Multivariate binary data with multiple binary response variables arise in many areas of research, including biology, psychology, medicine, dentistry, and other empirical sciences. In such data, the...Show moreMultivariate binary data with multiple binary response variables arise in many areas of research, including biology, psychology, medicine, dentistry, and other empirical sciences. In such data, the effect of a predictor on the response variable and the effect of a predictor on the association structure between the response variables is of interest. Multinomial Restricted Unfolding (MRU) is a probabilistic multidimensional unfolding model that can be used to analyse multicategory response variables in the presence of predictors. In this thesis, we investigated an extension of the MRU model to analyse multivariate binary data focusing on how diagnoses of depressive and anxiety disorders are influenced by personality traits and how the association between two disorders is affected by these personality traits. We compared the results using usual and squared Euclidean distances for the main effects and associations MRU models. We have demonstrated that MRU models using squared and usual Euclidean distances can be used to analyse multivariate binary data, representing well the changes in log odds and the changes in log odds ratio. Our results indicated that the MRU models using squared Euclidean distances are more straightforward and easier to be interpreted than those using usual Euclidean distance. However, despite the more complicated interpretation, the model using the usual Euclidean distance is more flexible, which might lead to a better model fit. Regarding the change in log odds of having GAD, the main effects model results indicated a constant change in slope between different pairs of categories that represent GAD. For the associations model, the parallel lines indicate that the change in the slope was constant within a pair of categories that represents GAD but not the same for different pairs of categories. When usual Euclidean distances were used, the change in slope was not constant for both main effects and associations models. Regarding the interpretation rules to express the change in the log odds ratio, the main effects model showed that the association structure does not dependent on the value of the predictor variable. However, for the associations model, the log odds ratio is dependent on the value of the predictor variable, in which a constant change in slope is shown. When using usual Euclidean distances to explore the association structure between two response variables, the change in slope was not constant for both models.Show less
Spatial cognition deficits can be caused by various factors including aging, neurodegenerative disease, stroke, or TBI, and have thus far received inadequate attention in the literature. This study...Show moreSpatial cognition deficits can be caused by various factors including aging, neurodegenerative disease, stroke, or TBI, and have thus far received inadequate attention in the literature. This study aims to further our understanding of spatial cognition in order to progress the field and assist in the assessment and diagnostics of associated deficits in affected populations. Research has outlined the practicality of VR in assessing cognitive complaints. VR can provide ecological validity to navigation assessments and can be used alongside neuropsychological tools to further understand cognitive deficits. Therefore, the objectives of this study were to investigate the relationships of presence and subjective navigation ability with objective navigation performance in VR, and to further examine the effect of gender on navigation performance. The van der Ham et al. (2020) online task battery was used to assess spatial navigation ability by requiring participants to complete five tasks testing landmark, location and path knowledge. The experiment was conducted online on a computer or phone screen. Sense of presence in the virtual environment and subjective navigation ability were measured using the IPQ (Schubert, Friedmann, and Regenbrecht, 2001) and the WQ (Claessen et al., 2016). A test-retest design was employed to investigate the gender differences in performance over time. The results of this study indicate that presence is not a significant predictor of navigation performance in the VR task. However, subjective navigation ability did predict objective navigation performance. Additionally, gender differences were found in performance over time, with males consistently performing better than females. These findings suggest a need to further investigate the different navigation mechanisms used by males and females, and the effect that stereotypical beliefs have on performance. In conclusion, this study determined that assessment of navigation abilities is not affected by experienced presence, and thus can be made accessible in an online format. The findings for gender differences and the relationship between subjective navigation ability and objective navigation performance also have the potential to contribute evidence-based improvements in assessments, diagnostics and rehabilitation interventions. Further research is required to investigate the effect of different levels of immersion on sense of presence and performance as this could affect VR assessment of navigation.Show less
Most nations are a mix of various ethnicities and backgrounds, especially prevalent within the European Union. With the emphasis that is currently based on nationality and ‘belonging’, the European...Show moreMost nations are a mix of various ethnicities and backgrounds, especially prevalent within the European Union. With the emphasis that is currently based on nationality and ‘belonging’, the European Migrant Crisis, brought these sentiments to the forefront. With the sudden rise in asylum applications, the shock was reverberated throughout the continent. Since its creation, the EU and its member states have always been a goal destination for those seeking asylum. When member states aim to join the union, they must adhere to certain regulations with regards to various concepts, such as the right to asylum. As each nation had its own asylum system that was not unified under supranational regulations, the communication between the nations were blocked. With the realisation that a unified asylum system had to be created, the EU set out to complete this. But with the unification of asylum processes and regulations, the member states had to change their national asylum systems in accordance with EU regulation as well. But unifying more than 20 asylum systems proved difficult. As an emphasis is primarily based on the EU perspective, this research will be conducted from a member state perspective. This an attempt will be made to further identify and consequently understand the causes of variation within the member states. Instead of focusing on the EU aspect of this, an emphasis will be made in understand the variation from a bottom-up aspect, essentially from the view of the case studies.Show less
