9th Annual Psychology
Capstone Symposium
Sponsored by
Undergraduate Studies Committee
and Psi Chi
Department of Psychology
April 18, 2012
Busch Student Center
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Psychology Capstone Project Judges
The Undergraduate Program Committee and Psi Chi thank the following individuals who
served as judges at this year’s symposium.
Faculty Judges
Jeremiah Weinstock, Ph.D.
Jeffrey Gfeller, Ph.D.
Phyllis Terry Friedman, Ph.D.
Terri Weaver, Ph.D.
Graduate Student Judges
Kathryn D. Kriegshauser, M.S.
Natalie Homa, M.S.(R)
Tamara Montag, M.S.
Brandon Smit, M.S. (ABD)
Psychology Capstone Courses and Instructors
PSY 401 Advanced Statistics & Research Methods
PSY 486 History of Psychology
PSY 487 Human Services Practicum Project
PSY 488 Capstone Research Project
Undergraduate Program Committee
Janet Kuebli, Ph.D. – Chair
Kristin K. Kiddoo, Ph.D.
A. Michael Anch, Ph.D.
Christina Brown, Ph.D.
Jeffrey Gfeller, Ph.D.
Richard Harvey, Ph.D.
Katelyn Poelker, Psi Chi President
Danielle Stewart, Psi Chi
Psi Chi Officers
Katelyn Poelker – President
Mary Kralemann – Vice-President
Katie Cornell – Treasurer
Caroline Hoyniak – Secretary
Laura Tiffin – Activities and Publicity
Danielle Stewart – Undergraduate Committee
Kate Winderman - Webmaster
Tom Scott – Psi Chi Newsletter (PCN) Editor
Kristin K. Kiddoo, Ph.D.
J Andrew Albers, M.S.(R)
Bryan Sokol, Ph.D.
Eddie M. Clark, Ph.D.
Jillon Vander Wal, Ph.D.
Ruth Warner, Ph.D.
Lisa Willoughby, Ph.D.
Michael Anch, Ph.D.
Tony Buchanan, Ph.D.
Chris Conway, Ph.D.
Kevin Fox, Ph.D.
Bryan Sokol, Ph.D.
GROUP A: RESEARCH PROJECTS
POSTER A-1
Authors:
American Minority Subcultures: Perceptions of Homosexual
Immigrants from China and Mexico
Emma-Lorraine Bart-Plange, and Kate Winderman
As immigration reform takes the spotlight in today’s political arena, so too does the issue of
sexual politics. Two major immigrant groups in America, Hispanic and Asian, are subject to
extreme contrasting stereotypes; Hispanic immigrants are viewed very negatively while
Asian immigrants are seen as the “model minority.” Additionally, both American and
binational homosexual couples are not afforded the benefits of a legal union in most
American states. In the current research, subjects were asked about their perceptions of
Americanism in homosexual immigrants from China and Mexico, respectively, compared to
heterosexual immigrants. Likeability was also measured. We hypothesized that Chinese
immigrants would be perceived as more American than would Mexican immigrants, and that
heterosexuals would be perceived as more American than would homosexuals. Additionally,
sexual orientation was not predicted to have an effect on perceived Americanism for Chinese
immigrants, whereas perceived Americanism would decrease further for homosexual
Mexican immigrants.
POSTER A-2
Authors:
Social Comparison on Facebook: The Effects of Viewing Facebook
on Self-Esteem and Body Image
Laura Fewell, Autumn Empson, and Signe Feldman
Previous research has indicated that self-esteem and body image are affected by social
comparison factors such as attractiveness and sociability. One of the most common ways in
which social comparisons are made is via social networking sites (e.g. Facebook). The
present research explored the impact of social comparison factors of attractiveness and
sociability on self-esteem and body image as made through a social networking site.
Participants viewed Facebook profiles and completed a series of questionnaires assessing
state self-esteem and personal body image satisfaction. It was predicted that participants
subjected to the high (vs. low) attractive condition and the high (vs. low) sociability
condition would report lower state self-esteem and body image as a result of upward social
comparison. Additionally, because high attractiveness could raise the target's perceived
sociability, the sociability of the target was predicted to have more of an effect in the
unattractive condition than in the attractive condition.
POSTER A-3
Authors:
The Effects of Time Pressure and Cell Phone Distraction on
Standardized Test Performance
Carolyn A. Liesen, Amanda M. Meyer, Kim M. Bieda, and Kiley E.
Enno
In college, test-taking is a common occurrence that every undergraduate student experiences.
In addition to factors that students are able to control, such as time spent studying, test
performance may be affected by outside influences and distractions. Research shows that
time pressure and distraction both result in lower test performance, but the two have not been
examined in conjunction with one another. This study was conducted in order to look at the
effects of time pressure and distraction on test performance. Participants completed a shortform ACT test either under time pressure or not and were subjected to an intermittent cell
phone ring or not to examine the effects on test performance. Since time pressure has been
shown to induce anxiety, making one more susceptible to distraction, it was predicted that
participants under time pressure would be especially affected by the cell phone distraction.
