7 minute read
Psychology
Jack Swartzinski Barry Pyle, faculty mentor
Advertisement
The 14th Amendment plays a vital role in defining the Reconstruction era, the American Civil Rights movement, and the creation of a national Bill of Rights. Yet, few ask a number of significant questions. What were the original intentions of the framers of the 14th Amendment? How did it influence the former States of the Confederacy? How did the Court apply the 14th Amendment during Reconstruction, and how did the end of Reconstruction influence the Court’s interpretation of it in the subsequent decades? While the 14th Amendment may have failed to bring about immediate change, ultimately, it fulfills the promise of Reconstruction and creates constitutional standards for the National Government to take aggressive action for the protection of civil liberties.
Oral / Live Session C / 1:40 p.m.
Preliminary Results of a Survey Assessing Family Needs While Awaiting Autism Treatment
Jaimie Barr Adam Briggs, faculty mentor
The purpose of this survey was to determine the (a) average amount of time a family typically spends on a waitlist prior to receiving behavioral treatment for autism, (b) types of services the family needs during this time, and (c) their preferred service modality. Results provide a preliminary summary of family needs and preference for services and supports while awaiting treatment. In addition, we recruited feedback from those who completed the survey to determine whether the content was presented clearly. We used this information to provide updates to the survey prior to distributing it to families throughout the state of Michigan. Survey outcomes and future directions are discussed.
Poster / Live Session 2 / 11:45 a.m.
Parental Executive Function Predicts Child Executive Function, Mediated by Parent-child Attachment
Armando Chacon Angela Staples and Jamie Lawler, faculty mentors
Executive Function (EF) refers to an individual’s ability to control and act upon their thoughts and behavior appropriately. Although there are several environmental and biological factors that contribute to a child’s EF development, prior studies have shown that higher levels of parental EF have been associated with higher levels of child EF, as well as higher qualities of parent/child attachment being associated with child EF. While each variable shows some association, there is no explanation for this association. A mediation analysis to see if parent/child attachment explains the link between parent EF and child EF will give more insight into how child EF develops.
Poster / Q&A Session 3
Effects of Stress on Health of African American Women in Low Income Neighborhoods
Jada Childs Heather Janisse, faculty mentor
Obesity is more prevalent in populations of African American women than any other population in the U.S. Furthermore, stress has been found to disproportionately affect the health of Black women when compared to White women. This project aims to examine the relation between stress, body mass index, environment, and socioeconomic disparity amongst women of color. A sample of 100 African American women from low-income, Detroit neighborhoods participated in the current study. Surveys such as the African American Women’s Stress Scale were utilized to assess variables of interest. Study results can help inform best practices for health interventions in communities of color.
Oral / Q&A Session C
Socioeconomic Risk, Parenting and Child Health in African American Families
Delaney Hansen and Jenna Walters Heather Janisse, faculty mentor
Parents play an important role in shaping the developmental outcomes of their children. Research shows that parent behavior is a key predictor of outcomes like child health and wellbeing. Parents in low-income communities experience additional socioeconomic risks that can make parenting more difficult and contribute to poorer health outcomes for children. The purpose of the current study is to examine the relation between socioeconomic risk, parent behavior and child health outcomes in a sample of African American families from low-income neighborhoods. Fifty-six mothers with a preschool age child participated in the current study. Survey measures were utilized to assess study variables.
Poster / Live Session 3 / 2:40 p.m.
The Impact of Temperament and Beliefs About Parenting on Discipline and Parent-Child Relationship
Haley Kohl Krithika Prakash, non-presenting author Dean Lauterbach, faculty mentor
The current study tested a model examining the relationships among parental internal representations of the child, child temperament, discipline methods, and parent-child relationship quality. The sample is composed of 1,354 children who were maltreated or at elevated risk for maltreatment (48.9% male, 36.7% African American) drawn from the Longitudinal Studies on Child Abuse and Neglect. Findings will be presented on the direct effect of infant temperament and parental representations on parent-child relationship quality and the indirect effects of these variables mediated by discipline method.
Poster / Live Session 3 / 2:30 p.m.
Fear Acceptance Versus Fear Reduction for Extinction Learning in Augmented Reality Exposure Therapy
Arturo Peña Joseph Tu and Michelle Fernando, non-presenting authors Ellen Koch, faculty mentor
Emotional processing theory is the underlying model for traditional exposure therapy. This approach to exposure presumes that the amount to which fear reduces from peak fear levels within an exposure session predicts successful treatment of specific phobias, such as arachnophobia. Inhibitory learning theory (ILT) offers a different approach to exposure centered around forming new non-threat associations (i.e., memories) by way of fear acceptance rather than attempts to focus on reducing fear levels (i.e., fear reduction). ILT may be more effective at helping phobic populations because the model promotes the learning of non-fear associations in the presence of feared stimuli.
Oral / Live Session A / 9:10 a.m.
Behavioral Function and Control of Social Media Use
Vasavi Ganesan Shanthi Sarah Dixon, non-presenting author Marilyn Bonem and Natalie Dove, faculty mentors
Social media was introduced more than 30 years ago, but usage has grown exponentially in the past ten years. Research has focused on demographic information regarding who uses it and how much and also on the psychological impact such as the relationship between usage and personality types, academic performance, characteristics of mental health, work productivity and frequency and quality of face-to-face interactions. Despite focus on negative implications, there may be benefits of usage. Furthermore, when social media interferes with constructive activities it would be useful to have information regarding effective methods of self-management.
Oral / Q&A Session A
The Influence of Prosocial Positive Lyrics on Helping
Ky’Wana Z. Smith Rusty McIntyre, faculty mentor
Research has shown that empathetic participants were more helpful when doing so relieved empathic distress (Dovidio et al., 1990). Greitmeyer (2009) also showed that helping is influenced by thoughts. Participants who heard prosocial songs had increased prosocial thoughts and donated more money than participants who heard neutral songs. In that work it was not known whether helping was specific to the lyrics or the positivity of the music. This research examines the response of participants listening to positive songs with lyrics or without lyrics, or no music. It is hypothesized that songs with lyrics will promote prosocial behavior more than just melodies or no music.
Oral / Q&A Session B
Effects of Healthcare Utilization on Depressive and Anxious Outcomes of at Risk or Abused Children
Danielle Winslow Krithika Prakash, non-presenting author Dean Lauterbach, faculty mentor
Children who have experienced abuse frequently report anxiety and depression later in life. Medical and psychological services are often mandated to ameliorate the effects of abuse. The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of those interventions. Participants in this study were 1,354 maltreated and at-risk children, part of the Longitudinal Studies of Child Abuse and Neglect (LONGSCAN). Specifically, this study examined direct effects of child maltreatment on symptoms of anxiety and depression and tested the hypothesis that service utilization would mediate the traumatic impact of maltreatment on depression and anxiety later in life.
Poster / Q&A Session 3
Parenting Attitudes, Stress, and Child Neglect: A Mediation Model
Ahmad Zalt Dean Lauterbach, faculty mentor
There is universal understanding of the detrimental effects of child neglect, making it important to understand possible causes. We will present the results of a study examining the effect of parental beliefs about their children and parental stress on severity of neglect using a longitudinal sample of 1,354 maltreated/at risk children. We predict a significant direct relationship between 4 parenting attitudes (rejection of punishment and appropriate expectations, roles, & empathy) assessed when children were 4, and severity of neglect, assessed at age 12. We also hypothesize an indirect effect of parenting attitudes on severity of neglect mediated by daily stressors, assessed when children were 6.
