Psychology Commons^™

Pulse - A Consultation, Barry J. Mauer

Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

On June 12, 2016, Omar Mateen killed 49 people and injured 53 at the Pulse Nightclub in Orlando, Florida. We may never know or understand what was in Mateen’s mind, but we can situate his attack within the history of eliminationism in America. Islamist terrorism is just part of a larger phenomenon: right wing eliminationism. But despite centuries of right wing eliminationist words and deeds in the U.S., there is little or no mainstream recognition of the phenomenon. Instead, we are treated to more denial, more distraction, more obfuscation. Until we look this problem squarely in the face, it will …

The Political Personality Of U.S. Vice President Mike Pence, Aubrey Immelman

Psychology Faculty Publications

This working paper presents the results of an indirect assessment of the personality of U.S. vice president Mike Pence, from the conceptual perspective of personologist Theodore Millon. Information concerning Pence was collected from biographical sources and media reports and synthesized into a personality profile using the Millon Inventory of Diagnostic Criteria (MIDC), which yields 34 normal and maladaptive personality classifications congruent with Axis II of DSM-5.

The personality profile yielded by the MIDC was analyzed on the basis of interpretive guidelines provided in the MIDC and Millon Index of Personality Styles manuals. Pence’s primary personality pattern was found to …

Reconstruction Of The Destroyed Sinjali Secondary School, Isabella Kaganowski

Sustainability and Social Justice

This practitioner paper chronicles my involvement of the grant writing proposal that was designed on behalf of a non-for-profit organization, the Association of Dalit Women’s Advancement of Nepal (ADWAN), in order to secure funding and donations for the reconstruction of the destroyed Sinjali Secondary School in Gorkha district, Taklung village, after a 2015 earthquake struck Nepal. The proposal was guided by and collaborated with Professor Jude Fernando of Clark University, as Professor Fernando was able to visit Taklung village and gather information about the needs in the educational sector damaged by the earthquake. Literature review and research was gathered to …

The Influence Of Values And Recipient Groups On Social Welfare Policy Opinion, Christopher Pulliam

Renée Crown University Honors Thesis Projects - All

The following paper examines how value-based considerations for social welfare policy opinion are affected by changes in the race of the program recipient. I propose a new model to understand social welfare policy opinion called the interactive model—where instrinsic considerations are tempered by extrinsic considerations. Through an original survey experiment, I find that humanitarianism and economic individualism do not have significant effects on social welfare policy opinion. However, egalitarianism is found to have a strong impact. When the race of the program recipient is changed from white to African-American, the impact of egalitarianism increases for views of Medicare. When the …

(Re)Painting Self: Art Therapy And Ontological Security In Refugee Children, Domonique Jimerson

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

To be a refugee is to know loss intimately. The refugee experience can be characterized by the multidimensional loss the loss of loved ones, support networks, economic security, culture, safety, and home.^{1 2} The compounding of traumatic experience can have a profound effect on belief systems and identity. This paper will explore the relationship between trauma and ontological state in resettled refugee children. The philosophical concept of ontological security considers the ability create consistent expectations about the way the world operates to a stable mental state.³ The three states of ontology security and shock will be useful in …

A Radical Idea: Applying Psychological Strategy To Combat Foreign Fighters Defending The Islamic State, David Michael Smaney

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

This thesis focuses on the necessity of psychological strategies to combat the Islamic State’s recruitment of foreign fighters. This thesis argues that psychological strategies are a primary weapon due to the psychological nature of the war against the Islamic State, which is a part of the overall war of ideas. This thesis does not consider psychological strategies for other aspects of U.S. counterterrorism strategy, nor does it reflect the difficulties involved with developing U.S. strategies in the U.S. federal government. Furthermore, this thesis only focuses on foreign fighter defending and supporting the Islamic State, which is the successor of Al …

Thinking About Race: How Group Biases Interact With Ideological Principles To Yield Attitudes Toward Government Assistance, Frank John Gonzalez

Department of Political Science: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

When are people more likely to evaluate race-targeted government assistance based on ideological principles rather than racial prejudice? In order to answer this question, it is necessary to understand the mechanisms by which prejudice influences political attitudes. In this dissertation, I develop a theoretical model for explaining how deep-seated, automatic group biases interact with higher-order, ideological principles in order to influence attitudes toward race-targeted government assistance. I suggest group-based principles are more important than individualistic values or ingroup favoritism in explaining race-targeted policy attitudes. I argue that when people evaluate race-targeted policies, controlled neural processes translate automatic neural processes into …

Repercussive Discrimination: Racial Discrimination As An Explanation Of Prevalent Homophobia Among Racial Minorities, Timothy E. Lewis

