Positive Relational Journaling

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Taylor Davies and Dr. Jeffrey Reber, Psychology Department Introduction With the emergence of positive psychology at the turn of the century a greater focus has been centered on understanding and improving individual well-being. Various techniques, including gratitude journaling, have been shown to reframe individual perspective and promote well-being. Theories and studies have shown that relationships […]

Polymorphisms of the Glucocorticoid Receptor Gene and the Association with Stress

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Randall Beck and Michael J. Larson, Psychology and Neuroscience Introduction Polymorphisms in the GR gene are an interesting and important area of research as these polymorphisms may be associated with an attenuated ability to cope with stress. This project bridged an unexplored gap between cellular and environmental stress and the expression of the GR gene—specifically […]

An Examination of the Relative Accuracy of Family Cancer History Knowledge and Perceptions of Spousal Influence in a Younger Population

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Emily Hartung and Wendy Birmingham, Psychology Introduction Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the United States, yet many people are not aware of their own personal familial risk. This may be especially true in younger individuals in the population. According to the American Cancer Society, over 1.5 million Americans will be diagnosed […]

The Impact of Physical Activity on Memory: Recognition Differentiation Between Stimuli

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Seth Spencer and C. Brock Kirwan, Psychology Introduction Many studies have shown a correlation between physical exercise and healthy cognitive processing. It has been shown extensively that regular exercise has a positive impact on brain health. One example is a study that linked increased exercise with greater performance on as shown via a Stroop Color-Word […]

Rhesus Macaque Scar Tissue as it Relates to Aggression Rates and the Oxytocin Receptor Gene

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Riley Barrington and Dee Higley, Psychology This research project originally started out with the purpose of correlating aggression rates in rhesus macaque monkeys with the level and type of oxytocin receptor that that monkey possessed. Blood samples were to be taken, level of scarring and wounds analyzed, and observations done to predict their average level […]

Exploring the Effects of Contextual Elements on Memory Specificity

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Cassie Widdison and Brock Kirwan, Psychology Regions of the brain, such as the medial temporal lobe (MTL), including the hippocampus and the adjacent MTL cortex, facilitate recognition memory performance (Squire, Stark, & Clark, 2004). The hippocampus is known for its ability to encode and retrieve memories through two processes called pattern separation and pattern completion […]

Prereaders and Eyetracking

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Anna Banks and Steven Luke, Psychology Reading to children has long been considered a critical factor in the development of their reading skill1. However, very little research has been done on prereader children and their eye movements. Studies that have been performed show that children tend to fixate more on the illustrations in books than […]