Psychology

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This is the collection for the University of Waterloo's Department of Psychology.

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Identifying Analogue Samples of Individuals with Clinically Significant Social Anxiety: Updating and Combining Cutoff Scores on the Social Phobia Inventory and Sheehan Disability Scale
(University of Waterloo, 2024-07-26) Kudryk, Sophie
The use of analogue samples, as opposed to clinical groups, is common in mental health research, including research on social anxiety disorder (SAD). Recent observational and statistical evidence has raised doubts about the validity of current methods for establishing analogue samples of individuals with clinically significant social anxiety. Here, we used data from large community samples of clinical and non-clinical participants to determine new cutoff scores of 34 on the Social Phobia Inventory (SPIN), a validated self-report measure of social anxiety symptoms, and a new cutoff score of 11 on the Sheehan Disability Scale (SDS), a validated self-report measure of social anxiety symptom-related impairment. We then examined whether using these newly determined cutoff scores alone or in combination improves the identification of individuals who have SAD from those who do not, revealing intriguing trade- offs in sensitivity and specificity and clear recommendations for the use of the new cutoff scores in combination with one another to facilitate future research. Finally, we compared the effects of our new cutoff scores with the original cutoff scores currently used in research on social anxiety by extracting analogue samples of participants with high social anxiety from historical data on seven large groups of undergraduate Psychology research participants from the University of Waterloo spanning the past five years (2018–2023). We observed that the new combined cutoff scores identified markedly fewer students as having high social anxiety, lending credibility to their validity and utility. We also observed a striking increase in levels of social anxiety symptoms in the undergraduate population from before to after the COVID-19 pandemic. Of note, most participants were under 30 and identified as Caucasian or Asian women, indicating that future research is needed to examine whether our findings generalize to diverse populations. Implications and future directions for social anxiety research are discussed.
Relatedness in memory and metamemory: Benefits, costs, and beliefs
(University of Waterloo, 2024-06-27) Lu, Xinyi
This dissertation examines the influence of semantic relatedness on both memory and metamemory. Related items tend to be better remembered than unrelated items in most memory tasks, and people are usually able to anticipate this in their memory predictions. In this dissertation, I report a novel case where inter-item relatedness produces a memory cost, specifically, in a location memory task. Despite this cost, participants predict that relatedness should be beneficial in this task, showing a misalignment between their beliefs and their performance. I then examine the mechanisms underlying the relatedness cost in location memory performance and what I refer to as the relatedness halo in metamemory. The latter phenomenon in particular is used to provide novel insights into the nature of metamemory beliefs and how they are updated in response to new information. I advance a theoretical framework for understanding beliefs as cue-dependent judgments that are constructed from multiple sources of retrieved information.
Intentional Forgetting: The Role of Retrieval in Encoding
(University of Waterloo, 2024-05-23) Tan, Pelin
Intentional remembering and intentional forgetting are adaptive processes that permit us to exert control over the contents of our memories. These abilities ensure that memory preserves the most goal-relevant information, and that goal-irrelevant information is discarded. Often studied in the literature using the item-method directed forgetting paradigm, research continues to debate the cognitive mechanisms that individuals use to intentionally remember and forget information. In this paradigm, during the study phase each presented item receives its own instructional cue—either to-be-forgotten (F) or to-be-remembered (R). The typical finding during the test phase is that memory is poorer for F items than for R items—the directed forgetting effect. In this dissertation, in Chapter 2, I tested the assumptions of a prominent and longstanding account of the directed forgetting effect: the selective rehearsal account. To do so, I manipulated the time available for rehearsal and time-based decay. Four experiments investigated the influence of instructional cue durations of 1, 5, and 10 seconds. Experiments 1a and 