Counseling, Higher Education & Special Education Theses and Dissertations
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Item The Influence of Behavior Rehearsal Techniques on Children's Communicative Behaviors(1973) Cassidy, Edward W.; Rhoads, David; Counseling, Higher Education & Special Education; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, MD)The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of behavior rehearsal techniques on the behavior of shy children as determined by a measure of verbal behavior. Answers were sought to the following questions: 1. Does participation in a behavior rehearsal program affect the verbal behavior of shy children? 2. Is there a difference between standard and personal hierarchies used in behavior rehearsal? 3. Is there a difference between group and individual behavior rehearsal approaches? The sample included one hundred seventy-seven elementary school children from nineteen fourth, fifth, and sixth grade classrooms. The subjects were pupils who had a history of low frequency of verbal participation in group and individual settings. Subjects were randomly assigned to one of two principal treatments or a control group. The first treatment was identified as Behavior Rehearsal-Personal. In this treatment subjects developed their own personal anxiety hierarchy. The second principal treatment was identified as Behavior Rehearsal-Standard. In this treatment the subjects were assigned to rehearse items from a hierarchy developed by the experimenter. The two treatments were applied in both one-to-one and group counseling settings. Besides treatment and setting, sex of subject and counselor were used as classification variables and included in a 2^4 factorial analysis of variance design. At the conclusion of a four week treatment period the subjects were observed on the criterion behavior, unsolicited communicative response, during a thirty minute controlled discussion session. Analysis of the data demonstrated that there was no change in verbal behavior as a result of participating in a behavior rehearsal program. It appears that in this study the behavior rehearsal procedures had no differential effect on the verbal behavior of the shy children. No significant difference was found on any of the other factors which· were measured. Neither the treatment setting, nor the sex of the subject, nor the counselor appeared to have a significant effect on the final results of the study. Although research studies indicate that the behavior rehearsal technique should be an effective technique for shaping assertive behaviors, no such evidence was found in this study. Nor was support found for the traditional view that personalized hierarchies are more effective than standard hierarchies. The lack of research on the behavior rehearsal technique suggests that more intensive and systematic research is needed to assess the specific effects behavior rehearsal has on the behavior of shy children.Item Increasing Vocational Information Seeking Behaviors of High School Students(1972) Redmond, Ronald E.; Byrne, Richard Hill; Counseling and Personnel Services; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md)This study was an outgrowth of previous research which investigated reinforcement techniques used to increase the frequency of vocational information seeking behaviors (VISB). Based on the Larramore (1971) finding that subjects (Ss) intended but did not always carry out the suggested vocational information seeking behaviors (VISB), it became apparent that additional research was required to increase the actual performance of certain career seeking behaviors. This research was designed to evaluate the reinforcing effects of the Self-Directed Search (SDS, Holland, 1970) and contingency contracts on the frequency of VISB performed by high school Ss. It was assumed that the administration of the Self-Directed Search (SDS) followed by a contingency contract would increase the performance of a greater number of VISB than the administration of the SDS alone.Item Client Perceptions of Psychotherapists: An Analogue Study(1970) Campbell, Terence W.; Goering, Jacob D.; Education; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md)In the last decade, an impressive body of empirical evidence has accumulated which strongly suggests that psychotherapy outcome is a function of the levels of therapeutic conditions expressed by the therapist during the course of therapy. The empirically established role of these "levels of therapeutic conditions" (LTC) in determining process movement and therapy outcome suggested that they deserved and demanded systematic investigation in their own right as dependent variables. The primary concern of this investigation, then, was to determine whether LTC varied in its expression across therapists, and its perception across clients. It was hypothesized that psychotherapeutic orientation and client interpersonal style interact in determining client perceptions of psychotherapists. The experimental design developed for this study was a modification of Strupp's (1962) analogue procedure. Measures of interpersonal style-using Schutz's FIRO-B (1966)--were gathered from 378 college students at the University of Maryland. Approximately a week later, the Ss were randomly assigned to view one of the films in the film series Three Approaches to Psychotherapy. Immediately after viewing the film, the Ss were instructed to complete Barrett-Lennard's Relationship-Inventory in regards to