Social Psychology Commons^™

Sexual Assault, Perceived Stigma, And Christian Fundamentalism: Understanding Support Seeking Among Victims., Sean Chandler Rife

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

For women, sexual assault is a widespread problem with numerous psychological consequences, yet many victims do not seek support. The present study investigates this lack of support seeking in the context of stigma. It is hypothesized that sexual assault victims who perceive themselves as stigmatized (due to their status as a sexual assault victim) will be less likely to seek support than those who do not perceive themselves as stigmatized. It is also hypothesized that Christian fundamentalism will play a role in the stigmatization of sexual assault victims, with higher degrees of fundamentalism being associated with greater likelihood of self-perceptions …

Racial Microaggression At Work: Implications For Caucasian And African-American Employees, Deborah R. Lee

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The present study is designed to extend the finding of Miner-Rubino and Cortina (2007) on bystander experiences of sexual harassment to bystander experiences of racial microaggressions. Racial microaggressions are a form of subtle racism, which are short, quick, everyday encounters that send degrading messages to people of color. The affects of racial microaggression on psychological, physical, and occupational outcomes were examined for both Caucasian and African-American employees. The results of the study indicate that racial microaggression are negatively related to psychological well-being for both races, as well as correlated to multiple negative work outcomes such as job burnout, job withdrawal, …

The Impact Of Westernization On Tongan Cultural Values Related To Business, Lucas Nelson Ross

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

This study examined the impact of Westernization on Tongan cultural values (Collectivism I, Collectivism II, Power Distance, Future Orientation, and Uncertainty Avoidance) related to business. A Tongan version of the Project GLOBE Beta Questionnaire measuring cultural dimensions at the societal level was completed by 222 Tongans from the island groups of Vava’u, Ha’apai, and Niuatoputapu. One-way ANOVA and planned comparison results indicated significant differences for Collectivism II and Uncertainty Avoidance. Scores from Vava’u showed significantly less Collectivism II than Ha’apai, but not Niuatoputapu. Furthermore, scores from Vava’u showed significantly less Uncertainty Avoidance than Ha’apai and Niuatoputapu. No significant differences were …

Fan Perception Of Justice In Team Disciplinary Decisions, Lauren Cathryn Gruchala

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The present study examined procedural and distributive justice outcomes of discipline in an athletic team setting. A 2 (Consistency of Punishment: consistent vs. conditional) x 2 (Violation Severity: moderate vs. severe) x 2 (Punishment Severity: moderate vs. severe) x 2 (Decision Maker: head coach vs. team captains) factorial design was used. Participants responded to four of the 16 hypothetical scenarios resulting from the design. Participants included 354 fans in attendance at a several university athletic events and students in psychology courses. The results indicated that consistent punishment was perceived as more fair to the punished athlete, teammates, and fans than …

The Role Of Gender Identity On The Effects Of Stereotype Threat: An Examination Of Girls’ Math Performance In A Single-Sex Classroom, Erin E. Twamley

Psychology Honors Projects

Despite all of the advancements women have made in the field of mathematics, the negative stereotype regarding women’s mathematical competence persists. Stereotype threat research demonstrates that the negative stereotype contributes to significant gender differences in attitudes, academic achievement, and educational and career attainment in math. The current longitudinal study focused on stereotype threat as an explanation for how a negative gender stereotype influences the mathematical performance of middle school girls in math in a single-sex setting. In particular, the study examines how the girls’ gender identification moderates the effects of stereotype threat. The results of the study indicate that stereotype …

Mental Imagery And Basketball: A Comparison Of Cognitive-Specific And Flow Imagery, Evan Welo

Psychology Honors Projects

Flow is a psychological state that is associated with optimal performance. Sports such as basketball are conducive to an individual experiencing flow because they have rules that structure and focus attention. Past research indicates that sports related mental imagery practice improves athletic performance; however few studies to date have systematically included the characteristics of flow in their sports mental imagery interventions. The present study compared the efficacy of a ―flow‖ and a standard basketball mental imagery intervention at improving performance on a basketball-shooting task. No significant differences were found between groups, but both reported increases in flow experiences.

