Psychology Commons^™

The Impact Of Balance Disturbance On Cognition, Erin Quasney

Dissertations (1934 -)

There have been remarkable gains within the scientific literature over the last few decades contributing to our understanding of the sequelae, recovery, and treatment of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), yet our knowledge of relationships among symptoms remains elementary in comparison. Cognitive and balance deficits are two of the most prevalent consequence of mTBI. There is some indication that a challenge to one or both of these functions can result in cognitive detriments due to constraints on attentional capacity. However, the evidence remains both conflicting and sparse. This study examined the impact of increasing balance challenge on attention and working …

Profiles Of Neuropsychological Functioning In Children And Adolescents With Spina Bifida: Associations With Biopsychosocial Predictors And Functional Outcomes, Grayson N. Holmbeck, Rachel M. Wasserman

Psychology: Faculty Publications and Other Works

The current study examined neuropsychological performance among children with spina bifida (SB) to determine biological and functional correlates of distinct “profiles” of cognitive functioning. Methods: A total of 95 children with SB myelomeningocele (ages, 8–15 years) completed a neuropsychological assessment battery. Hierarchical and non-hierarchical cluster analyses were used to identify and confirm a cluster solution. Hypothesized predictors of cluster membership included lesion level, number of shunt surgeries, history of seizures, age, ethnicity, socio-economic status, and family stress. Outcomes included independence, academic success, expectations for the future, and quality of life. Results: Ward’s cluster method indicated a three-cluster solution, and was …

Cooperation And Facets Of Psychological Collectivism As Antecedents Of Team Mental Model Similarity, Neal Benoit Outland

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

This thesis investigated the role of facets of trait psychological collectivism (Preference, Reliance, Concern, and Goal-Priority) and the personality trait cooperativeness in the development of Team Mental Models. Team Mental Models (TMMs) are shared representations of a work team’s context that aid a team in directing behaviors and coordinating actions. I utilized Marks, Mathieu, and Zaccaro’s (2001) taxonomy of team processes to explicate and test a model detailing the role of composition in TMM development. Data were collected from 35 teams of 5 individuals who completed a computer simulation in which the team interdependently replicated pictures using blocks. Multiple regression …

Orca Behavior And Subsequent Aggression Associated With Oceanarium Confinement, Robert Anderson, Robyn Waayers, Andrew Knight

Theory of Mind Collection

Based on neuroanatomical indices such as brain size and encephalization quotient, orcas are among the most intelligent animals on Earth. They display a range of complex behaviors indicative of social intelligence, but these are difficult to study in the open ocean where protective laws may apply, or in captivity, where access is constrained for commercial and safety reasons. From 1979 to 1980, however, we were able to interact with juvenile orcas in an unstructured way at San Diego’s SeaWorld facility. We observed in the animals what appeared to be pranks, tests of trust, limited use of tactical deception, emotional self-control, …

Genetic Risk For Increased Oxidative Stress In The Aging Brain:Implications For White Matter Integrity And Cognition, Lauren Salminen

Dissertations

Oxidative stress is a key mechanism of the aging process that can cause damage to brain white matter and cognitive functions. Allele variations of two polymorphisms (SOD2, CAT -262) have been associated with abnormalities in antioxidant enzyme activity, suggesting a risk for enhanced oxidative damage to brain white matter and cognition among older individuals with these genetic mutations. The present study utilized diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and neuropsychological assessment to compare differences in microstructural white matter integrity and cognitive performance among 96 older adults (age 50-85) with and without genetic risk factors of SOD2 (rs4880) and CAT -262 (rs1001179). Results …

The Interaction Of Crystallized And Fluid Abilities In Aging And Speech Perception, Avanti Dey

