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Title: EEG in preschool children and the development of empathy.
Creator: Almeida, Amanda N., Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
Abstract/Description: Empathy has been shown to have many positive outcomes in individuals at every stage throughout life. It promotes sociability, helping behaviors, and can protect against the development of psychopathology. Evolutionary theorists have hypothesized that humans have a biological predisposition for empathic response. Temperament, as well as parental interaction with children, account for individual differences in empathic response levels. Much research has also looked at maternal depression as a...
Show moreEmpathy has been shown to have many positive outcomes in individuals at every stage throughout life. It promotes sociability, helping behaviors, and can protect against the development of psychopathology. Evolutionary theorists have hypothesized that humans have a biological predisposition for empathic response. Temperament, as well as parental interaction with children, account for individual differences in empathic response levels. Much research has also looked at maternal depression as a key factor in children's negative emotional responding. We used EEG to measure individual differences in children's empathic emotional responding, as well as parental interaction and its impact on empathy and prosocial development. Results show that children rated as being more sociable are more likely to show outward expressions of empathy. Also, those with greater right frontal asymmetry are more likely to assist others in a prosocial manner.
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Date Issued: 2009
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/228771
Subject Headings: Emotions in children, Parent and child, Developmental psychology, Socialization, Psychological aspects, Child development, Helping behavior in children
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: DIRECT AND INDIRECT PATHWAYS FROM LONELINESS TO PEER EXPERIENCES.
Creator: Altman, Robert L., Laursen, Brett, Florida Atlantic University, Department of Psychology, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
Abstract/Description: Loneliness is a common experience for many people (Rubenstein et al., 1979) and most lonely individuals experience a variety of comorbid disorders (Heinrich & Gullone, 2006). Adolescent loneliness is particularly problematic, due to the rapid changes that take place in the peer social world (Laursen & Hartl, 2013). Prior evidence ties loneliness to low group status and victimization (Asher & Paquette, 2003), but we do not fully understand the transmission mechanisms. A full longitudinal...
Show moreLoneliness is a common experience for many people (Rubenstein et al., 1979) and most lonely individuals experience a variety of comorbid disorders (Heinrich & Gullone, 2006). Adolescent loneliness is particularly problematic, due to the rapid changes that take place in the peer social world (Laursen & Hartl, 2013). Prior evidence ties loneliness to low group status and victimization (Asher & Paquette, 2003), but we do not fully understand the transmission mechanisms. A full longitudinal mediation design (Fritz & MacKinnon, 2012) was used to test the hypotheses that social withdrawal mediates the association from loneliness to changes in peer status and peer difficulties victimization among adolescents. Results indicated that the longitudinal associations between loneliness and peer outcomes were mediated by social withdrawal. Successful engagement with peers is vital to navigating the complex social world of adolescence, thus the results provide an impetus for aiding lonely adolescents in improving their social connections.
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Date Issued: 2020
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00013590
Subject Headings: Loneliness, Loneliness in adolescence
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Narcissism, perceptions of peer relationships, and target-specific aggression in middle childhood.
Creator: Anderson, Chelsie., Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
Abstract/Description: This study examined how narcissism affects preadolescent children's choices of peer targets for aggression. Based on the idea that narcissists have a grandiose sense of self that requires nourishment, we hypothesized that narcissistic children are especially likely to attack peers who threaten, or fail to nourish, their grandiose self. We assessed narcissism and the degree to which each child's aggression toward peers depended on (a) the child's perceived liking by each peer, (b) the child's...
Show moreThis study examined how narcissism affects preadolescent children's choices of peer targets for aggression. Based on the idea that narcissists have a grandiose sense of self that requires nourishment, we hypothesized that narcissistic children are especially likely to attack peers who threaten, or fail to nourish, their grandiose self. We assessed narcissism and the degree to which each child's aggression toward peers depended on (a) the child's perceived liking by each peer, (b) the child's liking of each peer, (c) each peer's actual liking of the child, and (d) the child's perceived similarity to each peer. Participants were 197 children in the fourth through eighth grades at a university school. Narcissism predicted the four types of target-specific aggression in disparate ways for boys and girls. Narcissistic boys were especially likely to direct aggression toward male peers whom (a) they perceived as disliking them, (b) they disliked, and (c) they perceived as dissimilar to themselves. Narcissistic girls were especially likely to attack female peers whom they perceived as similar to themselves. Narcissism may enhance different motives for boys and girls in same-sex peer relatinships. We propose that narcissism enhances investment in status and rivalry amoung girls while enhancing the motive to attack dissimilar peers among boys.
