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Articles 1 - 30 of 86
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The Influence Of Publicized Suicides On Depressive Symptoms, Kallie R. Stephens, Andrew Terranova
The Influence Of Publicized Suicides On Depressive Symptoms, Kallie R. Stephens, Andrew Terranova
Honors Theses
The aim of the current study was to examine how media influences cognitions and emotions. It was hypothesized that those who viewed a media report on suicide would have higher levels of death thought accessibility, while also displaying a more negative mood. Gender differences were also considered. The study consisted of 71 participants, predominantly White (84.5%) with an average age of 19.93 (SD = 5.41). The design of the study was experimental in nature. Participants viewed either a neutral news report or a news report on suicide. After reading, participants completed a word completion task to measure death thought accessibility …
Anxiety And Its Impact On Memory, Blakeney C. Coleman, Ryan M. Yoder
Anxiety And Its Impact On Memory, Blakeney C. Coleman, Ryan M. Yoder
Honors Theses
From influences on our memories of common words to even eyewitness testimonies, anxiety can shape our view of the world (Amir et al., 1996). Our research attempted to show a relationship between anxiety and its effects as an impact on memory as is supported by the Theory of Attentional Control (Eysenck & Calvo, 1992). A video from Simons’ and Chabris’ (1999) study on Inattentional Blindness was used to assess whether anxiety is adaptive or maladaptive to functions of our memory. Our study did not find significance regarding the impact of anxiety on memory. However, the relevance and interest of studies …
Childhood Trauma And Early Adult Engagement In Deviant Behavior: A Measure Of Experiential Avoidance And Impulsivity Association, Angelene Green
Childhood Trauma And Early Adult Engagement In Deviant Behavior: A Measure Of Experiential Avoidance And Impulsivity Association, Angelene Green
Honors Theses
Childhood trauma (CT) has been associated with early adult behavioral deviance (BD), as maintained by previous research. The current study examined experiential avoidance (EA) and impulsivity (IMP) as mechanisms through which childhood trauma and resulting behavioral deviance are related. Participants for the study included 588 students of Western Michigan University, comprised of both males and females. The participants ranged between the ages of 18 and 35. For data collection, participants completed an online survey through an online platform. Participants were directed to select responses in accordance with the variables of interest. For the purpose of identity preservation, the survey responses …
Relations Between Self-Regulation, Divergent Thinking, And Perceived Stress In Emerging Adults, Haven Wright
Relations Between Self-Regulation, Divergent Thinking, And Perceived Stress In Emerging Adults, Haven Wright
Honors Theses
This study investigated the relationships between self-regulation and stress, self-regulation and creativity, and perceived stress as a mediator for the relationship between self-regulation and creativity. Questionnaires were administered to undergraduate students to individually access each construct. Creativity was measured through divergent thinking and self-regulation was measured through the SRS and effortful control. Regression analyses were run to determine the relationships between the constructs. A negative association was found between effortful control and stress. Individual positive relationships were found between effortful control and all of the creative thinking styles except convergent-unpleasant. Lastly, the indirect effect of effortful control on the convergent-unpleasant …
The Effects Of Biased Literature On Self- And Social-Perceptions Of Lgbtq Individuals, Marielle Crisler
The Effects Of Biased Literature On Self- And Social-Perceptions Of Lgbtq Individuals, Marielle Crisler
Honors Theses
Though media portrayal of lesbian, gay, and bisexual individuals has increased significantly in recent years, the representation has brought and cemented harmful stereotypes along with it. People who are discovering their identity as sexual minorities might consume media that portrays LGBTQ individuals negatively, or even kills them in many cases, and believe that they are doomed to the same outcome. Literature is no exception to this influx of negative stereotypes. The purpose of this study is to determine the effects of stereotypes in LGBTQ literature on those who identify with the characters presented in the text to the same extent …
The Influence Of Wearing A Fitbit On Eating Behaviors While Stressed, Maria C.M. Sparacino
The Influence Of Wearing A Fitbit On Eating Behaviors While Stressed, Maria C.M. Sparacino
Honors Theses
Research has demonstrated stress leads to consuming foods of lower nutritional quality as well as a greater quantity of foods. Visual primes have been shown to reduce these detrimental eating behaviors. The present study sought to determine if a fitbit would prime healthy eating behaviors in stressful situations. Participants (N = 41) were randomly assigned to a high or low stress condition, manipulated through the Stroop Test, and were either given a fitbit prime or not. Participant’s food preferences were assessed with the Macronutrient Preference Checklist- Modified for use in North America following the stress manipulation. The results generally …
