Approximately 4.4% of the adult population suffers from Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) (Keesler et al., 2010). The identification of adults with ADHD can be difficult because the criteria in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM; APA, 2013) were originally designed with children in mind. Identifying high achieving college students with ADHD has proven even more challenging due to masked academic difficulties until later in life. The specific population of adults in the college setting (college students) with ADHD are more likely to have protective factors such as higher cognitive abilities and previous academic success (DuPaul, Weyandt, O'Dell, & Varejao, 2009; Glutting, Youngstrom, & Watkins, 2005) than non-college ADHD adults. Nevertheless, they tend to fall significantly behind persons in college who do not suffer from ADHD (Barkley, Murphy, & Fischer, 2008; DuPaul et al., 2009; Heiligenstein, Guenther, Levy, Savino, & Fulwiler, 1999) and those with ADHD have a higher dropout rate than those without ADHD. ADHD has been linked to deficits in Executive Functioning (EF) in the literature (Cortease et al., 2005; Kassubek, Juengling, Ecker, & Landwehrmeyer, 2005; Koechlin, Corrado, Pietrini, & Grafman, 2000; Lewis, Dove, Robbins, Baker, & Owens, 2004; Monchi, Petrides, Strafella, Worsley, & Doyon, 2006; Niendam et al., 2012; Stuss & Alexander, 2000; Stuss, Alexander, Floden, Binns, Levin, & McIntosh, 2002). There is also evidence that EF abilities are not fully developed until around the third decade. Both established theory and fMRI imaging support the idea of delayed development (Barkley, 2012). Therefore, it is hypothesized that there will be a different set of characteristics for the college student population (average age 18-30) than an adult aged 30 or above. Given that there are some weaknesses in traditional EF testing (e.g., EF and general intellectual level is somewhat correlated) (Salthouse; 1996, 2005), the Barkley Deficits in Executive Functioning Scale (BDEFS) was specifically designed to evaluate EF deficits in adult individuals with ADHD. This is a new self-report measure identifying functional impairment in EF abilities with five factors. The goal of this study was to provide further empirical support regarding the validity and reliability of the Barkley Deficits in Executive Functioning Scale (BDEFS; Barkley, 2011b). In addition to the five factors, this scale contains an ADHD-EF Index, which provides an estimate of the likelihood of a diagnosis of adult ADHD (Barkley, 2012b). To date, this scale has not been investigated for evidence of validity and reliability from an independent researcher. Additionally, college students have not yet been studied (Barkley, 2011b). Therefore, this study evaluated (a) differences in self- and other-reports on the BDEFS, (b) the relationship between the BDEFS scales and cognitive functioning, (c) the ability of the BDEFS to predict ADHD, and (d) the factor structure of the BDEFS with a college student population. In this study BDEFS self-reports were collected from 596 college students (with and without a diagnosis of ADHD). The mean age of the participants was 20.5 years of age and most demographic variables were consistent with the statistics published for the university where the data were collected. To evaluate the differences in the self-report form and the other-informant form of the BDEFS, a Pearson Correlation was conducted comparing self- and other-reports, using only the sample of students with a diagnosis of ADHD. It was determined that there were statically significant correlations between the BDEFS-self form and the BDEFS-other form. These correlations were also statistically significantly different from the correlations that Barkley found in his original study. In addition, there were statistically significant differences in the means between the self- and other-informant forms, indicating that college students in general perceive their symptoms differently, and generally more impaired, than those around them. Another Pearson Correlation was conducted to determine if the general intelligence of the participant was related to any of the five factors of the BDEFS. Results indicated that there was an inverse relationship between intellectual ability and time management skills. As time management skills decreased, intelligence increased. When investigating the ADHD-EF index, which is a scale used to predict adult ADHD, a discriminate analysis was conducted. It was determined that a different set of items was needed to distinguish college students with and without ADHD than was needed to distinguish these groups in the adult population. Finally, a confirmatory factor analysis was conducted to see if the same factor structure of the BDEFS held true for the population of college students. Results indicated a moderate to good fit for the factor structure in the college student population. While additional support of validity is needed, the current study did provide additional evidence for the validity and reliability of the BDEFS. A replication of the newly identified items of the ADHD-EF Index that are most predictive of adults with ADHD in the college student population is needed to provide additional support. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Educational Psychology and Learning Systems in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Summer Semester, 2014. / May 6, 2014. / Barkley, Executive Functioning / Includes bibliographical references. / Frances Prevatt, Professor Directing Dissertation; Lee Stepina, University Representative; Beth Phillips, Committee Member; Debra Osborn, Committee Member.

