Cognition and Perception Commons^™

Domestic Travelers: Transparent Machines, Hollow Bodies, Hanyi Wang

Masters Theses

Digitization is not a modern invention. Derived from the concept of fingers, this mindset of packing information into quantifiable, interchangeable units sounds mechanical, yet eerily physical. Try to imagine: a ghostly hand with millions of fingers with the same length, likeness, and function. Under the worldview of Digital Narrative, we live in a digital simulation: everything is representable with quantifiable units, fluid across media. Yet under this spectacle of convenient abundance, something is missing. The Unknowables are replaced with arbitrary symbols, while the Uncategorizables are omitted. This is a framework that cannot accommodate human subtleties and complexities. One needs to …

Reading Exercise (You Are The Hero): Dedicated To The Providence River Under The Mall, 02.17.2026, Deborah Fischer

Masters Theses

This play uses the performative potential of guilt, forgiveness, and self-help techniques as a catalyst for a new dynamic, one in which the pursuit of a false narrative, along with the structures it generates, becomes more real than reality itself. It employs “bad acting” and the practice of cold reading to stage a series of acts that function as an entry point into one’s own psyche, leveraging the peripheral space around familiar actions to allow chance, free will, and the experience of “real time” to temporarily come into effect. PLAYER 1: The bad actor is the most utopian one. CLOWN: …

Where Each Step Lands: Reconnecting And Reparenting Through Visual Narrative, Skye Wang

Masters Theses

This research begins with lived experiences of dissociation and a persistent sense of disconnection between body and consciousness. It explores the potential of visual narrative as an embodied practice. Through daily walking and sketching, bodily sensations are translated into visual language through a synesthetic process, forming the foundation for a picture book as the central outcome of this project.

The picture book adopts the perspective of a jumping spider positioned beneath a five-year-old girl’s shoe, creating a shifting, downward-facing viewpoint. The spider functions as a viewing position, while the girl represents the inner child. The narrative is constructed around the …

Improving Human Visual Search: Enhancing Lung Cancer Nodule Detection In Medical Images, Christopher Khajira

Masters Theses

Human visual search involves the identification of relevant signals within information-rich environments, which is a fundamental problem in visual perception. While detection accuracy and response time are commonly used to evaluate performance in visual search, these measures do not reveal the underlying cognitive and computational structure that produces observable behavior. A key challenge lies in distinguishing between competing processing architectures, particularly in complex visual domains where different models can produce similar behavioral outcomes. This study addresses this challenge by developing a computational experimental framework for analyzing visual search behavior using System Factorial Technology (SFT). The experimental framework integrates naturalistic medical …

Implementing Gestures Into Vocabulary Instruction To Aid Recall And Retention, Emma Dilley

Masters Theses

This study highlighted the idea of incorporating gestures into vocabulary instruction to help the students recall and retain the new vocabulary words. The researcher predicted that with the incorporation of the strategy of gestures into instruction, kindergarten students will be able to retain more vocabulary words compared to vocabulary instruction that does not include gestures. A total of 22 students and one teacher from a rural town in central Illinois participated in the study. This study was a mixed methods study, which included quantitative data in the form of pretest and posttest and qualitative data in the form of a …

Echoes Of Longing, Mahalexmi Mohan

Masters Theses

Loss lingers like a shadow, a weight no time can lift. Longing becomes a silent scream, echoing within, unanswered. Internal pain festers in the quiet, where unhealed wounds weave themselves into the fabric of being. Each breath is both survival and surrender, a fragile balance between hope and the hollow ache of what was, what will never be, yet could be.

Abstract

My work is deeply influenced by my experiences within a dysfunctional family structure and is explored through the relationship of emotional vulnerability and its effect on self-worth. Layered into the work is a confrontation with the scars, conflict …

Welcome To My Mind Palace: The Power Of Fantastical Thinking, Sadie Levine

Masters Theses

What follows is a record of my efforts to make the magic and horrors of my internal world tangible and shareable. The brain constructs hyper-specific fictional realities from childhood to adulthood, yet the scientific study of the mind often forgoes the subjective and the visual. I offer a complementary exploration of the mind - one that is highly visual and based on my own experiences, yet still contextualized in psychological research. Finding the magic in everyday life, and by extension, retreating into alternate realities, is a conscious choice I make, but I have not always had the option to choose. …

From In To Out, Jaeyeon Shin

Masters Theses

In contemporary Korean society, where uniform ideals and social pressure often dominate, individuality—especially emotional individuality—can be difficult to maintain. This loss of personal agency has real consequences: mental and physical health challenges, including eating disorders, are on the rise.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), around 3 percent of the global population is affected by such disorders—roughly 1.55 million people in South Korea—despite the country having the lowest obesity rate among OECD nations. The increase, particularly among women in their teens to thirties, reflects the emotional toll of conforming to rigid societal standards.

