Psychology Commons^™

Are Giant Pandas (Ailuropoda Melanoleuca) Averse To Inequity?, Miranda R. Trapani

Theses and Dissertations

Inequity aversion, a negative response to situations of unequal reward distribution, is a cognitive trait usually seen in social species. This capacity is thought to regulate cooperative relationships in intelligent, cognitively flexible animals. Giant pandas are a unique case in that wild populations are characterized as nonsocial, however captive populations are socially housed until sexual maturity. This allows for the study of a nonsocial species in a social context and thus the assessment of socio-cognitive flexibility across evolutionarily distant taxa. Here, we assessed whether the giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) displays inequity aversion by testing ten juveniles living at …

Variation In Personality Among Semi-Wild Myanmar Timber Elephants, Sateesh Venkatesh

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines two personality traits: exploration and neophobia, which could influence human-elephant conflicts. Thirty-one semi-wild elephants were tested over two trials using a custom novel puzzle tube containing three tasks and three rewards. Our studies show that elephants do vary significantly between individuals in both exploration and neophobia.

The Effect That Testing Has On Nondeclarative Memory, David Smith

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Testing has been shown to improve long-term memory retention by decreasing the amount of material forgotten, a phenomenon known as the testing effect. This positive impact of testing has been shown using direct tests of memory that require declarative memory, things like memorizing word-pairs and single-word lists. This dissertation is the first research to investigate how testing impacts nondeclarative memory using three experiments. The first and second experiment utilize the word fragment completion task to measure the effect that testing has on words learned via methodology thought to recruit either declarative or nondeclarative memory. The third experiment utilizes a probabilistic …

Examining The Association Between Trait Mindfulness And How Positively An Exercise Bout Is Remembered, Bree Geary

Psychology Theses and Dissertations

Introduction: Remembered affect is associated with future exercise behavior. Research suggests that trait mindfulness is associated with better emotion regulation, more positive affective memory of negative stimuli, and less rumination. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the relation between trait mindfulness and remembered affect of an exercise bout. Methods: Undergraduate students from Southern Methodist University (N=94) completed baseline measures of trait mindfulness and physical activity, a 15-minute vigorous-intensity exercise bout, and post-exercise measure (remembered affect at 15 minutes post exercise session, 1-2 days post, and 1-week post). Multilevel modeling was used to test the association with remembered …

Person-Based Prominence In Ojibwe, Christopher Hammerly

Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation develops a formal and psycholinguistic theory of person-based prominence effects, the finding that certain categories of person such as "first" and "second" (the "local" persons) are privileged by the grammar. The thesis takes on three questions: (i) What are the possible categories related to person? (ii) What are the possible prominence relationships between these categories? And (iii) how is prominence information used to parse and interpret linguistic input in real time? The empirical through-line is understanding obviation — a “spotlighting” system, found most prominently in the Algonquian family of languages, that splits the (ani- mate) third persons into …

Uncovering The Neural And Behavioral Factors That Underlie Changes In Processing Visual Orientation, Patrick Sadil

Doctoral Dissertations

From moment to moment, the visual environment appears stable; despite prolonged scrutiny, the edge of a desk is not perceived to change. But this apparent stability emerges from perceptual and decisional systems that undergo continuous modulation. In two chapters, I focus on two different kinds of modulation to the processing of visual orientation (i.e., the tilt of an edge). In both chapters, the form of modulation is latent, obscured by standard analyses. To detect those latent changes in perceptual decisions, I develop in this dissertation new statistical tools, at both behavioral and neural levels. In the first chapter, I consider …

Softening Resistance Toward Diversity Initiatives: The Role Of Mindfulness In Mitigating Emotional White Fragility, Vatia P. Caldwell