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

In a series of studies, I examined the degree to which fluid and crystallized abilities contribute to and interact during speech perception. During the aging process, crystallized abilities (e.g., linguistic and word knowledge) are largely preserved, while fluid abilities involved in the online manipulation of information (e.g., working memory and inhibitory control) decline with age. Importantly, these two components are critical for successful speech perception and comprehension. While prior research has proposed that older adults rely on crystallized knowledge to compensate for cognitive deficits in difficult listening conditions, this hypothesis has not been directly tested. Younger and older adults completed …

Mechanisms Responsible For The Development Of Causal Perception In Infancy., Nicholas A. Holt

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The aim of the current dissertation was to investigate the mechanisms that contribute to the emergence of causal perception in infancy. Previous research suggests that the experience of self-produced causal action may be necessary to promote the development of causal perception (Rakison & Krogh, 2012). The goal of the current study was two-fold: (1) to further explore the roles of self-produced action, haptic, proprioceptive and visual information, and parental interaction on young infants’ understanding of causality. To assess the impact of these factors on infants’ causal learning, 4½-month-olds were randomly assigned to one four conditions. Three of the conditions (Active …

Reflections: Students' Tribute To Stan Kuczaj (1950-2016), Mark J. Xitco, Heather M. Hill, Marie Trone, Rachel T. Walker, Kymbr Wright, Radhika Macheka, Andrew J. Wright, Erica Hernandez, Deirdre Yeater, Lauren Highfill, Lance Miller, Holli Eskelinen, Courtney E. Smith, Pepper Hanna, Beri Brown, Kelly Winship, Natalia Botero, Erin E. Frick, Lisa Lauderdale, Kelsey Moreno, Kendal Smith, Audra Ames, Ali Taylor, Malin Lilley, Briana Cappiello, Riley Macgregor, Jennifer Vonk, Michael Beran

Psychology Faculty Publications

On April 14th, 2016, Animal Behavior and Cognition lost its Editor-in-Chief. But the scientific community and the friends and colleagues of Stanley ‘Stan’ Kuczaj III lost so much more. As many know, Stan began his career in Developmental Psychology, making enormous contributions in the area of language development, but became best known for his many innovative contributions in the area of marine mammal behavior. Stan founded Animal Behavior and Cognition because he was deeply passionate about research with a broad range of topics concerning animal behavior, animal cognition, and animal welfare. He was equally passionate about the idea that science …

In Praise Of Fishes: Précis Of What A Fish Knows (Balcombe 2016), Jonathan Balcombe

Animal Sentience

Our relationship to fishes in the modern era is deeply problematic. We kill and consume more of them than any other group of vertebrates. At the same time, advances in our knowledge of fishes and their capabilities are gaining speed. Fish species diversity exceeds that of all other vertebrates combined, with a wide range of sensory adaptations, some of them (e.g., geomagnetism, water pressure and movement detection, and communication via electricity) alien to our own sensory experience. The evidence for pain in fishes (despite persistent detractors) is strongly supported by anatomical, physiological and behavioral studies. It is likely that fishes …

Effects Of Age, Task Type, And Information Load On Discrimination Learning, Morgan E. Brown

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The feature positive effect (FPE) is a phenomenon in discrimination learning by which learning occurs more quickly when the presence (Feature positive; FP), rather than absence (Feature negative; FN) of a stimulus indicates a response should be made. Although the FPE has been extensively corroborated, a reversal, or feature negative effect (FNE), has been found when a target stimulus comes from a smaller set of stimuli (Fiedler, Eckert, & Poysiak, 1988). Age differences in FP and FN learning indicate that older adults perform more poorly than young adults on both FP and FN tasks, and are likely related to decline …

Meditation And Chocolate: Comparing Their Effects On Cognitive Abilities, Ryan Dyck

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

Numerous studies have been conducted on the effects of meditation on long-term meditators. This current study aims to test the immediate effects of meditation on cognition. It is hypothesized that meditation will have a significant effect on cognition in comparison to the control of chocolate. In order to test this hypothesis participants were subject to two conditions: a meditation condition and a chocolate condition. After each condition participants were given a cognition test designed to test their reading comprehension and math skills. Using a related samples t-test I conclude that meditation does not have a significant effect on cognition using …

