Cognitive Psychology Commons^™

Pigeons' Memory For Sequences Of Light Flashes When Gap Duration Is Controlled, Dwayne Keough

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

In Experiment 1, pigeons were trained at a 1-s dark and a 1-s houselight illuminated delay interval to discriminate between sequences of two and four flashes of light (feeder illumination). These sequences could be discriminated on the basis of the number of flashes, the number of gaps, or the duration of the gap between flashes. A choose-few bias was obtained at extended dark delays, but no biased forgetting was observed at extended illuminated delays. The pigeons may have confused long dark delays with the longer gaps between flashes on few sample trials. In Experiment 2, additional sample sequences were included …

A Campus-Wide Model For Supporting Untenured Faculty Including Women And Minorities: Strategies, Recommendations And Caveats, Ellen N. Junn, M. Atwell

Office of the Provost Scholarship

This paper presents a comprehensive campus-wide strategic model for more effectively supporting tenure-track faculty with a special concern for assisting women and minority faculty. A description of the process and the outcomes includes establishment of a clear, high-level administrative initiative; formation of a campus-wide committee of highly respected faculty and administrators; compilation and discussion of current research and writings on the issue of recruiting and retaining women and minority faculty; collection of campus and national comparison data; creation, administration, and analysis of a survey of untenured faculty; compilation and dissemination of the committee’s final report and specific recommendations; and prioritized …

Proximity In Context: An Empirically Grounded Computational Model Of Proximity For Processing Topological Spatial Expression., John D. Kelleher, Geert-Jan Kruijff, Fintan Costello

Conference papers

The paper presents a new model for context-dependent interpretation of linguistic expressions about spatial proximity between objects in a natural scene. The paper discusses novel psycholinguistic experimental data that tests and verifies the model. The model has been implemented, and enables a conversational robot to identify objects in a scene through topological spatial relations (e.g. ''X near Y''). The model can help motivate the choice between topological and projective prepositions.

Examination Of Different Levels Of Restorative Behaviour Utilising The Affect, Affirmation And Action Model, Jessica Sumner

Theses : Honours

The present paper reviews the relevant literature to determine whether there is support for the Affirmation, Affect and Action Model of Apology and True Sorriness (AAA model) that was developed by Slocum, Allan and Allan (2006). The chronological review of the literature examines how the constructs of apology and true sorriness evolved. Initially, apologetic types were perceived on a continuum, however, with time researchers' acknowledged different components of apologetic behaviour. These components were later named affirmation, affect and actions in the development of Slocum's et al. AAA model. In further research, such components were quantified for manipulation in experimental research …

The Relationship Between Body Image And Self-Esteem In Older Adulthood, Lucie Guegan

Theses : Honours

Purpose: Given the global trend of population ageing and the fact that Australia will experience a significant increase in the proportion of older adults, research into ageing issues has become a National priority. Whilst body image and self-esteem have been empirically linked, the relationship among older adults has been neglected. The present study investigated several body image variables and their relationship to self-esteem in a sample of older adults. Design and Methods: Questionnaires consisting of the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale and the Multidimensional Body-Self Relations Questionnaire were administered to 148 adults aged between 65 and 85 years, living independently in the …

The Role Of Implicit Memory In Visual Word Recognition: Principles And Processes Of Long- And Short-Term Repetition Priming, Matthew Robert Merema

Theses : Honours

This review examines the role of long- and short-term repetition priming research in the theoretical debate between episodic and abstractionist accounts of implicit memory. The empirical research and theoretical accounts of priming reviewed indicate that neither episodic or abstractionist theories alone can successfully account for the processes of long- and short-term repetition priming. The major variations between studies in experimental methods used to measure repetition priming are also examined, providing a possible explanation for contrasting results obtained within repetition priming research and a reason for why the episodic versus abstractionist debate persists. Finally, research examining the underlying mechanisms responsible for …

Posttraumatic Growth And Ptsd Symptomatology Among Colorectal Cancer Survivors: The Impact Of Emotional Expression And Cognitive Processing, John M. Salsman

