Psychology Commons^™

Last Straw: The Effect Of Guilt On Pro-Environmental Behavior, M. Ryan Nugent, Heather Barnes Truelove

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Honorable Mention Winner

Although many environmental campaigns have pushed to eliminate plastic straws from daily consumption, concerns have surfaced that an increase in the simple behavior of refusing plastic straws will generate less action toward more effective pro-environmental behaviors (PEBs). This study implemented a guilt manipulation to urge participants to reduce their straw use and tested spillover effects to various household and travel PEBs. 234 Mturk participants (34% women) indicated their current PEBs at Time 1 and were randomly assigned to the guilt condition or a control condition. One week later (Time 2), participants completed a survey of the same …

Intersectional Invisibility Hypothesis And Reverse Correlation, John Francis Sperry Iv

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Honorable Mention Winner

Consistent with the intersectional invisibility hypothesis that predicts members of multiple subordinate groups are metaphorically ‘invisible’ (Purdie-Vaughns & Eibach, 2008), only stereotyping of Black men is related to prejudice against Black people (Phills et al., 2017). However, previous research consisted of listing tasks and other introspective questionnaires that do not visualize people’s biases of different social groups. Internal mental representations visualize biases in social perception (Brinkman et al., 2017), as past research with ingroups and outgroups has shown (Dotsch et al., 2008). The current study investigates whether internal mental representations of Black people are more similar to …

Effects Of Humanization And Party Identification On Political Attitudes Towards The Major U.S. Political Parties, Sawyer Johns, Xylie Miller, Sadana Mukundan

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Political Polarization has been increasing in the US since the 2000s. Voters support positively perceived political parties and see other parties as outgroups. This might result in dehumanization of the political parties they perceive as “other”. We examined whether party affiliation and party dehumanization influences participants’ willingness to talk to and support Democrat and Republican parties in the U.S. Participants (N= 312) indicated their party affiliation and rated their willingness and hesitancy to talk to and support the Democratic and Republican parties. Furthermore, we assessed how these feelings changed when someone viewed a party as less or more evolved by …

Obesity And Self-Esteem In African American Youth, Carly Wagner, Abhilasha Kumar, Dawn Witherspoon

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Honorable Mention Winner

African Americans (AA) have the highest rates of obesity among all other ethnic groups (CDC, 2020). Male and female AA’s are disproportionately impacted by obesity and have an increased risk for health disparities (Abraham et al., 2013). Obesity is characterized as a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or greater (Chooi et al., 2019). Self-esteem (SE) is an individual’s subjective evaluation of the self (Abdel-Khalek, 2016). Obese youth have lower levels of SE than youth at a healthy weight (Gow et al., 2020). The association between low SE and high BMI is more pronounced in AA females …

Are The Perpetrators Of Aggression Also Its Victims?, Katelyne Griffin, Deshawna Bryant, Dawn Witherspoon

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Project of Merit Winner

In lower income areas it has been found that there is a relationship between the annual household income and types of anxiety found in adolescence. This relationship is theorized in part to exist because of the stressors the adolescents are exposed to in lower income neighborhoods i.e. trauma such as violent crimes (Vine et al., 2013). As a result of traumatic experiences from school violence children may become aggressive or exhibit bully behaviors (Blaustein & Kinniburgh, 2010). It is theorized that people who have been traumatized themselves may become aggressors or perpetuators of others’ trauma possibly …

Opposite-Sex Friendship Initiation: Some Dispositional Differences In Self-Monitoring, Abigail Masterson

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Project of Merit Winner

Compared to low self-monitors, high self-monitors have an unrestricted orientation to sexual liaisons and view friendships as activity-based (see Fuglestad & Snyder, 2010, for a literature review). These two tendencies suggest high self-monitors are more likely than low self-monitors to initiate opposite sex friendships for sexual purposes. To evaluate this prediction, 133 male and 135 female heterosexuals completed the 25 item Self-Monitoring Scale (Snyder, 1974) and the Reasons for Friendship Initiation Scale (Bleske-Rechek & Buss, 2001). Using participants’ self-monitoring and sex as predictors in multiple regression analyses, high self-monitors more often than low self-monitors cited the …

Gender Differences In Pro-Environmental Behavior Intentions, Katherine Pride, Sarah Cline, Cassandra Branham, Lauren Toledo, Heather B. Truelove

