Digital Commons Network^™

Perceiving The Poster: How Suspicion Of Motives May Impact Perceptions Of Potential Allies Engaging In Online Activism, Kathrina Z. Durante

Honors Theses

Social media posts signaling support for various social and racial justice movements have emerged as an important aspect of social media use. However, little research has investigated how these posts and the social media users behind them are perceived by members of disadvantaged groups﹘those the messages are presumably intended to “help.” Though the post’s content and poster’s identity are likely important, the primary aim of this study is to investigate an individual difference variable in the perceiver, specifically disadvantaged group members’ Suspicion of Motives Index (SOMI) scores, which measure a general tendency to perceive White individuals’ attempts at non-prejudice to …

The Big Five And Dark Triad: The Role Of Personality In The Development Of Passion, Hannah Behar

Honors Theses

The present work explored the connection between personality and the Dualistic Model of Passion (DMP) and weather psychological safety moderated this relationship. The first study comprised 109 Introduction to Psychology students at the University of Richmond, and the second study measured 128 MTurk participants. The web-based survey administered to both samples consisted of measures assessing Harmonious Passion (HP), Obsessive Passion (OP), the Big Five traits, the Dark Triad traits, and Psychological Safety (PS). Due to reliability concerns, only OP and the Dark Triad traits could be used to assess the MTurk sample. Results from regression analysis showed that among MTurk …

Breaking Into Bon Air Juvenile Correctional Center: A Lesson In (Non) Quantitative Research, Mackenzie Seward

Honors Theses

Gaps in the literature on juvenile justice and mental health within a juvenile correctional center prompted a study that focused on self-esteem, emotions, and empathy in residents living in a juvenile correctional center related to their participation in a storytelling course. First-year students from a local university visited the correctional center as part of a community-based learning component. They met with residents to swap stories about their lives. Several limitations and obstacles complicated the data collection process, forcing the researchers to pivot their study from quantitative analyses to qualitative observations. The experience of conducting a study within a juvenile correctional …

Food Related Intrusive Thoughts: A Pilot Study, Hoor Ul Ain

Honors Theses

Food related intrusive thoughts (FRITs), a type of intrusive thoughts, might be associated with greater frequency of food intake, greater anxiety and distress, and negative affect in general. However, little is known about the experience of FRITs in the moment. I hypothesized that (1) momentary food related intrusive thoughts or FRITs would be positively related to momentary negative affect and (2) that time since eating will moderate this relationship such that people with more time since eating will show a stronger positive relationship between FRITs and negative affect. These relationships were not found to be significant; however, there was a …

Why Diversity Is Not Enough: Perceptions Of University Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion Initiatives Predict Institutional Belonging, Mckennah Lauber

Honors Theses

Belonging, including feelings of being valued in a larger institutional space, is important to student overall well-being. For students of color attending Primarily White Institutions (PWIs) (and other historically marginalized group members), institutional belonging maybe partially dependent on how they perceive diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. This study aims to assess individual differences in how DEI initiatives are experienced by students at PWIs in order to better understand how experiences of DEI initiatives on campuses may differentially impact students of color compared to White students. Belonging for students of color was found to be contingent on their perceptions of …

Taking The Social Out Of Social Media: Social Media Induced Loneliness As A Mechanism For Elevated Depression During The Pandemic, Samara Rosen

Honors Theses

During the COVID-19 pandemic health protocols limited in-person interactions, interrupting the undergraduate experience and prompting students to find virtual ways to connect with their peers. A key goal of this study was to assess whether college students’ social media use was a viable replacement for in-person interactions during the pandemic, reducing risk for psychological difficulties that ordinarily accompany social isolation. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate loneliness as a potential mediator underlying the longitudinal relationship between social media use and depression. Self-report data were collected in November 2020 (T1), February 2021 (T2), and May 2021 (T3). The …

