Sixty-five college students completed the Profile of Nonverbal Sensitivity (PONS) and the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire. The results did not support the hypothesis that introverts would be found to be relatively more sensitive to negative nonverbal cues than to positive cues, and that this difference would be greater for introverts than for extroverts. The outcome did not support predictions concerning the relationship between sensitivity to nonverbal communication and extroversion- introversion based on either Gray's fear-frustration hypothesis or Eysenck's general conditionability hypothesis of extroversion-introversion.

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The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship among certain personality traits, vocational interests, and demographic factors with job satisfaction among secondary school natural science teachers. Implications for future research and educational practice were explored.;Volunteers teaching secondary school natural science classes in seven Virginia public school districts primarily in the Hampton Rhodes area were subjects for this study. Subjects completed the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, the Vocational Preference Inventory, The Job Descriptive Index, and a biographical informational questionnaire.;It was hypothesized that (1) there would be a positive correlation between the predominant basic preference, INTJ, and job satisfaction, (2) there would be a positive correlation between congruence of the Holland code IRS and job satisfaction, (3) there would be a positive correlation between differentiation and job satisfaction, and (4) there would be a positive correlation between age, sex, years as natural science teacher, years in present position, total years in education, highest degree earned and job satisfaction.;Hypotheses 1, 2, and 3 were rejected. In hypothesis 4, years in present position and years as natural science teacher were negatively correlated with job satisfaction. Recommendations for further research and future educational practice were made.

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For many decades, the number of minority students, particularly Hispanics, dropping out from school has been noticeable to say the least (Rumberger, 1995). These students have in the past and continue in the present to struggle with the educational system, and it is certain, but not clear, that various factors contribute to Hispanics’ poor academic performance and not being able to graduate from High School (Rumbaut & Cornelius, 1995). Some of these factors are organized in three groups: School-Related; Parental-Related; and Student-Related. Thus, this study is an attempt to understand how immigrant students and parents are currently responding to the challenges of dealing with a foreign educational system. The focus is primarily on how students have to manage a sense of identity while they are trying to incorporate to their schools, and how parents are supporting their children and keeping a dialogue with the schools. It was hypothesized that students’ overall ethnic identity would correlate significantly with students’ psychological sense of school belonging. Quantitative results showed no statistical correlations between students’ ethnic identity and students’ sense of school membership. A forced entry multiple regression analysis was conducted to evaluate if any of the subscale scores on the MEIM predicted sense of school belongingness. The predictors were Affirmation and Belonging, Ethnic Identity Achievement, Ethnic Behaviors, and Other-group orientation, while the criterion variable was the total score on the PSSM. The Affirmation and Belonging subscale was the only subscale that was significantly related to psychological sense of school belongingness.

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People aged 65 and older account for 12.8% of the population and for 30% of all visually impaired individuals. Age-related Macular Degeneration (ARMD) has been identified as a significant public health issue, with a potential 8 million Americans at risk. While the literature supports a connection between LOC and adaptation to ARMD, there is a gap in the current literature supporting this relationship even when other factors are controlled (i.e. age, sex, education, type of ARMD, when diagnosed, the use of medical treatments, the use of visual assistance devices, participant engagement in rehabilitation, and depression). The present survey study used hierarchical regression to examine the relationship between LOC and adjustment to ARMD while controlling for these factors. A sample of 75 adults aged 60 and older diagnosed with ARMD for at least 6 months completed the Multidimensional Health Locus of Control Scale-Form C (MHLC), the Adaptation to Age-Related Vision Loss Scale (AVL) and the Geriatric Depression Scale-Short Form (GDS). LOC accounted for 30% of the variance in adjustment beyond what was explained by the control variables, with higher internal LOC being associated with greater adaptation to loss. The present results add to the existing literature and enhance social change initiatives by guiding the development of interventions to mitigate the difficulties experienced by people with ARMD, reduce their dependency on others, and improve their ability to maintain their quality of life.

