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Full-Text Articles in Social Psychology

Cues Of Colorism: The Psychological, Sociocultural, And Developmental Differences Between Light-Skinned And Dark-Skinned African-Americans, Tasia M. Pinkston Jan 2015

Cues Of Colorism: The Psychological, Sociocultural, And Developmental Differences Between Light-Skinned And Dark-Skinned African-Americans, Tasia M. Pinkston

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Skin color biases, henceforth referred to as colorism, are the biased judgments, attitudes and behaviors toward an individual based on the lightness or darkness of their skin. Available research on the topic has examined a select group of variables, such as mate selection, self-esteem and perceived attractiveness. However, there is no single study on differences between African-Americans across several domains, including their psychological (skin color satisfaction and self-esteem), sociocultural (media influence on appearance and discriminatory events), and developmental (ethnic identity) well-being. Moreover, there is no research on differences in these variables between African-Americans reared in rural versus non-rural areas. To …


The Importance Of Restraint In Gauging The Effects Of Ego Depletion On Alcohol Motivation, Danielle B. Allen Jan 2015

The Importance Of Restraint In Gauging The Effects Of Ego Depletion On Alcohol Motivation, Danielle B. Allen

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Despite increased awareness of complications, the use and abuse of alcohol remains a problem in the United States. With regard to drinking, individuals encounter situations in which they must maintain a balance between temptation to drink and the need to regulate alcohol intake. Maintaining this balance requires the use of self-control. For this reason, lack of self-control has been implicated a potential influence on excessive alcohol consumption. The Strength Model of Self-Control (Baumeister, Vohs, & Tice, 2007) posits that self-control draws on a limited resource that becomes depleted following repeated use. The term “ego depletion” is used to refer to …


Afraid To Be A Nerd: Effects Of Nerd Stereotypes On Women’S Math Performance, Jennifer Chau Jan 2014

Afraid To Be A Nerd: Effects Of Nerd Stereotypes On Women’S Math Performance, Jennifer Chau

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research was to examine whether nerd stigma affects math performance. Specifically, it was hypothesized that women exposed to the nerd stigma would perform worse on a mathematics test than women not exposed to the nerd stigma. The current study also aimed to compare the effects of the nerd stigma on women’s math performance with the effects of gender stereotype threat. Gender identity, nerd identity, and fear of social exclusion were examined as possible mediating and moderating variables. Results did not support that nerd stigma affected math performance in either men or women, thus mediational analyses were …


The Relationship Between Social Media And Empathy, Franklin M. Collins Jan 2014

The Relationship Between Social Media And Empathy, Franklin M. Collins

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The relationship between social media and empathy has not been explored extensively. Research on the expression of emotion and the association with empathy displayed on social media websites have been minimally explored. This study sought to support findings that chatting online leads to expressions of empathy (Rosen, 2012) and a positive relationship exists between conversing with others online and empathic expression (Ivcevic & Ambady, 2012. Empathic concern was hypothesized to show a positive relationship with one’s likelihood to chat, time on Facebook, and emotional connection to Facebook or Facebook usage. Empathic concern also was predicted to be greater among computer …


Violent Video Games And Symptoms Of Distress And Trauma, Brendan J. Mccollum Jan 2014

Violent Video Games And Symptoms Of Distress And Trauma, Brendan J. Mccollum

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Much of the research involving detrimental effects of violent video games has focused primarily on aggression and desensitization of pain. To date there is no known research that examines whether video games can cause traumatic symptoms. However, there is research that suggests horror movies cause traumatic symptoms (Carleton et al., 2011). Given that video games can immerse people far more than a movie in terms of active participation, one could infer that traumatic symptoms would be even greater when playing a violent video game. The purpose of the current study was to determine whether violent video games could elicit symptoms …


Is Anchoring On Estimates Of Severity An Adaptive Heuristic?, Joy E. Losee Jan 2014

Is Anchoring On Estimates Of Severity An Adaptive Heuristic?, Joy E. Losee

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Decisions to either to prepare or not prepare for weather threats involve uncertainty. Uncertainty in decision making often involves the potential for making either a false positive (preparing for a storm that never arrives) or a false negative error (not preparing for a real storm). Error Management Theory (EMT; Haselton & Buss, 2000) posits that, depending on the uncertain context, people select a decision-making strategy that favors one error over the other. Related to weather, research has shown that people prefer a false positive, or an overestimation (Joslyn et al., 2011). Particularly, this overestimation appears when people receive severe information …


The "War On Terror," Mortality Salience, And American Prejudice Before And After The 2013 Boston Marathon Bombings, Arthur Hatton Jan 2013

The "War On Terror," Mortality Salience, And American Prejudice Before And After The 2013 Boston Marathon Bombings, Arthur Hatton

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The United States’ counterterrorism efforts have been framed in various ways in the media and politics, and each framing metaphor varies in its ability to accurately describe counterterrorism (Kruglanski, Crenshaw, Post, & Victoroff, 2007). Each frame also may have effects on the way the public perceives, responds to, and finds acceptable in counterterrorism. One common framing metaphor in American politics is counterterrorism as a “War on Terror.” Terror Management Theory (TMT) predicts that reminding people of mortality has predictable effects on their opinions and behavior. This study seeks to test empirically whether framing counterterrorism as a “War on Terror” acts …


Predictors Of Bullying In An Adolescent School Sample, Schell Hufstetler Jan 2012

Predictors Of Bullying In An Adolescent School Sample, Schell Hufstetler

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Author's abstract: Bullying is a pervasive problem in our society. Contributing to this problem is the fact that bullying is not well understood. This makes it difficult to design successful interventions. The current study aims to create a complete picture of bullying in order to increase understanding of this behavior. For this study, 59 adolescents completed a survey packet including measures of bullying behaviors and other variables expected to relate to bullying. The results revealed that bullying is a problem for both genders. Multivariate analyses revealed males to be more directly and indirectly aggressive, but there were no significant gender …


Motivation, Need Support And Need Satisfaction In Youth Soccer Players, Erica Lippitt Jan 2012

Motivation, Need Support And Need Satisfaction In Youth Soccer Players, Erica Lippitt

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Author's abstract: Physical activity levels and obesity rates vary greatly across ethnic groups in the United States (CDC, 2011). One popular way to increase physical activity levels in youth is through youth sport participation, which may be influenced by athlete motivation. Numerous studies have determined motivation levels in youth sport participants, but very little done in comparing levels across different ethnic groups. Identifying differences in motivation levels based on ethnicity can allow coaches and sport administrators to adjust practices and program setups to increase participation and meet needs of player competence. The purpose of the study was to determine if …


"...Bless Her Little Heart!": The Culture Of Honor And Emotion Recognition, Forrest J. Rackham Jan 2012

"...Bless Her Little Heart!": The Culture Of Honor And Emotion Recognition, Forrest J. Rackham

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Author's abstract: Some researchers assert that cultural display rules may explain differences in perceiving emotions (Matsumoto, Yoo, & Chung, 2010). The current study examined the display rule of masking within the Southern culture of honor. It was hypothesized that masking within the culture of honor negatively affects emotion perception sensitivity, particularly in the speed and accuracy of recognizing anger. Southern undergraduate students were primed with the culture of honor and then presented with the Emotional Expression Multimorph Task. Participants chose one of the six emotions (i.e., sad, happy, surprise, fear, disgust, or anger). It was hypothesized participants in the masking …