2008-2009 Senior Comp Abstracts

Omar Alsaadi
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: Joshua Searle-White

Finding Connections: A Teenager With Autism And His Music Preferences

K.M. 1 is a 15 year old male who was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy and autism at six years of age. K.M. attends a regular school that has a dedicated division for autistic children. Most of these children have an individual assistant to watch over them, including K.M. His assistant has been with him for 6 years. K.M.’s parents play music for him when he is feeling anxious, and it helps calm him. The purpose of this study was to attempt to understand which type of music K.M. enjoys the most. After observing K.M.’s behavior during 8 sessions of 4 different genres of music, the researcher was able to conclude what type of music is most fitting for K.M. Once it was recognized which type of music was most effective, a CD was made that was comprised of songs of this type. This CD could be played when K.M. is feeling anxious, and would be more effective than the type of music already played for him. By relieving K.M. of as much anxiety as possible, quality of life would improve.

Heather A. Baird
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: Joshua Searle-White

Medication Non-Adherence and Criminal Responsibility in Offenders with Schizophrenia or Bipolar Disorder

Criminal responsibility can become a complicated issue when the supposed criminal is suffering from a chronic mental illness such as schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. This type of situation is complicated further when the patient is non-adherent to their medication. Using the theory of meta-responsibility these patients would be held accountable for their actions because they chose to be non-adherent which directly caused their illness to relapse. There are numerous reasons why patients become non-adherent including lack of insight, negative side effects of medication, stigma of mental illness, and non-adherence as a coping mechanism. There are also several factors that support a patient being held criminally responsible, such as intact insight when medication is discontinued, learning from previous relapses, comorbid substance abuse, public and individual safety and the idea that non-adherence is a choice. The combination of these factors leads to the conclusion that, in the majority of cases, patients who discontinue medication then commit a crime should be held criminally responsible for their actions. Observation of a series of relevant court cases over the past 140 years shows how the legal system has progressed from allowing the smallest symptom of insanity to completely remove criminal responsibility, to taking into account the etiology of mental illness in some recent cases.

Tamara E. Belden
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: Aimee Knupsky

Examining Comics Theory: The Effect Of Character Facial Realism On Narrative Engagement

The purpose of this research was to examine the effect of character facial realism on narrative engagement during comic book reading. Participants (N = 31) read a comic booklet through twice, featuring either low or high facial realism. After they completed the task, they responded to a post-test questionnaire containing items designed to measure narrative engagement. The majority of the measures asked participants to respond to statements using a 6-point Likert-type scale (1 = “Strongly Disagree;” 6 = “Strongly Agree”), including the transportation scale (Green & Brock, 2000; Green, 2004), entertainment rating, story-relevant belief survey, and Reysen likability scale (Reysen, 2005). The remaining measures were cued recall for narrative events and an open-ended prompt to describe the comic’s protagonist. Response times for both readings and completion of the questionnaire were also recorded. The results showed little support for the hypothesis that facial realism affects narrative engagement. However, microanalysis of the dependent variables indicated that facial realism did affect how easily participants felt they could put the story out of their mind, as well as how similar they found the protagonist to themselves.

Lesley B. Bittner
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: Joshua Searle-White

An Examination Of Maternal Stress Level Changes As A Function Of Ages Of Children With Autism

The purpose of the present study was to examine the relationship between maternal stress levels and the ages of their autistic children. A well-established questionnaire was used to assess stress, pessimism, depression, and parent and family problems of nineteen mothers of autistic children of various ages. It was found that mothers of younger children were more depressed than mothers of older children. It was also found that mothers who felt unable to provide peer support for their child were more stressed than mothers feeling able to provide support for the child with regard to peer issues. The findings in this study have important implications as they provide support for the idea that stress can manifest in different ways for the mother at different stages of an autistic child’s life. Future research should be conducted due to the varying results of this study.

Christopher L. Brightbill
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: Amy Wiseman

Distinctiveness Heuristic Training

Since the introduction of the term in 1999 by Schacter, Israel, & Racine, the distinctiveness heuristic has appeared in myriad experiments examining the cognitive processes underlying false memories and the prevention of them. The distinctiveness heuristic (DH) is used by most people as a means of determining the truth or falsehood of their recognition according to a phenomenological experience of expecting to be able to remember distinct information. While most of the literature on the DH manipulates variables at encoding stages (presenting distinctive information at encoding such as pictures instead of words), substantially less of the literature manipulates variables at retrieval. The goal of the present research was to manipulate retrieval processes by training participants to more effectively utilize the DH to guard against false memories that are created by a DRM-like categorized list paradigm. Manipulation of the independent variable included two between-subjects levels: simple feedback training, and verbose feedback training. Simple feedback training was intended to increase participant confidence in their answers, while verbose feedback training was intended to increase their awareness of the phenomenological experience of expectation of accuracy. It was hypothesized that simple feedback will reduce false recognition the least because it does not explicitly target the DH. Verbose feedback should reduce false recognition at a greater rate because it trains participants to use the DH more effectively. Because differences between false recognition rates between groups is not significant, the conclusion was made that participants will use the DH regardless of the exact content of feedback, but that feedback is nevertheless necessary to reduce false recognition rates.

