Psychology Commons^™

A Comparison Of Stress Levels Between Traditional And Non-Traditional Students, Taylor Duhame

Posters

The purpose of this study was to determine whether a traditional college student (ages 18-24) vs. a non-traditional student (ages 25 and over) described more stress in their lives based on different variables in their environment. Two research questions were used: R1- Is there a difference in stress levels based on traditional and non-traditional status. R2- What variables appear to affect the stress levels of traditional and non-traditional students? Some of these different variables include: status as a student, number of jobs worked, number of children, extracurricular activities such as sports or hobbies, and the amount of time students had …

Depression Among College Students Based On Motivation, Age And Parental Status, Suzanne Nalivka

Posters

The purpose of this study was to clarify whether depression levels may be predicted by motivation among college students based on gender. Is there a difference in depression levels based on gender? Are there differences based on depression/motivation variables? The participants of this research consisted of (N=85) undergraduate college students. The Beck Depression inventory was administered to measure the degree of depression and a T-test was used to evaluate the distinction between the depression/motivation variables and gender. The results of this study showed that females seem to have a higher level of depression but also have a higher level of …

Mindfulness, Self-Regulatory Capacity, And Regulation Of Health Behaviors - 2015 Award Winner, Elizabeth Mccrary

Russell Library Undergraduate Research Award

Mindfulness, the trait or state of heightened attention and awareness of the present moment, has been connected to a wide variety of self-regulatory behaviors, including health behaviors. Specifically, mindfulness has been linked to smoking cessation (Heppner et al., 2015), reduced alcohol misuse (Murphy & MacKillop, 2011), and reduced substance abuse (Witkiewitz & Bowen, 2010). Additionally, mindfulness-based dialectical behavior therapy has been successful in teaching affect regulation skills to patients with binge eating disorder (BED). BED patients were also more adept in using these regulation skills during negative affect experiences (Kristeller, Baer, & Quillian-Wolever, 2006). Even though research links mindfulness to …

Social Anxiety’S Effect On Alcohol Use Among Students, Michael Helfich

Posters

The purpose of this study is to determine whether there is a correlation between social anxiety and alcohol use in college students. College students have a high likeli-hood of drinking due to college usually being a party culture. When you couple a party culture with factors such as stress and anxiety the ramifications can lead to excess alcohol use. These factors are a great reason to study how social anxiety effects alcohol use in college students and who it effects in this demographic. The results of this study will be of great importance to students, parents, and health care personnel …

Binge Drinking Among College Students: Differences By Gender, Amanda Sawicki

Posters

The purpose of this study is to find out if binge drinking effects behavior in college students based on gender by assessing the behavioral patterns and numbers of male and female partici-pants when engaging in alcoholic beverages. There are three research questions guiding this study: 1.Does binge drinking effect males more than females? 2. Does binge drinking lead to unnecessary injuries? 3. Does binge drinking lead to unsafe sex under the influence? Most research suggests males have more issues with alcohol than females. Surprisingly the statistics for this research project showed female participants outnumbered or ran close to the statistics …

An Investigation To Compare Blood Pressure And Pulse Before And After Concentrative Meditation, Candice Welden

Posters

The purpose of this study was to understand if meditation over a short period of time, thirty days, can result in a significant reduction in stress. Does meditation decrease blood pressure, heart rate, and stress levels concerning undergradu-ate college students? The participants of this research consisted of (N=5) undergraduate college students. Blood pressures were taken on the first day of the study before and after meditation, and on the final day of the study before and after meditation. Participants recorded their heart rate each day over the 30 day study. The Perceived Stress Scale (PSS14) was administered at the beginning …

Storytelling As Self-Empowerment: A Case Study Of Avega Beneficiaries In Post-Genocide Rwanda, Lauren Garretson

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This project is an assessment of the effectiveness of storytelling as a mechanism of self-empowerment in the context of post-genocide Rwanda. It concentrates on the effects of the storytelling that is done by female survivors of the 1994 genocide within one Rwandan organization, AVEGA Agahozo.[1] The research project aim is to understand how these women in contemporary Rwanda try to counter their oppression through the stories they tell others about themselves and reclaim agency over their own lives. I examine the possibilities for, and limitations of, storytelling as a means of self-empowerment for these women to counter the unjust …

Exploring Knowledge And Beliefs Of Human Papillomavirus (Hpv) Infection And Hpv Vaccination Among U.S. Chinese International Students, Haijuan Gao

Open Access Dissertations

The Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine provides an effective prevention strategy against HPV infection, cervical cancer, and genital warts. As increasing numbers of Chinese international students (CIS) are living and studying in United States, this specific ethnic group has become the candidate for HPV vaccination promotion. Despite an increased awareness and knowledge of HPV infection and HPV vaccine among U.S. college students, studies focused on CIS as a unique ethnic group regarding HPV vaccine promotion were limited. This project is the first time aimed to examine CIS's awareness, knowledge and beliefs about HPV infection, HPV vaccine, cervical cancer and genital warts. …