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

There are substantial data exploring the link between religiosity and health, yet there is no consensus regarding the appropriate measurement tool for assessing religiosity in health psychology settings. The purpose of this study was to identify a set of items that could serve as a reliable and valid proxy measure of religiosity. Participants included 251 (M=19.02; range = 17-25) young adults who completed self-report measures of religiosity (Intrinsic-Extrinsic/Revised, Quest Scale, Faith Maturity Scale), psychological distress (SCL-90-R), and personality (NEOPI-R). Individual item pools for religiosity were developed by identifying significant correlations between each of the religiosity measures and the SCL-90-R items. …

Vergleich Zweier Schulbasierter Programme Zur Prävention Depressiver Symptome Bei Jugendlichen (Comparison Of Two School Based Depression Prevention Programs For Adolescents)., Patrick Pössel, Andrea B. Horn, Martin Hautzinger

Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Theoretischer Hintergrund: Depressive Störungen im Jugendalter sind ein weitverbreitetes Problem mit weitreichenden psychosozialen Folgen. Um beidem vorzubeugen wurde ein kognitiv-verhaltenstherapeutisches und ein auf dem Paradigma des Expressiven Schreibens beruhendes universales schulbasiertes Präventionsprogramm entwickelt. Fragestellung: Haben die beiden Präventionsprogramme positive Wirkung auf depressive Symptomatik und Lebenszufriedenheit Jugendlicher? Methode: Es wurde eine randomisierte Kontrollgruppenstudie mit 3-Monats Follow-up an 579 Realschülern und -schülerinnen der 8. Klasse durchgeführt. Ergebnisse: Das kognitiv-verhaltenstherapeutische Programm wirkt in Abhängigkeit der Ausgangssymptomatik kurz- bzw. mittelfristig auf die depressive Symptomatik, während das Schreibprogramm unabhängig von der Ausgangssymptomatik kurz- und mittelfristig positiv auf die Lebenszufriedenheit wirkt. Schlussfolgerungen: Trotz Einschränkungen in Bezug …

Using Working Memory Interference Tasks To Test For Verbal And Spatial Route Learning Strategies, Ian Reagan

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Research indicates considerable individual variability exists on a host of tasks that measure navigational ability. This experiment examined the hypothesis that some individuals use verbal and others spatial processing to learn routes. A survey was used to categorize individuals into good or poor sense of direction (GSD or PSD) groups. Then participants learned two routes in a virtual setting; they learned one while engaged in spatial tapping and one while engaged in articulatory suppression. The experimenter led participants through the route once. Participants then traversed the route from memory. During the spatial tapping condition, participants in the GSD group were …

Influence Of General Self-Efficacy On The Effects Of A School-Based Universal Primary Prevention Program Of Depressive Symptoms In Adolescents : A Randomized And Controlled Follow-Up Study., Patrick Pössel, Christiane Baldus, Andrea B. Horn, Gunter Groen, Martin Hautzinger

Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Background:  Depressive disorders in adolescents are a widespread and increasing problem. Prevention seems a promising and feasible approach.

Methods:  We designed a cognitive-behavioral school-based universal primary prevention program and followed 347 eighth-grade students participating in a randomized controlled trial for three months.

Results:  In line with our hypothesis, participants in the prevention program remained on a low level of depressive symptoms, having strong social networks. The control group showed increasing depressive symptoms and a reduced social network. Contrary to our expectations, students low in self-efficacy benefited more from the program than high self-efficient students. Social network did not mediate the …

A Comparison Study Between Writing On Handheld Computers And Pencil-Paper In The Elementary Classroom, Ling-Chin Ko

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to compare the difference in writing effort associated with two methods, pencil and paper and handheld computers in the third grade classroom. The methods were compared in terms of the quality of the stories written, and the length of the stories in number of words, and time on task during writing of the stories. Three hypotheses were defined to identify the effect of writing efforts associated with the two methods, two classes and the effect on the interaction between the methods and the class. All three hypotheses were analyzed with a two-way MANOVA test. …

