10th Annual Psychology
Capstone Symposium
Sponsored by
Undergraduate Studies Committee
and Psi Chi
Department of Psychology
April 16, 2013
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.
401 488 487 487 490 -
Faculty Judges
Ronald Kellogg, Ph.D.
Mindy Shoss, Ph.D.
Bryan Sokol, Ph.D.
Jeffrey Gfeller, Ph.D.
Amanda Bequette, Ph.D.
Graduate Student Judges
Katheryn B. Votaw, M.S.R.
Anna Pope, M.S.
Brianna Olbinski, B.S.
Natasha N. Scott, M.S.
Jennifer Smith, M.S.(R)
Psychology Capstone Courses and Instructors
PSY 401 Advanced Statistics & Research Methods
PSY 487 Human Services Practicum Project
PSY 488 Capstone Research Project
PSY 490 Critical Thinking Project
Kristin K. Kiddoo, Ph.D.
Marissa Roffler, M.S.
Ursula Sanborn, M.S.(R)
Kira Banks, Ph.D.
Ruth Warner, Ph.D.
Bryan Sokol, Ph.D.
Dustin Jundt, Ph.D.
Paul Handal, Ph.D.
Tony Buchanan, Ph.D.
Eddie Clark, Ph.D.
David Kaufman, Ph.D.
Kristin K. Kiddoo, Ph.D.
Donna LaVoie, Ph.D.
Lisa Willoughby, Ph.D.
Challis Kinnucan, Ph.D.
Undergraduate Program Committee
Janet Kuebli, Ph.D. – Chair
Kristin K. Kiddoo, Ph.D.
A. Michael Anch, Ph.D.
Jeffrey Gfeller, Ph.D.
Richard Harvey, Ph.D.
Mindy Shoss, Ph.D.
Chelsi Creech, Undergrad Committee Chair
Psi Chi Officers
Katie Rolwes – President
Van Rynald Liceralde – Vice-Pres
Daniel Pomerleau – Treasurer
Victoria Hensley and Mari
McGilton – Secretaries
Melissa Keith – Activities and Publicity
Chelsi Creech – Undergrad Committee
Laura Welp – Webmaster
Nicole Schaefer – Office Manager
Lucy Headrick – Psi Chi Newsletter
Editor
GROUP A: RESEARCH PROJECTS
POSTER A-1
Authors:
Excuses for Absenteeism and Gender of the Worker: The Effect on
Empathetic Concern Towards Single Persons
Anna Dore, Lucy Headrick, & Ashley Pulling
Women are commonly stereotyped as caregivers and men as breadwinners. Due to these
stereotypes, men are typically given less understanding than women for missing work. However,
single fathers outside of work are given more empathy than single mothers because they are
fulfilling an unexpected role. This could change the usual feelings toward male absenteeism in
the workplace. The present study explored how the excuse and gender of the absentee affect the
amount of empathetic concern shown toward him/her. Participants read vignettes about a single
male or female worker missing work to take care of a sick child or because his/her car is broken
down. It was predicted that more empathy will be given to a male absentee caring for a child than
a female and more empathy will be given to a female absentee getting her car fixed than a male.
POSTER A-2
Authors:
Brain Disease? : Influences of Biological Conceptualizations and
Locus of Control on Social Stigma
Emily Huston-Warren, Imman Musa, & Caroline Vail
Past research has suggested that social stigma is a primary concern for the mentally ill and their
families. The present study examined the interaction between locus of control and biological
conceptualizations on three primary facets of social stigma: fear, blame, and social
distancing. Participants completed the Rotter’s Locus of Control Scale, the Inclusion of Other in
Self Scale, and then read a general description depicting a peer with a mental disorder. The
experimental group read an additional description providing a causal explanation of the mental
disorder in terms of neurophysiological abnormalities, heredity, and genetics. Participants then
completed a social stigma survey to evaluate group differences in levels of social stigma. Based
on previous research, it was predicted that when presented with a biological explanation, those
individuals high on external locus of control would demonstrate the greatest social stigma toward
the mentally ill due to heightened fear and beliefs of immutability.
POSTER A-3
Authors:
The Creative Process: How Expertise Influences Information
Gathering
Melissa Keith, Denis English, & Christin Kobos
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 expertise has a positive impact on creative outcomes; however,
research on this subject is limited and has not fully explored how expertise affects creativity as a
process. This study will examine how expertise affects information gathering and, ultimately,
creativity. Participants were asked to come up with a creative proposal for a new, modern Saved
by the Bell episode. It was expected that participants with higher domain expertise on the subject
of Saved by the Bell would produce more novel and useful responses than the participants low in
expertise. In addition, we predicted that expertise would affect the information gathering stage of
the creative process.
POSTER A-4
Authors:
Influence of the Self-Reference Effect on Test Performance
Van Rynald T. Liceralde, Michael J. Toth, & Lusi Wang,
Previous research suggests that several factors contribute to college students’ performance on
multiple-choice (MC) tests versus short-answer (SA) tests. One factor that remains
unexamined is the self-reference effect, which is the inclination for people to remember
information that they can relate to. The current study investigated whether the degree to
which a college student relates to a topic affects his or her performance on a 10-question MC
or SA test. Prior studies explored the self-reference effect using written stimuli, whereas the
current study used auditory stimuli. Participants listened to a recording about college
financial aid (relatable) or retirement savings (unrelatable) and answered a 10-item MC or
SA test on the contents of the recording. It was hypothesized that participants would score
better on MC than SA tests when the content learned was unrelatable. Relevant findings and
implications will be discussed.
POSTER A-5
Authors:
College Students’ Attitudes Towards Peers
Erika Freiling, Hannah Schwartz, Shannon Gartland, &
Jessica Kraemer
Research has shown that stress and empathy are negatively correlated. Previous research has
also explored in/out-groups pertaining to empathy and found that people are more empathetic
to those within their in-groups. The present study sought to extend the research on stress and
empathy and determine how group membership affects empathy. This study manipulated the
level of stress and perceived in-group/out-group status to determine levels of empathy. Stress
was manipulated through time pressure on the completion of mazes. In-group was
operationalized by the same college affiliation and location while the out-group was of a
different college affiliation and location. It was predicted that people have higher levels of
empathy toward those of their own in-group, but that these effects would only occur in the
low stress condition
POSTER A-6
Authors:
Going All In: the Effects of Self-efficacy and Cognitive Load on
Risk Taking Behaviors.
