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PAST THESIS TOPICS

2008-2009 Honors Research Program Thesis Titles

 Brain, Behavior & Cognitive Science

Ashish Chaddha – Effects of Heat Shock Protein on Amyloid Precursor Protein Catabolism. (Mentors: I. Saluja & R. Turner)

Alayna Czuj - Dopamine Blockade by α-Flupenthixol and Its Effects on the Acquisition and Expression of Incentive Salience. (Mentor: T. Robinson)

Aaron Ducoffe - Effects of Geographic Origin and Health Status on Agonistic Behavior of Aegean Wall Lizards. (Mentors: J. Foutopoulos & J. Beehner)

Daniel Kessler - Predictive Reliability of the Mandarin Chinese (Putonghua) Communicative Developmental Inventories Across Early Performance-Based Strata. (Mentor: T. Tardif)

Andrea King – Changes in Circadian Rhythms During Puberty in Rattus norvegicus: Developmental Time Course & Gonadal Dependency. (Mentor: T. Lee)

Nikhil Kurapati - Functional Connectivity in Youth at Risk for Depression. (Mentor: C. Monk)

Katherine Martin - Phonological and Working Memory and L2 Grammar Learning. (Mentor: N. Ellis)

Emily Sallen - False Working Memories: Comparison Between Semantic and Phonological Distortions.  (Mentor: P. Reuter-Lorenz)

Michael-Paul Schallmo - Papez Circuit Activation Observed with Functional Imaging During Semantic List Learning in Healthy Adults. (Mentor: S. Langenecker)

Shane Schwikert -The Effect of Ambiguous Stimuli on the Error Signal in ERP. (Mentor: W. Gehring)

Ryan Selleck - Increase in Conditioned Place Preference and Feeding After Mu-opioid Activation in the Bed Nucleus of the Stria Terminalis. (Mentor: K. Berridge)

Belinda Shih - The Effect of Prenatal Testosterone Exposure on Maternal and Sibling Vocal Recognition in Lambs. (Mentor: T. Lee)

Alexis Thompson - Unaware vs. Aware Errors: An Anti-Saccade Feedback Task. (Mentor: W. Gehring)

Wai-Ying Yau - Brain Imaging and Injury. (Mentors: M. Heitzeg & J. Zubieta)

Neuroscience

David Altshuler - Cry2 Expression in the Cortex and Suprachiasmatic Nucleus During Puberty in Octodon degus. (Mentor: T. Lee)

Lauren Dayton -The Effects of Iron Deficiency at Infancy on Working Memory Among Preadolescents. (Mentor: C. Monk)

Casey Lwo - Effects of RFRP-3 on Luteinizing Surge and Sex Behavior in Female Rats. (Mentors: T. Lee & E. Peckham)

Katherine MacDuffie - Investigating Working Memory Distortions in Alzheimer’s Disease. (Mentor: P. Reuter-Lorenz)

Alexander Wiltschko - Opposing Effects of Amphetamine and Eticlopride on Striatal Fast-Spiking Interneuron Firing. (Mentor: J. Berke)

Psychology

Emily Arnstein - Associations Between Corporal Punishment and Behavioral Adjustment in Preschool-Aged Boys and Girls. (Mentor: S. Olson

)Brittany Branand - Parental Involvement and College Academic Achievement: Parental Support, Parent-Student Relationship, and Effort. (Mentor: J. Hagen)

Kathleen Bruder – Quantitative Assessment of Autistic Symptomatology by Parents and Teachers Using the Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS). (Mentors: C. Lord & S. Risi)

Pooja Desai - Sign-Tracking and Its Relation to Food-Carrying Behaviors. (Mentor: T. Robinson)

Alex Dopp - Peer Support and Emotional Adjustment of Bereaved Children Over Time. (Mentor: A. Cain)

Elizabeth Dries - Multinationalism and Performance: Does Multinational Experience Predict Competence? (Mentor: F. Lee)

Samantha Drotar - The Effects of One’s Sub-Group Identity on the Formation of a Common In-Group Identity. (Mentor: R. Gonzalez)

Michele Dunsky - How Much is Too Much? Investigating When Very High Parental Monitoring Levels Hinder Adolescent Development. (Mentor: J. Schulenberg)

Tracy Ederer - Revealing Individual Differences in Decision-Making Behavior. (Mentor: T. Polk)

Daniel Ehrmann - Sleep-Disordered Breathing, Physiological Sequelae, and the Neurobiological Relationship with Psychopathology. (Mentor: P. Deldin)

Michael Finn - Personality Traits and Relapse Rates: A Survival Analysis. (Mentors: J. Hansell & E. Robinson)

