Psychology Classes Research Articles

A Cultural-Historical Activity Theory (CHAT) Analysis on Educational Psychology Class: The Challenges in Delivering a Fully Online Classroom Environment

In assisting students’ transformation, classes provide activities with face validity. This paper aims to provide readers with cultural-historical activity theory (CHAT) analysis of Educational Psychology class at a private university in Yogyakarta. Activity Theory is a theoretical framework for the study and interpretation of human interaction through the use of instruments and objects. It provides a holistic and contextual discovery approach that can be used to help qualitative and interpretive research. Activity Theory is especially important in circumstances that have a large historical and cultural context and where participants, their goals and their tools are in a state of rapid and continuous change. Few studies explored the use of CHAT framework to reveal the challenges in providing a fully online class in a higher education. Therefore, this study intended to explore the practical importance of CHAT theory use for the delivery of a class in a fully online learning environment. The results revealed the units of analysis (UoA) of the CHAT framework. In addition, the students shared some challenges they faced in relation to those units of analysis. The implication of this study is to utilize the CHAT framework as a tool to evaluate the learning process.

Проблема систематизации предикторов академической успешности в современных отечественных психолого-педагогических исследованиях

In the Russian educational system under modern conditions the search of ways to upgrade and intensify educational process is being performed. These ways are aimed at using personal potential of students while building on their essential competencies. A crucial role in this process is played by an opportunity to foresee the successful results of students in completing educational programmes that in its term, serves as the basis of their further studies in high schools and institutions of secondary vocational education. The group of prognostic predictors is formed by predictors of academic achievements including psychological, social, economic factors that influence the academic success of students. The research purpose is to analyze and group predictors of academic achievements in Russian psychological and pedagogical studies. Methods of theoretical analysis of psychological and pedagogical studies, devoted to the issue of revealing the importance of cognitive, personal, social and economic predictors of academic achievements of students have been used: comparison, generalization, systematization and concretization. Predictors of academic achievements have been classified according to the analysis of prioritizing directions of academic achievements’ factors. It has been concluded that attention focus of modern Russian scholars has been shifted from cognitive and motivational predictors to personal, social and psychological as well as economic predictors as being equally important in the process of creating models that enable to successfully foresee the degree of academic achievements of students. The cognitive (intelligence level, operating memory, creativity, etc.) and personal predictors (motivation, self-regulation, self-control, persistence) are as important as such predictors as relationship in the paradigm “teacher–teacher”, “teacher–student”, social and psychological class climate, social and economic school arrangement.

PROVIDING PSYCHOLOGICAL SUPPORT FOR PARENTS OF CHILDREN WITH SPECIAL EDUCATIONAL NEEDS DURING THE WAR

The article considers the problem of providing parents of children with special educational needs with psychological assistance during the war and creating an environment conducive to the healthy development and well-being of these children. The results of psychological state and mental health during hostilities, the mood of people in this difficult time, the individual characteristics of the psyche of each person are analyzed. The directions of work of the practical psychologist, principles of rendering of the first psychological help, specialized medical, psychiatric and social help, professional instructions concerning rendering of the first psychological help are considered. The problems of families raising children with special educational needs at different times in the works of researchers of special psychology are highlighted. The main task of the psychologist is to help parents of children with special educational needs during the war to overcome and eliminate various types of fears, organized a set of psychological classes that will ensure the development of emotional stability and restore children's own capabilities. There are useful tips on how to master yourself in critical conditions, how to help loved ones and maintain a healthy mental state in critical conditions, use self-support. Recommendations for planning psychological assistance to parents are given, the content and approximate topics of work with them are considered, aimed at helping both the adults themselves and their position of the educator in relations with their own child. Recommendations for parents of children with special educational needs, psychological exercises that will help to move from a state of stress to a state of adaptation, conditions for rapid adaptation to stress have been developed. Techniques used to relieve stress, depression, the ability to create the safest space for themselves are considered. As a result of the implementation of this set of measures, it is expected to reduce the level of anxiety, nervous tension, fears in children with special educational needs, the development of emotional stability, the ability to adequately express their emotions and feelings.