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Previous research has found gender differences in pro-environmental behavior (PEB) performance. Women typically score higher on environmental concern and show stronger inclination to engage in private or domestic PEBs (Tindall et al., 2003) and Allen et al. (2015) found that women are more likely to engage in efficiency upgrade PEBs. However, men show higher prevalence towards performing public PEB (Hunter et al., 2004). The present study recruited 313 Mturk participants. They were randomly assigned to one of six different norm levels. After exposure to a norm level, the experimental groups were provided the opportunity to perform the PEB. Participants then …

Different Assessments Of Reactions To Child Sexual Abuse, Dawson Jubin, Louanne Hawkins, Mary Geary

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The minimization effect occurs when reactions to child sexual abuse are the least negative for adult females and male victims (Cromer & Goldsmith, 2010; Denov, 2003). This effect may be a function of sex stereotypes about men (mean) and women (nurturant) as well as boys (sexually adventurous) and girls (vulnerable) (Leone et al. 2018). We systematically assessed the roles of stereotypes in the minimization effect using multiple measures: self-reported (attitudes) and salivary cortisol (psychophysiological stress). The former is subject to socially describe responding whereas the latter is not. Participants provided an initial saliva sample and were randomly assigned to read …

Psychological Well-Being & Covid-19 In First Year College Students, Hollie Minichiello, Madisen Reasonover

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Psychological well-being and COVID-19 in first-year college students. Hollie Minichiello, Madisen Reasonover, Paul Fuglestad, Ph.D., Zhiping Yu Ph.D. ABSTRACT: The current study investigated how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the well-being of first-semester undergraduate students. Psychological well-being, sleep quality, physical activity, and eating disturbances were compared between two different freshman cohorts: fall of 2019 and fall of 2020. A total of 96 freshman students 18 years and older from a southeastern university completed a set of questionnaires related to health and well-being, including the variables mentioned above (2019 cohort n = 32, 2020 cohort n = 64). Analysis of between-cohort …

Thriving During Covid-19: Predictors Of Psychological Well-Being And Ways Of Coping, Lauren Boyd, C. Dominik Guess, Teresa Tuason

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COVID-19 has led to global dramatic shifts in daily life. Following the biopsychosocial model of health, the goal of the current study was to predict people’s psychological well-being (PWB) during the initial lockdown phase of the pandemic and to investigate which coping strategies were most common among people with low and high PWB. Participants were 938 volunteers in the United States who responded to an online survey during pre-peak of the lockdown in April 2020. The main findings were that all three groups of variables—biological, psychological, and socio-economic—significantly contributed to PWB, explaining 53% variance. Social loneliness and sense of agency …

Effect Of Imagined Support On Perceptions Of Stress, Emma Thompson, Jordan Zaenglein, Kalie Leon, Madelyn Shaw, Maddox Fillmer, Breana Bryant, Paul Fuglestad

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Social support is known to help buffer the effects of stress (Uchino et al., 1996). However, in many situations social support is unavailable, and imagining social support may help to reduce the impact of stress. Although imagined physical touch has been shown to be an effective stress buffer, little research has compared it to other types of imagined support (Feldman et al., 2010). Additionally, women tend to seek emotional support, whereas men tend to seek tangible support, but it is unknown if imagining those types of support will reduce stress (Reevy & Maslach, 2001). To gain greater insight into these …

Forensically Relevant False Memories In The Drm Paradigm, Allison Gendreau, Yammil Ruiz Garcia, Michael Toglia, Nichole Juszczak, Donald Lawler

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Forensic interviews and eyewitness testimony clearly rely on memory. Because in 85% of criminal prosecutions there is no medical nor trace evidence, the burden is on what witnesses report hearing/seeing; thus memory is the evidence! However, cognitive frailties, including forgetting and retrieval failures, combined with misinformation threaten the accuracy and credibility of witnesses’ recollections. Overall, these factors foment illusory memories with serious consequences when forensic events are at issue. This observation tracks with false memory findings in a simple laboratory task, the Deese-Roediger-McDermott (DRM) Paradigm. Herein participants study word lists each containing thematically-related items converging upon a critical, non-presented, word. …

Stem Inqueery: How Communion And Femininity Affects Lgbtq Individuals’ Belonging In Stem That Affects Their Motivation To Pursue Stem, Jasmine Elise Graham, Elizabeth R. Brown