Kayla Frick - Parenting and Child Mental Health: The Role of Openness in Internationally Adoptive Families. (Mentors: K. Freeark-Zucker & K. Rosenblum)

Jamarie Geller - The Implicit Self: Comparing the Effects of Self-Kindness and Self-Criticism Priming on Symptoms of Depression. (Mentor: E. Kross)

Hannah Goldman - The Home Advantage in Elite-Level Ice Hockey. (Mentor: T. George)

Whitney Hall - Police Interrogations: A Qualitative Analysis of Police Practices. (Mentor: P. Ellsworth)

Jennifer Hartsell - Compassionate and Self-Image Goals as Predictors for Problem Discussions in Romantic Relationships. (Mentors: A. Canevello & J. Crocker)

Kathleen Hazlett - The Role of Perfectionism in Maladjustment: Cause, Consequence, or Covariate? (Mentor: E. Chang)

Laura Hieber - Early Auditory Sensory Processing Deficits in Schizophrenia. (Mentor: P. Deldin)

Ryan Hill - Predicting Continued Elevated Suicide Risk Among Adolescents. (Mentor: C. King)

Avanti Jangalapalli - Children of Alcoholics’ Physical Health Outcomes in Early Childhood. (Mentors: A. Buu & R. Zucker)

Sara Johnson-Cardona - Gender Ideologies, Paternal Involvement, Martial Relationship Quality, and Infant Attachment: Exploring Dynamics in Couples Expecting a Second Child. (Mentor: B. Volling)

Rachel Kay - Maternal Stress and Infant Outcomes: The Impact of Perinatal Anxiety on Pregnancy and Delivery Outcomes. (Mentor: H. Flynn)

Calli-Ev Kosch - Promoting Postpartum Resilience in the Face of Childhood Trauma: The Roles of Individuals and Social Traits. (Mentor: M. Muzik)

Jean Kwek - The Contribution of Activity Experience to Self-Regulation Development in Preschoolers. (Mentor: F. Morrison)

Jennifer LaCosse - Mortality Salience, Self-Regulation and Two Types of Self-Affirmation. (Mentor: J. Crocker)

Celia Li - Teacher Reactive Disciplinary Language and Preschool Math and Literacy Skills. (Mentor: F. Morrison)

Yee Lam Li - Content and Organization of the Self-Concept as Potential Moderators of the Effects of the Media on Body Dissatisfaction. (Mentors: K. Stein & L. M. Ward)

Kristin Mannella - Fire at Will: Empathy and Aggression in First Person Shooters. (Mentor: B. Bushman)

Jennifer Morack - Do Positive Perceptions of Aging Influence Well-Being in Older Adults? Findings from the Health and Retirement Study. (Mentor: J. Smith)

Erica Ranade - The Relations Between Young Children’s Understanding of Theory of Mind and Their Understanding of Expected and Unexpected Human Behaviors. (Mentors: M. Rhodes & H. Wellman)

Katherine Rice - The Effects of Motivation on Racial Differences in Elementary Cognitive Tasks. (Mentor: R. Nisbett)

Andria Robinson - Motivation and Learning Strategies of First-Generation and Nonfirst-Generation College Students. (Mentor: W. McKeachie)

Marjorie Shapiro - Parental Education Level: Academic Involvement and Success. (Mentor: J. Hagen

)Puneet Sodhi - The Effects of Associative Strength on False Working Memory. (Mentor: P. Reuter-Lorenz)

Nora Jean Sporn - The Effects of Sex Object, Thin-Ideal, and Body Part Images on Women’s Body Image. (Mentor: L. M. Ward)

Kavita Srivastava - Conceptualization and Development of the Appearance Perfectionism Scale: Preliminary Evidence for Validity and Utility in a College Student Population. (Mentor: E. Chang)

Jenna Stein - Relationships Between Body Modifications, Motivations, and Depression. (Mentor: J. Hansell)

Toby Steinberg - Children with Disorganized Attachment in Foster Care: Facilitating Caregiver Commitment and Psychological Availability. (Mentor: J. Ribaudo)

Alyson Sularz – The Contributions of Additional Traumatic Events to Trauma Symptoms and PTSD in Women Exposed to Intimate Partner Violence (IPV). (Mentor: S. Graham-Bermann)

Kelsie Thelen - Relations Between Maternal and Paternal Parenting Behaviors and Internalizing Symptoms in 3-year old Girls. (Mentor: S. Olson)

Abigail Van Bremen - Winner Take All Disputes in Legal Contexts: When Social Categories Disrupt Procedural Justice. (Mentor: S. Garcia)

Akshaya Varghese - Cultural Variation in Response to Strategic Display of Emotions During Negotiations: Comparing South Asians to North Americans. (Mentor: S. Kopelman)