Maladaptive Social Cognitions And Peer Victimization In Elementary-Aged Students, Katelyn Szarko

Honors Theses

Among elementary-aged students, peer victimization is common and is associated with psychological maladjustment and poor academic achievement. Students with maladaptive social cognitions, like low social competence and low perceived control, are more likely to be victimized, but having a supportive teacher and/or a positive classroom climate might help to mitigate this association. This study aimed to answer the question of whether teacher support and classroom climate protect against peer victimization for students with maladaptive social cognitions. It was hypothesized that teacher support and classroom climate will separately moderate the link between social competence/perceived control and subsequent peer victimization such that …

The Project That Claire, Uh I Mean The Student Completed: Relative Clauses And Repair Disfluencies, Claire O’Shaughnessy

Honors Theses

Several areas of psycholinguistics focus on the role of memory in language processing. Two of these areas are repair disfluencies and complex syntactic structures; however, these two topics have traditionally been investigated completely separately from one another. The current experiment combines these two topics by presenting listeners with spoken sentences containing subject-extracted relative clauses (SRCs) and object-extracted relative clauses (ORCs) in which the semantic similarity between the critical noun phrases (NPs) was manipulated. In addition, the sentences could be spoken fluently, or there could be a repair disfluency in which the reparandum contained information that would be potentially helpful in …

Justifying Antipathy?: Examining Racialized Perceptions Of Incarceration And Support For Mental Healthcare In Prisons, Jared Brassil

Honors Theses

The current U.S. criminal justice system has a disproportionate number of people suffering from mental illness. Additionally, many of these prisons not only lack the ability to properly treat these individuals, but in some cases may even worsen the problem. Public support, and importantly whom the public thinks the prototypical prisoner is, is important to know when advocating for reform. This research aims to investigate whether or not racialized perceptions of the U.S. criminal justice system impact support for mental healthcare reform in prisons. Given the exploratory nature of this work, potentially relevant individual difference variables are also investigated. An …

Generative Beauty: How Engaging With Beauty Sparks Transformation, Rebecca Byrd Musser

Honors Theses

“Be the change you wish to see in the world,” declared Mahatma Gandhi. There is a profound awareness of the need for change as individuals reflect on the impact of global and system challenges as well as community challenges. People cannot just “be the change” until they themselves are first changed. Beauty is a powerful catalyst for change that begins with the individual, expanding to the community. To solve community problems, program designers must find a way to unleash untapped creativity. This study explores the impact of engaging beauty via the arts (paintings, Mary Oliver poetry, and The Lark …

Grieving Experiences Of Undergraduate College Students, Alexia V. Rehling

Honors Theses

The purpose of this study was to compare the well-being of bereaved versus non-bereaved undergraduate students. Additionally, they were asked to report how many losses they have experienced, the characteristics of the most difficult loss, and their experiences with grief. Lastly, data on use of and access to support sources was collected as well as their perceived helpfulness. Results showed that bereaved undergraduates (i.e., those who indicated experiencing at least one significant loss) reported lower well-being than non-bereaved individuals. Further, 4% of participants met the criteria to receive a diagnosis of Prolonged Grief Disorder, 32.4% reported experiencing the separation distress …

Does Adhd Strengthen The Relationship Between Depression/Anxiety And Avoidance?, Ryan Wigginton

Honors Theses

Objective: Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a diagnosis often

comorbid with depression and anxiety-related disorders. Research is also indicative of a relationship between ADHD, depression, anxiety, and avoidance-related behaviors. I hypothesize that the relationship between ADHD and avoidance will be moderated by symptoms of depression and anxiety in neuro-typical college students that have not received a clinical mental health diagnosis. Method: 101 college students at the University of Richmond attended a baseline visit with a research assistant and completed baseline scale measures for symptoms of ADHD, depression, generalized anxiety, and avoidance. I used multiple regression and Hayes’ PROCESS program to analyze …