how they would perceive the therapists if they were working with him as a client. The data were analyzed by means of analysis of variance procedures. The design was a 3 x 3 x 2 factorial analysis of variance (three therapeutic orientations x three client interpersonal styles x client sex). The first order interaction between therapists and clients was not significant (p <.240). However, the second order interaction (therapeutic orientation x client interpersonal style x client sex) did approach significance (p < .065), indicating that the first order therapist x client interaction was differential by sex. Subsequent analyses of variance were performed separately for males and females. For females, the therapist x client interaction was significant (p < .05), but this interaction was not significant for the male data. In discussing these results, two points were emphasized: (1) Those therapist behaviors which were perceived as facilitative and favorable by some clients, were not necessarily perceived as such by other clients; (2) The sources of variance in client perceptions were not as attributable to either therapist or client effects by themselves, as they were attributable to the interactive, system effects of the therapist-client dyads. Furthermore, the differential interaction effects between therapist and client variables and client sex were discussed in the context of sex-roles as conventionally defined at a societal level. Finally, the psychotherapeutic and research implications of the study, and its limitations, were considered.Item The Effects of Operant Conditioning of Study Behavior Among Academically Deficient College Sophomores(1970) Reed, M. Douglas; Magoon, Thomas M.; Counseling, Higher Education & Special Education; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md)Operant conditioning procedures were utilized to assure the successful surveying study behavior of four black academically deficient college sophomores. They were asked to watch and listen to a video-taped lecture on surveying: the reading aloud, in order, of all bold-faced headings and the first sentence under each heading throughout the assigned work increments. Typical college textbook material was used for greater relevance. The students were diagnosed by pre-experimental records and observation, as academically deficient and void of survey study behavior. The experiment was conducted in a room specially designed for video taping and recording the subjects' behavior. Trained student experimenters supervised the experiment from an adjacent room where the subjects' performance was observed by TV monitor and heard by earphones. The subjects sat at a desk which had on it a study light which they could see and a large clock, the face of which they could not see. On the clock face was a small light which was not visible to the subjects. Together with the subjects, the study light, synchronized with the clock and its light were videotaped from the room in which the experimenters were stationed through an opening in the wall. Two of the subjects (one male and one female) were randomly assigned to be reinforced and the other two were not reinforced. Reinforcement consisted of the study light coming on (under the control of the experimenters) when appropriate topic sentences were vocalized properly. The light remained on until inappropriate topic sentences were read (additions) or appropriate ones were skipped (omissions). When either occurred the study light was turned off until appropriate text material was read. Most of the time the light remained on, since appropriate behavior most often was emitted. The clock light was synchronized with the study light. Non-reinforced subjects did not know when their behavior was appropriate, since reinforcement (the study light) was withheld. Whenever they emitted appropriate behavior, however, the clock light was turned on for purposes of analysis. The experimenters tallied the numbers of surveying or acquisition omissions and additions by means of noting the time on the clock face when the light was on or off. Surveying time was tallied also. After surveying each of the 25 chapters comprised of 636 appropriate topic sentences, the subjects were given mimeographed tests. These contained true statements incorporating all the topic sentences in that increment as well as others incorporating distracters, or inappropriate topic sentences. The tests measured the subjects' ability to discern and mark the appropriate material. Performances showed that as designed, the reinforced subjects Were under stimulus control of the study light. Reinforcement of surveying behavior following a lecture on the subject was more effective than a lecture without reinforcement. That is to say that the reinforced subjects, as hypothesized, made significantly fewer surveying omissions and performed better on the tests. There was little difference in surveying additions since few were made under either condition. Contrary to the hypotheses the time required for surveying was usually longer for the reinforced subjects since they were under stimulus control of the light. Student experimenters were demonstrated as capable supervisors of the experiment. Video-taping proved to be a highly reliable objective means of maintaining continuous records.Item A Relationship Between Cheating and Accountability in Community College Mathematics Classes(1975) Strong, David H.; Davidson, Neil A.; Counseling, Higher Education & Special