<p>To assess how the plasticity of the face processing system changes with age, we trained 8-year-olds, 10-year-olds, and adults to differentiate 10 chimpanzee faces at the individual level for 3 days by having them watch a child-friendly training video. Their improvement from baseline was compared to that of age- and gender-matched controls who completed the pre- and post-tests, but did not complete training. Improvement did not vary across age: 8-year-olds, 10-year-olds, and adults all showed similar improvement in accuracy at discriminating the 10 chimpanzee faces on which they were trained. This improvement resulted in the reduction of the own-species bias after training. However, the benefits of training did not generalize to novel exemplars. In addition, participants from both the training and control groups showed a practice effect: their accuracy at discriminating both chimpanzee and human faces improved from pre- to post-test. Taken together, these results demonstrate that the face processing system is somewhat plastic between 8 years of age and adulthood and suggest that this plasticity remains stable throughout this period of development.</p> / Master of Science (MSc)

<p> Choosing specific implementational details is one of the most important aspects of creating and evaluating a model. In order to properly model cognitive processes, choices for these details must be made based on empirical research. Unfortunately, modelers are often forced to make decisions in the absence of relevant data. My work investigates the effects of these decisions. Looking at infant speech segmentation, I incorporate empirical research into model choices regarding model input, inference, and evaluation. First, I use experimental results to argue for syllables as a basic unit for early segmentation and show that the segmentation task is less difficult than previously thought. I then explore the role of various inference algorithms, each of which produces testable predictions. Lastly, I argue that standard methods of model evaluation make unrealistic assumptions about the goal of learning. Evaluating models in terms of their ability to support additional learning tasks shows that gold standard performance alone is an insufficient metric for measuring segmentation quality. In each of these three instances, I treat model design decisions as free parameters whose impact must be evaluated. By following this approach, future researchers can better gauge the success or failure of cognitive models. </p>

<p> Resilience research has done much to shift attention away from a deficit perspective in mental health theory and practice to a more strength-based approach. Despite often being cited as one of the populations most at risk for negative developmental outcomes, some Latino/a youth demonstrate resilience in the face of adversity. To further expand knowledge and understanding of resilience and protective processes among U.S.-born Latino/a youth, the current study sought to integrate existing findings related to protective factors identified in research associated with parenting as well as other areas of development with those being generated in the field of resilience with this population. Moreover, the present study reviewed research investigating resilience and protective factors/processes among U.S.-born Latino/a youth to determine if the results of these studies coincide with 4 themes previously identified by Berger Cardosa and Thompson in 2010 among immigrant Latino/a families. By and large, research included in the current review of the literature coincided with the 4 themes presented in the aforementioned study; namely, studies related to resilience and protective processes among U.S.-born Latino/a youth generally fell into the following 4 themes: individual characteristics, family strengths, cultural factors, and community supports. However, although many of the factors and protective processes involved in resilience are not unique to U.S.-born Latinos/as, what is specific to them is a nuanced manifestation of culture within the spaces they occupy as a result of nativity and generational status.</p>

No description available.

<p> Child maltreatment models view risk as a complex constellation of factors that emphasize parents&rsquo; trauma experiences and regulation processes. Attachment research has shown that mothers&rsquo; representations of childhood attachment and caregiving places their children at developmental risk. Studies to date have evaluated contributing factors separately, but little research considers mothers&rsquo; past and current experiences combined with relational trauma and familial regulation patterns. The current research adopted an integrated perspective using known maternal risk factors, and extended existing research in several unique ways by examining association with both adult trauma and childhood trauma; caregiving representations; pathological mourning; and capacity for emotion regulation. Seventy-five mothers with children between 19-74 months (40% boys) from diverse socio-economic and cultural backgrounds completed assessments of maltreatment risk, adult attachment, caregiving, relational trauma, parenting stress, and emotion regulation. Maternal representations of attachment were significantly related to risk, with unresolved mothers demonstrating the highest risk. There were significant positive associations between risk and relational trauma &ndash; both frequency and subjective distress with parents and partners. Helpless and heightened caregiving representations, parenting stress, and emotion regulation were also all significantly related to risk. This is the first study to consider maltreatment in the context of relational trauma as defined by Bowlby&rsquo;s (1980) model of pathological mourning. Risk scores were significantly greater for mothers classified in pathological mourning groups than other mothers. These findings punctuate the effects of problems associated with mourning attachment trauma on maternal regulatory capacities and parenting risk. Implications for infant mental health research and intervention are discussed.</p>

<p> This liberatory participatory action research involved a collaborative inquiry by unaccompanied minors from Central America. Using participatory action research and a liberatory approach, the study followed the youth as they investigated and shared their experiences in the systems of custody and legal protection that exist for unaccompanied minors in the United States. The research question, developed with the youth, was what is the experience of unaccompanied minors as they journey to the United States? Their collaborative inquiry is reflected in the mural that they created and their complementary written personal narratives. The co-creation of the mural and personal narratives developed their self-awareness as they discovered and understood their social placement. The research question also stimulated the participants&rsquo; consideration of taking action for social change through the sharing of their experience with the public. The work of these youth took place in the accompaniment of adults who witnessed the participants&rsquo; inquiry and shared knowledge with them about the journeys of other unaccompanied minors. </p><p> <i>Keywords:</i> accompaniment, collaborative inquiry, liberatory psychology, youth participatory action, unaccompanied minors.</p>

