Researchers have found that public opinion of people who are mentally ill is often negative. This study, grounded in cognitive theories, was conducted to determine if education would improve college students' attitudes toward mental illness and if there were gender differences in those attitudes, as past studies had shown. Attitudes of 184 Jamacian adult college students towards mental illness were measured before and after a didactic seminar using the Attitudes to Mental Illness Questionnaire (AMIQ), Opinion About Mental Illness Scale (OMI), and Help Seeking Attitudes Scale. A nonrandomized trial was used to generate nonequivalent comparison groups, with one group attending the seminar and the other group not attending the seminar. The generalized linear model and an analysis of covariance were used to examine the effects of the didactic seminar and gender on 2nd survey AMIQ, OMI, and HSAS scores. There were no differences in AMIQ scores between those who attended the didactic seminar and the control group who did not; however, there were significant differences on the OMI and HSAS scores between the attendee participants and the non-attendee participants. The nature of the differences indicated that attendees had a more positive attitude towards people with mental illness after the didactic seminar than did non-attendees. No gender differences were found on all scales for both groups. More research on individuals in different geographic areas and having varied demographic backgrounds is needed to determine the generalizability of the study results because the sample used in the current study was limited to one geographic area and had a specific demographic profile. Didactic seminars promoting positive views of people with mental illness could result in improved perceptions among the general public that may lead to better care.

This study was an investigation of the effectiveness of treatment approaches for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) examined through social, behavioral, and academic performances. Guided by Barkley's unifying theory of ADHD, a static-group comparison design was used to compare students receiving pharmacological treatment, psychosocial therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, and a pharmacological-therapy combination. Archival data was obtained on middle and high school students diagnosed with ADHD (ages 11-18, N = 103). Data included GPA; number of disciplinary referrals; and Behavior Assessment System for Children-Teacher Rating Scale (BASC-2 TRS) scores of externalizing behavior (e.g., defiance, aggression), internalizing behavior (e.g., anxiety, depression), general school problems (e.g., attention, study skills), behavioral symptoms (e.g., social skills, leadership), and adaptive skills (e.g., understanding emotions and social cues). None of the BASC-2 TRS subscale scores differed between groups except for internalizing behaviors. The pharmacological-therapy combination group had lower internalizing behavior scores than the pharmacological-only group and the cognitive behavioral therapy group. The pharmacological-therapy combination group also had fewer disciplinary referrals than the pharmacological-only group and the cognitive behavioral therapy group. GPA did not differ by group, but it was inversely related to number of referrals. Because, overall, across the 7 outcome comparisons, no single group definitively emerged as highest performing, implications for practice and positive social change are that selection of ADHD treatment type may be best informed by physician and parent preference and determination of child's need and receptivity.

A Brief Experimental Analysis (BEA) is used to quickly and simultaneously evaluate two or more interventions so that the most effective intervention is selected for on-going implementation (Daly, Witt, Martens, & Dool, 1997; Martens & Gertz, 2009). Oral reading fluency interventions have been successfully evaluated using a BEA, yet minimal research studies have evaluated early literacy interventions within this context (Daly, Martens, Hamler, Dool, Eckert, 1999; Eckert, Ardoin, Daly, & Martens, 2002; McComas & Burns, 2009). The primary goal of the current study was to examine the effectiveness of a BEA in selecting a letter-sound correspondence intervention for individual students. A comparison of early intervention strategies was also completed as part of an extended analysis. The study was conducted in two phases with three kindergarten students. First, a BEA was used to evaluate performance-based and skill-based interventions designed to increase letter-sound correspondence in three kindergarten students. Specifically, four experimental conditions were evaluated: baseline, reward, incremental rehearsal (IR) + reward, and systematic incremental rehearsal (SIR) + reward. Effectiveness of the interventions was measured using early literacy curriculum-based measurement probes. Following the BEA, an extended analysis was completed in which IR + reward and SIR + reward were both implemented with each student to compare effectiveness and evaluate whether the BEA identified the more powerful intervention to improve letter-sound correspondence. Results indicated that in all three participants there was minimal differentiation across BEA conditions. It appears that LSF probes were not sensitive enough to measure growth or progress in the BEA. As suggested by Petursdottir and colleagues (2014), individualized probes may be required when completing a BEA of early literacy skills. During the extended analysis, all three participants made gains in letter-sound correspondence with SIR and IR interventions. When comparing the two interventions, participants appeared to make more immediate gains with SIR. Overall, both interventions appeared to be viable options for teaching students letter-sound correspondence.

