Psychology Commons^™

Aging And Visual Spatial Integration, Alexia J. Higginbotham

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The current study evaluated the ability of 20 younger and 20 older adults to discriminate shapes depicted by Glass patterns. On any given trial, observers identified a particular pattern as either possessing a radial or concentric organization. Detecting a shape defined by a Glass pattern requires the successful detection of the orientations of its constituent local dipoles. In addition, long-range processes are needed to integrate the spatially separated dipoles into perceivable contours that have a particular (e.g., radial or concentric) organization. In the current experiment, the shapes were defined by either 40 or 200 oriented dipoles spread over an area …

Conflict Management Training In Video-Based Teams, Alexis Ward

Master's Theses

In the wake of an emerging economy that demands organizational agility, globalization and an increasing number of independent contractors, corporations have exponentially incorporated virtual teams in their organizations. However, despite their financial and geographical convenience, research has indicated that virtual teams have consistently experienced more conflict and lowered performance and satisfaction levels than that of their traditional counterparts. The present study sought to examine whether conflict management training could help video based virtual teams demonstrate more positive conflict handling techniques and less negative techniques, which would result in higher group process and group outcome satisfaction. This study did not find …

Belief Bias And Representation In Assessing The Bayesian Rationality Of Others, Richard B. Anderson, Laura Marie Leventhal, Don C. Zhang, Daniel Fasko Jr., Zachariah Basehore, Christopher Gamsby, Jared Branch, Timothy Patrick

Psychology Faculty Publications

People often assess the reasonableness of another person’s judgments. When doing so, the evaluator should set aside knowledge that would not have been available to the evaluatee to assess whether the evaluatee made a reasonable decision, given the available information. But under what circumstances does the evaluator set aside information? On the one hand, if the evaluator fails to set aside prior information, not available to the evaluatee, they exhibit belief bias. But on the other hand, when Bayesian inference is called for, the evaluator should generally incorporate prior knowledge about relevant probabilities in decision making. The present research integrated …

Family Environment And Pediatric Sickle Cell Disease: Patterns Of Health Care Utilization And Academic Achievement, Joanna Tsikis

Theses and Dissertations

Sickle cell disease (SCD) is the most common group of genetic, chronic hematologic disorders, and is characterized by chronic pain resulting from vaso-occlusive episodes. As such, youth with SCD utilize a disproportionately high amount of health care resources. Youth with frequent health care utilization (HCU) are at increased risk for psychosocial consequences, including disruptions in family functioning and decreased academic performance. While studies have separately examined HCU, family functioning, and academic achievement in this population, there is a dearth of research examining the association between these variables. The present study aimed to: (1) examine associations between family environment and patterns …

Social Support Satisfaction As A Protective Factor For Postpartum Maternal Distress, Amy-Lynn Elisabeth Anderson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Social support has been identified as a protective factor for postpartum maternal distress, a prevalent women's health issue, and most research focuses on the amount of support women receive. However, research in this area has failed to explore whether increasing satisfaction with social support may be a worthwhile approach to alleviating postpartum maternal distress, beyond increasing amounts. There is also little known regarding specific aspects of support, like satisfaction with emotional and instrumental support, that might lead to differences in postpartum distress outcomes. In this prospective, longitudinal study, we hypothesized that greater social support satisfaction will be associated with less …

Kidled: A Colorful Approach To Children's Activity Awareness, Ankita Samariya, Anud Sharma, Margiawan Fitriani, Tucker Ferguson, Jerry Alan Fails

Computer Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

Obesity in children is a growing cause of concern as it affects more than 18% of children in the United States. Sedentary behaviour is one of the contributors to childhood obesity. Technological interventions like activity trackers and fitness games have been introduced to motivate both children and adults to be physically active. Most of these technologies encourage activity by making them aware of their activity levels. While awareness of current activity levels may help motivating adults, it can be difficult for children to understand their activity levels in terms of number of steps (the most common method used by adults). …

Multimodal Event Knowledge In Online Sentence Comprehension: The Influence Of Visual Context On Anticipatory Eye Movements, Valentina Benedettini, Pier Marco Bertinetto, Alessandro Lenci, Ken Mcrae