Leah Randall, Daniel Pomerleau, Jordan Garrido, &
Joseph Cacchione
People are faced with a number of decisions every day and every decision carries with it
some level of risk. Some individuals enjoy making the risky decision while others would
rather play it safe. Previous literature suggests that many factors affect ones ability to
effectively make decisions in situations involving risk. The present research explores the
impact of self-efficacy for decision-making or how confident a person is in their ability to
make good decisions as well as cognitive load, or how much information is being held in
ones working memory on individual’s risk taking behavior. Participants completed a writing
task aimed to alter their feelings of self-efficacy and then took part in a gambling simulation.
It was predicted that participants who completed the high (vs. low) self-efficacy prompt and
subjected to high (vs. low) cognitive load would take more risks in the gambling task.
Results and implications will be discussed.
POSTER A-7
Authors:
Motivational Speaking and Altruism
Mari McGilton, Jack O’Sullivan, & Brian Piehl
Few empirical studies have examined whether motivational speeches actually result in
increasing individuals’ altruistic behavior. However, research has shown that females are
more concerned with justice and equality and more likely to behave altruistically than males.
The current study’s aim was to examine whether a motivational speech calling for justice,
equality and altruistic action increased intended behavior altruism scores and positive mood
differently in males and females. Participants listened to either a motivational speech or an
informational presentation and then completed a series of questionnaires assessing mood as
well as altruistic state. It was predicted that the motivational speech (vs. informational
presentation) would increase the participants’ moods and altruism levels. Additionally,
females were predicted to report a more positive mood and a higher level of altruism than
males, regardless of the fact of justice.
POSTER A-8
Authors:
Decisions, Decisions: Exploring Relationships between Choice
Satisfaction and Decision-making Tendencies
Emma Brett, Jennine Clerc, & Kathryn Smith
Consumers are faced daily with an increasing number of options, yet research suggests that
individuals presented with more options are not necessarily more satisfied with the outcomes
of their decisions. Past research has implicated two basic decision making tendencies:
Maximizers, who attempt to make the best possible decision by considering all options
before choosing; and Satisficers, who find an option that meets their criterion and settle with
that option. The current study explored the relationships between personality, decisionmaking tendencies, and choice satisfaction. After completing measures exploring personality
and decision-making tendencies, participants were asked to select a passage title for a reading
comprehension test. Some participants were allowed to change their minds while others
were not. It was predicted that maximizers who were forced to commit to a choice would be
more satisfied than those who were able to change, while the option to change was not
predicted to effect satisficers.
POSTER A-9
Authors:
Attitudes Towards Substance Use
Brent Lang, Eleanor Leavens, & Jesús Quiñones
Previous research has shown that male substance users are more stigmatized than female
users and that stigmatization also differs across substance use, with cocaine users stigmatized
more than alcohol users. However, the literature does not address difference in amount of
stigmatization across both substance type and gender of the user. The current study examined
target substance use and gender as potential barrier to treatment and treatment outcome. The
study assessed both implicit and explicit attitudes towards the target, male or female alcohol
and cocaine dependent individuals. Based on previous findings and higher rates of
traditionalism, we predicted that female alcohol dependent targets will be less stigmatized
than male alcohol dependent targets, but female and male cocaine dependent targets will be
equally stigmatized.
POSTER A-10
Authors:
Religion, Media and College Students
Christopher Griebel, Chelsi Creech & Allison Lombardo
According to previous literature, the university environment can influence the decision
making of college students, as they do not always base their behavior on ethical guidelines.
This research study examined the responses of college students of different religious
motivations to ethical dilemmas, when presented with either a positive or negative
perspective. It was expected that those with external religious motivation would be most
affected by the media article. Participants completed different assessments, including the
Rotter Locus of Control Scale, the Allport Religious Orientation Scale, the Core
Conservatism Scale, and the vignettes. The students then read a media article with a positive
or negative stance on religion, and responded to ethical dilemmas. Results will be discussed.
POSTER A-11
Authors:
In Their Shoes: Empathy, Age, and Attribution of Responsibility
Zehra Uvalic, Julia Thomas, & Phoebe Dyer
Previous research suggests differences in empathy expressed between those who are part of
an in-group versus those of an out-group. Research shows that others of the same age are
considered part of one’s in-group and thus will be shown more empathy. Other research has
looked at attribution of responsibility and found that people empathize more with those who
they view as not responsible for their situations. The present study sought to find the effect of
age and attribution of responsibility on empathy. Participants read a short vignette describing
a young/old individual who is responsible/not responsible for their health situation and
completed the IRI, Davis Interpersonal Reactivity Index. It was predicted that college
students would empathize the most with young people who are not responsible for their
health situation. They will also empathize more with those not responsible for their health
situations than those who are responsible, regardless of age.
POSTER A-12
Authors:
Emotional Factors that Affect Helping Behaviors
Mengmeng Li & Zhongyu Zhao
Previous research shows that negative emotions significantly reduce the probability of
helping behaviors. Additionally, the research on the effect of cognitive load on helping
behavior is contradictory. This research focused on how both emotion and cognitive load
affect helping behaviors. Participants were told to recall and write about either a positive or
negative experience from their past and were either placed under time pressure or not before
completing a questionnaire designed to measure their helping preference. It was predicted
that those who were primed with positive emotions more likely to help others than those
primed with negative emotions, but only in the high cognitive load condition.
POSTER A-13
Authors:
Pairing Effects of Direct Influence and Distraction on Persuasive
Communication
Thomas D. Semanisin, Deval A. Patel, & Selmi Kallmi
The elaboration likelihood model of persuasion asserts that both motivation and ability to
perceive a persuasive message be present for the persuasion to be most effective. The aim of
this study was to determine whether a digit-monitoring task would inhibit ability and
therefore result in diminished persuasion when reading a pro-health care reform article.
