Psychology Commons^™

A Systems Approach To Stress And Resilience In Humans: Mindfulness Meditation, Aging, And Cognitive Function, Barry S. Oken

Dissertations and Theses

Psychological stress is common and contributes to many physical and mental health problems. Its effects are mediated by a complex neurobiological system centering in the brain with effectors including autonomic nervous system, hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, inflammatory system, and gene expression. A stressor pushes the human physiological system away from its baseline state towards a lower utility state. The physiological system may return towards the original state but may be shifted to a lower utility state. While some physiological changes induced by stressors may benefit health, chronic stressors usually have negative effects on health. In contrast to this stressor effect is the …

The Prenatal Environment In Twin Studies: A Review On Chorionicity, Kristine Marceau, Minni T.B. Mcmaster, Taylor F. Smith, Joost G. Daams, Catharina E.M. Van Beijsterveldt, Dorret I. Boomsma, Valerie S. Knopik

Psychology and Child Development

A literature search was conducted to identify articles examining the association of chorionicity (e.g., whether twins share a single chorion and thus placenta or have separate chorions/placentas) and genetics, psychiatry/behavior, and neurological manifestations in humans twins and higher-order multiples. The main aim was to assess how frequently chorionicity has been examined in relation to heritability estimates, and to assess which phenotypes may be most sensitive to, or affected by, bias in heritability estimates because of chorionicity. Consistent with the theory that some chorionicity effects could lead to overestimation and others to underestimation of heritability, there were instances of each across …

Symbolic Numerical Magnitude Processing Is As Important To Arithmetic As Phonological Awareness Is To Reading, Kiran Vanbinst, Daniel Ansari, Bert De Smedt

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

In this article, we tested, using a 1-year longitudinal design, whether symbolic numerical magnitude processing or children’s numerical representation of Arabic digits, is as important to arithmetic as phonological awareness is to reading. Children completed measures of symbolic comparison, phonological awareness, arithmetic, reading at the start of third grade and the latter two were retested at the start of fourth grade. Cross-sectional and longitudinal correlations indicated that symbolic comparison was a powerful domain-specific predictor of arithmetic and that phonological awareness was a unique predictor of reading. Crucially, the strength of these independent associations was not significantly different. This indicates that …

Inmate Education As A Service Learning Opportunity For Students: Preparation, Benefits, And Lessons Learned, Cheryl L. Meyer, Megan K. Harned, Amanda Schaad, Katherine Sunder, Judson Palmer, Christy Tinch

School of Professional Psychology Faculty Publications

There is mounting evidence that prison inmates benefit from educational opportunities but may not be offered to them. In addition, when they are offered, priority is given to prisoners who will be released in the near future, and those serving long-term or life sentences are less likely to have access to classes. A service learning opportunity was created where students taught a life span development class to women serving long-term sentences. This article provides a guide to setting up the class while avoiding obstacles along the way. It also outlines benefits to students, inmates, supervising faculty, and society. In order …

Pre-Service Interdisciplinary Training In Autism Spectrum Disorders, Terisa P. Gabrielsen, Phd

Journal of Undergraduate Research

This project was designed to give mentoring experience to students across disciplines who were seeking additional knowledge and training in autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Participation in the project was intended to benefit students by giving them more knowledge within their field and across disciplines, helping future patients and clients with ASD and to enhance applications to specialty and graduate programs in related fields. Students produced a large (attendance=150) interdisciplinary training workshop for the community and developed a website collection of autism resources for clinicians and families.

Novel Strategies To Promote Smoking Cessation, Matthew J. Carpenter

Journal of the South Carolina Academy of Science

No abstract provided.

Animal Suffering And Human Bias, Stijn Bruers

Animal Sentience

Ng proposes concrete ways to decrease animal suffering on the basis of commonsense economic logic and research in welfare biology. But to reduce animal suffering effectively in livestock farming, animal experimentation or the natural environment we have to become more aware of our pervasive and spontaneous but unreliable intuitive moral judgments. These can generate biases that prevent us from decreasing animal suffering effectively.

