Psychology Commons^™

Empathy Induction To Reduce Victim Blaming In Revenge Porn Cases, Marissa Amber Morris

Theses and Dissertations

Research findings suggest that certain characteristics of victims and perpetrators may make them more likely to be blamed. To this end, the current study examined how victim gender, having a history of infidelity, empathy instructions, and observer gender work together to place blame on victims and perpetrators. Participants read one of eight scenarios that varied the victim’s gender, history of infidelity, and presence of empathy instructions. They then indicated the degree to which various actors were to blame for the occurrence of nonconsensual pornography, as well as their affective reactions toward both the victim and the perpetrator. Overall, affect decreased …

An Exploratory Mixed-Methods Examination Of Empathy And Multiple Intelligences Among Youth Involved In Bullying, Heather Schwartz

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Bullying is a significant issue among school-aged youth, and it is important to examine the underlying mechanisms of these behaviors. Studies have shown that one characteristic found among some children who bully is a lack of empathy. Previous literature examining empathy and bullying has typically relied on the use of self-report data. Few studies have included other ways of evaluating empathy. Self-report data can be limiting, particularly for individuals who possess strengths other than verbal/linguistic. Drawings have been found to reveal insight into children’s emotions and may be more suited to assessing empathy. Studying children’s drawings of bullying, and their …

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 …

Reconnection Group For Individuals Who Have Experienced Interpersonal Trauma: An Explanatory Case Study, Megan Little

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Interpersonal traumas are becoming more common to the general public and the need for services to assist the mental and emotional well-being of survivors is increasing. However, due to the complicated impacts of trauma on the mind, body, and spirit there can be a challenge in finding effective treatment options that are long lasting for trauma symptoms. The purpose of this study was to understand the elements of a trauma group treatment (Reconnection group) modality that utilizes psychodrama as the primary treatment option and incorporates mindfulness and yoga as adjunctive treatments with individuals who have experienced interpersonal trauma. Findings suggest …

On The Ironic Effects Of Being Empathic: Consequences For Attitude Polarization And Intergroup Conflict, Emily Hanson

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Empathy is frequently presented as the solution to intolerance; indeed, President Obama has cited an ‘empathy deficit’ in the conversation surrounding civil rights for minorities, women, and the LGBTQ community (Obama, 2006 ). However, an emerging psychological literature offers a “darker side” of empathy, which accounts for the parochial forces influencing empathic-motivations. Across two studies, the present thesis aims to further understand the parochial nature of empathy in the context of ideologically-based attitudinal polarization. In the first experiment, participants read about a hypothetical instance of heterosexual date rape, and provided their opinions on the male and female targets. Results supported …

Evaluation Of A Social And Emotional Learning Curriculum Integrated Into A Middle School Health Classroom, Stephanie Susan Skiba

Theses and Dissertations

Although approximately one-fourth of adolescents have a mental health disorder only half of them receive treatment. The goal of this study was to determine if Strong Kids, a social and emotional learning curriculum, implemented over a 4-week period could help decrease internalizing symptoms and increase resilience in middle school students, something not previously investigated. This study also measured social and emotional knowledge as measured by the Strong Kids questionnaire. Additionally, treatment fidelity and social validity were measured. The study used a non-equivalent, control group design. The sample consisted of 148 students: 70 in the treatment group and 78 in …

Fitspiration: Social Media's Fitness Culture And Its Effect On Body Image, Makenzie Norton

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

Social media’s largest platforms, especially Facebook and Instagram, has revolutionized the average American’s accessibility to new subcultures, usurping the societal influence of traditional media forms while retaining many of their marketing methods. The following capstone research discusses how the fitness subculture and fitness-related content on social media affects male and female body image and body ideals. Through a content analysis of current literature, I provide connections between the marketing of fitness in American media and its influence on men and women’s body image. Using social comparison theory, I analyze prior research that explains the causes of body dissatisfaction and explain …

From The Lab To The Classroom: Research At The Interface Between Cognitive Science And Education, Ludmila Nunes

IMPACT Presentations

Presented at the 29th Association for Psychological Science (APS) Annual Convention in Boston, MA.

