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Psychology Commons™

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Journal

Social Psychology

Minnesota State University, Mankato

Articles 1 - 8 of 8

Full-Text Articles in Psychology

Together: Exploring A Solution-Focused Activity For Parent And Young Adult Relationships, Ashley Bruehlman Oct 2022

Together: Exploring A Solution-Focused Activity For Parent And Young Adult Relationships, Ashley Bruehlman

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

Parents and young adults share an important and interdependent relationship that. This mixed-methods cross-sectional study examined the systemic impact of a brief solution-focused activity to promote empathy within parent/young adult relationships (paired, n = 73). Baseline well-being and empathy scores were recorded on 5-point Likert scales. Quantitative findings highlight above average well-being scores for parents and young adults. Researchers found a significant correlation between parent and young adult well-being and empathy scores suggesting an interdependent relationship. Additionally, researchers found a significant linear correlation for parent and young adult well-being scores as predictive of empathy scores. Qualitative findings from the brief …

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Using Social Cognitive Theory To Predict Behavior, Gretchen Walker, Amy Posner Aug 2014

Using Social Cognitive Theory To Predict Behavior, Gretchen Walker, Amy Posner

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

The purpose of this study was to test a theoretical model where self-efficacy is hypothesized to influence people’s behavioral intentions directly and indirectly through effects on outcome expectancy. Data on self-efficacy, outcome expectancy, and intention to jog two consecutive miles were collected from 115 college students enrolled in general education classes. As anticipated, path analyses indicated that efficacy had both a direct impact on intention and an indirect impact through its effects on outcome expectancy. The more efficacious people were, the more positive the outcomes they associated with jogging and the surer they were they would jog. The model tested …

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Effects Of Race Of Attractiveness Ratings And Individuals Physical Attractiveness Stereotypes, Aaron Karst Aug 2014

Effects Of Race Of Attractiveness Ratings And Individuals Physical Attractiveness Stereotypes, Aaron Karst

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

The purpose of this research project was to investigate the “physical attractiveness stereotype”. Previous research suggests that the physical attractiveness plays an important role in how we ascribe certain personality traits. Weiten (2002) for example, noted the stereotype as people’s tendency “to ascribe socially desirable personality traits to individuals who are considered to be more attractive, seeing them as more sociable, poised, and well adjusted than those who are less attractive”. However, very little research has been conducted to explore the role race may have on the concept. The current study was conducted to explore the validity of the physical …

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Trust Formation Across Multiple Levels Of Virtuality, Amanda Woller Aug 2014

Trust Formation Across Multiple Levels Of Virtuality, Amanda Woller

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

This study looked at the formation of trust in relation to different levels of group virtuality. Undergraduate students worked in pairs on the game, Command and Conquer: Generals. Teams either worked together face-to-face; met first and then were separated to work together; or were completely separated for the duration of the activity. Face-to-face groups were expected to have higher levels of trust than virtual groups, while the groups that met first were expected to have higher levels of trust than the completely virtual group. Results showed that face-to-face and meeting first groups had higher levels of trust than completely virtual …

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The Impact Of Weather Conditions On Mood Variability In Geographically Relocated Versus Non-Relocated Individuals, Jamie M. Scott Aug 2014

The Impact Of Weather Conditions On Mood Variability In Geographically Relocated Versus Non-Relocated Individuals, Jamie M. Scott

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

A void exists in the literature in regards to how identical weather conditions impact individuals from different geographic locations. It is believed relocated individuals are more susceptible to fluctuations in mood stemming from novel weather conditions than indigenous individuals. The sample consisted of 70 life-long Minnesota residents and 25 individuals who have spent minimum of one year living outside of Minnesota. Participants completed a mood self-report measure online for four consecutive weeks to determine positive and negative affect levels. Data was then matched with corresponding weather data for the same time period. No support was found for the hypothesis. However, …

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The Reality Of Role-Playing Games: How Players Construct Reality Through Language, Jessica Carlson Aug 2014

The Reality Of Role-Playing Games: How Players Construct Reality Through Language, Jessica Carlson

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

Role-playing games have a unique structure and exist in multiple mediums. Although some research is available on communication in computer mediated role-playing games, little exists on communication practices in tabletop role-playing games. In my research, I reviewed existing scholarly literature on tabletop role-playing games, as well as theory on the role language plays in constructing reality. I conducted passive participant observation on a group of people playing Advanced Dungeons and Dragons. By applying theory to my ethnographic research, I demonstrated how players constructed a collective reality through communication. Players did this by demonstrating their own enthrallment with the game and …

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A Comparison Of Risk-Taking Measures, Brittany Lang Aug 2014

A Comparison Of Risk-Taking Measures, Brittany Lang

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

Risk-taking is an important construct that correlates with many areas of study such as substance abuse, psychological disorders, life-span changes and military involvement. As risk- taking is such a broadly defined construct, there are many different means used to measure it. Ironically, there has never been a study done to see whether or not these measures are looking at the same type of risk-taking. Our study investigated the differences and similarities in three risk- taking measures, the Balloon Analogue Risk-Task (BART), the TCU Self-Rating Form and the Domain-Specific Risk-Taking scale (DOSPERT). We analyzed the results within each participant to see …

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A Study Of Happiness, Rachel Mills Aug 2014

A Study Of Happiness, Rachel Mills

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

In the fall of 2012, I undertook a two-week study to test the impact friendships have on my happiness. My overall intention for this experiment was to change how I approached and treated my friendships. The experiment consisted of focusing my attention on my friend’s happiness before my own and to track my behavioral changes towards others. Throughout the two weeks, I tested multiple theories to see if, in fact, they affected my happiness. The most interesting finding in this study was that a variety of social groups are the most influential and important aspect to increasing my own happiness. …

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