Psychology Commons^™

Performance In Vr, Gabriela N. Gonzalez

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Psychologists once believed that memory was the result of a single-unitary memory system, and that memory was representative of a video recording. However, recent research has found that memory is malleable, and different factors can attribute to the accuracy of memory. Factors include internal bias, time since event, level of rehearsal, and outside influences. Specifically, the concept of false memories in regards to eyewitness testimony has garnered the attention of researchers. Prior research regarding false memories has looked at the impact of leading questions on memory accuracy. This study aims to explore the impact of leading questions on false memories …

Restortive Effects Of Meditation Apps, Kyle Hart

Honors Undergraduate Theses

We have investigated two different smartphone meditation apps to determine if they have any effects on stress and check if they are a viable tool that users can engage with to cope with stress during a work break. The dependent variables being measured include affective and cognitive restoration. The control group performed a coloring activity using a mandala figure. The experimental conditions engaged in app guided meditation through either 10% Happier or Calm. Both are health apps that are intended to help users practice a variety of mindfulness meditation exercises and help build healthy habits. This research focused on a …

Nature Contentedness Through Nature's Affordances, Fatima Khan

Honors Undergraduate Theses

There have been many studies conducted in the realm of nature that look at explanations behind human beings’ tendency to revert to nature as a way to relieve themselves from the real world while giving them feelings of well-being and positive emotions for a place. This study aimed to explore how humans feel more presence while also using this information to explore a more nature-oriented environment and the influence this has on human behavior. The present study is determining whether engaging with affordances of nature increase an individuals’ sense of presence. It was hypothesized that individuals that spend more time …

Coping Mechanisms In Graduate School Discipline Specific Comparison, Sandra P. Montenegro

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Psychological research has studied the effects of college academic demands on students' wellbeing through the moderating role of coping mechanisms. This study provides further insight by focusing on coping mechanisms among graduate students from different fields, including humanities, STEM, and social sciences. Participants were recruited at the University of Central Florida (n=97). They answered an online survey assessing the prevalence of academic stressors, the use of different coping mechanisms, and strain outcomes, including somatic symptoms, insomnia, and burnout. STEM students reported higher organizational constraints and higher interpersonal conflict compare to students in other fields. Arts and humanities students reported higher …

The Impact Of Virtual Reality On Chronic Pain, Alexis Whitehead

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Chronic pain remains a prevalent problem across the United States. Chronic pain does not seem to have a function and relief of this symptom remains elusive for many sufferers. Virtual reality has been used as an adjunct therapy to decrease acute pain with promising results, but there is little research on whether virtual reality could be used as a successful intervention for those with chronic pain. Virtual reality has few side effects, so it warrants consideration for the treatment of chronic pain. There is growing evidence that there is potential for virtual reality to produce desired results with patients having …

Over Sexualization Of Women In The Media And Its Effect On Self-Objectification, Alaysia M. Herndon

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The current study examined the relationship between the sexualization of women in the media and its effects on women's self-objectification and sexual priming with sociodemographic variables as a mediator. It was hypothesized that (1) exposure to increased sexual content in music videos would positively correlate with increased sexual priming among viewers and (2) increased sexual priming among females would be associated with increased self-objectification and increased objectification of other women. Additionally, the current study aimed to examine sociodemographic factors and if they correlate to the impact of sexual priming on self-objectification and the objectification of other women. The results of …

Trait Anxiety And Other Personality Constructs As Predictors Of Negative Reactions To Quarantine And Social Isolation, Faith A. Ambrose

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Former research has shown a strong relationship between anxiety and various negative reactions to trauma, including widespread traumatic events such as natural disasters, war, and pandemics. COVID-19 has been an ongoing, potentially traumatic event for individuals all over the world. Even individuals who have not experienced serious traumatic consequences because of the pandemic have likely had some negative experiences regarding the mandated quarantine and social distancing. This study seeks to find possible personality predictors for negative reactions, whether they be behavioral or cognitive. Participants completed several questionnaires that test personality constructs, including trait anxiety, need for affiliation, extraversion, and autonomy. …