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Date Issued: 2012
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/3356886
Subject Headings: Identity (Psychology) in children, Adjustment (Psychology), Sex differences (Psychology), Affect (Psychology), Aggressiveness, Narcissism, Philosophy, Interpersonal relations in children, Social interaction in children, Self-esteem in children
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: The Assessment of Functional Abilities in the Diagnosis of MCI and Dementia in a Culturally Diverse Sample.
Creator: Arruda, Fernanda Ponce de Leon, Rosselli, Monica, Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
Abstract/Description: Previous studies suggested that the Functional Activities Questionnaire (FAQ-10) has minimal ethnic bias and that a shorter version (FAQ-6) can equally diagnose MCI and dementia. Objective: We analyzed whether FAQ-6 is similar to FAQ-10 in diagnosing MCI and dementia. We examined their applicability across European Americans (EA) and Hispanic Americans, and how scores correlated to beta amyloid. Method: 222 participants (116 EA) completed a neuropsychological battery, FAQ, and PET scans, and...
Show morePrevious studies suggested that the Functional Activities Questionnaire (FAQ-10) has minimal ethnic bias and that a shorter version (FAQ-6) can equally diagnose MCI and dementia. Objective: We analyzed whether FAQ-6 is similar to FAQ-10 in diagnosing MCI and dementia. We examined their applicability across European Americans (EA) and Hispanic Americans, and how scores correlated to beta amyloid. Method: 222 participants (116 EA) completed a neuropsychological battery, FAQ, and PET scans, and were classified as cognitively normal (CN), MCI, or dementia. The diagnostic capacity of FAQ-10 and FAQ-6 were compared for the total sample and across ethnic groups. Scores were correlated to beta amyloid. Results: Both versions showed good item discrimination. Ethnicity did not affect scores when controlling for diagnosis and education. Both versions classified CN and dementia, and positively correlated to beta amyloid. Conclusions: Results suggest FAQ-6 and FAQ-10 similarly predict diagnosis and is adequate in these ethnic groups.
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Date Issued: 2018
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00013141
Subject Headings: Dementia--diagnosis, Cognitive Dysfunction--diagnosis, Bias, Functional assessment
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Representation of object-in-context within mouse hippocampal neuronal activity.
Creator: Asgeirsdottir, Herborg Nanna, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
Abstract/Description: The rodent hippocampus is critical for processing spatial memory but its contribution to non-spatial, specifically object memory is debated. The cognitive map theory of hippocampal function states that the hippocampus stores relationships of goal locations (places) to discrete items (objects) encountered within environments. Dorsal CA1 place cells were recorded in male C57BL/6J mice performing three variations of the novel object recognition paradigm to define "object-in-context"...
Show moreThe rodent hippocampus is critical for processing spatial memory but its contribution to non-spatial, specifically object memory is debated. The cognitive map theory of hippocampal function states that the hippocampus stores relationships of goal locations (places) to discrete items (objects) encountered within environments. Dorsal CA1 place cells were recorded in male C57BL/6J mice performing three variations of the novel object recognition paradigm to define "object-in-context" representation of hippocampal neuronal activity that may support object memory. Results indicate, (i) that place field stability is higher when polarizing environmental cues are provided during object recognition; (ii) hippocampal place fields remain stable throughout the novel object recognition testing without a polarizing cue; and (iii) time dependent effects on stability when objects were dissociated from the context. These data indirectly support that the rodent hippocampus processes object memory, and challenge the view that "object-in-context" representations are formed when mice perform novel object recognition task.