Arousal And Anxiety Level Influences On Golf Putting Performance, Chloe Paulsen, Ryan Yoder
Arousal And Anxiety Level Influences On Golf Putting Performance, Chloe Paulsen, Ryan Yoder
Honors Theses
Arousal levels can help and hinder performance in various sports and many athletes manipulate arousal levels during practice or competitions. Professional golfers typically putt in complete silence but studies have shown that stimulus can help performance. Twelve participants completed general and sport anxiety questionnaires before completing 3 golf putts at a target under 30 seconds with a music stimulus for each group. Music stimulus had an affect on the moderate arousal level groups showing the best performance with the slowest time to complete the putting task. This shows that putting may be performed better with moderate auditory arousal to produce …
Barriers: An Exploration Of Architectural Structures As An Indication Of Wealth And Socioeconomic Status, Lisa Demoranville
Barriers: An Exploration Of Architectural Structures As An Indication Of Wealth And Socioeconomic Status, Lisa Demoranville
Honors Theses
I decided to explore the barriers and limitations of wealth through an investigation of architectural structures, focusing on popular industries and institutions on which our society commonly depends. I have noticed that places such as hospitals, schools, grocery stores, and restaurants differ dramatically depending on the neighborhoods in which they were located. This topic sparked my interest after living in Lima, Peru for a month, as I was able to observe the developing economy and dramatic division of wealth among the population. Certain questions about the divides and differences within a society and its culture started crossing my mind; not …
Neurosexism: The Extent To Which Sex And Gender Differences In Mental Illness Are Neurologically Explained Versus Socially Constructed, Christie Dionisos
Neurosexism: The Extent To Which Sex And Gender Differences In Mental Illness Are Neurologically Explained Versus Socially Constructed, Christie Dionisos
Honors Theses
In the growing age of neuroscience, we are rapidly churning out answers to questions about the mind and mental illness that have always evaded us. While increased neurological understanding is valuable to mental illness, our current understanding of mental illness comes with historical baggage that has negatively shaped society’s beliefs connecting females to illness. Our definitions of mental illness and its association with women came out of a history of stigmatization against women, disease, and Otherness. This has manifested into the pathologization of female experience as mental illness. The onset of new brain science had a similar agenda to make …
Have Scripts For Initiation Of Adult Sexual Behavior Changed In 80 Years? Evidence From Top Box-Office Films, Georgia Gardner
Have Scripts For Initiation Of Adult Sexual Behavior Changed In 80 Years? Evidence From Top Box-Office Films, Georgia Gardner
Honors Theses
The majority of research regarding sexual scripts in the media has examined television, however films are also an interesting avenue for study. The current study attempted to look the particular script of initiation of sexual interactions through the medium of film. The study looked at 50 top grossing films from 1940-2018 including drama, comedy and action films. Initiation of sexual interaction was defined as moving from a state of no sexual intimacy to sexual intimacy. For example, a passionate kiss on the lips between lovers is initiation of sexual interaction, but a kiss on the cheek between family members is …
Changes In Hemodynamic Response To Faces, Scenes, And Objects In A Visual Statistical Learning Task: An Fmri Analysis, Aaron T. Halvorsen
Changes In Hemodynamic Response To Faces, Scenes, And Objects In A Visual Statistical Learning Task: An Fmri Analysis, Aaron T. Halvorsen
Honors Theses
Learning causes changes in brain activity and neural connections. Statistical learning is an implicit learning process that involves extracting regularities from the environment and finding patterns in stimuli based on their transitional probabilities. The following study describes an attempt to elucidate temporal changes in hemodynamic activity for three category-specific brain areas using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Blood oxygen-level dependent signal (BOLD) responses were collected while subjects viewed faces, scenes, and objects with high and low transitional probabilities in an fMRI scanner. We expected brain activity to show a temporal shift in timing of activation when comparing BOLD signal responses …
Effects Of Perceived Audiences On Discrimination Learning In Pigeons ( Columbia Livia ), Peyton M. Mueller, Matthew Murphy
Effects Of Perceived Audiences On Discrimination Learning In Pigeons ( Columbia Livia ), Peyton M. Mueller, Matthew Murphy
Honors Theses
The social facilitation effect is a phenomenon frequently discussed in the subfield of social psychology. Some studies have examined the social facilitation or inhibition effects in nonhuman animals, though few have examined the effect of perceived audiences on their cognitive functioning. In order to study this effect, three different video stimuli were presented to one subject while solving a memorization discrimination task. It was hypothesized that the pigeon would learn a task at different rates based on the type of perceived audience presented. No significant results were found due to the fact that the subject was unable to learn the …