POSTER A-4
Authors:
The Effects of Feedback on High and Low In-group Identifiers of
Generation Y
Terrance Murphy, Fauzul Rahman, and Sadina Softic
Previous studies have found that identification with a high status group is stronger than for a
low status group. Additionally, high identifiers are more likely to internalize group
characteristics than low identifiers. This was true even under group threat because only high
identifiers are willing to stay with their group because of a strong commitment to the group.
Low identifiers, on the other hand, view group membership in instrumental ways, showing
commitment when group status is high and escaping identification with the group when
group status is low. In the current study participants’ identification with their age group was
measured prior to reading an article either complimentary or critical of Generation Y, after
which participants again indicated strength of in-group identification. It was predicted that all
participants would react positively to the complimentary reading, whereas low identifiers
would react more negatively than high identifiers after reading the negative information.
POSTER A-5
Authors:
Attitudes Toward Non-violent Criminal Behavior in a University
Setting
Alisha D. Caldwell and Maureen R. FitzGibbon
In previous research, male criminals were perceived more negatively than females. The
literature shows that as the severity of a crime increases, negative attitudes toward both the
crime and the perpetrator increase. Since most of the previous literature had examined these
effects in either sexual or violent crime situations, the present study sought to look at the
effects of perpetrator gender and crime severity in a nonviolent act. Participants were
randomly assigned to read a vignette with one of three crime severity conditions and either a
male or female perpetrator. Participants then answered questions about severity, potential
punishment, and other attitudes about the vignette. Overall, crimes committed by males were
predicted to be viewed as more severe than those committed by females, but when the crime
was of low severity, the female perpetrators were predicted to be viewed less negatively than
the males.
POSTER A-6
Authors:
Puzzle Interference And Verbal Recall
Victoria Hensley, Laura Berrong, and Emily Stair
Previous literature suggests sex differences in mood and recall, specifically that men and
women have varied pathways in regulating emotions which may effect memory and that
overall, women have superior verbal recall. The present study sought to explore the effects
of puzzle interference on verbal recall. Participants were asked to memorize a list of
emotionally neutral syllables before they either completed a difficult puzzle or sat in silence
for a comparable amount of time. Afterwards the participants recalled the list of syllables
and mood was measured using the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS-X). It
was predicted that in the control condition, women would recall learned syllables with
greater accuracy than men, but because men have been shown to be less affected by negative
emotions that were predicted to be induced by the puzzle task, the men were predicted to
outperform women on syllable recall in the interference task.
POSTER A-7
Authors:
I Can't Fight This Feeling: The Psychophysiology of Emotional
Suppression
Akshaya Bandaru, Chelsea Kozikowski, and Greg Pfitzer
Emotions influence almost every situation in our lives; sometimes we can control
these emotions, but sometimes we can't. Two ways to regulate our emotions are
suppression and reappraisal. This study focused on the effects of suppression
on physiology and self-reported emotion. Participants either suppressed their
emotions or did not suppress their emotions while viewing emotionally disturbing
images while heart rate deceleration, skin conductance, and corrugator muscle
activity were recorded. Participants were also asked to rate their emotional reaction
and their ability to suppress their emotions for each image. Compiling the results
of 30 participants and performing t-tests showed that emotional suppression led to
greater heart rate deceleration and skin conductance, decreased corrugator muscle
activity, and higher negative emotional rating, when compared to simply looking at
the image. This study shows that suppression may be an ineffective way to regulate
emotions. Future research can explore non-suppression treatments methods for
high-stress individuals.
POSTER A-8
Authors:
The Psychophysiological Correlates of Emotion Regulation
Strategies: Reappraisal
Kim Bieda, Swetha Gogineni, Mark Presker, and Ravi Shah
Research shows that an emotional response to an unpleasant stimulus involves an increase in
skin conductance (SCR) and facial electromyographic (EMG) activity, an initial decrease in
heart rate (HR), and a more negative evaluation of the stimulus. This study evaluated the
effect of reappraisal, an emotion regulation strategy which aims to alter these physiological
responses to negative stimuli. Corrugator EMG, SCR, and HR were recorded while
participants were shown neutral and emotionally negative images. Prior to image
presentation, participants were cued to either simply view the pictures or reappraise the
pictures. Participants then rated the emotional intensity of the image on a 1-6 scale. The
results showed that in the reappraisal condition there was a more pronounced HR
deceleration, decreased corrugator EMG activity, however, no difference was found in SCR,
or picture ratings compared to the “look” condition.
