Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Media & Self Perception, Shera Kulow, Candice Menne

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

There has been previous controversial research pertaining to self perception and the media. This study is an investigation which implies the relationship of the amount of television watched on people’s negative self-image. Data was collected from 46 participants (23 men, 23 women) from Lindenwood University, who completed a self-image survey and reported the amount of television hours watched per week. Disproving the presented hypothesis, there was no relation between the amounts of television a subject watched on his/her positive or negative self-image. However, there are many factors that may explain the findings and the need for further research is highlighted.

Effects Of Chocolate On A Person’S Immediate Mood, Aaron Tighe, Katherine Hannemann

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

The following presents a study of chocolate and its effect on a person’s immediate mood. Prior research has suggested that chocolate affects a person biologically through neurotransmitters in the brain which can lead to an elevation in a person’s mood. Our study hopes to take this evidence a step further and discover if chocolate can alter one’s mood immediately, or if the chemicals in chocolate are released gradually, taking longer to affect a person’s mood. The participants were mainly recruited through the Human Subject Pool at Lindenwood University and were administered two surveys: one before a treat was consumed, and …

The Effects Of Speech Rate On Comprehension, Jamilah Adams, Michelle Weber

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

There is a perception that the rate of speech affects the level of comprehensibility of a listener. If the rate of a speaker during a speech or lecture does in fact affect the level of comprehension, then the speaker would have to modify his/her rate of speech in order to benefit the ears of all his/her listeners. In the present study, 40 participants listened to four passages, taken from www.testpreview.com all recorded at varying speeds, after which they answered 10 questions that corresponded with the passages. Results found that speech rate had no effect on comprehension. However, findings based on …

Prologue, Michiko Nohara-Leclair

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

No abstract provided.

Home Court Advantage And Quality Of Team, Anthony Clarkston

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

Home court advantage was examined using archival data taken from the onset of NCAA Division I basketball record keeping. The effect of team quality on home court advantage was analyzed by examining games where number one ranked teams faced number two ranked teams. The purpose of only examining games between number one and number two ranked teams is an attempt to equalize team quality (team quality in this study is defined by national rank) to better examine home court advantage. My hypothesis is that if team quality is evenly matched then a home court advantage will not play a role …

2005-2006, Full Issue

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

No abstract provided.

Hours Worked Versus Academic Grades In College Students, Erin Ferguson, Shelly Fuess

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

A students’ grade point average has a huge impact on the life of a student. This study proved that the amount of hours worked is not reflective of the students’ grade point average which proved our hypothesis incorrect. Past studies have shown varied results on grade point average and the amount of hours a student works. Individual differences may be a determining factor in considering how the individual balances work and school. There were sixty participates in this study from Lindenwood University. The results of this study showed a negative correlation of -.043 between the two variables.

Possible Undue Stress Factors On Graduating Seniors, Steven L. Hahne

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

The purpose of this study is to determine whether the hypothesis of the experiment is true, which was to find if the student body thinks that a policy to which the graduating seniors must turn in all graded work two weeks before the final exam is fair. It also offers a chance for the student body to voice opinions or suggestions in an open and anonymous questionnaire format. Fifty students chose to partake in a questionnaire that included questions about the university’s policy. They were divided into two groups: one group had twenty-three students [freshman and sophomores] of Human Subject …

Birth Order Effects On Academic Performance, January Boston, Kristal Cook

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

In the experiment, 85 participants were recruited to participate in a questionnaire regarding birth order and academic performance by grade point averages (GPA). The survey was conducted to determine if there was a relationship between an individual's birth order and an individual's academic performance. Both of the experimenters come from relatively large families so we were interested to see if there was a positive or negative relationship between academic performance and birth orders. There was statistical significance between birth order and GPA however; the positive correlation was between the youngest siblings and the highest GPA.