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Despite the growth in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields in the United States, only 60% of STEM majors complete their degrees. Although STEM is stereotyped as a cis (same gender as birth), straight male, agentic (self-focused), and not communal (other-oriented) field, the inclusion of communion in STEM boosts STEM motivation. Since LGBTQ students highly value communion and LGB(T)Q students are less likely than non-LGB(T)Q students to stay in STEM, we explored whether LGBTQ individuals’ desire for communal opportunities or feminine gender expression shapes their belonging or expectations for success in STEM which in turn affects their (future) motivation …

Diversity In Higher Education Administration: The Need For Student Perspectives, Drew Albritton, Aaron Leedy

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Honorable Mention Winner

Diversity within higher education benefits students and institutions alike, creating a more relatable experience for students as well as a more beneficial work environment for faculty. While university student bodies are slowly beginning to represent the diversity in the communities which they serve, university faculty and staff have yet to catch up. This is especially the case with the administration at an institution’s highest levels. Eighty-three percent of college and university presidents are white (American Council on Education, 2017), and seventy-seven percent are male (Tarbutton, 2019). With an administration misaligned with its student body, students are at …

Self-Esteem And Disordered Eating In African American Youth, Carly Wagner, Samantha Ronderos, Dawn Witherspoon Phd

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Background: 30% of girls and 15% of boys engaging in disordered eating (DE) behaviors, such as irregular eating behaviors like bingeing, fasting, or purging (Campbell & Peebles, 2014). Low self-esteem has been found to have a significant impact on the development of mental health disorders (Stadelmann et al., 2017). Youth are susceptible to developing low self-esteem because of the developmental and social milestones that are experienced during this time (Chung et al., 2017). Although previous studies have found a relationship between DE and self-esteem, little research has focused on how self- esteem impacts DE in African Americans (AA).

Aims: To …

Internalized Stigmatization And Rejection Anxiety As Mediators Between Self-Monitoring And Transgender Identity Concealment, Sarah Carlton

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High self-monitors are more motivated and able than low self-monitors to conceal parts of their identity (Fuglestad & Snyder, 2010). Gay and lesbian individuals will sometimes conceal their identity due to rejection anxiety and internalized stigmatization (Mohr & Fassinger, 2003; Quinn & Earnshaw, 2013). However, these phenomena have yet to be studied for transgender individuals. The purpose of this study is to explore how self-monitoring may predict identity concealment in transgender individuals. Using MTurk, we will sample 100 transgender women and 100 transgender men. Participants will complete the 25-item Self-Monitoring Scale (Snyder, 1974) as well as modified versions of the …

On Fire Or Burned Out?: The Role Of Self-Monitoring On Burnout In The Workplace, Elizabeth Ellis, Christopher Leone

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Workplace burnout (i.e., exhaustion, disengagement, lack of professional efficacy) produces turnover which, in turn, increases costs (personnel recruitment, selection, training) for businesses (Maslach et al., 2001). Job demands predict workplace exhaustion whereas job resources predict workplace disengagement (Demerouti et al., 2001). Burnout is also related to individual differences in personality (Alessandri et al., 2018). In the present study, we explore the potential mediating effect of demands and resources on the connection between self-monitoring (Fuglestad & Snyder, 2010; Wilmot et al., 2015) and burnout. Self-monitoring can be conceptualized as either a single, dichotomous variable (Snyder, 1974) or two, continuous variables: protective …

Food Insecurity As A Continuum: Investigating The Emotional Well-Being Of Parents, Monquie Villamor, Jody Nicholson-Bell, Lauri Wright

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Household food insecurity is one of the United States’ leading public health concerns that affects millions of families every year. Current literature has mainly focused on the impact of food insecurity on multidimensional outcomes of children (Jyoti et al., 2005; Shankar et al., 2017). However, there is limited research on parents’ experiences and the distinct levels of food insecurity outlined by the USDA. The present study investigates parents’ emotional well-being in association with levels of food insecurity and participation in food assistance programs. It is hypothesized that increased severity of food insecurity will be associated with poorer emotional well-being in …

Using Fnirs To Measure Emotional Processing Following Mindful Meditation, Jesse Macyczko, Cassandra L. Rosenburg, Amber Wengert, Katherine C. Hooper

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Mindful meditation, an exercise which encourages its practitioners to be present in the moment and to be aware of their current emotions, thoughts, and sensations, has been shown to affect the processing of emotional information (Sobolewski et al., 2011) and to increase empathy (Tan, Lo, & Macrae, 2014). The prefrontal cortex has been implicated in these processes (Seitz, Nickel, & Azari, 2006). We sought to investigate the neural mechanisms which underlie how mindful meditation affects emotional processing and to determine whether any changes in brain activity could be linked to changes in empathy.

