Psychological resilience has been described as a multidimensional, context specific concept, and has been defined in numerous ways that attempt to encapsulate the process by which individuals positively adapt following stress or significant adversity. Research within competitive sport has highlighted several components that influence this process, which include; meta-cognitions and challenge appraisals, coping strategies, personal risk and protective factors, and sociocultural influences (Brown et al., 2015; Galli & Vealey, 2008; Fletcher & Sarkar, 2012; Sarkar & Fletcher, 2014a). Significantly, resilience is described as a dynamic process that is developed through exposure to challenge within the competitive environment (Galli & Vealey, 2008); however, little is known about the nature of psychological resilience at a junior level. The understanding of how resilience is conceptualised at this level is important as this knowledge can help to foster the appropriate protective and promotive factors required to thrive in a competitive junior environment, and best equip athletes for future periods of unrest. The aims of the current research program were to investigate the nature of psychological resilience within a junior sport context, and to explore appropriate measures or methodological approaches by which to achieve this. To achieve these, eight research objectives are presented. To address these objectives, five research investigations were proposed: Study 1. This study aimed to explore the psychometric qualities of the original 25-item CD-RISC (Connor & Davidson, 2003) amongst a sample of junior athletes. Three hundred and forty seven athletes (M age=15.42, SD=1.72) completed the original CD-RISC questionnaire. Participants represented a range of individual and team sports. Internal consistency and factor structure were analysed using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and exploratory factor analyses (EFA). CFAs did not support the original 5-factor or unitary factor structure of the 25-item CD-RISC, but did support a unidimensional shortened 10-item measure (Cambell-Sills & Stein, 2007). Subsequently, an EFA and CFA also supported a valid and reliable 2-factor sport specific version of the CD-RISC, which was favoured based on stronger conceptual and theoretical support. This study supports the contention that resilience is not consistent across all populations and context specific measures may be required e.g., sport specific. The emergent 2-factor measurement model suggests an underlying structure of resilience in sport that represents an individual's control through adversity and growth mindset. Study 2. The aim of this study was to explore the nature of resilience within junior sport, with a specific focus on sport type, gender and age differences, and the association between resilience and sensation seeking characteristics. Participants completed the modified version of the CD-RISC, which emerged in the previous study and the Brief Sensation Seeking Scale (BSSS; Hoyle at al., 2002), which measures dispositional risk taking behaviours. The results suggested that male and team athletes have significantly higher resilience scores than their female and individual sport counterparts. In general, protective factors associated with resilience positively relate to sensation seeking characteristics. Specifically, feelings relating to ‘control through adversity' more broadly relate to tendencies leading to greater risk exposure. These findings may suggest that those with a greater perception of control take more calculated risks and set goals that are more challenging. This may offer the opportunity to increase personal mastery through developed interpersonal relations, emotional expression, problem solving skills and coping resources. Nevertheless, our understanding of resilience seems limited by the capacity of a psychometric questionnaire to encapsulate such a complex construct. Study 3. This study aimed to provide a review of the literature concerning resilience in athletes, with a specific focus on identifying the differing methodological approaches to examine the nature of the construct in sport. Fourteen research articles that attempted to directly measure psychological resilience with an athlete sample were identified using both quantitative (n=8) and qualitative (n=6) approaches. Quantitative research has increased conceptual understanding of resilience in sport, relating to its positive associations with similar constructs (e.g., mental toughness), and its moderation qualities. This approach permits statistical analyses to track development, however is unlikely to offer sufficient depth to understanding given the complexities surrounding both the construct of psychological resilience and the nature of an elite sporting environment. Qualitative studies have helped to develop theoretical understanding of psychological resilience amongst athletes through adopting phenomenological methodologies, however, the application of knowledge relies on user generalisability alone and does not offer an objective measure of the construct. The review proposes an exploration of novel methodological approaches that consider the positive elements of both qualitative and quantitative research, but does not consolidate their pitfalls. Study 4. The purpose of this study was to develop a novel tool to measure psychological resilience using a Q-method approach. Specifically, this study aimed to construct a Q-set, by identifying the subjective viewpoints of junior rugby league players, associated with how they would respond to stress or adversity and their perceptions of the resilience process. Twenty-nine junior rugby league players (aged 13-14) were recruited to take part in one of two focus groups designed to generate statements relating to responses to adversity. Thirty statements emerged following inductive thematic analysis, and were retained for the Q-set. There are commonalities between these statements and characteristics of theoretical models and previous research concerning psychological resilience in sport. Study 5. The purpose of this study was to use the Q-set developed in the previous study to explore the nature of psychological resilience in the context of junior Rugby League, using a novel Q-sort method. Sixty junior rugby league players (aged 13-14) completed a standard Q-sort protocol, ranking the previously developed 30-item Q-set using a fixed quasi normal distribution, with anchors of +5 (most like me) to -5 (least like me). PQ Method statistical analysis software was used to analyse the data. Principle component analysis with varimax rotation identified four distinct subgroups that explained 72% of the total variance. These groups were distinguished through patterns relating to: social support, emotional control, unpleasant emotions, personal resources, and cognitive strategies. Shared qualities across the four subgroups were also identified, and included low ratings for evasion strategies, and seeking support, whilst generally high ratings for perseverance. The results from this study showed that junior rugby league players display a range of psychological responses when experiencing adversity and four subgroups with both defining and shared characteristics emerged. This study provides preliminary evidence for the potential usefulness of a Q-method approach for understanding the process of resilience in junior sport. Q-methodology provides an alternative to previous research designs attempting to understand the nature of resilience, and offers an engaging activity to participants, encouraging analytical reflections of their experiences. In summary, the data collected within the current research program has presented an original contribution to knowledge concerning the nature of psychological resilience in junior sport. / The thesis has delivered the first study of its kind, by employing Q-methodology to understand psychological resilience, revealing previously untapped complexities associated with the construct. This approach offers future researchers and practitioners the depth of insight and level of objectivity associated with qualitative and quantitative measures respectively, and recommends this as a viable alternative to psychometric measures of resilience.

277 f. / Submitted by Suelen Reis (suziy.ellen@gmail.com) on 2013-04-25T17:29:51Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Tese Eduardo Sande.pdf: 1857655 bytes, checksum: ad91371dea68e836c7d21c8bf8090937 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Maria Auxiliadora Lopes(silopes@ufba.br) on 2013-05-17T17:08:50Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 Tese Eduardo Sande.pdf: 1857655 bytes, checksum: ad91371dea68e836c7d21c8bf8090937 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2013-05-17T17:08:50Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Tese Eduardo Sande.pdf: 1857655 bytes, checksum: ad91371dea68e836c7d21c8bf8090937 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2008 / A adolescência é apresentada a partir de sua história e abordagens multidisciplinares. O quadro levantado é retratado como pré-paradigmático. A raiz da complexidade encontrada é remontada a dualidade filosófica moderna. Os sistemas de pensamento de Hume e Kant são apresentados em suas principais diferenças. A epistemologia do pensamento freudiano é abordada a partir do Projeto para uma psicologia com a apresentação do problema proposto e não resolvido por Freud neste texto. O autor enuncia, a seguir, sua própria solução e a apresenta como superação do dilema humeniano-kantiano. Com base nela, uma nova teoria para a emergência do humano e sua cognição, intitulada Cognição Reativa Retroativa Interativa (CRIA) é desenvolvida. Suas implicações no campo das ciências da cognição são exploradas e algumas aplicações em IA sugeridas. Uma metodologia de pesquisa para o paradigma proposto é delineada e uma experiência piloto apresentada. A adolescência é analisada a partir das premissas da nova teoria (a Cria) e as implicações desta análise para a educação são apresentadas sob a forma de um esboço de uma nova escola para adolescentes. / Salvador

abstract: An abundance of data has established the links between both pain-related cognitions and relationship attachment qualities in the experience of pain, including long-term functional health in chronic pain patients. However, relatively few studies have explored the dynamic relation between pain and pain-related cognitions within a day, and no studies have tested the moderating role of relationship attachment on the within-day cognition—pain association in chronic pain patients. The objectives of this study were to: 1) assess whether late morning pain flares predicted changes in afternoon positive and negative pain-related cognitive appraisals, and whether these changes in turn predicted end-of-day pain, and 2) explore whether adult attachment anxiety moderated the pain-cognition relation in individuals with chronic pain due to fibromyalgia. One hundred and seventy four partnered individuals with fibromyalgia completed initial assessments of demographics and attachment anxiety, and subsequently completed electronic assessments of pain intensity and positive and negative cognitive pain-related appraisals three times a day for three weeks. Multilevel structural equation modeling established that a latent negative cognitive