Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2018, Neuroscience Graduate Studies Program

Cognitive deficits in executive functions such as attention and cognitive control form a core symptom cluster in schizophrenia that is most predicative of functional outcomes for patients, such as the ability to return to work. Unfortunately this class of symptoms is poorly treated with currently available neuroleptics and so far adjunctive treatment with potential pro-cognitive compounds has not yielded improvements in global cognition. Not only are alternative treatment strategies necessary, but there is a need for better validated preclinical tasks and animal models. The current work seeks to validate the rodent Target Detection Task (rTDT) and the embryonic kynurenine (EKYN) model as a platform for assessing the efficacy of cognitive training via prior experience in a cognitively demanding task. The central hypothesis guiding the experiments in this dissertation is that gestational elevations of kynurenine will induce a profile of translationally relevant attentional deficits in the rTDT and these deficits can be reversed with cognitive training. The first aim consisted of a validation of the rTDT. It was found that rTDT acquisition follows a stable and repeatable pattern. Additionally, rTDT performance is sensitive to manipulations of stimulus parameters including the reduction of stimulus duration and contrast. These manipulations result in predictable impairments in sensitivity, or the ability to discriminate between target and non-target stimuli. The rTDT was also shown to be sensitive to pharmacological challenges with agents that impair glutamatergic and cholinergic neurotransmission. These neurotransmitter systems are known to be essential for intact attentional processing. The second aim consisted of a validation of the EKYN model. EKYN animals, compared to control animals, showed disruptions of attentional processing and cognitive control. These deficits did not present during task acquisition but emerged upon challenge with task parameters that enhance (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Bruno John (Advisor); Golomb Julie (Committee Member); Lenz Kathryn (Committee Member); Lindquist Derick (Committee Member) Subjects: Behavioral Psychology; Neurobiology; Neurosciences

Master of Technical and Scientific Communication, Miami University, 2008, Technical and Scientific Communication

This thesis reviews literature on cognitive psychology to demonstrate its relevance to the field of composition with a specific focus on technical communication. It specifically addresses how cognitive psychology became important to composition and how it has enhanced the field's understanding of reading, writing, and teaching processes. In terms of reading, cognitive psychology provides the field with guidelines writers can use to best enhance reader comprehension. In terms of writing, cognitive psychology brings to the field the view of writing as a process. Teaching writing and reading processes involves looking at how the two are intertwined. Building on connections between reading and writing, contemporary studies of cognitive psychology focus on how teaching students metacognitive strategies can help students enhance their reading comprehension and improve their writing ability. MOOs and Knowledge Forums are presented as two examples of online learning environments that incorporate the teaching of metacognitive strategies. Ultimately, this thesis argues for the overt inclusion of cognitive psychological principles in writing classes as a way to help students understand the guidelines writing teachers pass on to them.

Committee: Jean Lutz (Committee Chair) Subjects: Cognitive Therapy; Communication; Composition; Design; Education; Educational Evaluation; Educational Psychology; Higher Education; Linguistics; Literacy; Psychology; Reading Instruction; Teacher Education; Teaching

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2019, Communication

The aim of the present study was to examine neural correlates and mechanisms underlying the psychological mechanisms formalized in a computational model of quantum cognition, the belief-action-entanglement (BAE) model. An analysis of frequency band activity in the brain was carried out to test these mechanisms. The BAE model proposes that communication acts as a measurement that interferes with the evaluative processes prior to a decision (Busemeyer, Wang, & Lambert-Mogiliansky, 2009; Pothos & Busemeyer, 2009; Z. Wang & Busemeyer, 2016). Two key mechanisms were conceptualized and formalized in the BAE model: (1) the superposition state which arises from uncertainty and dissonance when deciding between two or more actions, and (2) the transition from a superposition state to a determinate one during the action evaluation process. These mechanisms correspond with the psychological function and timing of two frequency bands. The frontal-midline (FM) theta (3-8 Hz) indexes conflict processing, a state analogous to cognitive dissonance. Parietal alpha power indexes search and integration processes in memory which captures evolution from the superposition state to a determinate one. To test the extent communication influenced these underlying mechanisms, we employed a category-decision paradigm used in behavioral studies of the BAE model. The study manipulated communication in three ways: receiving information, self-expressing, and no communication. EEG data was collected from 32 participants. The subsequent analysis of FM theta and parietal alpha-beta frequency band activity provided modest support for the effect of communication on the proposed BAE model mechanisms. Specifically, FM theta activity offered initial evidence that communication resolves dissonance or uncertainty in the superposition state. Further, parietal alpha-beta suppression provided support for the proposition that communication modulates the evolution of the cognitive system until a decision (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Joyce Wang PHD (Advisor); Jason Coronel PHD (Committee Member); Richard Huskey PHD (Committee Member) Subjects: Cognitive Psychology; Communication; Neurosciences