Industrial-Organizational Psychology Dissertations

When examining racial equity within organizations, a common theme is the failure of many organizations to address whiteness in their organizations (i.e., White supremacy, White privilege, White dominant culture). Decentering whiteness is key in racial equity work (Grimes, 2002). However, the process of decentering whiteness often results in backlash from Whites also known as White fragility (DiAngelo, 2011). This backlash impedes the organization from moving towards racial equity by upholding the racial status quo. The purpose of the current study is to further explore the role mindfulness plays in racial-equity work within organizations. Specifically, a mindfulness intervention was tested for …

Stradling A Cultural Doctrine: Exploring Historical Trauma On Ethnic Identity Development Among The Mestizo Peoples, Esmeralda Gill

Theses and Dissertations

ABSTRACT STRADDLING A CULTURAL DOCTRINE: EXPLORING HISTORICAL TRAUMA ON ETHNIC IDENTITY DEVELOPMENT AMONG MESTIZO PEOPLES

by Esmeralda Gill The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 2020 Under the Supervision of Professor Marty Sapp, Ed.D.

The modern descendants from the territory now known as Mexico, the Mestizo, are known to primarily be an admixture of Indigenous and European ancestry. Mestizo ethnic nomenclature acknowledges the presence of Indigenous Peoples in an individual’s ethnic background. Though the Mestizo narrative is saturated in collective mass group trauma and chronic complex forms of racism, discrimination, and systemic oppressive forces that delineate from colonialism, the Mestizo are also known …

Proactive And Reactive Cognitive Control Under Threat Of Unpredictable Shock: A Combined Eye-Tracking And Eeg Study Using Multilevel Modeling, Salahadin Lotfi

Theses and Dissertations

We are constantly bombarded by environmental distractors in daily life which interfere with internal, ongoing goals, thus cognitive control processes need to be in place to adapt to maintain these goals in light of the environmental demands. These cognitive processes (generally referred to cognitive control) are thought to be adjusted reactively or proactively to deal with distractors. There is little evidence on how state anxiety dynamically interacts with these two modes of cognitive control. Taking advantage of a multimodal methodology, through two experiments, we replicated existing findings of reactive and proactive control processes via utilizing a Flanker task in a …

Neural Correlates Of Individuation And Subordinate-Level Categorization Of Other-Race Faces In Infancy, Kelly Roth

Doctoral Dissertations

Perceptual narrowing is a domain-general process in which infants move from a broad sensitivity to a wide range of stimuli to developing expertise within often experienced native stimuli (Maurer & Werker, 2014). One outcome of this is the own-race bias, characterized by an increasing difficulty in discriminating other-race faces with age and experience for those raised in a racially homogenous environment (Anzures, Quinn, Pascalis, Slater, Tanaka, & Lee, 2013). Recent theorists have proposed that this is due to a categorization-individuation process, wherein infants begin to categorize non-native stimuli, such as other-species’ faces, but individuate native stimuli, such as often-experienced human …

Restorative Potential And Working Memory Capacity Of Exposure To Vegetation In Indoor Built Environments, Jee Heon Rhee

Theses and Dissertations

This research seeks to understand how natural elements – specifically, vegetation in the indoor environment - influence people’s ability to restore attention and working memory capacity. Previous research demonstrates the benefits of nature on human beings in various ways. For instance, numerous studies show the positive effects of nature on stress reduction (Hartig, Mang, & Evans, 1991; Ulrich et al., 1991) and attention restoration (Staats, Kieviet, & Hartig, 2003). However, most of these studies focus on the effect of nature in outdoor settings. Relatively few studies focus on the presence of natural elements indoors. This is an important gap in …

Emotion Regulation And N2 Amplitude During A Go/Nogo Task: An Erp Study, Emily Tolar

Psychological Science Undergraduate Honors Theses

Emotion regulation is how people respond to and manage their reactions to life experiences, including resolving conflict between variable responses. Past research has associated the N2, an event-related potential associated with resolving response conflict, with both emotion regulation and negative emotion. However, to the best of our knowledge, no one has assessed if different emotion-regulation strategies are differentially associated with N2 activation. To assess this question, we conducted an EEG study with 147 participants. Participants completed the Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (CERQ) and then played the go/no-go game as their EEG data was collected. The relationship between N2 amplitude and …