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Date Issued: 2013
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/3362339
Subject Headings: Mice as laboratory animals, Hippocampus (Brain), Neurotransmitter receptors, Cellular control mechanisms, Cellular signal transduction
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Behavioral and Electrophysiological Evidence for Hippocampal Involvement in Object Motion Processing in C57BL/6J Mice.
Creator: Asgeirsdottir, Herborg Nanna, Stackman, Robert W., Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
Abstract/Description: Considerable research has been carried out to establish a rodent model for the study of human memory, yet functional similarities between the species remain up for debate. The hippocampus, a region deep within the medial temporal lobe of the mammalian CNS, is critical for long-term episodic memory. Projections from the medial entorhinal cortex convey spatial/contextual information, while projections from the lateral entorhinal cortex convey item/object information to the hippocampus. The...
Show moreConsiderable research has been carried out to establish a rodent model for the study of human memory, yet functional similarities between the species remain up for debate. The hippocampus, a region deep within the medial temporal lobe of the mammalian CNS, is critical for long-term episodic memory. Projections from the medial entorhinal cortex convey spatial/contextual information, while projections from the lateral entorhinal cortex convey item/object information to the hippocampus. The functional significance of these parallel projections to the rodent hippocampus has been suggested to support spatial processing, while the same projections to the human hippocampus support spatial and non-spatial memory. Discharging in a location-specific manner, hippocampal place cells contribute to spatial memory; however, evidence for neuronal correlates of non-spatial object memory has not been fully defined. The current experiments were designed to address the following questions, while utilizing electrophysiology, functional inactivation during a novel behavioral task, and immunohistochemistry. Is the memory for objects hippocampal-dependent, solely due to the location of the object, or are objects represented within hippocampal activity independent of location? To tease apart spatial and non-spatial processing by the hippocampus, the spatial aspects of 3D objects were enhanced by utilizing movement. A novel discriminatory avoidance task, Knowing Your Enemy, was adapted from an Enemy Avoidance task to test true object memory in mice. Current findings support the notion that object-associations acquisition depends upon a specific context. Retrieval of such object-associations is not context-dependent, yet remains sensitive to temporary inactivation of the CA1 region of the dorsal hippocampus. The avoidance impairments observed following hippocampal inactivation were shown to not be a result of reduced anxiety. Immunohistochemical marker expression suggests that the CA1 region was highly active during object exposures, yet the hippocampal system responded differentially to moving and to stationary objects. Recordings of CA1 neurons yielded non-bursting object-related activity during object exploration, and place cell activity remained unaffected in the presence of moving objects; supporting independent, yet simultaneous processing of spatial and non-spatial information within the hippocampus. Together, the current findings support the notion that the CA1 region of the rodent hippocampus processes object-related information, independent of spatial information.
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Date Issued: 2017
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004981
Subject Headings: Dissertations, Academic -- Florida Atlantic University, Hippocampus (Brain), Declarative memory, Explicit memory.
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Psychophysiological measures of aggression and victimization in early adolescence.
Creator: Aults, Christopher D., Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
Abstract/Description: Many cardiovascular psychophysiological studies have found evidence of lower arousal states in aggressive individuals and hyper-arousal states in individuals exposed to chronic stress. However, most of these studies have relied on clinical diagnoses or self-reports to identify aggressive and victimized individuals. The present study used peer nominations to identify aggressive, victimized, and non-aggressive or victimized adolescents (mean age = 12.09 yrs.) to examine if any...
Show moreMany cardiovascular psychophysiological studies have found evidence of lower arousal states in aggressive individuals and hyper-arousal states in individuals exposed to chronic stress. However, most of these studies have relied on clinical diagnoses or self-reports to identify aggressive and victimized individuals. The present study used peer nominations to identify aggressive, victimized, and non-aggressive or victimized adolescents (mean age = 12.09 yrs.) to examine if any psychophysiological differences exist during resting and startle conditions. ANOVAs revealed that high aggressive/low victimized adolescents had a lower resting heart period/rate compared to high victimized/low aggressive adolescents. Further analyses revealed a statistical trend of lower resting heart period variability in high victimized/low aggressive individuals compared to non-aggressive non-victimized controls. Due to evidence suggesting that individuals with high self-reported empathy display less aggression, empathy as a moderator for aggression was investigated. Although gender differences w3ere found across measures, empathy ws not found to moderate aggression.
