12th Annual Psychology
Capstone Symposium
Sponsored by
Undergraduate Studies Committee
and Psi Chi
Department of Psychology
April 15, 2015
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.
401 488 487 490 -
Faculty Judges
Jeffrey Gfeller, Ph.D.
Mindy Shoss, Ph.D.
Jeremiah Weinstock, Ph.D.
Cort Rudolph, Ph.D.
Graduate Student Judges
Katelyn Poelker, M.S.
Abbie Harris, M.A.
Nicole Summers, B.S.;B.A.
Marissa Roffler, M.S.
Psychology Capstone Courses and Instructors
PSY 401 Advanced Statistics & Research Methods
PSY 487 Capstone Practicum Project
PSY 488 Capstone Research Project
PSY 490 Critical Thinking about Psychology
Kristin K. Kiddoo, Ph.D.
Zachary Merz, M.S.
Peter Marle, M.A.
Richard Harvey, Ph.D.
Jillon Vander Wal, Ph.D.
A. Michael Anch, Ph.D.
Tony Buchanan, Ph.D.
Dustin Jundt, 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.
Challis Kinnucan, Ph.D.
Sam Peter, Psi Chi Vice President
Psi Chi Officers
Chelsi DeLeon – President
Sam Peter – Vice-President
Akemi Mii and Angela Cannady –
Secretaries
Jordan Tamayo - Treasurer
Falak Saffaf – Activities and Publicity
Katie Schrock – Office Manager
Ted Bosi – Psi Chi Newsletter Editor
Joe Fulton – Member at Large
GROUP A: RESEARCH PROJECTS
POSTER A-1
Authors:
Boredom as an Ego Depletion Mechanism
Yelyzaveta DiStefano, Sofia Porter, Andrea Mijatovic and Trey
Heffernan
“Ego depletion” asserts that we have a limited, common pool of resources we draw from
when we exert self-control (Baumeister, Bratslavsky, Muraven, & Tice, 1998). The present
research seeks to answer whether boredom is cognitively depleting. In depletion conditions,
participants were told they could do nothing during a period of ten minutes. In non-depletion
conditions, participants were told they could spend the time however they like. All
participants solved six anagrams, receiving either easy or difficult puzzles. Persistence,
measured in time until participants quit the task, was recorded. Participants additionally
completed various self-report questionnaires (PANAS, MEQ and Self-Control Scale). It was
hypothesized that non-depletion participants who perform the difficult cognitive task will
persist longer than depleted participants on the same task. However, no differences were
expected between depletion conditions on the easy anagram task.
POSTER A-2
Authors:
Gendered Film and Vanity Cues on Female Composite Body Image
Jessica Dowling, Marissa Grimes, Olivia Levi, and Kathryn Norman
Previous research has demonstrated that vanity cues and gendered media negatively affect
women’s body image. Using a 2x2 design, the researchers compared the effects of vanity
cues and a gendered film on participant’s suggestibility, body dissatisfaction, and negative
affect. Undergraduate women participated by viewing a film clip and completing four
measures (Demographics, MISS-Short, IBBS-R, and PANAS), and it was predicted that the
participants who experienced both vanity cues and the gendered film would have the highest
suggestibility, body dissatisfaction, and negative affect. These results could have
implications for further research on how gendered films and vanity cues affect a woman’s
satisfaction with her body. Additionally, results could provide information to the media on
ways to frame women’s bodies in a positive manner.
POSTER A-3
Authors:
The Effect of Nationality and Kindness on Helping Behavior
Angela Cannady, Kara Emery, Rimple Guron, and Falak Saffaf*
Previous research suggests that nationality may affect one’s helping behavior. Literature has
shown that people from individualistic cultures tend to react more strongly to rude behavior
than people from collectivistic cultures. Additional research has demonstrated that people
will usually reciprocate kindness. Based on this knowledge, this experiment assessed if the
interaction between these two variables, nationality and researcher behavior, influenced
participant helpfulness. Participants were American and international students from a private
Midwestern university. The researchers hypothesized that if shown kindness by the
researcher, international students and American students would score the same in
helpfulness. However, if treated rudely, American students, members of an individualist
culture, would score lower on helpfulness than international students.