The Stroop Task: Gender Differences Between College Students, Josephine Mwangi

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

There were six male and six female students from Lindenwood University that participated and they were recruited through the human subject pool office. The hypothesis tested was that females are faster at completing the Stroop test than the males. The students were presented with a color key that had the numbers that matched the colors they were required to correspond with onto the computer monitor. There was a practice session at the beginning and then condition one that contained four color-words, red, blue, green and yellow that were printed in any one of the other colors stated above, totaling to …

Do Sports Have An Effect On School Performance?, Tara Clegg

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

The amount of time someone spends playing and practicing for a sport, or how much involvement it has with other activities was studied in respect to performance in school. Students were assumed to not do well in school if they were too involved with sports and other extracurricular activities. The students that participated in the research were all from the human subject pool at Lindenwood University. These students were either in a psychology, anthropology, or sociology class to receive extra credit. All of them were administered a ten questions survey in regards to involvement and school. In the study, 28 …

Are You Up To Date?, Amanda Coleman, Amanda Friedhoff

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

If an individual is up to date on current events, it makes it easier to carry on or even start a conversation with another individual who is also up to date. The researchers feel that individuals aged 40 and over are more up to date on current events than those ages 18- 25. In the current study, 46 participants; 26 participants aged 18-25 years old and 20 participants aged 40 years and older, recruited from the St. Charles area, took a ten question questionnaire on current events. The participants were divided by age and gender, so the study had a …

Instinct And Second-Guessing Oneself On Tests, Bethany Bennett, Nicole Lafser

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

When taking exams, students may find themselves deciding between the answer that first comes to mind, and a second logical answer. When given the option to record both first instinct and second-guess answers, are students able to answer correctly more on their first or second try? Furthermore, do those students who tend to answer correctly on their second try have lower grade point averages? If so, this would indicate that when taking tests, they have not been able to fully represent their knowledge. In the present study, 16 participants read an informative passage and completed a series of ten open-ended …

Prologue, Michiko Nohara-Leclair

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

Prologue

Consumer Perception And Food Packaging, Dan Agnew, Patti Nibert, Shawna Wells

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

Color in food packaging may influence consumer perception of various factors of health of the food product. If lighter colored food packages are seen as healthy, people who are concerned about health will purchase these products. In this study, fifty participants were asked to answer questions about food products based on the packaging color. There were four trials of products, all of which contained three packages that were colored red, green, or light blue. Ultimately, products that were lighter in color, i.e. light blue, were indicated as being the healthier products

Stress And The Common Cold, Nicole Kinman, Angela Vincent

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

Stress is very common among people especially in today’s world. People also seem to be getting colds much more often than they used to. Does stress cause people to get sick more often? In the present study 40 participants, all Lindenwood University students ages 18 to 29 years old took a stress test and a health questionnaire in an attempt to determine whether or not the more stressed a person is the more often they will get sick. The participants were asked to spare five minutes of their time to complete the two surveys. This study determined that there is …

Effects Of Anti- And Pro-Smoking Campaigns On The Prevalence Of Smoking In College Students, Jennifer Campbell, Pamela Newcombe, Angela Radford

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

This study sought to show relationships between anti- and pro-smoking advertisement campaigns and the prevalence of smoking among college students. A total of 102 undergraduate students from Lindenwood University participated in the survey, which contained questions regarding family, friends, personal non-smoking and smoking habits, and the number and type of anti- and pro-smoking ads viewed. The researchers obtained informed consent, distributed the survey, and debriefed each participant after completion of the survey. The statistical analysis of the data did not show any relationships between exposure to ads and the prevalence of smoking. However, exposure to pro-smoking advertisements did affect brand …

Does Love Make You Smarter?, Annalee M. Hastie, Theodore J. Vogt

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

Little research has been done that examines the correlation between the length of a romantic relationship and academic success. In the present study, a questionnaire addressing this issue was administered to 40 college students at Lindenwood University. Analysis of the questionnaire revealed no correlation between the length of a romantic relationship and participants’ actual GPAs. However, a moderately strong correlation between participants’ self-reported GPAs was found. This study implies that the length of one’s romantic relationship may be particularly related to perceived academic success.

Suicide As Covered In The Media, Jamie Gonzalez

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

The media plays an important role in shaping the public about suicide. The media has a professional and moral obligation to report incidents of suicide in an appropriate manner. The Center for Disease Control has set forth requirements for the media; making recommendations about how incidents of suicide are best reported. In 1989, the CDC established these guidelines, yet many national newspapers are not following these requirements. This study explained that the media has not made any progress in this area since the CDC’s recommendations. Thirty-six articles from three national, daily newspapers were critiqued with questions from the CDC’s requirements. …

How Males And Females Feel About Body Image, Hannah Briscoe, Cadey Kuehnel

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

We wanted to see if the participants have a low or high body image. The participants were asked questions determining how they feel about their body image and others around them. Our hypothesis is that the younger participants will have a lower body image then those older, males will have a higher body image than females and seniors will have a higher body image than freshmen. The subjects were from the Human Subjects Pool at Lindenwood University consisting of general psychology, Anthropology, and Sociology classes. Our findings were significant with our hypothesis.