POSTER A-9
Authors:
Verbal and Visual Information in the Creativity Incubation
Period
Molly Brown and Kaitlyn Rolwes
Creativity is traditionally associated with an “Aha” moment in which someone experiences a
sudden spark of an idea which provided the solution to a problem. This spark is thought to
take place during an incubation period when the creative thinker is away from the actual
problem. This study sought to examine the effect of different types of incubation periods on
the amount of novel creative ideas produced. Participants were randomly assigned to solve a
creative problem with a visual, verbal, or mindless mathematical incubation period placed
between problem solving sessions. The verbal and visual task involved matching words or
pictures to a corresponding choice from a list. We expected that participants who were
exposed to the visual incubation task would produce the most creative ideas. Initial analyses
did not show a difference between conditions, but further analyses may indicate that the
visual incubation period task caused the most creative ideas.
POSTER A-10
Authors:
Investigating the Neural Mechanisms Underlying Atypical
Language Development in Children with Dyslexia and Deaf
Children with Cochlear Implants
Caroline Hoyniak, Pooja Parupalli, and Amy Brooks
For children who have a reading disorder or a hearing impairment, it is possible that similar
neural processes may underlie the delays in language development observed in these two
populations. In particular, disturbances to the child’s ability to process temporal or serialorder information may be contributing to the difficulties with learning written and spoken
language. In the present study, we used event related potential (ERP) recordings to examine
the neural components of sequence learning in deaf children with cochlear implants (CI),
children with dyslexia, and typically developing children. All groups of participants
participated in a visual sequence-learning task, which focused on exploiting relatively simple
transitional probabilities. Results indicate differences in late positivity ERP components,
suggesting that a difference in basic sequential learning abilities exists between these groups
of children. These findings have implications for understanding the nature of typical and
atypical cognitive and linguistic development in children.
POSTER A-11
Authors:
Electrophysiological Correlates of Visual Implicit Sequence
Learning and Natural Language Processing
Ryan Town and Elizabeth Hilvert
Sequence learning is a form of implicit learning, which allows people to detect patterns from
their environment in an automatic, unconscious fashion. Sequence learning abilities seem to
be vital for the development and learning of linguistic knowledge, but there is little direct
neural evidence supporting such a claim. In this study, adult participants completed a visual
sequence learning task containing an artificial grammar as well as a natural language
processing task with sentences containing syntactic violations. Both tasks were designed to
cause violations in participants’ expectations of items in a series. During both tasks, eventrelated potential (ERP) recordings were measured to examine the underlying
neurophysiological responses. Our findings indicate that visual sequence learning and natural
language processing share similar neurocognitive mechanisms. This promising outcome will
help provide an empirical and theoretical foundation for understanding the neural
mechanisms underlying language learning and may have further implications for treating
communication disorders.
POSTER A-12
Authors:
Goal Specificity and Creativity
Melissa Keith, Jessica Bertrand, and Mia Baeza
Creativity drives performance and marketability in organizations, and leaders of these
organizations are increasingly interested in the topic of promoting creativity in the
workplace. Previous research suggests that goal setting has positive impacts on creative
outcomes; however, research on this subject is limited. In particular, goal specificity has been
highly neglected in creativity research thus far. Researchers are generally in consensus that
productivity goals should be specific and moderately difficult, but what about goals for
creative tasks? This study examined how goal specificity affects information gathering and
creativity. Participants were asked to come up with a creative proposal for a new, modern
Sanford and Son episode. It was expected that participants in the broad goal condition would
generate more novel responses than the participants in the specific goal condition.
Preliminary analyses do not support the hypotheses.
POSTER A-13
Authors:
The Effects of Baclofen on Rat Sleep
Jillian Kelly and Elizabeth Niemann
In the present study, baclofen, a GABAB receptor agonist, was used to activate GABAB
receptors via infusion into the globus pallidus (GP). GABAB receptor subtypes are prevalent
in the GP, the relay structure of the basal ganglia, and could potentially play a role in sleep
architecture. Evidence from lesion studies has indicated that the GP is an influential structure
in regards to sleep. It was hypothesized that inhibition in the GP would result in an increase
in total wake time. Four Sprague-Dawley rats underwent stereotaxic surgery for implantation
of a bilateral cannula system targeted at the GP, as well as epidural electrodes to record
muscle and cortical activity. Sleep/wake recordings in each subject were analyzed during a
baseline condition, 24-hour saline infusion, and 24-hour baclofen infusion. Results indicated
no significant differences in total sleep and wake times between control conditions and the
baclofen infusion condition.
POSTER A-14
Author:
Readers 2 Leaders: The Effects of a Peer-Mentoring Program
Designed to Improve Leadership Skills and Diversity Awareness
Among Children
Amber Overton
Research has suggested that peer-mentoring programs may not only have many academic
benefits, but they may also have social benefits for participants. The present study examines
the impact of a peer-mentoring program piloted in two primary schools in St. Louis,
Missouri. The program, called Readers 2 Leaders, involved partnering older students from a
predominantly African-American school with younger students at a predominantly Caucasian
school for a period of 6-weeks. During this time, the students read and developed projects on
the lives and values of famous African-American leaders. Preliminary analyses of students’
journals and surveys suggest that the program positively influenced the students’ beliefs
about different racial groups, provided a more diverse perception of leaders, and promoted a
richer understanding of social justice and civic engagement.