Are Individual Differences In Media Multitasking Habits Associated With Changes In Brain Activation: An Erp Investigation Of Multitasking And Cognitive Control, Morgan Middlebrooks

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

As the number of mobile phone users grows, understanding the impact of multiple streams of media on media multitasking and related neural correlates is especially pertinent. This research aims to understand the association between media multitasking tendencies on the neural correlates underlying cognitive control using event-related potentials (ERPs). Specifically, we were interested in the N2 and P3, ERPs that measure neural activation underlying aspects of cognitive control. Based on the literature, we predicted that participants who have high media multitasking scores would show more negative N2 activation and more positive P3 activation than their low media multitasking counterparts during an …

Data-Driven Approach To Dynamic Resting State Functional Connectivity In Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Carissa Weis

Theses and Dissertations

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a heterogenous psychological disorder that may result from exposure to a traumatic event. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), symptoms of PTSD have been associated with aberrations in brain networks that emerge in the absence of a given cognitive demand or task, called resting state networks. Most previous research in resting state networks and PTSD has focused on aberrations in the static functional connectivity among specific regions of interest (ROI) in the brain and within canonical networks constrained by a priori hypotheses. However, dynamic fMRI, an approach that examines changes in brain network characteristics over …

Effects Of Alcohol Intoxication On Hostile Attribution Bias And Relational Aggression In Women, Alita M. Mobley

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Alcohol intoxication is consistently linked to physical and sexual aggression in men, but not women. The lack of evidence supporting the relationship between alcohol and aggression for women could be due to a failure to measure relational aggression (i.e., harmful social manipulation), the form of aggression more commonly employed by women. Further, alcohol intoxication may interfere with the interpretation of social cues, resulting in greater perceived provocation in ambiguous social interactions and increased aggression. The current study examined the relationship between alcohol intoxication and relational aggression in women and the extent to which interpretation of social cues (i.e., hostile attribution …

Cuban Immigrants’ Experience With Acculturation And How They Cope In The United States, Lourdes Araujo

Dissertations

Objective: This research examines how Cuban immigrants experience cope and adapt to the United States. Cuban immigration is associated with specific stressors related to the immigration experience and the necessary process of acculturation and assimilation. These major stressors can result in mental health concerns among Cuban immigrants; however, no studies have examined how acculturation may influence Cuban immigrants’ coping skills and resultant mental health concerns. This unique study is the first to examine the coping skills Cuban immigrants use during acculturation and the effects of these skills on Cuban immigrants’ mental health. Methods: Seventeen participants completed a semistructured interview and …

A Meta-Analysis Of Group Treatment Outcomes For Veterans With Substance Use Disorders, Robert “Tony” Dice

Counseling & Human Services Theses & Dissertations

Group therapy is commonly used in the treatment of substance use disorders (SUD). Many studies exist related to the efficacy of group interventions for veterans with SUDs. A meta-analysis and systematic review of the literature addressing the use of group therapy, specifically psychoeducational groups, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) groups and support groups, in the treatment of SUDs with veterans was conducted. The following questions guided the research: What are viable treatment outcomes for psychoeducational, CBT, and support groups of veterans with SUDs? and What are the measures that capture outcomes related to psychoeducational, CBT, and support groups of veterans with …

Concept Maps As Sites Of Rhetorical Invention: Teaching The Creative Act Of Synthesis As A Cognitive Process, Amy Lee Marie Locklear

English Theses & Dissertations

Synthesis is one of the most cognitively demanding practices novice writers must undertake, and research demonstrates that first-year students’ synthesis writing practices result in more knowledge telling rather than knowledge creation and transforming. Pedagogies used to teach synthesis often focus on developing text-building strategies but lack explicit instruction on the more cognitively demanding conceptualizing behavior. To explore alternative pedagogies and heuristics, this study looks beyond composition scholarship to incorporate studies in neuroeducation and rhetoric to define synthesis as an ongoing, generative act of cognitive invention, effectively shifting pedagogical focus from text-centered product to student-centered cognitive processes that inform development of …