Focus On Hyperfocus: How Adhd Symptoms Impact Difficulty With Disengagement And Inattention, Cameron Mckendrick

Honors Theses

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a chronic neurodevelopmental disorder marked by patterns of inattention and hyperactivity. Hyperfocus (HF) is a concept that has heavily been associated with ADHD; however, it is not part of any diagnostic criteria and the literature pertaining to HF is rather underdeveloped. The present study adds to existing research by examining how HF differentially impacts ADHD populations compared to non-ADHD populations. The three main hypotheses explored in this paper are that ADHD positively predicts HF in the moment, HF in the moment negatively predicts inattention in the moment, and that the correlation between HF and …

Peoples’ Perception Of Race-Based Microaggressions As A Function Of Their Background And Beliefs, Emily Huesman

Honors Theses

This current study’s aim was to further address microaggressions and how people perceive these “micro” aggressions based on Political identification, support for the Black Lives Matter movement, and their beliefs surrounding White privilege. Recent literature has shown that racial discrimination in any form can be incredibly detrimental to mental health, however, this study addresses the every-day microaggressions and subtle forms of racism that Black people experience every day and delves further into why these “smaller” forms of racism might not be addressed. This study used a Qualtrics survey to obtain both qualitative and quantitative data on peoples’ beliefs surrounding the …

Stigma And Anxiety As Barriers To Help-Seeking Among University Of Richmond Students, Allison Walters

Honors Theses

There is a growing need for mental health services in the United States due to increased rates of psychopathology. Emerging adults, ages ranging from 18 to 24 years, experience high rates of psychopathology and thus have a strong need for available mental health treatments (Eisenberg et al., 2007). Despite this need and the efficacy of mental health treatment as a whole, there are many barriers to treatment utilization, including stigma. This study examines level of anxiety and stigma as barriers to help-seeking using data collected through the Healthy Minds Survey at the University of Richmond. Moderation analyses revealed that anxiety …

Falling For Moses: The Role Of Stroop Inhibition And Language Expertise, Isabella Holmgren

Honors Theses

When presented with the question, “How many animals of each kind did Moses take on the Ark?”, people often respond “2”, despite knowing that Noah is the Biblical figure who is said to have taken animals on the ark. This phenomenon where people fail to detect inaccuracies in text has come to be known as the Moses Illusion (Erickson & Mattson, 1981). The current study was designed to investigate Moses illusion rates in a multiple-choice format. Further, participants were assessed on two cognitive constructs: language experience and cognitive inhibition. Results showed robust rates of the Moses illusion using the multiple-choice …

Barriers To Care, Depressive Symptoms, And Moderating Factors Among Patients With Esrd, Amarachukwu O. Nwangwu

Honors Theses

End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) is the fifth and final stage of Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) and has been reported to have the highest prevalence rate in the United States, with about 2,242 cases per million in the total population in 2017 (Johansen et al., 2021). Current studies document a high prevalence of depression among patients with ESRD which may lead to increased mortality (Shirazian et al., 2017). Additionally, barriers in access to care, which may be understood as the barriers that prevent individuals from seeking mental health services, has been linked to increased levels of undertreatment (Clement et al., 2012). …

Hometown Diversity And Race Essentialism: The Role Of Interracial Friendship Quality, Junming Zhang

Honors Theses

The purpose of this study was to investigate associations between high-quality interracial

friendships and race essentialism among college students who perceived differing levels of racial diversity in their hometowns. Participants, who were recruited from a small, private university in the southeastern United States, included 84 juniors and seniors who reported having at least one other-race close friend. Participants completed a web-based survey about their hometown diversity, friendship quality, and race essentialism. Results from multiple regression analyses revealed two significant interaction effects between hometown diversity and two measures of interracial friendship quality: intimate disclosure and affection. Findings indicated that higher intimate …

The Effect Of The Black Lives Matter Movement On American Attitudes, Isabelle Warren

