Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Diverse College Students' Cultural Background And College Persistence, Kerrie Devries, Jonathan Santo, Juan Casas

Psychology Faculty Publications

Tinto (1975) created a college persistence model, emphasizing institutional academic and social integration, that continues to guide U.S. university retention strategies. This longitudinal study followed 584 college Freshman from diverse backgrounds, testing for group differences in the relationship that Tinto’s key constructs have on college persistence, over time, for U.S.-White, U.S.-minority, and immigrant-origin groups. We found significant positive associations between Academic Integration and Intentions to Persist for all ethnic groups, but group differences in Social Integration and Intentions to Persist. Additionally, Intentions to Persist was a significant predictor of actual persistence for all groups, suggesting predictive power overall.

Mindset Theory Relates To Attitudes About Prison And Parole Among College Students, Cassandra R. Petersen

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

The maintenance of prosocial relationships has been strongly connected to criminal desistance among past offenders. The opinions held by the community shape the prejudice often encountered by those with a criminal record. To promote desistance, we must understand how criminals and their abilities are considered by the public. In this study, 69 college students were surveyed about the United States prison and parole system in conjunction with Dweck’s mindset theory. Along with explicit questions, an Implicit Associations Test (IAT) was employed to measure unconscious associations between mentality and punishment preference. The IAT revealed that traits of a growth mindset were …

Factors Related To School Psychologists’ Confidence In Implementation Of Behavior Intervention Plans, Miranda Cormaci, Adam D. Weaver, Jonathan Santo

Psychology Faculty Publications

This study explored school psychologists’ practices in the areas of developing behavior intervention plans (BIPs), conducting functional behavior assessments (FBAs), and behavioral consultation. Practitioners were asked to rate their level of confidence in the implementation with fidelity of the last BIP they developed. Relationships between these practices and school psychologists’ confidence levels were examined. Data were collected from a national sample of practitioners (n = 179). Overall, results suggest that school district supports, being mindful of potential barriers to implementation, certain components of the FBA process, and adhering to best practices in behavioral consultation can have substantial positive impacts …

Positive And Negative Actions Early In The Relationship Predict Later Interactions Among Toddlers, Ayelet Lahat, Zhangling Lou, Michal Perlman, Nina Howe, Jonathan Santo, Holly E. Recchia, William M. Bukowski, Hildy S. Ross

Psychology Faculty Publications

Very little is known about the role of early interactions in the development of peer relationships among toddlers. The present study examined whether behaviors early in the formation of toddler relationships predict interactions later in their relationships. Twenty-eight unfamiliar 20- and 30-month-old toddlers from a predominately European background met separately with each of two other toddlers for 18 playdates. Both positive and negative behaviors at the beginning of the relationship predicted a higher frequency of games later in the relationship. Positive behaviors at the beginning of the relationship predicted fewer conflicts later in the relationship. Negative behaviors at the beginning …

Terminal Field Volume Of The Glossopharyngeal Nerve In Adult Rats Reverts To Prepruning Size Following Microglia Depletion With Plx5622, Andrew J. Riquier, Suzanne I. Sollars

Psychology Faculty Publications

Programmed reduction of synapses is a hallmark of the developing brain, with sensory systems emerging as useful models with which to study this pruning. The central projections (terminal field) of the gustatory glossopharyngeal nerve (GL) of the rat are a prime example of developmental pruning, undergoing an approximate 66% reduction in volume from postnatal day 15 (P15) to P25. Later in adulthood, developmental GL pruning can be experimentally reversed, expanding to preweaning volumes, suggesting mature volumes may be actively maintained throughout the life span. Microglia are central nervous system glia cells that perform pruning and maintenance functions in other sensory …

The Effects Of Leader Support For Creativity And Leader Gender On Subordinate Creative Problem-Solving Performance, Nadine T. Maliakkal, Roni Reiter-Palmon

Psychology Faculty Publications

Ample correlational research shows that leader support for creativity is related to subordinate creativity, yet research examining the causality of this relationship experimentally is scant. Furthermore, most studies that demonstrate support for this relationship have used relatively subjective creativity measures that do not tap as effectively into the creative problem-solving process. Thus, we experimentally examined whether leader support for creativity affects subordinate creative problem-solving performance. We also examined whether this relationship depends on leader gender. We used experimental vignette methodology and a sample of 247 working adults to test these relationships. We found that high (vs. low) leader support for …