Architecture is not merely a backdrop …

The Navel Of The Dream, Ella C. Baum

Masters Theses

The images in The Navel of the Dream evoke a state of groundlessness. In this body of work, photographs act as thresholds between what is seen and what is felt, between daydreams and nightmares, and memories and myths. The camera is used as a means to engage with feelings of loss, and reenact the mythos of childhood, as well as the deep waters of the subconscious.

Created in Southern Sweden between 2022 and 2025, these photographs investigate the fallow winter landscape, the liminal space of deep, dark Scandinavian nights and the transformative qualities of ice, snow and …

Field Journal: The Excluded Middle, Carrie E. Kouts

Masters Theses

What does it look like to engage with organisms and landscapes at the periphery of anthropocentric value structures? How does one break the internalized myth that the “built” environment is excluded from the natural world? When does a hyper-mobile and hyper-commodified society confront the exponential crisis of animal death? Within this series of journal entries, field notes, collection observations, weird prose, and sensory musings, one will find questions on the nature of being human and the complex narratives of care we encounter in a world shared with more-than-humans. Each handwritten vignette and photograph from daily life weaves a non-linear and …

Transplant Transplant(Ed) Transplant(Ing), So Jung Yoon

Masters Theses

Boundaries shape our lives and identities. The tangible presence of boundaries becomes a medium for engaging with the world—such as who occupies a space and how, or what tools are deemed valid in a design process. These boundaries aren’t always visible; they’re embedded in systems, habits, and assumptions that shape how we move, create, and are recognized. They extend far beyond fixed geographies and the specific positions we occupy within them.

Transplanting is the process by which things are moved or move across boundaries in hopes of being planted, finding a place to stay. Though it can be a search …

The Red Thread: Objects As Medium, Hsin-Ning Alin Yang

Masters Theses

There are moments when people hesitate to speak their emotions or needs
—whether it’s love that feels too shy to articulate, needs that risk sounding too forceful, or feelings too vague to verbalize. By shifting the priority of emotion and communication factor ahead of pure functionality, this thesis posits that objects can serve as an alternative medium of communication.

This thesis begins by examining the root causes of communication difficulties and the coping strategies people use, ultimately identifying five situations in which objects can effectively substitute for verbal interaction. Building on these categories, the thesis explores how an object’s features, …

Mindfulness & Mental Health: Balanced Time Perspective As A Mediator, Eddie Trueblood

Masters Theses

Mindfulness is a practice of intentionally paying attention to the present moment in a nonjudgmental way. Being more mindful can decrease symptoms of anxiety, depression, and stress, among other mental and physical health improvements. (Donald et al., 2016; Hofmann et al., 2010; Kabat-Zinn et al.,1992). This study examined if balanced time perspective (BTP) is one of the mechanisms of action of mindfulness in its relationship with depression, anxiety, and stress. BTP refers to a person’s ability to flexibly adapt their time perspective (attention to the past, present, or future, and positive or negative attitudes toward each) to suit the current …

Recomposing Museums: Designing Rhythmic Experiences For Short Attention Spans In The Digital Age, Yujiang Wu

Masters Theses

Learning, being the primary aspiration of museums, “is a byproduct of attention.”¹ A visitor’s ability to focus and sustain attention on the objects, narratives, and messages within the exhibition environment profoundly influences their overall experience and the educational impact of their visit.

