Psychology Commons^™

U.S. Extremism And Media: How The New Age Of Politics Speaks To Media Usage, Josephine R. Haneklau

Senior Honors Projects, 2020-current

On January 6th, 2021, the nation watched from their television screens as a group of extremists stormed the U.S. Capitol building in Washington, D.C. An interesting emotion fell over the U.S. public – it was both shocking and not shocking at all. The attack on the Capitol was a by-product of years of internal division, catapulted by Trump’s presidency. Between racial divisions and the progression of Black Lives Matter, the advancement of COVID and its governmental policies, and Trump’s divisive nature of president at a peak, it seemed almost inevitable that an offense like this would occur.

As political conversations …

Same-Gender Pathways To Parenthood, Sydney T. Inger

James Madison Undergraduate Research Journal (JMURJ)

LGBTQ+ individuals and couples who want children negotiate systemic inequalities in the United States of America. This literature review surveys America’s confusing legal map and the gaps in its enduring scholarly theories. The paper then examines the challenges that LGBTQ+ individuals and couples confront in working through the common pathways—same-gender adoption and fostering, in vitro fertilization, and surrogacy—to become parents. Dispersing information on the pathways will be a positive step towards breaking down the inequities for those in the LGBTQ+ community who want to start a family.

Borderline Personality Disorder: A Review And Analysis Through The Lens Of The Unified Theory, Paulihna S. Cechak

Dissertations, 2020-current

Abstract

In the field of psychology, there are many different ways to understand or make sense of a phenomenon. Researchers, theorists, or practitioners can approach topics via many different paradigms or schools of thought that guide their general understanding, programs of research or approach to therapeutic practice. Although this diversity of analysis affords some strength in terms of allowing many perspectives, it also brings with it a serious problem of fragmentation. With the countless theories and paradigms, we lack a shared language and meta-theoretical framework that assimilates and integrates the various bodies of knowledge and perspectives into a coherent frame …

How College Men Describe Their Understanding Of Sexual Assault, Sarah Anolik

Dissertations, 2020-current

Despite the proliferation of many vital bystander intervention programs across the country, approximately one in four college women will experience sexual violence. Though it was once believed that a small minority of men were responsible for the vast majority of sexual violence, an estimated 12%-25% of college men report having used sexual violence as an undergraduate student. Research across disciplines suggests several factors associated with the perpetration of sexual violence. While numerous studies have explored these constructs quantitatively on and off college campuses, there have been far fewer qualitative studies that provide insight into how men who have perpetrated violence …

An Interpersonal View Of Personality Disorders, Mariafé T. Panizo Jansana

Dissertations, 2020-current

One of the most controversial psychological disorders in the mental health field is personality disorders. Personality disorders are difficult to study and difficult to treat. Among other issues, high comorbidity among personality disorders interferes with its reliability and differential diagnosis. Substantial efforts in the last decades are attempting to address some of these issues by rethinking the way personality disorders are diagnosed, and special attention has been placed on traits-based dimensional models. Despite the multiple advantages of traits-based dimensional models, there is some hesitancy in the field regarding whether these models are truly equipped to serve as the basis for …

Student Beliefs About What Factors Influence Their Gpa, Emma R. Denelsbeck

Senior Honors Projects, 2020-current

There are many different factors that contribute to grade point averages (GPAs) in college. Students may attribute their academic performance and GPAs to any number of different variables such as stress levels, sleep quality and alcohol use. The current study investigated what students believed had an effect on their GPA, and if these differed based on concussion history. This study examined if students thought that concussions affected their GPA. Participants were University students who completed an online survey consisting of the Texas Evaluation of Concussion History (TECH), and the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21). The results of a Mann-Whitney …

An Exploration Of Student Athletes Perception On The Athletic Trainer/Coach Relationship, Nikki Owens

Masters Theses, 2020-current

The goal of this study was to explore how the athletic trainer and coach relationship impacts the social support provided to Division I intercollegiate student—athletes. Through a qualitative-case study design, eleven participants were recruited and interviewed for the study. Criterion for inclusion included all NCAA sports at the university. This included males and females in various years of school and sport. After the completion of data analysis, four main themes were developed. These themes included social support, positive impact, negative impact, and unforeseen findings. Seven of the eleven student—athletes reported feeling that there was a direct relationship between the athletic …

Improving Relationships, Brittany D. Dioszeghy

Showcase of Graduate Student Scholarship and Creative Activities

This project is a proposal for a program that improves individuals' experiences in relationships.