Social Impact Of Alcoholism In The Singaporean Environment, Singapore Management University

Perspectives@SMU

Alcohol addiction is treatable; strong community and familial support is key

Emotional Self-Control, Interpersonal Shame, And Racism As Predictors Of Help-Seeking Attitudes Among Asian Americans: An Application Of The Intrapersonal-Interpersonal-Sociocultural Framework, Paul Youngbin Kim, Dana L. Kendall, Elizabeth S. Chang

SPU Works

The present study is a cross-sectional investigation of emotional self-control, interpersonal shame, and subtle racism as predictors of Asian American attitudes toward professional help-seeking in a sample of Asian American college students (N = 153). The authors applied and extended P. Y. Kim and Lee’s (2014) intrapersonal-interpersonal framework of Asian American help-seeking to include racism as a sociocultural correlate. It was hypothesized that emotional self-control (intrapersonal correlate), interpersonal shame variables of external shame and family shame (interpersonal correlates), and racism (sociocultural correlate) would incrementally predict professional help-seeking attitudes, controlling for previous counseling experience. Participants completed an online survey containing …

Is Social Media Like An Onion?: Exploring The Social Penetration Theory As An Explanation For Viral Responses To Intimate Self-Disclosures, Kristina M. Kays, Rebekah E. Miles, Christopher J. Koch

Faculty Publications - Psychology Department

A recent public FB post about a personal experience with depression went viral within a week. Within a week this post was reposted on numerous media outlets, and shared by others nearly 500,000 times. This post skipped to the third, affective stage, of the Social Penetration Theory.

Seeking Self-Certainty In An Uncertain Time: Attachment Style And Self-Esteem In Emerging Adulthood, Holly M. Rosen

Student Works

Emerging adulthood is a defining period for individuals aged 18-29, marked by unpredictability and excitement as individuals figure out the paths their lives will take with regard to work, relationships, and other domains (Arnett, 2004). The present study investigated associations between attachment style and level of self-esteem for emerging adults, and also attempted to understand the bi-directional influence of developmental stages on attachment style and self-esteem. In addition, the study explored if and how one’s presence in a romantic partnership, whether that partnership be stable or unstable, mediated these relationships. 199 emerging adults completed Levine and Heller’s attachment questionnaire which …

Ua66 Ogden College Of Science & Engineering Newsletter, Cheryl Stevens, Dean

Ogden College of Science & Engineering Publications

No abstract provided.

Disability Visibility And Stigma Threat: Effects On The Performance, Stress, And Self-Control Of Disabled Workers, William Brice

Open Access Theses

Having a stigmatized disability is a depleting experience. For those with a disability, there are many factors that contribute to potential performance decrements in any given situation. Visibility of the disability, and the stigma connected to the disability are two such factors—which I argue based on research on motivation, regulation, and stress, contributes to the regulatory depletion experienced by disabled individuals. I conducted an experimental study where participants took part in a workplace simulation. Participants were given an artificially simulated disability and both the visibility of the disability and the stigmatizing nature of the disability were manipulated. I found a …

An Introduction To Emotional Intelligence, Aiden Carthy, Ailish Jameson

Book/Book Chapter

In recent decades, there has been increasing focus on the role of formal education in empowering students’ social and moral development. A wealth of research evidence has shown that helping students to develop their social and emotional competencies can encourage students’ personal growth and can also yield benefits including increased student engagement and decreased levels of drop-out. However, much of what has been previously published in this field has focused on younger students, and there has been a lesser focus on third level students and educators. Therefore, there is a notable need for a single volume that synopsises the research …

Differential Effect Of Clomipramine On Habituation And Prepulse Inhibition In Dominant Versus Subordinate Rats., Alvin Yang, Tahira Daya, Karen Carlton, Jin Hui Yan, Susanne Schmid