The Traumatic State Of Psychology: An Investigation Of The Challenges Psychologists Face When Aiming To Help Trauma Survivors In Post-Apartheid South Africa, Rohan Arcot

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This project will sought to investigate the difficult role that psychologists play in post-apartheid South Africa, particularly when they are trying to create meaningful change for trauma survivors from the apartheid era. Many survivors found the results of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) unsatisfactory, and thus still suffer from trauma (Kagee, Naidoo, & Van Wyk, 2013). There is a clear need in the present society of South Africa for a system which helps these trauma survivors find reconciliation and make peace with the atrocities of the past. Part of this system is the counseling psychologists that focus on the …

Ouch, That Hurts: Childbirth-Related Pain Management And The Inappropriate Replacement Of Traditional Obstetrical Knowledge In Kumaon, Uttarakhand, India, Sabrina Zionts

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Throughout India, obstetrical knowledge and practice has been developed and passed down by generations of women. In many Indian societies, traditional birth attendants, or dais, remain the gatekeepers of childbirth-related knowledge. Yet with the push towards institutional delivery, traditional knowledge and practices are being increasingly replaced with modern and Western ones. While the trend of hospital deliveries has yielded positive health outcomes, its socio-cultural consequences remain unclear. Situated in Uttarakhand’s Kumaon Himalayas, this study employs a bio-social framework and begins to reveal these consequences. Using labor pain management as an entry point, this study argues that the push towards institutional …

Financial Literacy And College Students: An Exploration Of College Students’ Attitudes, Behaviors, Influences And Preparedness For Financial Decisions After Graduation, Kerry Quirk

Honors Projects in Finance

Financial literacy is the level of understanding an individual has for different financial topics, including but not limited to, investment vehicles, retirement accounts, saving, budgeting, credit and taxes, and the use of such knowledge to change one’s financial behavior to create a more positive financial position for the future. Past research has shown that college students consistently have low levels of financial literacy. They also lack knowledgeable influences on their financial education. Because many college students will soon enter the workforce after graduation and will be responsible for managing their own salary, retirement accounts and investment options, they can be …

Effects Of Online Sponsored Advertising On Consumer Attitudes, Cassidy Maksy

Honors Projects in Marketing

Effectively utilizing persuasion techniques in advertising is essential for businesses to master in order to stay ahead of its competitors. This research project investigates the ways in which marketers advertise brands and products in the online environment, specifically on the social networking sites Twitter and Facebook. More specifically, the implementation of different techniques and credibility of sources will be examined to help gauge the effectiveness of advertisements. By utilizing the constructs of the Persuasion Knowledge Model and source credibility, the attitudes toward brands and advertisements within the online environment was tested. The goal of this research is to evaluate the …

Decreasing Bystanders’ Negative Judgments Of Parents Of Children With Autism, Mary Lutter

Senior Honors Projects

Although parents of children with autism often feel stigmatized or judged by bystanders in public situations, the present research attempted to translate these individual reports into empirical data. Ninety-nine students from the John Carroll University Psychology pool participated in this 2 x 2 between subjects design that manipulated whether an individual was informed or uninformed of a diagnosis of autism when observing a child with autism having a temper-tantrum. Then, all the participants rated the parent and child using The Parenting Scale: a measure of dysfunctional parenting in discipline situations and The Eyberg Child Behavior Inventory. Next, all the participants …

Microhabitat Use Affects Goby (Gobiidae) Cue Choice In Spatial Learning Task, G. E. White, C. Brown

Sentience Collection

This study investigated whether spatial learning ability and cue use of gobies (Gobiidae) from two contrasting habitats differed in a spatial task. Gobies were collected from the spatially complex rock pools and dynamic, homogenous sandy shores. Fishes were trained to locate a shelter under the simulated threat of predation and it was determined whether they used local or extra-maze (global) and geometric cues to do so. It was hypothesized that fishes from rock pools would outperform fishes from sandy shores in their ability to relocate shelter and the two groups would differ in their cue use. It was found that …

Possible Bias In Asset Valuations: An Application Of The Fraud Risk Triangle To Divorce Cases, Jennifer Tomasetti

Honors Projects in Accounting

No abstract provided.

