Thesis advisor: Yukiko A. Hatasa, Judith E. Liskin-Gasparro. Includes bibliographic references (p. 165-172).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 1973. / Includes vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 44-47). Available online via OhioLINK's ETD Center.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--State University of New York at Binghamton, Psychology Department, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2007. / Title from first page of PDF file. Includes bibliographical references (p. 114-118).

No description available.

This study was an examination of the Hawthorne Effect in a verbal learning situation in an educational setting. The Hawthorne Effect was defined as the facilitating effect(s) produced in experimental situations when the subjects of the experiment expect that they are the objects of special attention. The purpose of the study was to determine if contamination by the Hawthorne Effect existed in an educational setting. Comparisons were made between "experimentally inexperienced" subjects and "experimentally experienced" subjects at both undergraduate and graduate levels. The task was to learn a list of paired associate terms, and to show learning retention by immediate replication of those terms. The focus of the study was upon the expected differences in performance of the control and experimental groups produced as a result of an effort to persuade experimental subjects that they had "unique" characteristics which would cause them to be exceptionally proficient. The control groups were given the task by the course instructor in a usual classroom setting,as an example of a curriculum objective. Recommendations for further research were as follows: (1) the personality variables of the researcher and those of the subjects being tested should be thoroughly delineated; (2) sex differences in performance should be scrutinized further, since there were indications that females did react differently from males in the experimental situation; (3) other academic disciplines should be examined with respect to susceptibility to the Hawthorne Effect; and (4) other social settings should be examined with respect to the Hawthorne Effect contamination.

Studying dopamine-dependent functions such as memory and creativity can help us understand and improve quality of life in populations at risk for dopaminergic network dysfunction. I examined memory and creativity in a series of studies in different at-risk populations. The first study investigated marijuana initiation and learning in 119 inner-city youth, some with prenatal substance exposures, including to cocaine. I hypothesized that earlier-onset marijuana use would predict poorer developmental learning trajectories, and non-use the most positive. Results suggested that initiation’s effects on learning may reflect psychosocial factors rather than prenatal substance exposure status or time of marijuana initiation. The potential importance of the dopamine-related personality factor “openness to experience” motivated additional studies. One hypothesized and found different neurocognitive outcomes in young-adult substance users (n=41) based on maladaptive or adaptive substance use motives. The other studies examined Parkinson’s disease (PD), a disorder characterized by the degeneration of brain dopaminergic networks. Participants were individuals with PD without dementia (33-42 “PDs”/study), age-matched normal control adults (26-28 “NCs”/study), and younger control adults (37-41 “YCs”/study). The first PD study examined neuropsychological and personality correlates of learning and memory. I hypothesized that in each group, openness would explain a significant amount of the variance in learning, and higher openness would be associated with better learning and memory, particularly in PDs. Results supported this hypothesis in PDs only. The second PD study examined creativity—specifically, divergent thinking, which correlates with openness and shares dopaminergic neural substrates. Based on research demonstrating that brief walking improves divergent thinking in young adults, and that exercise changes dopamine transmission, I hypothesized that brief walking would improve divergent thinking in PDs, NCs, and YCs. In PDs, I expected higher disease severity (more compromised dopamine function) to correlate with less improvement after walking. None of the hypotheses were supported, potentially due to the low intensity of the intervention, but openness appeared protective of creativity in YCs and PDs. Taken together, the results of the studies demonstrate the importance of psychosocial factors in dopamine-dependent cognition. In at-risk populations, openness’s benefits may surpass effects of moderate substance use, and they may offer neuroprotection in PD.

The present study was designed to determine the ages at which a sample of children between eighteen and forty-two months verbally and correctly express the fourteen prepositions known to be acquired by age four, using the Revised Expressive Preposition Test (REPT). The REPT was administered to sixty children chosen from day care centers and private homes within the metropolitan area of Portland, Oregon. Therewas no preference as to the sex, intelligence of the child or socio- economic status of the child's family. A statistical analysis was performed to determine the correlation between HEPT scores and the child's chronological age, mental age and the socioeconomic status of the child's family. Results show that expressive prepositions tend to be acquired at different age levels. Each age group tended to use a progressively greater number of the prepositions. None of the eighteen month olds used any of the prepositions. Only one-fourth of the twenty-four month olds used any of the prepositions. Half or more of the thirty month olds expressed the prepositions "under," "on," "in" and "up." Half or more of the thirty-six month olds expressed the prepositions "out of," "at," "in" and "up," but not "under" and "on." Half or more of the forty-two month olds expressed the prepositions "to, II, "out of," "under," "around," "at," "of," "with" and "up." One hundred per cent of the forty-two month olds also used the prepositions "in" and "on." The prepositions which were never expressed by 50 per cent of any of the children were "behind," "across," "off" and "by." A statistical analysis of the data revealed a moderate correlation between the children's REPT scores and their chronological ages (.68). Correlation coefficients indicated a high correlation between the children's REFT scores and their combined chronological and mental ages (.82). The children's SES scores did not correlate with REPT scores (1 per cent) when considered together with chronological and mental ages.

No description available.

This study examined the ways in which diagrams and texts were used to teach verbal chains and other forms of cyclical information. One hundred twenty-nine college students were randomly assigned to one of four stimulus treatments and a comprehension test. The four treatments conditions were: Text Only (Control), Diagram Only, Text with Instructive Questions, and Diagram with Instructive Questions. Flow diagrams were more effective than texts as a presentation type when teaching cyclical information. The groups that studied diagrams scored significantly higher on the comprehension test than the groups that studied texts §(1,125) = 22.44, p < .05. However, instructive questions used as prompts or as study organizers did not enhance the instructional effectiveness of diagrams or texts. The groups that received instructive questions as an adjunct to the presentation mode scored significantly lower on the comprehension test than the groups that did not receive the adjunct questions F(1, 125) = 8.14, p < .05. Further analysis indicated no interaction among the independent variables. It was concluded that flow diagrams are more effective than text when teaching verbal chains. / Ed. D.