Psychology Commons^™

Putting A Slam On Alcohol Violators Through Dram- How The State Of Ohio Can Improve The Day-To-Day Safety Of Its Residents Through Dram Laws, Steven Iwanek

Honors Projects

In the realm of legal frameworks governing the service and consumption of alcohol, Dram Shop Liability Laws play a pivotal role in holding establishments accountable for the consequences of alcohol-related incidents. These laws, known as dram laws, vary across states, delineating the responsibilities of alcohol servers and establishments in preventing the overconsumption of alcohol and the resultant harm. This examination delves into a comprehensive background of dram laws, particularly focusing on their historical evolution, their present implications, and the imperative need for refinement.

As societal dynamics and patterns of alcohol consumption evolve, so too must the legislative mechanisms designed to …

The Effect Of Natural Light On Mental Health, Gianna Arquilla

Honors Projects

All students have experienced low motivation at one point in their academic career, but what are the factors that can affect this? Is it solely based on their personality and work ethic, or can the environment have an effect? This study discusses the effects on mental health through architecture. Can the amount of natural light in a building affect the motivation of students? Natural light is something that is often overlooked, mostly considered as a perk rather than a necessity. How can students truly feel passionate about their work sitting in a dark place? To evaluate this data, this study …

Communication Of Mental Health Diversity To The Early Childhood Age Group: “The Adventures Of Anxious Anderson, Distracted Daniel, And Organized Olive”, Jessica Gower

Honors Projects

In this project, I aim to explore various aspects of communication, cognitive ability, and mental health diversity in early child development. The three research questions guiding this project are: What cognitive and language abilities do children in the early childhood stage of development have? What are the most effective strategies for communicating information about mental health disorders to children ages 4 to 7 through storytelling? And lastly, how do anxiety, attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) manifest, particularly in children? The storybook's purpose is to create a sense of empathy and understanding of mental health diversity in children …

Mental Illness In Modern Media, Grace Smith

Honors Projects

This paper will focus on the way mental illness is portrayed in modern media, specifically psychological thriller movies, as many of them feature main characters with some sort of mental illness. The specific mental illnesses present in the movies discussed in this paper are as follows: borderline personality disorder, antisocial personality disorder, and dissociative identity disorder. Psychological thriller movies influence the way consumers view mental illness and those who suffer from mental illnesses. The potential effects of these portrayals will be explored through Stuart Hall’s theory of reception, as it was created based on television media, making it one of …

The Impact Of Experiential Avoidance On Vulnerable Disclosure, Perceived Responsiveness, And Social Connection, Kaylee Church

Honors Projects

Loneliness, comprised of perceived social connection and social isolation, can have a severe negative impact on one’s physical and mental health. Understanding its complexities can assist in addressing these harmful consequences. In particular, the aspect of social connection can be understood through the interpersonal model of intimacy which posits that connection forms as a function of reciprocal vulnerable disclosure and perceived responsiveness. Experiential avoidance may complicate the process of the vulnerable disclosure required to develop social connection as sharing emotional information about oneself can result in discomfort that individuals avoid. Despite this theoretical connection, the relationship between experiential avoidance and …

An Evaluation Of The Book Of Hosea And Its Impact For Our Lives Today, Nathan Fulton

Honors Projects

The book of Hosea provides a rich story of the life of the prophet Hosea and the constant woes of the nation of Israel. Through analysis of commentaries from past theologians and modern psychological studies, the contents of Hosea will be reinforced as viable literature to learn from. Despite belief in the historical legitimacy of the book, through research, we find humanity’s deepest desire is to be fully loved and fully known. Analysis of attachment theory and Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs show us that the story of Hosea demonstrates our insecurities and the proper response to them.

Assessing Social Engagement Differences Across The Continuum Of Sexuality, Ariana Cunningham

Honors Projects

Individuals attracted to more than one gender identity, also known as non-monosexuals, exist in a unique place in the sexuality dichotomy. Often experiencing prejudice from both their heterosexual and homosexual peers, they are prone to increased rates of loneliness. Loneliness has been shown to increase both mental and physical health risks. Due to the dangers of loneliness, the current study set out to examine this relationship between non-monosexuals and loneliness. A two-phase study was created containing an online survey portion and an in-person interview procedure. Due to small sample sizes, no statistical significance was found but data has been trending …

The Relationship Of Psychology And Music, Thomas Pulling

Honors Projects

This paper discusses the relationship between psychology and music, examining some of the foundational research in the field, and looks at some of the historical context surrounding the psychological study of music and of music theory. The goal of this project is to use my experience as a performing musician and psychology student to emphasize the importance of furthering research into the psychology of music.