Previous research has also shown that making someone aware that they are being subjected
to a persuasive message inhibits motivation to effectively process the message. It was
predicted that those with no distraction would process the message more carefully than those
exposed to distraction. It was further predicted that participants warned of an upcoming
attempt to persuade them would be less likely to effectively process the message, but only
when not distracted.
POSTER A-14
Author:
Memory for Valenced Stimuli
Courtney Beussink
Emotionally enhanced memory occurs when positively or negatively valenced stimuli result
in higher levels of memory recall or recognition than that of neutral stimuli in the
laboratory. A wealth of literature has demonstrated that emotional words are recalled more
readily than neutral words, but there is a discrepancy with the degree of recall frequency
between positive and negative stimuli. Recent studies have indicated that this phenomenon
may be highly dependent on the arousing nature of the stimuli. Other studies indicate that
attention may play a role in memory and could explain why negative emotionally valenced
stimuli are better remembered. The purpose of the current study is to investigate the effects
of divided attention on emotionally enhanced memory in an undergraduate student
population. Implications of the findings will be discussed.
POSTER A-15
Author:
Self-efficacy and the Perceptions of Cognitive Tasks
Avanika Krishnaswamy
Research has shown that self-efficacy and intrinsic motivation influence an individual’s
performance on cognitive tasks. Self-efficacy is regarded as a central concept in
understanding human motivation and behavior. It is suggested that self-efficacy may explain
why some individuals exert greater effort and persist longer when confronted with difficult
tasks. The purpose of this study is to examine the associations between self-efficacy and how
tasks are presented, “easy” or “difficult”, and the subsequent impact on cognitive task
performance. It was predicted that participants who have high self-efficacy and are told a
task is difficult would perform better and persist longer than those with low self-efficacy. It
was also hypothesized that there would be no differences between participants with high or
low self-efficacy when told that the task is “easy”. Relevant findings and implications will be
discussed.
POSTER A-16
Author:
Cognitive Effects of Age-related Stereotypes on Young Adults
Hannah Lammert
Stereotype threat occurs when an individual is adversely affected when confronted with a
situation where their behaviors may be perceived as being consistent with a negative stereotype
about a group. Stereotype threat related to age and older adults has been investigated, but there is
a lack of similar research with young adults. Given that there is increased attention paid to
negative stereotypes about younger persons, an understanding of the associated adverse effects is
needed. The current study examined if age-related stereotype threats associated with cognition
adversely impact cognitive performance in younger persons and whether that effect may be
affected by the social reference group. It was hypothesized that cognitive performance would be
lower among young adults who receive negative information regarding younger persons’
attentional abilities compared with those who receive negative information about younger
persons’ money saving behaviors. Implications of the findings will be discussed.
POSTER A-17
Authors:
Environmental Characteristics and Motivation
James Berlage, Signe Feldman, Jordan Garrido, Emily Kopec, &
Caelan Weldon
Within the workplace environment, individuals are exposed to a large number and different types
of stimuli. Dealing with these stimuli while meeting workplace expectations requires selfregulation from these individuals. Previous literature has defined self-control as one’s ability to
control their own thoughts and actions via resources, and from self-control, self-regulation is
derived. While numerous studies have investigated self-control and ego-depletion, there have
been little to none that have looked into the effects of the environment upon the individual. The
present study seeks to examine noise and its catalytic effect upon ego depletion. Specifically, the
effects of speech noise will be compared to that of ambient noise. We hypothesized that noise
within the workplace was a catalyst for ego depletion. Additionally, speech noise was predicted
to have a stronger depleting effect versus ambient noise due to an individual’s need for
belonging.
POSTER A-18
Authors:
Changes in Religion and Spirituality in the College Years
Chelsi Creech, Chris Griebel, & Sean Worley
Religion and spirituality have increasingly been researched as different constructs. According to
previous literature, levels of religion decreases among emerging adults, but similar research has
not been done regarding levels of spirituality. The current study examined the responses of
college students to different measures of religion and spirituality. It was hypothesized that older
students would have lower scores on measures of religion and higher levels of spirituality. The
participants in the study were from Saint Louis University, consisting mainly of Caucasian
females, between ages 18 and 24. Participants completed the Personal Religious Inventory
(PRI), the Duke Religion Index (DUREL), the Spiritual Transcendence Scale (STS), the Daily
Spiritual Experiences Scale (DSES) and the Spiritual Involvement and Beliefs Scale (SIBS).
Results showed a trend toward declining spirituality in the college years, although no statistically
significant difference was detected.
POSTER A-19
Author:
Identifying Spirituality as an Individual Construct
Christopher Griebel
Psychological research regarding the significance of spirituality as a construct and its
influence on human experience and behavior has grown surprisingly over the past years,
leading to a cultural shift that separates spirituality from institutional religion. While there
have been various studies involving spirituality, researchers have struggled to adequately
measure this construct. Past research has revealed that a considerable number of people
consider themselves to be spiritual but not religious, leading to a hypothesis which states that
there will be a difference in participants’ responses to the religiosity and spirituality scales,
depending on how they label themselves. The present study attempted to further develop
spirituality as an individual construct, analyzing participants’ responses to questions based on
previously developed religiosity and spirituality scales. Participants completed the Personal
Religious Inventory (PRI), the Duke Religion Index (DUREL), the Spiritual Transcendence
Scale (STS), the Daily Spiritual Experiences Scale (DSES) and the Spiritual Involvement and
Beliefs Scale (SIBS). Though individuals who label themselves spiritual only did not score
significantly different from religious only individuals on the spirituality measures, they did
score significantly different from religious only participants on various sections of the PRI,
including personal prayer, religious activities, integration, belief in God, belief in afterlife,
and closeness to God.
POSTER A-20
Author:
The Psychophysiological Correlates of Couples Interaction,
Empathy, and Stress
Ameera Haider
Recent work has defined empathy as a shared emotional experience occurring when two
people come to feel a similar emotion. Past research suggests that there exists an element of
physiological transmission present within the empathic relationship shared between romantic
partners. The current study investigated the relationship among empathy, relationship
satisfaction, and stress in the context of couple interactions. This study tested twenty-five
couples, who have been romantically involved for three months or longer. During the first
half of the study, couples completed a comprehensive questionnaire battery that assessed
romantic relationship quality, stress, attachment anxiety, and avoidance. The second part of
the study analyzed couple interaction by prompting the participants to engage in a benign
conversation, while attached to heart monitoring electrodes. The results showed that empathy
and relationship dissatisfaction were both positively related to heart rate. However, the
results found that stress did not significantly predict heart rate scores.