Clare Wrobel - Facilitator Involvement in Fostering an Effective Intergroup Dialogue. (Mentor: P. Gurin)

Laura Yocky - Coparenting, Temperament, and Emotional Understanding: Mediating and Moderating Models Leading to the Development of Children’s Behavior Problems. (Mentor: B. Volling) 

 

2007-2008 Honors Research Program Thesis Titles

Brain, Behavior & Cognitive Science

Aaron Baugh - Oscine and Non-Oscine Responses to Sciurid Carolinensis Vocalizations. (Mentor: T. Bergman)

Patrick Bissett - Overcoming Interference in Memory and Responding. (Mentor: J. Jonides)

Stephen Chang - Stress and Reward: The Effects of Corticotropin-Releasing Factor on Cue-Triggered "Wanting" for Sucrose Reward. (Mentor: K. Berridge)

Alyse DeHaan - Exogenous Prenatal Androgen Exposure Alters the Development of Rank in Male and Female Suffolk Lambs. (Mentor: T. Lee)

Charlotte Gamble - Maternal Malaria and Birth Outcomes: Findings from Ghana. (Mentors: T. Lee & T. Johnson)

Lindsey Harik - Cognitive Deficits Associated with Anticholinergic Medications in Veterans at the Ann Arbor Veterans Affairs Hospital. (Mentor: L. Bieliauskas)

Katherine Kudyba - Psychopathology and HPA Axis Functioning in Postpartum Women Who Experience Childhood Maltreatment. (Mentors: K. Rosenblum & M. Muzik)

Atasi Satpathy - Risky Business: Differences in Financial Risk-Taking Behavior in South Asian Indians, Indian Americans, and Caucasian Americans. (Mentor: P. Shah & R. Mahalingam)

Cortney Sera - Ambiguity Resolution Using Visual Imagery for Linguistic Processing of Homographs. (Mentors: R. Lewis & J. Boland)

Neuroscience

Jessica Koch - The Per1 Response to Light within the Suprachiasmatic Nucleus of the Diurnal Octodon Degus and the Nocturnal Rat. (Mentor: T. Lee)

Ian McLachlan - Reducing the Resistance of Recent Fear to Extinction: A Pharmacological Approach. (Mentor: S. Maren)

Sarah Na - The Extended Amygdala Modulates Food Intake and Other Associated Behaviors. (Mentor: K. Berridge)

John Wang - Neuroanatomy of Decision Making About Everyday Objects. (Mentor: S. Preston)

Sarah Williams - Cortical High Affinity Choline Uptake during Challenged Attentional Performance. (Mentor: M. Sarter)

 Psychology

Genevieve Aidala - Analyzing Messages About Alcohol, Motivations to Drink, and Associated Risky Behaviors. (Mentor: L.M. Ward)

Sarah Banco - Qualities of the Sibling Relationship as Risk Factors for Child Adjustment in Homes with Interpersonal Violence. (Mentor: S. Graham-Bermann)

Stephanie Becker - Marriage and Emotional Expressivity in Men and Women. (Mentor: B. Volling)

Emily Bendikas - Nature and Extent of Parental Control & Its Association with Preschool Self-Regulation. (Mentors: F. Morrison & L. Skibbe)

Stella Binkevich - The Gap in Media Usage Knowledge Between Parents and Their Children. (Mentor: B. Bushman)

Marguerite Bodem - Optimism-Pessimism and Adjustment in College Students: An Investigation of the Validity and Utility of a Domain-Specific Model of Outcome Expectancies. (Mentor: E. Chang)

Andrew Bronstein - Utilizing Diversity in College Classrooms for Educational Benefit: Student Development in Intergroup Dialogue. (Mentor: P. Gurin)

Lauren Clevenger - The Relationship of Sexual Abuse and Pain in Women with Chronic Pelvic Pain: The Mediating Role of Pain Catastrophizing. (Mentor: R. Roth)

Ciaran Considine - Unpredictability and Paranoia: The Desire to Be Unknown. (Mentor: N. Schwarz)

Mallory Cooper - The Influence of Marital Satisfaction on Paternal Involvement and Secure Attachment in Toddlers. (Mentor: B. Volling)

Daniel Davis - Cognitive Impairment in Male Incarcerated Youth. (Mentor: S. Graham-Bermann)

Belinda Feng - Asian Values Communication and Perceptions of Intergenerational Family Conflict Among Asian American College Students. (Mentor: D. Nagata)

Kristin France - Body Image, Body Composition, and Sociosexuality. (Mentor: R. Nesse)

Neisi Garcia - Individual Differences in Counterfactual Thinking and Training Effects: Implications for Jury Decision-Making. (Mentor: P. Shah)

