Digital Commons Network^™

Suppression Of Stereotype Threat Negatively Impacts Self-Evaluations And Interpersonal Outcomes, Zheng Li

Annual Graduate Student Symposium

Stereotype threat is the situation when people under the pressure of confirming a negative stereotype that applies to them. Research shows that when people try to suppress the thought of being threatened, they tend to perform even worse. This study examines the effect of suppression of stereotype threat on females’ confidence on a gender-based stereotypical task (about spatial skills and science knowledge) and cross—gender interaction outcome. Participants first completed the moon task and then had a discussion with a male confederate before evaluating the willingness of future interaction and the perception of how the confederate views them. We hypothesized that …

Suicidal And Non-Suicidal Self-Injury, Taylor Ash

Annual Graduate Student Symposium

A literature review over the differences between suicidal and non-suicidal self-injury in adolescents. This review looks into several factors and differences about why adolescents engage in the behaviors, reactions they receive when asking for help, and implications for future practice.

Identification Of Sluggish Cognitive Tempo By Teachers, Rachel Meisinger

Annual Graduate Student Symposium

Children with Sluggish Cognitive Tempo (SCT) are characterized by a hypoactive, sluggish behavior pattern that does not fully fit the conceptualization of Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) as was previously believed. Interest in this topic has surged recently, perhaps due to the fact that many researchers now view SCT as a construct that exists outside of ADHD (Barkley, 2014). SCT is associated with unique etiology, impairment, and comorbidities. Unlike ADHD, SCT represents a more passive form of inattention that may not disrupt the classroom. Thus, SCT may go unnoticed despite the fact that it is related to many academic and social …

Predictors Of Racial Prejudice: A Meta-Analysis Of The Influence Of Religion And Political Orientation, Kristin Broussard

Annual Graduate Student Symposium

The purpose of this study is to determine the impact of religion and political orientation on racial prejudice through meta-analysis. 153 independent studies were analyzed with a random effects model using the Robumeta package in R, and moderator analyses were conducted for year of data and region of the U.S.

Self-Enhancement In Relation To Ptsd Stigma, Corina Klein

Annual Graduate Student Symposium

The majority of the population will experience at least one potentially traumatic event (PTE) in their lifetime, however, only about 10-20% of those people will develop a chronic, adverse reaction to the event. One factor that may help to explain resistance to PTSD is self-enhancement. Self-enhancement is a tendency to view oneself in an overly positive manner, even despite evidence to the contrary. Although this has been found to work as a barrier against PTSD, it may also perpetuate the biggest barrier to PTSD treatment: public stigma. This study examined the multiple ways that self-enhancement functions within the realm of …

Mindfulness Tools For Veterans With Ptsd, Amy Davison

Annual Graduate Student Symposium

This is a literature review on mindfulness tools to enhance coping skills for veterans with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Traditional and modern techniques were studied extensively.

Injunctive And Descriptive Norm Effects On Physical Activity, Monica Ehn

Annual Graduate Student Symposium

The purpose of the current study was to test the application of the focus theory of normative conduct (Cialdini, Kallgren, & Reno, 1990) on exercise; specifically how normative feedback (i.e., descriptive and descriptive plus injunctive norms) affects levels of physical activity using a non-self-report measure of physical activity.

Fifty-two participants between the ages of 18 and 23 were randomly assigned to either the descriptive or descriptive plus injunctive condition. The participants completed the first phase of the study individually, outside of the lab via Qualtrics. The participants completed a demographic questionnaire to obtain a sample description and the International Physical …

Identification Of Sluggish Cognitive Tempo By Pre-Service Teachers, Rachel Elizabeth Meisinger

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Current research suggests that Sluggish Cognitive Tempo (SCT) is a distinct attentional disorder from Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) that is characterized by a hypoactive, sluggish behavior pattern (Barkley, 2014). Further, unlike ADHD, SCT represents a more passive form of inattention that does not overly disrupt classroom learning goals. Thus children with SCT may be ‘falling through the cracks’ in schools. If children with SCT are going unrecognized in the classroom, they are likely not getting referred for treatment and additional educational services. SCT is related to many internalizing, academic, and social difficulties (Becker & Langberg, 2013, 2014) and early identification and …

Turkish Identity In Poetry Before And After The 1928 Language Revolution, Angela Marie Wrage

Honors Program Theses

The 1928 language revolution in Turkey involved the change of the Turkish writing script from the Arabic to the Latin alphabet, as well as the elimination of Arabic and Persian loan words and associated imported grammar. In this study, we assessed the impact this language revolution had on Turkish identity by examining it through the lens of Ottoman and Turkish literature and poetry. To achieve this, we compared literary and poetic themes from before and after the language revolution; we also studied the activity of prolific writers from before and after the transition to determine what effect, if any, the …

The Influence Of The Single Stereotype On Moral Judgments, Peng Zhang

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Stereotypes can powerfully influence people’s moral judgments. For example, stereotypes of atheists lead people to report immoral behavior as more consistent for atheists than Christians (Wright & Nichols, 2014). When targets are labeled as “obese” or “hippie”, perceivers morally judge them more harshly than targets who are not assigned such labels (Masicampo, Barth, & Ambady, 2014). However, limited research has examined how stereotypes of single people can influence perceivers’ moral judgments. Because of various negative stereotypes people hold about single people (Conley & Collins, 2002; DePaulo & Morris, 2005), it was anticipated that people would morally judge a single target …