The multiverse analysis can be used as a way of assessing the influence of different analysis choices that could reasonably be made by researchers, instead of only presenting the result of one...Show moreThe multiverse analysis can be used as a way of assessing the influence of different analysis choices that could reasonably be made by researchers, instead of only presenting the result of one research ‘path’ as is often done in studies. While the multiverse analysis increases transparency about the results, it is still unclear how researchers can best summarize the results of this analysis more formally. Moreover, as far as we are aware, no previous studies have examined how the multiverse analysis performs under different research conditions. In this study, we simulated data under different research conditions. In addition, we built a generic multiverse analysis that was used to analyze this data. Two methods were used to summarize the results of this analysis, namely the mean p-value and the harmonic mean p-value (HMP). The results of this study showed that the mean p-value may be the preferred summarization method, as it provides a more conservative estimate of the different paths in the multiverse and has less false-positive results than the HMP in a situation where data was simulated under the null hypothesis. In addition, our study shows that the summarization methods of our multiverse analysis are robust against variations regarding the number of variables that are part of the analysis, the amount of missing data in a dataset and changes in the correlation between variables. However, the summarization methods in our multiverse were not robust against underpowered data. Only if the different research paths in our multiverse analysis had adequate power, the HMP was generally able to find a significant result in at least 90% of cases. However, future research is needed to see if these results can be replicated, since the definition of a generic multiverse analysis may differ depending on the research field.Show less
In recent decades, there has been an increased scholarly interest in negotiation, both on distributive and integrative bargaining. The latter is characterized by the expansion of the resource pool...Show moreIn recent decades, there has been an increased scholarly interest in negotiation, both on distributive and integrative bargaining. The latter is characterized by the expansion of the resource pool or pie, in a way that both negotiators benefit from the outcome. The resource pool is only expanded when negotiators manage to create value by finding alternative solutions to issues that increase the joint gain of both parties. In this study, we used a two-person roleplay negotiation conducted face-to-face in an informal setting (N = 95) to explore the influence of alcohol and order of presented issues on joint gain. We find no systematic differences within the alcohol conditions and order conditions on joint gain. While some of the possible patterns we find are not conclusive yet, further research could yield interesting results.Show less
The decrease of vegetation in cities is a widespread trend that has severe consequences for humanity and the climate alike. Pro-environmental choices such as increasing the vegetation in a garden...Show moreThe decrease of vegetation in cities is a widespread trend that has severe consequences for humanity and the climate alike. Pro-environmental choices such as increasing the vegetation in a garden seem to depend on emotions especially guilt and pride. In the current study it was hypothesized that feelings of guilt led to higher intentions and current environmental behavior to add vegetation to the garden. This cross-sectional study employed an existing dataset with 301 participants that had previously provided information about guilt and pro-environmental choices. Increased feelings of guilt were associated with higher intentions to add vegetation to the garden but not with increased current environmental behavior to do so. Therefore, guilt only seems to influence the intentions to add vegetation to the garden but not the actual behavior.Show less
Building on social perception literature which highlights the importance of morality in human impression formation, this study examines the relationship between brand personality and consumer...Show moreBuilding on social perception literature which highlights the importance of morality in human impression formation, this study examines the relationship between brand personality and consumer purchase intention. More specifically, the study objective is to investigate the effect of brand morality and brand competence on consumer purchase intention and to discover whether these effects are moderated by product involvement. It was hypothesised that brand morality is a stronger predictor of consumer purchase intention than brand competence. Secondly, it was predicted that for low-involving products, the effect of brand morality on consumer purchase intention is stronger than the effect of brand competence, whereas for high-involving products, the opposite was expected. An experiment (N = 216) was conducted to test these predictions. The results show that brand morality is a stronger predictor of consumer purchase intention than brand competence, irrespective of product involvement. The findings highlight the importance of morality in brand perception, indicating that companies of both low- and high-involving products should emphasise their brand’s moral characteristics to increase consumer purchase intention.Show less