Psychology Publications

People predict incoming words during online sentence comprehension based on their knowledge of real-world events that is cued by preceding linguistic contexts. We used the visual world paradigm to investigate how event knowledge activated by an agent-verb pair is integrated with perceptual information about the referent that fits the patient role. During the verb time window participants looked significantly more at the referents that are expected given the agent-verb pair. Results are consistent with the assumption that event-based knowledge involves perceptual properties of typical participants. The knowledge activated by the agent is compositionally integrated with knowledge cued by the verb …

Individual Differences In Cognitive Map Accuracy: Investigating The Role Of Landmark Familiarity, Nicole L. Youngson, Megan Vollebregt, Jennifer Sutton

Psychology Publications

Broad individual differences exist in the ability to create a cognitive map of a new environment. The current studies investigated whether familiarizing participants with to-be-learned target landmarks (Experiment 1) or target landmarks plus the order they would be encountered along routes (Experiment 2) before exploring the Silcton virtual environment would increase performance on tasks assaying spatial memory of Silcton. Participants in both experiments were randomly assigned to be pre-exposed either to information about target landmarks in Silcton or control landmarks on the university campus. In both experiments, participants explored Silcton via four prescribed routes and then performed a direction estimation …

A Randomized Controlled Trial Of Internet-Delivered Cbt And Attention Bias Modification For Early Intervention Of Depression, R. Mcdermott, David J. A. Dozois

Psychology Publications

Abstract

The conceptualization and empirical knowledge base related to major depression has increased dramatically in recent years. We now have well-developed and validated models of depression from a range of theoretical perspectives. These models have significantly enhanced the development of effective treatments and preventative interventions. Although various prevention programs are available, Web-based protocols can enhance accessibility to evidence-based prevention programs. The current study involved a randomized controlled trial focused on the prevention and treatment of depression in high-risk first- and second-year undergraduate students. Three Internet-delivered preventative programs were compared: cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT; MoodGym), attentional bias modification, and an active …

Investigating The Visual Number Form Area: A Replication Study, Rebecca Merkley, Benjamin Conrad, Gavin Price, Daniel Ansari

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

© 2019 The Authors. Published by the Royal Society The influential triple-code model of number representation proposed that there are three distinct brain regions for three different numerical representations: verbal words, visual digits and abstract magnitudes. It was hypothesized that the region for visual digits, known as the number form area, would be in ventral occipitotemporal cortex (vOTC), near other visual category-specific regions, such as the visual word form area. However, neuroimaging investigations searching for a region that responds in a category-specific manner to the visual presentation of number symbols have yielded inconsistent results. Price & Ansari (Price, Ansari 2011 …

A Touchscreen Motivation Assessment Evaluated In Huntington's Disease Patients And R6/1 Model Mice, Christopher J. Heath, Claire O'Callaghan, Sarah L. Mason, Benjamin U. Phillips, Lisa M. Saksida, Trevor W. Robbins, Roger A. Barker, Timothy J. Bussey, Barbara J. Sahakian

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

Copyright © 2019 Heath, O'Callaghan, Mason, Phillips, Saksida, Robbins, Barker, Bussey and Sahakian. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms. Apathy is pervasive across many neuropsychiatric disorders but is poorly characterized mechanistically, so targeted therapeutic interventions remain elusive. A key …

Translational Tests Involving Non-Reward: Methodological Considerations, Benjamin U. Phillips, Laura Lopez-Cruz, Lisa M. Saksida, Timothy J. Bussey

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

© 2018, The Author(s). This review is concerned with methods for assessing the processing of unrewarded responses in experimental animals and the mechanisms underlying performance of these tasks. A number of clinical populations, including Parkinson’s disease, depression, compulsive disorders, and schizophrenia demonstrate either abnormal processing or learning from non-rewarded responses in laboratory-based reinforcement learning tasks. These effects are hypothesized to result from disturbances in modulatory neurotransmitter systems, including dopamine and serotonin. Parallel work in experimental animals has revealed consistent behavioral patterns associated with non-reward and, consistent with the human literature, modulatory roles for specific neurotransmitters. Classical tests involving an important …

White Matter Injury Predicts Disrupted Functional Connectivity And Microstructure In Very Preterm Born Neonates, Emma G. Duerden, Sheliza Halani, Karin Ng, Ting Guo, Justin Foong, Torin J.A. Glass, Vann Chau, Helen M. Branson, John G. Sled, Hilary E. Whyte, Edmond N. Kelly, Steven P. Miller