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Date Issued: 2012
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/3358282
Subject Headings: Bullying in schools, Adolescent psychology, Conduct disorders in adolescence, Aggressiveness in adolescence, Child psychopathology
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: The effects of target entitativity and group affiliation on the processing of persuasive messages.
Creator: Balazs, Karoly I., Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
Abstract/Description: This research addresses the question of whether individuals or groups induce deeper message processing of persuasive messages. An interaction between group entitativity and whether the group is an ingroup or an outgroup is predicted, where ingroups low on entitativity and outgroups high on entitativity are expected to induce deeper message processing. Entitativity measures the extent an aggregate of people is seen as a group (D. T. Campbell, 1958). Previous research shows contradictory...
Show moreThis research addresses the question of whether individuals or groups induce deeper message processing of persuasive messages. An interaction between group entitativity and whether the group is an ingroup or an outgroup is predicted, where ingroups low on entitativity and outgroups high on entitativity are expected to induce deeper message processing. Entitativity measures the extent an aggregate of people is seen as a group (D. T. Campbell, 1958). Previous research shows contradictory results. S. G. Harkins and R. E. Petty (1987) have shown that high entitativity causes more message focus than low entitativity. R. J. Rydell and A. R. McConnell (2005) have shown that low entitativity causes more message focus than high entitativity. Hypotheses were not supported by the data. Post hoc analyses suggest that motivation to process persons and messages was greatest in the high entitativity ingroup condition. Predictions were revised by adding motivation as a variable.
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Date Issued: 2010
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/2100578
Subject Headings: Stereotypes (Social psychology), Communication, Social aspects, Interpersonal communication, Philosophy, Social perception, Persuasion (Psychology)
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Risk of sperm competition moderatres men's relationship satisfaction and interest in their partner's copulatory orgasm.
Creator: Bates, Vincent M., Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
Abstract/Description: Sperm competition occurs when the sperm of multiple males concurrently occupy a female's reproductive tract and compete for fertilization. Sperm competition may have been a recurrent adaptive problem over human evolutionary history. Women's orgasm may facilitate retention of a particular man's sperm. I therefore hypothesized that men experiencing greater sperm competition risk will be particularly interested in the occurrence of their partner's copulatory orgasm. Men who are more satisfied...
Show moreSperm competition occurs when the sperm of multiple males concurrently occupy a female's reproductive tract and compete for fertilization. Sperm competition may have been a recurrent adaptive problem over human evolutionary history. Women's orgasm may facilitate retention of a particular man's sperm. I therefore hypothesized that men experiencing greater sperm competition risk will be particularly interested in the occurrence of their partner's copulatory orgasm. Men who are more satisfied with and invested in their relationship may experience greater costs in the event of sperm competition and potential cuckoldry. Therefore, these men may be more interested in ensuring their partner's copulatory orgasm. I hypothesized that men's relationship satisfaction and investment would predict interest in their partner's copulatory orgasm and moderate the link between sperm competition risk and interest in partner's copulatory orgasm. Using data secured from 229 men in a committed relationship, I tested and found support for these hypotheses.
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Date Issued: 2010
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/1927608
Subject Headings: Man-woman relationships, Sperm competition, Human behavior, Competition (Biology)
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: The DIAMONDS at Work: Applying the DIAMONDS Dimensions to Occupations.
Creator: Bell, Steven, Sherman, Ryne A., Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
Abstract/Description: Just as people can be described by traits, situations can be described by the “Situational Eight” DIAMONDS (Duty, Intellect, Adversity, Mating, pOsitivity, Negativity, Deception, Sociality) (Rauthmann et al., 2014). Based upon the common occurrence of situations in combinations unique to different occupations the current study sets out to (1) map the DIAMONDS dimensions into the workplace and (2) examine the relationships between the DIAMONDS dimensions and other measures of work contexts ...