A Study Of Self-Esteem And Grade Point Average (Gpa) Among College Students, Erin K. Bowen, Carl A. Hicks

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

The study examined the possible relationship between self-esteem and grade point average (GPA) held by college students. One hundred forty college students completed a survey, through the Human Subject Pool, as well as at the end of five separate classes, to determine their level of self-esteem as well as to obtain their permission to view their GPA anonymously. Results suggest that there is a positive relationship between selfesteem and grade point average

Biased Preferences To Names, Timothy J. Panek, Megan Gibson

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

The experimenters intended to show support that children have a bias against names that are uncommon and difficult to pronounce. Common and uncommon names were taken from the social security administration. Sixty-nine college students participated in a survey to determine what names are difficult to pronounce. Names that were common and easy to pronounce were paired with those names that were uncommon and difficult to pronounce. These pairings underwent a t-test to ensure they were significantly different from each other. Twenty-one children whose ages range from 6 to 12 took part in an interview on preferences of names. In using …

The Effects Of Positive Feedback On Performance Perception, Traci Schmidt

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

Nonverbal communication may have an effect on people’s perceptions of themselves and their performance on certain tasks. When people receive some type of positive feedback while performing an assignment, they may overestimate the extent to which the task was successfully completed. During this study, 22 participants were asked to take three short spelling tests, then evaluate their performance on each test. For one of the tests, the researcher provided words of encouragement and nods of approval while scoring the test. There was no feedback given during the scoring of the other two tests. While the subjects did not consistently rate …

The Correlation Of Working College Students And Their Grade Point Average, Latasha Stepps, Chandra Brown

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

Students that work while in school have higher grade point averages than students who do not work. The number of students that work while in college has increased over the years. In this study 28 participants were asked to full out a ten question survey that pertaining to the number of hours they worked and their academic performance. Then the results were compared to determine the correlation between the student grade point average and the number of hours they worked. The results found that there was a positive correlation between the two. It seemed that the more hours the students …

Self-Esteen Levels In Relation To Grade Point Average, Patrick Wilson

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

This study is designed to show a relationship between self-esteem and grade point average (GPA) among college students. Undergraduate college students from Lindenwood University participated in this study. The survey used in this study was designed by J.J. Messina (1999) containing questions a subject’s family, personal, social, and educational life. The students were asked if they would like to participate in a survey randomly. Upon completion of the survey and informed consent they received a feedback letter. The data I collected showed a weak relationship, however I believe it was due to the fact I only surveyed 25 subjects.

Spring 2005, Full Issue

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

Full Issue

People Perception: The Effects Of Facial Piercings, Sarah Torpea

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

The research hypothesis of this study is that subjects will have a more negative perception of models with facial piercings than models without. There were 35 subjects surveyed. Each subject looked at 15 pictures of people between the ages of 19 and 21 years. There were 11 filler pictures and four model pictures in each survey. The subject answered questions that helped them to rate these people on different positive and negative scales. The models were shown with no facial piercing, a fake lip piercing, a fake nose piercing or both a fake lip and nose piercing. The same models …

Research Proposal: Gender Differences Concerning Thoughts On Love Attitudes And Romance, Sarah E. Brady

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

Which gender has more romantic views on love? Oftentimes, women think of their sex as the more romantic gender and complain that their partners are not romantic enough. Yet, is this truly the case?

Research Proposal: Marijuana And The Sociability Factor, Jennifer Ip

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

Contrary to popular belief, the social effect of drug use is not necessarily negative. Studies have shown that peers and acquaintances play a role in the initiation of substance use. However, the same evidence also supports that ties with others, especially those with similar characteristics correlate with better mental health (Ford, 2001). According to Ford (2001), by regulating behaviors and attitudes through the creation and exercise of constraints, or by providing individuals with a belief that life has meaning and purpose, social integration may no only promote mental health, but physical health as well. Some studies have found that marijuana …

Research Proposal: Dogs As Reducers Of Anxiety In Social Situations, Jennifer L. Sytsma

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

For many years animals have played a large part in the average family unit. Animals become more than just pets and begin to be considered a family member or a best friend. With such close relationships developing between owner and pet it would not be far fetched to say that animals could act as a social mediator for those who suffer from chronic anxiety in social situations.

I believe that pets can greatly reduce stress and anxiety during social interactions with those who suffer from social anxiety. Since dogs are the most commonly seen pets in an outside setting most …