The Effects Of Social Influence On Time Perception, Phoebe Lavin
The Effects Of Social Influence On Time Perception, Phoebe Lavin
Honors Theses
The purpose of the present study was to determine whether the time estimate given by a participant is influenced by information they received from a partner. Participants were shown a video followed by several questions including a time estimate about how long a robber in the video was in a museum. Participants also saw answers given by their partners. Participants either saw an overestimate or underestimate given by their partner, or they received no feedback in a control condition. Following a short distraction activity, participants answered the questions again on their own. Results indicated that there was no significant effect …
The Stigmatization Of Concealable And Apparent Intellectual Disabilities, Claire Lundy
The Stigmatization Of Concealable And Apparent Intellectual Disabilities, Claire Lundy
Honors Theses
The purpose of this study was to investigate the presence of stigma when responding to people with apparent, visible, intellectual disabilities as compared to individuals with concealable, invisible, intellectual disabilities. Additionally, we aimed to discover if people with higher psychological flexibility would show less bias or stigma towards individuals with unconcealable intellectual disabilities. This study presented 63 participants with four self-report surveys: the Attitudes Towards Disabled Persons survey (ATDP), the Multidimensional Psychological Flexibility Inventory (MPFI), Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale (MCSD), and a demographic survey. Vignettes were added to the self-report survey to give participants further exposure to individuals with disabilities. …
The Effects Of Story Creation On Recall Performance, Amelia G. Dewitt
The Effects Of Story Creation On Recall Performance, Amelia G. Dewitt
Honors Theses
Prior experiments (e.g., Nairne, Pandeirada, Thompson, 2008) have demonstrated that considering information with respect to one’s survival improves recall performance relative to other well-known deep processing tasks. In the present experiment, we sought to determine whether creating stories might lead to similarly high levels of recall performance. To determine this, participants were assigned to either a survival, pleasantness, or story creation condition and were asked to consider 20 common nouns with respect to one of those three sets of instructions. After performing one of these tasks, participants were asked to complete a brief distractor task followed by a free recall …
Composite Bodies: Construction And Deconstruction Of Our Identities Through Movement, Pauline Mosley
Composite Bodies: Construction And Deconstruction Of Our Identities Through Movement, Pauline Mosley
Honors Theses
This thesis examines some of the roles artists take on as humans, separate from their lives as artists and how said roles impact in the forming of our identity. Applying the deconstructionist theory by the French philosopher Jacques Derrida, phenomenology by Edmund Husserl and Maurice Merleau- Ponty, and the journals of students involved in the study, the idea that the body and mind must work as one in order to create movement is dissected and reconstructed. Beginning with investigating the roles artists are born into, create for themselves and think they have, dancers involved in the study use their own …
The Relationship Between Leadership Style And Personality Type Among College Students, Samantha Easley
The Relationship Between Leadership Style And Personality Type Among College Students, Samantha Easley
Honors Theses
A successful leader must evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of each team member in order to ensure the most workplace success. Research has shown that an individual’s personality type is related to his or her personality style and contributes to how well someone responds to the leadership style. The goal of this study was to look at the personality types of undergraduate college students and assess the relationship to their preferred leadership styles. A positive relationship between both personality traits openness and extraversion with a more transformational leadership style. A positive relationship between both personality traits conscientiousness and neuroticism with …
The Relationship Between Language, Emotional Intelligence, And Cultural Sensitivity, Sophia Root
The Relationship Between Language, Emotional Intelligence, And Cultural Sensitivity, Sophia Root
Honors Theses
Knowing multiple languages, having a higher level of emotional intelligence and cultural sensitivity are positive traits to carry in today’s globalizing world. The present study looked at emotional intelligence and cultural sensitivity levels between monolinguals and multilinguals. Participants participated through an electronic survey that included demographic questions pertaining to participant’s language knowledge, and standardized measures for emotional intelligence and cultural sensitivity. Results did not indicate a statistically significant relationship of emotional intelligence between monolinguals and multilinguals. The relationship of cultural sensitivity between monolinguals and multilinguals was also not found to be statistically significant. However, a statistically significant positive correlation was …