Physical Activity Moderates The Relationship Between Apoe4 Status And Working Memory: The Health And Retirement Study, Dalia T. El-Shafie

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The purpose of this study is to explore the relationship between physical activity and working memory decline among older adults with APOE4 status. The APOE4 allele is currently the strongest predictor of risk for Alzheimer's disease and other related dementias. The publicly available data from the Health and Retirement Study was used to complete this Retrospective Longitudinal study. Three hypotheses were explored. H₁: It is expected that the presence of the APOE4 allele will be associated with worse overall working memory performance and a steeper rate of decline in working memory over time. H₂: Meanwhile, it is expected that participants …

Living Up To The American Dream: The Influence Of Family On Second-Generation Immigrants, Nicole Palmeri

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Second-generation immigrants are increasingly embracing their biculturalism, equally identifying as American and "other" (Yazykova & McLeigh, 2015). While this allows for ethnic diversity as well as other social and linguistic advantages, the internalization of two different cultures has been linked to causing tensions related to identity development and mental health (Huynh et al., 2018; Ceri et al., 2017; Ritsner & Ponizovsky, 1999). Previous research has shown a link between parental support and an individual's acculturation and psychological well-being (Pawliuk et al., 1996; Abad & Sheldon, 2008). This study seeks to further examine the influence of family on the bicultural identity …

Understanding Aggressive Driving Behavior: The Role Of Personality And Individual Differences, Enilda M. Velazquez

Honors Undergraduate Theses

According to recent reports, 56 percent of total vehicular accident deaths were related to aggressive driving. Previous research on aggressive driving was related to cognitive failures, sex differences, individual driving habits, and to a lesser extent, personality. Personality focused aggressive driving research has not produced a consensus on the predictive nature of personality traits on the propensity to engage in aggressive driving. However, a lack of consensus on personality's role in aggressive driving warrants further empirical examination into the relationship between personality and aggressive driving. Similarly, the impact of individual differences on aggressive driving behavior cannot be ignored; the role …

Effects Of Death Anxiety On Learning Performance, Umaima Haseeb

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The present study examines whether or not a person's anxiety level might be linked to their learning performance. Many studies in the past have examined math and test anxiety, but the present study will examine the effects of death anxiety on learning performance. Individual's anxiety will attempt to be induced through fear of death. Participants were presented a set of four symptoms, similar to Gluck and Bower's 1988 category learning study. The participants were asked whether or not they think the symptoms of the patient are positive for COVID-19 or positive for the flu. The hypothesis was that there would …

Systematic Literature Review Of Cognitive Behavioral Treatments For Patients With Classical, Secondary, And Idiopathic Trigeminal Neuralgia, Linnea B. Herzog

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Trigeminal neuralgia is a painful neuralgia with a complicated pathology that is not clearly understood. Due to the ambiguity of the condition, patients often have to search for medical providers that specialize in trigeminal neuralgia, and even with the guidance of a specialist, some patients do not respond well to treatment.¹ Despite the uncertainty surrounding the specifics of the disease, there are treatments available that can provide some level of pain relief for patients suffering from this disorder. When a patient does not respond well to medical therapy, surgery can be the next appropriate step in patient care management. …

Sexual Identity And Alcohol, Cigarette, And E-Cigarette Use, Zoe H. Webster, Elizabeth K. Do Phd, Mph

IRBEH/Spit for Science Publications and Presentations

No abstract provided.

The Impact Of Minority Stress On Lgbtq+ College Student Complete Mental Health, Stephanie Cull, Bethany M. Coston Phd

IRBEH/Spit for Science Publications and Presentations

No abstract provided.

The Effects Of Emotional Distress On Substance Use In First Generation And Continuing Generation College Students, E. Noelle Rogers, Karen G. Chartier Phd, Msw

IRBEH/Spit for Science Publications and Presentations

No abstract provided.

Cultural Socialization And Ethnic Racial Identity: Testing Conversations About Race As Mediators Among Diverse College Students, Sabrina Hawa, Maria De Jesus Cisneros, Eryn Delaney, Chloe Walker, Chelsea Williams Phd, The Spit For Science Working Group, Danielle Dick Phd

IRBEH/Spit for Science Publications and Presentations

No abstract provided.