Combating Trauma And The Immigrant Paradox In Schools, Emma Bergman

Honors Projects

Over time, research on immigrant populations has revealed a trend known as the immigrant paradox in which, the further generations get from the generation of immigration, the poorer their outcomes are in areas such as mental health, delinquency, substance abuse, and education. Though a definitive explanation for this trend has yet to be identified, prevailing theories include several social, familial, and community-based factors such as the impacts of bilingualism, parental expectations, biculturalism, co-ethnic peers, quality of schools, and community support. Little attention has been paid to individual factors such as mental health and trauma. The present study proposes the transgenerational …

Social Media Among College Students, Julia Martorano

Honors Projects

Within the past decade, social media has become a huge part of most peoples’ everyday life. People use social media to keep up with old friends, to see what their current friends and family are up to, to follow celebrities, and so much more. Researchers and the general public have begun to wonder if this obsession with social media is detrimental to individuals and society. Throughout my research, I strived to answer two research questions. “How does social media affect a college student’s GPA, productivity, and life satisfaction?” and “How do celebrities and companies create social media content that drives …

Trauma Is A Wound: Demonstrating The Use Of Character Analysis To Practice Clinical Analysis, Madisyn Beare

Honors Projects

Evidence-based treatments of trauma require clinicians to base their treatments on the client’s specific and individual needs, experiences, cognitions, and place in recovery. Essentially, each new client is a new and unique case, and the practice of understanding how trauma may affect an individual only comes from clinical exposure.Literature provides the public with somewhat of an aid in these circumstances: fictional characters are not real people, and therefore can undergo limitless character analyses. Analyzing a fictional character allows clinicians the ability to practice their exploration of various behavioral indicators of mental health concerns while honoring the ethical code of non-maleficence, …

Self-Compassion And Perfectionism In College Music Students: A Mixed-Methods Pilot Study, Celeste Uhl

Honors Projects

Perfectionism is a complex and multidimensional psychological phenomenon which is a proximal predictor for music performance anxiety, a risk factor associated with poorer musical performance. While existing literature emphasizes music performance anxiety as a deleterious outcome of perfectionism, less information exists regarding the relationship between perfectionism, self-compassion, and performance. There may be high levels of non- self-compassion in this population due to a folk belief that being self-critical is the best path to optimal performance. This study used a single-subject design to explore how self-compassion and perfectionism were related and if the use of daily self-compassion exercises would be linked …

Take A Closer Look: Combating Ageism Through The Use Of Children's Literature, Janice Buehrer

Honors Projects

This project was completed as my final honors project for Bowling Green State University in the spring of 2024. I wrote and illustrated the children's book, "Take a Closer Look," designed for kindergarten through second-grade children. The goal of the book is to be used as a value-socialization device to instill positive perspectives on aging within younger generations. The book itself is meant to be an intergenerational tool as adults read the book about older adults to children, reaching the entire lifespan.

Reviewing Research On Down Syndrome To Then Inform And Create A Children’S Book With A Child Protagonist Who Has Down Syndrome, Trey Williams

Honors Projects

Children's literature continually evolves, requiring a steadfast commitment to align with new insights into various disabilities for genuine and accurate portrayal. This project delves into leveraging research to craft a children's book featuring Bonnie Lynn, a protagonist with Down Syndrome, recognizing the growing presence of individuals with Down Syndrome in today's society and the imperative for empathetic understanding within this community.

The Impact Of Instagram Usage On Body-Esteem In Young Women In College, Kirsten Etzinger

Honors Projects

Instagram as a platform is increasing in popularity, especially among young women. Young women may use Instagram to keep up with their peers, follow trends, or as a way to express themselves. However, it is evident that young women can be negatively affected by the content they are exposed to on Instagram. This study examines the impact that increased Instagram usage can have on body-esteem in young women in college by evaluating their degree of Instagram usage, motivation to use social media for body comparison, and feelings of body-esteem. An online survey was conducted with BGSU college-age female students and …

Comparing Levels Of Situational Empathy Based On Medium Of Exposure To Covid-19 Mortality Information And Vaccination Status, Kaylee Ries