A Look Into Lookism: An Evaluation Of Discrimination Based On Physical Attractiveness, Cherea Hammer

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

Discrimination in employment on the basis of race, sex, national origin, religion, and other federally protected categories is well recognized as a social problem and anti-discrimination legislation works to limit the impact of discrimination on marginalized populations. However, most people do not consider discrimination based on physical appearance. “Lookism” captures the idea that an individual can be discriminated against based on their physical appearance or physical attractiveness and can also be called physical attractiveness discrimination. In recent years, the prevalence of the issue of physical attractiveness discrimination has been brought to the attention of professionals dealing with employment and has …

The Relationship Between Competitive State Anxiety And Imagery Ability In High School Track And Field Athletics, Bryson Thomas Grondel

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between imagery ability, subcomponents of competitive state anxiety, and performance outcomes in high school track and field athletes during the competitive season. Following IRB approval and parental consent, sixteen participants were recruited to participate in a four-week study using two thoroughly validated assessment tools: The Sport's Imagery Questionnaire (SIQ) and The Competitive State Anxiety Inventory #2 (CSAI-2). This study explored imagery ability by qualifying several aspects of imagery ability. Instead of focusing exclusively on frequency, (a commonly cited limitation to the applicability of the SIQ) the SIQ was modified to …

Attribution Of Blame In Rape: The Role Of Race, Alice Genna

Student Theses

Reports have shown that about 18 percent of women and 1 percent of men in the United States reported experiencing rape in the past (Center for Disease and Control Prevention, 2011). In addition, a previous study has shown that victims of rape are often reluctant to report the incidents, because they fear society’s perceptions of rape (Deming, Covan, Swan & Billings, 2013). Given this, it is important to study factors influencing individuals’ attribution of blame in rape. While many studies have focused on the role of gender, sexual orientation, and alcohol influence in perceptions of rape, research on the role …

Effects Of Defendant Group Status And Inclusion Of A Lesser Charge On Participant-Juror Verdict Preferences, Brittany Decesare

Student Theses

Black, Hispanic and White participant-jurors read a murder trial transcript in which the defendant belonged to either one of the other racial/ethnic groups (outgroup) or their own racial/ethnic group (ingroup). In the two-verdict condition, participants were provided with two verdict options: guilty or not guilty. In the three-verdict condition, participant-jurors were provided with three verdict options: guilty of second-degree murder (primary charge), guilty of voluntary manslaughter (lesser charge) or not guilty. In all conditions, participants provided their verdict preference, verdict certainty, the defendant’s likelihood of guilt and the strength of evidence. Participants in the two-verdict condition indicated higher proportions of …

An Exploration Of Youth Experiences In Chatrooms, Emily A. Greene-Colozzi

Student Theses

Internet predation of minors has increasingly become a focus of child abuse research and legislation. Concerns have arisen regarding “online grooming,” the ongoing process during which an adult offender prepares a child for sexual abuse by gaining emotional access to the child through an intimate online relationship. The present study provided one of the first comprehensive examinations of a victim's perspective of online grooming. Participants were 374 male and female college students at a public undergraduate institution who completed an online survey covering demographics, lifestyle factors, and experiences online of sexual solicitation or online grooming. Results showed that approximately 30% …

Retrieval-Induced Forgetting Via Social Media: The Mnemonic Consequences Of Posting Pictures On Instagram, Chi Lap Wong

Student Theses

Social media has become a common tool for individuals to selectively offload personal memories to the internet. Such selectivity may reinforce the posted “memory” but induce forgetting for related “memories” (Anderson, Bjork, & Bjork, 1994). To explore this possibility, the present study adopted the retrieval-induced forgetting paradigm to the context of social media, Instagram. Participants were required to write a diary attached with pictures relevant to the events and then post pictures to the Instagram, followed by the final recall test. The results indicated that posting personal pictures online induced forgetting in related memories but not pictures, and posting …

The Effects Of Real Words On The Pronunciation Of Nonwords, Jill Metzger

Honors Scholar Theses

Certain letter strings in the English language can be pronounced in multiple different ways. This study looked at how college students’ pronunciations of nonwords with ambiguous letter strings were influenced by real word primes. The nonwords were directly derived from real words with identical letter strings. Subjects saw real words that had either the default pronunciation or alternative pronunciation of that letter string. Results showed there were a higher proportion of alternative responses to nonwords primed by words with alternative pronunciations. These findings support previous research that shows the pronunciation of nonwords can be affected by priming or tasks that …

Trust In Direct Leader And Employee Outcomes: The Moderating Effects Of Leaders’ Perceived Emotional Sincerity, Christopher Morgan

Masters Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Emotional sincerity, an emerging construct in the trust in leadership literature, refers to the congruence between emotions internally experienced and externally expressed. With regard to attribution theory, observers (employees) can use the emotional expressions of others (supervisors) as an information source for making judgments. Although previous research has examined the uniqueness and explanatory power of the leaders’ perceived emotional sincerity construct (LPES), relatively few studies have examined LPES as a moderator. The present study examined the moderating effects of LPES on well-established relationships between trust in direct leader (TDL) and several employee outcomes (i.e., turnover intentions, altruistic behaviors, and organizational …