Spiraling: Do Parents Help Lighten The Blow Of Trauma, Ruth Laryea, Marcia Winter Phd

IRBEH/Spit for Science Publications and Presentations

No abstract provided.

Worried About Being Un-Masked By Booze? Associations Between Psychopathy And The Fear Of Behavioral Disinhibition During Alcohol Misuse, Jenely J. Villegas, David S. Chester Phd

IRBEH/Spit for Science Publications and Presentations

No abstract provided.

Stay And Play With Mickey Mouse: Familiar Characters Increase Children’S Exploratory Play, Haley A. Waite, Megan N. Norris, Allison J. Williams, Judith H. Danovitch Ph.D

Undergraduate Arts and Research Showcase

When children are introduced to a novel toy, they explore to discover how the toy works, but do not always discover all of the functions (Bonawitz et al., 2011). Research has shown that children prefer objects with a familiar character on them (Danovitch & Mills, 2014). This study investigates whether the presence of a familiar character’s image on a novel toy encourages exploratory play. Four- and 5-year-olds (n = 40) were presented with a novel toy, containing 5 different functions, that either displayed an image of their favorite familiar character or an image of that character’s color scheme. Children were …

That's Irrelephant: Children's Judgments Of Relevant And Irrelevant Animal Observations, Rebekah C Cook, Alexandra Ducloux, Allison Williams, Judith Danovitch

Undergraduate Arts and Research Showcase

Abstract:

The ability to make judgments about different kinds of evidence is an important skill for learning about science. This study investigated if children recognize how helpful relevant and irrelevant information is for evaluating biological explanations, and whether their judgments change with age. Participants were 24 7- and 8-year-olds and 26 9- and 10-year-olds. Children heard a statement about an animal's behavior. Then children heard an explanation for that behavior followed by 2 different observations. One observation was about the same animal but was irrelevant to the explanation. The other observation was about a different animal, but was relevant to …

Attention In Children With Hearing Loss During Telepractice And In-Person Speech Language Therapy, Rahaf Alrefai, Kaelin Kinney, Maria Kondaurova, Cara Cashon

Undergraduate Arts and Research Showcase

How does the use of telepractice during speech-language therapy affect the attention of children with hearing loss who received cochlear implants (CI) in comparison to in-person intervention? The study examined the production and comprehension of clinician’s speech in children with CIs (n = 5, mean age = 61.6 months, range = 34 months) during one 30 minute in-person session and one sequential tele-session, order counterbalanced. Child verbal, tactile, and visual actions were coded as correct, incorrect, off-task, and silence responses to the clinician’s and maternal speech. In production, correct responses were defined as the correct reproduction of the clinician’s/maternal target …

A Multinational Study Of The Etiology And Clinical Teleology Of Moral Evaluations Of Patient Behaviors, Anna Yu Lee

CGU Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation is a collection of four studies which collectively explore a hypothesized construct of ‘moral evaluation of patient behaviors’ (MEPB) as a driver of health professionals’ readiness to interact humanistically with their patients. In these studies, ‘humanistic interactions’ refer to the non-technical, intangible skills and factors of clinical competence; the factors specifically explored in these studies were compassion toward patients, self-efficacy for treating patients, and optimism toward patient treatment. For the purpose of specificity, all factors were examined as they pertained to patients with substance use disorders. Survey data from a convenience sample of 524 health professionals (i.e. physicians, …

Onward And Upward: Strategies To Boost Need Satisfaction In Emerging Adulthood, Susan Mangan

CGU Theses & Dissertations

Emerging adults (18-30 years old) may be vulnerable to reduced well-being and psychological need satisfaction, which refer to a meta-theory of self-determination theory which reflects the degree to which individuals feel skilled (competence), connected to others (relatedness) and in control of their own decisions (autonomy) (Deci & Ryan, 2011). Increasing psychological need satisfaction represents one promising strategy for increasing well-being (Mackenzie, Karaoylas, & Starzyk, 2018). To date no positive psychology interventions have been created specifically to foster need satisfaction; however, four interventions have examined need satisfaction as an outcome. In this study, these four positive psychology interventions were tested to …