Error Management Theory And The Hostile Attribution Bias, Felix J. Thoemmes

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Error Management Theory (Haselton & Buss, 2000) proposes that certain human biases evolved as an adaptation to cost differentials between certain types of errors that can be committed in social situations. This study examined whether the hostile attribution bias (Dodge, 1980), a tendency in aggressive children and adults to over-perceive aggressive intent in others, could be accounted for by Error Management Theory. In a vignette study, participants rated their perceived aggression of a potential perpetrator in a car accident. Different vignettes depicted the same situation under various conditions in terms of who accompanied the "participant". Conditions were changed in order …

A Social Cognitive Perspective Of Physical-Activity-Related Behavior In Physical Education, Jeffrey J. Martin, Pamela Hodges Kulinna

Kinesiology, Health and Sport Studies

The purpose of the current study was to examine student and teacher physical-activity-related behavior using the theory of planned behavior and self-efficacy theory. Although teachers reported an overwhelmingly positive attitude toward teaching physical activity lessons to promote fitness development, they only devoted 4% of their class time to actually demonstrating and promoting fitness. Students were quite sedentary during class spending 61% of class time sitting, standing, or lying down. Using hierarchical regression analyses, teachers' attitudes toward teaching physically active physical education classes accounted for 50% of the variance in teachers' intention. Teachers who demonstrated/promoted fitness and who limited their general …

Theta Activity During Navigation In Virtual Environments, Colleen Margaret Moore

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Human navigation has gone through many different stages, from guidance by stars to guidance by technology. Theories for performance differences range from differences between individuals, to experience with the environment. Researchers turn to virtual environments during experimentation which are easy to manipulate and easier to measure during navigation. However, fidelity is an issue with regard to transfer of learning to a real world environment. We examined differences in theta activity during navigation in low and high fidelity virtual environments. The researchers recruited thirty-two students between the ages of 18-40 from the university subject pool for voluntary participation. We measured EEG …

Analysis Of Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder And Its Effects On Child Development, Carmen K. Rossum

Electronic Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of the independent study of pediatric Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder is to aid in the treatment of young individuals suffering from these disturbing behavioral disorders. Although AD/HD in the past was not credited as a true behavioral disorder, researchers have continued to learn more about this illness and how it is affecting our adolescents. Studies have also shown that adults diagnosed with AD/HD most likely suffered from similar symptoms as a child. AD/HD is not learning disability and with dedication from the patient and those involved in his life, he can lead an extremely successful academic as well as …

With A Little Help From My Friends (And Substitutes): Social Referents And Influence In Psychological Contract Fulfillment, Violet Ho

Management Faculty Publications

This study investigated employees’ choice of social referents and the impact of social influence on their beliefs of psychological contract fulfillment. Using data from a field study conducted with 99 employees in a research organization, we found that one’s referent choice varied with the domain of promise evaluated. When evaluating the organization’s fulfillment of organization-wide promises, employees’ referents were primarily coworkers with whom they had close direct ties, namely, friends and advice givers. On the other hand, when evaluating the fulfillment of job-related promises, employees’ referents were mainly fellow workers who could substitute for them and people with whom they …

The Effectiveness Of Memory Training Programs In Improving The Subjective Memory Characteristics Of Healthy Older Adults With Memory Complaints : A Meta-Analysis, Kimilee Y. Wilson

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

The focus of this study was to examine the effectiveness of memory training programs in improving the metamemory (i.e., subjective memory characteristics) of healthy older adults by integrating recent research findings in a meta-analysis. In particular, the following research questions were proposed: (a) How effective are memory training programs in improving the subjective memory characteristics of healthy older adults with memory complaints? (b) Which components of the memory training programs increase the effectiveness of memory training (in terms of metamemory characteristics)? (c) How do the results of this meta-analysis compare to those reported by Floyd and Scogin (1997)? Studies that …

A Cognitive View Of The Bilingaul Lexicon: Reading And Speaking Words In Two Languages, Judith Kroll, Bianca Sumutka, Ana Schwartz

Selected Works Temporary Series

No abstract provided.