*Authorship determined alphabetically.
POSTER A-4
Authors:
The Effects of Conscientiousness and Gender on Leadership Style
Elizabeth Milad, Kristin Burnette, Nicholas Kavish, Nathan Daly, and
Annie Herman
Previous research has shown that males usually prefer an autocratic leadership style while
females prefer a democratic approach. This study explored the impact of gender and
conscientiousness on perceptions of leadership. We evaluated the effect of manipulating
increased awareness for trait conscientiousness on preference for either democratic or
autocratic leadership. Participants were given surveys to assess their conscientiousness and
either did or did not receive a primer article focusing their attention on conscientiousness
before completing a leadership preference survey. Males were expected to score higher in
autocratic leadership and females to prefer democratic leadership. When individuals were
primed for conscientiousness, we expected an overall increase in preference for democratic
leadership, with a greater increase in females because such a shift would be magnifying an
already held belief whereas for males it would be a shift in a contradictory direction.
POSTER A-5
Authors:
Influences of Risk Aversion on Gambling
Colleen Maxwell, Brendon Glon, Kelsey Ziesig, Megan McGinn, and
Jonathan Fuller
The researchers of this study aimed to examine motivations for risk taking in college
students. There is literature that supports the notions that both potential for reward and
having earned one’s tokens affect risk aversion. Participants were either informed of the
potential for a reward or not before a gambling task. Some performed a simple arithmetic
test to give the impression they had earned their tokens while the others did not perform the
test and consequently did not feel as though they had earned their tokens. The researchers
expected that potential for reward would decrease risk aversion and having earned one’s
tokens would increase risk aversion. It was hypothesized that the potential for reward would
increase the bets for all participants; however, the feeling of having earned one’s tokens
would have a greater influence. For this reason, the researchers predicted that only the
participants who did not earn their tokens would be affected by the reward manipulation.
POSTER A-6
Authors:
Influences of Media Exposure on Body Image of Individuals with
High and Low Self-Esteem
Samaneh Ataei and Francesca Cottone
Recent studies have shown that representation of the standard ideal male and female figures
in media has negatively effected people’s perception of their own body. Such literature has
expanded further to examine how one’s body image is affected when exposure to such
images is differentiated amongst various ages, gender, and self-esteem. This study examined
the impact of models in media and self-esteem have on individual’s body image.
Participants’ self esteem was measured before being exposed (or not) to pictures of models in
magazines. The researchers predicted a main effect of media exposure, in which media
exposure would elicit lower body image in individuals. A main effect of self-esteem was also
predicted and expected to be qualified by a media x self-esteem interaction. Participants with
low self-esteem were expected to be affected more by media images than those with high
self-esteem.
POSTER A-7
Authors:
Effects of Delay of Gratification on Ego Depletion
Dylan Huber, Lauren Longacre, Rukmini Roy, and Katie Schrock*
Life consists of daily stressors that not only cause physical exhaustion, but also mental
exhaustion, or ego depletion. Ego depletion can be defined as a temporary reduction in the
self’s capacity or willingness to engage in volitional action (Baumeister et al., 1998). This
study explored the possible effects of delay of gratification upon ego depletion. Delay of
gratification can be defined as the voluntary postponement of immediate gratification while
seeking more significant long-term gains (Mischel, 1974). It is predicted that engaging
participants in a delay of gratification task before subjecting them to a cognitive task will
cause lower cognitive scores. Participants were exposed to one of two levels of waiting for
the delay of gratification task as well as one of two levels of difficulty for the cognitive task.
The delay is predicted to have an effect only in the easy cognitive task condition.