Honors Theses

The present research focuses on changing attitudes towards Black Lives Matter (BLM)

and racism. Black Lives Matter was founded in 2013, but came to a political and social forefront following the death of George Floyd in the summer of 2020. Based on research that large-scale movements have the capability of creating long term attitudinal changes, this research seeks to address the significance of BLM on attitudes in undergraduate students. Participants were recruited from University of Richmond Introduction to Psychology courses over the Fall 2020, Spring 2021, Fall 2021, and Spring 2022 semesters. They completed a survey assessing their attitudes towards …

The Effect Of Early Cross-Race Socialization On Black Lives Matter Attitudes, Elizabeth Popovich

Honors Theses

The present study investigated the effect of early cross-race socialization within the family, school, and neighborhood on current support for Black Lives Matter and anti-racist attitudes. Specifically, this study will examine the variables of whether participants’ families talked about race and the diversity of schools and neighborhoods. 98 female participants, 36 male participants, and 2 n.a. participants were recruited from the University of Richmond’s Introduction to Psychology class (N= 136) and were asked to complete an anonymous survey on their attitudes regarding Black Lives Matter. Based on the results, there was no clear influence of early cross-race socialization on current …

Individual Differences In Processing Of Garden-Path Sentences: The Role Of Obsessive- Compulsive Personality Traits, Antonio Cardoso

Honors Theses

A great deal of previous research has investigated the real-time processing and offline interpretation of garden path (GP) sentences. This work has shown that GP sentences cause substantial processing disruptions, as revealed by regressive eye movements during reading, as well as incorrect answers to comprehension questions. The current study was designed to investigate whether variability in the processing of GP sentences could be explained by individual differences in personality traits, specifically obsessive-compulsive personality traits. In an eyetracking while reading experiment, participants read GP sentences with both a comma manipulation and a verb type manipulation. Results replicated previous findings in that …

Do Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion (Dei) Initiatives Cause More Harm Than Good?: Extending Research To The Domain Of Lgbtq+ Discrimination, Lindsay Everhart

Honors Theses

Workplace diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives have been shown to delegitimize discrimination claims made by members of low-status groups, namely women and people of color (Dover et al., 2020; Kaiser et al., 2013). Previous research attributes this effect to the fact that DEI initiatives send signals of organizational fairness, thus causing individuals to overestimate the fairness of the organization and overlook discrimination claims. Given the fact that up to 40% of LGBTQ+ employees in one survey reported some form of workplace harassment due to their sexual orientation or gender identity, it is imperative that this line of research is …

What Does “Avoidance Mode” Feel Like? The Association Between Avoidance Awareness And Negative Affect In The Moment, Mamie Ziegler

Honors Theses

For students in an academic setting, task avoidance is a common behavioral strategy used to cope with the unpleasant emotions associated with schoolwork and completing assignments. However, when this form of behavioral avoidance becomes a pattern, it has the potential to lead to negative long-term consequences–such as worse academic outcomes and increased stress. To counteract maladaptive behaviors such as task avoidance, a certain level of self-awareness of such behaviors may be necessary–even if this awareness leads to more negative emotions at first. To analyze the relationship between student task avoidance and emotions, the following study utilizes ecological momentary assessment (EMA) …

Investigating The Relationship Between Classroom Sense Of Belonging, Friendship Quality, And Peer Victimization., Addi Mansini

Honors Theses

Research examining the predictors of peer victimization, the experience of being aggressed upon by one’s peers, is important because studies have shown that peer victimization can have negative mental health and academic outcomes. This research aimed to examine classroom sense of belonging, the degree to which children feel that they are a valuable part of their class, as a predictor of peer victimization, with the hypothesis that high classroom belonging would be predictive of lower peer victimization among third through fifth grade students (N = 233; 119 female; Mage at recruitment = 9.48, SD = .68). A second objective was …