The Effects Of Security Framing, Time Pressure, And Brand Familiarity On Risky Mobile Application Downloads, Cody Parker

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

The current study examined the effects of security system framing, time pressure, and brand familiarity on mobile application download behaviors, with an emphasis on risk taking. According to the Prospect Theory, people tend to engage in irrational decision making, and make qualitatively different decisions when information is framed in terms of gains and losses (i.e., the framing effect). Past research has used this framing effect to guide the design of a risk display for mobile applications (apps), with the purpose of communicating the potential risks and minimizing insecure app selections. Time pressure has been shown to influence the framing effect …

Dual Mechanisms Of Cognitive Control: An Eye Tracking Study, Kyle Mobly

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

The purpose of the present study was to attempt to provide an ocular signature for the dual mechanisms of cognitive control (proactivity and reactivity) by utilizing an eye tracker to record gaze patterns while participants were administered a modified version of the AX-CPT 40. Additionally, we sought to clarify whether context updating or maintenance was responsible for the higher Total Visit Duration (TVD) on the cue location during the ISI that was found in previous studies by providing both a short (1.5 seconds) and long (3 seconds) ISI length. This allowed us to disentangle context updating from maintenance by removing …

Importance Of Interpersonal Relationships In Cbgt, Alexxa Badley

University Honors Theses

A literature review was conducted to answer the question, can CBGT, and its emphasis on interpersonal relationships bolster the treatment of depression in adolescents? Adolescents were defined as anyone between the ages of 13-17, and depression was diagnosed by the DSM-V. It was found that CBGT had strong effectiveness in the treatment of depression, lowering symptoms across the board. Teens found solidarity in having others that could relate to them and their personal experiences. Potential downfalls were the fact that time management was crucial to better treatment, making sure everyone had a chance to speak, as well as strong communication …

Characterizing A Novel Mobile Game Battery Assessment: A Comparison Of Performance-Based And Survey-Based Executive Functioning Instruments, Josephine A. Pham

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Exploratory characterization of a novel mobile game battery was conducted via a correlational comparison with a standardized assessment of executive functioning. Previous literature has shown that computer-based and survey-based instruments have either very weak correlation or no correlation at all – giving the impression that these instruments may not measure the same constructs of executive functioning. Findings from the current exploratory study demonstrated significant associations but weak correlational strength between tasks from the computer-based game battery and an updated standardized survey-based instrument. This confirmed a trend found in previous literature, demonstrating little overlap between both instruments in executive functioning measurement. …

Conscious Perception And Implicit Memory Formation Of A Narrative Presented During Sleep, Sarah E. Hollywood

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The present study sought to determine the extent of conscious awareness and implicit memory formation of a narrative presented during sleep. Participants were played an excerpt of J.D. Salinger’s Pretty Mouth and Green My Eyes while napping. Afterwards, participants completed a task designed to assess implicit memory to determine if they had formed any memories about words that were either directly stated in the story, or directly related to the plot. Participants who heard the story while asleep responded more quickly to words that had appeared in the story than to words from another story they had not heard. Exactly …

The Impact Of Levodopa Administration On Learning From Short-Term And Long-Term Action Consequences: A Paradigm Validation., Masood Rezaei

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Behavioral and neuroimaging studies have identified two valuation systems in the human brain for controlling behavior known as model-free (MF) and model-based (MB). MF is based on immediate evaluation and MB is based on long-term evaluation of the outcome of our decisions. Previous studies suggest that dopamine baseline activity may play an important role in the balance between the two systems and determine how they compete or interact in controlling our actions. The overarching aims of this study is to investigate the impact of levodopa administration on learning from immediate and long-term action consequences, and to dissociate the role of …

