Bachelor of Arts, Wittenberg University, 2023, Psychology

• Bullshit is an empty, and misleading form of communication that is a ubiquitous component of our society. Bullshit can be found in many areas including politics, the workplace, advertisements, and social media. Bullshit's prevalent usage and impact has led to the development of research on bullshit. Previous research has found multiple types of bullshit and has looked to relate it to various things such as cognitive ability, spreading of false news, and personality traits. Expanding upon this research, this present study examines the correlations between participant's frequency of bullshit transmission and receptivity to bullshit of both types of bullshit to the two (grandiose and vulnerable narcissism) and three-factor model of narcissism (antagonism, agentic extraversion, and narcissistic neuroticism). We hypothesized that those who are higher in narcissistic traits that encourage one to be flashy and impressive will positively associate to transmission of persuasive bullshit and those high in narcistic traits that encourage avoiding criticism will positively associate with transmission of evasive bullshit. Furthermore, we expect narcissist traits that are more skeptical of the world to negatively relate to bullshit receptivity. The findings show a positive association between narcissism antagonism and persuasive and evasive bullshit as well as agentic extraversion and persuasive bullshit. Results also showed narcissistic neuroticism was positively related to both persuasive and evasive bullshit. This study helps provide a base for the association between the types of bullshit and components of narcissism and gives further insight on how bullshit utilization is related to desires and motivations of different personality traits.

Committee: William Davis (Advisor) Subjects: Behavioral Psychology; Clinical Psychology; Personality; Personality Psychology; Psychology; Social Psychology

Honors Theses, Ohio Dominican University, 2022, Honors Theses

The study examines male and female athletes' perception of team cohesion, feelings of connection to their university, and their level of extraversion, and how those factors impact athletes' performance. Forty-two student athletes from group and individual sports completed measures of cohesion and connection to university as predictors of end-of-season statistics. Analyses controlled for extraversion, which was found to be predictive of cohesion and connection. No combination of factors predicted performance; however, socialization tactics positively predicted group cohesion and connection to university. Veteran athletes' sharing task-related information, planning group-wide social events outside of practice, and coaches communicating with athletes about their specific role within the team were all positively correlated with an athletes' feelings of connection and gratitude towards their university. Coaches have a large role in the development of cohesion within their team, and they should make that one of their priorities.

Committee: John Marazita Dr. (Advisor); Kristall Day Dr. (Other); Kathleen Gorman-Ezell Dr. (Other) Subjects: Psychology

Master of Arts in Psychology, Cleveland State University, 2021, College of Sciences and Health Professions

Previous job search research suggests a large proportion of jobs are acquired through contacting other people (i.e., networking; Granovetter, 1995). In recent years, research on networking has focused on determining the antecedents of the job search strategy (e.g., Wanberg et al., 2000). This study examined various perceived characteristics of networking, which included job seeker perceptions of autonomy, customizability, and social cost, as antecedents of networking intensity. In addition, this study examined extraversion, a personality trait that is predictive of networking behavior, as a moderator of the relationships between the perceived characteristics of networking and networking intensity. Results of this study have indicated that job seeker perceptions of autonomy, customizability, and social cost do not interact with extraversion for the prediction of networking intensity. However, job seeker perceptions of social cost were found to predict networking intensity. Additionally, job seeker perceptions of autonomy positively correlate with extraversion and networking comfort, which are predictors of networking intensity.

Committee: Michael Horvath (Committee Chair); Matthew Nordlund (Committee Member); Ben Baran (Committee Member) Subjects: Organizational Behavior; Psychology

Master of Arts (M.A.), University of Dayton, 2020, Psychology, General

Online communication both positively and negatively correlates with well-being. Dispositional and behavioral moderators have been tested to resolve this discrepancy, but findings have been equivocal. This study proposed and tested a different candidate individual differences construct, online relatedness (OLR), that could predict variation in well-being outcomes in the context of two distinct online social platforms: social network sites (SNS) and forums. One-hundred ninety-seven forum and SNS users (88 women; age range: 19-65) who were recruited from Amazon Mechanical Turk completed measures of well-being, their relatedness to others through their social platform and in general, and online social platform frequency of use. Bivariate correlations suggested that OLR is related to well-being. Hierarchical regressions suggested that OLR explains an additionally significant amount of variance in well-being of SNS users. Mediational analyses suggested that forum OLR explains the relation between forum usage and wellbeing. Results were discussed within a performative versus dialogical conceptualization of online social platforms.