An Online Course in Contemplative Neuroscience Increases Dispositional Mindfulness and Reduces Meditation Barriers.

Teaching contemplative neuroscience is emerging as a way to increase the reach and relevance of our field to a wider undergraduate population while also encouraging the beneficial practice of contemplation. In-person classes on the topic have been shown to improve both academic learning and attitudes towards science and meditation. Here we show that a short-term, asynchronous online course in contemplative neuroscience had comparable benefits. Students completed the Determinants of Meditation Practice Inventory (DMPI; Williams et al., 2011) and the Mindful Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS; Brown and Ryan, 2003) at the start and end of the course. Their scores showed reduced barriers to meditation and improved mindfulness after the course, changes predictive of a range of positive behavioral and well-being outcomes. Students also rated the course as highly effective in advancing neuroscience understanding and competency. A comparison group (from an online general psychology class) showed no increase in mindfulness and a significantly weaker reduction in meditation barriers. This success of an online class in both academic and social-emotional learning is promising given the rapid growth of online instruction and the improved access it can provide to non-traditional students. The class format together with its health-relevant topic could thus be a valuable tool for reaching a more diverse student body while at the same time promoting practices linked to both personal and societal benefits.

Specialized Class of Creation Psychological and Pedagogical Direction with Profile Training at the Secondary School

The article is devoted to the description of the experience of creating a specialized class of psychological and pedagogical orientation in a secondary school. The article outlines the organizational directions of its gradual formation, outlines the content component of each stage of the functioning of the psychological and pedagogical class, and determines the theoretical ideas of its creation. The purpose of the article is to describe the experience of creating a specialized class of psychological and pedagogical orientation in a secondary school. Methodology and methods of research. The theoretical basis of the process of organizing a specialized class of psychological and pedagogical direction is the ideas of P. K. Engelmeer, L. S. Vygotsky, B. M. Teplov, Yu. Z. Gilbukh. The main research methods are the analysis of scientific literature, generalization and modeling. The results of the study. In the course of the work carried out, the organizational directions of the phased formation of a specialized class of psychological and pedagogical direction in a comprehensive school are outlined. In conclusion, it is concluded that the creation of a specialized psychological and pedagogical class contributes to an increase in the proportion of graduates who have chosen professional psychological and pedagogical education programs; an increase in the number of students involved in continuing education; the organization of a psychological and pedagogical service to support the learning process in a specialized class; the creation of systemic links with universities.

Examining the Efficacy and Results of a Short-Form Alzheimer's Survey With College Students

College students are important stakeholders in addressing the significant costs of Alzheimer’s disease in their future roles as caretakers, health care consumers, taxpayers, and as individuals in the workforce whose careers may interact with and impact those with Alzheimer’s and their caregivers. To assess their knowledge of Alzheimer’s, a 10-item True/False on-line quiz was presented to 912 students in Introductory Psychology classes. Participants were 61% white, 13% Asian/Asian American, and 10% Latinx, with 14% reporting other racial and ethnic groups, including that of mixed heritage; 59% of the sample self-reported as female. The quiz was counterbalanced such that items appearing in one format (e.g., True) appeared in the other format (e.g., False) across the two forms of the quiz. A significant difference was found for percent correct in Form A (61.4%) versus Form B (59.3%). In order to prompt participants to consider the ways the disease may impact their own lives, additional questions examined students’ own experience with Alzheimer’s, their interest and willingness to take action towards supporting Alzheimer’s research, and their perceptions about how Alzheimer’s would impact their lives personally, financially, and in their career pursuits. The research extends the findings of earlier research on student knowledge of Alzheimer’s (e.g., Bailey, 2000; Eshbaugh, 2014) by allowing the results to be broken down by gender, race/ethnicity, and student major. It also expands upon those findings by identifying how college students project the societal effects and costs of Alzheimer’s to their own lives and livelihoods.

