affect regulation skills, and utilized NSSI to obtain temporary emotional relief. Results indicate that adolescent self-injurers are avoidant, as they suppress both positive and negative emotionality, and actively avoid initiating, managing, or addressing conflict. Findings revealed a need for clinical treatment to address the underlying affective disturbances associated with the behavior.

Committee: Steven Kadin PhD (Committee Chair); Allen Bishop PhD (Committee Member); E. David Klonsky PhD (Other) Subjects: Clinical Psychology

PHD, Kent State University, 2014, College of Arts and Sciences / Department of Psychological Sciences

Although a considerable body of research has assessed the antecedents and consequences of binge episodes among individuals with Bulimia Nervosa (BN), the maintaining mechanisms of bulimic symptomatology have yet to be fully understood. Furthermore, it is unclear how the daily symptoms of individuals with Purging Disorder (PD) compare to BN. The present study examined the cognitions, emotions, and eating behaviors of individuals with bulimic spectrum disorders and controls using Ecological Momentary Assessment methodology. A sample of 42 women with Bulimic Spectrum disorders (BN: n=33; PD: n=9) and controls (n=31) completed daily diary assessments on mobile devices for 10 days. Results indicated that individuals with BN reported more objective binge episodes (OBEs) than those with PD and controls, yet those with BN and PD did not differ in the frequency of subjective binge episodes (SBEs). Negative affect was predictive of cognitive, yet not behavioral, aspects of dietary restriction, and increases in negative affect and guilt were predictive of OBEs, but not SBEs. Contrary to the affect regulation model, binge episodes did not effectively regulate affect. Furthermore, affect lability was associated with higher levels of eating psychopathology and OBE frequencies. Whereas OBEs predicted subsequent cognitive restraint, neither OBEs nor SBEs predicted post-eating body dissatisfaction, increased negative affect or guilt, or thoughts of exercise or purging. Findings highlight the differential relationships between eating psychopathology, cognitive and behavioral aspects of dietary restriction, and affective changes among individuals with BN and PD, as well as the similarities and differences in BN and PD symptomatology.

Committee: Janis Crowther (Advisor); Joel Hughes (Committee Member); Jeffery Ciesla (Committee Member); Manfred Van Dulmen (Committee Member); Richard Adams (Committee Member); Susan Roxburgh (Committee Member) Subjects: Clinical Psychology; Health; Mental Health; Psychology

MA, Kent State University, 2015, College of Arts and Sciences / Department of Psychological Sciences

The act of labeling and differentiating emotional experiences is associated with both adaptive functioning under stress and psychological well-being, and likely relies on higher order elaborative processing. The experience of anxiety in response to real or perceived threat is thought to reduce this type of processing, instead placing emphasis on more automatic encoding in order to prepare the individual to respond appropriately to the aforementioned threat. We hypothesized that individuals higher in trait anxiety, who are characterized as having a bias toward threat and difficulty disengaging from it once detected, would therefore have difficulty differentiating their affective experiences. We recruited 222 college students and had them complete both self-report measures of trait anxiety and depression symptoms, followed by an emotion modulation task made up of six emotionally evocative videos during which participants indicated how they were feeling by rating affect terms at the end of each clip. We calculated within-person average inter-item correlations (AICs) between affect terms to assess differentiation of both negative and positive affect across the task. As hypothesized, individuals higher in trait anxiety had lower levels of negative (but not positive) affect differentiation, even after controlling for age, gender, undergraduate status, and depression symptoms. Our results suggest that those who are higher in trait anxiety have more trouble differentiating their negative affective experiences from one another. In turn, these individuals may not reap the aforementioned benefits associated with differentiation.

Committee: Karin Coifman (Advisor); David Fresco (Committee Member); John Updegraff (Committee Member); Christopher Flessner (Committee Member) Subjects: Clinical Psychology; Psychology

Master of Arts, University of Toledo, 2014, Psychology

Descriptive, injunctive, and personal norms impact emotions, thoughts, and behaviors in a variety of contexts (e.g., alcohol consumption, recycling). However, no single experimental study has simultaneously 1) compared the relative impact of all three types of norms, 2) examined the impact of these norms in consumer-related domains, and 3) explored moderators of normative influence. In the current research, we utilized a 4 (norm type: descriptive, injunctive, personal, or no-norm control) X 2 (self-regulatory capacity: high or low) between-subjects factorial design to examine the impact of normative messages and self-regulatory capacity in a consumer-based evaluative context. Participants participated in a study ostensibly involving student preferences and decisions about a particular set of stimulus products (i.e., artworks), and completed measures assessing their evaluations and recommendations of, intentions toward, and willingness to pay for the artworks. Participants with low self-regulatory capacity had more favorable ratings of the artworks, but there were no effects of norm type or of the norm type X self-regulatory capacity interaction. Possible explanations and implications are discussed.