What Do Women Want? The Feminist Pursuit Of Happiness, Hannah Ruth Ellen
What Do Women Want? The Feminist Pursuit Of Happiness, Hannah Ruth Ellen
Honors Theses
“What do Women Want?” My thesis asks whether women can genuinely seek freedom while also hoping for happiness. I look closely at how male theorists define happiness and liberty for themselves and for others, and in particular for feminized others. My two central chapters focus on theories of individual happiness, happiness sought through another or others, and the ways feminist thinkers reimagine happiness in relationship to women’s freedom. I apply feminist critiques to the concept of psychodynamic therapy as an anti-revolutionary tool designed to isolate and silence women into believing that coping with oppression is equivalent to genuine happiness. I …
The Need To Believe: Belief In Science & Religious Belief Examined As More General Components Of Positive Psychological Functioning, Jordan Madrigal
The Need To Believe: Belief In Science & Religious Belief Examined As More General Components Of Positive Psychological Functioning, Jordan Madrigal
Honors Theses
Furthered by the spectacular innovations of technological advancement over the recent centuries, empirical science has yielded a depth of knowledge about the universe that early naturalistic philosophers could not imagine. Present-day scientists seem to have a much stronger motivation to espouse naturalistic worldviews than do early philosophers – the explanatory power of science appears to render null the need for explanations via numinous religious beliefs. Why do so many people maintain religious beliefs, then? A large body of literature suggests that religious belief is strongly associated with positive psychological functioning. However, other research suggests that religious belief is sometimes associated …
Contagious Or Not Contagious: Is That The Question? Evaluating The Effects Of Disease Contagion On Memory For Word Lists, Laura Pazos
Honors Theses
Researchers have suggested that individuals possess a disease-avoidance system designed to detect and remember potential sources of harmful pathogens, a system termed the behavioral immune system. Recently, Fernandes, Pandeirada, Soares, and Nairne (2017) reported an increase in memory for objects associated with individuals that are contaminated with a disease. My thesis extends this finding by examining whether disease-related memory benefits are due to the mere presence of a disease or whether the disease needs to be perceived as contagious and thereby threatening to facilitate memory. Two experiments, one between- and one within-subjects, were designed to test memory performance in the …
Religious Identity Influence On Ethnic Minority Youth Risky Behavior, Laquitta Simpson
Religious Identity Influence On Ethnic Minority Youth Risky Behavior, Laquitta Simpson
Honors Theses
Previous studies have assessed religious identity in adolescents, showing that stronger religiosity correlates with lower levels of stress, better occupational and academic performances, and overall better well–being in adolescents and young adults (Koenig et al., 2001). There is also evidence of differences across races in how religiosity influences areas of adolescent behavior. The purpose of the current study is to identify the association between the strength of religiosity in White and Black at-risk youths and their involvement in risky behaviors. Data was gathered from teens aged 16-19 who are currently enrolled in a military-style residential program (n = 80); …
Social Skills Training And Generalization Of Skills In Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Brittany Wright
Social Skills Training And Generalization Of Skills In Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Brittany Wright
Honors Theses
The social deficits observed in individiuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) can often be improved with social skills training. The current study evaluated the effects of the Superheroes Social Skills training program which uses animated superheroes, video modeling, and comic books to teach social skills training. Three participants with ASD were trained in Conversation, Responding to Questions, and Body Basics over ten sessions, with sessions occurring twice a week in a non-school setting at the Arc of Southeast Mississippi. A multiple baseline across skills design across participants was used to examine the effects of the intervention on skill …
Vulnerable Narcissism, Difficulties In Emotion Regulation, And Relational Aggression In College Students, Shelby E. Caffarel
Vulnerable Narcissism, Difficulties In Emotion Regulation, And Relational Aggression In College Students, Shelby E. Caffarel
Honors Theses
Relational aggression is a form of aggressive behavior involving the intentional infliction of harm to the victim’s sense of belonging, reputation, or social relationships. Although most of the research on relational aggression has focused on children and early adolescents, there is evidence that it can be a serious problem for college students as well. Several predictors of relational aggression have been identified, but the mechanisms through which many of them operate is not sufficiently clear. The present study examined the relationship of vulnerable narcissism and difficulties in emotion regulation to relational aggression in a college student sample. It was expected …