Dissertations

Generally, attitudes in the United States towards lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex (LGBTI) persons have become more favorable in recent years. Obviously, examining the politics of LGBTI persons and attitudes towards them is important considering that this demographic may account for 10% of the U.S. population; but a more inconspicuous reason it that examinations provide insight into the political landscape of how political minorities address various issues and interests. However, in studying public opinion towards gays and lesbians it is discovered that racial minorities, particularly African-Americans, generally possess negative attitudes to LGBTI persons and possess higher percentages of homophobic …

Appraising Positive Aspects Of Shared History Through Contact- A Preliminary Model Of Reconciliation Among Hindus And Muslims Of The Kashmir Valley, Sramana Majumdar Dr

Peace and Conflict Studies

The long-standing political conflict in the Kashmir Valley has resulted in identity based polarization and subsequent displacement of communities. Reconciliation between Hindus (also known as Pandits) and Muslims is viewed as an important step in any sustainable effort towards conflict resolution and peacebuilding in the Valley. This paper begins by examining the much debated territorial and cultural concept of ‘Kashmiriyat’ and instead proposes an alternative lens that emphasizes on shared history as opposed to common identity. We approach reconciliation through a socio-psychological lens by examining the role of a shared cultural past and historical coexistence- or simply put as shared …

I'M With Us, But Not With Them: A Study Of In-Group Bias And Political Party, Quinn Lambert

Scholars Week

The purpose of this research is to test the interaction of in-group/out-group bias and political parties. This research is especially necessary and timely due to the unstable and somewhat unorthodox political climate surrounding our country this year. Research by Olivola, Sussman, Tsetsos, Kang, and Todorov (2012) shows that voters identifying as Republicans showed a greater preference for candidates who fit the physical stereotype of a Republican (an older white male) even if that candidate was not a Republican. My research asks if in-group biases apply to perceptions of attractiveness and trustworthiness. I hypothesized that participants will be more likely to …

Twenty Reasons To Publish In Dignity, Donna M. Hughes

Dignity: A Journal of Analysis of Exploitation and Violence

No abstract provided.

The Apocalyptic Imagination And The Fundamentalist Mindset, Charles B. Strozier

New England Journal of Public Policy

This article explores the psychological meanings of the apocalyptic imagination in what I call a fundamentalist mindset. That mindset has its own long history but is newly relevant in the nuclear age. We no longer need God to bring about ultimate destruction. There are many facets of the fundamentalist mindset (for example, its intense literalism), but the focus in the article is on two: its kairotic sense of time and its rampant paranoia. These two facets interact synergistically around violence that is experienced by those who revel in it as moral in a totalistic sense. Killing becomes healing. The evil …

Suicide Terrorism: Performance Violence As Public Plunge, Gregory Saathoff

New England Journal of Public Policy

This article explores the relationship between the social psychology of the individual and the final abyss of suicide terrorism. The boy on the high dive is a metaphor for the fearful pause before the leap. For a young child, the dive is exciting and dangerous: the fearful pause is somewhat analogous to thoughts and feelings before the terrorist’s catastrophically destructive contemplated homicidal/suicidal behavior. If we think about the leap itself, there may be a better analogy. Is there any corollary to a specific group of suicide completers? What can be learned from others who have contemplated and undertaken perhaps the …

Metaphors That Communicate Weight-Based Stigma In Political News: A Case Study Of New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, J. Anderson, Y. Zhu, J. Zhuang, J.C. Nelson, M.J. Bresnahan, X. Yan

Communication Studies Publications

News media use metaphors to describe politics (Landau & Keefer, 2014) and obesity (Barry,Brescoll, Brownell, & Schlesinger, 2009). Weight-based stigma is prevalent in U.S. news media (Heuer,McClure, & Puhl, 2011). Media coverage of politicians’ body size may contain metaphors that stigmatizeweight. Metaphors reflect and shape how people think about important issues like politics or obesity(Landau, Sullivan, & Greenberg, 2009; Landau, Meier, & Keefer, 2010; Landau & Keefer, 2014).
Objective – This study uses stigma communication theory (Smith, 2007) to examine stigmatizing metaphors used in media coverage of a United States politician, and candidate for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination, New …

The Fear Factor: Exploring The Impact Of The Vulnerability To Deportation On Immigrants' Lives, Shirley P. Leyro

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This qualitative study explores the impact that the fear of deportation has on the lives of noncitizen immigrants. More broadly, it explores the role that immigration enforcement, specifically deportation, plays in disrupting the process of integration, and the possible implications of this interruption for immigrants and their communities. The study aims to answer: (1) how vulnerability to deportation specifically impacts an immigrant’s life, and (2) how the vulnerability to deportation, and the fear associated with it, impacts an immigrant’s degree of integration. Data were gathered through a combination of six open-ended focus group interviews of 10 persons each, and 33 …

The Leadership Style Of U.S. President Donald J. Trump, Aubrey Immelman

Psychology Faculty Publications

This working paper presents a personality-based analysis of newly elected U.S. president Donald J. Trump’s likely leadership style as president, inferred from the results of an indirect personality assessment conducted 2015–2016 from the conceptual perspective of personologist Theodore Millon.