Genetic Moderators Of Cognitive Decline In The Health And Retirement Study, Shannon K. Runge

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The current dissertation used a gene x environment (G x E) approach to examine the independent and interactive effects of specific genetic variants and participation in physical and cognitive/social activities (PA and CSA) on cognitive performance in 4,764 participants of the Health and Retirement Study. Using three-wave data, three sets of multi-level growth models were conducted to examine baseline, longitudinal, and interactive effects of genotype (i.e., ApoE, COMT, and BDNF) and CSA/PA on performance across five cognitive measures: immediate, delayed and total word recall, and serial 7s and backwards counting.

At baseline, the ApoE ε4 allele predicted …

Language And Cognition: Insight From Exceptional Cases, Anna Snyder

Senior Honors Theses

The understanding of the world in the human mind is accomplished through cognitive processing and articulated through linguistic processing. Undoubtedly, there is a significant connection between language and cognition because of how intricately they work together to create and express meaning. Researchers from a variety of fields have sought to discover the specifics of these domains to determine what kind of relationship exists between them and how the involvement between language and cognition should be best represented. Though they obviously interact, the different characteristics of each domain provide evidence that linguistic processes and cognitive processes may be distinct. Rather than …

The Memory Professor: With A $600,000 Grant, Jennifer Coane Continues To Probe What We Remember And Why, Jenny Chen

Colby Magazine

Assistant Professor of Psychology Jennifer Coane is an expert in the science of memory, studying how we construct false memories, how memory changes as we age, and how to apply cognitive psychology to study techniques. In August 2015 she received a multiyear $600,000 grant from the James S. McDonnell Foundation for her work in understanding human cognition—a prestigious award the foundation typically gives to scientists at large research universities.

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 …

Mind-Full Love, Bruce Vermeer

Faculty Work Comprehensive List

"Developing and maintaining cognitive fitness is a lifelong process that, not unlike physical fitness, requires considerable self-discipline at every age."

Posting about loving and honoring God with our minds ­­­­­­­­from In All Things - an online hub committed to the claim that the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ has implications for the entire world.

http://inallthings.org/mind-full-love/

Incremental Validity Of Useful Field Of View Subtests For The Prediction Of Instrumental Activities Of Daily Living, Frederik Aust, Jerri D. Edwards

Aging Studies Faculty Publications

Introduction: The Useful Field of View Test (UFOV®) is a cognitive measure that predicts older adults’ ability to perform a range of everyday activities. However, little is known about the individual contribution of each subtest to these predictions, and the underlying constructs of UFOV performance remain a topic of debate.

Method: We investigated the incremental validity of UFOV subtests for the prediction of Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADL) performance in two independent datasets, the SKILL (n = 828) and ACTIVE (n = 2426) studies. We then explored the cognitive and visual abilities assessed by UFOV …

Individual Personality Differences In Goats Predict Their Performance In Visual Learning And Non-Associative Cognitive Tasks, Christian Nawroth, Pamela M. Prentice, Alan G. Mcelligott

Learning Ability Collection

Variation in common personality traits, such as boldness or exploration, is often associated with risk–reward trade–offs and behavioural flexibility. To date, only a few studies have examined the effects of consistent behavioural traits on both learning and cognition. We investigated whether certain personality traits (‘exploration’ and ‘sociability’) of individuals were related to cognitive performance, learning flexibility and learning style in a social ungulate species, the goat (Capra hircus). We also investigated whether a preference for feature cues rather than impaired learning abilities can explain performance variation in a visual discrimination task. We found that personality scores were consistent …

Motor Skills Among Preschool-Aged Children Born Prematurely, Brittany Nicole Peters

