Volume 19: No. 11, December 2005

Get to Know the 2005 Dissertation Research Award Winners

by Nicolle Singer

Since 1988, the Science Directorate has annually awarded funds to promising science-oriented doctoral students of psychology to assist with dissertation research costs.  Since the award’s inception, more than 1,000 students have received more than $1,000,000 to support their excellent research projects.  The current program includes 30 - 40 grants of $1,000 each, along with several larger awards of up to $5,000.  Please join us in congratulating these outstanding students and APA Dissertation Research Award Winners for 2005.

Recipients of the larger grants, in alphabetical order, include:  

Hsin-Chin Chen, Texas A&M University
Mapping Orthographic and Phonological Neighborhood Effects on Word Recognition in Two Different Orthographies

Hsin-Chin is a PhD student in the Department of Psychology at Texas A&M University in cognitive psychology, working on his doctorate under the supervision of Dr. Jyotsna Vaid. His research focuses on reading processes and, in particular, on the role of graphemic, phonological, and semantic information in word recognition across different orthographies. While his dissertation focuses on comparisons of Chinese, a logographic writing system, and English, an opaque, alphabetic writing system, he has also done research on other writing systems, including Japanese, Spanish, and Hindi.

He completed his MA at the National Taiwan University, and in this research found that contrary to previous findings, visual information is more important than phonological information in Chinese word recognition. Moreover, these findings suggested that phonological information is not processed stronger or faster than orthographic or semantic information in Chinese word recognition (see Wu & Chen, Chinese Journal of Psychology, 2000, 2003). Jyotsna and Hsin-Chin have also studied factors affecting polysyllabic word segmentation. They found that low frequency words visually segmented according to morphographic principles (such as the basic orthographic syllable structure proposed by M. Taft) are processed faster than those segmented according to phonological principles, such as the maximum onset principle (see Chen & Vaid, Language and Cognitive Processes, in press).

Hsin-Chin’s dissertation research will manipulate orthographic and phonological neighborhood density effects across the Chinese and English writing systems, and examine their effects at the behavioral and neurobehavioral level (using near-infrared spectroscopy, or NIRS). Upon finishing his dissertation, Hsin-Chin plans to combine his research interests in cognitive psychology with his interest in teaching at the university level.  Asked to comment on the award, he remarked that “this award allows me to pay subjects that are difficult to recruit from the psychology subject pool. It also supports me to purchase equipment and materials necessary for my NIRS study. I thus truly appreciate this award to facilitate my research.”

Sapna Cheryan, Stanford University
The Consequences of Identity Denial for Female Engineers

Sapna started her career in psychology as an undergraduate at Northwestern, where she double majored in Psychology and American Studies. After graduating, she did a two-year stint as a management consultant in Washington, DC. Although being in the “real world” was fun for a while, Sapna missed doing research and the university setting so she returned to school pursue a PhD in social psychology. Sapna research career to date has been a productive one. Her senior honors thesis, with Galen Bodenhausen, on stereotype threat in Asian American women, was published in Psychological Science, and her Masters thesis, with Benoît Monin, on Asian Americans and identity denial, was published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.

Sapna is currently working on her dissertation research at Stanford University, which brings her theory of identity denial to the question of why female engineers drop out of their majors at a rate higher than their male peers. She suggests that one reason for this may be because women do not fit the image of the prototypical male engineer and are reminded of that fact in daily interactions. Indeed, in a recently completed study, she found that female engineers were mistaken as non-engineers more often than male engineers, and they reported being met with more surprise upon revealing their majors to strangers. These interactions may (perhaps unintentionally) signal to these women that they do not belong in the field.          

As you can imagine, finding female engineers willing to give up some of their valuable time to participate in studies is quite a challenge, and Sapna greatly appreciates having the funds to pay them, making her job as a recruiter of participants much more successful!