Sara N. Brown
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: Gwen Allison Kenney-Benson

College Women’s Usage of and Beliefs about Aggressive Behavior Styles

The main goal of this study was to examine the correlations and differences between college women’s acceptability beliefs regarding different forms and functions of aggressive styles with their self-reported aggressive behaviors in middle school and college. Participants answered a closed self-report questionnaire which asked participants to report on their acceptability levels and behaviors in middle school and college for different forms and functions of aggression. The results of the study supported the hypothesis that acceptability beliefs are correlated with self-reported behaviors. Furthermore, beliefs and behaviors were correlated when specific functions were examined. Proactive beliefs and behaviors were correlated with reactive beliefs and behaviors. Results also showed that aggressive acts were more acceptable and prevalent in middle school.  Lastly, this study addressed the concern of past research by improving upon the internal reliability of the subscales of the Normative Beliefs of Subtypes of Aggression Scale.

Jonathan R. Davis
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: Joshua Searle-White

The Social Perceptions And Motivations Of The Gaming Culture Of College Students: A Study Of The Allegheny Role-Playing And Gaming Organization (Argo)

This study examines the individual and global in and outgroup dynamics of the Allegheny Role-playing and Gaming Organization (ARGO) of Allegheny College. Data on the individual dynamics were gathered using the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) scale of empathy (Davis, 1980), along with two original surveys that were used to measure some of the global in and out group dynamics of ARGO. The individual and larger group dynamics are: what are the motivations and reasons behind a person engaging in gaming, a person’s reason for joining the gaming group, and social perceptions of the group by both members and nonmembers of ARGO. The Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) revealed that ARGO members scored lower than the general population in all four of the subtests. These subtests were the Fantasy, Perspective-Taking, Empathic Concern, and the Personal Distress Scales. The general surveys used to measure in and outgroup attitudes also revealed that nonmembers perceive members as being more academically adept than the general population, while members see themselves as having a normal aptitude, in conflict with actual academic performance data. The survey also indicates that ARGO members are perceived as following common “nerd” stereotypes, revealed by scores that indicate that non participants in ARGO perceive its members as doing less academic work and engaging in less physical exercise in comparison to the rest of campus.

Anna B. Dixon
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: William DeLamarter

An Examination Of A Parent’s Ability To Conduct A Functional Analysis For Their Child’s Self-Injurious Behavior

Applied behavior analysis has been recognized as one of the most successful treatments for children with autism. Many of these children engage in problem behaviors with self-injury being the most dangerous and life-threatening. Spots in treatment facilities are very limited though, and some parents do not have the means for therapy. Many parents choose to conduct their own functional analysis and treatment at home to save time and money. This study examines the many reasons why applied behavior analysis is the leader in the treatment of self-injury and why parents should not attempt to self-treat their children using this technique. Treatment using applied behavior analysis is a long and arduous process that should be left to the professionals.

Vincent M. Donofrio
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: Aimee Knupsky

Effects Of Speaker And Listener Sex On Social Perceptions Of Speakers With Speech Disfluencies.

The purpose of the present study was to determine the effects of sex of the speaker and the sex of the listener on the social perceptions of disfluent speakers (stutter). Participants listened to an audio recording of either a disfluent male or female speaker reading from an identical script and were then asked to complete a ten-item questionnaire assessing perceived personality traits of the speaker. This assessment provided measures of perceived ambition, intelligence, stress, self-esteem, decisiveness, reliability, emotional stability, social adjustment, employability, and physical attractiveness. The present study hypothesized that male participants would rate disfluent speakers more negatively than female participants, male participants would rate the male disfluent speaker more harshly than the female participants and lastly, female participants would rate the female disfluent speaker less negatively than the male participant would rate the male disfluent speaker. The first hypothesis was confirmed for participant sex in self-confidence in that females rated speaker levels of self-confidence higher and was then refuted in stress ratings as females also gave higher perceived ratings of speaker stress than the male participants. The second hypothesis regarding speaker sex was disconfirmed in that the male speaker was rated as more physically attractive then the female speaker regardless of the sex of the participant. The final hypothesis was disconfirmed by an interaction in the trait of ambition in which female participants rated the male speaker more harshly than the male participant rated the female speaker. This information is important in the development of effective counseling of those with speech disfluencies.

Jessica A. Edmunds
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: Deb Dickey

Perceptions Of Children’s Behavioral Responses To Physical Violence

This study focuses on how college students perceive children’s behaviors when they are exposed to domestic violence within their homes in different socioeconomic statuses. Data was collected from Allegheny College students (N=109). Each student answered a questionnaire based on a scenario that they were randomly assigned. The results showed that students perceived that lower socioeconomic status had a higher influence on children acting out than those in higher socioeconomic status. Students also perceived that violence had no influence on whether children from both lower and upper socioeconomic status would decide to do positive things with their lives, such as go to college.