*Authorship determined alphabetically
POSTER A-8
Authors:
Assigning the Blame: Attributional Theory and Subconscious
Racial Prejudice
Adil Husain, Michael Lally, Bradley Mueller, and Benjamin Papke
Previous literature has shown that race often acts as an influencing factor when one person
attributes the consequences of an action either externally or internally. Such studies have
examined in-group/out-group differences and non-visual attribution experiments in which
race plays a role in negative attribution ratings of another person. This experiment further
identified whether timeliness of an experimenter to an important event will affect negative
attribution ratings, in relation to in-group/out-group biases. Participants filled out
demographics, read a vignette, and then completed two attribution surveys, one relative to the
vignette given to them and one about attributional attitudes more broadly. It was predicted
that race and timeliness will impact attribution ratings. Participants were expected to respond
with negative attributions to late experimenters, particularly when the experimenter is of a
different race.
POSTER A-9
Authors:
The Effect of Social Media and Gender Matching vs. Mismatching
on Self-esteem
Nicholas Zellmer, Taylor Baum, Stacy Mathews, Chloi Wright, and
Sharvitti Broussard
Because social media is a major part of many people’s lives and provides innumerable people
to compare oneself to, it is important to see how this affects self-esteem. Research suggests
that people who use social media compare themselves to others more than those who do not.
This study examined the impact of gender matching versus mismatching in the context of
either upward or downward social comparison. Participants viewed a researcher- designed
Facebook profile of either a male or female who was superior or inferior and then completed
a social media questionnaire, an updated Rosenberg self-esteem scale, an updated Attitude
Toward Women Scale, and a demographic survey. Participants’ self-esteem was predicted to
be affected negatively in the upward comparison condition and affected positively in the
downward comparison condition. Further, the researchers predicted that social comparison
would affect self-esteem most when participants’ sex matches that of the target.
POSTER A-10
Authors:
Stress and Perspective Taking on Empathetic Levels
Akemi Mii, Joe Fulton, Kevin Loo, and Jack Scanlon
Previous literature has suggested that there is a causal relationship between stress and
perspective taking in relation to empathy. However, there is a paucity of research on the
combined effects of all three constructs. The current study assessed the relationship between
stress and perspective taking on empathy. Participants were randomly assigned to stress
conditions (low vs. high) and perspective-taking conditions (personal vs. other) before
completing the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (Davis, 1980) as a measure of empathy. It was
predicted that there would be main effects of stress (low stress would yield the highest level
of empathetic scores) and perspective taking (those instructed to take the perspective of
another would result in higher empathetic scores). However, the impact of the manipulated
stress condition would be particularly evident in participants instructed to take the
perspective of another.
POSTER A-11
Authors:
Distractibility and Sleep on Working Memory
Rachel VonLuehrte, Cerra Antonacci, Ted Bosi, and Laura
Silverstein*
Distractions and lack of sleep are two factors that contribute to poor working memory,
particularly in college students. In various study environments, students are subjected to
myriad external stimuli including background conversations. Due to college lifestyle,
students tend to have less than the recommended amount of sleep per night. These external
and internal factors led us to investigate if there is an interactive effect between different
conversation types and amount of sleep on a working memory task. Students were given a
self-report sleep survey followed by a short story. While reading the story, participants were
distracted by either a one-sided or two-sided conversation and then tested on their ability to
recall factual information from the story. It was predicted the conversation type would only
impact those with less than average sleep.
*Other than first author, authors listed alphabetically
POSTER A-12
Authors:
The Role of Side Effects as a Moderator in the Association
between Patient-Physician Trust and Medication Non-adherence
Landon Reading, Chelsea DeLeon, Rebecca Tipton, Ashley Njaka, and
Kingsley Bryce
The patient-physician interaction is integral to the successful delivery of health care. Existing
research highlights attributes of the patient-physician relationship that affect a patient’s
satisfaction with care, including continuity of care, concordance on treatment management,
and patient trust. The present study examined whether the association between trust in a
physician and patient adherence is moderated by pharmaceutical side effects. The Trust in
Physician scale was administered to participants before being randomly assigned a scenario
where they were asked to imagine that their physician diagnosed them with a nonspecific
condition and treatment with side effects either present or absent. Based on previous
findings, we predicted that those with a lower level of trust in a physician would show a
lower level of medication adherence and that participants would be more likely to adhere to
treatments with no side effects. These effects were predicted to be qualified by a trust x side
effect interaction, such that the level of trust in the physician would only impact the reported
adherence of those in the side effects condition.
