Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / There is a well-documented bidirectional relationship between pain and cognitive dysfunction, especially working memory. Despite this extensive body of research, the pain–working memory relationship is poorly understood. Pain catastrophizing – exaggerated negative cognitive and emotional responses towards pain – may contribute to working memory deficits by occupying finite, shared cognitive resources, but this has yet to be investigated. The present study sought to clarify the role of pain catastrophizing (assessed as both a trait-level disposition and state-level process) in working memory dysfunction. Healthy undergraduate participants were randomized to an ischemic pain or control task, during which they completed verbal and non-verbal working memory tests. They also completed measures of state- and trait-level pain catastrophizing. Mediation analyses indicated that state-level pain catastrophizing mediated the relationships of pain group to both verbal and non-verbal working memory, such that participants in the pain group (vs. the control group) catastrophized more about their pain, which then resulted in worse verbal and non-verbal working memory performance. In moderated mediation analyses, trait-level pain catastrophizing moderated this mediation effect for both verbal and non-verbal working memory. Those participants in the pain group who reported greater tendency to catastrophize about pain in general exhibited greater catastrophizing in-the-moment during the pain task, thereby leading to worse verbal and non-verbal working memory performance. These results provide evidence for pain catastrophizing as a putative mechanism and moderating factor of working memory dysfunction in pain. Future research should replicate these results in chronic pain samples, investigate other potential mechanisms (e.g., sleep), and develop interventions to ameliorate cognitive dysfunction by targeting pain catastrophizing.

Due to its negative relation with turnover and the associated costs, job stress is a growing concern within the healthcare industry. By surveying 461 employees of a large Midwestern healthcare system, the present study evaluated perceptions of citizenship pressure (perceived pressure to engage in extra-role job duties) and examined its relationship with job stress and turnover intentions. The sample consisted of direct and indirect patient care providers and was predominately White, females who worked full-time. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses indicated that job stress partially mediates the direct relationship between citizenship pressure and turnover intentions. Specifically, healthcare workers experience job stress and desire leaving positions that make them feel that simply fulfilling their formally prescribed job duties is not enough to be seen as a good employee. Drawing from the theoretical model of psychological resilience, the current study also examined whether employees’ level of trait mindfulness (tendency to focus on experiences without judgment) moderates the identified mediation. Findings from a first- and second-stage moderated mediation analysis suggested that trait mindfulness does not buffer the negative outcomes (i.e., job stress, turnover intentions) associated with citizenship pressure within the healthcare industry. Despite the non-significant results related to mindfulness, significant negative relationships were found between trait mindfulness and each key construct (i.e., citizenship pressure, job stress, turnover intentions). Such findings demonstrate the potential relevance of trait mindfulness in promoting employee resilience within the workplace. Results also contribute to the citizenship pressure literature and highlight the need for additional research, especially within the healthcare industry.

In comparison with their peers, adolescents with ADHD are at increased risk for developing depression, with prevalence estimates for comorbid depression ranging from 14% to 20%. Youth with comorbid ADHD and depression are at greater risk for multiple negative outcomes compared to youth with ADHD alone, including suspension from school, failing a grade, or difficulties in peer relationships. Identifying risk factors for depression among adolescents with ADHD is important for facilitating early identification and treatment efforts. Research completed to date indicates that interpersonal impairment and emotion regulation may mediate the relationship between ADHD and depression. However, a comprehensive longitudinal model including both interpersonal impairment and emotion regulation has not been tested. The aim of the current study was to evaluate whether the indirect pathway from ADHD to depression through interpersonal impairment is moderated by emotion regulation in a longitudinal study of young adolescents with ADHD (N = 239; M age at follow-up = 12.30, SD = .92). Data were collected at three time points over 18 months. Parents completed ratings of externalizing symptoms (ADHD and Oppositional Defiant Disorder, [ODD]), parent-child relationship problems, and peer relationship problems. Adolescents rated their depressive symptoms and emotion regulation problems. Moderated mediation models as outlined by Preacher, Rucker, and Hayes (2007) were used to test whether the indirect effects of externalizing symptoms on depression through parent-child relationship stress and peer relationship problems are moderated by emotion regulation. Controlling for baseline levels of depression, results suggest that these pathways vary as a function of emotion regulation, such that the paths from externalizing symptoms to depression are significantly stronger among adolescents with high levels of emotion regulation problems. In addition, an exploratory analysis of the associations between multiple aspects of emotion regulation problems and depression revealed that access to emotion regulation strategies was the only unique predictor of later depression among adolescents with ADHD.

