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Full-Text Articles in Psychology

The Creation Of Personal Happiness, Jayme Zesiger Jan 2021

The Creation Of Personal Happiness, Jayme Zesiger

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Happiness is something human beings strive to acquire but how to obtain this elusive feeling remains a longstanding and intriguing inquiry. One reason for this is that there is no one specific definition of happiness and no standard measurement for it. This project focuses on defining what is believed to affect happiness from an individual’s personal perspective and aims to shed light on the current research and understanding of how to define happiness and what common variables lead to happiness. To this aim, a structured literature review was conducted which led to the development of a mixed methods survey designed …


The Mystery Of Mandalas: Effects Of Coloring On Stress Reduction And Mood, Olivia Mcdougall Jan 2020

The Mystery Of Mandalas: Effects Of Coloring On Stress Reduction And Mood, Olivia Mcdougall

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Art therapy is commonly used across many different situations, as artmaking and creative expression provide many different psychological benefits. Specifically, research has found that coloring mandalas—abstract, circular designs—can reduce stress more than coloring other prints or drawing on blank paper (Curry & Kasser, 2005). However, the reason behind mandala’s stress reducing properties has yet to be entirely discovered. The present study attempted to uncover part of the mystery behind mandalas by measuring mood and stress in response to watching coloring videos. Through an online survey platform, participants were subjected to a stress inducing task and then asked to watch a …


Impact Of The Csi Effect And Authority Bias On Juror Decisions, Meredith Scruggs Jan 2020

Impact Of The Csi Effect And Authority Bias On Juror Decisions, Meredith Scruggs

Undergraduate Honors Theses

The recent increase in number of crime drama television shows raises the issue that these fictional portrayals may impact real proceedings in the justice system. This phenomenon has become known as the CSI effect. This includes the concept of authority bias, by which laypeople place higher value on information provided by those that they perceive to be in positions of authority. 289 college students completed a survey comparing their likelihood to match an unknown fingerprint to a suspect’s, after actors portraying evidence technicians either confirm the match or provide no conclusion. Results showed no significant interaction between the confirmation condition …


Depictions Of Genetic Research In Film Across Film Genres, Jennifer Lund Jan 2019

Depictions Of Genetic Research In Film Across Film Genres, Jennifer Lund

Undergraduate Honors Theses

When people do not have personal experience to draw on, the experiences of characters in film can serve in the mind as a substitute. This research sought to determine what kind of impression films depicting genetics research leave on the audience. These genres were romance (Code 46, 2004), horror (Splice, 2009), thriller (Children of Men, 2006), and drama (Gattaca, 1997). Scenes from the films were analyzed to determine their likely effect on the audience perception of genetics. The researcher hypothesized that the drama and romance films would portray genetics research as neutral, but the science …


Use Of Vertical Enclosure Space And Species-Typical Locomotion By A Rehabilitating Spider Monkey (Ateles Fusciceps), Jake Funkhouser Jan 2017

Use Of Vertical Enclosure Space And Species-Typical Locomotion By A Rehabilitating Spider Monkey (Ateles Fusciceps), Jake Funkhouser

Undergraduate Honors Theses

With wild spider monkey populations in decline, investigations contributing to captive welfare, and successful rehabilitation and reintroduction knowledge is increasingly pressing. Quantifying and analyzing the appropriateness of naturalistic enclosure designs to foster species-typical behaviors is an effective way to address both of these needs. This study investigates enclosure space use, vertical space preference, substrate use, positional/postural modes, and interactions with human caregivers of a wild-caught, pet-trade rehabilitant Columbian black spider monkey (Ateles fusciceps rufiventris, N = 1). Video data collected daily from August to October 2015 via focal animal sampling (from 08:00 to 10:00) at Alouatta Sanctuary, Panama …