POSTER A-21
Author:
Electrophysiological Correlates of Attention in Children with
Neurofibromatosis Type 1
Emily Huston-Warren
Neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) is a disorder of autosomal inheritance associated with
cognitive deficits in specific domains such as attention. Compared to only 3-7% of children
in the general population, an estimated 30-50% of children with NF1 exhibit attention
deficits. Little is known about the neural correlates underlying attention deficits in children
with NF1 and the potential additive role that ADHD may contribute. The present study
utilized behavioral measures such as the WASI-II, JLO, TEA-Ch, CPT, and Connors-3.
Additionally, electrophysiological recordings were collected while participants completed the
attention network test (ANT) and the stop-signal task (SST). Participants consisted of a
comparison group as well as children with NF1 and those with comorbid NF1 and ADHD. It
was hypothesized that performance on the tasks would reveal group differences in attention.
Such differences, particularly in event-related potential (ERP) recordings, could help to
elucidate neural correlates underlying attentional problems in children with NF1.
POSTER A-22
Authors:
Self-Efficacy and Motivation Due to Performance Feedback
Counteract Ego Depletion
Van Rynald Liceralde & Alexandria Abell
The “strength model” of self-regulation suggests that factors affecting self-regulation, such as
feedback, self-efficacy, and motivation, should only counteract the effects of ego depletion
insofar as there remains sufficient cognitive resource for subsequent self-regulatory acts to
consume. Feedback, self-efficacy, and motivation should also have no effect on the amount
of resource consumed by self-regulatory acts. However, contrary to this model, it is
hypothesized that people who receive success as feedback over several self-regulatory tasks
will be more depleted than those who receive failure as feedback. Evidence from research on
efficacy-performance spirals show that success induces people to have higher self-efficacy
and set higher standards for themselves; hence, success should require consumption of more
cognitive resources. Conversely, people constantly receiving failure as feedback should
conserve their resources for tasks they have higher self-efficacy on and greater commitment
to. Implications for real-world scenarios, namely counterproductive work behaviors, are then
considered.
POSTER A-23
Author:
Canine Visitation and Reduction of Final Exam-related Stress in
College Students
Allie Lombardo
Research indicates that Animal-Assisted Therapy lowers levels of depression in various
therapy settings and populations ( Folse et al.,1994). Participants were provided with the
State Anxiety Scale both before and after interacting with therapy dogs. Students spent an
estimated average of around ten minutes petting dogs. At the end of this period, participants
again completed the State Anxiety scale. Analysis of T-tests comparing the means of the
Before and After results suggest that a strong correlation exists between canine interaction
and reduction in anxiety levels. Statements such as I am relaxed showed an effect of -2.08,
and I feel calm calculated an effect as -1.84. Other responses to statements such as I feel
jittery and I feel secure were not as strong. A strong relationship shows a correlation
between college students’ anxiety levels lowering during finals week and animal therapy
canines.
POSTER A-24
Author:
Social Effects of Unique Names
Brianna Martin
Parents put a lot of effort into choosing a name for their child and more recently it seems that
those names are becoming more and more unique. Previous studies suggest the trend in
unique names is increasing and past research has focused on predetermined unique and
common names and its social achievement. For this study, participants were asked to
complete a survey inquiring about their perception of their name, other’s perceptions of their
name, number of friends, and subjects the participant and their friends were interested in. The
present research looks to see if participants perceive their own names as unique. It was
predicted that those who perceive their name as unique will have more friends than those
who perceive their name as common. Additionally, it was predicted that those who perceive
their names as unique will have a wide range in subject diversity among their friends.
POSTER A-25
Author:
Perceptions of Stress and Health in a Sample of Black Males
Nina M. McDonnell
This qualitative, secondary data analysis examines transcripts and audio recordings of 28
focus groups participants involved in a community father support group. Participants were
black males, fathers, and volunteers in the program. Researchers were particularly interested
in the perception of stress in the participants’ lives, with emphasis on indicated stressors,
symptoms of stress, coping strategies, and the effects of stress. Results found reoccurring
themes of stress, both causes and symptoms; unique definitions of illness and its causes;
depression; and other mental health issues and concerns. Implications for future research and
providing quality mental health services to low-income black men are discussed.
POSTER A-26
Author:
The Value of Friendship
Megan Quigley
The purpose of the study is to examine what predicts one's friendship maintenance behaviors
and their effect on satisfaction in friendships while comparing these to the satisfaction of
friendships of individuals in different age groups. For example, do some efforts (such as
daily phone calls or other contact) produce higher levels of satisfaction in individuals in an
18-24 age group or a 40-65 age group? We hope to identify which maintenance behaviors
produce the highest levels of satisfaction in relationships and determine if these variables are
different between friendships of different age groups. This study is conducted by Megan
Quigley with the Applied Social Psychology Lab at Saint Louis University.
POSTER A-27
Authors:
Interreligious Group Social Acceptance: Correlations to
Intergroup Contact and Dispositional Forgiveness
Sean A Worley, Chelsi Creech, & Christopher Griebel
An investigation into the effects of intergroup contact and forgiveness upon interreligious
social acceptance is presented. Utilizing the Bogardus Social Distance Scale, the Heartland
Forgiveness Scale, and the Forgiveness Likelihood Scale, the current study evaluates the
relationship between constructs such as frequency of intergroup contact, type of intergroup
contact, and correlations of acceptance and dispositional forgiveness. Results indicate a
positive correlational relationship between intergroup contact and social acceptance, as well
as intergroup contact type and social acceptance. No significant relationship was found
between dispositional forgiveness and social acceptance. Implications, limitations, and future
directions are also discussed.