Committee: Jack Bauer (Committee Chair); Erin O'Mara (Committee Member); Benjamin Kunz (Committee Member) Subjects: Psychology

Master of Science (MS), Wright State University, 2020, Human Factors and Industrial/Organizational Psychology MS

Curmudgeon personality, the extent to which a person dislikes most things, has recently received increased attention from researchers. Existing research has focused on either the relationships between curmudgeon personality and Big Five personality factors (e.g., extraversion, agreeableness) or curmudgeon personality and various workplace outcomes (e.g., job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and turnover intention). The current research examined whether curmudgeon personality and other personality traits (i.e., extraversion and emotional expressiveness) interact with each other to influence the quality of individuals' social relationships at work. Analyses using an MTurk dataset (N = 529) showed some evidence of these interaction effects though some directions of these interactive effects were interesting and inconsistent with our predictions. These findings extend the existing literature by examining curmudgeon personality's interactions with other personality traits and by examining outcome variables not previously examined within the curmudgeon personality literature.

Committee: Nathan A. Bowling Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Corey E. Miller Ph.D. (Committee Member); David M. LaHuis Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Management; Organizational Behavior; Personality Psychology; Psychology

MA, Kent State University, 2019, College of Arts and Sciences / Department of Psychological Sciences

Avoidance behaviors are central to the maintenance of anxiety disorders. Social avoidance and substance use are two distinct avoidance behaviors frequently used to manage anxiety and worry associated with social anxiety. However, little is known about why an individual with social anxiety may opt to use one avoidance behavior over the other. One key factor which could influence this behavioral choice is the personality dimension of extraversion. The present study sought to fill this gap in the literature by examining the relationship between social anxiety and substance use and social avoidance, while also considering the potential moderating role of extraversion. A sample of 195 college students completed self-report measures of social anxiety and extraversion and a 10-day experience sampling diary assessing the frequency of engaging in substance use and social avoidance. Results from the study indicate that higher levels of social anxiety increased the probability of future social avoidance and future substance use. Although there was no significant moderation of extraversion on social anxiety and social avoidance; results indicated that extraversion did moderate social anxiety and substance use. Overall, the findings suggest that extraversion could be a key factor predicting behavioral choices in individuals with social anxiety and therefore should be considered further in research and during treatment.

Committee: Karin Coifman (Advisor); Jeffrey Ceisla (Committee Member); John Updegraff (Committee Member) Subjects: Psychology

Master of Applied Communication Theory and Methodology, Cleveland State University, 2018, College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences

With the rise of technology it becomes important to measure and analyze the communication patterns that are emerging from these changes. Technologies open up different communication patterns for individuals to use (Tomas & Carlson 2015; Walther, 1996; Wei & Leung, 1999). Thus, this study develops the “ASOHIO” perspective, which incorporates a range of new and old communication patterns, online communication, offline communication, synchronous communication, asynchronous communication, interpersonal communication, and hyperpersonal communication. This work also looks to extend the hyperpersonal model greatly by developing an actual multi-item scale to measure the construct at the individual level. Walther's (1996) basic description of hyperpersonal communication breaks down that there are a lack of non-verbal cues, a sense of strategic communication, and computer-mediated communication. This study takes things a step further, with a breakdown of the components of hyperpersonal taking into account current technologies, as well as using Goffman's “presentation of everyday self“ and “interaction ritual” to help define what hyperpersonal could really mean in the current hybrid communication environment.