POSTER A-15
Author:
Adenosinergic Modulation of Spatial Memory and Motor
Function in Parkinson’s Disease
Mark Presker
Parkinson’s disease (PD) is typified by a loss of dopamine (DA) producing neurons in the
substantia nigra (SN), and characterized by severe motor impairments and cognitive deficits.
Previous research suggests that striatofrontal pathways, modulated by the SN, are involved in
the cognitive deficits seen in PD. In the striatum, DA and adenosine receptors are expressed
alongside each other with high frequency. This study exploited this relationship by targeting
adenosine receptors on striatal neurons as the site of novel pharmacotherapy for cognitive
and motor deficits in PD.
Rats were given intranigral injections of 6-OHDA, a selective DA neurotoxin, creating a
behavioral model of PD. Spatial working memory and motor function were measured at
baseline and following intraperitoneal administration of A1, A2A and combined A1/A2A
receptor antagonists (8-cyclopentyl-1,3-dipropylxanthine, 3,7-dimethylpropargylxanthine,
and caffeine respectively). We expect that A1 antagonism will improve working spatial
memory in PD rats while A2A antagonism will improve motor deficits.
GROUP B: HISTORY OF PSYCHOLOGY PROJECTS
POSTER B-1
Authors:
It Takes a Village: The Child as a Cultural Apprentice
Clay Comley, Jung Kim, Abby Perdue, and Angelina Silvey
In psychology, as well as other fields, metaphors serve as helpful tools to better convey
difficult concepts. In developmental psychology, more specifically, the metaphor of the
“child as a cultural apprentice” has been used to help express the complex process of
knowledge acquisition. Lev Vygotsky first introduced this particular metaphor to explain
how children simultaneously behave as active learners while receiving information about
their respective cultures. The contemporary psychologist Barbara Rogoff has further
explored this metaphor by focusing on the influence that children’s socio-cultural context has
on the formation of their values and personality. In this project, the historical and current
applications of the “child as a cultural apprentice” metaphor are investigated in an effort to
better understand the learning processes of children.
POSTER B-2
Authors:
Love DOES Cost a Thing: An Analysis of
Romantic Relationships as a Marketplace
Meredith Franklin, Nick Giordano, Larisha Moore,
Aimee Warnke, and Jay Yezza
Metaphors have been used throughout history to facilitate the understanding of difficult and
abstract ideas by relating them to more concrete and tangible areas of thinking. In the social
sciences, particularly, the “marketplace” metaphor has often been used to examine romantic
relationships. Social exchange theory, equity theory, interdependence theory, and rational
choice theory, to name only a few, all draw from economic notions specific to the
marketplace to guide research. For instance, studies indicate that couples constantly gauge
their happiness based on costs and benefits, and a couple will have a more stable relationship
if benefits consistently outweigh costs. The goal of our analysis is to explore other examples
of productive ways to apply notions of the marketplace to relationship functionality.
POSTER B-3
Authors:
Personality as Discourse: Exploring the Multi-Voiced
Connections between Self and Culture
Rhythm Gandhi, Chadd Mathis, and Nicole Schaefer
Metaphors function to transform complex concepts into simpler, more accessible ones. In
social and clinical psychology, for instance, the constructs of personality and self are
complicated notions, but they are made more understandable with the use of metaphors.
Social theorists such as Mead and Hermans have proposed that individuals’ personalities
function like broader societies of people, with many different voices and many roles to fulfill.
The metaphors, “personality as discourse” or “self as society,” capture this idea that an
individual’s personality is a multi-voiced entity that moves dynamically between public and
private dimensions, or selves. This multi-voiced, or discourse, metaphor has also been
instrumental in making sense of the impact of social media on contemporary culture,
particularly the identities of the younger generation.
POSTER B-4
Authors:
Is Free Will an Illusion? Implications of the Mind-as-Machine
Metaphor
Adam Connell, Shane Grace, Jessica Higginbotham, and John
Kimmins
Metaphors serve as fundamental guide to understanding complex concepts in the field of
psychology. The mind-as-a-machine metaphor draws it roots from the ancient Greek
philosopher Democritus and continues to influence contemporary practices in the
neurosciences. The current debate between bottom-up and top-down causation has many
implications in our ability to act as free agents. Revolutionary philosophers such as Rene
Descartes and Thomas Hobbes attempted to explain our behaviors in terms of the motion of
atoms within our bodies and brain. This worldview led to a theory of bottom-up causation for
human behavior. However, contemporary evidence supports classical Gestalt theory and topdown causation, suggesting that we are free volitional agents who may guide our own
actions.