Over Certain Undecidedness These Heartstring Intimations, Martha Hemingway

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

over certain undecidedness these heartstring intimations is the culmination of a two-year-long abstracted cycle of textured conversation, internal eye contact, and endless playlist-making. Hemingway’s work is based in process-oriented reflections on habitual behavior, manifestation of sentiment, and sense of self. Her paintings draw inspiration from the ways in which we approach and avoid our internal and external routines – how degrees of our subconscious considerations affect how we extend ourselves to others. Individual auditory preferences of different colliding souls have carved a space for her in a language of empathetic abstraction – attempting to elaborate the curious beauty and pain …

An Initial Development Of A Hardiness Scale For Elementary School Students, Stephen Ferrara

Educational Specialist, 2009-2019

There are limited studies that have investigated levels of hardiness in children. There is even less information on finding hardiness scales that have been normed on children in elementary school. The purpose of this study was to test the validity and reliability of the Hardiness Scale for Children (HSC), which assesses the three subscales of hardiness: Challenge, Control, and Commitment. 121 elementary school students (2^nd-5^th grade) were selected to complete the HSC. Their parents were also asked to complete a three-item scale to measure their child’s hardiness. The results indicated that older children tended to give themselves …

The Psychology Of Performance In Elite Youth Soccer Players, Matthew Best

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

This study is a holistic assessment of psychological mindsets, which are one’s attitudes, beliefs, and perceptions, in elite youth male soccer players between the ages of 13 and 18 and the exploration of the relationships between these mindsets and performance outcomes. The mindsets that were assessed were expectancy, growth mindset, value, goals, belongingness, grit, and self-regulation, and the performance outcomes were minutes played, goals scored, and goals allowed. The mindsets were selected through a review of research in education and sport. I conducted Exploratory Factor Analyses (EFA) and Cronbach’s alpha coefficient analyses to assess the validity and reliability of the …

Girls Are Us: A Collection Of Oral Histories From The Jmu Community, Anne M. Sherman

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

On a campus where women make up a majority of the student population, it is especially important that female voices are heard and given a platform on which they can control their own narrative. I wanted to give those female-identifying voices that platform. I conducted a series of interviews to examine how college-aged female-identifying students feel about their identity and how they construct that identity within the climate of the JMU community. I was particularly interested in the intersections of gender, race, ethnicity, class, sexual preference, and ability. I asked each person to share their stories of times when they …

The Roles Of Race And Empathy On Contagious Yawning, Daroon M. Jalil

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

Social Psychologists often consider race to be a marker of in-group or out-group status. When looking at race, implicit bias can take forms that are more subtle than outwards racism. Two research questions were asked in this study to better understand the psychology behind racial issues. The first question was if the number of contagious yawns (CY) a person experiences depends on the race of the stimuli being viewed. Contagiously yawning more to in-group members is a phenomena seen in chimpanzees, but has not been studied in humans in a racial context. Black and white males and females were recruited …

Understanding Identity And Personality Authenticity Of Engineering Students, Kylie D. Stoup

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

Women are underrepresented in engineering, with 18-20% of engineering students being women¹. We, therefore, used the framework of identity theory and self-concept differentiation to better understand female and male engineering student retention. An exploratory approach is used to measure freshman and senior engineering students’ personality and authenticity of personality across engineering and non-engineering contexts. First, we found personality profiles among engineering freshmen and seniors in engineering settings, and then compared them to their personality in nonacademic settings for authenticity purposes. Big 5 Personality and Authenticity scale were methods used through a survey to determine personality and authenticity in …

The Relationship Between Mortality Salience And The Two Subtypes Of Narcissism, Rianna H. Yung

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

Terror management theory (TMT) posits that a psychological conflict (“terror”) is created when human beings are reminded of their own mortality (Solomon, Greenberg, & Pyszczynski, 1991). This experimental study examines whether the impact of mortality salience on self-esteem is moderated by individual differences in narcissism. There are two subtypes of narcissism, namely grandiose narcissism and vulnerable narcissism. Grandiose narcissism is associated with higher self-esteem, whereas vulnerable narcissism is associated with lower self-esteem. Participants (N = 437) completed an online survey that consisted of the Rosenberg Self-esteem Inventory, the Pathological Narcissism Inventory, a mortality salience manipulation or the control task, …

The Achievement Gap And Students Living In Poverty: The Role Of Core Self-Evaluation And Transformational Leadership In Teachers, India Harris

Dissertations, 2014-2019

Research has shown that the combination of locus of control, self-efficacy, self-confidence, and emotional stability is a good predictor of life success. Until now, this second order factor, called core self-evaluations (CSE) has only been studied in adults. Findings from this study, showed levels of CSE were significantly and positively connected with academic achievement for middle and elementary aged students. CSE appears to play to a similar role between students and academic achievement as it plays with adults and job performance. In this study, the dimensions of transformational leadership were applied to teacher behaviors and students were grouped based on …

Weighing In: Therapeutic Benefits Of Online Communities For Individuals With Eating Disorders, Cheri L. Greenfield

Educational Specialist, 2009-2019

The treatment of eating disorders involves a complex approach. In recent years, a number of websites have developed in an attempt to meet the needs of individuals struggling with this set of disorders. Some of these websites are nationally recognized organizations dedicated to improve treatment and provide educational resources, while other websites have been authored by individuals with eating disorders in an attempt to create a safe community of support. This project explores various components found in online communities, examines characteristics of eating disorders, and evaluates the worth of such resources, even when in perceived contrast with traditional treatment. Rather …