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

Many patients with depression have comorbidities associated with an impairment of sensorimotor gating, such as e.g. schizophrenia, Parkinson Disease, or Alzheimer disease. Anti-depressants like clomipramine that modulate serotonergic or norepinephrinergic neurotransmission have been shown to impact sensorimotor gating, it is therefore important to study potential effects of clomipramine in order to rule out an exacerbation of sensorimotor gating impairment. Prior studies in animals and humans have been inconclusive. Since serotonin and norepinephrine levels are closely related to anxiety and stress levels and therefore to the social status of an animal, we tested the hypothesis that acute and chronic effects of …

Trajectories Of Symbolic And Nonsymbolic Magnitude Processing In The First Year Of Formal Schooling, Anna A. Matejko, Daniel Ansari

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

Sensitivity to numerical magnitudes is thought to provide a foundation for higher-level mathematical skills such as calculation. It is still unclear how symbolic (e.g. Arabic digits) and nonsymbolic (e.g. Dots) magnitude systems develop and how the two formats relate to one another. Some theories propose that children learn the meaning of symbolic numbers by scaffolding them onto a pre-existing nonsymbolic system (Approximate Number System). Others suggest that symbolic and nonsymbolic magnitudes have distinct and non-overlapping representations. In the present study, we examine the developmental trajectories of symbolic and nonsymbolic magnitude processing skills and how they relate to each other in …

Structure And Function Of Gene Regulatory Networks Associated With Worker Sterility In Honeybees., Julia A Sobotka, Mark Daley, Sriram Chandrasekaran, Benjamin D Rubin, Graham J Thompson

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

A characteristic of eusocial bees is a reproductive division of labor in which one or a few queens monopolize reproduction, while her worker daughters take on reproductively altruistic roles within the colony. The evolution of worker reproductive altruism involves indirect selection for the coordinated expression of genes that regulate personal reproduction, but evidence for this type of selection remains elusive. In this study, we tested whether genes coexpressed under queen-induced worker sterility show evidence of adaptive organization within a model brain transcriptional regulatory network (TRN). If so, this structured pattern would imply that indirect selection on nonreproductive workers has influenced …

Effects Of A Consistent Target Or Masker Voice On Target Speech Intelligibility In Two- And Three-Talker Mixtures., Fabienne Samson, Ingrid S Johnsrude

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

When the spatial location or identity of a sound is held constant, it is not masked as effectively by competing sounds. This suggests that experience with a particular voice over time might facilitate perceptual organization in multitalker environments. The current study examines whether listeners benefit from experience with a voice only when it is the target, or also when it is a masker, using diotic presentation and a closed-set task (coordinate response measure). A reliable interaction was observed such that, in two-talker mixtures, consistency of masker or target voice over 3-7 trials significantly benefited target recognition performance, whereas in three-talker …

In Vivo Mri Signatures Of Hippocampal Subfield Pathology In Intractable Epilepsy., Maged Goubran, Boris C Bernhardt, Diego Cantor-Rivera, Jonathan C Lau, Charlotte Blinston, Robert R Hammond, Sandrine De Ribaupierre, Jorge G Burneo, Seyed M Mirsattari, David A Steven, Andrew G Parrent, Andrea Bernasconi, Neda Bernasconi, Terry M Peters, Ali R Khan

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

OBJECTIVES: Our aim is to assess the subfield-specific histopathological correlates of hippocampal volume and intensity changes (T1, T2) as well as diff!usion MRI markers in TLE, and investigate the efficacy of quantitative MRI measures in predicting histopathology in vivo.

EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: We correlated in vivo volumetry, T2 signal, quantitative T1 mapping, as well as diffusion MRI parameters with histological features of hippocampal sclerosis in a subfield-specific manner. We made use of on an advanced co-registration pipeline that provided a seamless integration of preoperative 3 T MRI with postoperative histopathological data, on which metrics of cell loss and gliosis were quantitatively …

Category Learning In Older Adulthood: A Study Of The Shepard, Hovland, And Jenkins (1961) Tasks., Rahel Rabi, John Paul Minda