For more than two decades, implicit theory research has focused on the self-beliefs of individuals in a variety of domains, including intelligence and morality (see Dweck, 2000 for a complete overview) and more recently athletic ability (Biddle, Wang, Chatzisarantis, & Spray, 2003; Cury, Da Fonseca, Rufo, & Sarrazin, 2002; Spray, Wang, Biddle, Chatzisarantis, & Warburton, 2006). The original theory, developed by Dweck and Leggett (1988), gained empirical support through this research by highlighting the differences between incremental (attributes are malleable) and entity theorists (attributes are stable). Coinciding with the development and exploration of implicit theory has been the rapidly-developing fields of sport and performance psychology. To date, however, research has not examined the implicit beliefs of mental skills abilities in athletes, and insight into these beliefs may provide valuable insight into the motivational processes of athletes. The purposes of the present study were to examine whether collegiate athletes employ dominant implicit beliefs of mental skills abilities, whether these beliefs can be manipulated, and whether these beliefs influence the response to failure. Participants of this study were varsity and club student-athletes from a large southeastern university. Implicit beliefs were measured at the onset of the study, followed by an incremental or entity beliefs intervention reading, which was either congruent or incongruent with initial implicit beliefs. Implicit beliefs were re-examined immediately following the intervention to determine if the manipulations were successful. Each participant then completed one trial of a brief relaxation mental skills task while biofeedback technology recorded HR and SCL. Upon completion of the task, all participants were told that they performed poorly on the relaxation task, and post-task questionnaires attempted to capture differences in responses to failure between intervention groups. Overall, the vast majority (92.1%) of participants displayed dominant implicit beliefs at the initial assessment. However, contrary to expectations, the sample was overwhelmingly incremental in nature (89.5%), and entity and unclassified participants were excluded from final analyses, yielding a total sample of 68 incremental theorists and two groups for comparison (n = 34 incremental congruent; n = 34 incongruent). A RM ANOVA revealed a significant main effect for Intervention Congruency on post-intervention implicit beliefs scores, providing evidence that the intervention was successful in temporarily manipulating the implicit beliefs of participants. Differences did not emerge between intervention groups on a host of additional variables, however, including goal adoption prior to and following failure feedback, attributions for failure, mental skills task choice, remediation choice, and likelihood for pursuing a mental skills training program in the future. This study provides the first evidence on the implicit beliefs of mental skills abilities in athletes, further extending decades of implicit theory research conducted by Dweck and colleagues into an untapped domain. Though the study was limited by the incremental nature of the final sample, it still provides researchers and practitioners potentially valuable information on the nature of athletes' perceptions of mental skills. It was revealed that collegiate athletes' implicit beliefs can be manipulated, shedding light on the malleable of implicit beliefs themselves. Future research should attempt to address the limitations of this study and continue to explore the motivational processes underlying athletes' self-theories of mental skills. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Educational Psychology and Learning Systems in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Spring Semester, 2014. / April 11, 2014. / Entity, Implicit Theory, Incremental, Mental Skills, Self-Beliefs, Sport Psychology / Includes bibliographical references. / Robert Eklund, Professor Directing Dissertation; Colleen Kelley, University Representative; Gershon Tenenbaum, Committee Member; Jeannine Turner, Committee Member.

The current study aimed to determine the efficacy of a group-format alcohol intervention (CHOICES) combined with personalized online feedback (Echeckup ToGo for Alcohol) in a sample of mandated students. An assessment-only control group was recruited from a research pool of peers. The risk range of both groups was limited to moderate risk for alcohol-related problems (AUDIT range 6-14). Assessments were conducted at baseline and a 3-month follow-up examining binge drinking outcomes (peak BAC and binge drinking frequency), as well as alcohol-related problems. MANOVA results indicated a null treatment effect and lack of a main effect for Condition or Time. Group differences were covaried in the MANOVA analysis including age, gender, year in school, and housing status. Baseline drinking was also covaried due to its significant relationship with binge drinking outcomes. Hierarchical Linear Regression analyses were conducted to examine whether Theory of Planned Behavior variables (Perceived Behavioral Control and Behavioral Intentions) mediated the relationship between the CHOICES intervention and binge drinking behavior outcomes. The mediator model was partially supported in that the mediators were related to the outcomes. However, the lack of a treatment effect prevented full examination of the model. Recommendations for future research are provided. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Educational Psychology and Learning Systems in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Summer Semester, 2014. / September 26, 2013. / Alcohol Intervention, ASTP, Choices, College Students, Mandated Students, Theory of Planned Behavior / Includes bibliographical references. / Frances Prevatt, Professor Directing Dissertation; Dina Wilke, University Representative; Deborah Ebener, Committee Member; Debra Osborn, Committee Member.