Pember B. Edwards
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: Joshua Searle-White

The Effect Of Dental Procedure, Sex, And Prior Experience On Dental Anxiety In Patients

This study was conducted to determine if dental procedure, sex, and prior experience have an effect on dental anxiety in patients. Dental procedures were separated into two categories: intrusive and extrusive. Fifty-two patients from two dental practices in Western Pennsylvania completed a questionnaire about their perceived anxiety prior to a scheduled dental procedure. Patients were also encouraged to state what caused their anxiety if any was actually present. There were no significant results; however, a few patients in this study reported that positive experiences with their present dentist have made visitations less anxiety-provoking. This result is consistent with previous research, which focused on developing specific, individualized coping skills to help lower patients’ dental anxiety.

Evanee B. Frank
Major: Psychology/Neuroscience
Comp Advisor: Aimee Knupsky

The Investigation Of Cues To Deception Through The Manipulation Of Cognitive Load

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of cognitive load on cues to deception. Specifically, cognitive load was manipulated by altering the difficulty of the task. The goal of the study was to determine how cognitive load affects the generation of verbal and non-verbal cues to deception. It was proposed that cognitive load (high task difficulty), as defined by recalling an event in reverse chronological order, would decrease the appearance of non-verbal cues to deception (iconic and non-iconic gestures) increasing verbal cues to deception (“um” and “uh”). Specifically, it was hypothesized that high task difficulty would decrease iconic gestures more than the non-iconic, while affecting verbal disfluencies equally. The results of the study revealed that cognitive load was not sufficiently manipulated, as there were no significant effects. However, the study was able to reveal main effects for type of statement, suggesting that behaviors differ in the lie and truth condition.

Amy C. Gardner
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: William DeLamarter

Interpersonal Attraction: The Impact Of Physical Appearance Versus Personality Trait Information

In interpersonal attraction, physical appearance and personality traits interact to form impressions. Sixty male undergraduate college students between the ages of 18 and 22 provided ratings of overall attractiveness, interest in meeting, interest in working with, likelihood of friendship with, likelihood of dating and likelihood to recommend a friend to date a female model. The model was either of high attractiveness or low attractiveness and described with positive trait adjectives or with a mix of positive and negative trait adjectives. High attractiveness was rated the strongest consistently. Mixed trait adjectives with high attractiveness was also preferred.

Annie T. Ginty
Major: Psychology/Neuroscience
Comp Advisor: Sarah Conklin

A Matter Of Balance: Baseline And Recovery Pulse Is Lower For Individuals With A Balanced Outlook On Life Stressors.

Objective: A significant change in heart rate and blood pressure during an acute psychological stressor can indicate future development of cardiovascular disease (Johnston, Tuomisto, Patching, 2008; Philips et al., 2005; Treiber et al., 2003; Carroll et al., 2003). The purpose of this study is to examine the influence stressful events have on an individual’s cardiovascular reactivity to an acute psychological stressor, compared to the influence one’s perception of the same events have on cardiovascular reactivity.

Participants and Methods: Participants were recruited from an undergraduate institution in northwest Pennsylvania (n=100). Participants filled out questionnaires to determine perceived stress levels (Perceived Stress Scale), actual stress levels (Undergraduate Stress Questionnaire), and anxiety levels (Beck Anxiety Inventory). Participants also completed in a mental arithmetic task. Mean arterial pressure (MAP), pulse, systolic blood pressure, and diastolic blood pressure were measured before, during, and after the mental stressor.

Results: Participants who had a balance between their perceived stress and actual stress had a significantly lower baseline and recovery pulse when compared with individuals who had a low perceived stress level and a high perceived stress level. There were no significant differences between perceived stress and cardiovascular reactivity.

Conclusions: The perception of life events does not have an impact on cardiovascular reactivity to an acute mental stressor, however, the perception of life events does have an impact on baseline and recovery pulse rates.

Lucas R. Glover
Major: Neuroscience/Psychology
Comp Advisor: Jeff Cross

The Effects Of Dorsal Hippocampal Or Ca3 Lesions On Spatial Reference And Working Memory In Two Spatial Tasks

The rodent dorsal hippocampus is necessary for normal spatial memory, where dorsal lesions produce an important in this mnemonic function. It is not known which specific subregions within the dorsal hippocampus mediate spatial memory. In the present study, rats were trained in the radial maze before bilateral neurotoxic lesions of dorsal CS3 (dCA3) or dorsal hippocampus (dHPC). Post-operative testing showed that both groups were impaired on reference and working memory. The same rats were then tested for spatial acquisition in the Morris Water Maze (MWM) and later tested on retrieval. All groups acquired the task equally but only the dHPC, and not dCA3, group showed impaired retrieval. Upon subsequent testing of working memory ability in the MWM, dHPC rats, but not dCA3, showed deficits. Analysis of behavioral data followed histological confirmation of lesion placement showing selective dCA3 and dHPC lesions made by ibotenic acid and colchicine, respectively. These behavioral results suggest that encoding of a reference memory may only depend upon the tissue available within the hippocampus, where the ventral portion may compensate for the lost dorsal section. Upon retrieval of this information, however, the dHPC is required and may utilize a larger neural network for successful retrieval. As for spatial working memory, the dCA3 is differently involved in working memory where compensatory mechanisms can act depending on delay and/or task-specific demands that recruit other areas besides the dCA3.