Show moreJust as people can be described by traits, situations can be described by the “Situational Eight” DIAMONDS (Duty, Intellect, Adversity, Mating, pOsitivity, Negativity, Deception, Sociality) (Rauthmann et al., 2014). Based upon the common occurrence of situations in combinations unique to different occupations the current study sets out to (1) map the DIAMONDS dimensions into the workplace and (2) examine the relationships between the DIAMONDS dimensions and other measures of work contexts (Skill, Abilities, Knowledge, etc.). Through the use of a modified version of the S8* (Rauthmann & Sherman, 2014), the DIAMONDS dimensions were correlated with scored responses of either individuals in the profession, or professional experts, on important worker characteristics and occupational requirements for 954 individually identified occupations (n = 954) compiled by O*NET (National Center for O*NET Development, 2016).
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Date Issued: 2017
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004913
Subject Headings: Social psychology., Personality assessment., Personality and occupation., Career development--Psychological aspects., Occupations--Psychological aspects.
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: An Exploration of Testosterone Mediated Effects on Auditory Learning in Northern Bobwhite Quail.
Creator: Bellinger, Seanceray A., Jones, Nancy Aaron, Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
Abstract/Description: Elevated yolk progesterone has been shown to impair prenatal, but facilitate postnatal auditory learning in bobwhite quail chicks. Elevated yolk testosterone has facilitated prenatal learning, but its effects on postnatal auditory learning in quail are unknown. Either testosterone or an oil vehicle was injected into bobwhite quail eggs prior to incubation. Control eggs were unmanipulated. Following hatching, chicks were exposed to a conspecific maternal call (A or B) for 240 min. At 48 hr,...
Show moreElevated yolk progesterone has been shown to impair prenatal, but facilitate postnatal auditory learning in bobwhite quail chicks. Elevated yolk testosterone has facilitated prenatal learning, but its effects on postnatal auditory learning in quail are unknown. Either testosterone or an oil vehicle was injected into bobwhite quail eggs prior to incubation. Control eggs were unmanipulated. Following hatching, chicks were exposed to a conspecific maternal call (A or B) for 240 min. At 48 hr, chicks were tested for their preference for the familiarized vs. novel call. All groups demonstrated a preference for the familiar call (p < .05), but minimal between group difference were found. Contrary to previous research, elevated yolk testosterone neither facilitated nor impaired postnatal auditory learning in bobwhite quail chicks. Further research will examine underlying mechanisms responsible for differential effects and explore if similar systems are involved in other species-typical processes such as social motivation.
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Date Issued: 2017
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00005944
Subject Headings: Dissertations, Academic -- Florida Atlantic University, Bobwhite quail, Northern bobwhite., Chicks., Testosterone., Egg yolk.
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Product placement within violent media: investigating the role of emotion on product memory.
Creator: Berger, Johanna D., Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
Abstract/Description: Despite extensive research into memory and violence, relatively little is known about the relationship between violent media and memory of advertised products. Research has yielded contradictory evidence ; some scholars have found a negative relationship, others a nonexistent one... This research investigated the role of emotion in the relationship between violent media and product placement memory. This study creates insight into inconclusive previous findings by providing evidence that...
Show moreDespite extensive research into memory and violence, relatively little is known about the relationship between violent media and memory of advertised products. Research has yielded contradictory evidence ; some scholars have found a negative relationship, others a nonexistent one... This research investigated the role of emotion in the relationship between violent media and product placement memory. This study creates insight into inconclusive previous findings by providing evidence that violence influences product memory. Specifically, participants were significantly worse at remembering products placed within violent clips (e.g., free recall, cued recall, recognition. Participants' emotional responses to the violent clips also appeared to influence their memory for embedded products ; product recognition was significantly correlated with disgust, avoidance, and interest ratings.... Interestingly, stronger negative responses to the violent clips were correlated with decreased preference for the embedded products. Furthermore, the pattern of differences for product preference between target and non-target violent products varied according to negative emotional reaction. Therefore, this dissertation provides insight into the role emotion plays in the relationship between viewing violent media and product placement memory.