Participants in our experimental group practiced mindful …

The Knights Of The Self-Efficacy Table: Taking Back The Table As A Family, Dea Zgjani, Dawn Witherspoon, Jody Nicholson

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Aims: The present study will examine parental Self-Efficacy as a mediator between shared family mealtimes and child outcomes as an aid to promote overall childhood and family wellbeing. There is a gap in literature in “coining” Self-Efficacy as a mediator between shared family mealtimes and child behavior outcomes and health. For my thesis I want to fill this gap by establishing parental Self-Efficacy as a mediator between shared family meals and children’s behaviors and health. Also, I want to further investigate the role that shared family mealtimes play in overall child behavioral and general health.

Background: Family meals can be …

In The Eye Of The Interviewer, Dana Arnold, Curtis Phills

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Though unemployment was low across the United States at 3.3% in 2019, it was almost double that for Black people at 5.4% in 2019 (https://www.bls.gov/web/empsit/cpsee_e16.htm). Because the interviewer’s attention to the eyes of a job candidate produces a better understanding of the candidate, it is possible that identifying racial bias in eye contact during the interview process could reduce racial disparities in unemployment. We will investigate how attention to the candidate’s eyes moderates race and gender disparities in hiring decisions. Participants will look at either a White man, Black man, White woman, or Black woman who is ostensibly a job …

Belief Consistency As A Mediator Of Mere Thought And Schema Tuning Effects On Attitude Polarization, Thanh Lu, Christoper Leone

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Given thought, favorable attitudes become more favorable and unfavorable attitudes become more unfavorable (Tesser, Martin, & Mendolia, 1995). Thought-induced polarization is moderated by “schema tuning”; polarization is more likely with well-developed (e.g., individuals) than less developed (e.g., groups) schemas (Leone & Ensley, 1985). We examined whether belief consistency mediates the interactive effects of mere thought and schemas on attitude polarization. Using a 15-point scale (-7 = extremely unfavorable, +7 = extremely favorable), 123 participants indicated their initial attitudes about 30 different sets of personality descriptions. For each of four descriptions (two for initially favorable attitudes, two for initially negative attitudes), …

Self-Monitoring And Relationship Commitment: Mediating Effects Of Satisfaction, Investment, And Quality Of Alternatives, Abigail Masterson, Irma Hall, Christopher Leone

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High self-monitors are concerned with social appropriateness, whereas low self-monitors are concerned with self-congruence (Fuglestad & Snyder, 2010; Snyder, 1974). These self-monitoring characteristics are related to the dynamics of close relationships – particularly commitment (Leone & Hall, 2003; Simpson, 1987). Commitment is predicted from relationship satisfaction, investment, and alternatives (Rusbult, Agnew, & Arriaga, 2012). We explored these three variables as mediators of the connection between self-monitoring and commitment. Fifty couples (50 wives, 50 husbands) ages 19 to 72 completed the 18-item Self-Monitoring Scale (Snyder & Gangestad, 1986) and the satisfaction, investment, quality of alternatives, and commitment subscales of Rusbult’s Investment …

The Effects Of Similarity On The Persistence Of Comparative Behavioral Mindsets, Morning Baker, John Kulpa

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The cognitive spill-over effect is an area of psychological study evaluating the relationship between knowledge accessibility, memory, and behavior, thus having implications for understanding the mental processes used and actions chosen in pursuit of a goal. Behavioral mindsets are cognitive procedures activated in the pursuit of a goal which may be used for subsequent, seemingly unrelated tasks. When applying a situation-specific procedure to a situation-specific goal, that general procedure will be more accessible within memory, and thus there is a greater likelihood of that procedure being used for following tasks so long as they are applicable. Two tasks may be …

Self-Monitoring Differences In Spirituality Vs. Religiosity: Intrinsic Orientation As Mediator, Tyler Philips

