Date of Award
12-1-2016
Degree Name
Master of Science
Department
Behavior Analysis and Therapy
First Advisor
Dixon, Mark
Abstract
The present study used a delay discounting procedure to characterize choice behaviors in behavioral impulsivity regarding hypothetical monetary outcomes in relation to political, religious and sexual attitudes. Participants were presented with three separate metrics to measure their political, religious and sexual attitudes and then with delay discounting choices, regarding hypothetical monetary outcomes. In the delay discounting measure, participants were presented with a hypothetical scenario, a preference for a certain monetary amount now, or $1,000 at a later specified time. The survey was administered with 26 participants; however, four of the participants’ data were removed due to errors. Results indicated there was no significant relationship between AUC values and political attitudes - r (22) = .14, r2 = .02, p > .05, p = .26. Results indicated there was no significant relationship between AUC values and religious attitudes - r (22) = .27, r2 = .07, p > .05, p = .11. A significant relationship was found between AUC and sexual attitudes - r (22) = -.39, r2 = .15, p < .05, p = .048. Furthermore, the results indicated there was a significant relationship between AUC values and the communion subscale of sexual attitudes – r (22) = -.48, r2 = .23, p < .05, p = .01. The current investigation has implications for further understanding of choice and decision-making behavior and how to predict and influence the respective choices and decisions to improve the quality of life of all individuals.
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