An Action Research on High School Psychology Class Operated by Online Interschool Program

목적 본 연구는 연구자가 온라인 공동교육과정 고등학교 교양 심리학 교과 수업을 운영하고, 그 결과를 분석하여 향후 효과적으로 수업을 운영할 수 있는 방안에 대해 모색하기 위해 실시되었다. 방법 연구자들은 실행연구 방법에 따라 계획, 실행, 성찰, 계획 수정의 순으로 연구를 진행하였다. 심리학 교과의 교육 목표를 고려하여 교육과정을 계획한 뒤, 한 학기 동안 온라인 공동교육과정으로 수업을 진행하였다. 수업을 수강한 학생들의 경험과 의견을 중심으로, 실행된 수업을 성찰한 후 그 결과를 바탕으로 수업 계획을 수정⋅보완하였다. 결과 분석 결과, 학생들은 생애 최초 실시한 쌍방향 온라인 방식으로 수업에 참여하고 수행평가를 실시하는 것에 대한 만족도가 높은 것으로 나타났다. 또한 수업을 통해 심리학의 학문적 성격에 대해 알게 되었고, 자신과 타인, 사회에 대한 이해의 깊이를 더할 수 있었다고 응답하였다. 이는 심리학 교과가 청소년의 자기 이해와 발달에 긍정적인 영향을 줄 수 있음을 시사하였다. 참여 중심적 수업 운영 방식, 학생의 진로와 흥미를 고려한 수업 내용, 심도 있는 자기 이해를 위한 심리검사 실시 및 해석 등이 수업에 대한 학생의 만족도와 학습 효과에 영향을 미치고 있었다. 이를 바탕으로 차기 수업계획안을 수정⋅보완하였다. 즉, 학생들의 흥미와 학습 동기를 고려하여 교육과정을 구성하고, 심리학에 대한 이해와 더불어 자기 이해 및 발달을 촉진할 수 있도록 다양한 교수방법을 활용하였다. 결론 수업설계 및 교수자의 역량, 교육과정 구성 및 운영 측면에서 고등학교 교양 심리학 수업의 교육적 효과를 높이기 위한 실천 방안을 제시하였다.

Teachers’ Talk of a Walk they Don’t Stride: A Case Study of Education Student Teachers’ Perspectives on Hookah Smoking

Hookah smoking is widely spreading among Lebanese adolescence. The aim of this study was to investigate the perspectives of prospective student teachers pertaining to hookah smoking to determine their readiness to educate their future students in what relates to the dangers of smoking. The sample consisted of education sophomore student teachers (N=53), at the Education Faculty of one university in Lebanon. Participants constituted of the students enrolled in two educational psychology classes taught by the researcher. The topic was not part of what is being taught to students at the university. The e-survey obtained information on participants’ demographics, hookah smoking awareness, and their educative perspectives on hookah smoking. The study used mixed methods employing an 18-item survey on hookah smoking, alongside a semi structured heterogeneous focus group interview with six student teachers; two who were identified respectively as: hookah smokers, non-smokers, semi-smokers, and all were selected randomly from the pool of participants. Findings suggest that education student teachers have dispersed and unbalanced educative perceptions on hookah smoking. The study recommends that an efficient Lebanese anti-smoking awareness program should highly emphasize targeting the college student teachers, who are at the future front line with the youthful upcoming generation, and thus can highly affect their awareness pertaining to smoking in general, and hookah smoking in specific.

Preface: Unrealized Potentials, Anomalous Experiences, and Humanistic Psychology

For half a century, mainstream psychology had been proposing that human experiences, such as ecstasy and anguish, are effects of neurophysiological processes. The major topics of psychology classes were neuron networks, genetic effects, the behavior of rodents, and statistical tables. Early humanistic psychologists asked, “Where is the experience in all of this? Where is the human in all of this? What does it all mean? And what will be the impact on my life?” Mainstream psychology had developed useful tools to describe, measure, and explain human conduct, with explanations ranging from Freudian psychodynamics to Skinnerian operant conditioning. But exploration of the existential issues of human life, of meaning and intention, were sidelined. It took a “humanistic revolution” to deepen and broaden the scope of psychology to include humanistic psychology (and existential psychology in Europe).