Trump’s predominant personality patterns were found to be Ambitious/exploitative (a measure of narcissism) and Outgoing/impulsive, infused with secondary features of the Dominant/controlling pattern and supplemented by a Dauntless/adventurous tendency.

Ambitious individuals are bold, competitive, and self-assured; they easily assume leadership roles, expect others to recognize their special qualities, and often act as though entitled. Outgoing individuals are dramatic attention‑getters who thrive …

Cognitive Sociology, Michael W. Raphael

Publications and Research

Cognitive sociology is the study of the conditions under which meaning is constituted through processes of reification. Cognitive sociology traces its origins to writings in the sociology of knowledge, sociology of culture, cognitive and cultural anthropology, and more recently, work done in cultural sociology and cognitive science. Its central questions revolve around locating these processes of reification since the locus of cognition is highly contentious. Researchers consider how individuality is related to notions of society (structures, institutions, systems, etc.) and notions of culture (cultural forms, cultural structures, sub-cultures, etc.). These questions further explore how these answers depend on learning processes …

Civic Dignity And Meaningful Political Participation, Melissa Mahoney Smith

CGU Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation looks at how enhanced political participation opportunities can increase individual liberty and improve public-sector reform efforts. It blends political theory with contemporary concerns for individual well-being and government accountability. To do this, several research methodologies are used, including normative, qualitative process-tracing, and quantitative analysis.

First, the dissertation draws insights from ancient and modern political philosophy and the political thought and example of Jane Addams in 19th Century Chicago. It begins with Josiah Ober’s work on civic dignity, which he defines as “equal high standing” among citizens, marked by “non-infantilization and non-humiliation.” This definition is a useful starting point …

The Great Divide: The Political Implications Of Southern Regional Identification In Kentucky, Joel Turner

Commonwealth Review of Political Science

Kentucky occupies a unique place on the American political landscape. The Commonwealth has never been fully embraced as Southern by most observers, but at the same time it is not necessarily a Northern state. As the intersection of North and South in the United States, Kentucky presentes a unique opportunity to study the impact of regional identity on public opinion. Utilizing data from a 2014 survey of a random sample of Kentucky residents, we are able to demonstrate that Southern regional identification is fairly high in Kentucky, and that this identification has a significant influence on opinion regard politicians and …

Holding School Leaders Accountable: Estimating The Effects Of Retrospective Evaluations Of Kentucky School District Superintendents, Martin Battle, James C. Clinger

Commonwealth Review of Political Science

This research represents an attempt to apply the theory of retrospective voting to the issue of turnover among Kentucky school district superintendents. The analysis tests the hypothesis that poor school district performance should increase superintendent performance. The hypothesis is tested using accountability data compiled by the Kentucky Department of Education. The analysis reveals somewhat mixed support for the hypothesis. Different performance measures have different kinds of impact. Schools with students scoring high on math and writing were more likely to experience superintendent turnover than other school districts were. The index scores for science and social studies had a negative, statistically …

Consequences Of Sexual Violence During Civil Conflicts For Post-Colonial Democratization, Kathleen Clark

Commonwealth Review of Political Science

Countries face large obstacles in the post-civil conflict period, including democratization. The nature of the warfare during the civil conflict may have important implications for the prospects for future democratization. Specifically, the experience of sexual violence during civil conflicts may hinder democratization. I argue that countries that experience prevalent sexual violence during civil conflicts have lower chances for post-conflict democratization than those without. This occurs through the psychological consequences of sexual violence on victims and communities. Sexual violence negatively impacts victims, but it can also have more widespread negative consequences for society. Communities of the victims may collectively respond to …

Red Dog, Blue Dog, Yellow Dog: How Democrats Can Use Strategic Communications To Attract Republican And Conservative Voters, B. Gammon Fain

Commonwealth Review of Political Science

In recent election cycles, a rightward shift among white Southerners, and in some cases the loss of African-American supporters through racial redistricting, turned many long-held Democratic districts in the South red. Kentucky is an excellent example of this shift in voting behavior. Even though registered Democrats outnumber Republicans, the GOP controls the Governor's mansion, most other statewide elected offices, both chamber of the state legislature, and all but one of Kentucky's congressional seats. To win back those seats, Democrats in states like Kentucky will need to appeal to conservative voters. Unfortunately, little scholarly research directly addresses the practical question they …

Resilient Communists: How Fidel Castro Survived The Soviet Collapse And Cuba's Uncertain Road To Democracy, Max J. Prowant