POSTER B-5
Authors:
The New Sugar Pill? How Mental Processes May Act as a Placebo
Ayaz Ahmad, Sara Elsiddig, Christina Merenda, and Ryan Phelan
Metaphoric concepts serve to connect ostensibly separate aspects of human experience. It is
the understanding of these shared concepts that facilitates effective communication and
collaboration. Within the field of clinical psychology, metaphors integrate science and theory
in order to understand, relieve, and prevent psychological distress. Our analysis focuses on
the notion of placebo effects in psychology, or the restorative prospects of certain kinds of
thought on human physical health. Since the Greco Period, intellectual investigation
illustrates a connection between the mental processes of the mind and their effects on
physiological responses. This precept has led to the metaphor of the “mind as a placebo.”
Current clinical applications of this metaphor show that mental placebos can lead to
increased efficacy of psychotherapies and medicinal therapies. This conclusion is not limited
solely to the field of psychology; it also applies to the fields of medicine and health care.
GROUP C: PRACTICA PROJECTS
POSTER C-1
Author:
Changing Lives Through Higher Education
Ayriel Hadley
Lisa Orden-Zarin, the founder of College Bound St. Louis (CB-STL), and the educators that
stand beside her believe that higher education has the power to enhance individual lives and
communities. CB-STL offers promising high school students from financially disadvantaged
and at-risk backgrounds the tools needed to matriculate and achieve success in a four-year
college. CB-STL does so by providing academic progress through tutoring and test
preparation, social support, mentoring and unconditional positive regard, as well as life skills
through workshops and leadership conferences. The presence of unconditional positive
regard in this organization causes initial transactional relationships to develop into
transformational relationships where students are stimulated to grow. In the process of
making college accessible for the under-resourced high school population, CB-STL aims to
enhance their quality of life in adulthood. My knowledge of theories of behavior and
motivation gained from psychology courses assisted me in helping CB-STL with curriculum
improvements.
POSTER C-2
Author:
Lean on Me: Provident Counseling
Shannon Gartland
Provident Counseling provides a variety of services to the St. Louis community. These
services include group, individual, and family counseling, as well as telephone support 24
hours a day. My specific role at Provident was working as a crisis worker answering the
phones for Life Crisis Services, Lifeline, Kids Under Twenty-One (KUTO), Safe
Connections, Hope Line, and Care Line. I assisted callers by giving them immediate support
for their needs, intervention if necessary, and referrals to resources that could be useful to
them. In addition, I was able to share what I learned with my sorority through a presentation.
Working as a crisis worker for Provident Counseling provides students with 60 hours of
training on suicide intervention, the opportunity to interact with people from a variety of
different backgrounds and mental health care needs, and the ability to grow personally and
professionally.
POSTER C-3
Author:
Breaking the Burn: Victim Advocacy at the Crime Victim
Advocacy Center
Danielle Maxwell
The Crime Victim Advocacy Center (CVAC) is a nonprofit organization designed to “pursue
a sense of justice that includes the victim” (supportvictims.org). CVAC provides counseling,
advocacy, and referrals for victims of crime. I have served as a Victim’s Advocate for the
organization since May 2011. Upon request, I designed a brochure to educate incoming
interns on the ways one can experience burnout and how to alleviate the stress associated
with one’s work. Through the design of this brochure and my time working at CVAC, I have
learned the different ways CVAC attempts to prevent burnout among its interns and
identified several key areas of improvement for the continued effectiveness of this
organization’s burnout prevention.
POSTER C-4
Author:
Language Development and Autism
Mary Anderson
My practicum site, Touch Point Organization, assists families whom have a child with
Autism. Autism is a misunderstood disorder. I will explain what the Autistic spectrum is and
the various symptoms of Autism. I will also go through the different steps of Touch Point
plan—the therapy sessions with the child, parent, and therapist and how they all interact with
one another as well as what the child does during the day and what the parent learns during
the day. My main focus is language development and Autism. Through volunteering at
Touch Point, I have come to realize that Autistic children have a very difficult time
communicating in many different aspects. Autistic children have a problem with developing
their language, but once their language is developed the act of articulating properly is also a
challenge.
POSTER C-5
Author:
Fighting Delinquency in Inner City High Schools
Zeeshan Baqui
For my practicum course, I volunteered as a tutor at an inner city high school where
delinquency was a major issue. Previous studies show many causes for delinquent behavior
including family influences, local community conditions, and media influences. Research
shows that there is no simple explanation for delinquency, but investigating certain
personality factors such as self-esteem may provide a better understanding of the problem.
Investigation with self-esteem and delinquency has yielded mixed results showing no clear
indication of a perfect relationship. Some studies show that negative self-esteem is correlated
with delinquency, whereas others show no clear correlation between the two. Hence, other
factors such as narcissism and peer pressure need to be evaluated. In conclusion, the
correlation between self-esteem and delinquency can be better explained by factoring in
narcissism and peer pressure.