Kristin Garrison - Expertise and Competency in Clinical Medicine: Knowing When to Stop. (Mentor: C. Seifert)

Laura Girz - The Relationship Between Parenting Practices and Attitudes Toward Dating Violence for Asian American and White College Students. (Mentor: P. Akutsu)

Rebecca Grzadzinski - Attachment Behaviors in Young Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders: An Examination of Factors Associated with Separation and Reunion. (Mentor: C. Lord)

Chanel Harris - Multicultural Content Resources in the Classroom: A Comparison and Analysis of the United States and Canada. (Mentor: L. Gutierrez)

Nicole Hermann - The Perception and Function of Perfectionism in a College Student Population: Do Lay Theories Correspond with Scientific Models? (Mentor: E. Chang)

Rachael Herrmann - Examination of Goals to Reduce Stereotype Threat on Women’s Math Performance. (Mentors: J. Crocker & Y. Niiya)

Todd Hoffman - Measuring the Extent and Nature of Variation in Storytelling Skills in 3 to 6 Year Old Children. (Mentor: F. Morrison)

Megan Hoffmann - Instructional Impacts on Literacy and Language Skills in Kindergarten and First Grade. (Mentors: F. Morrison & L. Skibbe)

Brynne Janeway - The Role of Children’s Temperament for Sibling Relationships and Empathy Development. (Mentor: B. Volling)

Karen Kao - Gender Differences of Preschoolers and its Implications for Self-Regulation and Other Developmental Skills. (Mentor: F. Morrison)

Alison Kartush - Developmental Predictors and Outcomes of Feminism: An Exploration of the Effects of Media and Family on Feminist Beliefs and Career Aspirations. (Mentor: L.M. Ward)

Holly Keilch – Children’s Reasoning about Transgressions Involving Gender, Morality, and Biology: Evidence for Domain Specific Causal Reasoning. (Mentor: S. Gelman)

Alana Knoppow - The Role of Mortality Salience in Determining the Decision for War Versus Peace Among Political Leaders. (Mentor: D. Winter)

Alissa Koloff - The Effects of Advertising on Women's Notions of Femininity and Masculinity. (Mentor: L. M. Ward)

Lisa Kowalko - Criminal and Psychiatric Recidivism in Acquittees Found Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity in the State of Michigan in 1995 and 1996: A Follow-Up Study. (Mentor: C. Holden)

Melissa Maye - The Relationship Between Usage of Psychotropic Medication and Problem Behaviors Among Individuals with an Autism Spectrum Disorder. (Mentors: C. Lord & D. Anderson)

Katherine Oddi – Fathers’ Physical Punishment and Warm Responsiveness in Relation to Childhood Attention Problems. (Mentor: S. Olson)

Elise Petersen - Intersectionality and Attitudes Towards Affirmative Action. (Mentor: R. Gonzalez)

Leah Potvin - Emotional Transmission in Alcoholic Couples and its Effects on Drinking Behavior. (Mentor: J. Cranford)

Jane Rho - Rankings and Facial Expressions: It Looks Unfriendly at “the Top.” (Mentor: S. Garcia)

Brittany Ruiz - The Effects of Maternal Parenting Dimensions on Girls’ Risk for Relational Aggression. (Mentor: S. Olson)

Mallory Salerno - Spotting Authoritarianism a Mile Away: The Development of an At-A- Distance Measure. (Mentor: D. Winter)

Kimberlee Shelton - Racial and Socioeconomic Differences in Health Behaviors Among Pregnant Women. (Mentor: H. Flynn)

Lauren Szczurek - The Effects of Warm and Cold Metaphors on Object Perception. (Mentor: N. Schwarz)

Deanna Tracy - The Relationship between Sensory Behaviors and Socialization in Young Children with Autism. (Mentor: C. Lord)

Madeline Wachman - The Relationship Between Implicit Theories of Health and Health Locus of Control: Implications for Mental and Physical Health. (Mentor. R. Mahalingam)

Yen Geraldine Wai - Spirituality and Forgiveness: A Pathway to Posttraumatic Growth. (Mentor: C. Peterson)

Margie Yu Ming Wong - Schizophrenia and Religion. (Mentor: C. Peterson)

Erica Yi - Do Race and Gender Concordance Improve Patient - Provider Communication? A Survey with Adult Dental Patients. (Mentor: M. Inglehart)

Ho Lam Yiu - Executive Function and Aggression: A Study from a Sample of Incarcerated Youths. (Mentors: K. Cortina & S. Perkins)

Korie Zink - Sexual Communication Patterns in Families: An Exploration of the Effects of Birth Order and Gender on Sexual Communication Messages Received from Parents and Siblings. (Mentor: L.M. Ward)



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