Master of Science / Department of Psychology / Brenda L. McDaniel / A large majority of trauma research focuses on relatively acute, physical trauma leading to the development of negative mental and physical trauma symptoms. Sometimes psychological trauma is measured concurrently with these instances of physical trauma. However, less is known about the impact of solely psychological trauma on mental and physical trauma symptom development. Moreover, chronic rather than acute psychological trauma is even more understudied. Therefore, the purpose of the current study was to address the gap of knowledge surrounding the impact of chronic psychological trauma on mental and physical health in young adults. The present inquiry was guided by two theoretical models: the Chronic Relational Trauma (CRT) Model and the Etiology of Psychopathology (EP) Model. The CRT Model posits a cyclical pattern of relational trauma perpetrated by caregivers, peers, and intimate partners. Relatedly, the EP Model focuses on acute physical trauma exposure leading to the development of negative mental and physical trauma symptoms as well as potential biological dysregulation with personality characteristics moderating these relationships. However, it is currently unknown how these moderating personality characteristics impact chronic psychological trauma. Thus, the current study blended these two theoretical models in order to examine the impact of chronic psychological trauma on mental, physical, and biological symptoms. One hundred and eighty young adults (Mean age = 18.53, SD = .70) were recruited for the current study. Participants completed a series of questionnaires and provided five total cortisol samples via oral swabs. Results indicate that after controlling for chronic physical trauma, chronic psychological trauma predicts mental trauma symptoms for females and males, but not physical trauma symptoms or biological dysregulation in cortisol. Further, levels of resilience, namely a sense of mastery and emotional reactivity as well as forgiveness significantly moderate the relationship between chronic psychological trauma and mental and physical trauma symptoms for males and females differentially. Contributions of the current findings in terms of adding unique knowledge to trauma literature and future research projects are discussed.

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Human Nutrition / Edgar Chambers IV / Understanding how consumers perceive fragrances based on different aspects (e.g., hedonic, emotions, term association, expectation of functional benefit, and use occasion, etc.) can help product developers or marketers create the right product or message for consumers. The objective of this study was to understand how consumers from different demographic groups, personality types, and liking patterns responded to fragrance samples. Five masculine odorants were selected and evaluated by 240 consumers across the United States. Results demonstrated that consumers from different groups (classified based on age, gender, or personality) generally differentiated products similarly. However, consumers from different personality segments used the scales differently. That is, persons who were more open, extrovert, or agreeable tended to score higher than the others. Consumers associated the most liked odorants with terms such as clean, crisp, fresh, and natural. In addition, the most liked odorants increased positive emotions, tended to be used across the most occasions, were appropriate for most products, and raised expectations of functional benefits. In contrast, consumers associated the least liked samples with the terms heavy and bold and had negative responses to most items. Similar findings were found when analyses were conducted on consumers classifying based on liking patterns. Each consumer group liked specific odorants; however, the relationship between the most liked samples and the response variables were similar. Analysis results demonstrated that openness to experience was the only personality factor that influenced fragrance acceptance. Consumers from different demographic segments tended to like different fragrances. For example, men tended to like chypré smells, whereas younger consumers tended to like soft floral/powdery scents. One limitation of the study is the number and type of fragrances tested. It is possible that a different set of fragrances could have produced different results. However, the range of fragrances in this study was broad-based and generally covered the types of fragrances typically available in the marketplace.

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Family Studies and Human Services / Kristy L. Pederson-Archuleta / Martin C. Seay / This dissertation consists of three studies exploring the relationship between personality and wealth related variables. The psychological type theory was used as the theoretical framework for the first two studies, while the doctrine of interactionism was used in the third study. All three studies utilized data from the 2010 panel of the Health and Retirement Study (HRS). The first study examined the relationship between personality traits and net worth. Linear regression results identified the extroversion and conscientiousness traits as being positively associated with net worth. Furthermore, the agreeableness trait was negatively associated with net worth. The second study explored the relationship between personality preference and stock ownership. This study’s logistic regression results identified the preference for high openness and high neuroticism as significant and positively associated with stock ownership. A high agreeableness preference was significant and negatively associated with stock ownership. The focus of the third study examined how net worth and income mediated the association between personality and life satisfaction. Regression results from this study identified net worth as being a significant mediating variable in the association between the conscientiousness trait and life satisfaction levels. However, income, in addition to net worth, was also a significant mediating variable when the extroversion and neuroticism traits were used to represent personality trait variables. Results from the three studies identified significant associations between personality traits and components of net worth. These findings contribute to the financial planning field by providing useful information in regards to how mental preferences expressed outwardly though personality traits are related to wealth related variables and life satisfaction. Financial planning practitioners can apply these findings to formulate strategies to assist people grow their wealth levels.