GROUP C: PRACTICA PROJECTS
POSTER C-1
Author:
Promoting the Use of Effective Coping Strategies to Decrease
Levels of Perceived Stress In Inner City Youth
Emily Blau
Through my involvement as a social skills development educator at Gene Slay’s Boys Club
of Saint Louis, I have made strides in understanding how individuals from disadvantaged
populations (inner city youth) differ in levels of stress and utilization of coping methods. I
administer a social skills program developed by Dr. Gilbert Botvin called Life Skills
Training. Past literature suggests that these types of programs decrease levels of perceived
stress and increase the use of more positive and efficient coping strategies. From this
experience, I have developed personally in my own knowledge, leadership, critical thinking,
and problem solving skills and have also been able to give the opportunity to children to
identify and utilize the most efficient ways of dealing with stress. Promotion of healthy
alternatives to dealing with stress ideally hopes to diminish the possibility of individuals
engaging in risky behaviors. Doing this, we can hope to reach the ultimate goal of giving
children the ability to live up to their full potential.
POSTER C-2
Author:
Negative Reactions People Can Have to Being Helped
Anthony Bertrand
While volunteering at the 12th and Park Recreational Center of St. Louis, I helped children
ages six to thirteen learn the game of basketball and watched over them as they waited for
their rides to arrive for their games. I worked to teach them the game of basketball. I
explained what weaknesses students had in their style of play and how to properly work
together as a team. Other times, I would help supervise the gymnasium. The children there
all thought I was just there to help the other coaches out, and there is a reason for this.
Studies have shown that recipients of care can withhold negative views towards caregivers.
The present poster reviews research on this topic to explain this and offer alternative methods
for explaining roles to care recipients.
POSTER C-3
Author:
Industry vs. Inferiority: Erikson’s Sixth Stage of Psychosocial
Development
Paul Brown
At City Garden Montessori Charter School, I served as a teacher’s assistant in the lower
elementary classroom. I helped give lessons to students, engaged in social interactions, and
assisted the teachers in classroom organization and management. A student was observed for
experiences of industry or inferiority according to Erikson’s theory of psychosocial
development. The student showed outward signs of high self-esteem when acknowledged
with positive praise, but also showed a lowered attribution of ability when he performed
poorly. Past research supports that a positive sense of self develops when interactions build
up a child’s character. I propose that my child, in his early years of Erikson’s sixth stage, will
develop a positive sense of independency and interdependency based upon his environment,
leading him to appropriately deal with aspects of inferiority. This project has helped me to
understand the social and environmental ramifications that impact youth during this stage of
development.
POSTER C-4
Author:
The Effects of Coping Mechanisms on Burnout Prevention Among
Social Workers
Brian Conroy
Through volunteer work at Places for People, I have observed victims of mental illness,
domestic abuse, substance abuse and homelessness receive treatment and assistance from the
social work practitioners. I assisted the social workers in daily responsibilities and observed
the effects of engaged and disengaged coping with respect to work-related burnout. Burnout
is suggested to produce high levels of depersonalization and emotional exhaustion, and low
levels of personal accomplishment. It is hypothesized that social workers are especially
prone to burnout through their client relationships. Engaged and disengaged coping were
observed and compared among the workers. This project showed a kinder perspective on
how the public treats the homeless and allowed me to see its effects on the practitioners. By
assisting the clients in socialization and the practitioners in assisting clients, I further
developed my sense of initiative, leadership, and analytic and problem solving skills.
POSTER C-5
Author:
Narrowing the Achievement Gap: The Impact of Parent
Involvement on Student Success
Anna Fiore
During my volunteer experience at Twin Echo Elementary School, I acted as a role model
and a tutor for over forty children. The majority of the children at the school live at or below
the poverty level, and many live in single-parent households, or with a variety of family
members. Many of the children are both struggling in school and have behavior problems.
My assumption is that they see bad attention as better than no attention at all. Past research
has shown that parent involvement has a positive correlation with children’s educational
performance and has been identified as a strategy for reducing the achievement gap. This
project has helped me to understand the major effect that a little attention and guidance can
have on the development of all children.
POSTER C-6
Author:
Social Desirability Bias Between Patients and Medical Staff
Danielle Hosie
While volunteering at SLU Hospital, I have noticed Social Desirability Bias in many
patients. This issue is really important because patients should be able to speak openly and
honestly about their needs, instead of over-reporting good behavior or under-reporting bad
behavior. SLU Hospital has patients take a satisfaction survey before leaving the hospital and
75% is currently their satisfaction rate. There needs to be more patient centered
communication between the nurses, or even a hospital social worker, and the patients in order
to increase the satisfaction rate. During my volunteering time, many patients have tried
asking me medical questions that I am not allowed to answer, but they have trouble asking
the nursing staff the same questions. This could happen because of poor communication or
understanding skills, forgetfulness, or not having a fair patient to nurse ratio. There needs to
be an easier, more open way for patients to communicate. Social desirability bias should not
exist between a patient and a nurse.
POSTER C-7
Author:
The Power of Faith in Death
Kathleen Karnig
Through Barnes Jewish Care Hospice I have cared for and served as a companion to patients
suffering from terminal illnesses. As a companion, I would read to patients, help them to
dress themselves, assist with medication, bathing and record stories about their life that they
wanted to pass on to family members. The difference in well being that I witnessed between
patients who were spiritual and those who were not was significant. This observation
substantiates research that suggests that faith can increase one’s quality of life and
acceptance of death. Faith is purported to support an individual’s belief in a just world and
instill a sense of hope for the future. This project helped me to understand the painful process
that both families and patients endure when faced with terminal illnesses. By volunteering as
a companion and confidant, I further increase my understanding, patience, and critical
thinking.
POSTER C-8
Author:
Tactics for Prevention of Health-Related Stigma
Leigh Kunkle
Through World Pediatric Project, I have spent time with families of critically ill children
from underdeveloped countries temporarily staying in St. Louis to receive medical treatment.
The children often suffer from orthopedic diseases, involving physical deformities, and are
from non-English speaking, low-income families. Past research indicates that health-related
stigma is not only a feature but a cause of many health problems, in that stigma based on
ethnicity or socioeconomic status can have adverse effects on health. I am interested in
exploring the tactics used to prevent the experience of health-related stigma. Social support
and non-discriminatory health-care is not always available to patients, which can greatly
determine the course and outcome of their treatment. By working with people who naturally
do not have access to quality health-care, this project has made me more aware of how
cultural, socioeconomic and situational differences can affect the treatment experience.