Committee: Kimberly Neuendorf Dr. (Committee Chair); Guowei Jian Dr. (Committee Member); Leo Jeffres Dr. (Committee Member) Subjects: Communication

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

People living with bipolar disorder have vastly different presentations and experiences despite sharing a common diagnosis. While some research has explored the role of temperament in these different presentations (Azorin, Adida, & Belzeaux, 2015; Graham, Parker, Breakspear, & Mitchell, 2015; Iasevoli et al., 2013), little is currently known about whether individuals' levels of introversion or extraversion are related to the symptoms they experience or their general way of understanding their experiences with bipolar disorder. For this study, participants were asked to complete an online survey that measured their level of extraversion, their symptoms of mania, and background information concerning their diagnosis and treatment history. Participants were also asked to complete an open-ended questionnaire about their subjective experiences with bipolar disorder. This study used a qualitative design. Qualitative data collected from three responses were analyzed using Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) in order to gain a better understanding of how introverted and extraverted individuals with bipolar disorder make sense of their experiences. Several major clusters of themes were identified from the participants' descriptions of their experiences: (a) common symptoms, (b) atypical experiences, (c) initial awareness of manic episode, (d) negative effects of symptoms, (e) positive experiences of symptoms, (f) seeking support, (g) most and least helpful coping mechanisms, and (h) effect on identity. While several of their experiences overlapped, some differences were noted in how participants of varying levels of extraversion described their experiences within each theme.

Committee: Martha Straus PhD (Committee Chair); Vincent Pignatiello PsyD (Committee Member); Christine Chamberlin PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Clinical Psychology

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

Video game research has expanded greatly in recent decades, fueled partly by concerns that video game content affects real-word behaviors and experiences. Despite the preponderance of research on the effects of video game content on various outcomes, there are still areas left to be explored. For example, while the American Psychological Association has concluded that violent video game content serves as a risk factor for real-life aggression, the association has also recommended the pursuit of additional research on alternative variables that may influence the relationship between video game content and outcomes (APA Task Force on Violent Media, 2015). The present study was designed to explore whether personality dimensions have a moderating effect on the relationship between video game content and quality of life (QoL). Video game content was measured using content descriptors (i.e., content warnings) assigned to a participant-reported game by the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB). QoL was measured using the World Health Organization's Quality of Life-Brief measure, and personality was assessed using the International Personality Item Pool Representation of the Revised Neuroticism-Extraversion-Openness Personality Inventory. Based on existing research support for four personality dimensions as potential moderator variables, it was hypothesized that conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism would moderate the relationship between video game content and QoL. Moderated multiple regression analyses were conducted to test this hypothesis. Results found significant main effects between personality dimensions and QoL but failed to find significant effects of video game content, including violent content, on QoL scores. In addition, the study's hypothesis, that personality dimensions moderate the relationship between video game content and QoL, was not supported. Study limitations, implications for clinicians, and directions for future resea (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: George Tremblay PhD (Committee Chair); Jim Graves PhD (Committee Member); David Junno PsyD (Committee Member) Subjects: Clinical Psychology; Psychology

Ph.D., Antioch University, 2016, Leadership and Change

Leadership scholar-practitioners must create a more sustainable, diverse, and equitable future, fostering emergence and development of resilient, competent leaders, including those who may have been previously overlooked. Leadership studies, particularly those situated in early trait and behavior paradigms, have long privileged extraverted leaders as ideal. The scholarly conversation is limited on introverted leaders; moreover, most of that literature depicts introversion as either a pathological construct associated with shyness and social anxiety, or includes introversion only by omission, as a state of deficit-of-extraversion. This study instead began with positive inquiry, framing introversion as a positive individual difference, and explored the lived experiences of introverted leaders. This research coalesced perspectives from positive psychology, positive identity at work, and positive organizational scholarship to inquire into introversion as a positive leadership construct. In this constructivist grounded theory study, leaders who identified as introverts and who reported introversion typology on the Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI®) were asked to reflect on their experiences of introversion, leadership identity development, and professional and personal pursuits. From the amassed data emerged three theoretical propositions. First, enacting leadership has significant costs for an introverted leader's energy and identity. Second, an introverted leader must adopt a conscious learning orientation to leadership development, including experimentation with possible leader identities. Third, effective introverted leadership is dependent on understanding the powerful intersectionality of introversion, relationship, and identity. This dissertation is available in open access at AURA, http://aura.antioch.edu/ and OhioLink ETD Center, https://etd.ohiolink.edu/etd