Research on self-control suggests that people do not do as well at self-control after they have already exerted self-control on something else. Despite the obvious importance of self-control in drinking behavior, few studies have examined alcohol consumption as an outcome measure in the context of self-control depletion and the potential role of cognitive processes in the self-control to drinking relationship remains largely unexplored. Although it is widely agreed that alcohol expectancies play an important role in one's decision to drink, no study has examined the role of expectancies in self-control's influence on drinking. This study addresses this important gap in the research by testing whether positive expectancies for alcohol influence the relationship between self-control depletion and placebo alcohol consumption in the laboratory. Results offer support for the resource model of self-control depletion in the context of drinking decisions; participants in the depleted self-control condition drank more placebo alcohol despite being reminded to be ready for an upcoming memory task. Hypotheses of conditional and indirect effects consistent with a process model of self-control were not supported. Using nonparametric analytic techniques, patterns in the data emerged suggestive of conditional indirect effects, though they appear to be very small in scale. Findings support the further exploration of the primary hypotheses, given the consideration of current limitations.

To better understand the impact of task conflict in work teams, an incremental, multi-level model is developed, which distinguishes individual-level perceptions of conflict from more overt group-level manifestations of conflict. Task conflict is conceptualized as being detrimental for teams only to the extent that it positively predicts relationship conflict. The positive relationship between task conflict and relationship conflict is referred to as conflict spillover. The composition of team members’ underlying beliefs concerning the functional value of task conflict (referred to as conflict values) is examined as a moderator of conflict spillover. It is proposed that perceptual conflict spillover is smaller among team members who hold positive conflict values, and that manifest conflict spillover is smaller among teams composed primarily of members who hold positive conflict values. Hypotheses were tested in a longitudinal study of 59 student teams (294 individuals). At the team level, the diversity of team members’ conflict values was found to moderate manifest conflict spillover, such that the association between task and relationship conflict was significantly positive for teams composed of members who held more diverse conflict values. For teams composed of members who had less diverse conflict values, there was no significant association between manifest task conflict and manifest relationship conflict. As a result of these significant differences in conflict spillover, manifest task conflict indirectly and negatively predicted the task performance and viability of teams containing more diverse conflict values, but did not significantly impact the effectiveness of teams with less diverse conflict values. At the individual level, the significant positive association between perceived task conflict and perceived relationship conflict was not moderated by individual conflict values. However, because of this perceptual conflict spillover, task conflict perceptions also indirectly and negatively predicted team members’ personal willingness to continue working in the team. Results of this dissertation highlight important differences in the ways that conflict operates at the individual and group levels. Having identified the diversity of conflict values as a moderator of manifest conflict spillover, this dissertation outlines areas for further academic and practical knowledge development concerning the prevention of dysfunctional team dynamics.

To better understand the impact of task conflict in work teams, an incremental, multi-level model is developed, which distinguishes individual-level perceptions of conflict from more overt group-level manifestations of conflict. Task conflict is conceptualized as being detrimental for teams only to the extent that it positively predicts relationship conflict. The positive relationship between task conflict and relationship conflict is referred to as conflict spillover. The composition of team members’ underlying beliefs concerning the functional value of task conflict (referred to as conflict values) is examined as a moderator of conflict spillover. It is proposed that perceptual conflict spillover is smaller among team members who hold positive conflict values, and that manifest conflict spillover is smaller among teams composed primarily of members who hold positive conflict values. Hypotheses were tested in a longitudinal study of 59 student teams (294 individuals). At the team level, the diversity of team members’ conflict values was found to moderate manifest conflict spillover, such that the association between task and relationship conflict was significantly positive for teams composed of members who held more diverse conflict values. For teams composed of members who had less diverse conflict values, there was no significant association between manifest task conflict and manifest relationship conflict. As a result of these significant differences in conflict spillover, manifest task conflict indirectly and negatively predicted the task performance and viability of teams containing more diverse conflict values, but did not significantly impact the effectiveness of teams with less diverse conflict values. At the individual level, the significant positive association between perceived task conflict and perceived relationship conflict was not moderated by individual conflict values. However, because of this perceptual conflict spillover, task conflict perceptions also indirectly and negatively predicted team members’ personal willingness to continue working in the team. Results of this dissertation highlight important differences in the ways that conflict operates at the individual and group levels. Having identified the diversity of conflict values as a moderator of manifest conflict spillover, this dissertation outlines areas for further academic and practical knowledge development concerning the prevention of dysfunctional team dynamics.