POSTER C-9
Author:
Understanding the Scope of Vicarious Traumatization in the
Helping Profession
Sara Mallatt
Through the Crime Victim Advocacy Center (CVAC), I assisted clients with coming to terms
with their victimization. Often, throughout my experience, I was warned of the effects of
vicarious victimization upon myself, a risk taken when conducting any work with victims.
Although significant research has been conducted to understand the effects of trauma on the
victim, little research has focused on those who work with the traumatized. Vicarious
victimization or vicarious traumatization (VT) threatens those feeling great empathy or desire
to help and is characterized by a change in an individual’s behaviors and emotions due to
repeated exposure to traumatic experiences through work with trauma victims. Throughout
my time at CVAC I was able to observe different levels of VT pressuring co-workers and
how each individual’s frame of reference has adapted to trauma exposure.
POSTER C-10
Author:
The Effects of Homelessness on Subjective Well-Being
Elizabeth Marx
Through Our Lady’s Inn St. Louis, I have helped pregnant women and their children who are
dealing with homelessness. I have provided childcare, helped with serving meals, and led
activities for the women. Past research shows that homelessness should have the effect of
decreasing subjective well-being and increasing negative affect and I am interested in
observing whether or not this population does indeed have low subjective well-being. By
working with these women and their children, I have become much more aware of the
difficulties that people face every day that I am usually sheltered from. By increasing my
awareness, I can in turn increase awareness in people I know and hopefully this will lead to
action to help eradicate homelessness.
POSTER C-11
Author:
A Collaborative Approach for Teaching Social Skills to Students
with Autism
Rio Munro
Through volunteering under a school psychological examiner at Rock Creek Elementary
School, I have assisted with teaching social skills to students with autism by utilizing peermediated interactions, cues, and sibling-implemented interactions. Past research indicates
that each of these methods, when used separately, increase social skills in students with
autism. At Rock Creek, special education teachers use all of these methods as well as parent
involvement in social skills training. This project helped me better understand the stigma
placed on students with disabilities and their underestimated potential. By working directly
with students who have autism, I have found a career in school psychology to pursue and I
know the importance of a collaborative approach to special education.
POSTER C-12
Author:
Seeking Self Control: Externalizing Behaviors in Youth with
Emotional/ Behavioral Disorders
Catherine Stachniak
It is generally agreed that serious misbehavior by children is detrimental to their overall
development and success. Serious misbehavior by children is manifested through externalizing
behaviors which are negative outward behaviors in which the child acts upon the external
environment (i.e. aggression, delinquency, and hyperactivity). Children who exhibit patterns of
externalizing behaviors are at a major risk for later juvenile delinquency and adult crime.
Externalizing behavior is a concept that Epworth Child and Family Center School specializes in.
Within the youngest classroom of 13 boys ages 5-9, externalizing behavior is a regular
occurrence. Triggers that initiate such behavior include (but do not encompass) inattentiveness by
adults, task length/ difficulty, or rejection of demands. Staff utilizes techniques to reduce
negative behaviors: ignoring behavior, communication therapy, physical coping mechanisms, and
temporary isolation. Once developed, externalizing behaviors tend to be stable over time,
however; Epworth attempts to change this trajectory in children’s future.
POSTER C-13
Author:
The Impact of Encouragement in a Child's Education
Victoria Stake
During my work with One Hope United in St. Louis, a child welfare organization, I have
experienced many things within our inner city school system. Most of my job has been
interacting with and assisting at-risk youths within the St. Louis metropolitan area, working to
help them get back on track with their education and keep them out of the juvenile justice system.
These children are generally left with no hope or encouragement; they are referred to OHU by
their parents who have given up on the child's behaviors. Worse, still, the teachers of these at-risk
youths tend to be completely dismissive of them and their education. I have seen this extreme
lack of encouragement first hand within these schools, and have observed the impact that it can
have on a child's future, especially those that are at risk. This project has given me inspiration to
work for these children, so that they can get the encouragement they need in order to lead happy,
successful, and just lives.
POSTER C-14
Author:
Bruised and Battered, But Not Broken: Guide to Assisting Targets of
Domestic Violence
Ashley O Carter
Domestic Violence is an issue that affects American society. Primarily, this issue often has
women as the victim and men, who the women are romantically involved with, as the perpetrator.
This paper examines an experience of seventy-five hours at a St. Louis city criminal courthouse,
specifically in the Domestic Violence court and Order of Protection filing office. Through the
seventy-five hours of experience a new model for assessing and seeking out resources is
developed and proposed for women who are victims of domestic violence. This model focuses on
the physical, emotional and mental needs of a victim based on demographics, depth of
involvement and ease of transitioning out of the relationship. There are ten basic steps included
in this model, for professionals to utilize when treating or working with domestic violence
victims.
POSTER C-15
Author:
From Micro to Macro: How Small Acts Can Change the World
Gerold Watson
My practicum at SLU’s Center for Service and Community Engagement (CSCE) allowed me
to frame my micro-level experiences in terms of macro-level community impact. In
particular, I was involved with three different CSCE-sponsored efforts: 1) Open Doors,
which involved bringing the homeless and at-risk community to SLU to receive helpful
information and donations; 2) Readers 2 Leaders, a mentoring program between two local
schools; and, 3) a Service-Immersion Trip, an “alternative” Spring Break experience in
Philadelphia and Camden. Altogether, these experiences affirmed my decision to pursue
further training in Social Work, and helped me realize that even small acts of service can lead
to large, positive social transformations.
POSTER C-16
Author:
Kids Under Twenty One
Alexandria Thibodeaux
Depression, stress, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts affect many children and adolescents today.
Undoubtedly, parents have a significant influence on their child’s personality, thoughts,
emotions, feelings, and behavior. Without proper and adequate love, care, concern, and
attention, children will likely suffer from some form of mental distress. “Parents who
attribute their children’s problems to factors that are stable, global, and due to the child are
more likely to have children who make pessimistic attributions for problems, which in turn
could increase children’s depression and anxiety” (Gillham et al., 2006, p.327). Since so
many children and adolescents are affected by depression, I researched ways in which this
could be prevented, specifically with a focus on parent involvement. Research has shown that
there are school-based cognitive-behavioral interventions that take place is grade schools and
high schools and “can reduce and prevent depressive symptoms in youth” (Gillham et al.,
2006, p.327). These programs incorporate both parents and children and aim to prevent
family dysfunctions and child and adolescent depression. Results show that some of these
programs have benefited the mental health and well-being of adolescents who participated in
the programs.