Effects Of Social Support On The Social Self-Concepts Of Gifted Adolescents, Caroline S. Cochran

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The current study investigates the relationship between social support and the social self-concepts of gifted adolescents. Participants include 245 gifted students who had completed the fifth through the tenth grade during the previous academic year. Social self-concept was measured using the Self-Description Questionnaire II (Marsh, 1990). Social support was measured using the Child and Adolescent Social Support Scale (Malecki & Demaray, 2002). Results indicate multiple relationships between perceived social support and social self-concept, as well as a significant gender difference for the frequency of close friend social support. No gender differences were found for the parent, teacher, classmate, or school …

Intercollegiate Athlete Perceptions Of Justice In Team Disciplinary Decisions, Brandon Richard Severs

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Perceptions of justice involving disciplinary decisions for a star player in an intercollegiate team sport setting were investigated. Male and female intercollegiate athletes (N = 142) at a midsized southeastern university responded to one of sixteen scenarios and reported perceptions of fairness for the punished athlete and teammates, perceptions of procedural fairness for the punished athlete and teammates, and whether the punishment was likely to deter future misconduct by the punished athlete and teammates. The results indicated that athletes perceived consistently applied punishment as more fair to all team members than they did conditional punishment; consistently applied punishment was perceived …

Peer Perceptions Of Self-Injurious Behavior, Fantom Shakeria Smith

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Students of a south central university provide data for this study investigating knowledge of self-injury (SI), experiences with those who self-injure, and perceptions of SI. This study proposes that college peers of those who self-injure have higher levels of SI knowledge than professionals who work with individuals who self-injure. In addition, the study proposes that individuals who have experience with others who self-injure have higher levels of SI knowledge than individuals who do not have experience with others who self-injure. An additional purpose of this study is to explore information regarding experiences people have with others who self-injure and their …

Drinking Motives And Self-Other Differences Of College Norms Of Alcohol-Related Consequences And Protective Behavioral Strategies, Kristyn Lao

Renée Crown University Honors Thesis Projects - All

Heavy alcohol use and related consequences among college students have prompted an increase in research on determinants of excessive drinking, including perceived drinking norms. A distinction can be made between descriptive norms (what others do) and injunctive norms (what others approve of). Research reveals consistent self-other differences (SOD) for both descriptive and injunctive norms (Borsari & Carey, 2003), such that students tend to endorse more conservative behaviors and attitudes for themselves than they ascribe to their peers. The purpose of this study is to extend understanding of injunctive norms by evaluating SOD on (a) global comfort with drinking of students …

Evolutionary Mating Traits: When Costly Signals Emerge, David Taube

Renée Crown University Honors Thesis Projects - All

This study investigated whether different romantic contexts would influence one’s willingness to engage in blatant benevolence or conspicuous consumption. Participants – 341 college-age students – were recruited to read written stimulus materials about interpersonal encounters with a person of the opposite sex. Each participant was then asked to respond to questionnaires, which led to atypical results in how men and women interpret ambiguous cues. Contrary to previous findings, evidence suggested women more readily wish to use costly signals in response to ambiguous romantic cues in evolving relationships as compared to men, who showed no distinction between non-romantic and ambiguously romantic …

Driving Anger, Sensation Seeking, Narcissism, And Driver's Angry Thoughts In The Prediction Of Unsafe Driving, Roy Preston White

Dissertations

The present study expanded the previous research on multivariate prediction of unsafe driving behaviors. Specifically, the utility of combining driving anger, sensation seeking, narcissism, and driver's angry thoughts variables in the prediction of various unsafe driving behaviors and driving anger expression were assessed. In addition the present study sought to explore the predictive utility of driving anger and sensation seeking in a non-college sample. Three hundred and forty-nine college students completed measures of driving anger, sensation seeking, narcissism, driver's angry thoughts, unsafe driving behavior, and driving anger expression. Ninety eight non-college participants completed a subset of the previously mentioned measures. …

