The developmental interplay of behavioral confirmation and self-verification

textPhilosophers, psychologists, and authors have long pondered the question of whether others’ expectations or one’s own self-views are more important in determining behavior and personality. Researchers have designated these two processes behavioral confirmation and self-verification, respectively, and the interaction of these processes is often referred to as identity negotiation. Little research has examined the process of identity negotiation during adolescence, a period during which individuals are attempting to forge unique identities. Therefore, the primary purpose of the present studies was to examine the identity negotiation process during adolescence. In Study 1, I examined whether adolescents (11-15 years of age) solicit self-verifying feedback. Adolescents first completed a measure of self-perceptions and then selected whether to receive positive or negative feedback from an unknown peer in areas of perceived strength and weakness. Adolescents desired feedback congruent with their own self-views; those with higher self-esteem tended to request more positive feedback than those with lower self-esteem. Further, adolescents were more likely to seek negative feedback regarding a self-perceived weakness than a self-perceived strength. In Study 2, I examined the joint operation of behavioral confirmation and self-verification in dyadic interactions among unacquainted adolescents. One member of each dyad (the target) completed a measure of self-perception. The second member of each dyad (the perceiver) was provided with false information regarding the attractiveness of their partner. I compared whether targets’ self-views or perceivers’ expectations of them were stronger determinants of behavior. Self-verification strivings were evident in these interactions; targets’ self-views influenced the perceivers’ final evaluations of their partners. Support for behavioral confirmation was lacking in same-sex dyads and dyads composed of male perceivers and female targets. Appearance based expectations influenced target behavior in dyads composed of female perceivers and male targets. The current findings suggest that adolescents’ self-views are important determinants of behavior. Significant implications for adolescent mental health and peer selection are discussed.Psycholog

Beyond a Reasonable Doubt: A Discourse Analysis of Forensic and Psychological Truth in Child Narratives

This dissertation draws on a hermeneutically-informed modification of Potter and Wetherell’s (1987) discourse analysis methodology to explore how child memory and experience are conceptualized in two widely-used forensic psychology training manuals. Current research about child testimony tends to focus on how well children can factually recount their experiences, or on optimizing interviewer performance so as to obtain accurate accounts and minimize the risk of distorting children’s memories. Results of this discourse analysis include: 1) frequent advisement of evaluator caution, objectivity, and thoroughness, since evaluators are understood as responsible for preserving the accuracy of children’s memories during the evaluation process; and 2) use of the suggestibility model of memory, which assumes memory is a predominantly cognitive process in which people—especially children—are vulnerable to external influences that will distort their accounts and thereby render them invalid. These findings were then put into dialogue with a phenomenological conceptualization of child memory and experience. Though both approaches present child memory/experience as fluid and easily influenced by other people, phenomenology does not view these qualities as inherently problematic. Rather, this orientation assumes that all experience is interrelated as a given, and that factual truth is similarly important to experiential truth. Socio-historical context is also discussed, namely how American and European legal practices have shifted over time to reflect broader societal views of children as either vulnerable or autonomous. Finally, practical implications of the handbook discourse are elaborated, including ways a phenomenological perspective could improve how children are supported in forensic settings. Integrating non-verbal communication, exploring experiential truth as well as fact truth, and drawing on research that does not assume a suggestibility model of memory are three principal suggestions for evaluators

A study of the implementation of an evaluative model for the gifted and talented program of Greensboro city schools

Special programs for gifted and talented students have been mandated by the state of North Carolina under the Creech Bill. Evaluation may be the very lifesaving tool for special programs. The purpose of this study was to do a theoretical analysis of several educational evaluation models and utilize one as a guide for examining the Gifted and Talented Program of the Greensboro City Schools. Chapter I explained the purpose of the study, its scope, and its limitations. Various terms used in the study were defined and explained. Chapter II further defined the term evaluation and explained its importance. Several guidelines and models for evaluating educational programs were analyzed and explained. Special problems and issues that have relevance when evaluating programs for gifted and talented students were discussed with references to pertinent literature studies. Keeping in mind the models and the problems involved in evaluation, the examiner selected the Renzulli and Ward DESDEG Model to apply to the actual evaluation of the Greensboro City Schools' Gifted and Talented Program

Evaluating Mending Mamre: An Animal Welfare Intervention

The need to improve animal welfare and control companion animal populations is necessary for South Africa, especially in impoverished communities lacking resources and education to care for their pets responsibly. These programmes are often multi-dimensional in nature and aim to improve animal welfare in different ways. Sterilisation is often the first step but is not enough. Consequently, education is often used in combination, to teach responsible pet care and ownership to pet owners. By increasing their understanding and knowledge of animals it is hoped that the pets’ overall quality of life and welfare improve. The following dissertation presents the findings of an evaluation conducted for the Mending Mamre Mass Education and Sterilisation Programme. This programme had four components: surgical sterilisation of pets and feral cats, basic veterinary care, education sessions and the rehoming of stray dogs. Three evaluations were performed (as requested by the clients): a programme theory evaluation of the education sessions, a process evaluation to understand why some residents refused sterilisation and an outcome evaluation to measure if the pets’ living conditions and body scores had changed 16 months after the programme. Overall, the results of the programme theory evaluation demonstrated that: the activities and outcomes of the education sessions were consistent with similar programmes but the two causal pathways underlying the programme are not plausible. The results of the process evaluation highlighted that the most common reason why pet owners refused sterilisation was due to fear. Finally, the results of the outcome evaluation indicated mixed results; with an increase observed in the pets’ physical wellbeing but an overall decrease observed in their quality of living conditions. With the results, the evaluator was able to make recommendations to the client and highlight considerations for programme improvement. Overall this study contributes to the paucity of research on evaluations of animal welfare interventions at the community level