1b, with the order of cue durations randomized, showed no effect of cue duration on recognition of either R or F single words. Experiment 2, using unrelated word pairs, again showed no effect of cue duration, here on associative recognition. Experiments 3 and 4 blocked cue duration and showed enhanced recognition of both R and F single words and word pairs with increasing cue duration. To explain this set of findings, I suggested that better memory for R items than for F items across cue duration depends on (1) a rapid retrieval check engaged for R items only and (2) a rapid removal process implemented for F items only. Additionally, any post-cue rehearsal is carried out only when cue duration is predictable and is equally likely for F items and R items. In Chapter 3, I set out to test this rapid retrieval check mechanism by inducing an act of retrieval for F items. I predicted that if a rapid retrieval check of R items drives the directed forgetting effect, then inducing such a retrieval check mechanism for F items should reduce the magnitude of the directed forgetting effect. Experiment 5 demonstrated that simply repeating an F item in the encoding list did not force the retrieval of that item. However, in Experiment 6, incorporating a button press for the participant to indicate noticing the repetition of an item revealed that, for items where this repetition was noticed, the directed forgetting effect was eliminated. Experiment 7 induced an act of retrieval using an immediate recognition task following the R/F cue presentation. Results indicated that a retrieval check was successfully induced for F items where the target on the recognition task matched the preceding item, eliminating the directed forgetting effect and confirming the critical role of retrieval in item-method directed forgetting. Experiment 8 replicated these findings while also demonstrating that the removal of F items from working memory did not depend on an active inhibitory mechanism, framing the retrieval-based explanation as a non-inhibitory account of intentional forgetting at encoding. Ultimately, this dissertation provides a novel account of item-method directed forgetting in the form of a selective retrieval account. The account emphasizes the pivotal contribution of a rapid retrieval check mechanism applied only to R items during encoding being primarily responsible for the directed forgetting effect. This new theoretical perspective opens avenues for future research on intentional forgetting to explore the role of retrieval during encoding.
Cognitive homeostasis: Boredom as a drive for optimal engagement
(University of Waterloo, 2024-05-02) Trudel, Chantal
Boredom is the feeling of wanting but failing to engage the mind. The first part of this thesis proposes a theory that casts boredom as a signal of suboptimal utilization of cognitive resources. Homeostasis is used as an analogy that frames the in-the-moment feeling of boredom as a deviation from optimal engagement. It also offers an allostatic account for chronic boredom (i.e., trait boredom proneness) and briefly explores potential neural indicators of both boredom and cognitive engagement before considering related processes of meaning making. This model of boredom characterizes the experience as a dynamic response to both internal and external exigencies and leads to testable hypotheses for both the nature of the state and the trait disposition to experience the state frequently and intensely. Furthermore, it casts a more general hypothesis that humans strive to optimally engage with their environs, in order to maintain a kind of cognitive homeostatic set point. The second part of the thesis consists of a study, its replication, and an experiment derived from the theory. The study is resting on a prominent model of affective regulation suggesting that interoceptive signals are used to predict the affective outcomes of intended actions paired with recent neuroimaging work implicating the anterior insular cortex in boredom. Results showed strong relations with boredom proneness and attention to interoceptive signals. Data also showed that high boredom prone individuals tend to struggle to make sense of interoceptive signals. The experiment that followed made use of a heartbeat counting task to objectively test interoceptive accuracy as a function of boredom proneness. Heart rate variability was also measured while inducing moods of boredom and interest. While poor performance did not correlate with chronic boredom, induced state boredom triggered a higher stress response as indicated by cardiac vagal tone. These results characterize state boredom as a physiological stressor that fits well within the model proposed as a push to restore cognitive homeostasis by prompting the agent to find a more positively valenced endeavour.