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

© 2018 The Authors Objective: To determine whether the spatial extent and location of early-identified punctate white matter injury (WMI) is associated with regionally-specific disruptions in thalamocortical-connectivity in very-preterm born neonates. Methods: 37 very-preterm born neonates (median gestational age: 28.1 weeks; interquartile range [IQR]: 27–30) underwent early MRI (median age 32.9 weeks; IQR: 32–35), and WMI was identified in 13 (35%) neonates. Structural T1-weighted, resting-state functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (rs-fMRI, n = 34) and Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI, n = 31) sequences were acquired using 3 T-MRI. A probabilistic map of WMI was developed for the 13 neonates demonstrating brain …

Girls' Internalizing Symptoms And White Matter Tracts In Cortico-Limbic Circuitry, Ola Mohamed Ali, Matthew R.J. Vandermeer, Haroon I. Sheikh, Marc F. Joanisse, Elizabeth P. Hayden

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

© 2019 The Authors Dysfunction in cortico-limbic circuitry is implicated in internalizing disorders (i.e., depressive and anxious disorders), but less is known about whether structural variations precede frank disorder and thus potentially mark risk. We therefore examined associations between white matter (WM) tract microstructure in cortico-limbic circuitry at age 7 and concurrent and longitudinal patterns of internalizing symptoms in 42 typically developing girls using Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI). Girls' internalizing symptoms were concurrently associated with reduced fractional anisotropy (FA) in segments of the cingulum bundle (CB) and the uncinate fasciculus (UF), bilaterally. Moreover, latent profile analysis showed that girls with …

The Benefit To Speech Intelligibility Of Hearing A Familiar Voice, Ysabel Domingo, Emma Holmes, Ingrid S. Johnsrude

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

© 2019 American Psychological Association. Previous experience with a voice can help listeners understand speech when a competing talker is present. Using the coordinate-response measure task (Bolia, Nelson, Ericson, & Simpson, 2000), Johnsrude et al. (2013) demonstrated that speech is more intelligible when either the target or competing (masking) talker is a long-term spouse than when both talkers are unfamiliar (termed familiar-target and familiar-masker benefits, respectively). To better understand how familiarity improves intelligibility, we measured the familiar-target and familiar-masker benefits in older and younger spouses using a more challenging matrix task, and compared the benefits listeners gain from spouses' and …

Biomarkers Of Parkinson's Disease: Striatal Sub-Regional Structural Morphometry And Diffusion Mri, Ali R. Khan, Nole M. Hiebert, Andrew Vo, Brian T. Wang, Adrian M. Owen, Ken N. Seergobin, Penny A. Macdonald

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

© 2018 The Authors Parkinson's disease (PD) is a progressive neurological disorder that has no reliable biomarkers. The aim of this study was to explore the potential of semi-automated sub-regional analysis of the striatum with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to distinguish PD patients from controls (i.e., as a diagnostic biomarker) and to compare PD patients at different stages of disease. With 3 Tesla MRI, diffusion- and T1-weighted scans were obtained on two occasions in 24 PD patients and 18 age-matched, healthy controls. PD patients completed one session on and the other session off dopaminergic medication. The striatum was parcellated into …

Linked Mri Signatures Of The Brain's Acute And Persistent Response To Concussion In Female Varsity Rugby Players, Kathryn Y. Manning, Alberto Llera, Gregory A. Dekaban, Robert Bartha, Christy Barreira, Arthur Brown, Lisa Fischer, Tatiana Jevremovic, Kevin Blackney, Timothy J. Doherty, Douglas D. Fraser, Jeff Holmes, Christian F. Beckmann, Ravi S. Menon

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

Acute brain changes are expected after concussion, yet there is growing evidence of persistent abnormalities well beyond clinical recovery and clearance to return to play. Multiparametric MRI is a powerful approach to non-invasively study structure-function relationships in the brain, however it remains challenging to interpret the complex and heterogeneous cascade of brain changes that manifest after concussion. Emerging conjunctive, data-driven analysis approaches like linked independent component analysis can integrate structural and functional imaging data to produce linked components that describe the shared inter-subject variance across images. These linked components not only offer the potential of a more comprehensive understanding of …