Amy Graham
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: Deb Dickey

Female College Student’s Formality And Politeness Use In Email

The purpose of this research was to examine the language used in emails written by female college students. This study examined whether gender and status of an email recipient affected the formality and politeness of the language used in the email. Participants were asked to compose an email to a student or professor who were either a male or female in order to request a meeting. The study’s design included participants typing an email to one of the four possible recipients in response to a prompt which provided participants with a hypothetical scenario. The results of this study showed that status was found to have a minimal impact on formality and that one’s status did have an impact on the type of politeness used. The hypothesis that gender affected either formality or politeness was not supported.

Joshua J. Guthrie
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: William DeLamarter

The Effect Of Emotionality And Auditory Complexity On An Individual’s Subjective Estimation Of The Passage Of Time

The main goal of this research was to examine the affect of emotional valence and auditory complexity on an individual’s subjective passage of time. This study presented these two variables simultaneously in a video compilation to participants and recorded their estimations of the temporal duration of that video. Results of this study did not coincide with previous research on subjective time perception. However, more research must be done because of the applicability of this information to advertising and marketing. This information may be used to make effective, more efficient advertisements that better serve to educate possible consumers about the usefulness of a particular product.

Meghan E. Haddad
Major: Psychology/Neuroscience
Comp Advisor: Sarah Conklin

The Effect Of Mindfulness Meditation And Intense Cardiovascular Exercise On Stress Reduction

Cardiovascular disease has often been positively associated with stressful life events. Certain long term behavioral changes, such as practicing exercise and meditation, have been suggested as reducing the negative effects of stress on health. It was hypothesized that meditation would cause the lowest cardiovascular response to stress, followed by exercise, compared to a non-exercising, non-meditating control. Thirty participants were placed in either a meditation, exercise, or control group based on questionnaire answers. A mental arithmetic stressor was given to each participant and heart rate and blood pressure were measured during baseline, stressor, and recovery. Heart rate reactivity and systolic blood pressure reactivity did not differ significantly between groups, but the control group had significantly lower diastolic blood pressure reactivity than the exercise group. Differences in perceived stress among groups, the law of initial values, and the lack of generalizability of laboratory stressors may account for differences between the experimental results and the hypothesis.

Nicholas R. Joseph
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: Patricia Rutledge

Parental Substance Abuse Problems: Predicting Alcohol And Marijuana Use In College Students

This study examined various predictors of college alcohol and marijuana use, specifically parental alcohol and drug problems, gender, grade point average, perceptions of risk, and perceptions of environment. Prior research supports the importance of parental factors on adolescents and college-aged young men and women and their substance use behaviors. During the years of 2001, 2003, 2006 and 2008, undergraduate students (n = 184, 334, 206, 153) completed the CORE Alcohol and Drug Survey that inquired about their substance use behaviors. Findings showed that risk perceptions had the highest significance in predicting alcohol and marijuana use in students. Findings also indicated that despite previous research support, parental problems were not significant in predicting alcohol and marijuana use in students. Limitations of the study are noted and implications are discussed.

Ashton R. Kohler
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: Joshua Searle-White

Adoption Processes: The Open Adoption Claim

In light of historical and social changes that have triggered a trend toward openness in adoption practice, this review examines the implications of open adoption. As the frequency of open adoptions is increasing, there is still much debate about whether this type of adoption is best for the birthmother, adoptive parents and adoptee. Openness in adoption is emotional and debatable and involves the balancing of interests and rights among the adoptive triad. This review examines potential risks and benefits of open adoption evidenced by research findings and explained through various leading theoretical perspectives. It is suggested that while forms of openness are beneficial, some forms can also be problematic and must be considered and practiced with caution. Furthermore, the choice of adoption method should be a case-by-case matter that focuses on the rights and development of the adoptee.

Sarah B. Leis
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: Sarah Conklin

Group And Individual Work While Brainstorming An Investigation Of Productivity And Creativity

In order to explore the effect of group brainstorming on creativity and productivity, 90 undergraduates from a small, private, liberal arts college completed the Alternate Use task both individually and in groups of three. Both creativity and productivity were found to increase when working in groups as compared to brainstorming alone. Another variable that correlated with creativity and productivity was comfort level when sharing. Further, productive collaboration correlated with a positive opinion of group work, as surveyed by participants. Researchers encourage the creativity and productivity-enhancing factors of group brainstorming to be further explored so that more efficient groups can be created in the future.