Wayne State University Dissertations

It has been documented that children who are born prematurely are at risk of experiencing motor skills deficits early in life; however, little is known about the relationships between early perinatal risk factors and later motor abilities. The current investigation attempted to gain better understanding regarding the influence of gestational age and sex on early motor development among a cohort of preschool-aged children born prior to 34 weeks gestation (N = 104). Additionally, relationships between motor performance and other abilities, namely cognitive and language, were examined. As hypothesized, degree of gestational immaturity was significantly associated with poorer performance on specific …

Navigating The Decision Space: Shared Medical Decision Making As Distributed Cognition, Katherine D. Lippa, Markus Alexander Feufel, F. Eric Robinson, Valerie L. Shalin

Psychology Faculty Publications

Despite increasing prominence, little is known about the cognitive processes underlying shared decision making. To investigate these processes, we conceptualize shared decision making as a form of distributed cognition. We introduce a Decision Space Model to identify physical and social influences on decision making. Using field observations and interviews, we demonstrate that patients and physicians in both acute and chronic care consider these influences when identifying the need for a decision, searching for decision parameters, making actionable decisions Based on the distribution of access to information and actions, we then identify four related patterns: physician dominated; physician-defined, patient-made; patient-defined, physician-made; …

The Effect Of Social Media On Sexual Cognitions And Behaviors, Joshua Duarte

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Pop culture and social media have become a prime source of entertainment and communication. The current study focuses on the potential effects of consuming this form of media and how it affects our sexual cognitions and behaviors. A sample of nine hundred and two university students were given self-reporting questionnaires concerning demographics, sexual cognitions, and exposure to sexual content in music. An analysis of music artist’s posts on social media was also performed. It was hypothesized that artists who have sexual content published in their work will also have the same amount of sexual content on social media. However, there …

Folate And Inflammatory Markers Moderate The Association Between Helicobacter Pylori Exposure And Cognitive Function In Us Adults, Bruce L. Brown, Andrew N. Berrett, Shawn D. Gale, Lance D. Erickson, Dawson W. Hedges

Faculty Publications

Background: Helicobacter pylori(H. pylori) infection is associated with cogni-tive deficits in humans, an association potentially mediated or moderated byfolate concentration or inflammation.Materials and

Methods: We used the National Health and Nutrition Exami-nation Survey (NHANES) datasets to examine whether folate concentrationor inflammation mediates or moderates the relationship betweenH. pyloriand cognitive function. Models were performed using linear, Poisson, andzero-inflated Poisson regression, and we performed separate analyses forgroups aged 20–59 and 60–90 years with sample sizes ranging from 700 to1700.Results:We did not find evidence of mediation in either age group. In the20- to 59-year group, interactions betweenH. pyloriand ferritin (pvaluesranging from .004 to …

Contemplating Mindfulness At Work: An Integrative Review, Darren J. Good, Christopher Lyddy, Theresa M. Glomb, Joyce E. Bono, Kirk W. Brown, Michelle K. Duffy, Ruth A. Baer, Judson A. Brewer, Sara W. Lazar

School of Business Faculty Publications

Mindfulness research activity is surging within organizational science. Emerging evidence across multiple fields suggests that mindfulness is fundamentally connected to many aspects of workplace functioning, but this knowledge base has not been systematically integrated to date. This review coalesces the burgeoning body of mindfulness scholarship into a framework to guide mainstream management research investigating a broad range of constructs. The framework identifies how mindfulness influences attention, with downstream effects on functional domains of cognition, emotion, behavior, and physiology. Ultimately, these domains impact key workplace outcomes, including performance, relationships, and well-being. Consideration of the evidence on mindfulness at work stimulates important …

Hermes In The Anthropocene: A Dogologue, Karen Malpede

Animal Sentience

In this dogologue, a writer and the dog who sits near her desk as she works speak. The dog is concerned about the fate of the world in the hands of humans. His urgent questions send the writer into the world of her own memories when she was a child alone with a horse in nature.