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Date Issued: 2012
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/3358283
Subject Headings: Mass media, Marketing, Advertising, Psychological aspects, Persuasion (Psychology), Product placement in mass media, Violence in mass media, Psychological aspects, Human information processing, Research
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: The influence of motion type on memory of simple events.
Creator: Berger, Johanna D., Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
Abstract/Description: This experiment investigated an individual's memory of specific motion events, unique actor, intrinsic motion, and extrinsic motion combination. Intrinsic motions involve the movement of an individual's body parts in a specific manner to move around, while extrinsic motions specify a path in reference to an external object. Participants viewed video clips, each depicting an actor performing a unique extrinsic and intrinsic motion combination. One week later, they viewed a different series of...
Show moreThis experiment investigated an individual's memory of specific motion events, unique actor, intrinsic motion, and extrinsic motion combination. Intrinsic motions involve the movement of an individual's body parts in a specific manner to move around, while extrinsic motions specify a path in reference to an external object. Participants viewed video clips, each depicting an actor performing a unique extrinsic and intrinsic motion combination. One week later, they viewed a different series of retrieval video clips consisting of old (identical to encoding), extrinsic conjunction (extrinsic motion previously performed by different actor), intrinsic conjunction (intrinsic motion previously performed by different actor), and new (novel extrinsic or intrinsic motion) video clips. Participants responded "yes" to viewing the old video clips the most often, followed by conjunction video clips, and then new video clips. Furthermore, there were a greater number of "yes" event memory recognition responses for extrinsic conjunction items than intrinsic conjunction items.
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Date Issued: 2009
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/186673
Subject Headings: Recollection (Psychology), Context effects (Psychology), Memory, Research, Human information processing, Research, Transference (Psychology), Motion segmentation
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Behavioral and Physiological Manifestations of Jealousy During the First Year of Life: Implications for Cortisol Reactivity, EEG Asymmetry, and Mother-Infant Attachment.
Creator: Bernardo, Angela, Jones, Nancy Aaron, Florida Atlantic University, Department of Psychology, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
Abstract/Description: Infants have an innate desire to form social bonds and jealousy protests are observed when an infant is trying to regain attention lost by a caregiver to a social competitor. The current study examined jealousy responses during the first year of life, between 6- to 9-months of age and 12- to 18-months of age, in response to loss of exclusive maternal attention, in addition to exploring implications for mother-infant attachment, EEG asymmetry, and cortisol reactivity and regulation. At both...
Show moreInfants have an innate desire to form social bonds and jealousy protests are observed when an infant is trying to regain attention lost by a caregiver to a social competitor. The current study examined jealousy responses during the first year of life, between 6- to 9-months of age and 12- to 18-months of age, in response to loss of exclusive maternal attention, in addition to exploring implications for mother-infant attachment, EEG asymmetry, and cortisol reactivity and regulation. At both age groups, infants demonstrated increased approach behaviors when infants are faced with a social rival, in addition, left-frontal EEG asymmetry was associated with maternal-directed approach behaviors during the social rival condition. In the 6- to 9-month sample, left-frontal EEG asymmetry also demonstrated an association with infants regulatory abilities, measured by salivary cortisol. This study provides further evidence for the emerging links between social and emotional responses in infancy due to loss of exclusive maternal attention.
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Date Issued: 2020
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00013518
Subject Headings: Mother and infant, Jealousy, Cortisol, Electroencephalography, Infants--Behavior, Infants--Physiology
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Functional constraints on young children's object problem solving.
Creator: Bidmead, Sarah, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
Abstract/Description: Although some research has suggested that very young children are "immune" to functional fixedness (FF), other work has shown that young children form robust associations between objects and their prescribed functions. Across two studies, I investigated (a) the developmental trajectory of FF and (b) its relationship with executive function components (inhibitory control and working memory) in 3- to 6-year old children. Both older and younger children experience FF, but older children use...