Kelli E. McCune
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: Deb Dickey

Facial Symmetry’s Role In Personality Perceptions And Interpersonal Relationships

The aim of the current experiment was to test for perceptions of personality and attraction based on facial symmetry. A within groups design was utilized. The participants were 49 male undergraduate students between the ages of 18 and 22. The same woman was used for both the symmetrical and asymmetrical photographs. Facial features were altered using Photoshop to make the woman’s face asymmetrical or symmetrical. A questionnaire assessed the participants’ perceptions of the woman in the photograph. It combined the McCrae and Costa (1976) personality scale, the Campbell (1999) romantic attraction scale and the Montoya and Horton (2004) interpersonal attraction scale. An independent samples t-test was carried out. The results showed that the symmetrical woman was perceived as significantly less “neurotic” than the asymmetrical woman (t=-2.70, p=.01). There was no significant difference between the symmetrical and asymmetrical groups for the remaining “Big Five” personality traits or for interpersonal or romantic attraction. The results suggest that perceptions of certain personality attributes such as neuroticism are influenced by facial symmetry but that there are factors outside of evolutionary theory that influence social perceptions as well.

Alexandra L. Papa
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: Deb Dickey

The Effect A Liquid Conservation Training Session Has On Preschoolers’ Gender Constancy Score

The present study assessed whether a conservation of liquids training session would influence a child’s gender constancy level. The independent variable was a conservation of liquids training session. The dependent variable was the child’s gender constancy score. The participants were all attending the Meadville Children’s Center preschool and the experiment was conducted on the premises. The children were all from the Meadville and Crawford County area. There were 16 participants in total, 5 girls and 11 boys of Caucasian and European decent. The subjects were between the ages of 3 and 5. The experimental group experienced a conservation of liquids training session and the control group received no training. Both conditions did the traditional conservation of liquids task and then completed the Slaby and Frey (1975) Gender Constancy Interview. It was found that age was a significant predictor of a child’s gender constancy score. It is suggested that conservation of liquid training sessions influenced a child’s understanding of conservation and more training sessions could benefit children’s understanding of conservation and its properties.

Alexandria Perryman
Major: Psychology/Neuroscience
Comp Advisor: Jeff Hollerman

Exploration Of The Vital Components Of Environmental Enrichment Effects On The VPA Model Of Autism

Autism is a severe developmental disorder marked by a variety of impairments in communication skills (both verbal and non-verbal), impairments in social skills, and stereotyped or repetitive behaviors and restricted interests. Prenatal exposure to valproic acid (VPA) on day 12.5 of gestation has been shown to create an effective model of autism in rats. Researchers have used this model to investigate the experiential and genetic components of the behavioral symptoms and etiologies of autism. The current study focused on experiential factors contributing to autism by comparing the effects of physical, social and combined environmental enrichment on the development of rats prenatally exposed to valproic acid. Most previous research refers to environmental enrichment as only an enhancement of the physical environment in which the rats are raised. However, this study proposed that there may be a strong social component involved in effective environmental enrichment and that combining the physical and social components may produce the most effective results. A variety of behavioral assessments including pre-pulse inhibition, locomotor activity, stereotyped/repetitive activity, social familiarity preference, object preference, and the elevated plus maze to measure anxiety suggested that both physical and social enrichment play a role in reducing the symptoms that are seen in the VPA model of autism. The results increase the possibility of reducing the behavioral symptoms of autism through a therapeutic environment by further explaining possible contributing factors.

Meghan L. Petroccia
Major: Psychology/Neuroscience
Comp Advisor: Aimee Knupsky

The effects of context on cross-language interactions during production

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of context on cross-language interactions during language production. Second language learners of Spanish (N=39) completed a picture-naming task, where they had to verbally name a picture in Spanish as quickly and as accurately as possible. For half of the participants, the picture was preceded by an English distractor word. While for the other half of participants, the picture was preceded by a semantically related, English sentence. Reaction times and errors were recorded for each participant. Afterwards, participants completed a language history questionnaire. While the interaction showed that the sentence condition’s reaction times remained constant regardless of related and unrelated distractors, the single word condition showed a strong trend of facilitation, suggesting that context could diminish cross-language interactions. Results also indicated that reactions times were slower overall for the sentence condition as compared to the single word condition. This difference suggests that the first language’s strength of activation due to the presentation of the sentence is increasing the difficulty of switching to second language production, thus indicating a decrease in cross-language interactions. These findings suggest that future research should consider the effects of context when studying cross-language interactions.

Courtney P. Rademacher
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: Aimee Knupsky

The Effects of Leadership and Gender on the Generation of Verbal Disfluencies

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of leadership and gender on the generation of disfluencies. The participants in the study were female, college psychology students (N=54). For the study the participants worked in pairs and were asked to have a conversation regarding a given hypothetical scenario. For each pair there was a participant assigned the role of the leader and one assigned the role of the partner. After their conversation was over each participant completed a questionnaire which included questions from the Bem Sex-Role Inventory to assess how gender played a role. Their conversations were recorded and the disfluencies “um,” “uh,” and “like” were counted. The post-test questionnaires were also coded to find the gender identity of each participant. The results found that the disfluency “uh” had a significant effect on the role of the participant as leaders used it more than partners, which was supported by previous research. There was also an interaction between role and the gender of the participants. The results indicated the masculine partners used “uh” more often than feminine partners. Future research is suggested to further understand the results found in this study.