The current study was an attempt to increase understanding within the field about the self-conceptualization processes of African American women given the perceptions/ stereotypes that exist about them. Grounded theory methodology was utilized to ascertain participants' understanding of themselves as well as whether historical and/or contemporary perceptions/stereotypes impacted how they saw themselves. The African American women in this study tended to define themselves in positive terms. Often their self-definitions included perceptions/stereotypes that are typically thought to be socially desirable (e.g., strong and independent). The participants' self-definitions tended to exclude perceptions/ stereotypes that carry more negative connotations (e.g., loud and unintelligent). Future research should investigate the implications of perceptions/stereotypes for self-concepts of African American women who are also members of other traditionally oppressed groups.

There is an overrepresentation of gay men seeking treatment for eating disorders. This study investigated several factors that were thought to possibly impact the prevalence rates of gay men seeking treatment for eating disorders. The current study investigated the influence that gender role conflict, attitudes towards help seeking, symptom recognition, and media influence have on the prevalence of eating disorders. Nationwide participant recruitment was utilized to gather a sample that consisted of 86 heterosexual men and 75 gay men. Multivariate and univariate analyses of variance were utilized to examine the differences between gay and heterosexual men on the factors of interest. A significant difference was not found between gay and heterosexual men related to gender role conflict or media influence. However, a significant difference was found between heterosexual and gay men on measures of attitudes towards help seeking and symptom recognition. The results support that gender role conflict may have a limited role in the development of eating disorders in gay men and that mental health prevention and awareness within the gay community may be having a positive impact. Implications for the prevention and treatment of eating disorders are discussed as well as directions for future research.

Currently, there exists a cultural/racial disparity in the quality of healthcare and subsequent health outcomes (Sullivan, 2004; Arora, Schneider, Thal, & Meltzer, 2011). This has been linked to lack of ethnic minority representation within the field of healthcare (Cohen, Gabriel, & Terrell, 2002; Freeman, Ferrer, & Greiner, 2007). In response, there has been a national effort to intervene at various levels of education to address disparities in healthcare career-related knowledge and abilities. According to Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT), the prevalence of math and science within healthcare careers will decrease interest in this field for those lacking confidence and/or abilities in the aforementioned areas. The current manuscript describes and evaluates the impact of increasing the math and science-related content of a healthcare career intervention, Project HOPE (Health Opportunities Preparation and Exploration) (Ali, 2013), on math /science self-efficacy and interest and healthcare career interest. Results from measures presented both pre- and post-intervention were analyzed using the repeated measures design for 2 MANOVAs and 1 ANOVA. Based on these analyses, participants demonstrated a significant increase in math/science interest and self-efficacy. These results are discussed in the final section, in addition to limitations and implications for SCCT and healthcare career interventions.

Discrepancies in math knowledge emerge as early as four years of age, demonstrating need for effective early math interventions. Early math curricula and targeted instructional strategies have been shown to increase geometric knowledge in early childhood, particularly as that relates to shape learning. Existing educational research has not examined the specific role hand gesture embedded in instruction may have on early geometric learning, although in the psychological literature, effects of gesture on mathematical and spatial learning are well-documented. One hundred and twenty-one preschoolers and kindergarteners, divided among three instructional conditions—no observed gesture, seeing gesture, and seeing and doing gesture during instruction—participated in this study. Child knowledge of shape was measured on a shape sorting task before and after an instructional lesson. The researcher also collected data on spoken and gestured strategies used during the sorting task. Experimental condition influenced participant sorting performance when participants were exposed to gesture and encouraged to gesture themselves. Participant performance for this condition significantly differed from that of participants who were not exposed to gesture during instruction. Experimental condition did not significantly increase frequency of spoken or gestured strategies more indicative of shape knowledge. Child engagement in gesture during learning, regardless of condition, and socioeconomic status significantly impacted performance, aligning with existing findings in psychological and educational literature. The researcher proposed future directions for early intervention work in targeting shape knowledge.