appraisal factor (encompassing shared variance from catastrophizing, pain irritation, and self-criticism related to pain) mediated the link between late morning and end-of-day pain intensity, in line with the hypothesis. Analyses also provided some support for a mediating role for a positive cognitive appraisal factor (a composite of pain control, pain self-efficacy, and feeling pain without reacting) in the daily course of pain; the mediated effect for positive appraisals was weaker than the mediated effect of negative appraisals, but was sustained in a model that included negative appraisals. Inconsistent with prediction, attachment anxiety did not moderate the within-day links between pain and cognitions. These findings establish the dynamic links within day between pain and pain-related cognitions, and highlight the potential impact of both negative and positive cognitions on daily pain regulation. They point to the value of broadening cognitive-behavioral treatment strategies for chronic pain patients to target not only negative but also positive cognitions. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Psychology 2015

O espaço fornece uma estrutura conceitual rica que nos possibilita distinguir objetos, compreender as suas funções e relacioná-los. O pensamento espacial é uma atividade cognitiva composta por conceitos e representações de espaço e aplicação a processos de raciocínio. Existem diversas evidências científicas que apontam que o pensamento espacial desempenha um papel fundamental tanto na atividade científica quanto na aprendizagem de ciências e matemática. O pensamento espacial se baseia em habilidades espaciais, tais como rotação mental e orientação espacial. Ainda, há resultados científicos que apontam que crianças do gênero masculino, tipicamente, possuem um desempenho melhor em testes de habilidades espaciais do que crianças do gênero feminino. Assim, o principal objetivo desta pesquisa consiste em desenvolver, implementar e analisar uma atividade que pretende desenvolver habilidades espaciais. Nosso trabalho se apoia na teoria da cognição incorporada, que considera que os processos cognitivos estão fortemente ligados a comportamentos motores e sensoriais. A atividade proposta consiste em um jogo chamado Math-e-motion projetado para estudantes do terceiro ano do Ensino Fundamental. Nesse jogo, estudantes exercem os papéis de saltadores e observadores. Os saltadores executam movimentos em um plano coordenado desenhado no chão. Os observadores, por sua vez, devem delinear o movimento executado pelo saltador em um plano coordenado desenhado numa prancheta. Mais importantemente, tal delineamento deve ser dado de acordo com a perspectiva do saltador. Todos os estudantes executam os dois papéis. Avaliamos a atividade proposta através de dois estudos controlados, cada qual envolvendo alunos de escolas públicas brasileiras. Como produto de uma colaboração internacional, também executamos o primeiro estudo em uma escola nos Estado Unidos. Os resultados obtidos indicam uma melhora nas habilidades de orientação espacial e de rotação mental. Além disso, os resultados também apontam para uma redução na diferença no desempenho do teste de orientação espacial entre os gêneros feminino e masculino. Para habilidades matemáticas, houve melhora significativa na habilidade de leitura de gráficos com informações implícitas. Com o respaldo da teoria da cognição incorporada, a nossa pesquisa pretende contribuir com uma discussão acerca do papel do corpo no processo de aprendizagem. / Space provides a rich conceptual framework that enables us to distinguish objects, understand their functions, and relate them. Spatial thinking is a cognitive activity composed of concepts and representations of space and application to reasoning processes. There is substantial scientific evidence showing that spatial thinking plays a fundamental role in the scientific activity and in the learning of science and mathematics. Spatial thinking relies on spatial abilities, such as mental rotation and spatial orientation. Moreover, there are scientific results showing that boys typically outperform girls in tests of spatial abilities. Therefore, the main goal of this research is to develop, implement, and analyze an activity that aims at developing spatial abilities. Our work relies on the theory of embodied cognition, which considers that cognitive processes are strongly linked to motor and sensory behaviors. The proposed activity is a game called Math-e-motion designed for students in third grade of Elementary School. In this game, students play the roles of jumpers and observers. The jumpers perform movements in a coordinate plane drawn on the floor. The observers, in turn, are asked to delineate the movement performed by the jumper in a coordinate plane drawn on a clipboard. Most importantly, such a delineation must be given according to the jumper\'s perspective. All students play both roles. We evaluated the proposed activity by means of two controlled studies, with each involving a group of students from two Brazilian public schools. As a product of an international collaboration, we also executed the first study in a private school in the United States. Our results showed an improvement in spatial orientation and mental rotation abilities. In addition, we also found a reduction in the difference of the scores obtained by male and female students in the spatial orientation test. For math abilities, we found a significant improvement in the ability to read charts with implicit information. With the support of the embodied cognition theory, our research aims at contributing with a discussion about the role of the body in the learning process.