A meta-analytic comparison of why workplace ostracism relates to discretionary behavior
(University of Waterloo, 2024-04-24) Law, Denise
It is well established that the victims of workplace ostracism (WO) engage in fewer organizational citizenship behaviors (OCB) and more counterproductive workplace behaviors (CWB). However, significant gaps remain in our knowledge of why these relationships exist. To advance current comprehension of intermediary processes within this domain, we investigate the leading conceptual account, belongingness theory, alongside two theoretically compelling alternatives: social exchange and self-regulatory resources. Drawing on meta-analytic structural equation modeling (MASEM) and data generated from 160 samples, we investigate two possible mediational models: (a) a competitive model that directly pits the three mechanisms against one another, and (b) a sequential integrative model that combines them. Overall, our findings indicate that even though belongingness is a key mediating process, social exchange and resource mechanisms are critical and complement it. Furthermore, our results suggest the nature of the explanatory mechanisms is nuanced and depends not only on the outcome under investigation (i.e., OCB versus CWB), but also the mediational model tested (i.e., competitive mediation versus sequential mediation). Secondarily, in our study, we control for other forms of mistreatment, such as workplace incivility, and demonstrate that the effect of WO is incremental and independent of other forms of mistreatment. Findings are discussed in terms of how they advance WO theory as well as our understanding of why WO relates to CWB and OCB.
The Uncertainty Model of Boredom and Self-Control Failure: How Ambient Uncertainty Influences Affect and Behaviour during Unrelated Goal Pursuit
(University of Waterloo, 2024-01-04) Britton, Emily
Integrating basic theories of motivation, boredom and self-regulation, in this dissertation, I present the Uncertainty Model of Boredom and Self-Control Failure (UM-B-SCF). The UM-B-SCF proposes that motivational states elicited in one context can influence affect and behaviour during subsequent unrelated goal pursuit. Motivational theory guiding my work suggests that under conditions of goal conflict and uncertainty, the behavioural inhibition system (BIS) is activated causing generalized shifts in cognition, affect and behaviour, which persist until the conflict can be resolved (Corr & McNaughton, 2008; Gray & McNaughton, 2000). According to the UM-B-SCF, the resulting motivational state is conducive to feelings of boredom and self-control failure. Importantly, if uncertainties persist unresolved, the ambient motivational state can carry forward to cause boredom and low self-control in other goals unrelated to the initial conflict. Across seven studies (N = 1,972), I found consistent support for the proposed model. People who experienced greater uncertainty, whether due to awareness of death (Studies 2 and 3), the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic (Studies 4 and 5), an uncertain personal relationship (Study 7), or general life circumstances (Studies 1 and 6) perceived unrelated tasks and projects as more boring and difficult to complete. Felt uncertainty about an initial conflict predicted both experiencing (Studies 1, 2, 3, 4, and 6) and anticipating (Studies 2, 3, 5, and 7) more boredom and less self-control in general (Study 1), during a data entry task (Studies 2 and 3), working on daily tasks (Study 4), completing an online survey (Studies 4 and 7), imagining pursuing general (Study 5) and academic or career-related personal projects (Studies 2 and 3), and working toward general (Study 4) and specific academic goals (Study 6) over the course of a month. In Study 6, I assessed between- and within-person variability in uncertainty and found that experiencing more uncertainty on average and feeling more uncertain than usual were both associated with boredom and difficulties exercising self-control. In all seven studies, the results were consistent with an indirect pathway such that uncertainty predicted greater boredom, and boredom in turn predicted less self-control. Collectively, the results of the present research suggest that ambient uncertainty may be an inconspicuous but influential barrier to effective goal pursuit. Findings are discussed with respect to their implications for understanding the proposed theoretical process, including possible alternative conceptualizations of the model. Possible applications of the findings for alleviating boredom and disengagement are also discussed.
Correlates and Consequences of Misjudging Romantic Partners’ Work and Family Priorities
(University of Waterloo, 2023-12-05) Cyr, Emily
Women still complete the preponderance of unpaid domestic labour, even when employed full-time. Conversely, despite lessening pressures on men to provide financially, men have not seen a commensurate uptick in domestic work. I propose that inaccurate interpersonal perceptions between men and women are a key mechanism driving these uneven changes to gender roles. I mega-analytically analyzed the work and family goals of 435 mixed-gender romantic couples in Canada, then calculated women’s and men’s inaccuracies when appraising their partners’ goals. On average, women wanted more egalitarian romantic relationships than men, a gap compounded by men underestimating their partners' desire for egalitarianism. Further, men (especially those who saw their partners as highly feminine) simultaneously overestimated their partners' orientation toward family goals (over career goals) and their career intensity. Women also misperceived their partners, but here expectations were fairly low: Women underestimated their partners' family goals and career intensity. Turning to long-term outcomes, modest evidence emerged that people with inaccurate partners experienced lower relationship well-being within the next two years. Perceiving partners as being generally poor at perspective-taking (distinct from their actual inaccuracy) was the most powerful predictor of both relationship dissolution and worsened relationship well-being. These findings clarify common misperceptions between romantic partners and illuminate the consequences of having—or perceiving you have—a partner who does not understand your work and family goals.
