Current and Past Research Studies in BSU's Psychology Department*

Performance on a Word Unscrambling Task:

This study looks at how gender schemas, or beliefs about culturally appropriate masculine and feminine behaviors, guide people's overt behaviors.

Working Memory and Decision Making: 

The goal of the study is to investigate the difference between "hot" (affective, or emotional) and "cold" (non-affective) cognition in decision making

Medical Mind Set:  Prevention and Intervention Decisions: 

This study will examine the whether the investment, through implemental mindset and personal relevance, may influence participant decision making regarding higher physician control and endorsing surgery as a "cure."

Cyber and Traditional Bullying Survey:    

This study explores experiences during high school including peer and adult relationships, school experiences, cyber behaviors, social relationships, and how these factors are related to traditional bullying and cyberbullying.  

Mind Sets and Contingent Valuation

This research examines the way that decision phases influence how information concerning law and social policy is processed and remembered.

Stereotypes in Low and High Conflict Moral Dilemmas:  Ambiguous Alternatives

The hypothesis for this study is that participants who are given moral dilemmas are more likely to rate an overweight individual to-be-sacrificed  more morally acceptable than those who read moral dilemmas pertaining to a fit individual.

Humor and Political Conscientiousness:  Opinions and Attributions

This study addresses the implicit biases inherent in political orientation and how individual differences with regard to humor endorsement (in addition to the perceived humor endorsement of others) may affect adaptive decision making strategies.

Cognitive Distance, Environmental Perspective and Legal Attributions

This study focuses on individual differences in personality and thinking, such as the big five inventory, time perspective, need for closure, and concern for global warming.

The Role of Pain in Escaping the Self:  Non-Suicidal Self-Injury and Coping

This study considers the role of self-focus in non-suicidal self-injury and the association between non suicidal self injury and maladaptive coping.

Changes in Self-Theory and Personality Style Following Academic Course Related Interventions:

The objective of this study is to determine whether, as previous research has suggested, basic informational and self-regulatory activities can modify self-theories and broad based personality traits or styles.

The Use of Heuristics in Evaluating Web Sources:

The study is designed to examine how students apply heuristics in evaluating the quality and usefulness of web pages.

Global and Local Processing and Possible Selves:

This survey project is designed to investigate the relationship that mood and self-focus has on global and local processing.  It is also designed to measure the effect of mood and self-focus on self-reporting of possible selves.

Attitudes, Preferences and Activities:

This research project is designed to investigate the relationship between self-focus, anger and self-injurious behavior.

Body Image Across Cultures:

This research looks at cross-cultural comparisons between the body image of men and women in Jordan and America.

Physiological Stress Reactivity and Temporal Orientation:

This research examines the relationship between temporal orientation and immediate physiological response to cognitive stressors.

Maximizing Tendency:

The purpose of this research is to investigate measurement issues for a decision-making construct known as maximizing and satisficing.

Attribution of Blame and Social Stigma:  Malpractice Lawsuits Concerning Cosmetic and Medical Surgery:

This study is an attempt to better understand the social stigmas surrounding cosmetic surgery, juror biases, and other factors that may contribute to the pro-defendant outcomes of most medical malpractice lawsuits.

The Relationship Between Hand Measurements, Decision Making, Personality and Language:

The purpose of this research is to explore the relationship between the index finger and the ring finger ration and decision making, personality traits and language in order to extend our knowledge of this relationship.

Identity Formation and Sport Participation:

This research investigates at what age athletic identity is formed and becomes stable.  In addition, it compares the motivations and expectations of athletes and non-athletes, and comparing whether there is a difference in reported successful accomplishments.

The Effect of Cognitive Processes on the Pre-menstrual Experience:

This study examines the relationships between pain coping styles, perceived self-efficacy, locus of control, and menstrual beliefs and experiences.

 

*This is a summarized list.  It does not include all studies and all researchers.

Last Modified: April 10, 2012