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

Shepard, Hovland, and Jenkins (1961) examined the categorization abilities of younger adults using tasks involving single-dimensional rule learning, disjunctive rule learning, and family resemblance learning. The current study examined category learning in older adults using this well-known category set. Older adults, like younger adults, found category tasks with a single relevant dimension the easiest to learn. In contrast to younger adults, older adults found complex disjunctive rule-based categories harder to learn than family resemblance based categories. Disjunctive rule-based category learning appeared to be the most difficult for older adults to learn because this category set placed the heaviest demands on …

The Representational-Hierarchical View Of Pattern Separation: Not Just Hippocampus, Not Just Space, Not Just Memory?, B. A. Kent, M. Hvoslef-Eide, L. M. Saksida, T. J. Bussey

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

Pattern separation (PS) has been defined as a process of reducing overlap between similar input patterns to minimize interference amongst stored representations. The present article describes this putative PS process from the "representational-hierarchical" perspective (R-H), which uses a hierarchical continuum instead of a cognitive modular processing framework to describe the organization of the ventral visual perirhinal-hippocampal processing stream. Instead of trying to map psychological constructs onto anatomical modules in the brain, the R-H model suggests that the function of brain regions depends upon what representations they contain. We begin by discussing a main principle of the R-H framework, the resolution …

Trait Positive And Negative Emotionality Differentially Associate Withdiurnal Cortisol Activity, Karissa G. Miller, Aidan G.C. Wright, Laurel M. Peterson, Thomas W. Kamarck, Barbara A. Anderson, Clemens Kirschbaum, Anna L. Marsland, Matthew F. Muldoon

Psychology Faculty Research and Scholarship

Inter-individual variability in metrics of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical (HPA) activity, such asthe slope of the diurnal decline in cortisol, cortisol awakening response (CAR), and total cortisol out-put, have been found to associate inversely with trait ratings of extraversion and positive affect (E/PA)and positively with neuroticism and negative affect (N/NA) in some, but not all, investigations. Theseinconsistencies may partly reflect varied intensity of cortisol sampling among studies and reliance onself-rated traits, which are subject to reporting biases and limitations of introspection. Here, we furtherexamined dispositional correlates of HPA activity in 490 healthy, employed midlife volunteers (M age = 43years; 54% Female; 86% white). …

Psychosocial Adaptation To Disability Within The Context Of Positive Psychology: Philosophical Aspects And Historical Roots, Hanoch Livneh, Erin Martz

Counselor Education Faculty Publications and Presentations

Purpose: The purpose of this article is to review the conceptual and clinical similarities that exist between the principles of positive psychology and those underlying rehabilitation counseling and psychology, occupational rehabilitation, and those espoused by the field of psychosocial adaptation to chronic illness and disability (CID). Methods: Three themes were selected for review. These included the historical contributions of early scholars in the area of psychosocial adaptation to CID that later were indirectly infused into mainstream positive psychology; state and trait constructs that constitute much of the infrastructure of positive psychology and psychosocial adaptation to CID; and, finally, the …

On The Meaning And Measurement Of Maximization, Nathan Norem Cheek , '15, Barry Schwartz

Psychology Faculty Works

Building on Herbert Simon’s critique of rational choice theory, Schwartz et al. (2002) proposed that when making choices, some individuals — maximizers — search extensively through many alternatives with the goal of making the best choice, whereas others — satisficers — search only until they identify an option that meets their standards, which they then choose. They developed the Maximization Scale (MS) to measure individual differences in maximization, and a substantial amount of research has now examined maximization using the MS, painting a picture of maximizers that is generally negative. Recently, however, several researchers have criticized the MS, and almost …

Weight-Based Rejection Sensitivity: Scale Development And Implications For Well-Being, Kimberly Mcclure Brenchley, Diane M. Quinn

Psychology Faculty/Staff Publications

We integrated theories of social stigma and rejection sensitivity to develop a new construct for understanding the effects of day-to-day experiences of interpersonal weight stigma: weight-based rejection sensitivity (W-RS), or a tendency to anxiously expect weight-based rejection. We created a new scale to measure W-RS. Studies 1 and 2 together established the scale as valid and reliable in a college student population. Study 3 examined the outcomes and predictive validity of W-RS by testing the effects of W-RS longitudinally across college students’ first semester. Those who were high in W-RS were found to be at additional risk for compromised psychological …