Background: Parental verbal threat information is considered to play an important role in the development of childhood anxiety. Attentional biases induced by verbal threat information may increase...Show moreBackground: Parental verbal threat information is considered to play an important role in the development of childhood anxiety. Attentional biases induced by verbal threat information may increase the risk of developing social anxiety disorder. This study aims to investigate the effect of parental verbal threat information about strangers on children’s attention to these strangers. In addition, we explored the potential moderating role of child social anxiety. Method: The sample consisted of 75 9-to-14-year-old children (M= 11.51 years; 39 girls) and their primary caregivers from the community. The children filled in a questionnaire to measure their social anxiety levels. In the lab, the children had to give two speeches about shyness and confidence in front of two different strangers. Before the social performance, the caregiver verbally communicated threat or safety information about the two strangers. The duration of the looks measured the child’s attention to each stranger during the social performance. Results: The parental verbal information did not influence the child’s attention to the stranger during the social performance. No significant moderation of this effect by the child’s social anxiety was observed. Conclusions: Parental verbal threat information about strangers does not influence children’s attention to these strangers. In addition, child social anxiety does not affect the effect of parental verbal information on children’s attention to strangers.Show less
Research master thesis | Developmental Psychopathology in Education and Child Studies (research) (MSc)
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Individual differences in behavior are best explained through a multisystem approach by integrating neurobiological, neurocognitive, and social environmental factors. This longitudinal study...Show moreIndividual differences in behavior are best explained through a multisystem approach by integrating neurobiological, neurocognitive, and social environmental factors. This longitudinal study examined whether early physical aggression could be predicted by stress regulation, inhibitory control, risk background, and sex. In addition, this study is among the first to investigate whether the four stress response patterns of the Adaptive Calibration Model (Del Giudice et al., 2011) could be generalized to 12-month-old children by studying: autonomic nervous system (ANS), sympathetic nervous system (SNS), parasympathetic nervous system (PNS), and hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis. ANS was indexed by heart rate, SNS by salivary alpha-amylase and pre-ejection period, PNS by respiratory sinus arrhythmia, and HPA axis by salivary cortisol. The sample consisted of 214 mother-child dyads (116 boys) with an equal number of high- and low-risk backgrounds. Physical aggression was assessed through maternal reports at 12, 20, and 30 months of age. At 12 months, children performed an inhibitory control task and the fear task (robot paradigm) was used to measure baseline, response, and recovery levels of the stress systems. Latent profile analysis revealed three profiles: (1) ANS Responders, (2) Moderate Arousal, and (3) Hormonal Responders. No significant differences were found between the profiles with regard to inhibitory control, average age of mother and child, number of boys and girls, and number of high- and low-risk children. Results showed that higher physical aggression scores were associated at 12 months with ANS Responders and lower inhibitory control, at 20 months with Hormonal Responders, boys and high-risk, and at 30 months with boys and high-risk. In addition, an interaction effect was found at 20 months: higher inhibitory control in girls was associated with lower physical aggression scores, but not in the Hormonal Responders. The discussion highlights the importance of using a multisystem approach to explain individual differences in early physical aggression.Show less
There have been few studies conducted into the effect of victimisation in the context of the bystander effect, wherein one person is mistreated while onlookers take no action to help. Previous...Show moreThere have been few studies conducted into the effect of victimisation in the context of the bystander effect, wherein one person is mistreated while onlookers take no action to help. Previous research indicates that potential impacts may include a feeling of ostracism or an adjustment of perceived social norms. This study explored how participants would react in a dictator game wherein they are given less money than their peers, in circumstances where the peers do or do not try to help, measured by their retaliation against the perpetrator, their psychological needs evaluation and ratings of fairness and justifiedness. No significant differences were found between the two conditions. However, as some research previously suggested, there are differences in coping strategies and responses to mistreatment between individuals. This study found that retaliators also had poorer psychological needs scores for control and self-esteem, rating the perpetrator’s behaviour as unjustified whilst their own vengeful retaliation was, according to them, justified. Future avenues for research are explored.Show less
Background: Social-emotional skills are pivotal for children’s intra- and interpersonal well-being. Social-emotional learning (SEL) interventions have been shown to improve these skills, with self...Show moreBackground: Social-emotional skills are pivotal for children’s intra- and interpersonal well-being. Social-emotional learning (SEL) interventions have been shown to improve these skills, with self-awareness (SA) being the most influential intervention component. However, these interventions apply varying conceptualizations and operationalizations of SA. Therefore, the defining characteristics of SA interventions and their effect on children’s well-being are unknown. Identifying these could help educators, policy makers and researchers to optimise content and accessibility of SA intervention to the benefit of children’s mental health. Therefore, this systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to analyse the characteristics and effectiveness of currently available interventions targeting SA in children, and to examine children’s cultural background as potential moderator. Method: Eight electronic databases (PubMed, PsycINFO, EMBASE, EMCARE, ERIC, Cochrane Controlled Register of Trials (CENTRAL), Web of Science and Academic Search Premier) were searched for intervention studies investigating SA interventions in September 2019. Children’s SA was the primary outcome of interest, positive and negative mental health were the secondary. Of 7050 identified studies, 42 were included in the systematic review and 29 in the meta-analysis. Results: It was found that SA interventions had a small to moderate effect on children’s SA (g = 0.31 (0.05), 95% CI [0.21, 0.40], p < .001). Furthermore, they had a positive effect on children’s mental health. Cultural background did not significantly moderate SA intervention effectiveness. There was no evidence for publication bias. Conclusion: Overall, interventions targeting SA can positively influence the level of SA and mental health in children irrespective of their cultural backgrounds.Show less
