The Effects of Training and Transfer on Global/local Processing

We investigated interference, inhibition and transfer effects associated with training on a global-local task. Participants received 10,080 training trials on identifying local features of global/local stimuli. Global processing advantage was eliminated with practice. Global interference decreased with training whereas local interference developed with training. Transfer analyses indicated that training produced stimulus-specific effects in local processing and task-specific effects in global processing. Our findings are discussed in regards to models of global/local processing

Depressive Symptoms and Prosocial Behavior After Participation in a Bullying Prevention Program

The present study examined the effectiveness of a bullying prevention program. The responses of 270 fifth grade students on the Peer Relations Questionnaire, the Children\u27s Depression Inventory (CDI). and the Pro-social Tendencies Scale were examined before and after participating in the program. Students in the Bully, Bully-Victim, and Neither groups had lower CDI scores than students in the Victim group, but there was not a significant change from pretest to posttest in these groups. Prosocial scores of victims and students who were neither bullies nor victims increased from pretest to posttest. In addition, the number of self-reported victims decreased and the number of self-reported bullies increased. These findings have implications for those who are developing or currently presenting bullying prevention programs

College Students\u27 Perceived Risk of Sexual Victimization and the Role of Optimistic Bias

Many college women believe that their chances of experiencing a sexual assault are less than their peers. This phenomenon, called optimistic bias, has been hypothesized to be one important element to address in sexual assault risk reduction and awareness programs aimed at reducing women\u27s chances of experiencing a sexual assault. The present study examined the role that participants\u27 (N = 89) perceived similarity to a narrator (portraying a sexual assault survivor) describing an assault plays in reducing this bias. The age of the narrator was manipulated (similar or dissimilar to age of participants) with the aim of assessing whether the program could produce reductions in optimistic bias for those participants who watched a video of someone similar to them in age. A significant interaction between pre- and post-program and age similarity indicated a significant decrease in optimistic bias from pre- to posttest for the similar group. Furthermore, an exploratory analysis indicated optimistic bias for White participants decreased from pre- to posttest, whereas optimistic bias for the Black participants increased. These results suggest that some factors such as age similarity may reduce optimistic bias in sexual assault risk reduction and awareness programs. However, a race dissimilarity may increase optimistic bias. Thus, more research is needed to understand the factors that affect optimistic bias with regard to sexual assault awareness

Student Efforts in and Perceived Benefits from Undergraduate Research

The benefits of student engagement in undergraduate research are well-recognized by many higher education institutions. Increased emphasis on undergraduate research in these institutions has taken many forms resulting in considerable differences across institutions ranging from light touch to heavy duty involvement of students in the research process. We surveyed 44 undergraduate students who participated in undergraduate research projects in one mid-western university. The survey measured student effort and perceived benefits along many dimensions. Our findings reveal that the total hours worked on research projects is significantly and positively correlated with perceived benefits by students. At a more granular level, student effort was specifically linked to benefits in the areas of communication; data collection; professional development; personal development; professional advancement; information literacy; responsibility; and knowledge. Additionally, the total time spent on the undergraduate research project by the research mentor/faculty positively correlated with student effort. Furthermore, higher student effort also evidenced a higher intent to publish the research. Exploratory analyses examined if specific types of work correlated with total benefits. Findings revealed that the total benefits score was significantly positively correlated with tasks including developing a theory or conceptual model, defining the sample, interpreting the findings, and preparing the written report. Thus, our findings strengthen the current trends of increased emphasis on undergraduate research across the board in higher education institutions, and they suggest that heavy duty involvement may be most beneficial for students