Submitted by Jorge Silva (jorgelmsilva@ufrrj.br) on 2017-06-09T18:43:17Z No. of bitstreams: 1 2015 - Sirlene Oliveira de Souza.pdf: 2512441 bytes, checksum: c29d5a9693bf8606caabfdf7eef43161 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-06-09T18:43:17Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 2015 - Sirlene Oliveira de Souza.pdf: 2512441 bytes, checksum: c29d5a9693bf8606caabfdf7eef43161 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-03-17 / With a historical-cultural focus, it is aimed at this study reflecting on the processes which compose the cognitions, knowledges and the formation of professionals as well as the pedagogical actions focused on the small children in the initial period of their staying in the kindergarten. This way we present as a goal investigating how the knowledges are built, conceptions and pedagogical practices of the teachers in the first days of the children and their families? staying in the Childhood Education School of UFRJ. We had this proposal coming from the processes of construction of adopted knowledges by a group of five teachers of a baby nursery, in articulation with the staff which leads the school. In benefit of that, we looked forward to identify in what contexts and forms the processes of constructions are given; how the existences of teachers? formation occur for the ones of the unity of Childhood Education; to perceive which knowledges are involved in that; analyzing how the politics of the present formation are reflected in this context and, finally, how this group becomes real in the pedagogical actions of reception of the children that are inserted in the institution. We understand the insertion as a movement of simultaneous knowledge among children/ families and institution/ educators, therefore the form as the institution organizes this period will be important in the construction of the relations between everybody. We still understand that the cognitions, pieces of knowledge and proceedings of the teachers are built daily in the meeting of one with another, in the dialogical movement of listening to many voices that evince themselves in the daily pedagogical proceeding. With these comprehensions, in search of our goal, we follow the movements that happened with the group of teachers in the insertion process of four children of the baby nursery group that started their routes in the institution in the second semester of the year of 2014. As a way of systematize our meetings and dialogs and of capturing the movements of the staff that could evince our focus of the analysis, we tried to take hold of a group of proceedings and instruments that could provide a dialogical space among researcher and researched subjects. With that, the use of the survey of characterization of the teachers, the dynamic of the group interview and the register in the diary which refers to the accomplished observations in the educational context, were adopted as a way of providing the demand through the group production of the data. The analysis shows us that there are some specific pieces of knowledge to which it recurs in the insertion movement; the most part of them refers to the specifics of the teacher?s role of Childhood Education. We saw all the time the search for understanding questions related to the food, the crying, the sleep, the hygiene, the space-time organization, the roles? compositions, all of them surrounded by responsive action with another subject. The teachers used to do endless exotopy in favor of the construction of these understandings where they had ?in the other? the great source of construction of the knowledge. / Com um enfoque hist?rico-cultural, pretende-se neste estudo refletir sobre os processos que comp?em os saberes, conhecimentos e a forma??o dos profissionais, bem como as a??es pedag?gicas voltadas para as crian?as pequenas no per?odo inicial de sua estadia na creche. Assim, apresentamos como objetivo investigar de que forma se constroem os conhecimentos, concep??es e pr?ticas pedag?gicas dos professores nos primeiros dias de estadia das crian?as e suas fam?lias na Escola de Educa??o Infantil da UFRJ. Tivemos esse prop?sito partindo dos processos de constru??o de conhecimentos adotados por um grupo de cinco professores de uma turma de ber??rio, em articula??o com a equipe que lidera a