Michele M. Ramos
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: William DeLamarter

Strength Of Religiosity & Priming Effects On Decision Making In Moral Dilemmas

The main goal of the current study was to examine strength of religiosity and priming on decision making in moral dilemmas. Participants read a fabricated newspaper article on either religious counseling in prison or mental health counseling in prison. They then answered questions about morality, religion, and the likelihood of performing specific behaviors in a moral dilemma situation. The results did not fully support the hypothesis that strength of religiosity and priming a religious concept will affect decision making in a moral dilemma, though the results obtained suggest several different future research ideas.

Jamie E. Reints
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: Amy Wiseman

The Effects of Personal Music on a Sustained Attention Test of Variables of Attention: An Externally Valid Study

This study explores how listening to one’s own personal music via iPod affects attention and overall performance on a computerized continuous performance task (CPT) of sustained attention, Test of Variables of Attention (TOVA). Participants (N=24) took a CPT Visual TOVA twice, in random order of music first (n=11) and silent first (n=13). It was hypothesized that individual baseline differences of attention determined whether the music condition is favorable and beneficial for the individual. Individuals displaying greater baseline attention deficits as defined by attention group (low, moderate, high) in the silent condition, performed significantly better while listening to music, then optimally aroused participants at baseline, due to an increase in stimulation, as explained through the theory of optimal stimulation (Zentall & Zentall, 1983). In conclusion participants performing better in silence did worse in music and participants performing poorly in silence did significantly better with music.

Alicia R. Revitsky
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: Jeff Hollerman

Prenatal Exposure To Corticosterone And Postnatal Social Isolation As A Model Of Schizophrenia In Sprague Dawley Rats

This experiment used four groups of animals: exposure to corticosterone prenatally (n=10), exposure to social isolation postnatally (n=6), both treatments (n=8), or neither treatment (n=5) to examine prenatal exposure to corticosterone and postnatal social isolation as an animal model of schizophrenia. Corticosterone was administered through a 50mg corticosterone tablet with a 21 day release cycle subcutaneously implanted on day 16 of pregnancy in dams. Both prenatal exposure to stress and social isolation during childhood and adolescence have been linked to the etiology of schizophrenia as expressed through the characteristic deficit in prepulse inhibition that many individuals with schizophrenia exhibit. A 2.0mg/kg d-amphetamine intraperitoneal injection was also given in each group of animals 1 week after initial behavioral testing to see if this enhanced any behavioral effects. Abnormalities in the hippocampus are often seen in schizophrenic individuals specifically in the CA3 region and so this region was inspected in animals from each group post mortem. Prepulse inhibition data were collected using startle response amplitude on Responder-X software (Columbus Instruments) and neuroanatomical effects results were examined using the nissl staining procedure, a Nikon Eclipse 600 microscope, and the Spot Basic Computer Program. The results of this study found that the corticosterone treatment alone group and the social isolation alone group had significantly higher mean PPI and startle responses, respectively. It was also found that amphetamine mildly enhanced startle response in the prenatal corticosterone exposed subjects, but produced mild deficits in PPI in the socially isolated group that was also exposed to corticosterone prenatally. No gross anatomical differences were seen in the hippocampal CA3 region across treatment groups.

Rebecca K. Rich
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: Deb Dickey

An Investigation Of The Use Of Imaginative Play In Class Room Settings Of Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder

Children with ASDs have deficits in social skills and play. It has been thought that the cognitive level of children with autism spectrum disorders reflects their social and play developmental levels. It has been shown that a variety of social interventions are useful in increasing the social skills. This investigation looked at how play and imaginative play are being used to increase social skills in inclusive settings. It was found that play is the natural way that typical children develop these skills, and in return autism social interventions use play to increase these skills. There were no cases of specific use of imaginative play to increase social skills. Implications of this study are that play should be used more frequently to increase social skills in ASDs.

Kelly K. Rogers
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: Sarah Conklin

The Effect Of A 10,000-Lux Light Box On Mood Of Tanners Compared To Those Who Do Not Use Tanning Beds

The use of tanning beds has become a popular trend that continues to increase. Many reasons are given to why people use tanning beds; one in particular is mood enhancement. However, the UV radiation emitted during tanning bed use is not healthy. Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) lights have been studied to increase mood in people not only affected by SAD, but also healthy individuals. The current study attempts to find a healthier alternative to tanning for mood enhancement as it studies the effect of 10,000-lux SAD light on mood of tanners compared to non-tanners. Results show a significant effect from bright light exposure, thus proposing a healthier alternative for mood enhancement.

