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Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons

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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Preventing Guilt By Association: Mindfulness And Susceptibility To Evaluative Conditioning, Laura Kiken Jul 2012

Preventing Guilt By Association: Mindfulness And Susceptibility To Evaluative Conditioning, Laura Kiken

Theses and Dissertations

Evaluative conditioning (EC) is a type of attitude formation in which a stimulus is evaluated as positive or negative based on repeated pairings with valenced stimuli. Emerging evidence suggests that individuals differ in susceptibility to EC and these differences may be related to various social and psychological biases. One variable that has been linked with less negative attitude formation, although not using an EC paradigm, is mindfulness. Further, mindfulness is proposed to alter dimensions of elaboration that may underlie EC, particularly conditioning of negative attitudes. Therefore, three studies were conducted to examine whether mindfulness is linked to differential susceptibility to …


The Evolution Of Conservative Attitudes As A Complement To Cognitive Threat Detection Mechanisms, Russ Clay Jul 2012

The Evolution Of Conservative Attitudes As A Complement To Cognitive Threat Detection Mechanisms, Russ Clay

Theses and Dissertations

Conservatism reflects a general attitude structure characterized by a preference for traditional social practices and an aversion to uncertainty and threat. Though the social environment undoubtedly plays a role in shaping conservative attitudes, recent studies suggest that trait-level characteristics may contribute to their development as well. The present research investigated trait-level cognitive threat detection ability as a factor which may influence the development and maintenance of conservative social attitudes. A computer simulation indicated that socially conservative attitudes may function as a strategy for increasing the survival rate of an individual with poor threat detection ability living in a relatively dangerous …


To Use Or Not To Use: The Role Of Affect And Cognition In Changing Attitudes Toward Using Condoms Among African American Women, Kristina Hood Jul 2012

To Use Or Not To Use: The Role Of Affect And Cognition In Changing Attitudes Toward Using Condoms Among African American Women, Kristina Hood

Theses and Dissertations

The current project involved three studies designed to examine which characteristics of persuasive communications change condom use attitudes. Study 1 investigated the effect of message type (affective versus cognitive) and source (male versus female) on attitude change among a sample of African American women attending college. In Study 1 (N = 146), the affective message and female source produced the most positive change in condom use attitudes. Study 2 examined whether message type and source were associated with favorable condom attitudes in a community sample and whether these findings differed from a college sample. Twenty-seven women participated in group discussions …


The Changing Meaning Of Marriage: An Analysis Of Contemporary Marital Attitudes Of Young Adults, Nicole Margaret Kay Mar 2012

The Changing Meaning Of Marriage: An Analysis Of Contemporary Marital Attitudes Of Young Adults, Nicole Margaret Kay

Theses and Dissertations

An interesting paradox in the literature about marriage is that despite the substantial changes to marriage over the last half century, young adults remain committed to the ideal of marriage. While changes to marriage as a social institution have been well documented, research concerning the contemporary attitudes of young adults about marriage has been limited. Even less research has focused on how these contemporary attitudes may cluster young adults into groups that have different perceptions of marriage. This study explores young single adult attitudes about marriage, and group differences in these attitudes. A quota sample (n=700) of 18-35 year-old young …