This study sought to fill the gap in the literature concerning gifted students and academic motivation by examining the academic motivation in 126 non-gifted (n = 66) and intellectually gifted (n = 60) middle and high school students. The study used archival data to answer the following questions: What is the relationship between motivational variables, test anxiety, and student GPA for both non-gifted and gifted students? Are there differences in motivation across student group and across gender? And does a unique profile of motivation exist for intellectually gifted students? Study results revealed positive relationships between certain aspects of motivation and academic performance within the non-gifted students and the gifted students. Findings indicated that intellectually gifted middle and high school students tend to be more motivated than their non-gifted peers and experience significantly less test anxiety than their non-gifted peers. Gender differences in motivation were found only within the gifted group on intrinsic goal orientation, with gifted female students reporting more intrinsic goal orientation than their male counterparts. While a unique profile of motivation did not arise for intellectually gifted students, the gifted students were more likely to fall within cluster groups with high motivation, high sense of control over academic outcomes and high perception of their ability to successfully complete academic tasks. These students tended to have a higher GPA and experience very little test anxiety when compared to students with low motivation. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Educational Psychology and Learning Systems in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Spring Semester, 2014. / February 3, 2014. / Academic performance, Gifted students, Motivation profiles, Mslq, Test anxiety / Includes bibliographical references. / Steven I. Pfeiffer, Professor Directing Dissertation; Maxine Jones, University Representative; Jeannine E. Turner, Committee Member; Angela Canto, Committee Member.

The purpose of this study was to compare participants' performance on an ill-structured scenario within three conditions (individual reflection, group reflection, and those who did not reflect/control) to understand if, and in which environment, the critical thinking prompts influenced the development of critical thinking skills. This was tested through a college Business course where participants in the treatment conditions were given reflection prompts (i.e., intervention) to respond to either individually (T1) or collectively (T2), prior to solving an ill-structured scenario. Participants in the control condition were not asked to engage in the reflection prompts prior to solving the scenario. In addition, at the end of each class session, the participants responded to a self-reported survey to measure their satisfaction with the activity. Results indicate that there was no difference in the performance scores when comparing those who did participate in reflection activities and those who did not; nor a difference in scores of participants in different environments. The findings do provide evidence that there were differences in critical thinking skills across time. The reflection environment does not impact the reported satisfaction. As a result of these findings, instructors should consider implementing reflection activities, not in isolated occurrences, but multiple times across an extended time period to improve critical thinking skills. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Educational Psychology and Learning Systems in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Spring Semester, 2014. / February 27, 2014. / Critical Thinking, Reflection / Includes bibliographical references. / Valerie Shute, Professor Directing Dissertation; Kathy Guthrie, University Representative; Vanessa Dennen, Committee Member; James Klein, Committee Member.

The majority of college students do not read assigned academic materials. This becomes a problem, as long-term mastery and performance outcomes decrease when students merely memorize the material for a test. The goal of this randomized experimental study was to examine the effect of an instrumental statement (designed to help students see the value of reading an academic article by connecting the value of the article to their assumed future goal of graduation) on academic reading engagement (i.e., participants choosing to read an academic article and passing a comprehension quiz). Participants included 213 undergraduate students who were randomly assigned to either a treatment or control condition. Data were analyzed in a series of binary logistic regression analyses. The intervention was found to successfully predict academic reading engagement (p < .05). Only participants with a high-connectedness score (of the four FTP constructs) were found to predict academic reading engagement (p = .001). Together the intervention and high-connectedness score are statistically significant (p < .001) in predicting academic reading engagement. Practical implications are discussed. / A Thesis submitted to the Department of Educational Psychology and Learning Systems in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science. / Fall Semester, 2014. / November 7, 2014. / Academic Reading Motivation, Future Time Perspective, Instrumental Statement, Post Secondary Students, Randomized Control Trial, Reading Engagement / Includes bibliographical references. / Alysia D. Roehrig, Professor Directing Thesis; Jeannine Turner, Committee Member; Russell Almond, Committee Member.