Carina D. Saary
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: Aimee Knupsky

The phonological loop memory as a predictor in Foreign- accent comprehension

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of the phonological loop memory on foreign- accent comprehension. Foreign- accented speech can cause problems with comprehension, such as misidentification of words and increased processing time for the word or words. The nonword digit span was chosen to asses participants’ phonological capacities. After, each participant was then tested against two different foreign- accented speeches, Japanese and Spanish, and then against non- accented speech. The number of errors on a transcription task determined the subjects’ comprehension scores. While the transcription task was the only variable of significance, the role of the phonological loop as an aid to language comprehension was nonetheless taken into account. These findings suggest that future research is needed to properly assess the loop’s role in deviated language comprehension.

Krystle Sauers
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: Joshua Searle-White

Impact Of Humorous Videos On Reducing Depressive Symptoms In College Students

The purpose of this study is to examine the health benefits of humor and its effects on individuals with possible depressive symptoms. This study took place at Allegheny College in Carnegie Hall in selected classrooms. In the first session, both male and female college students (N=73, Neutral=34, Humor=39) completed a questionnaire used to measure depressive symptoms at that present moment with seven different subsets including mood, energy, mental, tension, optimism, satisfaction, and companionship. Topic questions were based off of the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) (Beck et al., 1961), as well as the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CES-D). During the second session, participants were randomly assigned to watch a video montage (humorous or neutral) and shortly after took another questionnaire. Findings included three significant interactions within the subsets of mood F(1,71)=31.79, p=.001, η2=.07, energy F(1,71)=26.152, p=.001, η2=.07, and mental well being F(1,71)=26.157, p=.001, η2=.06. Overall data analysis revealed that watching a video (especially humor) increased scores, in turn decreasing depressive symptoms. Therefore, future research may involve the use of monitored vitals as well as longer videos. It is predicted that in future studies, longer videos over a period of time will increase the likelihood of more positive healthier symptoms in participants.

Ann K. Schellberg
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: Amy Wiseman

Reaction Time of Older Adults in False Memory Training

Reaction time of older adults in a false recognition study involving training is an area of research that has never been looked at prior to now. Older adults are known to be able to use the distinctiveness heuristic to reduce false recognition, but not as effectively as younger adults and false recognition is known to slow reaction time in comparison to true recognition, except in older adults, perhaps indicating why they do not use the distinctiveness heuristic as readily. This study looks at how false recognition training influences reaction time in older adults and how this compares to their accuracy. In this study, participants counted syllables for a list of words and then imagined or counted syllables again for a series of categorized lists. At test, half received training instructions and feedback to remember distinctive information. The most prominent finding was that overall, training increased reaction time for all false memory types as well as for controls and old items. It was also found that people who answered correctly to old items in the syllable counting condition took longer than people who answered correctly in the imagery condition, but if they were incorrect, this had no effect on their reaction time.

Christina B. Sutphen
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: Amy Wiseman

The Affects And Recovery Of Language And Motor In Preschoolers Who Have Endured A Traumatic Brain Injury: A Case Study

C.S. a 3 year old boy endured a severe Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) at the age of two. This case study focused on his development and recovery up to about one year post injury. It examines his medical records and two different tests taken, the Developmental Assessment of Young Children (DAYC) and the Bayley Scaled of Infant and Toddler Development Third Edition (Bayley). These tests, medical records and his recovery and development are analyzed in context to other studies involving preschool TBI and recovery. This case study specifically explores the recovery and rehabilitation methods for language and motor functioning. First hand observations were also conducted at therapy sessions and in more natural environments. It also examines different factors such as family participation in therapy and recovery and other factors especially regarding CS’s case. It was found that CS is making extensive progress especially in his cognitive domain, but seems to be having difficulty compared to his peers in motor functioning domain. There are suggestions for further research about preschool TBI as well as limitations in this research.

Michele P. Tanous
Major: Psychology/Neuroscience
Comp Advisor: Aimee Knupsky

Lexical Access In Second Language Acquisition: References Paths To Activation In Bilinguals

The purpose of this study was to examine bilingual speech production in the context of a picture-naming task. This study specifically observed how the number of language pathways a participant accessed influenced reaction time of picture-naming. This study also examined recovery patterns and the neurolinguistics of bilingual brain injury by examining the literature of bilingual aphasia. Participants who participated in this picture-naming study were all normal, healthy students enrolled in a French course (N=15). The picture-naming experiment consisted of four conditions (L1 Related, L2 Related, L1/L2 Related, and L1 Unrelated), which were classified as Number of Pathways. While significant results were found between all four conditions, the results did not support the hypothesis that when a person sees their L1 and L2 simultaneously (L1/L2 Related condition) they will respond faster. The results indicated that the presentation of L1 alone facilitated reaction times. This study’s sample size was too small to distinguish significant results in fluency. Therefore, these findings suggest that further research should examine more fluent bilinguals, and possibly use bilingual aphasics to further examine recovery patterns.

