Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Decoding The Neural Circuitry Of Reward Behavior, Ernesto H. Bedoy, James M. Hyman

McNair Poster Presentations

Classical conditioning demonstrates that rewards can be used to train behavior by pairing a stimulus, known as a prompt, with reinforced behavior. At a neuronal level, this association strengthens the connections between the neurons involved, making communication easier the next time. Enhanced communication is identified with learning, allowing an organism to anticipate a reward with a prompt so that it can perform the desired behavior to successfully obtain the reward (Noonan et al., 2011). In this study, we created a computational model to represent a neural circuit with synaptic plasticity during reward, no-reward and anticipation states. Our results confirmed our …

Quality Of Life In Youth With Bipolar Disorder And Trauma, Irma De Santiago, Andrew J. Freeman

McNair Poster Presentations

Background:Epidemiological work suggests that youth with histories of trauma or bipolar disorder have lower quality of life (QoL) than generally healthy youth without a history of bipolar disorder or trauma.

Aim: To evaluate whether trauma and bipolar disorder have a negative effect in youth seeking services for emotional and behavioral difficulties.

Method & Sample: Participants were 596 youths and caregiver dyads from an urban community mental health center and an academic medical center in Cleveland, OH. Diagnoses were based on semi-structured interviews of the parent and youth. The KINDL-R measured Total, Emotional, Self-esteem, Family, Friend, School, and Physical QoL. …

What Is Driving Immigrants From El Salvador To Las Vegas? (2000-2010), Jeffrey Gonzalez, John P. Tuman

McNair Poster Presentations

The purpose of this study is to examine if death rates due to crime or unemployment drove immigrants from El Salvador to migrate to Las Vegas between the years of 2000 to 2010. This study will be most directly based on the research conducted in the study Unauthorized Immigrant Population: National and State Trends, 2010, conducted by the Pew Research Center. Pew Research Center’s study focuses on finding an estimation on the number of undocumented immigrants that have entered the United States, the number of immigrants that are in the United States workforce, and the trends regarding what states and …

The Interaction Between Nicotine And Negative Symptoms In Schizophrenia And Bipolar Disorder, Bernajane Palisoc, Daniel N. Allen

McNair Poster Presentations

• Individuals with psychiatric conditions, such as schizophrenia (SZ) and bipolar disorders (BD), have a higher rate of smoking and have lower quit rates compared to the general population.
• As a dopamine agonist, nicotine may help alleviate negative symptoms by increasing abnormally low levels of dopamine in the prefrontal cortex and mesolimbic system consistent with the dopamine deficit hypothesis
• The purpose of the study is to further explore the interactions of nicotine and negative symptoms in a diverse population of individuals with serious mental illness.
• Furthermore, research examining interactions of nicotine and negative symptoms for individuals with schizophrenia compared to individuals …

Mrs. Agentic: Perceptions Of Women Who Sustain Their Birth Surname After Marriage, Ashley C. Lee, Rachael D. Robnett

McNair Poster Presentations

As more women earn higher education degrees every year, it is clear gender roles are becoming more egalitarian within Western society. More common than ever before, women are earning more degrees than men and are taking on different roles then what was once expected of them. With this new freedom, women have shifted from playing a supportive role within society to branching out and creating their own established identity. Not only are women maintaining a separate identity in the professional world, but they are also maintaining a separate identity in their marriages. Correlating with the increased number of women in …

Alzheimer’S In America: Effective Physical Activity Methods For Brain Health Reviewed, Royale Cannon, Laurel M. Pritchard

McNair Poster Presentations

The alarming rise in rates of Alzheimer’s disease indicates that there is an immediate need for a solution. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2014) Alzheimer’s is currently the sixth leading cause of death in the United States. Over 400,000 new cases are diagnosed each year and these numbers are only expected to rise (Centers for Disease Control, [CDC] 2014). One out of nine people are living with the disease and 84,000 people succumb to this disease every year in America; currently there is no cure or direct treatment plan for the disease (Alzheimer’s Association, [AA] 2010; …

Examining The Relationship Between Emotion Perception And Bullying: A Proposal, Marielle Leo, Kimberly A. Barchard

McNair Poster Presentations

Bullying and aggressive behaviors have adverse effects on many children. Violent behavior among children occurs most commonly in the school setting and may lead to negative emotional outcomes later in life (Kub & Feldman, 2015). According to a study conducted by Baroncelli et al. (2014), boys who have been found to be high in aggression have a difficult time perceiving relevant social cues such as fear and anger. However, boys were prone to frequently identify happiness and fear in faces when a different emotion was expressed. For girls, Baroncelli and colleagues did not find any significant relationships. The purpose of …

Stress And Coping In Women Of Color, Elizabeth Ochoa, Marya Shegog

McNair Poster Presentations

• Stress and coping research has identified stress and lack of coping mechanisms as contributors to the onset of chronic disease, as well as contributing to a low quality of life among women of color in comparison to their Caucasian counterparts (Mays, Yancey, Cochran, Weber, & Felding, 2002; Andrews, Felton, Wewers, & Heath, 2004).

• The research examining health disparities in African American women, a subset of women of color, have found that African American women do not have the effective skills to cope with stress, which may contribute to the onset of disease (Donovan & West, 2014; Woods- Giscombé, 2010; Mullings, …