Show moreAlthough some research has suggested that very young children are "immune" to functional fixedness (FF), other work has shown that young children form robust associations between objects and their prescribed functions. Across two studies, I investigated (a) the developmental trajectory of FF and (b) its relationship with executive function components (inhibitory control and working memory) in 3- to 6-year old children. Both older and younger children experience FF, but older children use familiar tools more flexibly than younger children (3- and 4-year olds). Furthermore, inhibitory control was related to overcoming FF, indicating that it may be an important cognitive capacity for creative problem-solving. Finally, in a third study, children were instructed to use mental imagery to help them solve the functional fixedness problems. However, these instructions were ineffective at reducing FF compared to a control condition, underscoring the robust nature of object-function relationships in early childhood.
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Date Issued: 2012
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/3359286
Subject Headings: Learning, Psychology of, Developmental psychology, Cognition in children, Visual perception in chldren
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Dimensions of sexist beliefs and psychosocial adjustment in childhood.
Creator: Bidmead, Sarah, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
Abstract/Description: The levels of 3 dimensions of sexism and 13 measures of psychosocial adjustment were assessed in 236 children in grades 4 through 8. The adjustment measures were factor analyzed to produce 5 adjustment factors. Analysis revealed that one of the factors, peer-reported prosocial tendencies, was moderately and negatively correlated with two of three measures of sexism. This effect was more pronounced for girls than for boys. Another factor, body self-esteem, was negatively correlated with one of...
Show moreThe levels of 3 dimensions of sexism and 13 measures of psychosocial adjustment were assessed in 236 children in grades 4 through 8. The adjustment measures were factor analyzed to produce 5 adjustment factors. Analysis revealed that one of the factors, peer-reported prosocial tendencies, was moderately and negatively correlated with two of three measures of sexism. This effect was more pronounced for girls than for boys. Another factor, body self-esteem, was negatively correlated with one of the measures of sexism for girls. The findings are congruent with the view that traditionally sexist ideology may detrimentally impact children's psychosocial adjustment.
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Date Issued: 2009
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/186674
Subject Headings: Adjustment (Psychology) in children, Sex differences (Psychology), Sex role in chldren, Body image, Social aspects
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: The Affective Individual: The Influence of Self-Structure on The Experience of Discrete and Mixed Emotions.
Creator: Blackmon, C. William, Vallacher, Robin R., Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
Abstract/Description: Coherence of self-concept refers to the ability to stabilize on a clear set of views about oneself. This aspect of self-structure is closely linked self-esteem, and similar evidence in emotion research suggests an intricate connection between the self-system and emotion. Evidence suggests that emotions of seemingly opposing valence such as happy and sad can co-occur (i.e., mixed emotion). This study validated a new set of emotional stimuli particularly to elicit mixed emotion and used these...
Show moreCoherence of self-concept refers to the ability to stabilize on a clear set of views about oneself. This aspect of self-structure is closely linked self-esteem, and similar evidence in emotion research suggests an intricate connection between the self-system and emotion. Evidence suggests that emotions of seemingly opposing valence such as happy and sad can co-occur (i.e., mixed emotion). This study validated a new set of emotional stimuli particularly to elicit mixed emotion and used these stimuli with a mouse task that allowed participants to report positive and negative emotions simultaneously. The study examined possible individual differences in discrete emotional response associated with self-esteem as well as a possible connection between selfconcept coherence and a differential ability to harbor mixed emotions; specifically that individuals with high coherence in self-concept would tend to disambiguate their emotional response, but those with low coherence would be more susceptible to cooccurring positive and negative emotion.
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Date Issued: 2017
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004910
Subject Headings: Emotions., Self-perception., Self-esteem., Emotional intelligence., Self-organizing systems.
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: The development of jealousy.
Creator: Blau, Alexis K., Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
Abstract/Description: Jealousy is a response to a situation in which a person feels a combination of different emotions, such as love, anger, sadness and fear when an affectionate interaction is happening between a loved one and someone else. This paper discusses the definition and onset of infant jealousy, the physiological basis of jealousy, whether maternal factors play a role, as well as studies on jealousy and EEG patterns. It has been argued that infants, as young as six-months-old display jealous-like...
