Browsing by Author "Williams, Matthew Neil"

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    Coping in the chair : a validation study of the Monitoring Blunting Dental Scale : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Psychology at Massey University, Wellington, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2010) Williams, Matthew Neil
    The monitoring-blunting theory of coping in threatening situations (Miller, 1981, 1987) suggests that when faced with a threatening situation, individuals can respond either by attending to threatening information (―monitoring‖) or by avoiding threatening information (―blunting‖). A valid and reliable measure of children’s preferred coping styles in dental situations may assist dental staff in providing efficacious anxiety-reducing interventions to diverse groups of children. The current study sought to validate a scale of children’s preference for monitoring or blunting in dental situations (the Monitoring Blunting Dental Scale or MBDS). The psychometric characteristics of the scale were assessed in a group of 240 eleven to thirteen year old New Zealand children. Internal consistency reliability was adequate for both the monitoring ( = .743) and blunting ( = .762) subscales. Convergent validity was indicated by strong correlations (> .6) between the MBDS monitoring and blunting subscales and those of an adapted version of the Child Behavioural Style Scale (CBSS-M). Discriminant validity with respect to dental anxiety was strong for the monitoring subscale, r = .079, p = .221, but not the blunting subscale, r = .478, p <.001. Confirmatory factor analysis of the MBDS indicated adequate fit for a two factor monitoring-blunting model (RMSEA = .079), but unacceptable fit for a one factor model (RMSEA = .095). A similar finding was observed when confirmatory factor analysis of the CBSS-M was conducted. These confirmatory factor analyses suggested that the monitoring and blunting theoretical constructs cannot be justifiably regarded as representing poles of a single underlying dimension, but are better regarded as distinct, related constructs. A content analysis of children’s comments about the coping strategies they might adopt in several dental scenarios indicated that these strategies were largely classifiable within monitoring-blunting theory, with blunting-type strategies much more commonly mentioned. Given further validity evidence, the MBDS could be a useful measure when attempting to tailor anxiety-reducing interventions in dental settings to children with diverse coping preferences.
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    How well do psychologists' research methods equip them to identify the impacts of climate change on behaviour? : a methodological investigation with particular reference to the effects of temperature on violent behaviour : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology at Massey University, Albany, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2015) Williams, Matthew Neil
    The Earth’s temperature is rising, and it is extremely likely that human activities are primarily to blame (IPCC, 2013b). A changing climate could have serious consequences for human behaviour and psychological functioning. Research concerned with the psychological impacts of climate change is challenging, however, given the paucity of data showing how human behaviour has responded to sustained climate changes in the past. In this thesis, I critique the suitability of psychologists’ mainstream methodological strategies for engaging in research concerned with the impacts of climate change. In doing so, I draw heavily on a specific “testbed” of psychological research relevant to climate change: Research concerned with the impact of temperature on the incidence of intra- and interpersonal violence. In identifying methodological problems I draw both on published literature as well as an empirical engagement in research in this area. The empirical component constitutes an analysis of the relationship between temperature and the incidence of assault, suicide, and self-harm resulting in hospitalisation in New Zealand. In this analysis I found that irregular dayto- day variation in temperature had a positive relationship with all three forms of violence. However, there was less evidence that more sustained (seasonal or geographical) differences in temperature led to increased violence, making it difficult to predict the effects of sustained increases in temperature in the future. In the methodological critique section of this thesis, I point out several methodological problems that may hamper psychologists’ capacity to produce effective and useful research concerned with the impacts of climate change. These problems include the use of measurement and analysis strategies that limit our ability to convey the sizes of effects; the use of theories and analyses that limit our ability to make predictions; and the inadequate reporting of uncertainty. Finally, I recommend that psychologists studying climate change impacts should consider using categorisations of behaviour rather than psychometric scales that lack clear units of measurement; use statistics that effectively communicate effect size; apply theories that facilitate prediction-making; carefully take into account the role of time when generating predictions; and account for multiple sources of uncertainty that affect the confidence of our conclusions.