Description: The present study examined age cohort differences in older and younger adults as they relate to perceptions of helpful counselor characteristics. The present study also assessed whether previous help-seeking behavior influences perceptions of what counselor characteristics would be helpful. The social influence model is used as basis for predictions. The first research hypothesis for the present study was that there would be an age by cohort interaction in perceptions of helpful counselor characteristics at both Time 1 (1991) and Time 2 (2001). The second research hypothesis was that there would be a main effect for cohort, with more recently born cohorts preferring more interpersonal counselor characteristics. The third research hypothesis was that there would be a main effect for age in endorsement of the social influence model. The fourth research hypothesis was that there would be a significant difference between the perceptions of those individuals who had previously sought help from a mental health professional and those individuals who had not sought help, regardless of age and cohort. A revised Adjective Check List (Gough, 1965; Gough & Heilbrum, 1983) was used to assess perceptions of helpful counselor characteristics. Chi-square analyses, MANOVA/supplementary ANOVAs, and exploratory factor analyses were used to test ...

Description: The purpose of this thesis is to explore the importance of the orphan hero in film and his resonance with the American people. It explores the orphan and the American identities, the archetypes found in myths, and the hero in American culture. The three heroes (Batman, Anakin Skywalker, and Harry Potter) represent certain aspects of orphan heroes: the capacity for sacrifice and the need to resist focusing on oneself. The type of hero each becomes has its source in the response he takes to his orphanhood. These young men suffered great loss early in their lives, but found the strength to sacrifice themselves for others, the ultimate sign of a hero.

Description: This study investigates the impact of sociocultural mediators in relation to eating disorders among male undergraduates. Literature on eating disorders has demonstrated that a thin body shape ideal depicted in the media directly contributes to eating pathology among females, but little research has investigated the direct effects of ideal body shape images among men. The focus of the present investigation was to assess the direct effects of exposure to the ideal male body shape on men’s affect, self esteem, body satisfaction, and endorsement of U. S. societal ideals of attractiveness. In addition, the relation of these variables to bulimic symptomatology was examined. Modeling a study conducted on women (Stice & Shaw, 1994), male undergraduates between the ages of 18 to 25 participated in premeasure (N = 169) and post measure (N = 95) conditions. Participants in the post measure were randomly exposed to pictures from magazines containing either male models depicting the ideal body shape, an average body or pictures of clothing without models. Results from repeated mulitvariate analysis indicated that exposure to the ideal body shape condition did not demonstrate significant negative changes in men’s affect, self esteem, body satisfaction or endorsement of U. S. societal ideals of attractiveness. ...

Description: his study compares ethnic, age, and gender differences concerning attitudes and behaviors toward death, dying, and bereavement among Caucasian, African, Hispanic, and Asian American adult participants in north Texas with the results of a 1976 study by Kalish and Reynolds on death attitudes and behaviors of Caucasian, African, Mexican, and Japanese American adult participants in Los Angeles, California. A modified version of Kalish and Reynolds' study questionnaire was administered to 526 respondents (164 Caucasian, 100 African, 205 Hispanic, and 57 Asian Americans) recruited from community and church groups. Findings of this study were compared with those of Kalish and Reynolds in specific areas, including experience with death, attitudes toward one's own death, dying, and afterlife, and attitudes toward the dying, death, or grief of someone else. Data was analyzed employing the same statistical tools as those used by Kalish and Reynolds, i.e., chi square calculations, frequencies, percentages, averages, and analyses of variance. As compared with the earlier study, results indicated that this study's participants were less likely to have known as many persons who had died recently or to state they would try very hard to control grief emotions in public. Present study participants were more likely to have visited ...

Description: Parent-child interactions tend to be problematic among families of children diagnosed with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Although much attention has been paid in research and therapy to negative cycles of interaction between parent and child, it is equally important to consider how positive family interactions can be promoted, as these are likely to help prevent or reduce behavior problems and facilitate the best possible outcomes for children. Major contributors to the fields of psychology and child therapy have postulated that parental empathy is of primary importance in facilitating healthy child personality development. However, the effect of parental empathy has not been systematically studied with ADHD children. Thus, this study investigated the relationship between parental empathy and child adjustment factors in children with ADHD. It was hypothesized that among parent-child dyads with ADHD children, higher levels of parental empathy would predict higher levels of child self-esteem, social skills, and compliance, and lower levels of child aggression. Participants were 56 children who were previously diagnosed with ADHD and their parent/guardian. Thirty-seven parent-child dyads served as a control group. The study included parent-child participation in a videotaped analogue observation procedure and completion of parent-, child-, and teacher-report measures. Results indicated that higher levels of ...