<p>Echo and Narcissus is one of the most famous myths in Western culture. This thesis explores the personal and archetypal significance of the character Echo. Topics addressed are early childhood trauma, affect regulation, borderline personality disorder, the relationship between self and other, and the theory of dialectics. Texts are examined from psychoanalysis, analytical psychology, existential philosophy, interpersonal neurobiology, and behavioral psychology. Using a hermeneutic approach to compare these texts, this paper tracks the archetypal dynamic of Echo and Narcissus over time and across a variety of disciplines. By looking for traces of Echo and Narcissus in multiple contexts, this thesis offers a fresh take on a familiar story. </p>

One in five youth suffer from mental illness, and even more experience subclinical symptoms, yet this pathologic focus ignores factors of mental health that contribute to flourishing. The vast majority of research on emotional intelligence and subjective well-being has been conducted on adults and little is known about their relationship to social-emotional adjustment in youth, particularly across socioeconomic status and age. The present study examined the social-emotional adjustment (using the BASC-SRP and CBCL-YSR), subjective well-being (PANAS-C and BMSLSS), and teacher-rated emotional intelligence (Pfeiffer Emotional Intelligence Scale, Revised – Teacher Report) in 136 youth (61% female) across age (mean = 12.6 years old) and socioeconomic status (32% low income). Regression and moderation analyses did not reveal any significant relationships or moderating influences between the constructs and variables. Suggestions for future research to consider separately examining the factors of emotional intelligence in relation to components of subjective well-being and facets of social-emotional adjustment are discussed. Future research is strongly encouraged to further investigate factors of mental health alongside maladjustment and sub-clinical mental illness in an effort to clarify the complex relationship between these variables and inform the development of efficacious prevention and intervention programs for youth. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Educational Psychology and Learning Systems in partial fulfillment of the in partial fulfillment of the Doctor of Philosophy. / Spring Semester 2016. / April 19, 2016. / Adjustment, Emotional Intelligence, Mental Health, Mental Illness, Well-being, Youth / Includes bibliographical references. / Steven I. Pfeiffer, Professor Directing Dissertation; Christopher Schatschneider, University Representative; Frances Prevatt, Committee Member; Jeannine Turner, Committee Member.

<p> Research on the negative impact of divorce on children&rsquo;s well-being is extensive and indicates that, on average, children from divorced families suffer from more adjustment difficulties than those whose families remained intact. However, few studies have been done on the specific long-term effects on individuals who experienced parental divorce when they were particularly young. Are there maladaptive behaviors, or other implications for adult adjustment? This study explores the adaptive functioning of a college population of young adults whose parents divorced between the ages of two and seven. Participants completed questionnaires on demographic information, current level of functioning, parental marital status, and survey items taken from reliable measures. The responses of participants who were between the ages of two and seven during time of divorce were compared to the responses of two control groups: individuals whose parents divorced after the age of seven, and individuals whose families remained intact. Results indicated that marital status grouping (early divorce, later divorce, or intact family) did have a significant effect on certain aspects of adaptive functioning. Adult children of early childhood divorce indicated lower formal educational attainment, lower financial status, more reports of mental health diagnosis, higher number of transitory adult intimate relationships, less secure attachment to father, lower self-esteem, and greater learned helplessness than both later childhood divorce and intact family participants. The developmental timeframe in which divorce occurs plays a key role in young adult adaptive functioning.</p><p>

<p> This thesis explored the role of sexually explicit material (SEM) on the Internet in adolescent sexuality and education. Does SEM on the Internet affect adolescent sexual attitudes, behaviors, and other facets of sexual functioning, such as fantasizing, masturbation, and sexual self-esteem? In addition, is the Internet becoming the new sex educator? The sample consisted of 492 college students (340 females, 152 males) between the ages of 18 and 23 who took an anonymous, online survey. Among the sample, 98% had seen SEM before the age of 18, first exposure typically occurring around the age of 12. The most popular reason for seeking SEM on the Internet was curiosity. It was found that with more exposure to SEM on the Internet, there was more permissive sexual attitudes, higher levels of sexual behavior, and more sexual fantasizing. In addition, masturbation was more SEM-dependent and compulsive with more exposure. Further, more exposure was related to the twelve aspects of sexuality. For instance, more exposure was related to higher sexual self- esteem, higher sexual-preoccupation, higher sexual-satisfaction, and lower sexual-fear. While males were seeing more SEM on the Internet than females, both males and females were seeing SEM on the Internet for the first time around the same age, though females had more negative feelings about it, and their sexual attitudes and behaviors were similarly affected. It was concluded that SEM on the Internet is a normative adolescent experience and that the Internet is the new sex educator, as adolescents are using it as an informational resource.</p><p>