The Effects of a Female Role Model on Academic Performance and Persistence of Women in STEM Courses

Women are more likely to leave science, technology, engineering, and mathematics compared to men, in part because they lack similar role models such as peers, teaching assistants, and instructors. We examined the effect of a brief, scalable online intervention that consisted of a letter from a female role model who normalized concerns about belonging, presented time spent on academics as an investment, and exemplified overcoming challenges on academic performance and persistence. The intervention was implemented in introductory psychology (Study 1, N?=?258) and chemistry (Study 2, N?=?68) courses. Relative to the control group, the intervention group had higher grades and lower failing and withdrawal rates.     

Application of the rubber hand illusion paradigm: comparison between upper and lower limbs

The “rubber hand illusion (RHI)” is a perceptual illusion, which allows the integration of artificial limbs into the body representation of a person by means of combined visual and tactile stimulation. The illusion has been frequently replicated but always concerning the upper limbs. The present study verified an analog illusion that can be called the “rubber foot illusion” (RFI). In a conjoint experiment using both a rubber hand and a rubber foot, brushstrokes were applied to the respective real and rubber limb placed alongside the real one. However, only the artificial limb’s handling was visible. The brushstrokes were given either synchronously, with a delay of ±0.5 s, or without tactile stimulation of the real limb. Questionnaire data and the proprioceptive drift towards the rubber limb (determined by calling on the subjects to show where they locate their unseen limb) defined the illusion strength. Results revealed that the illusion was induced in both limbs with comparable strength, but only in the synchronous condition.     

Hemispheric asymmetry for global and local processing: language is less important than one might think

There have been consistent findings of hemispheric asymmetry in global/local processing, in both neurological patients and the neurologically normal. However, with one exception, these studies have used purely linguistic stimuli (letters made up of letters). The present study investigates lateral asymmetry for processing of global/local objects with less "linguistic" properties (e.g., letters made up of shapes, and shapes made up of letters) using a change detection paradigm. In each case the classic pattern of hemispheric asymmetry was found. These results are discussed in the context of the relative importance of hemispheric asymmetry for both global/local and linguistic information.     

List-method directed forgetting: The forget cue improves both encoding and retrieval of postcue information

In list-method directed forgetting, people are cued to forget a previously studied item list and to learn a new list instead. Such cuing typically leads to forgetting of the first list and to memory enhancement of the second, referred to as list 1 forgetting and list 2 enhancement. In the present study, two experiments are reported that examined influences of items' serial learning position in a list and the two lists' output order on list-method directed forgetting. The results show that list output order influences list 2 enhancement but not list 1 forgetting. The enhancement was higher when list 2 was recalled first than when list 1 was recalled first and, in both cases, was higher for early list 2 items than for middle and late list 2 items. In contrast, the forgetting was equally present for all list 1 items and did not depend on the two lists' output order. The findings suggest that two separate factors can contribute to list 2 enhancement: one (encoding) factor that is restricted to early list 2 items and does not depend on list output order, and another (retrieval) factor that pertains to all list 2 items and varies with the two lists' output order. A new two-mechanism account of directed forgetting is suggested that reconciles previous (encoding or retrieval) views on list 2 enhancement.     

Individual differences in reappraisal ability: Links to reappraisal frequency, well-being, and cognitive control

Reappraisal is generally viewed as an adaptive emotion regulation strategy. Reappraisal frequency has been associated with greater well-being, and reappraisal ability is thought to be composed of several crucial cognitive control processes. However, the relationships among reappraisal ability, reappraisal frequency, well-being, and various cognitive control processes have not yet been determined. In this study, we experimentally examined individual differences in reappraisal ability (RA), and also assessed reappraisal frequency, well-being, and several cognitive control processes. We observed a positive relationship between RA, reappraisal frequency, and well-being. RA was also related positively to working memory capacity and set-shifting costs, and marginally related to abstract reasoning. These findings have important implications for understanding the cognitive components and affective outcomes of RA.     

Emotion regulation and peer-rated social functioning: A 4-year longitudinal study

Different emotion regulation strategies have been linked to distinct social outcomes, but only concurrently or in the short-term. The present research employed a 4-year longitudinal design with peer-reported measures of social functioning to examine the long-term social effects of emotion regulation. Individual differences in suppression before entering college predicted weaker social connections (e.g., less close relationships) at the end of college, whereas reappraisal predicted stronger social connections and more favorable sociometric standing (e.g., higher social status). These effects of emotion regulation remained intact even when controlling for baseline social functioning and Big Five personality traits. These findings suggest that individual differences in the use of particular emotion regulation strategies have an enduring impact, shaping the individual’s social environment over time.     

Suppression sours sacrifice: emotional and relational costs of suppressing emotions in romantic relationships

What happens when people suppress their emotions when they sacrifice for a romantic partner? This multimethod study investigates how suppressing emotions during sacrifice shapes affective and relationship outcomes. In Part 1, dating couples came into the laboratory to discuss important romantic relationship sacrifices. Suppressing emotions was associated with emotional costs for the partner discussing his or her sacrifice. In Part 2, couples participated in a 14-day daily experience study. Within-person increases in emotional suppression during daily sacrifice were associated with decreases in emotional well-being and relationship quality as reported by both members of romantic dyads. In Part 3, suppression predicted decreases in relationship satisfaction and increases in thoughts about breaking up with a romantic partner 3 months later. In the first two parts of the study, authenticity mediated the costly effects of suppression. Implications for research on close relationships and emotion regulation are discussed.     

Measuring the speed of recognising facially expressed emotions

Faces provide identity- and emotion-related information-basic cues for mastering social interactions. Traditional models of face recognition suggest that following a very first initial stage the processing streams for facial identity and expression depart. In the present study we extended our previous multivariate investigations of face identity processing abilities to the speed of recognising facially expressed emotions. Analyses are based on a sample of N=151 young adults. First, we established a measurement model with a higher order factor for the speed of recognising facially expressed emotions (SRE). This model has acceptable fit without specifying emotion-specific relations between indicators. Next, we assessed whether SRE can be reliably distinguished from the speed of recognising facial identity (SRI) and found latent factors for SRE and SRI to be perfectly correlated. In contrast, SRE and SRI were both only moderately related to a latent factor for the speed of recognising non-face stimuli (SRNF). We conclude that the processing of facial stimuli-and not the processing of facially expressed basic emotions-is the critical component of SRE. These findings are at variance with suggestions of separate routes for processing facial identity and emotional facial expressions and suggest much more communality between these streams as far as the aspect of processing speed is concerned.     

Emotions and physical health in the second half of life: interindividual differences in age-related trajectories and dynamic associations according to socioeconomic status

The importance of socioeconomic status (SES) for psychological functioning over the life span is increasingly acknowledged in psychological research. The Reserve Capacity Model by Gallo and Matthews (2003) suggests that SES is not only linked to physical health but also to the experience of positive and negative emotions. Moreover, due to differential amounts of psychosocial resources, cross-domain associations between emotions and health might differ according to SES. The present study examined age-related developments in positive affect (PA), negative affect (NA), and physical health, as well as dynamic associations between health and emotions in the second half of life. We looked at differences in these trajectories and their interrelationships according to education as one aspect of SES. We used data of up to three waves spanning 12 years from the nationally representative German Ageing Survey (N = 3,847, AgeT1 = 40-85 years). Applying multiple-group dual change score models, we found differential age-related change in PA and physical health, but not in NA, in two groups differing in level of education. NA did only predict change in physical health in low-educated individuals, whereas physical health was equally strongly related to change in PA in both education groups. These results indicate that SES not only affects changes in physical health and emotional functioning but also their interrelationships.