Perfectionism And Alcohol Use Outcomes In College Students: The Moderating Role Of Alcohol Protective Behavioral Strategies, Tiara Watson
Perfectionism And Alcohol Use Outcomes In College Students: The Moderating Role Of Alcohol Protective Behavioral Strategies, Tiara Watson
Honors Theses
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the moderating role of alcohol-protective behavioral strategy (PBS) types (stopping/limiting drinking – SLD; manner of drinking – MOD; serious harm reduction – SHR) on the relationships adaptive and maladaptive perfectionism have with alcohol misuse and alcohol-related negative consequences. Participants included 526 traditional-aged college students (Mage = 19.77, 80.7% female, 60.2% Caucasian/White non-Hispanic) who reported alcohol consumption in the past thirty days and completed measures of perfectionism, typical weekly drinking, alcohol-related negative consequences, and PBS use. PBS-SHR moderated the relationships between adaptive perfectionism and typical weekly drinking such that the negative …
The Impact Of The United States Presidential Administration On African American College Students, Latisha Swygert
The Impact Of The United States Presidential Administration On African American College Students, Latisha Swygert
Honors Theses
It has been shown that college students of color do not share the same experiences as their Caucasian counterparts, with students of color experiencing higher levels of harassment and lower levels of perceived campus safety (Rankin & Reason, 2005). The purpose of this study was to explore the impact of the 2016 U.S. Presidential Election and the subsequent Trump administration on college students of color, specifically African American college students, and the psychological distress that may have been caused by the consequences of a shift in the national political climate. Participants were college students ages 18 to 54 who completed …
Direct Behavior Observations And Teachers' Ratings Of Internalizing Problem Behaviors, Lauren R. Parker
Direct Behavior Observations And Teachers' Ratings Of Internalizing Problem Behaviors, Lauren R. Parker
Honors Theses
Systematic direct observation is a commonly used method in schools to compile data on students' behavior in a naturalistic setting. Internalizing problem behaviors, behaviors such as social withdrawal, somatic complaints, and anxiousness, can lead to adverse consequences and have not, to the researchers' knowledge, been systematically observed in a classroom setting. Additionally, students have never been identified for intervention through direct observation. The researchers administered the Student Internalizing Behavior Screener (SIBS), which is a 7-item, teacher-completed, Likert-type scale which measures occurrences of internalizing problem behaviors. Once scores from the SIBS were calculated, students who scored at-risk were chosen for observation …
The Effect Of Therapy Dogs On Preoperative Anxiety, Morgan Royer
The Effect Of Therapy Dogs On Preoperative Anxiety, Morgan Royer
Honors Theses
Humans and animals have been companions for ages but that relationship and its benefits have only begun to be explored. Recently, animal assisted therapies have been used to improve both psychological and physiological wellbeing. One of the most popular therapies uses dogs. There are many research studies on the effects of therapy dogs on children and adults with results that have found that the companionship of a dog significantly decreases their stress levels in many different situations, including health care facilities. I investigated the effects of therapy dogs on adults’ anxiety before going into day surgery. Participants were patients from …
Policy Analysis Of Tennessee's 51-To-Life Law: Juvenile Sentencing Reform, Natalie P. Hurst
Policy Analysis Of Tennessee's 51-To-Life Law: Juvenile Sentencing Reform, Natalie P. Hurst
Honors Theses
In the state of Tennessee, juvenile offenders convicted as adults for first-degree murder must receive a minimum sentence of 51 years in prison before becoming eligible for parole. Tennessee’s minimum juvenile sentencing guideline is the strictest in the United States. In 2012, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that sentencing juvenile offenders to life is unconstitutional citing psychological evidence for a juvenile’s ability to be rehabilitated in comparison to adults (Miller v. Alabama, 2012). Tennessee’s 51-year minimum juvenile sentencing standard is a potential violation of this ruling because it has been shown that the life expectancy in prison …
Sarcasm Understanding Across The Lifespan, Kristen Barnett
Sarcasm Understanding Across The Lifespan, Kristen Barnett
Honors Theses
Research has identified a developmental progression of sarcasm understanding, stating that children get better at understanding sarcasm as they get older, though adults are still not perfect at reliably detecting sarcasm. This may be related to the cues present (e.g., story context, verbal cues, and facial expressions). Research has primarily focused on verbal cues, specifically exaggerated or “dripping” intonation, in child and adult populations. The literature is lacking in the realm of facial expressions and child populations. This study aimed to add to the literature concerning facial expressions as well as to evaluate sarcasm understanding with more than one cue …