A cognitive-behavioural theory (CBT) has been put forth to explain hypochondriasis and less extreme forms of health anxiety (Warwick & Salkovskis, 1990). The extent to which less extreme forms of health anxiety are relevant for understanding illness behaviour remains unclear, however. Further, the independence of health anxiety from a more general construct of negative affectivity, as well as response styles is not known. The CBT of health anxiety predicts that in response to illness information health anxious individuals will show a characteristic cognitive (e.g., attend to and misinterpret information) and behavioural (e.g., avoidance and reassurance seeking) response. Although the predictions are supported by clinical observations, rigorous and systematic contrasts of health anxious and non-health anxious individuals to the same objective health related information have not yet been carried out. Further, there are a number of additional issues that need to be clarified with respect to the theory, including: (a) Are there additional cognitive and behavioural responses involved in health anxiety not predicted by the CBT?; (b) Are health anxious individuals deficient in there use of certain adaptive responses to illness information?; and (c) Are the cognitive and behavioural responses shown by health anxious individuals moderated under certain circumstances? In the present study, students scoring either within normal or nonclinically high ranges on a measure of health anxiety underwent a physiological test ostensibly examining risk for medical complications and were randomly assigned to receive positive, negative, or ambiguous test results. They then underwent a cold pressor task ostensibly to examine physiological activity and were asked questions tapping their responses to the diagnostic information and painful procedure. They were also judged for facial expressiveness. Unmistakable support was found for a dysfunctional cognitive (e.g., negative interpretational focus) and behavioural (e.g., reassurance seeking) response style among health anxious individuals. Little support was found for either cognitive or behavioural avoidance in health anxiety. Not anticipated by the CBT, as time went on health anxious individuals became more expressive of their pain; this may have important implications, since increased expressiveness could result in an increase in the felt emotional experience. Adding to the CBT, evidence was found to suggest that health anxious individuals may have a deficit or be deficient in their use of a positive concrete somatic monitoring strategy. Finally, the results suggested that there are statistically and clinically significant differences among nonclinically health anxious individuals and normals that can not be accounted for by differences in negative affectivity or response styles.

A number of investigations have been conducted to examine social cognition and psychopathology among adolescents, yet little is known about the social cognitive reasoning of adolescents identified as having severe behavioral disorders. The purpose of the present study was to explore the social cognitive reasoning of adolescent boys with behavioral disorders in comparison to their peers without behavioral disorders. Group differences were examined with respect to epistemic reasoning and the dimensions of adolescent egocentrism. In addition, the relation between social cognition and social relationships was investigated. Finally, the relation between social cognition and psychopathology was explored. Thirty-one adolescent boys with behavioral disorders and 32 of their peers without behavioral disorders (matched forage, race, and SES) participated in the study. All participants were individually administered measures designed to assess epistemic reasoning, imaginary audience and personal fable ideation (i.e., invulnerability, omnipotence, personal uniqueness), and personal-intimacy and groupintegration with peers and family. In addition, boys with behavioral disorders completed a measure of internalizing, externalizing, and total problem behaviors. Teacher-ratings of problem behaviors were also completed for each participant in the study. Results revealed that adolescent boys with behavioral disorders were lower in epistemic reasoning than were adolescent boys without behavioral disorders. Groups were not found to differ with respect to imaginary audience or personal fable ideation. For boys with behavioral disorders, no relation was found between social cognition and social relationships. In contrast, for boys without behavioral disorders, personal uniqueness was negatively related to group-integration with peers and omnipotence was positively related to group-integration with family. Social cognitive reasoning was found to predict self-reported problem behaviors for boys with behavioral disorders and teacher-re ported problem behaviors for boys without behavioral disorders. Overall, these results suggest the importance of epistemic reasoning in understanding the relation between social cognition and psychopathology.

The problem of the study was to determine the relationship of breast cancer prevention attitudes, level of body satisfaction, family history of breast cancer, and prior education about breast self-examination (BSE) to the performance of BSE by undergraduate college females. The participants in the study were 356 female college students enrolled in HSC 160, Fundamentals of Human Health, at Ball State University during the spring semester of 2001. Using a cross-sectional data collection process, participants completed a survey instrument measuring the variables of the study.The data were analyzed using both univariate and bivariate statistics. Descriptive and inferential statistical analyses were used to determine 1) the relationship between the level of performance of BSE among college females and their breast cancer prevention attitudes, 2) the relationship between college females' body dissatisfaction and their level of performance of BSE, 3) the association between the level of performance of BSE and family history of breast cancer, and 4) the association between the performance of BSE and prior education concerning BSE.The results indicated that there was a significant association between the performance of BSE and having prior knowledge concerning BSE, and with having a positive or negative breast cancer prevention attitude. No significant associations were found between the performance of BSE and having a family history of medical problems concerning the breasts, or with the subject's level of body dissatisfaction. / Department of Physiology and Health Science