Laura S. Tuller
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: William DeLamarter

Futile Or Functional? Psychological Perspectives On The Effectiveness Of Candidate Endorsement

This work seeks to investigate the social psychological principles at work in political endorsement. There is much discrepancy in arguments regarding the persuasive nature of endorsements provided to political candidates, and how well they work to influence voting behavior. The issue is examined through three main lenses. Communicator credibility is assessed by breaking it down into elements of expertise and trustworthiness. The elaboration likelihood model is used to discuss the ways in which individuals process persuasive communication, either through the central or peripheral routes to persuasion. Audience variables influencing which route is used was also examined, as it plays a key role in determining what type of persuasive communication will be most effective in eliciting attitude change. Finally, the theory of planned behavior is explored as a model to offer insight into the contexts under which individuals are motivated and able to act based on their attitudes. This is especially relevant to the issue of political endorsement, as attitude change is only meaningful if it results in actual votes. Ultimately, the research reflects the narrow psychological conditions under which one must craft a political endorsement in order for it to be an effective means of persuasion and subsequent action.

Kaitlin M. Walsh
Major: Psych/Other
Comp Advisor: Aimee Knupsky

Effect Of Structured Nature Of An Art Project On Mood, Engagement, And Enjoyment In Children

The present study explored the effect of a structured and unstructured art project on the mood, engagement, and enjoyment of children. In the first session, students filled out a single question rating scale assessing their mood and then they listened to a lesson on the uses and functions of mandalas. Students then colored either a structured or unstructured mandala and filled out a post-activity questionnaire assessing mood, enjoyment, and engagement after they were finished coloring. The second session was almost identical to the first session except that students who colored a structured mandala in the first session colored an unstructured one during the second session and the students who colored an unstructured mandala in the first session then colored a structured one. Results of the study do not completely support the hypothesis. However, the results did generate interesting findings.

Jennifer L. Warren
Major: Psychology/Neuroscience
Comp Advisor: Aimee Knupsky

Detecting Deception Through Facial Expressions And Emotions

The purpose of this study was to examine whether emotional expression and gaze influenced the ability of participants to detect deception through nonverbal cues. The study also explored the confidence, perceived difficulty, perceived value, and enjoyment of detecting deception in the task. Participants were shown short video clips of a confederate without sound and asked to focus on nonverbal cues to determine whether the confederate was telling a truthful or deceptive statement. After they viewed all of the clips and made their responses, they were given a short post-test questionnaire that asked them to rate their confidence in their answers, perceived difficulty of the task, perceived value of the task, and the enjoyment in the task. The hypothesis of the study was that expression and gaze would affect the ability to detect deception. However, the results gave little to no evidence to support the hypothesis except for a main effect of expression in the results for confidence and perceived difficulty ratings.

Michael P. Wick
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: Jeff Hollerman

Stress Induced Development Of Schizotypal Symptoms

In order to create symptomology similar to schizophrenia in humans, pregnant Albino Norwegian rats were placed under stress on gestation day 12. Previous studies have shown that this procedure greatly increases the likely hood of the young rats developing schizophrenic like symptoms. Because schizophrenia is associated with delayed onset the rats were tested at both youth and adulthood to examine if any deficits in prepulse inhibition could be found. This study, however, failed to replicate previous findings. During the study it became noticeable that the stress did have a profound effect on a number of the mothers.

Amanda S. Wieser
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: William DeLamarter

Designing Public Health Messages In Accordance With The Elaboration Likelihood Model: Increased Risk For Type II Diabetes Calls For Intervention In At-Risk Populations

The elaboration likelihood model (ELM) of persuasion is evaluated in this paper in accordance with variables of message-learning to determine which variables together make a persuasive message that is arguably better than others. Aspects of motivation and ability to process messages are linked to the message recipient’s individual responses to the argument presented. Public health messages can be designed with these factors in mind to persuade recipients to adopt attitudes in support of healthy lifestyle changes. More specifically, adolescents and young adults at an increased risk for developing type II diabetes can be targeted through the specific creation of persuasive messages to realize the importance of diet and exercise in the prevention of obesity and type II diabetes. Recommendations are made for the development of a public health message that accounts for factors of message-learning in cooperation with the ELM to provide a comprehensive argument in favor of attitudes that support preventative measures of type II diabetes in at-risk populations.

Matthew D. Winters
Major: Psychology
Comp Advisor: Joshua Searle-White

Sleep Quality and Athletic Performance: Is There a Relationship between Sleep Quality and Athletic Performance in College Students?

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between sleep and athletic performance among college students. A correlation study was done in which students completed a onetime test, completing questionnaires about their sleep quality and performing the Harvard Step Test as the measure of athletic performance. The results concluded that no significant relationship is present between the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index and the Harvard Step Test as the measures of sleep quality and athletic performance. However, significant relationships were recorded between student’s gender, class year, and individual answers on several questionnaires including both the self-designed exercise and sleep questionnaires. These results indicate that while no significant results were found between sleep quality and athletic performance in this particular study, more research is needed to understand the potential relationship between sleep and athletic performance among college students in order to better understand the effects sleep quality has on student’s lives.