POSTER C-6
Author:
The Effects of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy on Recidivism Rates
Donna DeLucia
Through my work at the Center for Women in Transition – Schirmer House, I have cofacilitated group therapy sessions for the residents, who are all women who have been
convicted of a crime. I researched the connection between cognitive behavioral therapy
(CBT) and recidivism because the positive effects that the CBT had on many of the women
were clear from the first group therapy session. CBT helps ex-offenders because it uses
cognitive and emotional processes to explain and change unhealthy behavior patterns. This
project helped me to better understand ex-offenders as well as gain a working knowledge of
the application of CBT to group therapy. I was able to increase my knowledge of
psychological concepts, apply problem solving skills, and develop leadership skills by
providing information and a helpful and relevant environment to discuss problems, and
techniques for dealing with those problems, to the women I worked with.
POSTER C-7
Author:
The Impact of Youth
Hayden Dry
For my Practicum I volunteered at the Youth Learning Center. The Youth Learning Center
works to provide after school classes and tutoring help for underprivileged youth. I served as
a tutor and was able to work personally with several young students. I was presented with
several challenges during my time at YLC, but through these challenges I was able to grow
as person. Not only did I learn a lot about myself and further develop as a leader but I also
learned about a major social issue that hinders the lives of so many children: the achievement
gap. The achievement gap is a large difference in educational performance between people
of low socioeconomic status and people of higher socioeconomic status. This gap is noticed
beginning at a very early age and continues throughout a child’s education. If places like
YLC take action the gap will eventually lessen.
POSTER C-8
Author:
The Relationship between Mental Disorders and HIV
Jesse Hassell
Through Doorways Aids Interfaith Housing and Services, I have worked with HIV positive
patients who have comorbid mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, and HIV-1
associated dementia. I was able to see firsthand how mental disorders affected people with
HIV when I assisted in patient care plans and talked one-on-one with clients. It is
hypothesized that mental disorders, such as depression and anxiety, are more prevalent
within the HIV population. It is suggested that if depression and anxiety are not properly
treated a person with HIV may spiral downwards and become sicker through the resulting
behavior. This project helped me develop relationships with a group that I do not have much
in common with. By being a friend to someone who typically isolates themselves and simply
talking to them, I increased my ability to build rapport and improved my ability to read social
cues and adapt to various situations.
POSTER C-9
Author:
Self-Handicapping, Self-Esteem, and Overall Well-Being Among
Homeless Teenage Mothers
Mallory Heise
Almost Home, Inc., a transitional living facility for homeless teenage mothers and their
children, gave me the opportunity to provide educational assistance and tutoring to its
members. Throughout my time there, I observed many self-handicapping behaviors among
the girls despite their claims for the desire to live a successfully independent lifestyle. I
became interested in looking at the effects of self-handicapping on overall well-being and its
relation to each individual’s level of self-esteem. Past research has shown that selfhandicapping behaviors are largely executed as a means to protect one’s sense of self or selfesteem. The consequences of self-handicapping, however, may hinder one’s overall sense of
well-being and create a vicious cycle that hinders their ability to adjust well in unprecedented
situations. My observations were consistent with this hypothesis. Working with the girls has
taught me greater leadership and time management skills, as well as greater patience and
interpersonal skills.
POSTER C-10
Author:
How Negative Surroundings Affect Self-Efficacy
Nicole Helfrick
While volunteering at Farragut Elementary School through Youth in Need, I have worked
with kindergarten through sixth grade children in an organized after school program. Some of
the activities I partake in include: helping with homework, reading, and organized games.
Students have shown a great amount of negativity towards the supervisors and their
classmates during many of the activities. Often times during homework period the kids give
up easily and even talk about never reaching high levels of education, such as college.
Research commonly shows that children who receive less social support in their everyday
environments will exhibit more psychological distress than those who live in stable, positive
environments. This site taught me that not everyone grows up in the same kind of
encouraging environments as I did. Spending time with these children has led me to believe
that every person can succeed when given caring guidance and assurance.
POSTER C-11
Author:
Practicum Project at The Loyola Academy: Reducing Stereotype
Threat in Schools
Merrilyn Hoenemeyer
My practicum site was the Loyola Academy and my duties included individual tutoring of a
student. In this project I examined ways schools can reduce stereotype threat that its students
feel. Stereotype threat can interfere with certain students’ academics because they feel
anxious about confirming the negative stereotype. There is a stereotype that African
Americans are less intelligent and perform worse in school. These students may perform
worse because they know this stereotype exists and they fear that they might confirm it. A
study finds that students who reaffirm their values before a semester perform better than
students who do not. At the Loyola Academy students who display values that are positive to
becoming good students such as being respectful and honest are rewarded with a gold slip.
Gold slips are signed by the student’s parents and hung up in the central hallway for all
students, faculty and parents to see.