Skeptics and Believers: Examining the Role of Extroversion and Skepticism in Paranormal Beliefs

Prior research has identified inconsistencies in relations between extroversion and paranormal beliefs, particularly in the context of a direct association between skepticism and paranormal beliefs. Thus, the current study investigates the role of skepticism and extroversion on the paranormal beliefs of individuals. Participants were 384 students from an accredited postsecondary minority institution enrolled in a Skepticism and Pseudoscience Psychology class. All participants completed a set of online questionnaires that examined their personality traits (i.e., extroversion and neuroticism), skepticism, and paranormal beliefs. A 2x2 analysis of variance indicated that extroverted individuals exhibited greater belief in the paranormal than their less extroverted counterparts. No association was found between skepticism and paranormal beliefs. However, for less extroverted individuals, belief in the paranormal was higher for those with high skepticism relative to those with low skepticism. The limitations and implications of these findings are discussed.

Real-World Skills in a Virtual World: An Innovative Activity for Teaching Developmental Psychopathology

Background Incorporating professional development into undergraduate psychology coursework is an ongoing area of improvement for educators. Objective We present a novel activity encouraging students to explore various professional skills and roles for which their psychology major prepares them through application to real-world issues. Method Students participated in one of two virtual mental health summits and formed working groups to present from different perspectives (e.g., public health, epidemiology, etc.). Students collectively voted on resolutions at the end of each summit (e.g., budgetary recommendations for a county health department). Results We examined student perceptions of confidence in their professional skills and content knowledge before and after summits. Students indicated that they wanted more applied assignments like the mental health summit in other psychology classes and preferred the activity to exams or papers in a virtual course. Teaching Implications The mental health summit represented a real-world application activity that students indicated wanting in their courses. Recommendations for how to adapt the presented activity for non-clinical psychology courses are discussed. Conclusion The mental health summit activity supported the real-world application that students desire. Future iterations of the activity can build on the model we describe to support greater skill improvement.

Middle class sprawl: Locating the psychologesque in the history of psychology.

To add to the system of classes already present in the recent historiography of psychology, a new and broader class is proposed, the psychologesque. This class includes, along with a central core of master's- and PhD-level psychologists, surrounding belts of cognate professionals in other fields who are, to a greater or lesser degree, tinged with psychology. Advantages to including this broad class, in some ways similar to the U.S. middle class, in the history of psychology are advanced. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Perceived Influence of Large Class Size and Psychological Classroom Environment on Students’ Academic Performance in Senior High Schools in Kumasi Metropolis, Ghana

This study investigated how large class size and the psychological class environment influenced students’ academic performance. Survey design was employed. Three hundred and twenty students were purposively selected from ten senior high schools in Kumasi Metropolis. Questionnaire was used to obtain data from the respondents with a reliability coefficient of 0.7. The study revealed that large class size influenced students’ academic performance and also limits their learning opportunities. It also came up that psychological class environment have a great influence on students’ academic performance. Furthermore, the study showed that students perform well in smaller class size and good psychological classroom environment. The study, therefore, recommends that small class size and good psychological class environment are better for good performance. Teachers and head teachers should make sure they conform to the required teacher to student ratio of 1:40 recommended by the Ghana Education Service. Teachers should create an enabling environment for students to participate in classroom activities. Government should, therefore, employ more teachers and build more classrooms to solve the problem of large class size in the senior high schools in Ghana.

Teaching and Learning During A Pandemic: How one Graduate Community Psychology Class Quickly Incorporated Healing Justice Into Our Practices.