The Effect Of Message Framing And Gender On The Likelihood Of Donating Money To The John Carroll University 'Carroll Fund', John P. Fissinger

Senior Honors Projects

Message framing is a strategy many campaign marketers use to make their donating recruitment more effective, and there is a growing interest in research regarding their effectiveness (Buda & Zhang, 2000; Chang 2007; Chang & Lee, 2009, 2010; Das et al., 2008). Several different types of message framing have been investigated in prior research on charitable giving including positive versus negative message-framing and egotistic versus altruistic message-framing. Prior research on applying Kahneman and Tversky‘s Prospect Theory (1981) on positive and negative message framing to charitable donations has indicated negative message-framing is more effective than positive message-framing for securing donations (Chang …

Job Analysis: Measuring Accuracy And Capturing Multiple Perspectives, Deann H. Arnold

Doctoral Dissertations

Organizations rely on job analysis to provide information about the work performed and requirements needed for a position. The use of inaccurate information may have negative outcomes, such as the misallocation of human resources or inefficient training programs. Many job analysis techniques rely on averaging responses, which may oversimplify the results. Preserving idiosyncratic variance, which reflects differences in the ways in which respondents experience and evaluate the job, may increase job analysis accuracy. To assess overall accuracy, the job analysis data in the present study was examined utilizing a practical model of accuracy (Prien, Prien, & Wooten, 2003). To detect …

Energy Drink Consumption And Stress Levels Of Undergraduate College Students Who Are Introverts And Extroverts, Katrina Newlon

Posters

The purpose of this quantitative comparative analysis study was to determine the difference between perceived stress levels, and caffeine consumption (energy drinks) among undergraduate college students who are introverts and extroverts. Study questions include: Is there a difference in levels of caffeine consumption (energy drinks) and students who are introverts and students who are extroverts? Is there a difference between students who consume caffeine (energy drinks) and stress levels? IRB approval was obtained for this study. Participants (N = 93) were Undergraduate students and a sample of convenience. The study consisted of men (n = 47) and women (n = …

An Examination Of The Perceived Fairness Of Pregnancy Leave Practices, Pamela N. Wheeler

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

As the number of women entering postsecondary education continues to increase (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2014), universities will be tasked with ensuring that their pregnancy leave policies and practices are aligned with the principles of organizational justice. When organizations are aware of the perceptions of both decision makers and those affect by decisions, they are able to alter policies and practices in a way that promotes perceptions of fairness. The present study examines department head and faculty member perceptions of pregnancy leave practices in a university setting. This study is a replication/follow-up of two studies conducted in 2005 and …

Motor Skill Learning Between Selection And Execution., Jörn Diedrichsen, Katja Kornysheva

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

Learning motor skills evolves from the effortful selection of single movement elements to their combined fast and accurate production. We review recent trends in the study of skill learning which suggest a hierarchical organization of the representations that underlie such expert performance, with premotor areas encoding short sequential movement elements (chunks) or particular component features (timing/spatial organization). This hierarchical representation allows the system to utilize elements of well-learned skills in a flexible manner. One neural correlate of skill development is the emergence of specialized neural circuits that can produce the required elements in a stable and invariant fashion. We discuss …

The Human Motor System Alters Its Reaching Movement Plan For Task-Irrelevant, Positional Forces., Joshua G A Cashaback, Heather R Mcgregor, Paul L Gribble

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

The minimum intervention principle and the uncontrolled manifold hypothesis state that our nervous system only responds to force perturbations and sensorimotor noise if they affect task success. This idea has been tested in muscle and joint coordinate frames and more recently using workspace redundancy (e.g., reaching to large targets). However, reaching studies typically involve spatial and or temporal constraints. Constrained reaches represent a small proportion of movements we perform daily and may limit the emergence of natural behavior. Using more relaxed constraints, we conducted two reaching experiments to test the hypothesis that humans respond to task-relevant forces and ignore task-irrelevant …

Seasonal Change In The Avian Hippocampus., David F Sherry, Scott A Macdougall-Shackleton

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

The hippocampus plays an important role in cognitive processes, including memory and spatial orientation, in birds. The hippocampus undergoes seasonal change in food-storing birds and brood parasites, there are changes in the hippocampus during breeding, and further changes occur in some species in association with migration. In food-storing birds, seasonal change in the hippocampus occurs in fall and winter when the cognitively demanding behaviour of caching and retrieving food occurs. The timing of annual change in the hippocampus of food-storing birds is quite variable, however, and appears not to be under photoperiod control. A variety of factors, including cognitive performance, …

Developmental Specialization Of The Left Parietal Cortex For The Semantic Representation Of Arabic Numerals: An Fmr-Adaptation Study, Stephan E. Vogel, Celia Goffin, Daniel Ansari

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

The way the human brain constructs representations of numerical symbols is poorly understood. While increasing evidence from neuroimaging studies has indicated that the intraparietal sulcus (IPS) becomes increasingly specialized for symbolic numerical magnitude representation over developmental time, the extent to which these changes are associated with age-related differences in symbolic numerical magnitude representation or with developmental changes in non-numerical processes, such as response selection, remains to be uncovered. To address these outstanding questions we investigated developmental changes in the cortical representation of symbolic numerical magnitude in 6- to 14-year-old children using a passive functional magnetic resonance imaging adaptation design, thereby …