When Do High And Low Status Group Members Support Confrontation? The Role Of Perceived Pervasiveness Of Prejudice, Kimberly Barsamian Kahn, Manuela Barreto, Cheryl R. Kaiser, Marco Silva Rego

Psychology Faculty Publications and Presentations

This paper examines how perceived pervasiveness of prejudice differentially affects high and low status group members’ support for a low status group member who confronts. In Experiment 1 (N = 228), men and women read a text describing sexism as rare or as pervasive and subsequently indicated their support for a woman who confronted or did not confront a sexist remark. Experiment 2 (N = 324) specified the underlying process using a self-affirmation manipulation. Results show that men were more supportive of confrontation when sexism was perceived to be rare than when it was pervasive. By contrast, women tended to …

The Face Of Humanity: Configural Face Processing Influences Ascriptions Of Humanness, Kurt Hugenberg, Steven Young, Robert J. Rydell, Steven Almaraz, Kathleen A. Stanko, Pirita E. See, John Paul Wilson

Department of Psychology Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Across three studies, we test the hypothesis that the perceived “humanness” of a human face can have its roots, in part, in low-level, feature-integration processes typical of normal face perception—configural face processing. We provide novel evidence that perceptions of humanness/dehumanization can have perceptual roots. Relying on the well-established face inversion paradigm, we demonstrate that disruptions of configural face processing also disrupt the ability of human faces to activate concepts related to humanness (Experiment 1), disrupt categorization of human faces as human (but not animal faces as animals; Experiment 2), and reduce the levels of humanlike traits and characteristics ascribed to …

Learning The Language Of Academic Engineering: Sociocognitive Writing In Graduate Students, Catherine G. P. Berdanier

Open Access Dissertations

Although engineering graduate programs rarely require academic writing courses, the indicators of merit in academic engineering, such as journal publications, successful grants, and doctoral milestones (e.g. theses, dissertations) are based in effective written argumentation and disciplinary discourse. Further, graduate student attrition averages 57% across all disciplines, with some studies classifying up to 50% of these students as “ABD” (All But Dissertation.) In engineering disciplines specifically, graduate attrition rates across the U.S. average 36% (both Master’s and PhD students), according to the Council of Graduate Schools. The lack of socialization is generally noted as a main reason for graduate attrition, one …

Fear Conditioning And Extinction In Youth With Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Joseph F. Mcguire, Scott P. Orr, Monica S. Wu, Adam B. Lewin, Brent J. Small, Vicky Phares, Tanya K. Murphy, Sabine Wilhelm, Daniel S. Pine, Daniel Geller, Eric A. Storch

Psychology Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: Fear acquisition and extinction are central constructs in the cognitive-behavioral model of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), which underlies exposure-based cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). Youth with OCD may have impairments in fear acquisition and extinction that carry treatment implications. We examined these processes using a differential conditioning procedure.

METHODS: Forty-one youth (19 OCD, 22 community comparisons) completed a battery of clinical interviews, rating scales, and a differential conditioning task that included habituation, acquisition, and extinction phases. Skin conductance response (SCR) served as the primary dependent measure.

RESULTS: During habituation, no difference between groups was observed. During acquisition, differential fear conditioning was observed …

Is The Divide A Chasm?: Bridging Affective Science With Clinical Practice, Lauren M. Bylsma, Iris B. Mauss, Johnathan Rottenberg

Psychology Faculty Publications

This special section endeavors to facilitate the integration of biologically-based assessments of emotion into the clinical setting. This goal is consistent with the Research Domain Criteria (RDoC) initiative, which aims to identify transdiagnostic biobehavioral mechanisms that underlie mental disorders. We focus on four challenges to applying biologically-informed research on emotion and emotion regulation to clinical contexts: (1) How do we assess emotion in an RDoC framework? (2) How do we integrate measures of emotion with other systems in a wider context? (3) What do physiological indices of emotion tell us about clinical phenomena? and (4) How do we integrate physiological …