This study of 79 male and 139 female university students investigated organizational recovery efforts following customer dissatisfaction. Rather than exploring recovery efforts that occur following a service failure, this study examined proactive versus reactive recovery efforts to determine implications for customer service. The purpose of this study was to determine ways in which to prevent a dissatisfying consumer experience from concluding as a complete service failure. This research extended the previous investigations of service recovery by Webster and Sundaram (1998) and Smith, Bolton, and Wagner (1999).A 4 x 3 factorial design employed four service recovery efforts and three service industries. Customer satisfaction and customer loyalty served as the primary dependent variables. Results supported the hypothesis that the use of communication before a dissatisfying service event concludes increases both customer satisfaction and customer loyalty. The results also provided evidence that customer satisfaction and customer loyalty are positively correlated. Combination recovery efforts and implications are discussed. / Department of Counseling Psychology and Guidance Services

This thesis consists of two case studies which examine how Greenpeace, an independent global environmental campaigning organization, targeted major multinational corporations, McDonald’s and Unilever, in attempt to stop destructive agricultural processes in the developing world. This multiple case study examined how these corporations responded to activist pressure and offers prescriptive insight on how corporations can turn criticism in to an opportunity to achieve mutually beneficial outcomes when responding to activist pressure. These case studies will suggest that if public relations practitioners can create a dialogue with activists publics through two-way communication the profession of public relations can be a guiding force for creating more sustainable business practices, fostering corporate social and environmental responsibility, and creating positive social change. This paper examined recent literature on changing attitudes toward environmental issues, the credibility of corporate sustainability, and symmetrical communication. By studying the use of two-way dialogue in the practice of corporate communications with environmental activist organizations, these case studies will help to test the real world validity of theoretical propositions about symmetrical communication (L. Grunig 1992). Rather than directing its campaigns toward Cargill and other agriculture suppliers, Greenpeace chose to focus their efforts on McDonald’s and Unilever, two large highly visible international corporations using their products. Both companies chose to work with Greenpeace, pressured their suppliers to change their environmental policies, and worked toward creating moratoriums to end deforestation. / Department of Journalism

The purpose of this study was to examine the pre and post scores of literacy surveys to determine if there is a differential improvement in the literacy achievement of kindergarten students who attend one of three kindergarten programs: full-day, alternate-day, and half-day. The sample of this study consisted of 1530 kindergarten students enrolled in a centralized kindergarten program during the 2000-2001 and the 2001-2002 school years. Only the scores of the 1530 students who had both pre and post scores were included in the study. The hypothesis was studied at the .05 level of significance.The scores of 1530 students were studied at the pre and post level in two literacy skill areas, letter identification and concepts about print. The findings of the study were:1. There was a significant difference in the increase in student achievement of letter identification between alternate-day and half-day programs, with students in half-day making more gains.2. There was no significant difference in the increase in student achievement of letter identification between alternate-day and full-day programs.3. There was a significant difference in the increase in student achievement of concepts about print (CAP) between alternate-day and full-day, with students in full-day making more gains.4. There was no significant difference in the increase in student achievement of concepts about print between alternate-day and half-day programs.Overall, the findings indicate that students in the alternate-day program achieved the lowest gains in Letter Identification and concepts about print of the three kindergarten programs. / Department of Elementary Education

The purposes of this study were to (1) identify major problems faced by the youth who, in transition from school to work, have resorted to anti-social behavior and are now inmates of Deuel Vocational Institution, (2) identify the behavioral patterns of youth having employment problems that resulted in incarceration within our penal system, (3) identify a profile of students leaving school who have resorted to anti-social behavior, as indicated by their incarceration within Deuel Vocational Institution, and (4) identify changes in the existing educational programs to aid youth in their transition from school to work. Procedures Thirty-five randomly selected inmates between the ages of 18 and 30 were in the sample for the case studies. Each inmate was interviewed using a directed interview instrument and allowed to express his own opinions regarding school and work. The inmate record jackets were searched to verify the data given in the interview, also for probable causes of anti-social behavior, employment history, family background and educational status. Findings The first part identified drugs as the most common link to antisocial behavior. In every case involving a youth indulging in the use of "reds" and alcohol, the crime was of the following nature: the smashing of a man's head with a concrete water meter cover; the apparently motiveless shooting of a man walking on a beach; the clubbing of a woman because "she called me a son of a bitch." In each case involving a youth using heroin, the anti-social behavior was related to the procurement of the money necessary to support a habit costing up to one hundred fifty dollars per day. The heroin addict is a thief, a robber or a drug dealer. The drug user seemed to feel he could not support his habit through regular employment or have the time needed to use the drugs. There were no cases of drug addicts gainfully employed. Every case investigated showed the inmate to be predominantly self-centered, There were no cases in which the inmate, either in his own statement about the crime or at any time during incarceration, stated that he felt concern for the victim or the relatives of the victim, A major portion of the inmates' records indicated antisocia1. behavior at an early age: the youngest was arrested at the age of nine and 90 percent were arrested before the age of 16. Most cases included two arrests before the inmate had left school. Thirty seven percent of the youth were involved in organized gangs. The gangs protected and provided for their members through a myriad of anti-social crimes. Four cases were involved in gang murders related to fights and recruitment drives. "Hanging out, standing around on the street or in the park was reported by many of the cases. "Hanging out" is a form of unstructured gang promoting drugs, alcohol and a philosophy that excludes working--or the slang term for working, "snapping"--to provide subsistence. Conclusions The following conclusions were derived from this study: (1) The major problems faced by the inmates in transition from school to work were developed before the age of 16. (2) The major factors relating to the inmates' anti-social behavior had very little to do with their education. (3) A major portion of those youth inclined toward anti-social behavior did not want to, and would not, work. (4) Those youth inclined toward anti-social behavior that did desire work were successfully employed at the time of the crime. (5) Anti-social behavior was not related to the inmates' transition from school to work. / Graduation date: 1977