Effects Of Closed Loop Transcranial Alternating Current Stimulation Targeting Slow Oscillation Sleep On Post-Sleep Object Location Learning, Bradley M. Robert

Psychology ETDs

Modulating sleep architecture to augment memory performance can provide valuable insight into how sleep contributes to memory. Slow wave activity has been identified as an important contributor to sleeps impact on memory. While the beneficial role of SWS in offline consolidation is well established research investigating SWS’s role in post-sleep memory formation is limited. Here we investigated the relationship between SWS and post-sleep learning by modulating slow wave oscillations (SWO) with closed loop transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) with an aim toward enhancing learning capacity for object location associations. Thirty-six subjects were randomly assigned to either sham (21) or verum …

Empowering Nurses Of Minority In The Face Of Incivility And Bullying: Through The Lens Of Phenomenology, Corrine Floyd

Dissertations

Abstract

Up to 85% of nurses have reported exposure to incivility in the workplace (Hunt & Marini, 2012). The often-subtle nature of incivility toward nurses in a minority population may partially explain why it remains a problem. Healthcare organizations realize the need for civility to counter the high turnover rate, staff shortages, and low job satisfaction reported by nurses, but lack understanding of how nurses of a minority population perceive incivility and bullying. This study aimed to answer the research question how do nurses with minority representation experience incivility and bullying versus empowerment in the workplace? A descriptive phenomenological design …

Mobile Cognitive Training For The Cognitive Symptoms Of Depression In Young Adults: A Double-Blind, Randomized Pilot Study With Active Control, Alice Grinberg

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Background: Depression is associated with a broad range of cognitive symptoms, including reduced attention, verbal learning and memory, executive functioning (EF), and processing speed (PS). Computerized cognitive training (CCT) has been shown to ameliorate the cognitive symptoms of depression. Younger adults, in particular, are understood to benefit more from CCT than older adults due to their greater capacity for neuroplasticity. However, several issues remain unclear about the effectiveness of CCT: (1) whether the benefits of CCT are driven by the specific content or by non-specific factors, such as engagement, motivation, novelty, and expectancy, which have been inadequately controlled in prior …

The Cognitive Thalamus: Source Analysis Of Scene Working Memory Delay Activity, Bernard A. Gomes

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Working Memory represents a limited-capacity store for maintaining information and manipulating the store's contents over a short period for the guidance of goal-directed behavior. Working Memory is an essential component of executive functions that are intricately associated with the prefrontal cortex (PFC). The PFC has been implicated in maintaining task-related information online for brief periods in the absence of relevant information. This active maintenance phase is called the delay period that occurs between encoding and retrieval of the stimulus. Previous studies have attempted to understand the relationship between working memory and the PFC, especially during the delay or maintenance phase …

Shared Neural Substrates Of Perception And Memory: Testing The Assumptions And Predictions Of The Representational-Hierarchical Account, D. Merika W. Sanders

Doctoral Dissertations

Proponents of the representational-hierarchical (R-H) account claim that memory and perception rely on shared neural representations. In the ventral visual stream, posterior brain areas are assumed to represent simple information (e.g. low-level image properties), but the complexity of representations increases toward more anterior areas, such as inferior temporal cortex (e.g., object-parts, objects), extending into the medial temporal lobe (MTL; e.g. scenes). This view predicts that brain structures along this continuum serve both memory and perception; a structure’s engagement is determined by the representational demands of a task, rather than the cognitive process putatively involved. In a neuroimaging study, I searched …

Recursion In Language And Number: Is There A Relationship?, Diego Guerrero

Masters Theses

Numbers are an important part of the cultural knowledge in the modern world. Its use is fundamental in the conception and development of modern science. There are different sets of numbers called numerical systems. The most frequently used numerical system is the set of natural numbers that is composed of positive integers. Natural numbers have several forms to express the cardinality; the most frequently used is the base-10 number system, it represents the number using base quantities and powers of ten. For example, the current calendar year could be expressed as 2018 ; it’s notation describes the additive and multiplicative …