Education; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md)The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between cheating behavior and the situation of varying degrees of accountability in community college mathematics classes. Three community college mathematics classes were selected for the experiment with one arbitrarily designated as the High accountability group, another arbitrarily designated as the Moderate accountability group, and a third as the Low accountability group. Five examinations were given to each class at s paced intervals during the experimental period with directions that there were penalties to one's score for guessing and that all work had to be shown on separate paper. Each class was told that every student would correct his own examination. After each examination, the instructor surreptitiously made a record of answers given by each student. When the examinations were returned for correction in class, the following took place. An answer key was passed out, and the instructor left the room to administer the examination to those absent from the previous class . He remained absent long enough for cheating behavior to take place. Upon the instructor's return, answer sheets only were collected and placed on a table so the instructor could see which students answered which questions correctly. For each question, a student in the High Accountability group was selected by the instructor to explain and otherwise defend his correct answer to the class' satisfaction. The selection of the student was random and based only on whether or not he had correctly answered the question. If he failed to satisfactorily defend his answer, he was either reprimanded or reminded of the directions printed on the examination. This procedure was continued for the remainder of the class until all questions were satisfactorily answered. It was usually the case that all students were called on at least once during the period. In this way, students were made to feel accountable for their answers. In the Moderate Accountability group, students were selected to answer every other question, and in the Low Accountability group, the instructor answered all questions unless a class member volunteered. When the class was finished, answer sheets were compared in the office to the earlier copies of the original answer sheets. A record was made of how many people had cheated in each class and the total number of answers that had been altered in any way. Scores used for achievement measurement were taken from the original answer sheets. Cheating was defined to be the deliberate changing or addition of an answer when marking one's own paper. Incidences of cheating meant the total number of answers changed, and rate of cheating meant the total number of changed answers divided by the total number of cheaters in each class. Four hypotheses were tested: the Analysis of Variance technique was used for hypothesis A, and the chi-square statistic for hypotheses B, C, and D. These hypotheses are as follows: (A) There are no significant differences among the achievement of the subjects in the classes with varying degrees of accountability. (B) There are no significant differences among the number of subjects exhibiting cheating behavior in classes with varying degrees of accountability. (C) There are no significant differences among the number of cheating incidences in classes with varying degrees of accountability. (D) There are no significant differences among the rate of cheating in classes with varying degrees of accountability. Using the .05 level of significance, the results are as follows: (1) No significant differences appeared when the achievement of the classes was compared. (2) No significant differences appeared between the number of cheaters in the classes for the first exam, but there were significantly fewer cheaters in the High Accountability group than in both the Moderate Accountability group and the Low Accountability group on the other four examinations. (3) No significant differences appeared between the incidence of cheating in the classes for the first examination but there were significantly fewer incidences of cheating in the High Accountability group than in both the Moderate Accountability group and the Low Accountability group on the other four examinations (4) No significant differences appeared for any exam when the rate of cheating was compared.Item Frustration Tolerance, Aggression and Intervention Methods for a Population of Non-Institutionalized Offenders(1972) Hecker, Benson; Lawrence, Richard E.; Counseling, Higher Education & Special Education; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md)Although group counseling procedures have been researched extensively for institutionalized offender populations, literature concerning group counseling with non-institutionalized offenders has been less evident. In addition, much confusion exists in the literature with regard to frustration tolerance, and the acquisition and modification of aggressive behavior. For the purposes of this research, frustration tolerance as outlined by Saul Rosenzweig and the theoretical base of social learning in the acquisition of aggressive behavior, were utilized . In sum, this study was designed to investigate three treatment methods and their effects on frustration tolerance and aggression for a population of non-institutionalized offenders. Thirty-nine clients under the supervision of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia were randomly assigned to one of three treatment groups. The treatment exposures consisted of: a) psychodrama and group counseling; b) films , audio-visual and group discussion; and c) normal probation and/or parole supervision as outlined by the Courts. The Rosenzweig Picture-Frustration Study and the Berea College Form Board were used as pre-test and as post-test measures for subjects in all three treatment groups. A Behavioral Rating Scale was developed to be used with the Berea College Form Board which consisted of 21 identifiable and/or definable physical and verbal behaviors. Computation of two Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients resulted in .71 for the pre-test and .83 for the post-test when comparisons were made between judges ratings on the Behavioral Ra ting Scale of subject's aggressive behaviors. Analysis of covariance with pre-test scores used as covariates was used in the analysis of the data. Results of the analysis were as follows: (1) There were no significant differences in mean scores between the three treatment groups in the acquisition of appropriate behaviors as measured on the (E), (I), (M) and (GCR) dimensions of the Rosenzweig Picture- Frustration Study. (2) There were no significant differences in mean scores between the three treatment groups in the acquisition of appropriate behaviors as measured on the Behavioral Rating Scale. While an analysis of the quantitative data does not support the use of psychodrama and group counseling, and the use of films and/ or audio-visual aids and group discussion as treatment methods to be used in the acquisition of appropriate behaviors, examination of the qualitative progress reports lend support to its continued use as treatment methods with offender populations. Meaningful relationships with probation officers and other group members were established, and in addition, "group members were able to look at themselves and discuss some of their problems." Further research, however, is recommended using similar techniques so that the effectiveness of this approach can be better evaluated.Item INTERACTION BETWEEN TIME AND VERBAL FLUENCY: A BEHAVIORAL MODEL FOR REDUCING AGGRESSIVE(1971) Brinson, Leslie Clay; Lawrence, Richard; Counseling, Higher Education & Special Education; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md)This investigation was undertaken for the purpose of critically evaluating the contributions of two variables, time in therapy and verbal fluency, believed important to counseling outcomes. In addition, the study attempted to test the efficiency with which a behavioral model designed specifically for reducing aggressive behaviors, reduces overt and covert aggression of delinquent boys. The consideration that directly prompted the development of the investigation was the researcher's observations that few research studies have been organized that systematically and rigorously measure the therapeutic efficacy of counseling techniques and methods wit minority groups, particularly young, black delinquents; for no study could be found that related these variables of time and verbal fluency to counseling outcomes with this carefully drawn sample. The criteria for selecting subjects to be included in the study were that each subject be an adjudicated delinquent and must have committed a crime of a magnitude sufficient to result in being incarcerated for more than ninety days. This period of incarceration must have been in progress during the time counseling was offered. To satisfy this criterion, students from a residential center for young delinquent boys were selected. By treating these subjects it could be assumed that any change in aggressive behaviors might well have resulted from treatment effects in that the residents were subjected to similar stimuli and were randomly assigned to treatment groups. The analysis of the data was accomplished through the use of a two-way analysis of variance which was representative of a 2x4 factorial design with four levels of time forming the vertical dimension and the two levels of client verbal fluency forming the horizontal dimension. The level of significance was set at .05, a level at which all four hypotheses were tested. Since specific questions were raised prior to the initiation of the experiment, the method of paired comparison was the dictated strategy for analyzing the data statistically. The actual statistical tools used were the t and F tests. It was observed that the raw data (gain scores derived via ______ the differences between ____ of pre and post testing) were skewed in a form that threatened the power of the design; thus, as a corrective measure, the data were transformed through the use of a square root transgeneration. It was found that a statistical significant difference existed between clients' mean gain scores for 0 hour of counseling and the average of 3, 6, and 9 hours of counseling. This finding held only when the criterion was the overt aggression which compared the effects of the behavior model to the effects of no counseling at all. A second finding was that a significant linear trend was found across the means of the treatment dimension representing time. Again, this finding held only when the criterion was the overt aggression measure. Statistical analysis of the data fail to support any hypotheses regarding significant effects of interaction and verbal fluency for either the overt or covert measures. With respect to the variable of time, the paradoxical findings