In this first‐person account, we describe the changes we made to align our graduate student‐level community psychology class with a healing justice model. We undertook this intervention because the class started in March, at the beginning of the COVID‐19 pandemic stay‐at‐home directive in our region. We describe the facets of a healing justice model, which promotes radical healing and collective action in a trauma‐informed environment. We then discuss the changes we made to the class to better align with healing justice, including how enrolled students (i.e., co‐authors) experienced the process of the course (e.g., reworking the syllabus, starting class with check‐ins and an exercise to engage our parasympathetic nervous systems), as well as the content of the course (e.g., service projects to support people who are undocumented, unhoused, or minoritized in other ways; photovoice). We end with implications for teaching community psychology, including the importance of universal design, and for scholar‐activist PhD programs.

Studying Subjective Well-Being during a Quarantine

To investigate the impact of writing a gratitude letter on particular mood states, we asked students in two university classes (a research class and a positive psychology class) to complete a 15-item mood assessment survey (MAS) twice a day (once in the morning and once at night). The research students who signed up for one or two pass/fail field-study credits in a research class also completed the MAS twice a day, but they did not write the weekly gratitude letter that was expected from the students in the positive psychology class. Each mood state was averaged per each day for the participants in each group and compared between the Gratitude Group and the Control Group. No group difference occurred for some mood states like “incompetent,” but for the “unmotivated” mood state, a significant difference was found. To investigate the potential effect of weekday, we compared the average mood rating between groups for each day of the week. For the mood state of “unmotivated”, a remarkable dip occurred on Wednesday for the Gratitude group, but not for the Control group. These results indicated that writing a gratitude letter increased the benefactor’s motivation, especially on the day when it was accomplished.

Does expressive writing or an instructional intervention reduce the impacts of test anxiety in a college classroom?

Test anxiety is a major concern in education because it causes uncomfortable feelings in test-anxious students and may reduce the validity of exam scores as a measure of learning. As such, brief and cost-effective interventions are necessary to minimize the negative impact of test anxiety on students’ academic performance. In the present experiment, we examine two such interventions: expressive writing (Experiment 1) and an instructional intervention (Experiment 2), with the latter developed from a similar intervention for stereotype threat. Across four authentic exams in a psychology class, students alternated between completing the intervention and a control task immediately before completing the exams. Neither intervention was effective at reducing test anxiety or improving exam performance. The present results suggest that these interventions may not be successful in addressing the impacts of test anxiety in all classroom settings.

The Impact of Screen-Free Zones in an Undergraduate Psychology Classroom: Assessing Exam Performance and Instructor Evaluations in Two Quasi-Experiments

Background: With in-person instruction, many undergraduates look at screens during lectures. Because screens can distract, attempts to curb this behavior through screen policies are increasingly common but understudied. Objective and Method: Two quasi-experimental studies (Study 1: N = 412; Study 2: N = 179) in the same Psychology class explore results of restricting screens to one area of the classroom on exam performance and instructor/course evaluation. Results: In both studies, these policies improved exam scores in the class. In Study 2, students who chose to sit in the screen-free zone did better on exams. Limiting screen use to the back of the classroom (Study 1) produced student pushback in qualitative comments and lower evaluations in quantitative instructor and course ratings. In contrast, placing screen and screen-free zones side-by-side (Study 2) was accepted without comment by students. Conclusion: Together, these studies suggest that creating screen-free zones in classrooms can be beneficial for students, especially for those students who choose to sit in the screen-free section. Additionally, students accept side-by-side division of a classroom into screen and screen-free zones. Teaching Implications: Because these studies are ecologically valid, results have implications for how students take notes and how instructors set restrictions on screens in their classroom.

