Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Queensland, 2003. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ed. D.)--University of Tennessee, Knoxville, 2004. / Title from title page screen (viewed Sep. 23, 2004). Thesis advisor: R. Steve McCallum. Document formatted into pages (ix, 60 p. : ill.). Vita. Includes bibliographical references (p. 36-42).

Thesis (Ed.M.)--Boston University

Title from PDF of title page (University of Missouri--Columbia, viewed on Feb 15, 2010). The entire thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file; a non-technical public abstract appears in the public.pdf file. Dissertation advisor: Dr. James Laffey Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

This dissertation centers on issues central to a scientific account of mental entities. In part I, I first consider the general question of whether, and when, it is legitimate to postulate theoretical entities in science. I argue that interpreting theories as if their theoretical terms do not refer to real items lowers their explanatory value by eliminating the opportunity to provide connections with other theories and provide a cohesive account of the world. I then question whether psychological theory needs to postulate mental entities in order to provide adequate explanations of observable behavior, concluding that, behaviorist claims not withstanding, talk about the mental cannot be reduced to talk about behavior. Finally, I argue that it is incumbent on such a theory to investigate the operation and constitution of its entities. In part II, I address attacks on the view that mental items might be made of physical stuff, but not analyzable in purely physical terms. I argue that while revised dualist arguments can show that mental entities cannot be defined in the vocabulary of physics, this is nevertheless consistent with their having a physical constitution. I conclude that in addressing the issue of mind-body identity, the solution lies as much in understanding "identity" as in understanding "mind." In part III, I apply the scientific account of mental items developed in the preceding parts to two traditional philosophical issues; the problem of personal identity. I sketch solutions to these problems and conclude that many remaining problems require scientific investigations rather than philosophical analysis.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hawaii at Manoa, 2001. / Study conducted with college students in Hawaii, using items from the California Critical Thinking Disposition Inventory (CCTDI) and the Self-Construal Scale (SCS). Includes bibliographical references (leaves 146-171). Also available on microfiche.

Abstract The study investigated the thinking styles of teachers and students in junior high schools and, by using R. J. Sternberg¡¦s theoretical framework of thinking styles, further explored (a) their associations with teaching practices as well as students¡¦ performance (i.e., satisfaction of instructional practices, academic achievement), (b) the influence of the similarities of teachers¡¦ and students¡¦ thinking styles on students¡¦ performance, and (c) factors involved in teachers¡¦/students¡¦ thinking styles. A total of 793 participants (277 teachers, 516 7th-grade students) were studied. Data collected through rating scales, self-report, checklist, classroom observation and semi-structured interview of teachers were analyzed with t-test, Pearson product-moment correlation, MANOVA, and canonical correlation analysis. The results indicated : a) among the 5 background variables involved in teachers¡¦ thinking styles, both ¡§parents¡¦ education¡¨ and ¡§teaching subjects¡¨ did not show significant relations with any of the 7 teachers¡¦ thinking styles, but the other 3 variables (i.e., ¡§gender¡¨, ¡§age¡¨, ¡§teaching experience in terms of years¡¨) did, b) among the 3 background variables involved in students¡¦ thinking styles, ¡§parents¡¦ education¡¨ showed no significant relations with any of the 13 students¡¦ thinking styles, but ¡§gender¡¨ and ¡§birth order¡¨ did, c) teachers¡¦ thinking styles were significantly related with their background variables and teaching practices, d) among the 7 kinds of teaching practices, the ¡§developmental method¡¨ showed significant relations with 3 types of students¡¦ thinking styles, including ¡§legislative¡¨, ¡§external¡¨, ¡§liberal¡¨, e) among 7 teaching practices, students showed greatest satisfaction and highest academic achievement in ¡§rote style teaching,¡¨ f) academically underachieved students tend to be more of ¡§global style of thinking,¡¨ and g) no significant relations between teachers¡¦ and students¡¦ thinking styles were found, nor were the similarities of teachers¡¦ and students¡¦ thinking styles on students¡¦ satisfaction of instructional practices and their academic achievement.

The purpose of the study was to explore the concepts of creativity, and instruction in creative thinking in the era defined by an emerging knowledge economy that emphasizes the importance of innovative human capital in school settings. This study contained two parts. The first three chapters tackled the concepts of creativity and thinking. Chapter one explained the justification for the research and the methodology used. Chapter two explored various concepts of creativity, including 4ps, problem solving, and system approaches, and it also outlined the development of historical research and approaches, dating from the year that interest in creativity research was revived by Guilford (1950). Chapter three dealt with the concept of creative thinking and its instruction. This chapter also introduced the idea of creative thinking in the context of recent research on connections between the brain¡¦s hemispheres to explain the controversy between creative and critical thinking. The following part, which consisted of another three chapters dealt with the instruction of creative thinking. Chapter four introduced certain instructional models including CPS, Six Thinking Hats, and CoRT. Chapter five elaborated on related principles and strategies regarding brainstorming, lateral thinking, and playfulness. And finally, chapter six laid out a summary and suggestions. This study focused on balancing knowing ¡§what¡¨ and ¡§how¡¨ with attempts to explore concepts of creativity and instructional models as well as strategies of creative thinking. The goal is to equip teachers with theoretical knowledge and practical know-how to set the stage for giving full play to creative thinking in future curriculum and instruction design. It is also hoped that continued study into other aspects of creativity can validate, broaden, refine and enrich the theory of creativity, and its practice, as revealed in the present study.

Thesis--PlanB (Ed. Spec.)--University of Wisconsin--Stout, 2001. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis(M.A.)--Case Western Reserve University, 2010 / Title from PDF (viewed on 2010-01-28) Department of Psychology Includes abstract Includes bibliographical references and appendices Available online via the OhioLINK ETD Center