An Empirical Investigation Of The Adaptive Nature Of Shame, Elizabeth Jacqueline Dansie

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Throughout the empirical psychological literature on emotion, the general consensus is that shame is maladaptive, while guilt is the adaptive moral emotion. Conversely, evolutionary psychology concludes that all emotions serve adaptive functions. Specifically, shame serves an appeasement function in social relationships. In order to investigate the true nature of shame, the current study used an experimental design. Specifically, a 2 (high shame, no shame) X 2 (high guilt, no guilt) design with a no-mistakes control group was implemented, and shame and guilt were operationalized through an evolutionary lens (i.e., shame as a nonverbal display, guilt as verbalizations of apology). Participants …

The Interpersonal Lives Of Young Adult Women: A Study Of Passionate Friendship, Jenna Ann Glover

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study was designed to further understand passionate friendships in a sample of heterosexual and lesbian, bisexual, and questioning (LBQ) women. Previous research has established that LBQ women engage in same-sex passionate friendships (unusually intense friendships that are similar to romantic relationships but devoid of sexual intimacy), but no systematic classification system has been established to identify these relationships in a general sample of women. A new quantitative measure, the Passionate Friendship Survey, was developed to measure passionate friendship experiences in women across adolescence and young adulthood. Qualitative interviews were also conducted to understand the subjective experience of passionate friendships …

Evaluating The Relationship Between Women's Sexual Desire And Satisfaction From A Biopsychosocial Perspective, Katherine J. Chartier

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relationship between women's sexual desire and their reported level of sexual satisfaction. This study evaluated biological, psychological, and social factors of desire that might influence satisfaction. The sample for this study consisted of 77 Caucasian individuals, 45 women and 32 men, in their first marriage, who had been married on average 2 years. Results indicated that sexual desire was positively and significantly correlated with sexual satisfaction and that psychological and social factors most strongly explain women's sexual satisfaction. Further, women's perceptions of their own sexual desire, psychological and social, were more …

Latinos' Collectivism And Self-Disclosure In Intercultural And Intracultural Friendships And Acquaintanceships, Audrey Liz Schwartz

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Self-disclosure is the process of sharing personal information with others and varies according to relationship intimacy, cultural norms, and personal values. Collectivism, defined as the tendency to define oneself in terms of social/cultural roles, may impact self-disclosure in intercultural relationships. The present study investigated whether Latinos/as reliably self-disclose more in intracultural versus intercultural friendships and acquaintanceships. An additional question was whether cultural variables such as collectivism, ethnic identity, and acculturation are related to self-disclosure differences. Data were collected via an online survey from internationally born Latinos and Latino Americans. Results of linear mixed effects model testing revealed that relationship type …

Sociological And Psychological Predispositions To Serial Murder, Katie Marie Krueger

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

This paper looks specifically at the true definition of a serial killer, attempting to clarify the misleading depiction that has come from the media influence. Twenty-one people, including infamous murderers such as Ted Bundy and Jeffrey Dahmer, as well as more obscure killers, such as Carl Panzram, were studied in depth. Data was gathered from a variety of published sources on each convicted serial killer focusing on his/her life prior to the beginning of the killing spree. Unlike previous research on the topic, this investigation looked at a larger sample of serial killers, as well as a more complete set …

Jurors’ Perceptions Of Juvenile Defendants: The Influence Of Intellectual Disability, Abuse History, And Confession Evidence, Cynthia J. Najdowski, Bette L. Bottoms, Maria C. Vargas

Psychology Faculty Scholarship

Understanding jurors’ perceptions of juvenile defendants has become increasingly important as more and more juvenile cases are being tried in adult criminal court rather than family or juvenile court. Intellectual disability and child maltreatment are overrepresented among juvenile delinquents, and juveniles (particularly disabled juveniles) are at heightened risk for falsely confessing to crimes. In two mock trial experiments, we examined the effects of disability, abuse history, and confession evidence on jurors’ perceptions of a juvenile defendant across several different crime scenarios. Abused juveniles were treated more leniently than nonabused juveniles only when the juvenile’s crime was motivated by self-defense against …