With commonly usage of polytomously scored items in addition to dichotomously scored items in educational tests, it is likely to see these two item formats in a test. Several procedures are available to detect differential item functioning (DIF) for dichotomously scored items. Most of these procedures are extended to be adapted for polytomously scored items. DIF analyses are usually conducted for either dichotomously or polytomously scored items. In this study, DIF analyses were conducted for mixed test that was composed of both dichotomously and polytomously scored items in addition to dichotomous test that was composed of only dichotomously scored items and polytomous test that was composed of only polytomously scored items. Three DIF detection procedures – IRT likelihood-ratio test procedure as an item response (IR) based approach, logistic regression procedure as a non-item response (non-IR) based approach, and generalized linear latent and mixed modeling (GLLAMM) procedure as an alternative approach - were applied to simulation and 10th grade Spring 2004 Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) data. Simulation conditions considered for dichotomous, polytomous, and mixed tests were sample size (N = 600, N = 1200, and N = 2400), sample size ratio between reference group (R) and focal group (F) (N = 300R/300F = 600, N = 400R/200F, N = 600R/600F = 1200, N = 800R/400F = 1200, N = 1200R/1200F = 2400, and N = 1600R/800F), and DIF magnitude (0.32, 0.43, and 0.53). In addition to these conditions, DIF condition (low-shift, high-shift, and balanced) was considered for polytomous test. Simulation was replicated for 100, 200, 300, 400, and 500 times for each simulation condition for the IRT likelihood-ratio test and logistic regression procedures. It was found that 200 replications provided more stable results than 100 replications, and 300, 400, and 500 replications did not improve stability of results. Precision of item parameter estimation with IRTLRDIF program that was run to conduct the IRT likelihood-ratio test DIF analyses for simulation data was evaluated using root mean squared error (RMSE), squared bias, and standard error (SE) for all three test types. Significance of main and two-way interaction effects of sample size, sample size ratio, and DIF magnitude on the mean RMSE, mean squared bias, and mean SE was also tested. The results of item parameter stability study indicated that sample size affected the precision of item parameter estimates in all three types of tests. Item parameters were estimated better for larger sample sizes. Sample size ratio affected the precision of both item discrimination and item difficulty parameter estimation in the dichotomous test, the precision of item discrimination parameter in the polytomous test and the precision of the first between category threshold parameter in the mixed test. Samples with equal sample size ratio provided slightly better estimates than samples with unequal sample size ratio. On the other hand, DIF magnitude was not an effective factor on the precision of item parameter estimation in all three test types. In general, the item parameters were recovered well for the dichotomous, polytomous, and mixed tests by IRTLRDIF program. Type I error and power study was also conducted to evaluate performance of the IRT likelihood-ratio test and logistic regression procedures in detecting DIF for the dichotomous, polytomous, and mixed tests. The power of the likelihood-ratio test and logistic regression procedures were above 0.80 for the medium and large sample sizes and the large DIF magnitude conditions in the dichotomous test. The power of these two procedures increased as sample size or DIF magnitude increased. As a result, the type I error rates of both procedures increased. In general, the type I error rates were in good control for this test type. The polytomous test provided similar results in the power of the IRT likelihood-ratio test procedure with the dichotomous test for all DIF conditions. However, the power of the logistic regression procedure was unacceptably low for all DIF conditions, especially for the balanced DIF condition. The logistic regression procedure provided good power only for the large sample size and DIF magnitude condition. The IRT likelihood ratio-test and logistic regression procedures were very powerful for the large sample size or large DIF magnitude conditions and the type I error rates were within the expected value at these conditions in the mixed test. For the GLLAMM procedure, only one typical dataset was randomly chosen out of 500 datasets for each simulation condition in the dichotomous, polytomous, and mixed tests. Item parameter stability of the GLLAMM procedure in the STATA program was compared with the IRTLRDIF program. It was found that overall, GLLAMM provided closer estimates of items parameters to their true values than IRTLRDIF at most conditions for all three test types. DIF analyses were conducted for 2004 FCAT science data of 10th grade students that was composed of 41 dichotomously and 4 polytomously scored items using the IRT likelihood-ratio test and logistic regression procedures across different sample size and sample size ratios (N = 7761 (calibration sample), N = 300R/300F = 600, N = 400R/200F, N = 600R/600F = 1200, N = 800R/400F = 1200, N = 1200R/1200F = 2400, and N = 1600R/800F). DIF in gender was examined for the calibration sample and the sub samples of the calibration sample. Male students were considered as the reference group and female students were considered as the focal group. Several items were detected as DIF in the calibration sample and only 3 of these items were found to have moderate DIF by the IRT likelihood-ratio test procedures and all DIF items were found to have negligible DIF by the logistic regression procedure. These 3 DIF items were detected by the IRT likelihood-ratio test, logistic regression, and GLLAMM procedures for the sub samples of the calibration sample under all sample size and sample size ratios. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Educational Psychology and Learning Systems in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Degree Awarded: Spring Semester, 2007. / Date of Defense: June 12, 2006. / DIF, Mixed Tests, Item Response Based DIF Procedure, Testing, Multilevel IRT DIF Procedure, Measurement, v / Includes bibliographical references. / Akihito Kamata, Professor Directing Dissertation; Janice Flake, Outside Committee Member; Albert C. Oosterhof, Committee Member; Richard L. Tate, Committee Member.