Committee: Jason Rose (Advisor); Andrew Geers (Committee Member); John Jasper (Committee Member) Subjects: Behavioral Sciences; Psychology; Social Psychology

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2014, Philosophy

Although the idea that emotions can be rational has come to be widely accepted by philosophers, theories of emotional rationality are generally wedded to particular theories about the nature of emotions. In contrast, I develop a theory of emotional rationality that is applicable to a broad range of theories of emotions in both psychology and philosophy. Emotional rationality is excellence in exercising one's emotional capacities in one's practical endeavors. From this definition of emotional rationality, I develop some rationality assessments of agents with respect to their emotions. The project is organized around three assessments: warrant, imprudence, and acumen. Emotion theorists commonly discuss three distinct static emotion assessments (fit, warrant, and benefit); I call this group, the traditional assessments. For each of these assessments, emotion theorists have claimed that it is an assessment of rationality. Roughly, an agent's emotion is (i) fitting in a certain situation if the emotion corresponds to the relevant features of her situation, (ii) warranted in a certain situation if she has evidence that for the fittingness of the emotion, and (iii) beneficial in a certain situation if the emotion contributes to her well-being. I argue that none of the traditional assessments, as commonly understood, count as a rationality assessment. One problem with thinking that warranted emotions are rational is that an agent's emotion may be accidentally warranted. In response, I introduce warrant*; roughly, an agent's emotion is warranted* if the agent has evidence for the fittingness of the emotion and the emotion is grounded in that evidence in the right way. I introduce the assessment of imprudence in Chapter Three. An agent is imprudent with respect to a pattern of emotion tokens of the same emotion type felt in similar situations roughly if the agent fails to take steps to regulate her emotion tokens properly in light of actual relevant feedback providing e (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Justin D'Arms (Advisor); William Cunningham (Committee Member); Richard Samuels (Committee Member); Sigrun Svavarsdottir (Committee Member) Subjects: Philosophy

Master of Science, The Ohio State University, 2014, Human Ecology: Human Development and Family Science

This study tested a model of children's emotionality as a moderator of the links between maternal emotion-related socialization and depressive symptoms and child emotion regulation. Participants were 129 mother-preschooler dyads. Child affect and emotion regulation were assessed observationally during a laboratory mood induction task, and were factorized into 3 categories: passive soothing, negative focus on distress, and positive engagement. Hierarchical linear regression models indicated that child positive emotionality moderated the links between maternal emotion-related socialization and depressive symptoms and child emotion regulation; whereas child negative emotionality moderated the links between maternal support and child emotion regulation. Findings suggest a transactional perspective to understand the effects of both child characteristics and familial influence on child emotion regulation.

Committee: Xin Feng (Advisor); Natasha Slesnick (Committee Member); Sarah Schoppe-Sullivan (Committee Member) Subjects: Developmental Psychology

Doctor of Philosophy, University of Toledo, 2010, Psychology

According to the goal priority hypothesis (Geers, Wellman, & Lassiter, 2009), dispositional optimists outperform dispositional pessimists when pursuing valued and important goals. Although recent studies have supported this hypothesis, the results have been limited to conscious goal pursuit. The current research argues that distinguishing between conscious and nonconscious goal pursuit is critical when considering the cognitive and behavioral engagement of optimists and pessimists. Specifically, it is proposed that this advantage of optimists over pessimists in goal pursuit is largely confined to conscious goals. Consistent with the behavioral self-regulation model (Carver & Scheier, 1998), it is argued that negative affect arising from pursuit of difficult conscious goals leads one to reassess the probability of goal obtainment. As pessimists anticipate a low likelihood of success, this negative affect leads to goal disengagement (a threat response). As optimists anticipate a high likelihood of success, this negative affect leads to goal reengagement with increased effort (a challenge response). Importantly, because nonconscious goal pursuit produces affect that is not attributable to a conscious source, the negative affect generated by nonconscious goal pursuit should not lead to the same goal reassessment that leads pessimists to disengage from goals more readily than optimists.Three studies examined the conditions under which pessimists may approach, equal, or even surpass the performance of optimists. In the Pilot Study, it was shown that pessimists pursuing a nonconscious goal outperformed pessimists not pursuing a nonconscious goal, as well as outperforming optimists. In Study 1, it was predicted that optimists would outperform pessimists when pursuing a conscious goal, but not when pursuing a nonconscious goal. It was also predicted that, in the conscious goal condition, negative affect would relate to increased performance for optimists and decreased perfor (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Andrew L. Geers PhD (Committee Chair); John D. Jasper PhD (Committee Member); Gregory J. Meyer PhD (Committee Member); Kamala London PhD (Committee Member); Suzanne Helfer PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Personality; Social Psychology