The Untapped Potential Of Introvert Leaders, Marina A. Pawlaczyk

Selected Honors Theses

Academic research shows that extroverts are generally seen as more productive and

effective leaders than their introvert counterparts because they possess the characteristics our society has so often revered (Grant, Gino, & Hofmann, 2009). With the rise of the “extrovert ideal” throughout our society, introverts are left wondering what role they play when it comes to leadership (Cain, 2013). Through examples of four successful introvert leaders (Susan Cain, Warren Buffett, Laura Bush, and Bill Gates), it can be derived that it is not the personality that makes the leader but, rather, the passion, drive, and self-actualization of the individual. With …

Hardiness: The Key To A Well-Adjusted College Experience, Amanda M. Munsterteiger

Honors Theses, 1963-2015

Hardiness is a personal attribute commonly sought in the workplace and greatly valued in students of all ages. This study examined hardiness in relation to stress, happiness, and gender. Ninety undergraduate students from two colleges in the Upper Midwest completed standard surveys on these constructs. It was hypothesized that hardiness would be negatively correlated with stress and positively correlated with happiness. It was also hypothesized that females would report higher hardiness scores than males. The first two hypotheses regarding stress and happiness were tested with bivariate correlations and were found to be significant (p < .01). These results were consistent with previous research findings. The test of the third hypothesis, by means of an independent t-test, unexpectedly revealed—contrary to the hypothesis—that males were hardier than females. Few previous studies have been conducted on the relationship between gender and hardiness. There are limitations in this study, such as sample variability and internal consistency levels, which hinder its external validity.

Happiness And Time Preference: An Empirical Analysis Of Individual Happiness And Information On Intertemporal Choice And Delaying Gratification, Daniel Flesher

Honors Theses, 1963-2015

Individuals tend to discount the future, meaning they value a reward more in the present than the same reward in the future. Research indicates there are several consequences to the rate one discounts the future, suggesting those who value the future more have better life outcomes. Because of the ramifications of such decisions, this study explores the dynamic of the relationship between discounting and one’s happiness. Participants indicated an indifference point for given present values for given time periods in the future, using both money and periods happiness as hypothetical rewards. These indifference points allow for the calculation of various …

Electrophysiological Changes Of N100 Latency And Amplitude In Healthy Participants Performing The Jitter Orientated Visual Integration Task: A Multi-Block Design Study, Fariya Naz

University Scholar Projects

The present study investigated the differences in processing during visual integration in healthy adults. The visual N100 indexes early visual discrimination and in this case, was hypothesized to show differences in both latency and amplitude depending on the level of difficulty which corresponds to orientational jitter in a visual integration task. Four blocks with pseudo-random levels of jitter were presented to participants in the Jitter Oriented Visual Integration (JOVI) task. Results looking at the Oz channel showed significant reduction in amplitude in the visual N100 during the more difficult levels condition of the task. The multi-block design, originally expected to …

Deconstructing Counselling: The Complexity Of Psychosocial Support Services In Nakivale Refugee Settlement, Emily Luba

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This research analyzes the psychosocial social support component of Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS) services in Nakivale Refugee Settlement. The objectives are (1) to define psychosocial support (2) to contextualize what services are being provided in Nakivale (3) to analyze what challenges exist for providing adequate support and (4) to discuss some strategies being employed by refugees and service-providers to combat these difficult circumstances.

56 semi-structured individual and group interviews and 2 focus group discussions were conducted to reach 96 respondents. This total includes Congolese, Rwandan, Burundian, Somali, and Ethiopian male and female refugees and organization representatives from the …

Increasing Career Exploratory Behavior Through Message Framing, Lauren Elizabeth Tressler

Doctoral Dissertations

Career indecision is a growing problem for present day college students. As more and more students attend college right out of high school, rates of' indecision are also rising. The consequences of this include increased time to graduation, increased student loans, and decreased likelihood of career satisfaction and fit. While most institutions of higher learning offer services to help students choose a major and career path, these services remain underutilized. Research in this area has focused on investigating the effectiveness of these interventions, with little attention given to methods of increasing utilization of these services as well as career exploratory …

Multimodal Sensory Integration For Perception And Action In High Functioning Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Nicole Marie Gregor Salowitz

Dissertations (1934 -)

Movement disorders are the earliest observed features of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) present in infancy. Yet we do not understand the neural basis for impaired goal-directed movements in this population. To reach for an object, it is necessary to perceive the state of the arm and the object using multiple sensory modalities (e.g. vision, proprioception), to integrate those sensations into a motor plan, to execute the plan, and to update the plan based on the sensory consequences of action. In this dissertation, I present three studies in which I recorded hand paths of children with ASD and typically developing (TD) …