POSTER C-12
Author:
The Effects of Choice Control Among the Elderly
Davide Iacobelli
Through volunteering at Cardinal Ritter Senior Services (Mary, Queen and Mother Center), I
have provided help and services to the elderly residents in a number of ways. The residents
have control over nearly every aspect of their day (within reason), and I found that to be quite
interesting. Studies have looked at the long-term results of an elderly person having control
of a situation and making their own decisions, and it is thought to have positive and
beneficial effects. While a few other factors could contribute to a similar outcome, I think
examining the aspect of choice control is valuable. Volunteering at MQMC while keeping
this idea in mind has encouraged me observe my surroundings more consciously, and in turn
has allowed me to grow more than just scientifically and critically, but morally as well.
POSTER C-13
Author:
The Effects of a High Functioning Role Model When Interacting
with an Autistic Child
Delaney O’Rourke
My project focuses on the interaction between adolescent and teenage children along the
autism spectrum and high functioning teenagers and young adults. More specifically, the
project examines past literature on whether this interaction has a positive or negative effect
on autistic adolescents’ social development and compares it to my personal experience at my
practicum site. This project is done through a case study conducted at KEEN St. Louis. It is a
volunteering site where the volunteer, or “coach”, is paired up with a child with autism, or a
“athlete”. They engage in multiple sports and games over a period of time and are
encouraged to talk and have fun.
POSTER C-14
Author:
Stereotype Threat and Disengagement in Beaumont High School
Imran Shaikh
Through my work at Beaumont High School, I have tutored underprivileged, inner city, and
mainly African American students. This school struggles with passing standardized tests
mainly in the math and science departments. I have worked with these departments to help
students learn the vital concepts for their education. In many cases these students are
disengaged from the material due to a variety of factors. Since this school represents an
African American population they are exposed to stereotype threat which makes education
for these students more difficult. However, some teachers have been doing great work in
making programs to assist these students’ futures and show them what options they have
after high school. This project made me realize the conditions in these inner city schools and
the steps that must be taken to engage these students.
POSTER C-15
Author:
The Effects of A Support Relationship on Resilience to Economic
Hardship
Colleen Sheehan
Through Midtown Catholic Charities, I have worked with clients in the community to help
them gain access to the variety of services provided by the center and to foster relationships
with each of them. My involvement with the clients has included home-visits, transportation
calls, assisting with filling out intake forms, and interacting with them through programs at
the center. Examples of the programs include the P.E.O.P.L.E. 1st job readiness program, the
Healthy Chefs and Walking Club nutrition programs, and the Family P.R.I.D.E. parental
resource program. All of these programs are based on relationship with the clients. There is a
correlation between social support relationships and resilience to adversity. According to
Bandura, self-efficacy is influenced by success. My experience at Midtown has provided me
with a chance to see how social support relationships create opportunities for success for the
clients, which may increase their self-efficacy and resilience.
POSTER C-16
Author:
Motivation to Participate in Recreational Youth Sport
Caroline Sweeney
My practicum site is KEEN St. Louis where I assist disabled children in sport and exercise.
Participants in youth sport often cite social reasons, such as making friends, staying in shape,
and competing, for their involvement. However, previous studies have established that
organized sport includes a social construction, which inevitably excludes those suffering
from disabilities to stay involved with typically developed children. The primary aim of this
practicum is to discover potential motivational factors for disabled children to participate in
youth sport. A group of children suffering from a variety of disabilities were observed in a
non-competitive environment to establish their motivation to return and exercise each week.
The children involved with KEEN St. Louis find a special sort of happiness and established a
feeling of belonging to a community through this organization.
POSTER C-17
Author:
The Effect of Social Support on Psychological Adjustment in
Immigrant Populations
Laura Tiffin
Through the Immigrant and Refugee Women’s Program, I taught basic English literacy and
communication skills to immigrants and refugees. Past research demonstrates that the
presence of social support has a positive impact on psychological adjustment, particularly for
those experiencing a significant transition like moving to another country. Adjusting to an
entirely new culture can be quite a challenge, but the support of family, friends, and
neighbors can lessen this burden. My observations at the Immigrant and Refugee Women’s
Program confirmed these findings. English language students from Mexico and Somalia
who had the support of others adapted well to life in the United States. Even with little
understanding of the English language, the immigrants in this program were well-adjusted
and relatively satisfied with their quality of life. Thus, social support may be even more
crucial to psychological adjustment than language development or other factors within an
immigrant population.
POSTER C-18
Author:
Theory and Treatment of Depression in the Older Adult
Population
Mason Kinghorn
I volunteered at Cardinal Ritter Senior Services and used this experience to guide my
research into whether or not older adults should receive different types of treatments than
younger adults. I investigated different types of treatment for depression, what treatment
proved to be most effective for older adults, and the long-term care setting's role in treating
depression. This research led me to Beck's Cognitive Theory of Depression as a treatment of
choice for older adults. I then suggested possible improvements that could be made within
long-term care settings to aid in depression treatment of older adults, highlighted gaps in the
research, and described my project's contribution to both science and society as a whole.