Skin Tone Preferences In American College Students: Directions For Future Research, Alycia Boutté

XULAneXUS

In its original form, this paper was the introduction to a research proposal for a second semester, freshman Experimental Psychology course. Instead of including the entire proposal here, I review past research and propose empirical questions regarding the role of skin tone on different aspects of life in African American college students, especially mate selection. Historically, people of color have come to expect discrimination regarding skin tone to come from people of a different race, but discrimination also occurs within the African American community. The issue increases in complexity considering the potential discriminations that may accompany selecting a mate. This …

Acceptability Of Interventions To Staff In Long-Term Care Settings For Older Adults: Comparing Ratings And Hierarchical Selection, Jonathan C. Baker

Dissertations

Older adults and their caregivers generally prefer behavioral interventions over medications in treatment acceptability studies (Osterkamp, Mathews, Burgio, & Hardin, 1997). However, previous acceptability studies have primarily examined ratings, which did not force the responder to select between treatment options. Additionally, recent advances in behavioral treatment technologies (Carr & LeBlanc, 2003) and pharmacotherapy (Schneider, 1999) warrant revisiting treatment acceptability for older adults. The present investigation examined treatment acceptability of behavioral, pharmacological, and sensory interventions using a treatment acceptability rating scale, treatment selections, and direct report of treatments used in a six-month window. Fifty-six staff from nursing homes in the Mid-West …

Investigating The Effects Of Observer Presence And Feedback On Individuals' Work-Related Behavior, Angela R. Lebbon

Dissertations

Direct observation procedures have been widely used by applied behavior analysts to examine the effects of various interventions, however, recent research examining the effects of the observer's presence on behavior has found that participants behave in ways that are not representative of their behavior in the absence of an observer. Furthermore, recent research has demonstrated that both reactivity and habituation are idiosyncratic and it remains unclear which variables mediate reactive effects with individuals. Researchers have discussed the necessity of identifying and measuring reactive effects in order to discover variables (e.g., discriminative stimulus properties) that may mediate reactive effects. Previous research …

Student-Athlete Worldview: A Qualitative Discovery Of Student-Athletes' Outlook Of The World Through Their Athletic Experiences, Lara Preacco

Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to explore Athletic Identity (AI) by looking at its essence, and learn about how student-athletes perceive and experience themselves and the world through their athletic experiences; or Student Athlete Worldview (SAWV). A phenomenological study was conducted to investigate and describe the common and emerging themes of SAWV. Initial interviews, journaling, and follow-up interviews were conducted with nine student-athletes competing in NCAA Division I, non-revenue, individual and team sports. Student-athletes offered a revealing picture and identified three aspects of being a student-athlete: intrapersonal, interpersonal and restrictive/sacrificing aspects. These aspects were combined to develop an integrative …

Personality, Self-Esteem, Interpersonal Relationships And Friendships, Domonique Lewis

XULAneXUS

According to Abraham Maslow’s (1943) hierarchy of needs, all humans, whether young or old, have the same basic needs. For humans, self-esteem and friendships are deemed important to psychological well-being. The present study explores the correlation between levels of extraversion, shyness, self-esteem, and the number of friends an individual reports having. Participants completed items from the Revised Cheek and Buss Shyness Scale (1983), the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire Revised (1992), and the Rosenberg Self Esteem Scale (1965), to determine personality trait and self-esteem scores, and the Abbreviated Duke Social Support Index (1993) to determine levels of social support. The results indicate …

What Makes Stephen F. Austin State University Students Happy?, Tyler Bishop, Nicole Kurr, Jennifer Mcfarland, Brandon Rogers

Undergraduate Research Conference

When we began our research we believed most people would be happier owning a pet, attending church, or exercising. However, we determined this was not the case, instead concluded students have different things that make them happy. In addition, after reviewing our results we were surprised that holding all else constant, having a hobby, owning a pet, attending church, and exercising will increase a student’s level of happiness.

