Psychology and Counseling Electronic Theses and Dissertations (UMKC)
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The items in this collection are the theses and dissertations written by students of the Department of Psychology and Counseling. Some items may be viewed only by members of the University of Missouri System and/or University of Missouri-Kansas City. Click on one of the browse buttons above for a complete listing of the works.
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Item Computational modeling of health decision-making(2025) Bailey, Carrie Elizabeth; Ha, Oh-RyeongValue-based decision making consists of weighting stimulus attributes to compute stimulus value and guides choice such that the stimulus with highest value is chosen. While successful in maximizing value in the short-term, this does not always lead to long-term advantageous choices. Incorporating self-control, the ability to choose long-term rewards over short-term rewards, into the decision process guides choices to be congruent with one’s long-term rewards. Therefore, individuals must utilize self-controlled value-based choice which guides choice to maximize value in alignment with long-term rewards. Self-controlled value-based choice successfully captures the decision dynamics in food decision-making. Little has been done to see if self-controlled value-based choice captures decision dynamics in activity decision-making. Considering the role of food and activity choice in energy balance (calories in, calories out) it is possible they share a similar decision process. The present experiment examined the cognitive and physiological decision dynamics of self-controlled value-based food and activity choice using computational methods. Individuals completed a series of decision-making tasks for food and activities while electroencephalogram (EEG) and electrocardiogram (ECG) were recorded. EEG data were then input into a convolutional neural network (CNN) to classify self-control success/failure choices and classify individuals as high/low self-controllers. Results show a similar valuation process for food and activity stimuli by independently weighting stimulus attributes to compute value. To promote self-controlled value-based choices, the valuation process is altered by enhancing the weight of the long-term reward attribute (health) and diminishing the weight of the short-term reward attribute (taste/enjoyment). The CNN classified self-control success and failure choices and high/low self-controllers above chance level. The EEG electrodes that led to the highest classification accuracy were located over frontal, parietal, and occipital regions known to be involved in self-controlled value-based choice. Feature visualization revealed the networks place high importance on theory-aligned brain responses for classifying food data, but theory-unaligned brain response for classifying activity data. Overall, the experiment successfully modeled food and activity decision-making demonstrating both domains share a similar decision process and demonstrated the feasibility of applying advanced computational methods to EEG data to elucidate the physiological processes underlying the cognitions involved in the decision process.Item Social exclusion, internalizing/externalizing behaviors, and cooperation in middle childhood(2024) Sotos, Jarrod Joseph, 1995-; Ha, Oh-RyeongCooperation is a complex prosocial behavior shaped by social experiences and perceptions of others' cooperativeness. In adults, social exclusion and high levels of internalizing/externalizing (I/E) behaviors can reduce cooperation. However, it is unclear whether these negative impacts are present during middle childhood, a critical stage of social development. This study examined how social exclusion and I/E behaviors affect cooperation in middle childhood to fill this gap in understanding. It was hypothesized that social exclusion would predict decreased cooperation, and that this effect would persist when controlling for I/E behaviors. Twenty-seven children aged 8-12 and their families were recruited online for an online synchronous experimental study. Children were randomly assigned to either a social inclusion (n = 12) or exclusion (n = 15) condition while playing Cyberball (Williams et al., 2000), an online social exclusion manipulation game. After Cyberball, children completed a questionnaire about their current emotional state and played The Coin Game (Corbit et al., 2022), an online public-goods game assessing cooperation. A child’s level of I/E behaviors were parent-reported using the Child and Adolescent Behavior Inventory (CABI; Cianchetti et al., 2013), and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ; Goodman et al., 1997). An independent-samples t-test showed that excluded children exhibited significantly lower cooperation levels than included children, t(25) = 2.123, p = .022, d = .24. However, an analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) examining this relationship while controlling for I/E behaviors revealed no significant main effects of social exclusion (F(1, 23) = 2.391, p = .136, ηp2 = 0.094) or internalizing behaviors (F(1, 23) = 1.360, p = .255, ηp2 = 0.056), while a significant, negative association was found between externalizing behaviors and cooperation (F(1, 23) = 4.776, p = .039, ηp2 = 0.172). Interactions between exclusion status and I/E behaviors were not significant, indicating these behaviors did not significantly alter the relationship between social exclusion and cooperation. A 2x2 Mixed ANCOVA revealed no significant main effects or interactions between opponent type and social exclusion when controlling for I/E behaviors. Overall, this study demonstrates that social exclusion and externalizing behaviors negatively impact cooperation during middle