POSTER C-19
Author:
Factors Associated with Successful Aging in Nursing Home
Residents
Gabriela Pineda
The purpose of this project was to explore factors that research has found to be associated
with successful aging in nursing home residents, while relating them back to my personal
experiences at Little Sisters of the Poor home for the elderly in St. Louis. While successful
aging has many definitions, this project focuses on the contentment of nursing home
residents based on the activity theory, optimism, and social relationships. The activity theory
describes the psychosocial aging process with emphasis on outgoing social activity.
Important specific types of activities in promoting successful aging include physical,
cognitive, and spiritual activities, which are all practiced daily at Little Sisters of the Poor. In
the case of optimism, the importance of overall happiness of an individual in contributing to
successful aging is very apparent. Lastly, social support and engagement are integral to
contentment and may be achieved through relationships with friends, family, and caregivers.
POSTER C-20
Author:
Religiosity, Internal Locus of Control, and Health Among Older
Adults: A Proposed Study
Steffanie Danielle Stewart
Level of religiosity is positively correlated with well being. However there is a gap in the
literature as to why this positive correlation exists. In this proposed study I will examine
internal locus of control (LOC) as a potential moderating variable between religiosity and
positive well being. I hypothesize that individuals with high levels of religiosity will have
subsequent high internal LOC and therefore will express better self-rated health than
individuals with low levels of religiosity. The study will be a nonexperimental survey design.
Participants will be older adults aged 65 years and older who identify as Catholic, live in an
assisted living community, and are of good cognitive ability. The study will use Rotter’s 29item Locus of Control, Spiritual Assessment Inventory, and a Self-rated Health survey. With
Catholicism full of rites and rituals I anticipate high religiosity will be positively correlated to
internal locus of control thus affecting health.
POSTER C-21
Author:
Improving Quality of Life in Skilled Nursing Facilities using
Occupational Health Perspectives
Sara Tepe
This practicum poster explores improving the quality of life of dementia residents in skilled
nursing facilities by modifying occupational health factors of nursing staff. The practicum site,
Cardinal Ritter’s Mary, Queen, and Mother Center, is described by their mission, population
composition, provided services, and my responsibilities as a volunteer. Reflection on my
inspiration to research care giver burden and possible ways to alleviate it highlights my personal
experiences and observations of both the residents and staff. The goal of this project is to
alleviate caregiver burden by modifying occupational health factors to ultimately improve
resident-staff interactions. Research is presented discussing the detrimental effects of caregiver
burden and the negative reactions it elicits in residents. Both parties will benefit from a proposed
intervention that is tailored to Cardinal Ritter but applicable to any nursing facility that addresses
specific problems that were observed in my practicum as well as in empirical research.
POSTER C-22
Author:
Reminiscence Theory and Older Adults: The Promise of Memories
Past
Chelsea Kozikowski
As individuals age, they experience changes associated with physical and mental deterioration.
This can result in decreased life-satisfaction and self-esteem, and increased feelings of loneliness.
This project explored the benefits and implications of reminiscence therapy on health and
depression alleviation. Among reminiscence therapies, integrative and instrumental therapies
have been found to be most successful at alleviating depression in the elderly. While
reminiscence therapies aid in reappraisal of the past, training in emotion differentiation has been
even more successful in depression alleviation, perhaps due to its present-focused application.
Considering the benefits of both therapies, I suggest combining these techniques, to reach
reconciliation between past and present. I propose that a training session in emotional
differentiation prior to introducing reminiscence therapy would lead to greater emotion regulation
regarding the past, more successful reappraisal of past events, and increased capabilities in facing
issues of the present than integrative reminiscence or emotional training alone.
POSTER C-23
Author:
The Need for Providing Counseling Services to Older Adults and
Caregivers
Jenn DeWitt
My experiences at Saint Elizabeth’s inspired me to research and learn about counseling services
provided for older adults in supportive care settings. My interactions and conversations with the
older adults at Saint Elizabeth's helped to inspire my focus and interest. It is clear to me that older
adults are being overlooked in terms of their mental well being. Older adults are a crucial part of
the family dynamic who may be in most need of counseling and therapy services. The literature
reviewed, including various empirical research articles, suggests that increased access to
counseling services would likely benefit older adults in supportive care settings.
Senior Legacy Symposium
The Senior Legacy Symposium is a celebration of outstanding undergraduate student
work across the University. The Psychology Department selects three capstone projects to
receive the high honor of representing Psychology at the Senior Legacy Symposium this
year. Selection is based upon review of the Legacy Statements in conjunction with the
Capstone Poster Abstracts. The recipients are announced at the Psychology Capstone
Symposium Awards Ceremony.