Nilam Ram, University of Virginia
Emphasizing Individuality in Models for Articulating Developmental Theory

Nilam’s research interests have grown out of a history of studying change. After finishing an undergraduate degree in economics at Columbia University he worked as a foreign currency derivatives trader, studying the movement of world markets as they went up, went down, and went sideways. Later, he moved on to the study of human movement, completing a MS in kinesiology at the University of Colorado. Now, as a quantitative psychology student at the University of Virginia specializing in longitudinal research methodology, Nilam examines psychological processes – studying short-term changes in emotion, personality, and cognition, how they develop over the course of the lifespan, and how longitudinal study designs can contribute to our understanding of human behavior. He has an already impressive publication record with a number of first authored papers appearing in top journals such as Psychometrika and Psychology and Aging.

In his dissertation research Nilam examines how longitudinal multivariate methods can be used to articulate developmental theory. He uses innovative multi-person extensions of intraindividual analytic methods to empirically describe and characterize differences in the structure of individuals’ emotional experiences, and uses simulation studies to determine what types of data collections might be needed in the future to more thoroughly examine how structures underlying individual behavior change over the lifespan (e.g., differentiation/re-integration).

Preliminary results suggest that particular patterns of perceived emotional experiences serve as a marker of impending death, independent of age and cognitive ability. Nilam’s dissertation project serves as an entryway into the examination and analysis of psychological phenomena using new analytic techniques that more fully integrate idiographic and nomothetic perspectives – keeping the main focus on the individual while still addressing issues of aggregation and generalization. Upon completing his degree, he looks forward to further exploring how developmental science can master the interface between theory and method.

Asked to comment on the award, Nilam remarked that “It is an honor to be included among those receiving awards. This will allow me to…conduct a more elaborate and comprehensive set of simulation studies.”

Renee Thompson, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
An Interpersonal Model of Specific Factors in Generalized Anxiety Disorder and Major Depressive Disorder

Renee is currently pursing a PhD in clinical/community psychology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where she also received a BS in psychology. Her undergraduate work with Eva Pomerantz explored how various parental factors (e.g., autonomy granting, intrusive support) affect children's levels of anxiety and depression. In graduate school, she has been working primarily with Howard Berenbaum on a program of research examining responses to interpersonal conflict (e.g., shame, guilt, adaptive and aggressive assertiveness), and how such responses are associated with anxiety and depressive disorders. Her master's project, “Shame Reactions to Everyday Dilemmas are Associated with Depressive Disorders,” is currently in press at Cognitive Therapy and Research.

In her two-study dissertation research, Renee will be testing an interpersonal model of the etiology of generalized anxiety disorder and major depressive disorder. The first study will be cross-sectional in design, with undergraduate women and their parents as participants. The second study will be longitudinal in design, with community women and their romantic partners participating. Both studies will examine how the women's levels of anxiety and depression are predicted by: (a) their sensitivity to criticism and rejection; (b) how rejecting and criticizing their parents or romantic partners report being of them; (c) how rejecting and criticizing women perceive their parents or romantic partners to be of them; and (d) the interaction of sensitivity to criticism/rejection and reported/perceived criticism/rejection.  The results of these studies will improve our understanding of how criticism and rejection are associated with anxiety and depression. Understanding how interpersonal relationships affect psychological outcomes will ultimately improve the mental health of women.

In response to receipt of this award, Renee remarked that “The resources provided by this award will fund my research with women and their romantic partners. Without such support, I would not have been able to conduct this study.”

The recipients of $1,000 Dissertation Research Awards are listed below:

Michael F. Armey, Kent State University
The Influence of Affect, Cognitions, Emotion Regulation Processes, and Coping on the Occurrence of Self-Injurious Behavior: An Episodic-Experiential Model

Carla J. Berg, University of Kansas
A Hope Intervention for Coping with Cold Pressor Pain

Kerstin K. Blomquist, Vanderbilt University
A Cognitive-Behavioral and Interpersonal Model of Body Image: Do Romantic Interactions Impact Women's Body Dissatisfaction?