POSTER C-17
Author:
Children with Life-Threatening Medical Conditions and Family
Dynamics
Christine Trovela
As an intern at Make-A-Wish Foundation Missouri, I observed that when a chronic disease
affects a child, this impacts the whole family as well. This led to the research of how a child
with a life-threatening medical condition affects siblings, parents, and family dynamics?
From my findings, families that have a child suffering from a life-threatening medical
condition have different family dynamics. Observations clearly show that siblings suffer
when a child is ill, as well as the whole family system being distressed. There is a disruption
because parents spend so much time in the hospital, creating an emotional interference
because their attention tends to exclude others. Some studies show that there is no consistent
pattern to the behavior problems that have been observed in siblings of children with a
malignant disease. This includes irritability and jealousy. I found this to be accurate in my
observation at Make-A-Wish Foundation.
POSTER C-18
Author:
Collegiate Honors Preparatory Program
Marie Batty
My practicum site, Collegiate Honors Preparatory Program (CHPP), aims to help inner city
high school students prepare for and do well on the ACT exam in order to become
competitive applicants for college acceptance and scholarships. I saw firsthand that students
can have large goals for their future, but often have a disconnect between their goals for the
future and the actions necessary in the present to accomplish those goals. My main focus
when reviewing the research literature was on what factors play a part in academic
disengagement in high school students. Despite poor performances on academic measures,
African American students often discount such measures as not indicative of their ability and
are therefore able to maintain high self-esteem. In conclusion, I have realized that the
students from Roosevelt and Vashon need continued support from their teachers, family, and
peers in order to stay engaged with their academics and go on to pursue higher education.
POSTER C-19
Author:
The Youth Learning Center
Imman Musa
For my practicum, I volunteered at the Youth Learning Center, an afterschool academic
program that serves students from over 25 different schools in the city of St. Louis and
provides them with high quality and engaging academic programming. I volunteered as a
Communication Arts tutor and met with students weekly for one hour each, and we worked
on skills in reading, comprehension, grammar, and vocabulary. Many of my students’ test
scores were not reflective of the abilities I observed while working with them, which made
me question factors that could be contributing to this. Research shows that African American
students in urban areas often disconnect their academic achievement from their overall selfesteem, so I decided to focus my research on academic disidentification and possible ways to
overcome it. Searching the literature,
I found that presenting intelligence as malleable rather than fixed has been effective in
reducing disidentification. After weeks of working with the students, their scores improved,
and almost all of them reached the YLC standard of 80% proficiency.
POSTER C-20
Author:
Looking at Post Traumatic Stress in Victims of Crime
Samuel B. Mooney
This semester I worked at the Crime Victim Advocacy Center of St. Louis as a volunteer
advocate. My responsibilities included working on the Center’s hotline, assisting clients who
had been victimized by informing them of their rights and helping them to move past the
incident both financially and psychologically. I chose to focus my research on the
psychology of the victims, specifically on anxiety disorders that arise from trauma, why
those disorders arise in some individuals and not others, and how this affects the Center’s
client retention rate. In my research I found evidence supporting the idea that PTSD is
correlated with some personality traits, like high neuroticism and low extroversion, over
others.
POSTER C-21
Author:
Helping Increase Independence of Individuals with Learning
Disabilities
Zehra Uvalic
My practicum site, Pathways to Independence, supports, educates, and empowers adults with
learning disabilities and associated disorders. They help them obtain personal growth needed
to function in their daily lives. The organization uses person-centered planning (PCP) as
means of accomplishing goals. The goals set are aimed at increasing their personal
motivation and improving their independence. During my practicum and in my literature
research I focused on goal setting and how goal setting affects the future behaviors in
developmentally delayed and/or learning disabled individuals. Research shows that goal
setting resulted in increased contact with friends and family and engagement in more
activities.
POSTER C-22
Author:
Crime Rates in Urban Areas
Danielle Guyton
Crime has been a problem for many years. Particularly, crime rates in urban areas are
consistently very high. Over the years, it seems to get worse. Crime has the potential to
happen anywhere but there are reasons that it is so concentrated in urban neighborhoods.
Urban areas do not share the opportunities that other areas have. Research shows that
communities that lack sufficient economic resources to improve material and social
conditions for their residents may confer higher risks of homicide mortality. My research
aims to tell why crime rates in urban areas are so high.
POSTER C-23
Author:
It's The Effects of After-School Programs in Inner City Schools
Melanie Flege
For my practicum, I volunteered with Youth In Need. The organization is geared towards
prevention and intervention with primarily children from low income areas that are
considered at risk for behavioral issues. I worked at Farragut Elementary School, a public
school in North St. Louis. I worked in the after-school program with first graders through
fifth graders. The program is aimed at providing a health environment for the children until
their parents can pick them up. During my time there, I would help the children with their
homework and help the staff do lessons with them. This inspired my research question: Do
after-school programs affect academic success in inner city school children?
GROUP D: CRITICAL THINKING PROJECTS
POSTER D-1
Authors:
The Impact of Social Support and Relationship Maintenance
on the Effectiveness of Substance Rehabilitation
Alex Baldwin, Claire Bedell, & Kelly Childress
Current rehabilitation options for drug addicts in St. Louis do not address key factors that
undermine recovery. Facilities can be up to three hours away, removing patients from their
communities. Empirical studies and expert interviews indicate that positive peer support can
minimize the possibility of relapse. Our plan includes a small local facility, allowing addicts
to maintain employment, community and familial ties. Addicts will undergo a five-step
program, during which they must eliminate negative influences and build healthy
relationships. This program will ensure addicts have a safe place to pursue sobriety while
preventing the deterioration of professional and personal relationships.