Change Over Time In Interactions Between Unfamiliar Toddlers, Ayelet Lahat, Michal Perlman, Nina Howe, Holly E. Recchia, William M. Bukowski, Jonathan Santo, Zhangjing Luo, Hildy S. Ross

Psychology Faculty Publications

The frequency and length of games, conflicts, and contingency sequences that took place between toddlers as they got to know one another were studied using archival data. The sample consisted of 28 unfamiliar 20- and 30-month-old toddlers (predominantly White, 16 males) who met separately with each of two other toddlers for 18 play dates. The frequency of games increased over time, while the frequency of conflict and contingency sequences decreased. The length of games increased over time while the length of conflicts and contingency sequences were stable. Age and language ability predicted changes in frequency and length of the different …

A Multi-Level Analysis Of The Effects Of Statistics Anxiety/Attitudes On Trajectories Of Exam Scores, Kelly Rhea Macarthur, Jonathan Santo

Psychology Faculty Publications

This study explores three understudied facets—quadratic effects, change over time, and gender as a moderator—of the otherwise well-documented relationships between statistics anxiety and academic performance. Using pre- and post- course survey data among a sample of 111 undergraduate students in Social Statistics courses at a U.S. Midwestern university, we employ hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) to test for relationships between change in the six dimensions of the Statistics Anxiety Rating Scale (STARS) and exam grades over the course of the semester. We find that exam grades decreased over time, but at different rates across gender and the six STARS dimensions. We …

The Developmental Significance Of The Social Context As An Additional Self-Continuity Strategy: A Comparison Of Emerging Adults From Brazil And The United States, Jonathan Santo, Josafa M. Da Cunha, Annesha Mitra

Psychology Faculty Publications

Self-continuity refers to the strategies individuals use to justify a stable sense of self despite the various changes they experience. Among young adults, in particular, self-continuity over time has been associated with indicators of mental health. The aim of the current project was to identify whether aspects of the social context are measurably distinct from other established strategies of self-continuity. Data were collected from emerging adults from the US Midwest (n = 309) and southern Brazil (n = 285). Self-continuity and its opposite, self-discontinuity, were measured, in addition to essentialism or narrativism and the social context as strategies. …

When Knowing Prevents Doing: An Exposition On Commitment Hazards, Alexander Porter

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

Information hazards are risks posed by potentially harmful true information. Information hazards include the risks posed by instructions on how to make a bomb, facts about world events which could cause harmful political unrest, or even the password to an email account being revealed. I will examine and explain one specific type of information hazard which can be seen as the subject of discussion in three well-known but disparate philosophical texts: information which draws attention away from individual control. I will argue that this idea shows up in Plato as what is being avoided through noble falsehoods in The Republic …

Just Environments Foster Character: A Longitudinal Assessment Of School Climate, Kendra J. Thomas, Josafa M. Da Cunha, Jonathan Santo

Psychology Faculty Publications

Justice is at the center of many definitions of character across various lines of research, yet there is little empirical research on how the justice of contexts can foster character virtues. The current study draws from a sample of 1,865 Brazilian fourth and fifth graders across two time points in 60 schools (42.7% White; 48.3% male). A multilevel structural equation model demonstrated the mediating role that justice beliefs play between authoritative school climate and socio-emotional learning, and the character virtues of bravery, fairness, and prosocial leadership even after accounting for grade, gender, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status (SES). This study highlights …

The Utility Of Divergent And Convergent Thinking In The Problem Construction Processes During Creative Problem-Solving, Benjamin Wigert, Vignesh Murugavel, Roni Reiter-Palmon

Psychology Faculty Publications

The process of problem construction is known to be a critical influence on creative problem-solving. The current study assessed the utility of different problem construction methods used to maximize creativity during the creative process. An experimental design was used to explore the interplay between convergent and divergent thinking processes. Participants were asked to creatively solve an ill-defined problem under four conditions that varied in their combinations of instruction to engage in divergent and convergent thinking. Findings indicated that following divergent thinking methods with a method that facilitates convergent thinking in problem construction results in more creative solutions than using only …

The Impact Of Stimulus Age On Emotional Face Recognition, Morgan Goslar

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

Research supports the theory that stimuli, including experiences, words, and faces, with an emotional connotation are more easily remembered than stimuli with a more neutral connotation. The scientific community has expanded this theory by manipulating a variety of variables, including participant age, time between encoding and retrieval, and “taboo” words in comparison to more neutral categories, to name a few. The current study seeks to expand upon the previous findings by examining emotional and neutral facial stimuli while manipulating the age of the stimulus face. To do this, participants were shown 10 photos in each of the following categories: young …

The Multi, William L. Blizek, Monica Blizek

Journal of Religion & Film

This is a film review of The Multi (2022), directed by Storm S. Smith and Mikhail Chowdhury.