In an era of rapid digital evolution, changes in how information is consumed and communicated have led to shorter attention spans. Traditional museums, which are rooted in continuous, linear storytelling, now face a need for adaptation. This thesis advocates for an innovative exhibition design approach tailored to the realities of shorter attention spans, proposing curatorial and design …

Memory And Experiential Lab, Yufan Xu

Masters Theses

In the tapestry of our lives, there exist moments and places that we can never revisit, scenes etched into our memories that fade with the passage of time. These experiences and memories are treasures, provide us with an anchor to our past. Unfortunately, many of these moments are like fireflies in the night, here one moment and gone the next. Yet, they remain invaluable, forever etched in our hearts and minds. I wonder if it is possible to trigger cherished past experiences and memories in our daily lives, allowing individuals to re-experience similar moments, thereby nourishing the spiritual world. Therefore, …

A Thesis, Or Digressions On Sculptural Practice: In Which, Concepts & Influences Thereof Are Explained, Set Forth, Catalogued, Or Divulged By Way Of Commentaries To A Poem, First Conceived By The Artist, Fed Through Chatg.P.T., And Re-Edited By The Artist, To Which Are Added, Annotated References, Impressions And Ruminations Thereof, Also Including Private Thoughts & Personal Accounts Of The Artist, Jaimie An

Masters Theses

This thesis is an exercise in, perhaps a futile, attempt to trace just some of the ideas, stories, and musings I might meander through in my process. It’s not quite a map, nor is it a neat catalogue; it is a haphazard collection of tickets and receipts from a travel abroad, carelessly tossed in a carry-on, only to be stashed upon returning home. These ideas are derived from much greater thinkers and authors than myself; I am a mere collector or a translator, if that, and not a very good one, for much is lost. I do not claim comprehensive …

Destined Failure, Chengjun Pan

Masters Theses

I attempt to examine the complex structure of human communication, explaining why it is bound to fail. By reproducing experienceable phenomena, I demonstrate how they can expose communication structure and reveal the limitations of our perception and symbolization.I divide the process of communication into six stages: input, detection, symbolization, dictionary, interpretation, and output. In this thesis, I examine the flaws and challenges that arise in the first five stages. I argue that reception acts as a filter and that understanding relies on a symbolic system that is full of redundancies. Therefore, every interpretation is destined to be a deviation.

Phantom Spaces, Craytonia Williams Ii

Masters Theses

The world is built on ‘what-ifs’ and ‘I hopes.’ The more one can dream, the further development goes in design. We are told anything is possible if you put your mind to it, and as we have lived through many different eras, the limit in which we extend our mind has expanded. Research shows that emotional and mental instability has risen over 50% in the past decade in people under 30. How does the understanding of emotions and trauma impact the understanding and the feelings attached to designed spaces for rest and rehabilitation. We are constantly observing and adapting to …

Can’T Stop: The Effects Of High-P Sequencing On Fluency And Retention, Andrew R. Smith

Masters Theses

Precision teaching has led to successful outcomes in both training and education. Past research has shown that by using flashcard techniques such as SAFMEDS in ratebuilding exercises, one can expect expert levels of performance and retention of learned material by practicing for a minute a day. Fluency training using SAFMEDS could prove invaluable in businesses that wish to train their employees using cost and time efficient methods. However, recent research has shown that the SAFMEDS sequence may not quickly build accurate rates of responding in earlier sessions, or reliably lead to high levels of retention. High probability (high-p) sequences can …

Physiological Response To Dissonance In Musicians And Nonmusicians, Angela Beth Biehl

Masters Theses

Knowing the human response to musical dissonance could have important therapeutic implications in the music therapy setting. The listener’s musical experience could significantly impact their response and subsequently its effect in a therapeutic setting. Thus, this study aimed to examine both the psychophysiological and subjective responses to dissonance and the difference in these responses between those with high experience and those with low experience. Participating groups, categorized as high experience (HE) and low experience (LE) in terms of musical knowledge, listened to consonant and dissonant musical excerpts, and rated each excerpt on its pleasantness; their physiologic responses were measured to …

Phase Change Lines, Scale Breaks And Trend Lines Using Excel 2013Tm, Neil Deochand

Masters Theses

The development of graphing skills for the behavior analyst is an ongoing process. Specialized graphing software is often expensive, not widely disseminated, and may require specific training. Dixon, et al. (2009) provided an updated task analysis (Carr & Burkholder, 1998) in the widely used platform Excel 2007. Vanselow and Bourret (2012) provided online tutorials outlining some alternate methods also using Office 2007. This article serves as an update to those task analyses with alternative and under-utilized methods in Excel 2013. To examine the utility of our recommendations twelve psychology graduate students were presented with the task analyses and the experimenters …