Demographic Disparities In College Students’ Psychological Adjustment During Covid-19, Anna Marston

Honors Theses

The goal of the present study was to explore psychological adjustment during the COVID-19 pandemic in undergraduate college students. Since March 2020, undergraduates have endured extended lockdowns, quarantines, and social distancing efforts that may affect mental health, especially for historically marginalized groups such as women and people of color. Furthermore, research on coping styles suggests that those who cope with a stressor such as a pandemic in healthy, adaptive ways may be protected against psychological difficulty. In February/March 2021 (Time 1) and again in April/May 2021 (Time 2), college students (N = 277) from two residential liberal arts institutions were …

Does Duration Matter?: Assessing The Role Of Duration In Adverse Childhood Experiences, Miranda Thompson

Honors Theses

Introduction: Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are associated with several negative physical and mental health outcomes in adulthood (Felitti et al., 1998). However, a criticism of the ACEs measure is that it does not account for the duration of these events (McLennan et al., 2020). Thus, I aim to replicate previous ACE findings and determine whether an ACEs measure accounting for duration is a better predictor of mental health outcomes. Methods: 244 adult participants reported on their ACEs with duration and their mental and physical health. Three ACE scales were formulated: the traditional ACEs scale, and two duration-based scales, ACEs Years …

Using An Intersectionality Framework To Examine Disparities In The Steps To Kidney Transplantation In Patients With End Stage Renal Disease, Kacy Workman

Honors Theses

Intersectionality is a theory examining how individuals’ different identities intersect to create a new lived experience, often with compounded oppressions. This theory has recently been utilized in health research to help understand and find effective ways of addressing health disparities (Bowleg, 2012). However, while studies have theorized broadly about intersectionality theory in health research, it has seldom been used to specifically address health disparities in patients with End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD). This study conducted a systematic literature review of past research that has examined barriers to kidney transplantation among ESRD patients with intersectional identities, particularly concerning race and gender. …

Discovering The Wire: Dominance Effects In The Processing Of Polysemes In Sentences, Gwynna Ryan

Honors Theses

Previous research examining the processing of polysemous words presented in neutral sentence contexts has revealed conflicting results. Two different models attempt to explain these divergent patterns. The first predicts that the subordinate sense of an ambiguous word is more difficult to retrieve and process while the second predicts no differences in processing difficulty between the subordinate and dominant senses of ambiguous words. The current study tested the different predictions of these models by presenting sentences with polysemes in a neutral context. Critically, the sense relatedness of the polysemes and the sentence structure were held constant, while the sense frequency of …

Autistic Personality Traits And Processing Of Ironic Language, Jaclyn Opie

Honors Theses

Whereas typically developing adults tend to show processing differences for ironic versus literal language, recent research has demonstrated that adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder do not show a difference. Building on these findings, the present study examined whether similar effects would emerge in a sample of college students who were assessed on autistic personality traits. Through an eye tracking during reading experiment, participants read sentence contexts in which factors of emotional language, ironic versus literal language, and sentence perspective were manipulated. Results showed that participants who had a low degree of autistic traits somewhat replicated the two-stage processing model of …

Gratitude, Resilience And Post-Traumatic Growth Among Kidney Transplant Recipients, Lillie Credle

Honors Theses

Chronic health conditions, such as end-stage renal disease (ESRD), can produce detrimental physical, psychological, and emotional effects (Schulz & Kroencke, 2015). While transplantation helps to alleviate the physical symptoms, other psychosocial problems can remain. The present study sought to investigate whether organ transplant recipients utilize certain strength-based attributes—gratitude, resilience, and post-traumatic growth—when coping with life post-transplant. This mixed-methods study recruited eight (N=8) kidney transplant recipients, who took part in semi-structured interviews followed by a survey. Though quantitative data was limited due to COVID-19 interruptions, the qualitative data revealed evidence of gratitude, resilience, and post-traumatic growth being used by the participants …