POSTER A-13
Author:
Microglial Activation in Response to DOPAL, a Putative SmallMolecule Initiator of Parkinson’s Disease-like Pathology
Kelsey Rowe
Parkinson’s disease—(PD) presents as degenerative motor deficits including rigidity,
bradykinesia, tremors, and unstable gait. Physiologically, PD is characterized by
dopaminergic neuron death in the substantia nigra and loss of nigrostriatal axon terminals. In
PD, misfolded extracellular alpha-synuclein can activate CNS macrophages known as
microglia. Excessive microglial activation can elicit apoptotic and pro-inflammatory
cytokine signaling, exacerbating neuroinflammation and cell death. This experiment
explored the effect of 3,4-Dihydroxyphenylacetaldehyde (DOPAL), a metabolite of
dopamine and putative initiator of synuclein aggregation, on microglia activation in the
striatum using a rat model (N=16). Rats were randomized to three intracranial injection
groups: unilateral striatal injection with DOPAL, saline control, or cortical DOPAL control.
Motor tests were performed before surgery and two or four weeks post-surgery.
Immunohistochemical assays for microglial activation were completed. There were no
significant differences between pre- and post-surgery motor performance, but
immunohistochemical assays showed increased microglia activation in the DOPAL group.
POSTER A-14
Authors:
Intrastriatal administration of 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetaldehyde
(DOPAL) induces aggregation of alpha-synuclein in the rat: A
potential pathogenic mechanism for Parkinson’s disease?
Nicholas Larsen and Edward Catich
Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative process characterized by loss of midbrain
dopaminergic neurons and consequent motor deficits. Although the pathology underlying this
neuronal death is uncertain, toxic aggregates of the protein alpha-synuclein are hypothesized
to play a major role. 3,4-Dihydroxyphenylacetaldehyde (DOPAL) is a dopamine metabolite
which is elevated in PD patients and may precipitate synuclein aggregation. To test the
ability of DOPAL to aggregate synuclein, we administered 1mcL of 20mM DOPAL to the
dorsolateral striatum of 16 rats (12 DOPAL, 4 vehicle control) and stained for alphasynuclein immunohistochemically. Rats were also tested for motor abilities and striatal
dopamine depletion. DOPAL-treated rats demonstrated large aggregates which were
immunopositive for alpha-synuclein at the injection site. Motor tests did not differ between
groups. DOPAL administration recapitulates at least one neuropathological hallmark of
human Parkinson’s disease.
POSTER A-15
Author:
Is physical fitness related to interoceptive awareness?
Maggie Heintzelman
The relationship between cardiorespiratory fitness and interoceptive awareness, or our
awareness of our own body’s physiological activity has been studied somewhat in the past.
This study examined the relationship between cardiorespiratory health and interoceptive
awareness in adults between the ages 18-90 years, with no history of a neurological or
psychiatric disorder. It was hypothesized that interoceptive awareness is related to physical
activity levels. The findings suggest that those individuals with better interoceptive
awareness tend to also exhibit better cardiorespiratory health.
POSTER A-16
Author:
Assessing the Relationship Between Mindfulness and Interoceptive
Awareness
Shobha Sridhar
Previous research shows that there is a strong relationship between an individual’s level of
mindfulness and sense of interoceptive awareness of physiological processes and bodily
sensations. Interoceptive awareness is a multidimensional concept which includes attention,
integration of the mind and body, and emotional awareness. This study examined the
relationship between mindfulness and interoceptive awareness through questionnaires and a
heartbeat detection task. Undergraduate students from Saint Louis University took part in this
study, which included measurement of heart rate during the heartbeat detection tasks. Using
an electrocardiogram (ECG), we examined the accuracy of the reported heartbeats felt by the
participants.. Participants then completed the Langer Mindfulness Scale (LMS), which
assessed different aspects of mindful thinking. It is hypothesized that although interoceptive
awareness is a multidimensional concept, there will be greater heartbeat perception accuracy
for those that score highly on the LMS.