The Role Of Resilience, Emotion Regulation, And Perceived Stress On College Academic Performance, Katherine A. Pendergast

Masters Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Stress is a common problem for college students. The goal of this thesis was to examine the relationships between protective and risk factors to experiencing stress and how these factors may predict academic performance in college students. 125 college students were surveyed twice over the course of a semester on emotion regulation strategies, trait resilience, and perceived stress. The relationships between these variables and semester GPA were analyzed using correlational, multiple regression, and hierarchical regression analyses. It was determined that trait resilience scores do predict use of emotion regulation strategies but change in stress and trait resilience do not significantly …

Examining The Impact Of Selection Practices On Subsequent Employee Engagement, Sofia N. Rodriguez

Masters Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Employee engagement is often defined as the vigor, dedication, and absorption one feels about and/or displays within their job. It has long been asserted that engagement is highest for employees who “fit” better with their work. Applicants determine their anticipated levels of fit throughout the selection process. Therefore, it is crucial that the information organizations provide will allow applicants to make accurate assumptions of fit to increase the probability that the vacancy will be filled by an applicant best suited for the position. This study was designed to identify if the practices used during organizations’ selection processes influence the accuracy …

The Effect Of Unresolved Interruptions On Prospective Memory, Joseph T. Slayton

Masters Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

I investigated how memory for future intentions (termed prospective memory or PM) was impacted by interruptions, unresolved interruptions, and delays. The PM task was to shop for eight items within an environmental sustainability rating task. A comedy routine appeared after participants had rated several items for both interruption groups, while the delay group viewed the comedy routine before beginning the shopping task. In the unresolved interruption group the comedy routine never reached its conclusion. I predicted that 1) PM performance would be hindered by interruptions with the unresolved group performing worst, 2) that working memory capacity would moderate effects of …

A Study Of The Effects Of Methylene Blue, Scopolamine, And Stress On Learning And Memory In The Zebrafish, Erika Marie Caramillo

Dissertations

With the ever-increasing aging population, neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease are becoming more prevalent. Owing to such increases in age related cognitive decline, the need for research into new, effective treatments is more imperative now than ever. The zebrafish is an excellent animal model that can be used to study the potential pharmacological effects of novel cognition-centric treatments. However, more needs to be known about the species and its ability to learn, remember, and the effects certain drugs have on behavior. In this dissertation, I aimed to better understand zebrafish cognition through the testing of three conditions: a known …

Anxiety-Like Behaviors And C-Fos Expression In Adult Zebrafish: Effects Of Housing Conditions, Alcohol And Caffeine, Adam Douglas Collier

Dissertations

Alcohol abuse is the third largest risk factor for disease world, responsible for an estimated 3.3 million deaths each year. The concomitant ingestion of alcohol and caffeine is hypothesized to increase risk factors associated with alcohol use alone by reducing subjective effects of intoxication. The zebrafish (Danio rerio) has recently garnered attention from researchers as an effective pre-clinical in-vivo animal model in behavioral pharmacology research, largely due to small size, low-cost and ease of drug delivery. A number of studies have reported the effects of alcohol and caffeine on zebrafish behavior at a variety of doses. However, the …

Efficacy Of Cognitive Enrichment For Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops Truncatus): Evaluation Of Planning Abilities Through The Use Of A Novel Problem Solving Task, Lisa Kay Lauderdale

Dissertations

Environmental enrichment is a key component to improving the psychological and physiological well being of animals in human care. Enrichment can be achieved through a variety of modalities, including the addition of objects and scents, or by providing the animals with additional challenges. The effectiveness of specific enrichment should be evaluated on a case-by-case basis to determine if the desired result is achieved. Environmental enrichment devices (EED’s) can be utilized to present novel problems to animals in human care. When confronted with a novel problem, dolphins can plan their behavior to create a more efficient strategy then previously modeled.