Technology integration for teaching and learning Spanish in elementary schools: voices of designers, teachers and students

A critical review of the literature on computer-assisted language learning (CALL) research between 1980 and 2005 indicates that no one in the field of foreign language at the elementary school (FLES) has identified what principles might be useful for practice-oriented CALL that is relevant for young learners, and that very little research had been published in the area. To fill this gap, a theoretical framework is proposed to design, evaluate, and use CALL materials for FLES, and the framework is tested in two studies.;The first was a phenomenological investigation of K-6 teachers\u27 projects from a teachers\u27 professional development program on CALL integration with Spanish and content from other subject areas. The projects were analyzed by an expert team of teachers and teacher educators, and the components of the interpretivist CALL evaluation framework were used to judge the projects. A total of 106 K-6 teachers developed 64 CALL thematic projects, but few had strong potential for teaching Spanish language and culture, and most were teacher-centered rather than student-centered. Teachers and experts voices were found to be valuable in CALL evaluation.;A second survey study provided children with a voice in CALL evaluation. Children\u27s use of technology to learn Spanish was described along with their attitudes towards these innovations. The variation of individual differences and attitude were analyzed. A survey with two versions (K-2 and grades 3-8) was developed and 2,220 children were surveyed to discover insights into their attitudes. The survey\u27s content validity and reliability were established, and a factor analysis revealed four subscales. Results indicated the curriculum tasks in which children have positive attitudes toward the use of technology-enhanced activities in learning the Spanish language and suggested that students\u27 individual attitudes vary significantly.;This dissertation supports the view that the most appropriate perspective for CALL evaluation is an interpretivist view with multiple voices including teachers and students. Recommendations for future research include application of the framework and research instruments, more attention to be paid to the complex realities and contexts of language interactions by teachers and students in the K-8 classrooms, and research on related teacher professional development

The Effectivness of Brief Experimental Analysis in Identifying Reading Fluency Interventions When Conducted by Parents

This study examined 1) if the parents were able to conduct a brief experimental analysis (BEA) for identifying the most effective reading fluency intervention for their child; 2) if the brief experimental analysis was effective when conducted by trained parents. Three elementary students with reading difficulties and their parents participated. The parents were trained by the experimenter. After reach the mastery of the BEA procedure, the parents conducted it with their children. The reading interventions that were evaluated with each child were listening passage preview, repeated reading, listening passage preview plus repeated reading, listening passage preview plus repeated reading plus reward. The selected reading interventions through BEA were then implemented for a longer time. Results and directions for future research were discussed

Cognitive Assessment of School Age Spanish Speaking English Language Learners

The number of students who speak a language other that English in schools across the U.S. is rapidly increasing. The Spanish speaking student population, in particular, has grown considerably in recent years. One way to examine the extent of this growth is to consider demographic data at the national and state levels

Experiences of children with or without disabilities in early childhood programs

The purpose of this dissertation was to explore multiple methods of assessing early childhood programs and to investigate children\u27s individual experiences and activities in inclusive early child care and education settings. Specifically, this research investigated if individual play/learning experiences in early childhood programs differed for children with and without disabilities and the relationship between global quality of early childhood care and education programs and individual play/learning experiences of individual children with or without disabilities;Early care and education quality is a complex phenomenon influenced by variables that exist on a number of levels including overall program quality, personnel quality, and interaction quality. Paper 1 describes a proposed ecological framework recognizes the multifaceted and interwoven components that can comprise quality and acknowledges the variation of experiences and learning opportunities in the early childhood environment. It also acknowledges the importance of multiple aspects of quality that comprise the early childhood environment. Quality evaluations that only examine quality from one perspective, most often the program level, may be neglecting important contributions of the program to children\u27s development. Examining quality only from the program level makes the assumption that classroom quality impacts every child in the classroom similarly. This may or may not be true. Assessing quality from multiple perspectives, including children\u27s individual experiences is important to truly assess and improve quality and provides valuable information for the individualization of care;Paper 2 describes a research project that examined children\u27s individual experiences and activities in early child care and education settings. Sixty 4- to 5-year-old children (30 with disabilities and 30 without disabilities) were observed in early care and education settings using the Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale-Revised (ECERS-R) and items from the ECERS-R adapted to focus on an individual child\u27s experience. Early childhood global quality had the largest effect on children\u27s individual experiences after controlling for family and child characteristics. Furthermore, it appeared that the relationship between global quality and children\u27s individual experiences did not vary by child characteristics, including disability status. There was some evidence, however, that the relationship between global quality and individual experiences varied by children\u27s behavior problems