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Scholars have conceptually distinguished spirituality and religiousness (Hill et al., 2000), but there often is no discernible difference in the experiences of individuals who are spiritual but not religious versus individuals who are both spiritual and religious (Zinnbauer, 2013). Because these matters involve identity, we examined self-monitoring differences (which also involve identity) in spirituality and religiousness. According to Fuglestad and Snyder (2010), low self-monitors are driven by internal states (attitudes, values), whereas high self-monitors are motivated by external factors (social roles, norms). Participants completed the Self-Monitoring Scale (Snyder, 1974), the Religious Orientation Scale (Allport & Ross, 1967), and a forced …

Monsters Don't Eat Broccoli--A Pilot And Feasibility Study On Play And Food Acceptance In Preschoolers, Briana Lopez B.A., Kimberly Ciccone, Raul Ortiz, Ahna Parker, Anita Fuglestad Phd

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It is common for preschool children to demonstrate neophobia, the fear of trying new foods, which can make them more reluctant to accept fruits and vegetables. As a result, many parents struggle to find adequate solutions to promote healthy eating. The aim of this pilot study was to assess the feasibility of using pretend play in preschool children to improve food acceptance. Children from the UNF preschool were randomly assigned to one of two conditions: the control group with no pretend play (n= 15), and the experimental group with pretend play (n=12). Each group first participated in a play session …

Effects Of Sex Stereotypes: Causal & Moral Attributions For Child Physical Abuse, Reema Sabella, Rachel Woolard, Louanne Hawkins, Christopher Leone

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According to Fiske (2018), sex stereotypes are characteristics ascribed to men (e.g., aggressive) and women (e.g., nurturant) as well as boys (tough) and girls (vulnerable. Stereotypes provide a basis for social judgments (Macrae & Quadflieg, 2010). For example, sex stereotypes play a role in individuals’ attitudes about child physical abuse (Leone, Hawkins, & Bright, 2018). We investigated whether these stereotypes played a role in attributions that individuals make about parents and children involved in physical altercations. Participants read scenarios in which mothers or fathers slapped either daughters or sons after those children had been verbally provocative. Participants then indicated whether …

Nonverbal Synchrony Between Dyads As A Function Of Protective Versus Acquisitive Self-Monitoring, Taylor Santioni, Sophia Klebener, Arielle Kantor, Robert Moulder, Christopher Leone

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Synchrony is coordinated nonverbal behavior between two individuals (Ramseyer & Tschacher, 2006). Dispositional differences in self-monitoring involves responsivity to others (Fuglestad & Snyder, 2010). Acquisitive self-monitoring entails responsivity for gain social/nonsocial rewards, whereas protective self-monitoring entails responsivity for avoiding social/nonsocial losses (Wilmot, 2015). We explored the connection between self-monitoring and nonverbal synchrony. Pairs of participants had 5-minute conversation on a non-controversial topic to control for the influence of affect on synchrony (Tschacher et al., 2014). We utilized Motion Energy Analysis and Windowed Crossed Correlation software to quantify nonverbal synchrony. Participants completed the 25-item Self-Monitoring Scale (Snyder, 1974), and responses were …

Examining The Neural Activity Of Self-Monitoring Using Fnirs, Ambriel Cohen, Paul Fuglestad, Katherine C. Hooper, Isabel Suazo, Lauren Toledo, Dr. Christopher Leone

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In social psychology, self-monitoring refers to the way in which individuals regulate the manner in which they present themselves to others. High self-monitors are those who are driven to fit in, and strategically adapt their presentation of self to cultivate a specific image of themselves. Low self-monitors are driven more by their personal values and are less likely to adjust their behaviors situationally. One component of self-monitoring is emotional regulation, where high self-monitors are more adept at regulating the presentation of their emotions, (e.g. concealing and faking them), than low self-monitors. We used functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to study how …

A Review Of The Caregiver's Feeding Style Questionnaire (Cfsq): Differences In Parent-Child Feeding Styles Across Geographic Location, Caregiver Roles, And Head Start Samples, Heather Johnson, Briana Lopez, Rayna Garcia, Jody S. Nicholson Phd

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Introduction: The Caregiver’s Feeding Style Questionnaire (CFSQ) is a measure of parent feeding styles developed for low-income minority families. It is made up of four main categories which are associated with different child outcomes including childhood obesity. This review sought to describe the differences in child outcomes among international populations, maternal caregivers, and Head Start samples.

Method: This review examined 683 publications that cited the 2005 Hughes article introducing the CFSQ measure. Of these, only 44 were relevant to our review because they met the inclusion criteria of 1) using the CFSQ measure and 2) providing a categorical breakdown of …