Doctor of Philosophy, Miami University, 2010, Psychology

Plagiarism arouses intense emotions in and out of academic settings. Relatively recently, it has been suggested that not all cases of plagiarism are intentional, and that they may instead be due, at least sometimes, to unconscious influences of memory in which the plagiarized information is incorrectly experienced as novel and self-generated (e.g., Taylor, 1965). Such inadvertent plagiarism (IP) is known as cryptomnesia, which is argued to be due to failures during source monitoring, namely, failing to accurately identify whether the source of information is internal or external (e.g., Johnson, Hashtroudi, & Lindsay, 1993). Asymmetries in power have been shown to influence the degree to which individuals engage in careful processing of sources, with high power individuals processing others superficially and low power individuals processing others carefully (e.g., Fiske, 1993; Goodwin, Gubin, Fiske, & Yzerbyt, 2000). Thus, high power individuals should plagiarize more than non-powerful others. In two experiments, I manipulated power and the timing of this manipulation (occurring before or after an interaction), and then assessed rates of IP. The results of Experiment 1 suggested that high power increases rates of IP, though only when instantiated before an interaction. Experiment 2 yielded only null findings. Implications of the former and possible explanations for the latter findings are discussed.

Committee: Heather M. Claypool PhD (Committee Chair); Kurt Hugenberg PhD (Committee Member); Amy Summerville PhD (Committee Member); Lawrence B. Nadler PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Social Psychology

MA, Kent State University, 2011, College of Arts and Sciences / Department of Psychological Sciences

The persuasive processes underlying three different methods of message framing were examined. Persuasive processes included perceptions of feeling right, perceptions of fluency, and the extent of cognitive elaboration measured by a thought listing task. Additionally, fixation duration using an eye tracker was examined to determine if participants' message viewing behavior differed by match type. Correlations between message viewing, interest, and perceived fluency were also examined. The results indicated that in some cases, when message characteristics matched the characteristics of a participant, participants had a fewer number of positive thoughts about the message than when the messages did not match. There was no difference in message viewing behavior. The findings as a whole do not support persuasive effects of message framing when considering existing theory. Additionally, the results suggesting differences underlying cognitive processing by match type are mixed. Possible explanations for these findings are discussed

Committee: John Updegraff PhD (Advisor); Kristin Mickelson PhD (Committee Member); Mary Ann Stephens PhD (Committee Member); Karin Coifman PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Psychology

Master of Arts (MA), Bowling Green State University, 2007, Psychology/Clinical

Researchers have investigated the different social-cognitive processes associated with aggressive and prosocial behaviors. The purpose of the current study was to examine the relations among response-outcome expectancies for self-reward, tangible reward, and peer-approval, goals, and aggressive and prosocial behavior, based on models of social-information processing (Crick & Dodge, 1994; Huesmann, 1988). After controlling for demographic variables, little support was found for the hypothesized model in which goal importance moderated the relation between response-outcome expectancies and aggressive and prosocial behaviors. Likewise, little support was found for additional exploratory analysis in which response-outcome expectancies mediated the relation between goals and aggressive and prosocial behavior. The findings point to the importance of using study designs that capture online- processing when predicting aggressive and prosocial behavior.

Committee: Eric Dubow (Advisor) Subjects: Psychology, Clinical