Committee: Elizabeth Holloway PhD (Committee Chair); Laura Morgan Roberts PhD (Committee Member); Harriet Schwartz PhD (Committee Member); Sandie Turner PhD (Other) Subjects: Higher Education Administration; Organization Theory; Organizational Behavior; Personality; Personality Psychology; Social Research

PhD, University of Cincinnati, 2008, Arts and Sciences : Psychology

Within the context of a larger investigation of innovation training effectiveness in a multinational Fortune 500 company, this study considered how Five Factor Model (FFM; Digman, 1990) personality traits influence group climate through participation in a novel, process-oriented, group-based approach to management training. Data were collected from 301 middle-management employees who participated in week-long, residential training programs within the company's research and development division. Personality traits were defined as obtained scores on the Five Factor Mini-Marker (Saucier, 1994). Group climate was measured at two time points with the Group Climate Questionnaire - Short Form (MacKenzie, 1983).The study was multilevel in nature. At both individual and group levels of analysis, Openness to Experience (Openness) was expected to be positively related to participant group climate ratings of engagement. It was expected that Agreeableness would predict increased engagement at both individual and group levels. At the group level, Conscientiousness was expected to be associated with increased conflict. Multilevel models were developed to test the study's hypotheses. None of the hypotheses were supported. A significant, positive influence of initial group-level engagement was observed, indicating that an individual participant's group cohesion rating increased as the other members of the group rated the initial session's group climate as more cohesive. Likewise, higher group-level engagement ratings predicted higher individual-level cohesion ratings following the final group meetings. A significant interaction was observed between individual participants' Openness scores and initial group-level engagement ratings. When other members of the group rated the climate as less cohesive, individuals scoring higher on Openness rated the group as more cohesive than members scoring lower on Openness. Post-hoc analyses revealed a significant interaction between individuals' (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Steven Howe PhD (Committee Chair); Edward Klein PhD (Committee Co-Chair); David Lundgren PhD (Committee Member); Paula Shear PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Adult Education; Behaviorial Sciences; Business Community; Business Education; Education; Educational Evaluation; Educational Psychology; Experiments; Higher Education; Inservice Training; Management; Organization Theory; Organizational Behavior; Personal relationship

Doctor of Education (Ed.D.), Bowling Green State University, 2008, Leadership Studies

The purpose of the present study was to explore relationships between personality and engagement among human services professionals and paraprofessionals. In particular, the present study investigated relationships between the five factor model of personality (FFM) and William Kahn's model of employee engagement encompassing physical (energy, effort), emotional (enthusiasm, pride), and cognitive (concentration, focus) components. The independent variables were five personality traits: need for stability (tolerance to stress, tendency to worry), extraversion (sociability, enthusiasm, energy), originality (imagination, complexity, tolerance to “newness”), accommodation (service orientation, comfort with “not having one's way”), and consolidation (focus, concentration, discipline). These traits were measured by the WorkPlace Big Five ProFile™ or WPB5 (Howard and Howard, 2001). The dependent variable was employee engagement as measured by Bruce Rich's (2006) Job Engagement Survey (JES).The present study sought to answer the following four questions: a) What is the strength and direction of the relationships between the five factors of personality and employee engagement, b) what is the combination of personality trait scores that best predicts engagement, c) what are the differences in employee engagement across the personalities of employees in the three organizations, and d) what are the differences in employee engagement across the personalities and between the paraprofessionals and professionals. A single survey combining the WPB5 and the JES questions was electronically mailed to 890 human services professionals employed by three social services agencies in the Midwest of the United States. A total of 420 surveys were returned, with an overall response rate of 47 percent. The results of the present study suggested that two personality traits are significant predictors of engagement: extraversion and consolidation. These two traits were also positively correlate (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Patrick Pauken (Advisor); Janet Hartley (Committee Member); Gregg Brownell (Committee Member); Craig Mertler (Committee Member); Lillian Schumacher (Committee Member) Subjects: Business Community; Business Education; Education; Management; Personality; Psychology; Social Work