Brain Activation Time-Locked To Sleep Spindles Associated With Human Cognitive Abilities, Zhuo Fang, Laura B. Ray, Adrian M. Owen, Stuart M. Fogel

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

Simultaneous electroencephalography and functional magnetic resonance imaging (EEG-fMRI) studies have revealed brain activations time-locked to spindles. Yet, the functional significance of these spindle-related brain activations is not understood. EEG studies have shown that inter-individual differences in the electrophysiological characteristics of spindles (e.g., density, amplitude, duration) are highly correlated with "Reasoning" abilities (i.e., "fluid intelligence"; problem solving skills, the ability to employ logic, identify complex patterns), but not short-term memory (STM) or verbal abilities. Spindle-dependent reactivation of brain areas recruited during new learning suggests night-to-night variations reflect offline memory processing. However, the functional significance of stable, trait-like inter-individual differences in brain …

Alive Inside, Andrew Peterson, Adrian M. Owen, Jason Karlawish

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

This article provides an ethical analysis of the U.S. practice guideline update on disorders of consciousness. Our analysis focuses on the guideline’s recommendations regarding the use of investigational neuroimaging methods to assess brain-injured patients. Complex and multifaceted ethical issues have emerged because these methods alter the clinical understanding of consciousness. We address issues of false hope, patient suffering, and cost. We argue that, in spite of these concerns, there is significant benefit to using neuroimaging to assess brain-injured patients in most cases.

The Neural Basis Of External Responsiveness In Prolonged Disorders Of Consciousness, Clara A. Stafford, Adrian M. Owen, Davinia Fernández-Espejo

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

Objective: To investigate the structural integrity of fibre tracts underlying overt motor behaviour in PDOC. Methods: This cross-sectional study examined 15 PDOC patients and 22 healthy participants. Eight PDOC patients met the criteria for the vegetative state, 5 met the criteria for the minimally conscious state and 2 met the criteria for emerging from the minimally conscious state. We used fibre tractography to reconstruct the white matter fibres known to be involved in voluntary motor execution (i.e., those connecting thalamus with M1, M1 with cerebellum, and cerebellum with thalamus) and used fractional anisotropy (FA) as a measure of their integrity. …

Kali Psychi, Judith A. Reisman Phd, Aaron Nazif J.D., Mary Mcalister Esq.

Faculty Publications and Presentations

No abstract provided.

Disinformation And Misinformation Triangle: A Conceptual Model For ‘Fake News’ Epidemic, Causal Factors And Interventions, Victoria Rubin

Data and Test Instruments

Purpose (mandatory) This position paper treats disinformation and misinformation (intentionally deceptive and unintentionally inaccurate misleading information, respectively) as a socio-cultural technology-enabled epidemic in digital news, propagated via social media.Design/methodology/approach (mandatory) The proposed Disinformation and Misinformation Triangle is a conceptual model that identifies the three minimal causal factors occurring simultaneously to facilitate the spread of the epidemic at the societal level.Findings (mandatory) Following the epidemiological Disease Triangle model, the three interacting causal factors are translated into the digital news context: (1) the virulent pathogens are falsifications, clickbait, satirical ‘fakes’ and other deceptive or misleading news content; (2) the susceptible hosts are …

Teachers` Dual Commitment To The Organization And Occupation: A Person-Centered Investigation, John P. Meyer, Alexandre J. S. Morin, Laura J. Stanley, Elyse R. Maltin

Psychology Publications

This study extends previous commitment research by applying person-centered analytic techniques to identify and compare profiles of affective, normative, and continuance commitment to the organization and occupation. Latent profile analyses applied to data from 336 Canadian teachers revealed five profiles with unique combinations of the three commitment mindsets across the two targets. Differences observed across profiles in teachers’ turnover intention and physical and psychological well-being are used to illustrate the benefits of taking a more holistic approach to the investigation of commitment compared to analyses involving individual targets and/or mindsets. Implications for commitment theory, future research, and practice are discussed.