were that subjects counseled via the behavioral model for 3, 6, and 9 hours actually showed increments of aggression or the overt measurement scale when compared to the control group which received no counseling. Further, the findings regarding trends in the data were that there were significant linear trends that characterized the data; however, these trends were in a negative direction which lends to the conclusion that the mean gains of aggression were larger as clients' time in counseling increased. It is therefore concluded that the behavioral model was an ineffective method of successfully working with the selected sample of young, black delinquents in terms of reducing their manifest aggression. More pointedly, according to the evidence at hand, this model has a deleterious effect on clients in that their aggression increases with the use of it. The second variable under study, verbal fluency, did not affect clients' outcomes in therapy on either criterion. Accordingly, clients identified as having high verbal fluency make no more gains in therapy than those identified as having low verbal fluency. There were no statistical significant interaction effects.Item The Construction of an Instrument to Assess Heath Typologies in a Resident Advisor Population(1978) Agar, Jane Leslie; Knefelkamp, L. Lee; Counseling and Personnel Services; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md)This study focuses on the application of Roy Heath's theory of personality style to a specific population of under graduate student assistants within the resident hall environment. A primary objective was to develop an instrument which could be used as an alternative to the Heath Modes of Existence test for assessing the style of particular individuals. To this end, the Resident Advisor Heath Typology Instrument was created. This instrument contained 48 items and was constructed using a likert type scale. It was administered to 45 Resident Assistants enrolled in a leadership training course at the University of Maryland. These students also completed Heath's Modes of Existence test. In addition, a group of expert raters were asked to assess the Heath style of these 45 resident assistants. Analysis of these three sets of data indicated that Heath and likert typings agreed in 66.67% of the cases; Heath typings and expert ratings agreed in 77.53% of the cases; and likert typings and expert ratings agreed 84.10% of the time. These results show both the Modes of Existence test and the Resident Advisor Heath Typology Instrument to be valid measures of personality style. These results also support the hypothesis of the author that accurate typology assessments could be obtained from a specific population within a particular environment.Item The Effects of Self-Monitoring on the Frequency of Aspects of Study Behavior(1975) Kazlo, Martha Peyton; Marx, George L.; Counseling and Personnel Services; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md)Previous research has indicated that self-monitoring, observing and recording one's behavior, has proved effective in helping individuals modify some behaviors; however, other studies have shown no behavior change as a result of self-monitoring. The present study was designed to investigate the effects of self-monitoring on writing answers to questions, one of the steps of the SQ4R method of study. The effects of self-monitoring were measured by observing study behavior. Less direct measures of study behavior, self-recorded behavior, self-report inventory scores, and examination scores, were examined to determine the relationship between observed study behavior and these measures which have been used in previous studies. Forty-six undergraduate student volunteers were randomly assigned to either the treatment or to the control group. All students completed the items which comprise the SH score of the Survey of Study Habits and Attitudes, received information on the SQ4R method of study, watched a demonstration of the application of SQ4R, then demonstrated that they could apply the study method to a selection of reading materials. All students received copies of questions formulated by the experimenter on the content of a textbook that was required reading for an English course. Students were instructed to read the chapter to answer the questions that were provided, recite the answers in their own words, then write the answers, using only key words. Students were instructed to answer a certain number of questions each week, and were told there would be an examination in four weeks. Information was not provided to the students that the answer sheets would be collected after four weeks, and that judges would rate the quality and quantity of their answers. Students who were assigned to the self-monitoring group received report forms on which they were instructed to record daily the number of questions to which they had written answers; the forms were collected each week. The control group received the same goals, questions, and instructions as the self-monitoring group, except they were not instructed to record the number of questions to which they had written answers. The results indicated that the self-monitoring group wrote a significantly greater number of answers to questions than did the control group (p < .05). This corroborates previous reports which have shown that self-monitoring is an effective technique for producing behavior change. The findings were interpreted as suggesting that post-behavior