Interview With Natasha Ofili, Monica Blizek

Journal of Religion & Film

Natasha Ofili, the star and screenwriter of The Multi, was interviewed by Monica Blizek about the process that led to the creation of the film.

Jihad Rehab, John C. Lyden

Journal of Religion & Film

This is a film review of Jihad Rehab (2021), directed by Meg Smaker.

Disentangling The Creative Process: An Examination Of Diferential Antecedents And Outcomes For Specifc Process Elements, Gerben Tolkamp, Tim Vriend, Bart Verwaeren, Roni Reiter-Palmon, Bernard Nijstad

Psychology Faculty Publications

Building on theories of sensemaking, this study demonstrates the importance of disentangling the creative process. Specifically, we show that the specific elements of the creative process (problem construction, information search and encoding, and idea generation) are differentially related to both antecedents and specific types of creative outcomes. Using survey data from employees and their supervisors from a wide variety of organizations, we found that leader creative expectations were more strongly related to idea generation than to problem construction and to information search and encoding. Job autonomy, in contrast, was significantly related to problem construction, but not to information search and …

Editorial: Creativity And Innovation In Times Of Crisis (Covid-19), Min Tang, Roni Reiter-Palmon, Zorana Ivcevic

Psychology Faculty Publications

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020 has brought the world society, economy and people's daily lives into a crisis. At the time we are writing the editorial, this crisis has been accompanying us for almost 2 years and will still have far-reaching consequences beyond the spread of the disease. The focus of the current Research Topic is the effect of the COVID-19 crisis on creativity and innovation and vice versa, as well as their relationship to resilience and coping.

We are pleased to have received many submissions from authors representing different disciplines and countries. Through rigorous reviews, …

Leading Creative Teams: A Process-Perspective With Implications For Organizational Leaders, Salvatore A. Leone, Roni Reiter-Palmon

Psychology Faculty Publications

Leaders often find themselves managing teams of individuals who are tasked with creative problem-solving while confronting complex issues and ambiguous situations. Using a process perspective, we review three core processes of creativity (problem construction, idea generation, and idea evaluation/selection) and provide best-practice recommendations for leaders to increase their teams’ performance during each process. To facilitate problem construction, leaders should define constraints and goals without outright instructing teams on their course of action or defining the presenting problem. Leaders can apply project management techniques that budget for increased exploration and experimentation while building visions for the end product and providing opportunities …

Changes In Character Virtues Are Driven By Classroom Relationships: A Longitudinal Study Of Elementary School Children, Kendra J. Thomas, Josafa M. Da Cunha, Jonathan Santo

Psychology Faculty Publications

The purpose of this study is to understand the role of school relationships in shaping students’ character development in middle childhood. Students and teachers completed surveys on student–teacher relationships, peer relationships, social-emotional learning (SEL), parent-teacher communication, and character strengths of fairness, hope, bravery, teamwork, self-regulation, social responsibility, and prosocial leadership. Participants were 1881 Brazilian children in fourth or fifth grade across 288 classrooms and 60 schools. Data were analyzed using a multi-level model framework. Higher student–student relationships were associated with higher starting scores of character strengths paired with a stronger increase among classes whose relationships improved over time. Higher quality …

A Mixed-Methods Study Of Creative Problem Solving And Psychosocial Safety Climate: Preparing Engineers For The Future Of Work, Michelle L. Oppert, Maureen F. Dollard, Vignesh Murugavel, Roni Reiter-Palmon, Alexander Reardon, David H. Cropley, Valerie O'Keeffe

Psychology Faculty Publications

The future of work is forcing the world to adjust to a new paradigm of working. New skills will be required to create and adopt new technology and working methods. Additionally, cognitive skills, particularly creative problem-solving, will be highly sought after. The future of work paradigm has threatened many occupations but bolstered others such as engineering. Engineers must keep up to date with the technological and cognitive demands brought on by the future of work. Using an exploratory mixed-methods approach, our study sought to make sense of how engineers understand and use creative problem solving. We found significant associations …