This thesis examined the effects of weight and dietary restraint on eating at times of emotional distress. The emotional reactivity of subjects differing in weight and restraint was also examined. Forty female and 40 male subjects were classified as high, moderate, or low on Body Mass Index (BMI), and as high, moderate, or low on each of the factors of the Three-Factor Eating Questionnaire (TFEQ; Stunkard & Messick, 1985). Mood was manipulated by exposing all subjects to a challenging cognitive task, which had been made insoluble for half the subjects. All subjects were then asked to taste and rate a variety of cookies. Mood was evaluated using self-report measures and by monitoring changes in heart rate, blood pressure, and skin conductance. Distressed male subjects with high scores on two TFEQ subscales were found to eat significantly more than their non-distressed counterparts. Female subjects with high scores on the third TFEQ subscale were shown to eat less when distressed. Weight was found not to have a significant effect on the amount consumed by male or female subjects. There was some evidence to suggest that females with high scores on two TFEQ subscales are more emotionally reactive than those scoring lower. The evidence for increased reactivity in restrained males was weaker. There were no differences in reactivity as a function of BMI. Differences in emotional reactivity could not account for observed differences in eating among groups varying in restraint. The results suggest that, as has been found for female subjects in other studies, restrained males are also susceptible to the breakdown of control that leads to overeating in the face of distress. They should be included in future examinations of restraint.

This study was an attempt to answer the following specific question. With posttest creative fluency total (F tot) scores and posttest internal control (I+, I-) subscale scores as dependent variables, are there main effects for psychotherapeutic treatments and for sex differences? In order to answer this question, univariate and multivariate analyses of variance statistics were computed and associated F statistics were tested for significance.The subjects (4-6 graders, N=101) were drawn from a suburban public school. Some were enrolled in general education programs, others were enrolled in special gifted/ talented education programs. The ethnic breakdown of subjects was approximately 60% white, 30% black and 10% from other ethnic backgrounds.The study consisted of a think-aloud treatment group (N=34), a tension-relaxation treatment group (N=33) and an untreated control group (N=34). A 3 x 2 fully-crossed factorial design with random assignment (by sex and grade level) to the aforementioned groups was the basis for data collection.It was found that the posttest mean Ftot, I+ and I- scores for the three treatment conditions did not differ significantly. Moreover, the posttest mean Ftot, I+ and I- scores for males and for females were not significantly different. Thus, it appears from these findings that neither the psychotherapeutic treatments administered nor the sex of the subjects had an effect on creative fluency and internal control scores. However, this study did demonstrate the feasibility of: (1) self-administering psychotherapy using an audio-tape approach, (2) administering psychotherapy to large groups using a teacher to model the desired behavior and (3) administering the think-aloud treatment and the tension relaxation treatment to teach students self-management skills.

The purpose of this research was to examine the impact of self-management on daily net calories consumed by women who are overweight. Four white females between the ages of 35 and 41 with a self-reported BMI between 25 and 29.9 completed this study. A multiple baseline across participants design was used to demonstrate a functional relation between the independent variable (i.e., self-management) and the dependent variable (i.e., net calories consumed) for each participant. Three of the four participants decreased their daily net calories consumed after beginning the self-management intervention. This was the first single case research study to examine the effectiveness of self-management on daily net calories consumed (i.e., caloric intake minus caloric expenditure) and extended previous literature on white females who were overweight.

Particularly in the health domain, humans thrive to reach an equilibrium between maximizing pleasure and minimizing harm. I propose that a cognitive strategy people employ to reach this equilibrium is the activation of Compensatory Health Beliefs (CHBs). CHBs are beliefs that the negative effects of an unhealthy behavior can be compensated for, or "neutralized," by engaging in another, healthy behavior. "I can eat this piece of cake now because I will exercise this evening" is an example of such beliefs. This thesis presents a theoretical framework which aims at explaining why people create CHBs and how they employ CHBs to regulate their health behaviors. The model extends current health behavior models by explicitly integrating the motivational conflict that emerges from the interplay between affective states (i.e., cravings or desires) and motivation (i.e., health goals). The first study includes a psychometric scale that measures CHBs in the general population and provides data on its reliability and validity. The results showed that scores on the scale were uniquely associated with health-related risk behaviors and symptom reports and could be differentiated from a number of related constructs. Holding CHBs may hinder individuals from acquiring healthier lifestyles, for example lose weight or exercise. The second large-scale study of this thesis aimed at studying CHBs in adolescents with type 1 diabetes. It is proposed that in this population, CHBs might interfere with treatment adherence. If compensatory behaviors fail to compensate for the maladaptive behaviors, poor blood glucose control and related health problems may arise. To investigate this further, I developed and validated a CHB scale specific to type 1 diabetes. The scale was validated in a sample of adolescents with type 1 diabetes. Results showed that holding maladaptive compensatory health beliefs was associated with poorer blood glucose control and poorer adherence to self-care behaviors while adaptive CHBs were associated with better blood glucose control and better adherence to treatment behaviors. Specifically targeting CHBs in an intervention could improve adherence to treatment and therefore the long-term health of this population. Future research as well as the implications for possible interventions are explicitly being discussed.

The exponential growth of the human population has contributed to the overuse and degradation of common pool resources. Using science as a tool for informed policy-making can improve the management of our common pool resources. Understanding the conditions that influence groups of individuals to make ethical self-controlled choices may help solve problems related to the overuse and degradation of common pool resources. Ethical self-control involves the conflict of choice between one that will benefit the individual versus one that will benefit the group. The cumulative effect of many individuals behaving in an ethically self-controlled manner with common resource use may offset some of the harm posed by overuse of common pool resources. Metacontingency arrangements involving ethical self-control may provide some insight as to if and how groups may cooperate to manage a common pool resource. This manuscript proposes an experimental preparation and methodology to evaluate the effects of competing magnitudes of cultural consequences on culturants and their cumulative effect on common pool resources; and provides an analysis and discussion of five trends that might result from such a line of research.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Auburn University, 2005. / Abstract. Vita. Includes bibliographic references (ℓ. 90-119)

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Auburn University, 2007. / Abstract. Vita. Includes bibliographic references (ℓ.80-102 )

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Illinois State University, 2007. / Title from title page screen, viewed on Apr. 8, 2008. Dissertation Committee: Gregory S. Braswell (chair), Laura E. Berk, Renee M. Tobin, Connor M Walters. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 70-77) and abstract. Also available in print.

Thesis (Ed. D.)--Indiana University of Pennsylvania. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wyoming, 2006. / Title from PDF title page (viewed on June 16, 2008). Includes bibliographical references (p. 113-119).