childhood.Item Examining changes in neurofilament light chain following a behavioral weight loss intervention for adults with multiple sclerosis and obesity(2024) Cozart, Julia Smith; Bruce, Jared M.Background: Obesity is associated with higher relapse rates and faster disease progression in Multiple Sclerosis (MS). It is unknown if weight loss is associated with reduced MS disease activity. The present study examines the effect of a behavioral weight loss intervention on MS disease activity, as measured by neurofilament light chain (NfL). Methods: Participants were randomized to either the weight loss or control group. The weight loss group completed a 6-month telehealth group-based weight loss program, and a 6-month maintenance phase. Control group participants crossed over to receive the treatment after 6-months and then the maintenance phase. NfL samples were collected at each clinical visit. Treatment and control arms from the randomized trial were collapsed to perform cross-sectional analyses in the pre-intervention sample (n = 65). Spearman Rho correlations were used to examine associations between adjusted (age/BMI) and unadjusted pre-intervention NfL levels, and patient anthropometric, demographic, clinical, and treatment specific variables (i.e., diet, physical activity). A Mann-Whitney U Test was used to examine differences in NfL change between groups (intervention vs. control) at 6-months. Longitudinal associations between NfL change and percent weight loss, diet, and physical activity were also assessed with correlation analyses among the collapsed sample. Results: Participant age was the only variable associated with NfL at baseline. Change in age and BMI adjusted NfL did not significantly differ between the intervention and control groups at 6-months (U = 201, p = .25). Despite clinically significant weight loss, there were no statistically significant differences between pre-/post-treatment levels or pre-/post-maintenance levels of NfL. Changes in diet and physical activity were not associated with changes in NfL. Additionally, NfL change was similar in participants who achieved or did not achieve clinically meaningful weight loss (5% or 10%). Discussion: Overall, NfL remained stable over the course of the Modifying Diet and Exercise in MS (MoDEMS) intervention despite highly significant changes in weight loss and other anthropometrics. Findings indicate weight loss is not associated with decreased NfL in adults with relatively mild MS and obesity.Item The relation between abortion stigma and psychological functioning: exploring the roles of reproductive justice activism and abortion identity centrality(2024) O'Shea, Kathleen W.; Watson, Laurel B.Studies have found a strong relation between abortion stigma and psychological functioning, suggesting that the more stigma someone assigns to their experience of an abortion, the poorer their mental health outcomes. Since the reversal of Roe v. Wade, abortion is no longer a federally protected right and many are now at-risk of being unable to obtain necessary abortions and other forms of contraception. As a result, the need for reproductive justice activism is as urgent as ever. At this time, no studies have examined reproductive justice activism as a potential buffer against the effects of abortion stigma on psychological functioning. Studies have examined identity centrality, or how central one’s identity is to their self-concept, as both a potential risk factor and buffer in the relation between stigma/discrimination and psychological functioning; however, identity centrality has not been examined in the context of abortion. The current study further elucidates the relation between abortion stigma and psychological functioning among individuals who have received abortions by examining the moderating role of participation in reproductive justice activism and the mediating or moderating role of identity centrality. A key finding was the presence of moderated mediation demonstrating that at low and average levels of reproductive justice activism, abortion stigma predicted higher identity centrality, subsequently leading to lower well-being; at high levels of activism, identity centrality was unrelated to well-being. Implications are discussed.Item “I can't. I just can't anymore!”: considering the impact of microaggressions and discrimination on binge eating behavior among black women(2024) Wilfred, Salomé Adelia, 1991-; Lundgren, Jennifer D.Extant research suggests that dietary restraint, emotion dysregulation, and stress are significant predictors of binge eating. Although Black women report the highest rates of binge eating behavior across all racial and ethnic groups, their representation in previous and current research is limited. Current BE interventions have also been found to be less effective among Black women, which may be due to lack of representation in treatment research specifically. and may indicate exiting treatments are less relevant to their lived experience. Stress related to racism is a specific form of stress that is not currently encompassed in binge eating research, but has a significant impact on Black women. Specifically, experiences with discrimination and microaggressions may impact emotion dysregulation and stress. This investigation examined if experiences with discrimination, microaggressions, and associated stress uniquely predict binge eating behavior among Black women. Hypotheses were examined using both quantitative and qualitative analyses. Results of this investigation indicate that experiences with discrimination, microaggressions and associated stress uniquely predict binge eating symptomatology among Black women. These findings suggest the need for more culturally informed theories regarding the development and maintenance of binge eating behavior among Black women.