It's That Efa* Time Of Year (*Extreme Fan Addiction), Donelson R. Forsyth

Jepson School of Leadership Studies articles, book chapters and other publications

What an odd lot our ancestors must have been to let themselves get caught up in crazes like the 10th century dancing mania in Italy, or the alarming outbreak of biting mania in 15th century Germany, Italy, and Holland. Holland's 17th century tulipmania proved only economically painful, when wealthy families spent their savings buying and hoarding tulip bulbs, and were left in financial ruin when prices plummeted.

We are not so different from those long-gone dancers, biters, and tulipophiles, because a modern mania is about to descend upon us: March Madness. Sixty-four colleges and universities send their basketball teams into …

Testing The Relationship Of Formal Bonding, Informal Bonding, And Formal Bridging Social Capital On Key Outcomes For Families In Low-Income Neighborhoods, Daniel Brisson

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

The development of social capital among families living in low income neighborhoods has become a popular poverty reduction and economic advancement strategy. However conceptual scholarship suggests the broad use of social capital has diminished its importance. Scholars have begun to identify the multiple and overlapping characteristics of social capital and the field now needs empirical studies to show how specific types of social capital are important for families living in low-income neighborhoods. This study tests the relationship between three types of social capital (informal bonding social capital, formal bonding social capital and formal bridging social capital) and important outcomes for …

Multiracial Identity Integration: Perceptions Of Conflict And Distance Among Multiracial Individuals, Chi-Ying Cheng, Fiona Lee

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

This article examines how multiracial individuals negotiate their different and sometimes conflicting racial identities. Drawing from previous work on bicultural identity integration (see Benet-Martinez and Haritatos, 2005), we proposed a new construct, multiracial identity integration (MII), to measure individual differences in perceptions of compatibility between multiple racial identities. We found that MII is composed of two independent subscales: that describes whether different racial identities are perceived as disparate, and that describes whether different racial identities are perceived as in conflict. We also found that recalling positive multiracial experiences increased MII, while recalling negative multiracial experiences decreased MII. These findings have …

Toward A More Complete Understanding Of The Link Between Multicultural Experience And Creativity, William W. Maddux, Angela K.-Y. Leung, Chi-Yue Chiu, Adam D. Galinsky

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Responds to G. J. Rich's comments on the current author's original article which presented evidence supporting the idea that multicultural experience can facilitate creativity. Rich has argued that our review, although timely and important, was somewhat limited in scope, focusing mostly on smaller forms of creativity ("little c": e.g., paper-and-pencil measures of creativity) as well as on larger forms of multicultural experience ("Big M": e.g., living in a foreign country). We agree with many aspects of Rich's assessment. The issue of whether different forms of multicultural experience can affect Big C creativity is of interest to both scholars and laypeople …

The Dark Triad: Facilitating A Short-Term Mating Strategy In Men, Peter K. Jonason, Norman P. Li, Gregory D. Webster, David P. Schmitt

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

This survey (N=224) found that characteristics collectively known as the Dark Triad (i.e. narcissism, psychopathy and Machiavellianism) were correlated with various dimensions of short-term mating but not long-term mating. The link between the Dark Triad and short-term mating was stronger for men than for women. The Dark Triad partially mediated the sex difference in short-term mating behaviour. Findings are consistent with a view that the Dark Triad facilitates an exploitative, short-term mating strategy in men. Possible implications, including that Dark Triad traits represent a bundle of individual differences that promote a reproductively adaptive strategy are discussed. Findings are discussed in …

Measuring Non-Verbal Communication Of Emotion In Personal Relationships: The Procedure For Assessing Affect Communication Accuracy, Konstantinos Kafetsios, Kelly Campbell

Psychology Faculty Publications

The present study describes a new method for the assessment of accuracy in non-verbal communication of emotion in close relationships and presents results from a study that examined the validity of the method. The paper initially argues for the need of a new method on the basis of critical review of most the existing methods of accuracy of non-verbal communication of emotion, specifically: a) that they assess more symbolic rather than affective dimensions of non-verbal communication, b) that they involve inconsistencies with regards to the elicitation of emotion and c) that they involve methodological problems in the procedure of assessing …