POSTER A-17
Authors:
Motivation and Adaptive Performance: The Effects of Feedback
Intervention Level on Adaptive Performance
Sally Iocca, Erin Highbloom, and Teresa Bongiorno
This study aimed to look at the effects of feedback types on adaptive performance and
understand the motivational factors behind feedback intervention on the individual as they
learn a new task. Adaptive performance is performance-directed behaviors individuals enact
in response to or anticipation of changes relevant to job-related tasks (Jundt, Shoss, &
Huang, 2015). The three types of feedback intervention: meta-task feedback, task-motivation
feedback, and task-learning feedback - regulate behaviors, goals, and locus of attention,
which can alter an individual’s motivation towards a task. We predict different feedback
levels will affect an individual’s adaptive performance level suggesting, (1) given a metatask feedback, a participant will exhibit lower adaptive performance, and (2) when given
task-learning feedback, they will exhibit higher adaptive performance. By understanding
what feedback styles affect motivation, this study could enhance how organizations deliver
feedback and how individuals will adapt in the work environment when there is change.
POSTER A-18
Author:
Mindfulness, Mind Wandering, and Creativity
Shayna Palmer
Mindfulness and mind wandering are two widely studied constructs that are often said to be
in opposition on the same spectrum. The purpose of this study was to see how these
constructs, along with affect, were related to creativity. Seventy-two participants were
randomized to one of four intervention conditions (focused breathing, mind-wandering,
demanding task, and reading) and completed a creativity task (pre- and post-test), measures
of affect, and dispositional mindfulness and mind-wandering. The results revealed no
evidence of an effect of the intervention on change in creativity and no evidence of an
interaction between the intervention condition and positive or negative affect. Exploratory
analysis revealed a moderate positive correlation between dispositional mindfulness and
mind-wandering, indicating that the two constructs may not be on opposing sides.
Implications for how mindfulness and mind-wandering are related are discussed.
POSTER A-19
Authors:
Strains on Adaptive Performance: The Roles of Challenge and
Hindrance Stressors
Haley Adams, Emily Hardin, and Brendan Westerfield
It is accepted that stress is a normal part of life for anyone in an organization. Researchers
like Lepine et al. (2005) and Cavanaugh et al. (2000) have discovered that stress (previously
thought to contain only negative consequences) was a much more nuanced construct, and
could be more easily divided into both challenge and hindrance stressors. It is our hope to
bolster these categorizations, and provide substantial evidence for what may be
distinguishing factors between these stressors. Our study required participants to complete
eight trials of a task in which we gradually induced challenge stressors (theoretically
motivating) or hindrance stressors (theoretically impeding). After stressors were introduced,
participants were given a questionnaire to measure their stress levels. We measured their
performance in relationship to their stress levels and the types of stress that they experienced.
This research will hopefully increase the interest in adaptive performance as a construct for
further studies.
GROUP C: PRACTICA PROJECTS
POSTER C-1
Authors:
Organizational Effectiveness at Provident Counseling After School
Program
Haley Adams, Jessica Chinn, Kalila Harris, Julie Morrissey, Michael
Schwendeman, and Veronica Villafruela
A team of students conducted an assessment of a nonprofit organization that provides after
school activities for elementary grade level students. The assessment was conducted using an
Organizational Development approach. Organizational Development is a particular approach
for managing change in organizations. The assessment included interviews of the top leaders,
a focus group of middlelevel leaders and a survey of school staff. Furthermore, the team
conducted onsite observations. The primary purpose of the assessment was to assist
organizational leaders in identifying problems (i.e., staff turnover) and some key drivers of
those problems. Furthermore. Recommendations as to areas for change and some particular
change will be made. The implications of the project for Organizational Development
science, the client (i.e., Provident Counseling AfterSchool Program), and the consultant team
are discussed.
