Thesis, PlanB (M.S.)--University of Wisconsin--Stout, 1999. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 1992. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves [36]-42).

Thesis (Ed. D.)--Illinois State University, 1992. / Title from title page screen, viewed January 26, 2006. Dissertation Committee: Jeanne B. Morris (chair), Patricia H. Klass, Barbara H. Lazerson, Ione M. Garcia. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 96-104) and abstract. Also available in print.

Thesis (M.A.)--West Virginia University, 2006. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains vii, 62 p. Vita. Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 37-41).

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Ohio University, August, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 107-125)

Thesis (B.Psy.Sc.(Hons.)) - University of Queensland, 2006. / Includes bibliography.

abstract: Envy may be an emotion shaped by evolution to resolve large resource disparities in zero-sum ancestral environments. Previous research has found evidence for two types of envy: benign envy, which drives greater effort and self-improvement; and malicious envy, which drives hostility toward the better-off target. We predicted that perceived resource scarcity would stoke either type, moderated by individual differences. Specifically, we predicted that high self-esteem would steer people toward benign envy and self-improvement, whereas narcissism would spark malicious envy. After completing the Rosenberg self-esteem scale and the Narcissism Personality Inventory (NPI-16), participants were randomly assigned to either read an article detailing severe cuts to university financial aid budgets (scarcity) or an article summarizing various forms of financial aid (control). Each article ended with the same envy-inducing paragraph about a particularly affluent scholarship-winner, after which participants completed a measure of both envy types, capturing feelings, appraisals, and behavioral tendencies. Results show that self-esteem predicts less malicious envy, while narcissism and scarcity predict more. Self-esteem and narcissism interact such that self-esteem dampens the effect of narcissism on malicious envy. Self-esteem predicted benign envy when narcissism was low, but not when it was high. / Dissertation/Thesis / M.A. Psychology 2011

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Research demonstrating the positive effects of Mindfulness-Based Interventions (MBIs) has led to a growing interest in the use of mindfulness across a range of populations and psychological difficulties. This thesis explores the feasibility and benefits of mindfulness in relation to self-esteem and psychosis. Paper one is a systematic review exploring the relationship between mindfulness and self-esteem. The review had two main aims: to synthesise and critically appraise studies exploring the association between mindfulness and self-esteem, and studies investigating the impact of MBIs on self-esteem. Thirty-two studies were identified and quality assessed to guide interpretation of results. All cross-sectional studies found significant positive correlations between dispositional mindfulness and self-esteem, whilst improvements in self-esteem were found in the majority of MBI studies. Despite largely positive findings, the review highlighted the need to interpret these with caution due to methodological weaknesses. Priorities for research were identified, with further investigations needed to assess the impact of mindfulness as an intervention for low self-esteem. Paper two is an empirical paper investigating the feasibility of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) for psychosis. Sixteen participants, with experience of psychosis, completed an 8-week MBCT group. A repeated measures design was used to explore psychological wellbeing and clinical outcomes following MBCT, including clinical functioning, mindfulness, psychotic symptoms, recovery, beliefs about self, others and voices; and to provide a preliminary exploration of changes in the way a person construes their self, others and their experience of psychosis, following MBCT, using repertory grids. Findings from this feasibility and pilot study were promising, indicating that MBCT groups for psychosis are feasible. Preliminary outcome data highlighted potential areas of change for further investigation in a large scale controlled trial, with possible improvements in participants’ self-reported ability to act with awareness and in recovery, and with some evidence of changes in construing following MBCT. The study demonstrated the feasibility and potential benefits of MBCT groups for people experiencing psychosis, and provided a platform for future research. Paper three is a critical reflection of the papers presented and the research process as a whole. Areas of strengths and weaknesses are highlighted, with an evaluation of the decisions made throughout. The implications for clinical practice are discussed as well as areas for further research.

Prior research has established that individual differences in self-esteem moderate reactions to self-relevant events. Although all people generally favour positive outcomes to negative outcomes, low self-esteem (LSE) people exhibit more affective extremity in response to artificially-contrived events than high self-esteem (HSE) people. That is, LSE people exhibit more positive affective reactions to positive outcomes and more negative affective reactions to negative outcomes than HSE people. Two competing theoretical models have been proposed to account for the self-esteem differences in mood extremity in the laboratory setting—the defensive-styles hypothesis and the life-events composition hypothesis. Evidence from two studies, the Mood-Diary Study and the Role-Playing Study, provide support for the first hypothesis by demonstrating that (a) esteem-related differences in the cognitive interpretations and causal attributions for positive and negative self-relevant events exist for naturally-occurring events as well as laboratory-contrived feedback, (b) LSE subjects claimed that these events had a greater impact on their mood and that they considered them to be more personally important than did HSE subjects, and finally, (c) LSE subjects were more variable in their moods across time than their HSE counterparts. Although esteem-related differences in mood variability were predicted for both differences in the extremity and frequency of mood changes, the differences were obtained only on the frequency of change measure. Although the evidence for the defensive-styles model was substantial, there was also some evidence for the life-events composition model, which essentially postulates that the lives of HSE and LSE which essentially postulates that the lives of HSE and LSE individuals differed markedly. Finally, an exploratory investigation of the relationship between self-esteem, self-complexity, and mood indicated that the two individual difference variables were positively correlated and that both were related to the frequency of change in mood but not mood extremity. / Arts, Faculty of / Psychology, Department of / Graduate