Workplace bullying is a global problem that leaves workers emotionally harmed and organizations financially strapped; yet in many cases, business leaders fail to adequately address the problem. The purpose of this research was to determine if the top leader had a direct impact on the presence of bullying within the workplace. Based on personality trait theory as a theoretical foundation, the key issue this study explored was the relationship between the presence of workplace bullying and observed narcissistic behaviors exhibited by the top leader. Participants consisted of 84 human resources professionals reporting directly to the CEO/president of companies located in the United States. Observer-rated assessments were used to measure the leader's observed narcissistic behaviors along with the prevalence of bullying within the workplace. Logistic regression and Pearson correlation were used to analyze assessment data. Results revealed a strong and positive relationship between top leaders' observed narcissistic behaviors and the presence of bullying within the organization. These results suggest the top leader may not only directly impact the presence of workplace bullying, but may actually create the problem. This study contributes to social change by providing support for the need to use personality assessments when hiring or promoting top leaders. By identifying those who contribute to the sustainability of bullying, these individuals can be excluded from the selection process and workplace bullying will therefore be minimized, improving the well-being of employees and the financial performance of organizations, world-wide.

<p>Sex differences, hormones and intrasexual competition and their relation to social status and romantic partner attraction were examined, uniting two bodies of literature: status-striving and romantic attraction. In Chapter 2 different forms of social status, (i.e., dominance, power, popularity, prestige) were examined as they relate to testosterone levels in men and women. Factor analysis revealed that dominance was a separate psychological construct from power, popularity and prestige. Furthermore, a positive association was shown between dominance and testosterone levels whereas lower testosterone levels were associated with the power, popularity and prestige composite. In Chapter 3 psychopathy and indirect aggression were examined in relation to cortisol levels, again in men and women. Results indicated that lower cortisol levels were associated with primary psychopathy and higher cortisol levels were associated with secondary psychopathy, in women only. Results also showed that primary psychopathy but not secondary psychopathy was positively correlated with indirect aggression. In Chapter 4, romantic attraction was examined from an evolutionary perspective to predict the characteristics of people who invade an existing romantic relationship as well as those characteristics that predict people who are targets for defection away from their primary romantic relationship. In men, successful mate poaching was best predicted by high self-esteem, cold affect, and criminal tendencies. These men also showed lower levels of testosterone and higher levels of cortisol. In women, physical attractiveness best predicted success in mate poaching. For both sexes, physical attractiveness also determined the frequency of being a target for a poach. Collectively, these studies provide evidence to support behavioural patterns that are consistent with evolutionary ideas relating to social status acquisition and romantic attraction.</p> / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

The United States is experiencing a shortage of registered nurses, and institutions of higher education are unable to graduate enough prepared nurses to reduce this employment shortage. A significant relationship between personality traits and academic performance has been found; however, how personality traits combine with students' self-efficacy of job performance and stress susceptibility to impact nursing students' academic performance has yet to be demonstrated. This study, grounded in the five-factor model (FFM) of personality traits, self-efficacy, and stress theories, sought to determine whether self-assessments of the NEO-Five Factor Inventory, the Nursing Practice Self-Efficacy survey, and the Susceptibility Under Stress Survey would predict academic performance, as measured by grade point average (GPA). The sample consisted of 197 nursing students attending 2-year nurse education programs at 3 community colleges in the northeastern United States. This correlational, quantitative study examined the relationship among the personality traits of the FFM, self-efficacy of job performance, stress susceptibility, and the GPAs of nursing students. Multiple regression analysis was used to examine the strength of the relationship among the variables. Self-efficacy and conscientiousness were significant predictors of GPA. Given that nurse education programs are a rigorous field of study with high attrition rates, the implications for social change include the addition of specific types of support for nursing students to facilitate their progress and success in a competitive degree program that will benefit them and address the nursing shortage, which ultimately benefits hospitals and patients.