A Study On The Personality Characteristics Of Dreamers, Joshua Lambert

Masters Theses

Nightmares are frightening dreams that cause the dreamer to wake, with the events that occur within the nightmare well remembered after awakening. There are those who experience nightmares frequently (at least one nightmare a week). While studying nightmares, Hartmann (1989, 1991) theorized a distinct personality trait he referred to as boundaries of the mind, and conceptualized a boundary continuum ranging from thin boundaries to thick boundaries. Those with thin boundaries were hypothesized to express permeability between cognitive processes, whereas those with thick boundaries are thought to better separate cognitive processes. Those who experience frequent nightmares are typically shown to report …

Explanatory Style And Perception Of Negative And Positive Daily Events, Amy K. Jester

Masters Theses

This study investigated explanatory style and people's perceptions of negative and positive daily events. Explanatory style can be measured by rating causal explanations that people give on three dimensions; internality, stability, and globality. College students wrote stories in response to pictures, using the Thematic Apperceptive Test (TAT), and also completed a 28-day Daily Event Log Questionnaire. It was expected that how people explain good and bad events that happen to them, would be the same whether someone was explaining a personal daily event or explaining a story written in response to a picture. To prove this, it was expected that …

Relationship Of Field Dependence/Independence To Personality For Younger And Older Adults, Thomas T. Lambirth

Masters Theses

The cognitive style of field dependence/independence is a perceptual construct that relates degree of reliance on the visual field to a variety of personality variables. Among the relationships found are that the field independent individuals are less involved with other people, independent in judgment, and cold and distant in interpersonal relationships. In contrast, field dependent subjects are seen as seeking close involvement with others, conforming in judgment, and warm and accepting in interpersonal relationships. Although field dependence/independence has received much attention in the literature over the years, little interest has been shown in the relationship between field dependence/independence and personality …

The Relationship Of Self-Concept And Locus Of Control, Dirk David Sheehan

Masters Theses

Purpose of the Study:

The primary purpose of this study was to investigate whether relationships could be found between certain characteristics of one's self-concept and locus of control. This paper is a report of that study.

Method of Study:

Data contained in this study were gathered by utilizing the Tennessee Self Concept Scale and the Rotter's I-E (Internal-External) Scale. A total of one hundred 1980 Rantoul High School psychology and physics students were administered the above standardized tests. The sex factor was included to see if there were any noticeable characteristics among students with relationship to their test scores.

The …

The Relationship Of Lateral Eye Movements To Field-Dependence-Independence And Verbal And Performance Skills, Linda J. Stennett-Mason

Masters Theses

Lateral eye movements and handedness as indexes of hemisphere asymmetry were compared to field-dependence-independence, as measured by Rod-and-Frame Test errors, and to Wechsler Verbal and Performance IQs. Consistent with previous research, the hypotheses predicted that persons with inconsistent lateral eye movements (ambilaterality) would have greater Rod-and-Frame errors (field-dependence) and lower Wechsler Verbal and Performance IQs.

Subjects were 41 male undergraduates who were grouped according to their lateral eye movements in response to 20 reflective questions consisting of ten verbal (left-hemisphere) and ten spatial (right-hemisphere) questions. The response scoring resulted in 12 subjects with 70% or more lateral eye movements to …

The Development Of The Self-Death Awareness Scale, Thomas Francis Ryan Jr.

Masters Theses

The purpose of the study was the development of the Self-Death Awareness Scale (SDAS), an instrument that is intended to measure the awareness of the fact that a person is mortal and is going to eventually die. The experimental instrument was administered to 100 persons equally divided into four age groups (ages 17-83). It was hypothesized that age and the SDAS were correlated with older persons being more aware of their own mortality than younger subjects. Also investigated were the variables of sex, occupation, education, church membership, number of children, marital status, and loss of family and friends through death. …

A Study On The Simultaneous Transmission Of Incongruent Information, Dennis Keith Smeltzer

Masters Theses

No abstract provided by author.

The Application Of Information Theory To A Single Visual Search Task, Charles F. Gidcumb

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

The Effects Of Age, I.Q. And Achievement On Children's Ability To Reverse The Necker Cube, Johnny Lee Matson

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.