POSTER D-2
Authors:
Bullying: A Community-Wide Approach
Kerry Blankshain, Patrick Hegde, & Diane Serati
This study seeks to address the issue of bullying in high schools, awareness of which has
increased recently due to associated psychological distress and increased prevalence of
technology and social media use. Using information gathered from research and interviews,
this study proposes an action plan for effectively addressing the issue of bullying. Empirical
research and interviews have shown that there is no clear definition of bullying or widely
accepted guidelines for handling it. This action plan introduces a clear definition of bullying,
widely accepted guidelines for use in handling a bullying situation when one is recognized,
and proposes a program to facilitate the prevention of further bullying problems. This action
plan promotes addressing bullying proactively rather than reactively, promotes communitywide involvement in addressing the issue, and, in the long-term, is designed to effectively
reduce the prevalence of bullying as a problem in high schools.
POSTER D-3
Authors:
Benefits of Healthy Sleeping Habits for University Students
Young Bok, Neeraj Joshi, & Alissa Kirchner
Receiving an adequate amount of sleep may have restorative functions. Through empirical
research and interviews, we discovered that sleep deprivation affects cognitive performance
and immune system functioning. Educating students on healthy sleeping habits may prevent
negative sleeping habits later in life, increase academic performance, and lead to healthier
overall lifestyle. The proposed policy changes will require SLU 101 instructors to attend a
seminar that will educate them on positive aspects of proper sleep. Instructors will implement
these techniques to educate students about good sleep hygiene. During the school year, SLU
101 instructors will dedicate a class period that emphasizes the following sleep hygiene tips:
go to sleep and wake up at the same time every day; avoid caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol;
and use the bed for sleep only. This program will benefit the SLU community by
encouraging students to engage in healthier sleeping habits.
POSTER D-4
Authors:
Solution Concerning the Significant Problem of Underage and Binge
Drinking in the U.S.
Keefe, K.J., Kuehner, K.P., Pyle, K.A., Sorgani, C.T., & Tierney, A.P.
Alcohol is directly influential to high school and college-aged students. Many adolescents in the
United States start drinking alcohol prior to the legal drinking age, often engaging in binge
drinking. These risk-taking behaviors have been shown to have negative immediate and future
implications. Research suggests that the brain is not fully developed until the early-twenties; the
issue at hand is whether or not an intensive alcohol and drug education program is effective in
reducing the prevalence of both binge and underage drinking. Empirical evidence supports both
sides of the argument, and the purpose of this project is to utilize current empirical evidence
along with various interviews with a lawyer, a neurologist, a psychologist, and the other directly
relevant individuals in order to provide a recommendation on how effective an education
program would be in reducing prevalence of binge and underage drinking.
POSTER D-5
Authors:
Should Teachers Adjust Their Teaching Methods? The Role of
Technology in Student Learning
Parth Shah, Ellie Dolan, Kavita Darji, Muz Quadri, & Pranusha Naidu
The use of technology has become more prominent in every age group in our evolving world.
This influences the way professors teach at universities and how effectively students absorb
material. Our action plan explores the effectiveness of traditional methods of teaching (without
any use of technology) versus methods that incorporate technology to determine how it affects
students’ preference in how material is presented to them. Our team will compare traditional
teaching strategies that do not incorporate technology into lectures with those that integrate
Powerpoints, online lectures, recorded lectures, and Blackboard. Researchers will interview
professors and students at a Midwestern university to understand their preferred teaching and
learning styles. After analyzing empirical evidence and interview responses our group will make
recommendations to teachers to best facilitate student learning.
POSTER D-6
Authors:
Classroom Culture and the Student: Non-Prescription Use of
Controlled Psychostimulants
Nevin Cherian, Michael Hughes, Delia Zvinovski, Nico Ulloa, &
Michelle De Vera
The project investigated the impact of non-prescription usage of psychostimulants (i.e. Ritalin,
Adderall, Dexedrine) for the purpose of increasing academic performance. Through this project,
we analyzed the side effects in addition to the various environmental factors that promote or
discourage use within the classroom. We consider this issue to be pertinent for students, faculty,
staff, and healthcare providers within the Saint Louis University community. Because of the
current demands and competitiveness of the education system it is important to determine the
factors within the growing trend of illicit use. We ascertained our information by interviewing
faculty and students, in varying departments, as well as consulting experts within the fields of
psychopharmacology and cognitive neuroscience along with reading empirical evidence from
peer-reviewed literature. Based on this information, we recommend altering curriculum to
remove high stakes testing in order to disincentivize psychostimulant use.
POSTER D-7
Authors:
Red Light Cameras: Pro’s and Con’s to New Traffic Technology
Monica Trinh, Jeremy Weber, Melanie-Rose Westbrook, Kristin Ryan
The purpose of our project was to review the use of red-light cameras (RLC) and their impact
in the City of Saint Louis as well as examining the neurocognition of the brain. The
prevalence of RLC have caused many to question the usefulness of them. Proponents of RLC
believe that they are beneficial and reduce risky driving behaviors. The opposition of RLC
claim they impede on our individual rights or increase the amount of accidents at
intersections in the community. We plan to inquire experts and look at empirical literature
about this topic. Through the literature and interviews, we will evaluate the evidence and
propose an action plan that will benefit future solutions with issues of RLC. The knowledge
we gain may assist community leaders to act towards the safety of the citizens of St. Louis.
POSTER D-8
Authors:
Helping Children to Cope Through Divorce
Maddie Hodge, Naandie Wright, Melissa Lanser, Samantha Kaur, &
Chengyang Zhang
In this project we are exploring the possible effects divorce has on children’s development
between the ages of fourteen to twenty-four. This includes social, behavioral, and cognitive
development. We will look at the best ways to help children maintain a normal rate of
development in comparison to their peers who have married parents. Also we will ask who is
responsible for assisting the child through the coping process after the divorce. To do this we
will interview children of divorced families, divorced parents, and a social worker. We will
ask questions that relate to the individual’s personal experiences and opinions of divorce.
From our interviews and empirical evidence we expect to gather information on who is
responsible for assisting the children throughout the coping process. From the information
we gather, we hope to make recommendations as to what should be done to help children
cope with divorce.
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.
Selection is based upon review of the Capstone Impact Essay in conjunction with the
Capstone Poster Abstracts. The recipients are announced at the Psychology Capstone
Symposium Awards Ceremony.