self-monitoring is an effective technique for increasing the frequency of students' application of certain principles of effective study. There was no significant difference between self-recorded behavior reports and judges' reports of study behavior. This was interpreted as suggesting that self-recorded study behavior is an adequate criterion measure of actual study behavior. There was no significant difference between the examination scores of the two groups. This was interpreted as suggesting that changes in one aspect of study behavior, writing answers to questions on the material, has little or no relevance to academic achievement. There was no significant difference between the SH post-test scores of the two groups. This measure indicated no changes in study behavior; this is in contrast to the judges' reports and the self-recorded behavior record forms which did indicate change. This was interpreted as suggesting the l east inferential approaches to collection of data on study behavior, judges' reports of behavior and self-recorded behavior, are preferable to the more inferential approach of using self-report inventory scores.Item Minimal Brain Dysfunction with Hyperactivity: a Comparison of the Behavioral and Cognitive Effects of Pharmacological and Behavioral Treatments(1973) Bradbard, Gail Susan; Pumroy, Donald K.; Department of Counseling, Higher Education, and Special Education; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md)It was the aim of the study: to compare the behavioral and cognitive effects of pharmacological and behavioral therapies in the short-term, clinical treatment of minimal brain dysfunction; and, to compare the behavioral and cognitive effects of stimulant (methylphenidate) and antidepressant (imipramine) drugs in the short-term, clinical treatment of minimal brain dysfunction. Twenty-nine boys, ranging in age from 6 through 12 years, with the diagnosis of minimal brain dysfunction with hyperactivity, were randomly assigned to three treatment groups: imipramine, methylphenidate, or behavior modification. The total time of treatment for each child was 6 weeks. For subjects within the imipramine and methylphenidate groups, medication dosage was individually titrated by a child psychiatrist. (Range: 75- 150 mg/daily of imipramine, 10- JO mg/daily of methylphenidate.) Parents of subjects within the behavior modification group individually met with an experimenter l hour per week. Behavioral principles were discussed, problem behaviors targeted, and behavioral programs devised for implementation during the treatment period. Subjects assigned to behavior modification were also individually seen once weekly. The first part of a session focused on behavioral control, following the method of behavior rehearsal. Working from problem areas targeted by parents, the subjects and experimenter discussed specific encounters, and then reenacted these incidents, rehearsing alternative, adaptive behaviors. The second part of a session was devoted to cognitive control, with training in self-directed verbal commands instituted. On tasks of trail making, matching pictures, and embedded figures, subjects verbally cued themselves to delay and to consider requirements before attempting a solution, with reinforcement contingent upon responses correct on initial trial. For all groups, prior to and following treatment, behavioral and cognitive measures were obtained: parents completed a behavior rating scale, the Parent's Questionnaire; teachers completed the School Report, assessing behavior and academic achievement; and subjects were administered a battery of psychological tests which included the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, Wide Range Achievement Test, Porteus Maze Test, Bender Gestalt Test, Developmental Test of Visual-Motor Integration, and Draw-APerson. Analysis of the data from teachers' global ratings of behavior indicated the superiority of pharmacological treatment in comparison with behavioral treatment. Within the cognitive area, based on teachers' global ratings of academic achievement and the Porteus Maze Test, pharmacological treatment was again shown superior. Isolating specific group effects, contributing to the major portion of the variance between pharmacological and behavioral treatments was the superiority of methylphenidate to behavior modification. Further research was felt necessary concerning the therapeutic comparability or lack of comparability of imipramine and behavior modification treatments. Between imipramine and methylphenidate treatments, based on teachers' ratings of hyperactivity and global ratings of both behavior and academic achievement, differential effects, in favor of methylphenidate, were suggested. Thus, the comparability of imipramine and methylphenidate treatments in terms of both behavioral and cognitive effects was felt to be in question. Results were discussed in terms of the bounds of the design, procedure, and measurements. Qualifications were noted concerning statistical power, Type I error, the relative rather than absolute efficacy of the treatments, and the validity of the measurements. Application and research implications were presented. The need for continued research into the application of behavioral programs with MBD children, both independent of and in conjunction with pharmacological treatment, was stressed, with suggestions provided as to the clinic-based and, to a limited extent, school-based implementation of such programs.