-
Self-Explanation of an Answer Choice Is Beneficial to Student Performance
My name isDarcey N. Powell from West Virginia Universityand I presented my research at the APS 23rd Annual Convention in Washington DC. Requiring students to explain their answers to multiple-choice homework questions improved their performance on the assignment, suggesting that these explanations facilitate a deeper understanding of the concepts. Female students scored higher than male students, but explanations were only associated with significantly higher scores for the male students. Teaching Institute Poster Session - Board: - 049 Thursday, May 26, 2011, 11:30 AM - 12:30 PM Gunston Darcey N.
-
Protected: Convention Video Blog Example
My name is Anna Mikulak from Georgetown University and I presented my research at the APS 23rd Annual Convention in Washington D.C. Demographic Characteristics and Beliefs About Government Predict Vaccination Attitudes Understanding the factors that lead parents to refuse vaccination is critical for public health efforts to maintain community immunity. Data from a nationally representative sample suggest that attitudes toward vaccination may be influenced by beliefs about the appropriate role of government in society that cannot be explained by demographics alone. Poster Session III - Board: III- 108 Friday, May 27, 2011, 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM Columbia Hall Anna K.
-
The Unconscious Has a Mind of Its Own
Consciousness is a very popular topic in psychological science, but new research suggests that we’ve been underestimating what unconsciousness is capable of. A study published in Psychological Science shows that the unconscious mind is more intricate and sophisticated than we think. Volunteers looked through a stereoscope that allowed each eye to view a separate image. In one eye, they viewed continuously flashing blocks of changing colors that suppressed the perception of other objects. In the other eye, they viewed scenes of people interacting with objects that were either congruent (e.g. a woman putting food in an oven) or incongruent (e.g. a woman putting a chessboard in the oven).
-
You’re Rubber, I’m Glue – How Can I Impress You?
Would you rather be a professor or his dependent student? We tend to think being a dependent person isn’t a good thing, but new research has found some positive aspects of dependency. An article published in Current Directions in Psychological Science explains that dependent people have a need to impress others, which leads to active, not passive, behavior. In one study, a dependent and non-dependent volunteer, as measured on a personality test, were paired up to debate an issue the researchers knew they didn’t agree on. Although the researchers expected the dependent person to give in, they found that 70 percent of the time it was actually the nondependent volunteer who gave in.
-
How to Fat Into American Life
Baseball and democracy – two things we’re proud to call American. Unfortunately, to immigrants, eating junk food is also associated with being a typical American. A study published in an upcoming issue of Psychological Science found that immigrants will eat more fatty foods to fit in as Americans. To show this, scientists measured Asian Americans’ food preferences. To trigger the threat of not being identified as an American, some were asked “Do you speak English?” before the experiment. Seventy-five percent of those in the threat group mentioned a typical American food as their favorite food as opposed to only 25 percent who did in the non-threat group.
-
To Eat or Not to Eat (Yet)
Check out this humorous rendition of APS Past-President Walter Mischel's 1972 Stanford Marshmallow Test. Could you be as patient as some of these kids? Mischel will be speaking at the Connected Theme Program at the 2011 Convention.