Commonwealth Review of Political Science

It is easy to conclude that Fidel Castro was nothing more than a pawn of the Soviet Union, and Cuba, a communist satellite throughout the Cold War. The island received an annual subsidy of four billion dollars from the U.S.S.R. and hosted Soviet troops; its economic dependence was so extensive that when the Soviet Union collapsed more than 25 years ago, Cuba experienced a GDP contraction of between 30 and 40 percent. Despite this, Cuba's communist regime survived, even as many formerly communist countries in Eastern Europe embraced new democratic constitutions. This project seeks to explain how--in spite of the …

Complete Issue - Volume 4, Number 1 (2017)

Commonwealth Review of Political Science

Complete Issue

The Sound Of Politics: An Examination Of Political Orientations And Musical Preferences Among College Aged Adults, Omari Stringer

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Music fits in a larger media culture that can influence the thoughts and beliefs of many people. Specifically, there is an interest in the relationship between music and any influences it may have on political views or orientations. Based on the existing literature, it is hypothesized that there will be a significant correlation between political orientations and involvement in music and political orientations with music genre preferences. It is also hypothesized that there will be a relationship between socioeconomic status and music preferences. Furthermore, it is expected that participants will report a high level of music involvement, considering how accessible …

Happiness Index Methodology, Laura Musikanski, Scott Cloutier, Erica Bejarano, Davi Briggs, Julia Colbert, Gracie Strasser, Steven Russell

Journal of Sustainable Social Impact

The Happiness Index is a comprehensive survey instrument that assesses happiness, well-being, and aspects of sustainability and resilience. The Happiness Alliance developed the Happiness Index to provide a survey instrument to community organizers, researchers, and others seeking to use a subjective well-being index and data. It is the only instrument of its kind freely available worldwide and translated into over ten languages. This instrument can be used to measure satisfaction with life and the conditions of life. It can also be used to define income inequality, trust in government, sense of community and other aspects of well-being within specific demographics …

Happiness In Communities: How Neighborhoods, Cities And States Use Subjective Well-Being Metrics, Laura Musikanski, Carl Polley, Scott Cloutier, Erica Berejnoi, Julia Colbert

Journal of Sustainable Social Impact

This essay, the fourth and last of a series published by the Journal of Social Change, is intended as a tool for community organizers, local policy makers, researchers, students and others to incorporate subjective well-being indicators into their measurements and management of happiness and well-being in their communities, for policy purposes, for research and for other purposes. It provides case studies of community-based efforts in five different regions (São Paulo, Brazil; Bristol, United Kingdom; Melbourne, Australia; Creston, British Columbia, Canada; and Vermont, United States) that either developed their own subjective well-being index or used the Happiness Alliance’s survey instrument …

The Political Personality Of Russian Federation President Vladimir Putin, Aubrey Immelman, Joseph V. Trenzeluk

Psychology Faculty Publications

This paper presents the results of an indirect assessment of the personality of Vladimir Putin, president of the Russian Federation, from the conceptual perspective of personologist Theodore Millon.

Psychodiagnostically relevant data regarding President Putin were extracted from open-source intelligence and synthesized into a personality profile using the Millon Inventory of Diagnostic Criteria (MIDC), which yields 34 normal and maladaptive personality classifications congruent with Axis II of DSM-IV.

The personality profile yielded by the MIDC was analyzed on the basis of interpretive guidelines provided in the MIDC and Millon Index of Personality Styles manuals. Putin’s primary personality patterns were found …

A Theory Of Veteran Identity, Travis L. Martin

Theses and Dissertations--English

More than 2.6 million troops have deployed in support of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Still, surveys reveal that more than half feel “disconnected” from their civilian counterparts, and this feeling persists despite ongoing efforts, in the academy and elsewhere, to help returning veterans overcome physical and mental wounds, seek an education, and find meaningful ways to contribute to society after taking off the uniform. This dissertation argues that Iraq and Afghanistan War veterans struggle with reassimilation because they lack healthy, complete models of veteran identity to draw upon in their postwar lives, a problem they’re working through collectively …

The Phantom Segregationist: Kentucky's 1996 Desegregation Amendment And The Limits Of Direct Democracy, D. Stephen Voss

Commonwealth Review of Political Science

Decades after Kentucky abolished de jure racial distinctions in education, the state legislature asked voters to strip segregationist language from their venerable constitution. Political elites were stunned when a third of the state's voters, and majorities in five countries, rejected the change. However, the prime culprit for Kentucky's 1996 constitutional amendment vote was not white racism, because African-American voters endorsed segregation at rates similar to whites. Rather, the Kentucky vote offers a particularly clear and particularly dramatic example of the limits of ballot-box policy making. It should alert scholars that highly publicized referenda in high-profile states - the focus of …