The purpose of this study was to provide initial documentation of the complexity of first grade teachers' oral and academic language during instruction and interaction with their students. Oral language includes sounds, words, sentence structure, meaning, and the meaning of sentences and words. Academic language, the language that is used in school, is more complex and specific than the oral language used in the home. The findings of multiple studies suggest that children's early oral language may predict later reading comprehension achievement. Children's oral language has also been correlated with the oral language of their primary caregivers. Upon entry to school, teachers become primary caregivers and the oral language model that students experience daily. Yet, teachers' level of oral language during instruction and interaction with their students has not been documented until now. In this mixed methods design study, I asked two questions. My first question was, What is the level of first grade teachers' language use in their classrooms? Randomly selected language samples from four teachers were transcribed and analyzed using Systematic Analysis of Language Transcripts (SALT) software to code teachers' classroom language. The variables used to document teachers' language level were syntax (mean length of utterance, MLU), vocabulary diversity (number of different words/total number of words, type/token ratio), and proportion of academic language words (words identified in kindergarten and first grade district curriculum maps as academic language words and Coxhead's [1998] Academic Word List). Teachers' language was descriptively different for individual teachers. The MLUs for teachers in time samples were 6.91 (SD=.8; T1), 6.04 (SD=66; T2), 6.59 (SD=.99; T3), and 6.62 (SD=1.22; T4). The type/token ratios for teachers were .27 (SD=.04; T1) .34 (SD=.05; T2), .33 (SD=.05; T3), and .33 (SD=.05; T4). The SALT database indicates that the MLU of a first grade student would be 6.9 (SD = 1.25) words. The type/token ratio (word diversity) of a first grader would be .4 (SD = .09). The percentages of K1 academic language words in time samples were 7.70% (T1), 7.29% (T2), 8.75% (T3), and 7.68% (T4). The percent of words from Coxhead's (1998) Academic Word List in language samples for each teacher was below .10%. Language samples were then standardized by taking the first 54 utterances (interquartile range) of each teacher's randomly selected language samples. The combined mean of the MLU in standardized utterance samples of all teachers was 6.47 (SD = 2.00). The type/token ratio in the combined standardized utterance samples of all teachers was .43 (SD = .05). Statistically significant, positive correlations were found between number of different words and MLU for all teachers and all teachers combined in standardized utterance samples. There were also statistically significant positive correlations between teachers' use of words from Coxhead's (1998) Academic Word List and MLU for three teachers and a weak, statistically significant correlation between MLU and Coxhead's (1998) Academic Word List words. My second question used for triangulation asked, What are first grade teachers' perceptions of their role in the development of students' oral and academic language and of the supports and barriers to facilitating students' language development? Interviews with each teacher elicited their perceptions of their oral and academic knowledge, the supports and barriers they experience when supporting their students' language development, and their professional development experiences. Three of the teachers identified the need for more time as a barrier for supporting students' language growth, and the fourth teacher identified the need for her students to have more practice using language. Statements made during their interviews, for the most part, matched with teachers' talk in their classrooms. Suggestions for future research conducted with a larger, more representative sample may allow comparisons of language between teachers and across schools and demographics of the students. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Educational Psychology and Learning Systems in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Fall Semester, 2014. / August 28, 2014. / academic language, listening comprehension, oral language, reading comprehension, Systematic Analysis of Language Transcripts (SALT), teachers' language / Includes bibliographical references. / Alysia D. Roehrig, Professor Directing Dissertation; Beth Phillips, Committee Member; Jeannine Turner, Committee Member.