Purpose: To develop and test the validity and reliability of the Life Sustaining Treatment Attitude Questionnaire (LSTAQ), a survey instrument to elicit family member decision-maker attitudes toward life sustaining treatments for the critically ill at end of life. Background: Attitudes toward life sustaining treatments (LST) have been shown to influence decision-making at end of life (EOL). A reliable and valid tool to elicit attitudes specifically from family member decision-makers may help healthcare professionals facilitate decision-making during serious illness at end of life. Methods: A 33-item LSTAQ instrument was tested in 170 adults. Construct validity was evaluated by exploratory factor analysis. Correlations established convergent and discriminant validity. Reliability testing for internal consistency was assessed by Cronbach's alpha and corrected split half reliability coefficients. All procedures were done with Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS version 18) software (SPSS Inc., Chicago, 111). Results: A 30-item final LSTAQ tool was derived from this study. Principal components factor analysis extracted six factors explaining 62.7% of variance. Correlations with a similar tool supported convergence (r = .72, ? <.01). Discriminant validity was confirmed by the absence of significant correlation with the dissimilar tool. LSTAQ internal consistency was good (Cronbach's alpha = .92). A preliminary exploration of differences in LSTAQ scores by ethnicity revealed a sampling size and distribution that was not optimally responsive to detection of ethnic differences. Conclusion: The LSTAQ is a reliable and valid tool to elicit LST attitudes specifically from family member decision-makers. The knowledge gained may help healthcare professionals promote interventions that facilitate family decision-making on life support for the ill relative at end of life. This might help reduce decision difficulties that cause preventable discomfort, unnecessary treatment and prolonged suffering for the terminally ill patient, as well as avoidable distress among family members involved in decisions for the sick relative.

Thesis (D.N.S.)--Boston University. Missing pages 47, 48 in numbering only. / This is an exploratory study involving the total psychotherapeutic approach within an institutional setting, where a psychiatric resident and a doctoral student in nursing combine their efforts over a period of two years in co-therapy with a borderline schizophrenic female patient. Graphs and tables of major events in time sequence are used to investigate the relationships between crisis situations on the ward, emotionally hazardous situations in the patient's personal life, emotionally hazardous situations in the psychotherapy setting, and critical events in the therapeutic team conflict, as they coincide with the disturbed behavior exhibited by the patient. Significant comments made by the treatment team, their advisors, and the patient are used to elaborate on the interactions and reactions [TRUNCATED]

The concern of this investigation is to explore a range of contemporary experiences of the Buddhist Meditation Practice of three South Africans of Western origin and to understand what factors were involved in their meditation practice. The number of people practising Buddhist Meditation in this country is gradually increasing and retreat centres for the meditation practice are emerging at various places in this country. A wide range of experiences accompany the meditation practice but very little research has been done amongst adults to study this phenomenon. Initially, in this study, the researcher practised Buddhist Meditation by participating in a meditation programme at the Buddhist Retreat in Ixopo in KwaZulu-Natal, for twenty-one days, to familiarize herself with the experiential knowledge of Buddhist Meditation. This was done by the researcher compiling a detailed diary of the meditative experiences and various themes were drawn from it. The data collected was compared and validated with contemporary research findings on Buddhist Meditation. This data was then used to formulate some of the questions for the semi-structured interviews that were conducted subsequently. Three adult subjects of Western origin, one male and two females were interviewed. Each subject had been meditating for an average period of ten years and can therefore be regarded as long-term meditators. They had practised Buddhist meditation in groups at various retreat centres around the country and also individually at home. The average age of the subjects was forty-five years, with the youngest subject being forty years old and the oldest being fifty-three years old. All three subjects were professional people employed at a university in South Africa and all were able to articulate their meditative experiences very well. Since the research project involved the study and exploration of the human experience related to Buddhist Meditation, it was more appropriate to use the phenomenological case-study approach rather than a measurement orientated procedure. The descriptive, phenomenological perspective is more appropriate for the elucidation of the data collected. It gives greater and clearer meaning to the human experience of meditation that is being investigated. The results of the study can best be summarised by stating that all three subjects undertook the Buddhist Meditation Practice because of their awareness of an existential conflict in their lives. Another reason for practising meditation was for personal development. The study also shows that a variety of effects of the meditation practice was experienced by the subjects. These included experiencing feelings of calmness, peace and relaxation, transformation of consciousness, heightened or increased awareness of certain external and internal stimuli, conscious of the changing nature of experience and experiences of objective consciousness.