Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Chicago, Dept. of Psychology, Committee on Human Development, August 1999. / Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1966. / Vita. Typescript. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references.

Project Report (M.Pub.) - Simon Fraser University, 2006. / Theses (Master of Publishing Program) / Simon Fraser University. Also issued in digital format and available on the World Wide Web.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wyoming, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 186-195).

Thesis (M.S.)--State University of New York at Binghamton, Department of Psychology, 2008. / Includes bibliographical references.

Non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) is a dangerous and common behaviour, particularly among adolescents. Childhood trauma, insecure child-parent attachment, psychological distress, and impulsivity are some of the risk factors for NSSI that have been previously identified. However, the pathways from distal risk factors to NSSI and the ways in which these correlated risk factors interact with each other remains unclear. Identifying these pathways will provide valuable insight into the aetiology of NSSI and potentially highlight targets for treatment and intervention. In this dissertation I examine data from multiple large samples of young people, looking at multiple risk and protective factors together, and examining moderation and mediation pathways between risk factors. Using longitudinal data from 933 adolescents with no prior history of NSSI I demonstrated that the association between childhood family adversity before age 5 and new onset of NSSI between the ages of 14 and 17 was mediated by age 14 family functioning and possibly mental illness. Next, I validated a new measure of child perceptions of positive parenting, which I used to demonstrate the uni-directional prospective association between positive parenting and lower rates of NSSI amongst 1489 adolescents (ages 14-25). I then used this new measure of positive parenting to demonstrate that the prospective parenting-NSSI association was mediated by psychological distress. This is also one of the first prospective studies to show that impulsivity is independently predictive of NSSI. Using data I collected myself from a sample of 596 adolescents (ages 16-19) I validated a much needed measure of childhood trauma, with which I then demonstrated that the trauma-NSSI association was mediated by attachment and distress. Using data from this sample I was also able to reaffirm my previous findings that the attachment-NSSI association was mediated by psychological distress, and that impulsivity was uniquely associated with NSSI. Finally, using data from a sample of 559 Flemish 13 year-olds, I demonstrated that behavioural problems were more salient to NSSI than emotional problems among young adolescents, and that the attachment-NSSI association might be mediated by hyperactivity and conduct problems. Together, these findings reaffirm that childhood trauma, insecure child-parent attachment, psychological distress, and impulsivity are robust risk factors for NSSI and potential targets for treatment and intervention. Moreover, both distress and child-parent attachment may be viable targets for interventions aimed at attenuating the impact of early childhood trauma after it has occurred. Future research should use randomised controlled trails to test the efficacy of NSSI treatments aimed at these risk factors.

The diploma thesis deals with the topic of learning disabilities and their consequence on pupil´s self-koncept and class position. A pupil, who suffers from a learning disability, has to face a lot of difficulties after he or she enters school. The way how these children tackle these difficulties influences their self-concept and thier class position. The theoretical part discusses explains the terms- self-concept, self-esteem and self-efficacy in connection with pupil´s motivation, pupil´s engagement in learning process and their coping with the learning disability. The problem of inclusion of these children among their classmates in learning process is also mentioned. The practical and investigative part concerns the research at the elementary school in Pelhřimov and monitors the collected data.

No description available.

Self-affirmation has been shown to alter individuals' reactions to a wide range of threats, yet comparatively little is known about its cognitive and affective consequences, especially in the immediate aftermath of self-affirmation. This thesis explored these effects and the role of trait self-esteem in moderating them. In relation to cognition, in Study 1 (Chapter 2, N = 83), self-affirmation improved performance on two tasks (testing working memory and inhibition) related to executive function; Effects were not moderated by self-esteem. In Study 2 (Chapter 3, N = 107), self-affirmation decreased performance on a different working memory task among high self-esteem individuals. In relation to affect, a systematic review (Chapter 4) indicated that self-affirmation is not consistently associated with positive affect, despite the fact that positive affect has received much attention as a possible mediator of self-affirmation effects. Study 4 (Chapter 5, N = 161) showed that self-esteem moderated the effects of self-affirmation on positive affect: high self-esteem individuals reported more positive affect after self-affirming. Study 5 (Chapter 6, N = 270) revealed that self-affirmed (vs control) participants used more positive affective language. Participants in Study 6 (Chapter 6, N = 73) were randomised to a positive mood, self-affirmation or control condition, and read about the health consequences of fruit and vegetable consumption. At one-week follow-up, self-affirmed participants reported highest consumption, but positive affect did not mediate this effect. Overall, the findings show some support for an impact of self-affirmation on executive function, providing a useful link between the diverse areas which self-affirmation has been known to affect. They also support the notion that positive affect can be an immediate product of self-affirmation, especially for those high in self-esteem. However, they do not support the view that positive affect is the mechanism underlying the effect of self-affirmation on the processing of self-relevant threatening information.

This thesis examines how the reification of the concept of ' self - esteem ' has been achieved discursively. It investigates how the concept of self - esteem has been developed over time and how it operates as an explanatory construct across a rage of areas and disciplines. The analyses in this thesis examine texts coming from psychiatry, self - help publications and public policy. These disciplines have taken up, utilized and, consequently re - constructed the concept of self - esteem according to their own specific needs and their particular discursive organizations. The thesis adopts the assumption that abstract psychological constructs are linguistically achieved and thus can be most effectively studied through focusing on the ' workings of language ', rather than on ' discovering ' some inner phenomena. Informed by Wittgenstein, critical psychology, and critical linguistics, the analyses undertake grammatical investigations into the concept of self - esteem. These investigations, based on the analysis of patterns in the lexico - grammar, examine ' meanings ' accumulated in the concept of self - esteem. These examinations extend to the level of social, cultural, and political contexts which have influenced our understandings of the concept of self - esteem. The investigations of ' meanings ' embedded in the notion of self - esteem make possible an exploration of the values, assumptions and connotations carried by this concept. The analyses demonstrate that self - esteem has been constructed over time as an increasingly more tangible, internalized and cognitive phenomenon. This intensified reification produced a ' self - esteem ' that is not only a consistent and measurable ' feature ' of the human psyche, but is an agentive force shaping human lives. Moreover, these constructions of self - esteem promote particular ethical principles and ultraconservative values. Paradoxically, while discourses of self - esteem have become a part of neo - liberal philosophies emphasizing personal liberty and freedom of choice, they serve to limit the choices of many social groups. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Medical School, 2005.