Honors Projects

Psychophysical numbing, compassion fading, and the singularity effect are strongly affecting the world amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Empathy motivated prosocial behavior is not consistent with the drastic number of lives lost due to COVID-19. The current study evaluated participants for situational empathy levels post exposure to either COVID-19 death statistics or a personal reflection on loss due to COVID-19. Alongside empathy, vaccination status was measured as a potential moderator on the relationship between medium of exposure to mortality information and empathy levels in the sample. 68 students were considered for this study. There was not a significant relationship between situational …

Targeting The Gap In Mental Health Advocacy For First-Year College Students, Hailey Kurtz

Honors Projects

The transition from high school to attending a university has been shown to have an impact on the mental health and well-being of first-year university students. First-year students struggle with anxiety and depression in relation to being in a new environment, feeling lonely, fitting in, and taking more academically rigorous coursework. Current students have an awareness of what mental health and well-being resources on their campus are available to them, but such resources are not widely used, though a majority of students indicate that they do or have struggled with their mental health. This indicates that though students are struggling …

The Effects Of Activation And Values-Enhanced Activation On Mood, Joshua Bock

Honors Projects

Behavioral Activation (BA) is a contemporary behavioral therapy that aims to lessen depressive symptoms by increasing the activity of depressed individuals. There are many protocols for implementing BA, with most protocols being relatively similar. One difference frequently observed between protocols is the inclusion or omission of values (Kanter et al., 2006, 2009). Despite this variation in protocol, there has yet to be an empirical exploration of whether including values in BA makes the therapy more effective. The current study examines the effect of values-based activation on mood by manipulating the inclusion of values in an activation prompt with a general …

Comparing Levels Of Situational Empathy Based On Medium Of Exposure To Covid-19 Mortality Information: Does Political Affiliation Impact Levels Of Situational Empathy?, Keira N. Mills, Kaylee Ries, Beth Durkin, Abby Braden, Wesley Barnhart

Honors Projects

Psychophysical numbing, compassion fading, and the singularity effect are strongly affecting the world amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Empathy-motivated prosocial behavior is not consistent with the drastic number of lives lost due to COVID-19. The current study evaluated participants for situational empathy levels post-exposure to either COVID-19 death statistics or a personal reflection on loss due to COVID-19. Alongside empathy, political affiliation and COVID-19 personal loss were measured as potential moderators on the relationship between medium of exposure to mortality information and empathy levels in the sample.

Comparing Levels Of Situational Empathy Based On Medium Of Exposure To Covid-19 Mortality Information And Proximity To Others, Beth Durkin

Honors Projects

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, many people expressed a lax attitude to the policies put in place to keep the public safe despite the high risk of infection and its devastating effects on health across the United States. It is possible that this response may be partially due to a “numbness to numbers,” a phenomenon that describes diminished empathy for a large group of people experiencing a negative event (eg. COVID-19). The present study explored the relationship between levels of situational empathy and the medium of exposure to COVID-19 mortality information (eg. personal story or fact sheet) in an …

Beliefs About Mental Illness, Mental Health Treatment, And Anticipated Social Stigma: A Proposed Study Of Air Force Rotc Cadets, Gabrielle N. Limes

Honors Projects

The growing prevalence of mental illness within the United States Armed Forces has become a relevant topic of concern for researchers. Considering the negative attitudes that are often ascribed to those struggling with mental illness, understanding the stigmatized beliefs of those in the military is of specific interest, especially since current mental health services are reported to be ineffective. While research has investigated this issue within enlisted military populations, there is currently no research concerning military leadership positions and their subgroups such as the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC). With research suggesting leadership plays a significant role in the perpetuation …

Interest-Major Fit And Satisfaction: Extending Theories Of Occupational Fit To Predict Academic Outcomes, Sneha Kamath

Honors Projects

According to the National Center for Education Statistics (2008), only 58% of students enrolled in a four-year bachelor’s degree program between 1995 and 1996 had successfully completed their degree by 2001 (Allen & Robbins, 2010). Some studies examining the frequency with which students change their major during their undergraduate education also offer insight into the potential reasons underlying the delayed graduation rates observed in Allen and Robbins’ (2010) study; for instance, a study by the U.S. Department of Education (2017) found that within three years of enrollment, about 30% of students pursuing a bachelor’s or associate’s degree had changed their …