Who Should Lead? Effective Influence As A Product Of Group Context And Group Purpose, Nicolas Barreto

CGU Theses & Dissertations

One of the most important features of any group is who is most influential, who leads. Expectation states theory (EST) and the social identity theory of leadership (SITL) both make predictions about which group member will have the most influence. EST argues that group members follow whomever they believe will lead the group to success. SITL states that the individual who best embodies the group’s defining attributes has the most influence. This dissertation proposed that influence and leadership in a group are dependent on group features, and it tested two such features: (a) a group’s social context and (b) a …

Making Us Look Bad Vs. Making Us Uncertain: Examining The Motivations Underlying Derogation Of Ingroup Deviants, Mark Jeffrey Rinella

CGU Theses & Dissertations

Subjective group dynamics theory posits that groups favorably evaluate normative members and derogate deviant members to restore or maintain the subjective validity of their group’s norms. Research supports this explanation; however, the pattern of evaluations differs depending on how deviants are defined. Some research has defined deviants as group members who violate generic, socially valued prescriptions (generic norm deviants), while other research has defined deviants as members who diverge from specific group defining norms (oppositional norm deviants). This dissertation proposes that two different social identity motives—self-esteem and uncertainty reduction—underlie the derogation of these different types of group deviants. Specifically, it …

Needs Assessment Of Parent Training Programs For Parents Of Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder Using A Phenomenological Approach, Caitlyn Bailey Gumaer

CGU Theses & Dissertations

Parenting a child with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is often associated with high stress, depression, anxiety, and reduced quality of life due to the ongoing nature of care (Seltzer, Krauss, Orsmond & Vestal, 2001; Evans, 2010). To remediate the difficulties that parents of children with ASD experience, parent training programs have become an integral and necessary component in the treatment of ASD. The most common type of parent training programs is behavioral parent training, based on the principles of ABA (Najdowski & Gould, 2014). Despite its advantages, researchers have found parent involvement in behavioral parent training to be more burdensome …

Variability In The Analysis Of A Single Neuroimaging Dataset By Many Teams, Tom Schonberg, Russell A. Roldrack, Zachary J. Cole, Matthew R. Johnson

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Data analysis workflows in many scientific domains have become increasingly complex and flexible. To assess the impact of this flexibility on functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) results, the same dataset was independently analyzed by 70 teams, testing nine ex-ante 1 hypotheses . The flexibility of analytic approaches is exemplified by the fact that no two teams chose identical workflows to analyze the data. This flexibility resulted in sizeable variation in hypothesis test results, even for teams whose statistical maps were highly correlated at intermediate stages of their analysis pipeline. Variation in reported results was related to several aspects of analysis …

Processing Of Musical Pitch, Time, And Emotion In Older Adults, Andrea R. Halpern

Faculty Contributions to Books

No abstract provided.

Racial Exclusion Causes Acute Cortisol Release Among Emerging-Adult African Americans: The Role Of Reduced Perceived Control, Laurel M. Peterson, Michelle L. Stock, Janet Monroe, Brianne K. Molloy-Paolillo, Sharon F. Lambert

Psychology Faculty Research and Scholarship

Racial discrimination contributes to stress-related health disparities among African Americans, but less is known about the acute effects of racial exclusion on the hypo-pituitary-adrenocortical response and psychological mediators. Participants were 276 Black/African American emerging-adults (54% female; Mage = 21.74, SD = 2.21) who were randomly assigned to be excluded or included by White peers via the game Cyberball. Racial exclusion (vs. inclusion) predicted: greater negative affect (F(1, 276) = 104.885, p < .0001), lower perceived control (F(1, 276) = 205.523, p < .0001), and greater cortisol release (F(1, 274) = 4.575, p= .033). Racial exclusion’s impact on cortisol release was mediated by lower perceived control …

Sleep And Inflammation During Adolescents' Transition To Young Adulthood, Heejung Park, Jessica J. Chiang, Julienne E. Bower, Michael R. Irwin, David M. Almeida, Teresa E. Seeman, Heather Mccreath, Andrew J. Fuligni

Psychology Faculty Research and Scholarship

Purpose

Methods