The …

The Relationship Between Social Status Motivation And The Detection Of Trustworthy And Affiliative Cues In Faces, Christopher J. Lustgraaf

Dissertations

A prominent feature of human (and non-human primate) social group structure involves the establishment and maintenance of a social hierarchy; that is, social groups are arranged hierarchically, based on individuals’ level of status, and conspecifics who more effectively ascend this status hierarchy accrue more reproductive and resource benefits (Hawley, 1999). Thus, for any individual, other group members could be either a threat to one’s status, or an ally to assist status goals, and accurate identification of these various social targets would have adaptive utility in status maintenance or status hierarchy ascension. The current study tested the hypotheses that activation of …

Video Game Engagement, Gender, And Age: Examining Similarities And Differences In Motivation Between Those Who May Or May Not Play Video Games, Joseph Camarata

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research aims to fill a research gap by examining video games to explore whether gender, age, or hours played per week would exert any influence on the information of those who may or may not play video games. Mood Management Theory and Uses and Gratification Theory were used as the theoretical foundation for this study. Four-hundred-three East Tennessee State University students who received the survey via email were asked to voluntarily participate in a survey about their motivations behind playing video games. Results from MANOVA showed that the motivations of male participants on video games were significantly higher than …

Assessing The Relationship Between Change Blindness And The Anchoring Effect, Melissa Schoenlein

Honors Projects

A lack of consideration for all aspects of a question prompts fragmented decision making. These decisions, as they leave out fundamental information, repeatedly then lead to a potentially problematic reaction to the target question or stimuli. The anchoring heuristic propels one to make a decision, usually an estimate, based on a presented “fact”, often ignoring additional background and environmental clues. Reducing the rate of occurrence of the anchoring bias is thought to lead to an increase in holistic decision making. To promote this reduction, the purpose of this research was to affirmexamine the relationship between the susceptibility to change blindness …

The Effects Of Meditation On Brain Organization And The Implications For Treating Adhd, Talia Gibson

Honors Projects

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has recently become increasingly diagnosed for children and adolescents. As of now, the most common treatment method is medication, with the purpose of changing brain organization. Recently, however, there has been increasing interest in the use of mindfulness meditation to treat the symptoms associated with ADHD. In this paper, eleven different studies, which have introduced mindfulness meditation as a treatment method for ADHD, are analyzed. The studies measure the degree to which mindfulness meditation improves common symptoms associated with ADHD. These symptoms include attentional problems, reduced mindful awareness, externalizing and internalizing problems, reduced self-control, impaired social behavior, …

Mindfulness And Alcohol-Related Problems Among Individuals With Fibromyalgia: Chronic Pain And Depressive Symptoms As Mediators, Julie I. Morrissey

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Mindfulness is a cognitive attribute that is associated with better health and well-being. Fibromyalgia is a neurosensory disorder primarily characterized by chronic pain and comorbid depression, leading to an increased risk for alcohol-related problems. Empirical literature confirms mindfulness has beneficial associations with chronic pain, depression, alcohol-related problems, and fibromyalgia. Mindfulness may lead to better health and well-being by facilitating self-monitoring, objective reperceiving, and purposeful changing of health-related behaviors. It was hypothesized that higher levels of mindfulness would be related to lower levels of chronic pain and depressive symptoms, and, in turn, to fewer alcohol-related problems among individuals with fibromyalgia. Cross-sectional …

Neuroticism And Ego Depletion Patterns, Parker A. Dreves

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Self-control has been defined as the ability to override or alter an automatic response. Past research has suggested that those who are higher in the personality trait neuroticism display poorer self-control. Based on theory suggesting that self-control is a limited resource, the present study attempts to explain the relationship between neuroticism and self-control. Understanding that neuroticism is characterized by emotional instability, it follows that individuals high in neuroticism must exert more self-control in managing their negative moods, thus leaving them depleted for future acts of self-control. Participants (n = 84) completed measures of trait self-control, engaged in an emotional regulation …

Spirituality And Suicidal Behavior: The Mediating Role Of Self-Forgiveness And Psychache, Benjamin B. Hall

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Growing evidence for protective factors of spirituality against physical and mental health related outcomes has led to the consideration of spirituality as a protective factor for suicidal behaviors. Although initial support for this association is promising, spirituality has yet to be explored as it relates to psychache. Additionally, self-forgiveness has emerged as an important protective factor of suicidal behavior, but has not been explored in the context of psychache. Following a model developed by Webb, Hirsch, and Toussaint (2015), the current project explores the protective role of spirituality on suicidal behavior based on three dimensions of spirituality: ritualistic, theistic, and …

Difference In Quality Of Life Between Group And Individual Exercise In A Faith-Based Sample, Everett Jackson Amburn

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

There is limited data on the quality of life of individuals who exercise in a group versus individuals who exercise alone. The purpose of this study was to determine if there is a difference in the quality life between adults who attend an exercise class and those who exercise alone. Using the WHOQOL-BREF, 27 adult females were surveyed in Central California at two Church of Latter Day Saints locations. Ten females were enrolled in a group exercise class while 17 were individual exercisers. The data was analyzed using a t-test for independent samples to determine if there is a …