Religious coping and spiritual well-being were found to be culturally important resilience factors for African American women suffering from abuse and depressive symptoms. This investigation aimed to investigate whether: (1) spiritual well-being and its two components of existential and religious well-being mediate the Intimate Partner Violence (IPV)-Depressive Symptoms (DS) link; (2) positive and negative religious coping moderate the IPV-DS association; and (3) the mediating effect of spiritual well-being in the IPV-DS link is moderated by level of religious coping (i.e., moderated mediation). The study utilized data from 208 low income, suicidal and abused African American women, ages 18-55. Only the existential component of spiritual well-being was found to fully mediate the IPV-DS link. This indirect effect weakened at higher levels of negative religious coping. As predicted, higher levels of negative religious coping were associated with higher levels of depressive symptoms. Surprisingly, higher levels of negative religious coping were also associated with increases in existential well-being which, in turn, led to decrease in depressive symptoms. The findings underscore the importance of addressing existential well-being and religious coping in clinical interventions and in training for mental health professionals. Clinical and research implications of these findings are discussed and future directions recommended.

There are elevated rates of childhood maltreatment and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptomatology in low-income, abused, suicidal African American women. This investigation aimed to: (1) identify the components of childhood maltreatment in this sample; (2) ascertain whether or not the constructs of childhood maltreatment and PTSD symptomatology were associated in this sample; and (3) examine if maladaptive coping mediated the childhood maltreatment-PTSD symptomatology link and if the magnitude of the mediated relationship was influenced by level of social support (i.e., moderated mediation). Specific types of childhood maltreatment generally loaded onto three components according to a principal components analysis (PCA) of the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire: physical-emotional abuse, sexual-emotional abuse, and neglect. Women who endorsed experiencing higher levels of two of the childhood maltreatment components (physical-emotional abuse and sexual-emotional abuse) reported higher levels of current PTSD symptomatology. However, contrary to the study hypotheses, current level of maladaptive coping did not mediate the relationship between child maltreatment and current PTSD symptomatology. Further, the addition of social support did not change this finding. Results are discussed, clinical implications are explored, and recommendations for future studies are offered.

abstract: Scholarly interest in racial socialization is growing, but researchers' understanding of how and when racial socialization relates to subjective well-being is underdeveloped, particularly for multiracial populations. The present study investigated the possibility that the relationship of racial socialization to subjective well-being is mediated by racial identification and that this mediation depends on physical racial ambiguity. Specifically, the proposed study used a moderated mediation model to examine whether the indirect relation of egalitarian socialization to subjective well-being through racial identification is conditional on physical racial ambiguity among 313 multiracial individuals. Results suggested egalitarian socialization was positively correlated with subjective well-being. The results provided no support for the moderated mediation hypothesis. The present study examined the complex interaction between racial socialization, racial identification, physical racial ambiguity, and subjective well-being among multiracial individuals. Despite receiving no support for the moderated mediation hypothesis, this research helped to further explicate a distinct pathway through which egalitarian socialization impacts well-being through racial identification for multiracial individuals independent of physical racial ambiguity. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Counseling Psychology 2016

The changing working environment and ageing workforce suggest that many workers will inevitably reach a career plateau, a stage where people regard future promotions as unlikely, or no longer feel challenged at work. Experiencing career plateau is found to be associated with negative job attitudes and performance in the workplace. However, existing studies have been mainly cross-sectional in design and few of them investigate the mechanisms and the conditions that influence the negative relationship. This study follows a quantitative longitudinal research design to further enhance the understanding of the relationships between career plateau and job outcomes. The job outcomes in this research include work attitudes such as job satisfaction, organisational commitment, turnover intentions and three aspects of job performance. Specifically, the three research aims of this thesis are: (1) to understand the causal directions between career plateau and job outcomes, (2) to examine whether employees’ unmet expectations may explain these relations and (3) to investigate whether employees’ age may modify the mediation effects of career plateau on job outcomes via unmet expectations. Three waves of data were collected from working individuals in various industries over an eight-month period. The majority of the participants were working in the UK or in Taiwan. Results showed that unmet expectations partially explain the negative relationship between career plateau and job attitudes over time but not for job performance. Furthermore, age did not affect the strength of the mediation effect of career plateau on the job outcomes through unmet expectations. The significance of this research is three-fold. First, it provides a new explanation for the unfavourable work attitudes of plateaued individuals. The findings that career plateaued employees have lower job satisfaction, lower organisational commitment and higher turnover intentions can partly be explained by unfulfilled expectations in receiving promotions or challenging tasks. Second, the study signals the danger of career plateau at any age, as younger and older workers were found to be equally influenced by career plateau. Finally, this is the first study in the area that seeks to resolve the debate over the directional relationship between career plateau and job outcomes. The implications in theory and in practice, limitations and suggestions for future research directions are discussed.