POSTER C-2
Authors:
Organizational and Leadership Effectiveness at Sun Edison
Rico Brooks, Krystani Harvey, Jaelynn Hopgood, Catherine Lee, and
William Luehrmann
A consultant team of students conducted an Organizational and Leadership assessment At
SunEdison, the worlds largest alternative energy (i.e., solar, wind) company. The assessment
was conducted using an Organizational Development approach. Organizational Development
is a particular approach for managing change in organizations. The assessment included
analyses of five facets of the organization including its environment, strategy, technology,
measurement systems, and culture. Furthermore, the assessment included both a quantitative
and qualitative analyses of Leadership 360 surveys. The assessment focused on
distinguishing effective vs. noneffective leaders across 50 different countries. The
implications of the project for Organizational Development science, the client (i.e.,
SunEdison), and consultant team are discussed.
POSTER C-3
Author:
Eating Disorder Support Group
Jessica Dowling
Over the Spring Semester of 2015, I was a research intern for Webster Wellness/McCallum
Place, an eating disorder treatment facility. While interning at this site, I noticed that college
students were returning to treatment after stressful college semesters. After discussing my
experiences with Dr. Vander Wal, I believed that college students with eating disorders
would benefit from additional support given the academic and social rigors of a college
education. To achieve this goal, I developed an eating disorder support group which includes
weekly reflections, time for participant sharing and integration, and an activity based on the
Body Project, an empirically supported cognitive dissonance-based eating disorder
intervention. The formation of this group has helped me begin to hone important skills,
including assessment, observation of maladaptive behaviors, and treatment interventions, that
I will use as I begin my career as a clinical psychologist.
POSTER C-4
Author:
Healthy Body Image: A Different Kind of Makeover
Joy M Ciskowski
Healthy Body Image (HBI) is a study being done at Washington University’s Weight
Management and Eating Disorder Lab. This research is focused on reaching college-age
women, although men are allowed to participate without inclusion in the study, with lowrisk, high-risk, and clinical eating disorders. With the use of a mobile app, women can go
through a health screen, which places them in one of the previous listed categories. They are
then invited to walk through the appropriate treatment based on their assigned group. This
capstone has allowed me to assist with the HBI study needs, which includes, but is not
limited to: drafting recruitment emails, searching for new recruitment opportunities, drafting
social media blurbs, and preparing for on-campus recruits. With the remaining time at the
lab, I hope to further assist with their needs and possibly assisting at local campuses.
GROUP D: CRITICAL THINKING PROJECTS
POSTER D-1
Authors:
Ending Socioeconomic Disparity in Higher Education
Kavisha Gandhi, Bethany Nakanishi, and Susan Wallace
This project addresses the persistent lack of low-income students attending four-year
universities in the United States, as the proportion of low-income students at universities has
remained largely the same since 1982 (Carnevale, 2010). Most programs have focused on
making college more affordable for low-income students, but the underlying problem may be
a more psychological one. This issue may be related to how students perceive college. Some
people feel that the responsibility falls on universities. Others feel that colleges have done
their part to make education accessible, and the problem lies in raising awareness among
low-income students. The action plan will address the psychological underpinnings of this
problem as well as policies that affect this issue. We plan to interview members of SLU’s
admissions department, and students and administrators in St. Louis public high schools.
Based upon the information gathered, recommendations will be made on how best to
approach this issue.
POSTER D-2
Authors:
Adolescents in a Culture of Information: The Importance of
Media Literacy
Abigail Korte, Landon Brownfield, Mary Katherine Montgomery, and
Trevor Czerniejewski
Through television and media today, young Americans may be easily influenced by the
words and actions of celebrities, which in turn can change the way they think, feel, and act.
Though this influence can have a positive impact in giving adolescents role models, there is
significant potential for negative influence as well. Youths may have a hard time sifting
through the amount of information to which they are exposed. This could lead to
misinterpretation or uneducated opinions on important social issues. Celebrities who take a
stance on social issues, such as Beyonce’s feminist message in her music and especially in
her 2014 Video Music Award performance, have a significant impact on America’s youth.
Adolescents need the right tools and skills to enable them to interpret the media. There is
debate regarding what should be done to enhance media literacy in young Americans and
who should be responsible for this education.