Estrogens And Androgens In The Prefrontal Cortex: Relevance For Cognition And Decision-Making, Elizabeth Hampson

Psychology Publications

Organizational and activational effects of reproductive steroids regulate many aspects of brain function in nonhuman species, including certain cognitive functions. These actions are often exerted in a region- or pathway-specific manner in the CNS to promote reproductive objectives. Similar effects are thought to occur in human brains. Growing evidence suggests that 2 major families of hormones, estrogens and androgens, may influence cognitive and motivational processes. This chapter will briefly review findings from humans and nonhuman primates suggesting that the prefrontal cortex is an important target for estrogens and androgens. Hormonal regulation in the frontal cortex is discussed in terms of …

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Among Rural Emergency Medical Services Personnel, Nicole Elizabeth Bailey

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Diagnostic criteria for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have undergone multiple revisions over the past few decades which have substantially refined our understanding of PTSD. Upon the publication of DSM-5, occupational exposure is now officially recognized as satisfying criterion A (exposure to a traumatic event) for the diagnosis of PTSD. First responder populations - particularly EMS personnel - have been historically understudied and warrant additional attention. The present study examines PTSD symptomology in a rural EMS population, as well as considering barriers to treatment. A total of 437 participants from West Virginia and western Pennsylvania completed a survey that included demographic …

Effects Of Self-Determination On Work/Life Balance, Sarah M. Hawke

ETD Archive

In recent years the workforce has experienced many changes, mostly as a result of the proliferation of technology. With the ever changing work environment and the increased blurring of work and home boundaries, more research is imperative in helping organizations hire, retain, and keep the right employees satisfied. The present study aims to examine the interactions and moderating effects of motivation on boundary management preferences and behaviors. Respondents were asked to complete three questionnaires assessing their motivation towards their current work, preferred boundary management styles, and their enactment of boundary management techniques while present in the work and home domains. …

High School Discipline Policies And The Teacher-Student Relationship, Sara Elizabeth Nardone

ETD Archive

Relationships play a central role of human development by fostering connection and growth in individuals (Josselson, 1992). Adolescence is a stage of development in which relationships are perhaps most integral because they help youth navigate the changes that come with this developmental phase. Teacher-student relationships are one of the most influential relationships for youth because teacher-student relationships impact students’ academic achievement and educational experience (Ellerbrock et al., 2015; Wilkins, 2014). There are many factors that contribute to positive teacher-student relationships. An area of research that has not gained as much attention regarding teacher-student relationships is discipline in schools. High schools …

Development And Validation Of The Secondary Traumatic Stress Scale In A Sample Of Social Media Users, Megan Nicole Mancini

ETD Archive

This study examined the psychometric worth of a piloted measure, Secondary Traumatic Stress Scale for Social Media Users (STSS-SM). The STSS-SM is a 17-item instrument designed to measure intrusion, avoidance, and arousal symptoms associated with indirect exposure to traumatic events via social media use. Young adult social media users (N = 144) completed a survey containing the STSS-SM and measures of depression, trauma history, social media use, and demographics. A confirmatory factor analysis supported a three-factor model of secondary traumatic stress in social media users. Additionally, evidence for internal consistency and convergent and discriminant validity were found. These findings suggest …

Arousal Or Relevance? Applying A Discrete Emotion Perspective To Aging And Affect Regulation, Sara E. Lautzenhiser

ETD Archive

While research in the psychology of human aging suggests that older adults are quite adept at managing negative affect, emotion regulation efficacy may depend on the discrete emotion elicited. For instance, prior research suggests older adults are more effective at dealing with emotional states that are more age-relevant/useful and lower in intensity (i.e., sadness) relative to less relevant/useful or more intense (i.e., anger). The goal of the present study was to probe this discrete emotions perspective further by addressing the relevance/intensity distinction within a broader set of negative affective states (i.e., fear and disgust, along with anger and sadness). Results …

The Role Of Dissociation And Hyperarousal In Adult Sexual Revictimization, Madeline S. Herman

ETD Archive

The purpose of the present study was to examine how child sexual abuse (CSA), hyperarousal symptoms, and dissociation symptoms are associated with sexual revictimization in adulthood. The study hypothesized that (A) a history of CSA will be associated with greater instances of adult sexual victimization, (B) higher rates of hyperarousal will be associated with lower rates of adult sexual revictimization in survivors of CSA, (C) higher rates of dissociation will be associated with higher rates of adult sexual revictimization in survivors of CSA, and (D) in looking at both hyperarousal and dissociation, hyperarousal symptoms will buffer the relationship between CSA …