Mary I. Campa, Cornell University
Development of Attachment Bonds: A Longitudinal, Multi-Method Study

Bettina J. Casad, Claremont Graduate University
An Integrated Theoretical Model of Race and Gender Stereotype Violation: The Stereotype Violation Model

Norma M. Chang, Carnegie Mellon University
Learning to Discriminate and Generalize through Problem Comparisons

Jennifer S. Coelho, University of Toronto
Eating Behaviour in Chronic Dieters and Non-Dieters: The Effects of Exposure to Food Cues

Daryn H. David, Yale University
Cognitive Correlates of the 'Internal Working Model'

Inna Fishman, University of South Florida
A New Event-Related Potentials Paradigm for Examining the Alcohol Expectancy Network

Roxana M. González, Carnegie Mellon University
Affective Influences in Strategic Social Interactions

Kevin J. Grimm, University of Virginia
A Longitudinal Dynamic Analysis of the Impacts of Reading on Mathematical Abilities in Children and Adolescents

Richard P. Heitz, Georgia Institute of Technology
Neural Mechanisms of Speed-Accuracy Tradeoff

Christa M. Helms, Oregon Health & Science University
The Role of the Basolateral Amygdala in the Sensitivity of Choice to Changes in Primary and Conditioned Reinforcer Properties

Kelly M. Kadlec, University of North Carolina at Greensboro
The Effect of Objective and Perceived Status on Interpersonal Power

Espen Klausen, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
Do Imaginary Companions Provide Security in a Novel Situation?

Christina M. Leclerc, North Carolina State University
Age-Related Differences in the Influence of Affect on Decision-Making Processes: Selectivity versus Selective Preservation?

Jill E. MacLaren, West Virginia University
Training Nursing Students in Evidence-based Psychological Pain Management Techniques

Jacqueline A. Maffucci, The University of Texas at Austin
The Role of NMDA Receptors in Female Reproductive Aging

Jelena Ristic, University of British Columbia
Rethinking Human Attention and its Components

Eileen Teresa Rodriguez, New York University
Children’s Home Literacy Environments: Qualitative Patterns of Stability and Change Across the First Five Years in Relation to School Readiness Outcomes

Ronnie M. Rubin, University of Delaware
Children’s Beliefs about Peer Relations: Links to Peer Rejection, Aggression, Depression and the Beliefs of Parents and Teachers

Susan L. Ryerson Espino, University of Illinois at Chicago
Perspective Matters: Listening to Caribbean Latina Newcomers in Transition to U.S. High School

Christopher A. Sanchez, University of Illinois at Chicago
Dynamic Spatial Ability and Comprehension of Complex Scientific Topics

Mary A. Sheridan, University of Missouri-Kansas City
Natural and Medically-induced Menopause: Comparison of Menopausal Symptoms and Sexual Functioning

Hung-Bin Sheu, University of Maryland, College Park
Relation of Working Alliance and Efficacy Beliefs to Psychotherapy Outcomes: A Multilevel Analysis

Shauncie M. Skidmore, Eastern Michigan University
Personality Disorder Identification and the Subsequent Impact on Treatment Outcomes in a Training Clinic Setting

Amy Strachman, UCLA
Approach and Avoidance Commitment

Chuck Tate, University of Oregon
Mental Simulation of the Future: Processes and Principles

Patricia A. Taylor-Cooke, University of Alabama at Birmingham
Contribution of Magnocellular and Parvocellular Pathways to Visual Attention

Amanda L. Thompson, University of Pittsburgh
Close Relationships among Young Adult Survivors of Childhood Cancer: A Quantitative and Qualitative Analysis

Stephen J. Tonks, University of Maryland
The Role of Autonomy in the Academic Motivation of Japanese Students

Logan T. Trujillo, University of Arizona
Neural Correlates of the Influence of Past Experience on Conscious and Unconscious Figure-Ground Perception

James M. Tyler, University of Massachusetts
Through the Eyes of Others: The Role of Relational Value Cues and Self-regulatory Resources in Monitoring One's Social Environment

Elizabeth A. Ware, Northwestern University
Form Follows Function: The Role of Artifact Function in the Development of Shape Bias

Brian L. Wright, Tufts University
“The Great Balancing Act”: Identity and Academic Achievement of Successful African American Male Adolescents in an Urban High School in the U.S.

Brian T. Wymbs, University of Buffalo, SUNY
Does Disruptive Child Behavior Cause Interparental Discord?  An Experimental Investigation