Cognitive Distortions: Predictors Of Medical Adherence And Health Behaviors Among Women At Risk For Breast Cancer, Amanda Viner

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

This study examined the relationship between cognitive distortions and health behaviors among women at risk for breast cancer. Sixty-eight participants completed an online survey consisting of demographic information, the Inventory of Cognitive Distortions (ICD), and the Health Adherence Behavior Inventory (HABIT). Results of the study indicate that health behaviors decrease as thinking becomes more distorted. The data also suggest that various cognitive distortions predict worse adherence, including fortune telling, minimization, and magnification. These findings have implications for the role of clinical psychologists in healthcare settings, and for the utility and implementation of cognitive behavioral interventions to increase early detection and …

Cognition Of Shared Decision Making: The Case Of Multiple Sclerosis, Katherine Domjan Lippa

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

The increasing emphasis in the medical community on shared decision making and patient centered care suggests that patients play a role in their care, but research on clinical reasoning almost exclusively addresses practitioner cognition. As patient involvement increases, it is important to understand the effect patients have on clinical cognition. This necessitates moving beyond a model that equates clinical cognition with practitioner cognition to incorporate the influence of patient cognition and dyadic patient-practitioner cognition. In this dissertation, I suggest that patient-practitioner interactions constitute a distributed cognitive system. As a result patient cognition and the nature of the interaction inherently contribute …

Factors Affecting Athlete Adherence After Disqualificaiton From Competitive Sports, Aaron Myers

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

The purpose of the current study is to examine the relationship between athletic identity, social problem-solving ability, cognitive distortions, depression, and locus of control in predicting adherence to medical advice after athletes have been instructed to stop participating in sports for a cardiac condition. The measures included the Athletic Identity Measurement Scale (AIMS), the Social Problem-Solving Inventory, Revised, Short Form (SPSI-R:S), the Inventory of Cognitive Distortions (ICD), the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), the Multidimensional Health Locus of Control scale, Form C (MHLC-C), an adherence measure, and demographic questionnaire. Results revealed significant findings. The internal locus of control, social problem-solving ability, …

Predictors Of Likeliness To Engage In Radical Animal Rights And Environmental Activism, Patsy Mckenzie

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Radical animal rights and environmental activism is considered domestic terrorism under the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act. Traditional models of terrorism purport that there is a path to radicalization that is influenced by an individual's sense of identity and ideological beliefs. Using collective identity theory and cognitive experiential self-theory as the framework, the purpose of this quantitative study was to examine whether social identity, cognitive processing mode, and ideological beliefs were predictors for engagement in radical animal rights and environmental activism. The Three Factor Model of Social Identity Scale, the Rational Experiential Inventory, and the Activism Orientation Scale were used to …

Should Fish Feel Pain? A Plant Perspective, František Baluška

Animal Sentience

Key (2016) claims fish that fish do not feel pain because they lack the necessary neuronal architecture: their responses to noxious stimuli, according to Key, are executed automatically without any feelings. However, as pointed out by many of his commentators, this conclusion is not convincing. Plants might provide some clues. Plants are not usually thought to be very active behaviorally, but the evidence suggests otherwise. Moreover, in stressful situations, plants produce numerous chemicals that have painkilling and anesthetic properties. Finally, plants, when treated with anesthetics, cannot execute active behaviors such as touch-induced leaf movements or rapid trap closures after localizing …

Animal Sentience: The Other-Minds Problem, Stevan Harnad

Animal Sentience

The only feelings we can feel are our own. When it comes to the feelings of others, we can only infer them, based on their behavior — unless they tell us. This is the “other-minds problem.” Within our own species, thanks to language, this problem arises only for states in which people cannot speak (infancy, aphasia, sleep, anaesthesia, coma). Our species also has a uniquely powerful empathic or “mind-reading” capacity: We can (sometimes) perceive from the behavior of others when they are in states like our own. Our inferences have also been systematized and operationalized in biobehavioral science …