escola. Em prol deste, procuramos identificar em que contextos e formas se d?o processos de constru??o de conhecimentos; como ocorrem viv?ncias de forma??o para os professores desta unidade de Educa??o Infantil; perceber quais conhecimentos s?o envolvidos nele; analisar de que forma as pol?ticas de forma??o vigentes est?o refletidas nesse contexto e, por fim, como esse conjunto concretiza-se nas a??es pedag?gicas de recep??o das crian?as que se inserem na institui??o. Entendemos a inser??o como um movimento de conhecer simult?neo, entre crian?as/fam?lias e institui??o/educadores, portanto a forma como a institui??o organiza esse per?odo ser? importante na constru??o das rela??es entre todos. Entendemos ainda que os saberes, conhecimentos e fazeres dos professores s?o constru?dos cotidianamente no encontro com outro, no movimento dial?gico de escuta das v?rias vozes que se evidenciam no fazer pedag?gico cotidiano. Com essas compreens?es, na busca de nosso objetivo, acompanhamos os movimentos que aconteceram com o grupo de professores no processo de inser??o de quatro crian?as do grupo de ber??rio, que come?aram seu percurso na institui??o no segundo semestre do ano de 2014. Como forma de sistematizar nossos encontros e di?logos e de captar os movimentos da equipe que evidenciassem nosso foco de an?lise, procuramos lan?ar m?o de um conjunto de procedimentos e instrumentos que proporcionasse um espa?o dial?gico entre pesquisador e sujeitos pesquisados. Com isso, o uso do question?rio de caracteriza??o dos professores, a din?mica de entrevista coletiva e o registro em di?rio de campo referente ao acompanhamento das observa??es realizadas no contexto educacional, foram adotadas de forma a suprir a demanda pela produ??o conjunta dos dados. A an?lise nos mostra que h? alguns conhecimentos espec?ficos aos quais se recorre no movimento de inser??o, a maioria deles referente as especificidades do papel de professor de Educa??o Infantil. Vimos a todo tempo a busca por compreender quest?es referente a alimenta??o, ao choro, ao sono, a higiene, a organiza??o espa?o temporal, a composi??o de papeis, todos cercados pela a??o responsiva com outro sujeito. As professoras faziam um exerc?cio de exotopia incessante em prol da constru??o dessas compreens?es, em que tinham ?no outro? a grande fonte de constru??o de conhecimento.

Extending prior alcohol expectancy measurement research, this researcher (McMurray, 2013) recently developed the Pharmacological and Social Alcohol Expectancy Scale (PSAES). The PSAES is the only alcohol expectancy measure to date that provides adequate coverage of both social expectancies and the anticipated positive pharmacological effects resulting from alcohol consumption, and was developed and validated in a sample of young adults (aged 18-23). Research has shown that adolescents at high risk for alcohol use disorder (AUD) hold higher expectations of reward from alcohol, suggesting that expectancy patterns may help distinguish at-risk youth. Building upon the previous PSAES validation study, the primary purpose of the current study was to examine whether a version of the PSAES adapted for adolescents (the PSAES-A) provided a valid measure of pharmacological and social alcohol expectancies in adolescents. Results demonstrated that a respecified model of the PSAES-A adequately fit the proposed two-dimensional factor structure and provided justification for the items representing two distinguishable domains: social and pharmacological. The PSAES-A was then used to 1) examine patterns of alcohol expectancies and drinking behaviors in adolescents and 2) investigate whether risk (e.g., sensation seeking personality) was differentially associated with pharmacological and social expectancies in adolescents. Results indicated that pharmacological and social expectancies were differentially associated with various drinking behaviors (e.g., quantity, frequency) and that sensation seeking was significantly associated with both social and pharmacological expectancies in adolescents. The fact that alcohol expectancies differentially predicted quantity and frequency of drinking suggests that different expectancy processes affect adolescent’s decisions about how often they drink versus how much alcohol they consume on a given occasion. Implications and limitations are discussed.