Dance And The Self: An Analysis On The Psychological Impacts Of Dance, Morgan Etzinger

Honors Projects

Professional dancers spend numerous hours immersed into dance culture every single day, learning new technique, practicing choreography, and exercising to stay fit. This study explores how dance affects the self-confidence and self-esteem of dance students. Utilizing surveys, the self-confidence and self-esteem of dance students at BGSU is compared to non-performing arts students. The study of psychology allows for proper analysis on the differences between the two groups, why a difference might occur, and how self-confidence and self-esteem is affected. After gathering data on emotions, perfectionism, comparison, group versus individual performances, personal thoughts, and body image, it was found that dancers …

Investigating Correlations Among A Growth-Mindset Intervention, Students’ Math Anxiety, And Students’ Math Self-Efficacy, Anna Grace Chamberlain

Honors Projects

This paper details the methodology, data, and conclusions of a research study investigating the correlations among a growth-mindset intervention, math anxiety, and math self-efficacy. The study found that teaching students about mindset through an intervention approach did not make a significant difference in students’ math anxiety or math self-efficacy. Teacher-centered factors are discussed as having a greater impact on students’ math anxiety and math self-efficacy.

The Effects Of Family Size And Birth Order On Students' Social Emotional And Cognitive Development, Mary Watson

Honors Projects

This project sought to analyze and understand the differences in student’s cognitive and social emotional development based on their number of siblings (also referred to as family size) and birth order. To accomplish this, a 130-question survey was created and emailed to approximately 125 teachers. 27 survey responses were received, which is a response rate of approximately 21.6%. The response data was categorized by only child, oldest child, youngest child, child with one or two siblings, child with three or four siblings, and child with five or more siblings. Though the responses were varied, the data showed that oldest children …

Tinder Usage On Bgsu Campus: A Collection Of Interviews, Autumn Zeller

Honors Projects

The purpose of the study is to explore the mental effects Tinder has on Bowling Green State University students. My project explores in-depth interviews of 8 BGSU students, and their usage of the popular dating app Tinder. Dating apps have become very popular since the creation of Tinder in 2012, and research explores the negative self-esteem effects it can cause. My research found that many people use the app simply because they are bored, and stray away from trying for something serious because of the stereotypes attached to the app. I also found that women tend to become more critical …

Practice Habits Among Collegiate Music Majors: Relationships With Everyday Self-Regulatory Behaviors, Lydia Stricker

Honors Projects

This study examined self-regulatory behaviors among collegiate musicians. In the fall of 2022, a total of 73 participants from a large midwestern university responded to an online questionnaire soliciting information regarding self-regulatory behaviors both in and outside of the classroom. Items were adapted from the Carey, Neal and Collins Short Self-Regulation Questionnaire (2004). Findings support previous research suggesting a strong, positive relationship between everyday self-regulatory behaviors and those demonstrated in the practice room. Implications include a discussion on the possibility of transferring self-regulation strategies from one domain to the other.

Investigating Mindfulness And Practice Strategies In The K-12 Music Curriculum, Emily Foltz

Honors Projects

The purpose of this project was to uncover how music educators teach students to practice effectively and to discover effective mindfulness tools and strategies that could be used to enhance music practice. My aim was to uncover methods of mindful practice and integrate them into a model for effective music practice that teachers can incorporate into their instruction. The research questions that guided this project include: 1) How are music educators teaching students to practice effectively? 2) How does mindfulness affect music practice? 3) What are effective strategies for teaching mindful instrumental music practice in the K-12 classroom? Is there …

Multilingualism And Memory: Investigating Possible Differences In The Abilities Of Monolingual And Multilingual College Students, Clara E. Barned

Honors Projects

This study investigated whether there is a difference in the memories of monolingual and multilingual undergraduate students using simple memorization tasks. There were 46 participants, 30 of which were monolingual (only knew one language) and 16 of which were multilingual (knew two or more languages). There was found to be no significant difference between the performance of the two groups, with the data generating a p-value of 0.557. This study further suggests related avenues of research and ways in which the study could be improved in the future.

Developing Marketing Strategies To Enhance Students’ Perception Of Service Within The Thompson Scholarship Program, Emileigh Kleps

Honors Projects

Understanding the perceptions of Thompson Family Scholars to suggest improvements of marketing strategies within the Thompson Scholarship Program for the benefit of current and future Thompson Family Scholars.