THE SENSATION SEEKER ATTENTION SCALE (SSAS): A MEASURE OF SENSATION SEEKING BY ADOLESCENTS Except where reference is made to the work of others, the work described in this dissertation is my own or was done in collaboration with my advisory committee. This dissertation does not contain any proprietary information. ______________________________ Warner H. Britton Certificate of Approval: ______________________________ ______________________________ Craig B. Darch Ronald C. Eaves, Chair Professor Professor Rehabilitation and Special Education Rehabilitation and Special Education ______________________________ ______________________________ Joseph A. Buckhalt George T. Flowers Professor Interim Dean Counselor Education, Counseling Graduate School Psychology, and School Psychology THE SENSATION SEEKER ATTENTION SCALE (SSAS): A MEASURE OF SENSATION SEEKING BY ADOLESCENTS Warner H. Britton A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of Auburn University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Auburn, Alabama December 17, 2007 THE SENSATION SEEKER ATTENTION SCALE (SSAS): A MEASURE OF SENSATION SEEKING BY ADOLESCENTS Warner H. Britton Permission is granted to Auburn University to make copies of this dissertation at its discretion, upon request of individuals or institutions and at their expense. The author reserves all publication rights. Signature of Author Date of Graduation iii VITA Warner Hunt Britton, son of Warner Alexander and Barbara Jean (Hunt) Britton, was born March 7, 1950, in Kansas City, Missouri. He graduated from Sidney Lanier High School in Montgomery, Alabama and entered Auburn University in September, 1968. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology in 1972 and earned Elementary Teaching Certification in 1975. While continuing to teach children with special needs in the Auburn area public schools, he graduated with a Master of Education degree in Special Education in 1980. He earned certification or completed required coursework at the Master’s level in School Psychometry, Instructional Supervision, Learning Disabilities, and Early Childhood Education for the Disabled. He has taught at the preschool, elementary, middle, high school, and university levels for 33 years. He has two professional publications. He has five children and four grandchildren. He married Debora Myles, daughter of William R. and Mary C. (Gray) Myles, on July 28, 2006. iv DISSERTATION ABSTRACT THE SENSATION SEEKER ATTENTION SCALE (SSAS): A MEASURE OF SENSATION SEEKING BY ADOLESCENTS Warner H. Britton Doctor of Philosophy, December 17, 2007 (M.Ed., Auburn University, 1980) (B.A., Auburn University, 1972) 176 Typed Pages Directed by Ronald C. Eaves The purpose of the present study was to construct a Sensation Seeking Attention Scale (SSAS) as a predictive measure of negative sensation seeking by adolescents. Four hundred and thirty-five high school students completed the Scale as a predictive measure of the sensation seeking construct and its relationship to a measure of negative/anti-social school behaviors and grade point average. The analyses of the SSAS yielded two unique factors, entitled Positive Sensation Seeking and Negative Sensation Seeking. Initially, two statistical analyses were performed. A data reduction analysis of the total 60 SSAS items yielded 15 factors. A subsequent second-order factor analysis of ten factors derived from the first 15 identified two distinct factors indicating which items to include on the positive and negative v sensation seeking portions of the scale. Lastly, ANOVAs compared scores on the negative sensation seeking items to office behavioral referrals to test the hypothesis that the students with school behavior problems will achieve higher scores on the negative sensation seeking items than students with no significant problems. A second ANOVA indicated an inverse relationship between a high score on the SSAS negative items and grade point average. Both hypotheses were supported at the .001 level of significance. The current study lends support for the differential identification of individual adolescents with a likelihood for negative sensation seeking evident through school behavior problems and a low grade point average. Intervention strategies based in part on the results of the study are discussed. Limitations of the present study and topics for further research are presented. vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I wish to acknowledge my committee members, Dr. Ronald C. Eaves, Dr. Craig Darch, Dr. Joseph A. Buckhalt and department chair Dr. Philip Browning for their continued support. I would like to especially thank my major professor and chair of my dissertation committee, Dr. Ronald C. Eaves, for his patience, support, and unflagging encouragement, in the development and completion of my dissertation. I would also like to thank Dr. Larry DiChiara and Dr. Phil Raley for allowing data to be collected in their respective school systems. They were particularly gracious and supportive in this process. Finally, I wish to express my gratitude to the following individuals for assisting in data collection for this study: Angie Anderson, Ottis Stephenson, all the principals, and the teachers who participated in the implementation of the Sensation Seeking Attention Scale. vii Style manual or journal used: Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, Fifth Edition Computer software used: Microsoft Word 2003; LISREL VI; Scientific Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS), Version 15.0 viii TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES..................................................................................................... xii LIST OF FIGURES ................................................................................................... xiii I. STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM............................................................. 1 Introduction.................................................................................................... 1 Educational Trends Related to the Problem................................................... 3 Unresolved Issues .......................................................................................... 5 Social Concerns ............................................................................................. 6 Physiological Factors..................................................................................... 12 Genetic and Environmental Factors............................................................... 13 Definition of Terms........................................................................................ 16 Scope of the Study ......................................................................................... 18 II. REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE..................................................... 22 Overview........................................................................................................ 22 Sensation Seeking .......................................................................................... 23 Arousal............................................................................................... 25 Impulsiveness and Disinhibition........................................................ 26 Psychoticism and Antisocial Personality Disorder............................ 28 Risk-taking and Sensation Seeking.................................................... 41 Psychopathy and Sensation Seeking.................................................. 42 Purpose of the Study ...................................................................................... 44 Instrument and Early Identification ................................................... 44 Alternative to Punishment.................................................................. 45 Objectives ...................................................................................................... 47 Self-Report Scale............................................................................... 47 Predict Negative Sensation Seeking .................................................. 48 Postulates ....................................................................................................... 50 ix Physiological Factors......................................................................... 50 Monoamine Oxidase.......................................................................... 50 Serotonin............................................................................................ 52 Androgens and Estrogens.................................................................. 53 Genetic and Environmental Factors................................................... 56 Brain Maturation and Negative Behavior.......................................... 60 Increased Female Sensation Seeking................................................. 61 Importance of the Study................................................................................. 62 Sensation Seeking, Risky Behavior and Lower Grade Point Average 62 Childhood and Adult Sensation Seeking ........................................... 64 Sensation Seeking and Childhood through Adult Aggression........... 65 Scope and Delimitation of the Study ............................................................. 66 Research Objectives....................................................................................... 69 Data Reduction................................................................................... 69 Validity .............................................................................................