Speeded Retrieval Abolishes The False Memory Suppression Effect: Evidence For The Distinctiveness Heuristic, C. S. Dodson, Amanda C. Gingerich

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

We examined two different accounts of why studying distinctive information reduces false memories within the DRM paradigm. The impoverished relational encoding account predicts that less memorial information, such as overall famililarity, is elicited by the critical lure after distinctive encoding than after non-distinctive encoding. By contrast, the distinctiveness heuristic predicts that participants use a deliberate retrieval strategy to withhold responding to the critical lures. This retrieval strategy refers to a decision rule whereby the absence of memory for expected distinctive information is taken as evidence for an event’s nonoccurrence. We show that the typical false recognition suppression effect only occurs …

Mental Concerts: Musical Imagery And Auditory Cortex, Robert J. Zatorre, Andrea R. Halpern

Faculty Journal Articles

Most people intuitively understand what it means to “hear a tune in your head.” Converging evidence now indicates that auditory cortical areas can be recruited even in the absence of sound and that this corresponds to the phenomenological experience of imagining music. We discuss these findings as well as some methodological challenges. We also consider the role of core versus belt areas in musical imagery, the relation between auditory and motor systems during imagery of music performance, and practical implications of this research.

Wonderwise 4-H: Following In The Footsteps Of Women Scientists, Amy N. Spiegel, S. Kay Rockwell, Deanna Acklie, Saundra Wever Frerichs, Kathleen French, Judy Diamond

Department of Educational Psychology: Faculty Publications

Wonderwise 4-H: Women in Science Learning Kits, recently included in the National 4-H Curriculum Collection and widely tested by 4-H leaders, have positively affected youths’ perspectives on science, scientists, and scientific work. Adult leaders who used the multimedia, inquiry-based Wonderwise 4-H kits completed a Web survey describing the impact of the kits on youth. It indicated that the kits increased youth’s interest and understanding of science, broadened their view of scientists, and opened their eyes to the possibility of science in their own futures. More information about Wonderwise 4-H and downloadable activities are available at wonderwise.unl.edu.

A Cognitive View Of The Bilingaul Lexicon: Reading And Speaking Words In Two Languages, Judith Kroll, Bianca Sumutka, Ana Schwartz

Departmental Papers (Psych)

No abstract provided.

Effects Of Background Music On Spatial And Linguistic Processing, Leslie A. Angel, Donald J. Polzella, Greg C. Elvers

Psychology Faculty Publications

Poster session presented at the meeting of the Psychonomic Society. College students were trained according to one of two standardized task protocols: spatial (mental rotation) or linguistic (letter classification).Testing consisted of multiple randomized trials with and without background music (classical piano) at two levels of task difficulty. Raw data for both tasks were response time and accuracy. Background music increased the speed of spatial processing at both difficulty levels, while accuracy of processing remained unaffected. In contrast, background music increased the accuracy of linguistic processing, while speed of processing remained unaffected. These findings, integrated with those of a previous experiment …

Wonderwise 4-H: Following In The Footsteps Of Women Scientists, A. N. Spiegel, S. K. Rockwell, D. S. Acklie, K. French, J. Diamond

Department of Educational Psychology: Faculty Publications

Wonderwise 4-H: Women in Science introduces youth to contemporary female scientists in their labs, out in the field, and with their families through nine interactive multimedia kits. Youth learn about the scientist’s occupation and participate in hands-on science activities similar to the actual work of a female scientist role model. Using role models was effective in improving youths’ attitudes about science through engaging activities and realistic videos. A web survey of 150 adult youth leaders showed Wonderwise 4-H brings “real science” into youths’ lives by (a) engaging them in actual scientific activities, (b) increasing their understanding of what science is, …