Exploring a core psychopathology in disordered eating: the feelings of fat scale

BackgroundFeelings of fat are common for people with eating disorders, but ways of measuring its intensity are needed. Therefore, our goal was to develop a self-report feelings of fat scale that asked participants to indicate how intensely they currently felt statements such as “I feel fat”. With such a scale we can determine how strongly feelings of fat relate to evidence of disordered eating.MethodsWe conducted three studies of eating disorders with undergraduate women taking introductory psychology classes. The combined sample was 472 participants. A previous eating disorder diagnosis was self-reported by 33 participants and a current diagnosis by 11. All participants completed the EDE-Q and the seven (Study 1) or nine item (Studies 2 and 3) “State Feelings of Fat” (SFF) scales we developed. Each item asked them to rate the intensity with which they felt statements such “I feel fat” on a seven-point scale from “not at all” to “the most I have ever felt”.ResultsBoth the seven and nine item SFF scales were highly coherent (Cronbach’s α were .94, .95 and .94), but factor analysis supported the seven-item version. We found high correlations between SFF and EDE-Q scores (Study 1: .816; Study 2: .808; Study 3: .841). SFF scores distinguished participants self-reporting no eating disorder diagnosis from those with a former diagnosis, t (361) = 2.33, p = .021, who in turn were distinguished from those with a current diagnosis, t (42) = 2.09, p = .043. Due to the high coherence of the scale, the single item “I feel fat” captured most of the variance in EDE-Q scores (r [472] = .793).ConclusionsWe have constructed an eating disorders relevant feelings of fat scale. Given that the EDE-Q is considered a valid questionnaire for measuring severity of eating disorders, our findings suggests that feelings of fat are core to the psychopathology of eating disorders. To the extent that EDE-Q scores are stable it also suggests that feelings of fat are surprisingly stable. Furthermore, the single item “I feel fat” alone may capture most of what the EDE-Q measures.

Individual differences in task-unrelated thought in university classrooms

This study investigated what academic traits, attitudes, and habits predict individual differences in task-unrelated thought (TUT) during lectures, and whether this TUT propensity mediates associations between academic individual differences and course outcomes (final grade and situational interest evoked by material). Undergraduates (N = 851) from ten psychology classes at two US universities responded to thought probes presented during two early-course lectures; they also indicated sitting in the front, middle, or back of the classroom. At each probe, students categorized their thought content, such as indicating on-task thought or TUT. Students also completed online, academic-self-report questionnaires at the beginning of the course and a situational interest questionnaire at the end. Average TUT rate was 24% but individuals’ rates varied widely (SD = 18%). TUT rates also increased substantially from the front to back of the classroom, and modestly from the first to second half of class periods. Multiple-group analyses (with ten classroom groups) indicated that: (a) classroom media-multitasking habits, initial interest in the course topic, and everyday propensity for mind-wandering and boredom accounted for unique variance in TUT rate (beyond other predictors); (b) TUT rate accounted for unique (modest) variance in course grades and situational interest; and (c) classroom media multitasking and propensity for mind-wandering and boredom had indirect associations with course grades via TUT rate, and these predictor variables, along with initial interest, had indirect associations with end-of-term situational interest via TUT rate. Some academic traits and behaviors predict course outcomes in part because they predict off-task thought during class.

Switching from Face-to-Face to Online Instruction Midsemester

The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted higher education during Spring 2020 by forcing all face-to-face classes to unexpectedly transition to online learning. To better understand how switching to remote learning affected students and the factors that impacted their ability to successfully complete classes, 168 undergraduate students in three different psychology classes (six sections total) were asked in the last week of the semester about their experiences from before and after the switch. Students reported some decreased access to technology, changes in work responsibilities, some amount of physical illness, and the need to care for others who were physically ill. Notably, students consistently reported increased stress and decreased ability to focus. Students varied in how much they prioritized classes after the switch, which predicted their performance in the class, measured by exam grade, overall grade, and completion of attendance before and after the switch. Importantly, survey respondents significantly differed from non-respondents in their class performance, which suggests that results from voluntary surveys may capture a limited perspective and possibly underestimate the detrimental effects of the shift to online instruction. Implications for planning for future online classes in a global pandemic are discussed.