Monthly Archives: January 2018

First year graduate student Alvin recently presented his proposal for his master’s thesis research entitled “Achievement Moderating the Relationship Between Failure and Positive and Negative Outcomes.” According to his review of the literature, while many researchers have examined positive and negative impacts of failure, little to no work has been done to examine how the combination of failure and achievement experiences impacts individuals. In order to address this gap in the literature, Alvin plans to conduct two online research studies exploring various achievement and failure experiences. More specifically, Alvin is interested in examining how resiliency, deliberate rumination, and achievement might moderate the relationship between failure and both positive and negative outcomes. Positive outcomes of interest include wisdom, posttraumatic growth, and intrinsic motivation while negative outcomes of interest include depression, fear of failure, and intrusive rumination. Alvin hopes to implement his research findings by working to help individuals who have experienced failure by motivating them to improve their goal setting strategies, and teaching them healthy ways to examine failure experiences.

Jess presented her Master’s Thesis proposal entitled, “Redefining Negative Personality Traits and Coping Techniques After Impacts of Stress and Trauma”. The purposes of this research are to 1) determine links between negative personality traits, maladaptive coping, and trauma, 2) explore potential positive implications of maladaptive coping strategies and negative personality traits, 3) work toward the redefinition of negative personality traits and coping in light of trauma, and 4) build a framework for new interventions for trauma survivors. Jess’ thesis research will consist of two studies. The first study will involve semi-structured interviews with combat veterans, followed by a brief online survey, and the second will consist of a week-long series of inventories regarding daily stress with undergraduate students. More specifically, daily stress is defined as minor life stressors that occur consistently in an individual’s life, and is linked to greater susceptibility to negative outcomes such as anxiety and depression. Not only does Jess plan to use the findings from her research to work toward the development of interventions, but she also hopes to expand her research to individuals dealing with personality disorders, as well as individuals facing different forms of trauma.

Recently, Whitney presented her dissertation proposal entitled “Psychological Growth, Distress, and Educational Impact of Dolphins and Dolphin Assisted Therapy in Children”. This summer, Whitney will be conducting her dissertation research through Dolphin Assisted Therapy and Swim-With-Dolphin programs in Florida and Hawaii. The main goal of this research is to provide efficacy data for such programs for children by examining variables such as posttraumatic growth, emotion regulation, social support, and more. In doing so, Whitney’s study will be the first to examine the impact of wild Dolphin Assisted Therapy on human psychology, the first to address posttraumatic growth in relation to interactions with dolphin, and the first to compare captive versus wild swim with dolphin programs. Moreover, this research aims to highlight the mechanisms behind animal assisted therapy for the ultimate purpose of the development of clinical interventions. We are all excited to see what she finds!

The PTG Lab is pleased to introduce our two new undergraduate members! 

Alex is a junior at Oakland University majoring in psychology with a minor in biology. He decided to join the lab in order to gain rigorous lab work experience and deepen his understanding of PTG. More specifically, Alex is interested in the biological effects of PTG and how it relates to physiological changes in the brain. Upon graduation, Alex plans to pursue a PhD in behavioral neuroscience or neurobiology. Alex can be reached at acorille@oakland.edu.

Nicholas is a junior at Oakland University working toward a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a minor in biology. He joined the lab because of his interest in how individuals change following a traumatic event. Specifically, he is interested in seeing how those dealing with severe medical diagnoses, as well as those closest to them, change following the diagnoses. He plans to begin the application process to medical school next year in order to work toward his goal of becoming a physician. Nicholas can be reached at nelias@oakland.edu.

Welcome, Alex and Nicholas!

Every month psychology graduate students and faculty meet for presentations on current psychology research at Oakland University. These meetings are referred to as Lunch Bunch Research Colloquium, and are held from 12:00-1:00 pm in the Oakland Center. Recently, Lauren gave a Lunch Bunch talk about her honors thesis research entitled, “Modern versus Traditional Depression, Posttraumatic Growth versus Illusory Growth.” After her successful presentation Lauren answered questions. Many faculty members reached out after the presentation to express how impressed they were with Lauren and her work. Way to go, Lauren!