The purpose of this investigation is to explore the relationship between flow state, dissociation, and self-presentation in runners. It was hypothesized that dissociation would be negatively related to flow dimensions of total concentration on the task, receiving unambiguous feedback, having a sense of total control. Conversely, it was thought that dissociation would be positively related to the flow dimensions of time transformation, merging of action and awareness, loss of self-consciousness, and autotelic experience. A questionnaire packet containing an informed consent form, a demographic information handout, a Race Flow Scale (Modified DFS-2; Jackson & Eklund, 2002), the thought recording handout, and the Modified Self-Presentation in Sport Questionnaire (SPSQ; McGowan et al., 2008) was administered to 210 male and female runners. The analyses of this investigation are presented in three subsections: descriptive statistics, correlational analyses, and the results of a multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA), including a posteriori exploratory analyses involving two covariates. Results reveal no significant relationships were established between attentional strategy and the dimensions of flow, or between self-presentational concerns and attentional strategy. However, it was found that individuals who experience self-presentational concerns are less likely to attain the state of flow. / A Thesis submitted to the Department of Educational Psychology and Learning Systems in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science. / Degree Awarded: Fall Semester, 2009. / Date of Defense: August 14, 2009. / Flow, Attentional Strategy, Self-Presentation, Runners / Includes bibliographical references. / Robert Eklund, Professor Directing Thesis; Gershon Tenebaum, Committee Member; David Eccles, Committee Member.

Many freshmen students enter colleges and universities without the essential academic skills needed to be successful. Colleges and universities are seeking instructional interventions to address these needs. This study explored the effect of the Social Annotation Modeling- Learning System (SAM-LS) (three instructional interventions including social annotation technology, Merrill's (2002) First Principles of Instruction, and team-based learning) on students' acquisition of reading comprehension, critical thinking, and meta-cognitive skills. RM ANOVA revealed multiple statistically significant (p / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Educational Psychology and Learning Systems in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Degree Awarded: Fall Semester, 2010. / Date of Defense: December 10, 2010. / First Principles of Instruction, Team-based Learning, Student Performance, Reading Comprehension, Critical Thinking, Metacognition, Social Annotation / Includes bibliographical references.