Psychology Commons^™

Addressing The Mental Health Needs Of Women In Rural Communities: A Women’S Wellness Group, Andriana Hench

Educational Specialist, 2009-2019

This paper explores the mental health needs of women in rural communities. Based on Myers and Sweeny’s Wellness Model (2008), as well as other relevant research, I have developed a group curriculum as a unique intervention to reach this specific population. This paper provides an overview of relevant literature and includes both a handbook for group facilitators and a participant workbook that compliments the facilitator handbook. This group curriculum is suggested for Clinical Mental Health Counselors and other mental health professionals to promote wellness among rural women.

The Effect Of Global And Local Processing In The Attentional Blink, Ashley Kalavritinos

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

The attentional blink (AB) is an individual’s inability to perceive the second of two targets presented in a rapid serial visual presentation (RSVP). The constructs of global and local attention have been a principle concern in modern psychology. The perception of an object as an overall form is referred to as the global aspect, while the separate parts compose the local aspect. The purpose of this study was to explore whether the following factors affect the characteristics of an individual’s AB: (1) When target one (T1) and target two (T2) were the same or different letters (2) Whether T1 was …

The Effects Of X-Axis Rotation On Data Estimation Accuracy, Catherine Mathers

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

Researchers, pollsters, marketers, and others use graphical displays to reduce the need for wordy, and often unclear, descriptions of their findings. Numerous studies have attempted to determine important graphical attributes that aid readers’ graphical perception. For example, does three-dimensionality (3D) of a graph help readers to accurately assess the graph’s data? The present study is the first to use eye movement data to quantify how 3D graphs, graph type, the use of gridlines, and data positioning affected readers’ perception and accuracy. Participants viewed 24 different graphs while their eye movements were recorded. Time, fixation, and accuracy were recorded for each …

Retention Across Pedagogies, Rachel Larkin

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

When teaching, many professors try to increase their students’ retention of the information that is taught. Instructors can incorporate active learning, repeated testing, collaborative testing, and/or corrective feedback into traditional forms of teaching (e.g., lecture), or they can combine all of these components and transform their entire course, such as with Team-Based Learning (TBL). The current study compares retention of course material in TBL, lecture, reading, and control conditions in a lab setting. In the first session, students received one teaching method and learned about an article on whether having pets led to lowered blood pressure. During the second session, …

Delay And Probabilistic Discounting Of Alcoholic Beverages, Frank L. Galante

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

Discounting tasks were used to determine the degree to which college undergraduates discounted delayed and probabilistic alcoholic beverages. Tasks were framed in terms of gains (i.e.,obtaining a hypothetical amount of alcohol) and losses (i.e., losing a hypothetical amount of alcohol). In all gain and loss conditions, discounting was evident and was generally well described by a hyperboloid function. Gains were discounted more steeply then losses. There were no correlations between the median delay gain discounting rates and the median delay loss discounting rates. Likewise, there were no correlations between the median probabilistic gain discounting rates and the median probabilistic loss …

A Meta-Analytic Tutorial And A Narrative Review On Motivation Interventions In Education, Rory A. Lazowski

Dissertations, 2014-2019

Abstract (Paper 1)

Dating back to only the early 1970’s, the use of meta-analysis has recently grown steadily in the fields of psychology and education, after initially being used in the physical sciences. Meta-analysis is often lauded as an effective analytic tool to inform practice and policy, disentangle conflicting results among single studies, and identify areas that require additional information for a certain topic. However, because routine use of meta-analysis is relatively recent, there remain methodological issues that require clarity. In addition, as more advanced analytical and statistical techniques emerge, there is a need to examine how these techniques can …

International Distance Coaching Of Therapists To Improve Verbal Behavior By Children With Autism, Ana Barkaia

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

This study examined the effects of distance coaching on the mastery of therapists’ skills and the development of verbal behavior of children with autism. Three therapists and three children receiving early intervention services in the NGO Children of Georgia in the developing country of Georgia-Sakartvelo in Eastern Europe participated in this research. The therapists received distance coaching about the implementation of ABA therapy from Virginia. The intervention was recorded and coded by observers in Georgia-Sakartvelo and in Harrisonburg/Virginia,USA. The effects of distance coaching was investigated within a multiple baseline across participant.

The Effects Of Mindfulness Techniques On Empathy And Emotional Control, Courtney M. Dameron

Educational Specialist, 2009-2019

Schools’ reaction to bullying is often just that; reactive, rather than proactive. Bullying is reported and then the school takes action in one of two ways. The perpetrator is punished or the victim is supported. Sometimes schools do both. What schools are frequently missing from this equation is that no one supports the student who engaged in the bullying behavior. Research tells us that there are negative effects for all students involved in bullying. Yet few work to support the students who engage in bullying behavior. Not only would this help prevent negative effects for the individual student, it may …