Cognitions relevant to tanning salon decision making were studied using Jaccard's Theory of Alternative Behavior. Questionnaires were administered assessing tanning salon use, attitudes toward tanning salon use, attitudes toward reasonable behavioral alternatives, and cognitive variables underlying these variables. Tanning salon use reports were very high in this sample. The results support the notion that young people make decisions regarding using tanning salons based on the behavioral alternatives available to them. Specifically, subjects with stronger preferences for using clothing to enhance appearance were less likely to use tanning salons. Furthermore, the multivariate approach used clearly delineates the specific cognitive beliefs and orientations that might be targeted to change these attitudes. The relevance of these findings to skin cancer prevention is discussed.

The United States is in the midst of an opioid crisis, with more than 130 people dying each day from an opioid overdose (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2018a). Given the recent spike in overdose deaths associated with highly potent synthetic opioids (i.e., fentanyl), there are few signs of the crisis abating (CDC, 2018a). Compared to other age groups, the prevalence of both heroin and prescription opioid use is particularly elevated among young adults (Sharma, Bruner, Barnett, & Fishman, 2016). While there is a large body of evidence demonstrating the effectiveness of substance use treatment in general, only 40-60% of individuals remain abstinent in the year following treatment (McLellan, Lewis, O’Brien, & Klebler, 2000). Less attention has been given to the process of treatment, making it challenging to determine what works and what needs improvement. This information is necessary in developing a comprehensive understanding of the treatment process, which in turn, will inform treatment decisions and improve client outcomes. The current study adds to existing literature by assessing during-treatment change on four proximal outcomes measuring substance-related cognitions (i.e., abstinence self-efficacy and commitment to sobriety) and self-concept (i.e., internalized shame and self-compassion). It was hypothesized that participants would demonstrate significant changes in the favorable direction on all four proximal outcomes. A sample comprised of primarily young adults with opioid use disorders attending short-term residential substance use treatment were enrolled in a naturalistic longitudinal study and assessed at intake, mid-treatment, and discharge. Individual growth curve models were used to examine change over time at both the aggregate and individual levels on the four proximal outcomes. Several potential moderating influences (e.g., demographic information, substance use history, mental health symptoms) were explored to better understand initial status and responses to treatment. Results revealed significant changes in the expected direction on all four proximal outcomes. In addition, several variables emerged as significant predictors of initial status and rates of change. These results provide further evidence that residential substance use treatment is not only a viable option in reducing substance use, but also impacts other important outcomes relevant to clients’ functioning and overall well-being.

No description available.

We introduce the Seasonal Beliefs Questionnaire (SBQ), a self-report inventory of maladaptive thoughts about the seasons, light availability, and weather conditions, proposed to constitute a unique cognitive vulnerability to winter seasonal affective disorder (SAD; Rohan, Roecklein, & Haaga, 2009). Potential items were derived from a qualitative analysis of self-reported thoughts during SAD-tailored cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT-SAD) and subsequently refined based on qualitative feedback from 48 SAD patients. In the psychometric study (N = 536 college students), exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses pruned the items to a 26-item scale with a 5-factor solution, demonstrating good internal consistency, convergent and divergent validity, and 2-week test-retest reliability. In a known groups comparison, the SBQ discriminated SAD patients (n = 86) from both nonseasonal major depressive disorder (MDD) patients (n = 30) and healthy controls (n = 110), whereas a generic measure of depressogenic cognitive vulnerability (the Dysfunctional Attitudes Scale [DAS]) discriminated MDD patients from the other groups. In a randomized clinical trial comparing CBT-SAD with light therapy (N = 177), SBQ scores improved at twice the rate in CBT-SAD than in light therapy. Greater change in SBQ scores during CBT-SAD, but not during light therapy, was associated with a lower risk of depression recurrence 2 winters later. In contrast, DAS scores improved comparably during CBT-SAD and light therapy, and DAS change was unrelated to recurrence following either treatment. These results support using the SBQ as a brief assessment tool for a SAD-specific cognitive vulnerability and as a treatment target in CBT-SAD. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).