Show moreJealousy is a response to a situation in which a person feels a combination of different emotions, such as love, anger, sadness and fear when an affectionate interaction is happening between a loved one and someone else. This paper discusses the definition and onset of infant jealousy, the physiological basis of jealousy, whether maternal factors play a role, as well as studies on jealousy and EEG patterns. It has been argued that infants, as young as six-months-old display jealous-like behaviors. During jealousy evocation conditions, infants demonstrate negative emotions such as protesting or crying, diminished distancing, and heightened gaze toward their mother during maternal inattention. Approach/withdrawal behaviors and electroencephalography (EEG) activation were studied in the context of an infant jealousy paradigm. In this investigation, 45 mother-infants dyads were exposed to a social versus non-social condition during maternal inattention. During the social condition, infants demonstrated increased approach-style gaze and reach and negative affect. EEG was collected during all conditions on a subsample of 15 infants and in agreement with adult jealousy literature (Harmon-Jones, Peterson, & Harris, 2009), infants displayed left midfrontal EEG asymmetry, and displayed more approach motivations during the social doll condition indicative of jealousy approach motivations.
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Date Issued: 2010
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/2953203
Subject Headings: Jealousy, Psychological aspects, Emotions and cognition, Parent and infant, Behavioral assessment of infants, Social perception in children
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: The friends they have and the friends they want: desired friendship across the transition into adolescence.
Creator: Bortman, Gilly, Laursen, Brett, Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
Abstract/Description: Previous studies of desired friendship have assessed desired friends with unilateral nominations (when one child chooses another child as a friend, but that friend nomination is not reciprocated). This calls into question the validity of findings suggesting that children want to be friends with others who differ from themselves, but befriend similar others by default (Sijtsema, Lindenberg, & Veenstra, 2010). The current study concerns desired friendships among 195 girls and 147 boys in Grades...
Show morePrevious studies of desired friendship have assessed desired friends with unilateral nominations (when one child chooses another child as a friend, but that friend nomination is not reciprocated). This calls into question the validity of findings suggesting that children want to be friends with others who differ from themselves, but befriend similar others by default (Sijtsema, Lindenberg, & Veenstra, 2010). The current study concerns desired friendships among 195 girls and 147 boys in Grades 4 through 6. Two hypotheses were tested. The first hypothesis was that children will not choose the same unilateral and desired friends. The second hypothesis was that children will be more similar to their reciprocal friends than to their unilateral and desired friends. Questionnaires measured desired friendship, friendship, and child characteristics. Both hypotheses were supported. However, there were group-level differences. The importance of using desired friend nominations to measure desired friends is discussed.
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Date Issued: 2014
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004180, http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004180
Subject Headings: Friendship -- Social aspects, Friendship in adolescence, Friendship in children, Interpersonal relations
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: FACIAL EMOTION RECOGNITION ABILITY IN CHILDREN WITH AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDERS.
Creator: Brooks, Katy, Jones, Nancy Aaron, Florida Atlantic University, Department of Psychology, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
Abstract/Description: The present study aimed to gain a better understanding of the emotion processing abilities of children between the ages of 4 and 8 with ASD by examining their ability to correctly recognize dynamic displays of emotion. Additionally, we examined whether children with ASD showed emotion specific differences in their ability to accurately identify anger, happiness, sadness, and fear. Participants viewed a continuous display of neutral faces morphing into expressions of emotion. We aimed to...
Show moreThe present study aimed to gain a better understanding of the emotion processing abilities of children between the ages of 4 and 8 with ASD by examining their ability to correctly recognize dynamic displays of emotion. Additionally, we examined whether children with ASD showed emotion specific differences in their ability to accurately identify anger, happiness, sadness, and fear. Participants viewed a continuous display of neutral faces morphing into expressions of emotion. We aimed to measure observed power and asymmetry using EEG data in order to understand the neural activity that underlies the social aspects of ASD. Participants with ASD showed slower processing speed and decreased emotion sensitivity. On tasks that involved the recognition of expressions on the participants’ mothers’ faces, differences were less apparent. These results suggest that children with ASD are capable of recognizing facial displays of emotion after repeated exposure, this should be explored further in future research.
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Date Issued: 2020
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00013463
Subject Headings: Children with autism spectrum disorders, Emotion recognition in children, Facial expression
Format: Document (PDF)

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