People need varying levels of assistance - specifically, solution-oriented information provided during practice - when learning how to solve problems. This study examined the effects of different levels of problem-solving assistance on learning, mental effort, and time on task when learning proportional reasoning at the middle school level. Proportional reasoning is an important skill that is both foundational to higher-level mathematics and used in everyday life. To study assistance in this context, two different types of practice problems were presented to learners: worked examples and tutored problems. The worked examples provided the steps and the answers to the proportional reasoning problems for the learner to review. The tutored problems required the learner to solve each step of the problem. While doing so, the learner received immediate, step-by-step feedback from an example-tracing intelligent tutoring system. The learner could also receive a hint if requested. The study had three conditions: worked examples, tutored problems, and a combination of worked examples and tutored problems. One hundred forty-three middle school students participated in the study. Participants were randomly assigned to one of three treatment conditions: tutored problems (low assistance), alternating worked examples and tutored problems (mid-level assistance), and worked examples (high assistance). Participants in the tutored problems condition needed to solve eight proportional reasoning story problems. Participants in the worked examples condition were presented with eight proportional reasoning story problems that were already solved. Participants in the alternating worked examples and tutored problems condition were first presented with a worked example, followed by a tutored problem. In total, there were eight problems, four of each type. The problems consisted of four isomorphic problem pairs, meaning the story problems and values were different, but the structure in which a learner solved the problem was the same. The results showed a significant difference between the three treatment conditions on learning. Learners in the worked example condition scored higher on the post-test than learners in the two other conditions. There was not a significant difference on overall mental effort across conditions. However, when analyzing the isomorphic problem pairs, there was a significant difference in the change of mental effort expended between problem 1 and problem 2 in the pair for pairs 2 and 3, but not for pairs 1 and 4. There was also a significant difference on time on task. Learners in the worked example condition took less time to complete the treatment problems than learners in the two other conditions. Upon further examination in terms of time on task, there was also a significant main effect of treatment condition on time, a significant main effect on problem in the isomorphic problem pair, and a significant interaction effect. In the tutored problem condition, time spent on the second problem in the pair was significantly less than the first problem in the pair. In the alternating worked example and tutored problem condition, the second problem in the pair took significantly more time than the first problem in the pair. In the worked example condition, time spent on the second problem was significantly less than the time spent on the first problem in the pair. The limitations of the study focus on the duration of the study, the alignment of learning materials and assessments, the authentic learning environment, and the intelligent tutoring system environment, and may provide helpful guidance for other researchers who wish to conduct research in this area and for teachers who are interested in using an intelligent tutoring system in their classrooms. The findings of this study have several implications for further research and classroom instruction. Future studies might be situated in an authentic classroom setting, with the treatment embedded in the mathematics curriculum. Additionally, the hint use data might be mined to learn more about how learners use the available assistance in the tutored condition. One key implication for instruction is the usefulness of worked examples in situations with a compressed timeframe and novice learners. Research considering these limitations and implications might provide educators with a better understanding of how to achieve the optimal balance of assistance in mathematics education for middle school students. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Educational Psychology and Learning Systems in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Summer Semester, 2014. / April 10, 2014. / Assistance Dilemma, Cognitive Load, Intelligent tutoring systems, Proportional Reasoning / Includes bibliographical references. / Vanessa P. Dennen, Professor Directing Dissertation; Jonathan Adams, University Representative; Fengfeng Ke, Committee Member; Alysia Roehrig, Committee Member.

Although much research has been carried out to identify the demographic and psychological variables linked to distinctive attitudes toward persons with disabilities (PWD), no known research has measured the association between spirituality and attitudes toward PWD. In this study, a sample of non-disabled undergraduate and graduate university students was surveyed to measure for possible association. Ratings of spiritual involvement and beliefs and intrinsic spirituality were examined in relation to ratings in four attitudinal domains: inclusion, discrimination, gains, and prospects. Higher endorsement of spiritual involvement and beliefs was found to be significantly correlated with more favorable attitudes toward PWD for inclusion and prospects. Higher intrinsic spirituality was found to be significantly correlated with more favorable attitudes toward PWD for inclusion. A significant inverse association was also identified between higher intrinsic spirituality and more favorable attitudes toward PWD for gains. Differences in gender were also examined. Female students reported significantly more favorable attitudes toward PWD for prospects. Male students reported significantly more favorable attitudes toward PWD for discrimination and gains. Implications are discussed in light of the services provided to PWD by faith-based organizations. / A Thesis submitted to the Department of Educational Psychology and Learning Systems in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science. / Summer Semester, 2014. / July 1, 2014. / Attitudes, Disability, Spirituality / Includes bibliographical references. / Deborah Ebener, Professor Directing Thesis; Shengli Dong, Committee Member; James Sampson, Committee Member.

Prior studies have examined preservice teachers' beliefs about instructional practices primarily from a qualitative perspective. Such studies indicated that preservice teachers believed effective teaching to be lecturing (Broekman and Wetering, 1987; Wubbels, 1992). Using both qualitative and quantitative methods, this study examined preservice teachers' intended choice of instructional methods and how these choices vary across content areas. Utilizing the analysis of variance procedure to examine differences across the content areas of music, science, math, social science, and English, the results of this study suggest that lecture is not a predominant choice of instructional method, when either a range of choices or free choice is provided in the measuring instrument, and that preservice teachers in different content areas do not vary much in their intended use of instructional methods. Implications and the potential for future research are discussed. / A Thesis Submitted to the Department of Educational Psychology and Learning Systems in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science. / Spring Semester, 2004. / December 1, 2003. / Intructional Practices, Preservice Teachers / Includes bibliographical references. / Susan Carol Losh, Professor Directing Thesis; Richard Tate, Committee Member; Marcy Driscoll, Committee Member.