Biased Forgetting Effects In The Assessment Of Memory For Filled And Empty Intervals: Evidence For The Instructional Failure/Confusion Hypothesis, Stephen Gagne

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

According to the instructional failure hypothesis, the contextual similarity of the intertrial interval (ITI) and the delay interval (DI) is responsible for the choose-short bias that occurs when memory for filled intervals is tested. This hypothesis may also explain the choose-long bias for empty intervals, if birds confuse an extended DI with a long empty interval. In the present study, pigeons were trained in a within-subjects design to discriminate durations of a filled interval (2-s and 8-s of light), and durations of an empty interval (2-s and 8-s bound by two 1-s light markers). In order to disambiguate the ITI, …

Musical Stem Completion: Humming That Note, Jill A. Warker, Andrea Halpern

Faculty Journal Articles

This study looked at how people store and retrieve tonal music explicitly and implicitly using a production task. Participants completed an implicit task (tune stem completion) followed by an explicit task (cued recall). The tasks were identical except for the instructions at test time. They listened to tunes and were then presented with tune stems from previously heard tunes and novel tunes. For the implicit task, they were asked to sing a note they thought would come next musically. For the explicit task, they were asked to sing the note they remembered as coming next. Experiment 1 found that people …

The Importance Of Retrieval Failures To Long-Term Retention: A Metacognitive Explanation Of The Spacing Effect, Harry P. Bahrick, Lynda K. Hall

All Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Encoding strategies vary in their duration of effectiveness, and individuals can best identify and modify strategies that yield effects of short duration on the basis of retrieval failures. Multiple study sessions with long inter-session intervals are better than massed training at providing discriminative feedback that identifies encoding strategies of short duration. We report two investigations in which long intervals between study sessions yield substantial benefits to long-term retention, at a cost of only moderately longer individual study sessions. When individuals monitor and control encoding over an extended period, targets yielding the largest number of retrieval failures contribute substantially to the …

Dissociable Aspects Of Mental Workload: Examinations Of The P300 Erp Component And Performance Assessments, Carryl L. Baldwin, Joseph T. Coyne

Psychology Faculty Publications

Advanced technologies have enabled the choice of either visual or auditory formats for avionics and surface transportation displays. Methods of assessing the mental workload imposed by displays of different formats are critical to their successful implementation. Towards this end a series of investigations were conducted with the following aims: 1) developing analogous auditory and visual versions of a secondary task that could be used to compare display modalities; and 2) to compare the sensitivity of neurophysiological, behavioral and subjective indices of workload. Experiments 1 and 2 confirmed that analogous auditory and visual secondary oddball discrimination tasks were of equivalent difficulty …

Children's Ability To Use Time-Lines To Recall The Order And Duration Of Single And Repeated Actions, Leanne Lynn Gosse

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This study examined the ability of children aged 4-8 to recall temporal information verbally and using a visual 'time-line'. Forty-five children participated in an activity (making a picture of the sky at night) with the researcher, followed by a series of recall tasks. Children were asked to recall location, duration and sequencing information about single autobiographical events that parents provided, as well as single and repeated events from the activity. Results demonstrated developmental increases in children's ability to provide temporal information. The 7-8 year olds were always more accurate than the 5-6 year olds, followed by the 4 year olds. …

Psychopathy And The Five Factor Model In A Noninstitutionalized Sample: A Domain And Facet Level Analysis, Scott R. Ross, Catherine J. Lutz, Steven E. Bailley

Psychology Faculty Publications

The current study examined the relationship of the Five Factor Model (FFM) of personality to primary and secondary psychopathic dispositions in a noninstitutionalized sample. Previous investigations suggest that Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, and Neuroticism are basic personality traits that characterize psychopathy. However, few studies have examined the relationship of the FFM to primary and secondary psychopathic attributes, respectively. In the current study, the relationship of the FFM using the NEO-PI-R to primary and secondary psychopathic dispositions was investigated in a sample of young adults. Previous findings were extended by (1) addressing the relationship of higher and lower order FFM traits (i.e., facet …