POSTER D-3
Authors:
The Underrepresentation of Women in the STEM Fields
Niva Savani, Kelcey Stuart, Thomas Andrus, and Yue Han
The presence of women in the realm of science, especially in academia, remains greatly
disproportionate. While Title IX should have eliminated any institutional barriers to women’s
presence in the sciences, there is still a fundamental lack of women in the science fields. The
cause of this discrepancy is psychological in nature, whether it is due to lack of confidence,
motivation, interest, or a combination of all three. Much debate has been undertaken in
regards to the solution to this problem. Some have argued it is the responsibility of the
schools to increase interest at a younger age, while others state it is a change of social setting
for the women already in higher areas of academia. Our purpose is to introduce a new
intervention that may help to remedy parts of this issue, based on the empirical literature and
interviews that we conducted.
POSTER D-4
Authors:
Addressing Effects of Technology on Communication and Social
Behaviors of College Students
Yan Lam Chan, Kristin Lawhorn, Julie O’Donnell, and Emina
Selimovic
In this project, we address the ever-growing issue of technology confounding basic social
interaction between individuals. In the past ten years alone with the advent and increasing
popularity of email, smartphones, texting, and social media, new avenues of communication
have been established. As college students are increasingly exposed to texting, emailing, and
other forms of social media, there exists a diminishing standard of face-to-face
communication. Students may suffer in both their personal and professional relationships due
to impaired communications or social isolation that come from a lack of face-to-face
interactions and over-reliance on technology for communication Through empirical research
and interviews of our college peers and professors we sought to explore malevolent effects
that communication technology may have on social skills, recommend programs that support
effective electronic communication, and suggest on-campus solutions that promote positive
in-person interaction.
POSTER D-5
Authors:
Corporal Punishment in Schools Today: An Old Problem with a
New Solution
Brendon Collins, Britney Hartsell, Susan Pasek, and Dymon
Townsend
Corporal punishment includes hitting, slapping, spanking, and other forms of physical
contact meant to inflict momentary pain in the interest of discipline and/or control.
Currently, 19 states, including Missouri, allow the use of corporal punishment in schools.
The law states that "spanking" or "the use of reasonable force to protect persons or property"
is not considered abuse when administered properly. Empirical evidence was examined and
interviews were conducted. Recommendations for both building a community in which
problem behaviors are reduced and providing teachers with alternatives to corporal
punishment will be made based upon the information collected.
POSTER D-6
Authors:
Childhood Obesity: Bridging the Health Education Gap between
Home and School
Jenna Brooks, Chris Limpert, John Patzkie, and Brogan Wylie
Obesity has been increasingly more prevalent in the United States to the point where it has
been identified as one of the leading causes of death. The percentage of children aged 6-11
years in the US who were obese has significantly increased to nearly 20%. This issue is
generally viewed as detrimental to a child’s health, but the role responsibility lies in a gray
area. One view places the education systems as the correct authority to educate students on
healthy living. Others may lend this responsibility to parents, or even doctors. Problems with
this role discrepancy arises in the adherence to actually changing the behaviors of the
children. Despite who should be responsible for this issue, our project examined ways to
bridge this gap and create an easier way to promote health education targeted towards
children and their families. We conducted interviews, read empirical articles, and
recommended solutions to implement.
POSTER D-7
Authors:
Creating a Diverse Student Population in Higher Education
Zixin Chen, Nathaniel Conner, Thomas Hanlon, Jocelynn Harris, and
Michael Nitahara
A college education can affect how one is perceived, the level of income an individual can
earn, and the quality of life a person can provide their family. Unfortunately, there remain
segments of the population that are underrepresented in college admissions. Many
universities have instituted affirmative action programs to address the lack of access to
higher education of these critical groups. However, these initiatives are historically divisive
and, as some argue, ineffective. We consider the diversity of a university body to be a
valuable characteristic of a successful institution. Thus, our action plan explores how best to
generate a healthy, heterogeneous community in the university setting. We interviewed
students, faculty, and administrators at a private, Jesuit university and incorporated empirical
evidence from peer-reviewed journals. After analyzing the empirical evidence and interview
responses, our group made recommendations concerning how universities could best create a
diverse university community.
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.