A Model For Measuring The Contribution Of Form To Perception Of Biological Sex In Point-Light Actors, Michael Mintz

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

People are able to judge the sex of actors represented in point-light displays. Much of the previous literature has focused on the contribution of motion information to this judgment, or has focused specifically on information gathered from the shoulders and hips. The purpose of the current study is to model how form information, based upon the distance between the dots representing a point-light actor’s key joints, the shoulder, hip, elbow, knee, wrist, and ankle points, contributes to the perception of biological sex. In a pilot study, 6 naïve observers responded to 63 computer generated stimuli that ranged from extremely female …

Different Levels Of Negative Emotions And Their Impact On Prosocial Behavior, Tsamchoe Dolma

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

In this fast and competitive world, people are becoming less likely to help others. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (2014), the volunteerism rate reached the lowest point in 2013 since 2002. This decrease in prosocial behavior makes the study of prosocial behavior important, especially with the increasing numbers of charitable organizations and their competition to attract more donors and volunteers. Public service advertisements (PSA) are used as a common medium to garner help and support, and many of them use emotional appeals to enhance persuasion. The literature on persuasion shows that emotions have persuasive power to change people's …

Juror Misperceptions Of Eyewitness Evidence : Impact On Expert Testimony And Credibility, Tiffany M. Anderson

Honors Program Theses

The criminal justice system generally assumes that jurors have a base knowledge and understanding of the issues surrounding memory evidence. On some occasions, however, experts are brought in to testify and explain these issues to jurors. Though jurors (along with judges and attorneys) like to believe they are knowledgeable about the variables that may affect eyewitness memory, the reality is that they have a very limited understanding. However, there is little research on what misperceptions exist among laypeople regarding eyewitness memory. This is problematic because expert testimony may be more useful if it specifically addresses common misperceptions rather than just …

The Dual Role Of Self-Enhancement : Protection And Stigma, Corina Evelyn Klein

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Despite the availability of effective treatment options for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), these treatments are highly under-utilized. One of the most cited barriers to treatment among people with PTSD symptoms is public stigma. In fact, the majority of the population experiences a potentially traumatic event (PTE) in their lifetime and should contribute to an assumption of a lack of stigma toward people with PTSD symptoms. Yet, it may be that the stigma perceived by people with PTSD symptoms is more nuanced than what is seen in stigma for other disorders. More often than not, people who experience a PTE will …

Perceived Relational Evaluation : Biological, Psychological, And Physical Health Correlates, Emily Christina Banitt

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Humans have a fundamental need to belong, and being rejected or devalued elicits strong emotional reactions such as stress and anxiety (Leary, 2001). Low perceived relational evaluation (PRE), as a type of rejection, occurs when one person in a relationship believes his or her significant other does not regard his or her bond with the other person as valuable, close, or important (Leary, 2001). The goal of the research was to examine the interrelations among PRE, cortisol (biological stress), relationship quality, and physical and psychological within dating couples. Undergraduate female students (N = 109) who were involved in dating relationships …

Injunctive And Descriptive Norms Effect On Physical Activity, Monica Lynn Ehn

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Nearly half of adults in the United States do not meet the recommended guidelines for both aerobic and strengthening activities despite the benefits of regular physical activity (National Center for Health Statistics, 2014; US Department of Health and Human Services, 2008). The purpose of the current study was to test whether normative feedback (i.e., descriptive and descriptive plus injunctive norms) affects levels of physical activity. Participants wore a Fitbit Zip pedometer to record exercise behavior and received normative feedback messages sent to their mobile phones. Participants were 52 undergraduate students with a mean age of 18.66 (SD = 0.83); 27 …

Predictors Of Racial Prejudice : A Meta-Analysis Of The Influence Of Religion And Political Orientation, Kristin Ann Broussard

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The effects of religion and political orientation on racial prejudice are frequently studied yet, to date, no research has compared these effects using meta-analysis. One theory of prejudice that may help to predict outcomes is sociocultural theory (Ashmore & Del Boca, 1981), which posits that social identities provide norms and values that promote cultural stereotypes. Strong social identities such as religion or political orientation may differentially promote outgroup stereotyping and prejudice. The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of religion and political orientation on anti-Black racial prejudice through meta-analysis. 153 independent samples were analyzed with a random …

Losing Robin Williams: An Analysis Of User-Generated Twitter Content Following The Sudden Death Of A Celebrity, Samantha Mallow

Honors Program Theses

The purpose of my thesis is to examine how people use social media, in this case Twitter, to share content that reflects their attitudes toward the loss of a celebrity and the issue of mental illness. To complete my research, I examined how users of Twitter created content expressing their reactions to the sudden passing of comedian and actor Robin Williams on August 11, 2014. Williams’ death raised mental illness issues that he had faced during his life. After analyzing the data I created a short survey with eight tweets that referred to mental illness. The survey was administered to …