Dazzled and Confused: Bullshitting as a Strategic Behaviour
(University of Waterloo, 2023-12-05) Turpin, Martin Harry
While much work has focused on receptivity to bullshit as a form of irrational belief which may predict the endorsement of other irrational beliefs, much less has been done examining how bullshit may be used strategically. For a highly social species such as humans, much can be gained by deploying cognitive and linguistic tricks to impress, confuse, and entice others toward favourable actions for the bullshitter. In the current research, I examine the persuasive power of bullshit in 9 studies. First, I demonstrate how the use of bullshit affects people’s judgments of things unrelated to the content of the bullshit itself, including enhancing the perceived profoundness of abstract art through the inclusion of bullshit titles (Chapter 2) or increasing reported willingness-to-pay for questionable products which are described using bullshit (Chapter 3). Further, I demonstrate that effective bullshitting may confer benefits in terms of how others perceive the bullshitter, including that good bullshitters are judged to be more intelligent. I also demonstrate that this judgement may not be completely unfounded insofar as cognitive ability predicts the ability to bullshit well (Chapter 4). I then propose a potential mechanism for why bullshit carries persuasive power, that is, through a unique combination of aesthetic appeal and confusing construction which leaves the target of bullshit baffled, but open to be impressed by the odd beauty of flowery nonsense. I ultimately find that the strongest predictor of receptivity to bullshit is how beautiful it is judged to be (Chapter 5). I discuss these results as they contribute to an understanding of bullshitting as a strategic behaviour which affords good bullshitters the opportunity to gain advantages through confusion, superficial impressiveness, and a flexible commitment to truth telling.
Extremely Partisan Samples Impact Perceptions of Political Group Beliefs
(University of Waterloo, 2023-12-05) van der Valk, Alexandra
Accurately inferring the beliefs of a partisan group (e.g. Democrats, Republicans) can be challenging when exposed to extremely partisan beliefs from that group. Across two studies (total N = 566), we tested whether people correct these inferences for sample bias when it was explicitly disclosed. Study 2 further assessed how much of this correction is deliberate. Participants read 12 statements that most members of a political party (Democrats or Republicans) generally agree with. They were shown how strongly five party members agreed with each statement. In the biased sample conditions, these five party members were selected from the top 10% most partisan members; this bias was either disclosed or undisclosed. In the unbiased sample condition, the five members were representatively sampled from the entire party. Then, participants estimated on average how much the entire party agreed with each statement, and the likelihood that party members of the same or opposing parties agreed with each other. Participants’ mean estimates from the biased sample conditions were higher than the unbiased sample condition but lower than the samples viewed, indicating an (insufficient) attempt to correct for sample bias. Corrections were largest when sample bias was disclosed. Overall accuracy was highest when participants viewed unbiased samples, though across conditions there appeared a general tendency to overestimate strength of partisan beliefs. Parties were perceived as more homogeneous when participants viewed biased samples, regardless of whether bias was disclosed or not. While awareness of hyperpartisan bias helps correct judgments, it may not eliminate overestimation, overconfidence, or inflated perceptions of party homogeneity.
An Investigation into the Self-deployment of Attentional Reminders
(University of Waterloo, 2023-10-24) Leatham, Zion
In a series of studies, we sought to determine whether 1) people will self-deploy attentional reminders when asked to complete an attentionally demanding task (Experiment 1 & 2), 2) people modulate the number of attentional reminders they selected depending on the presence or absence of a continuous distraction (Experiment 1 & 2) and 3) if so, do reminders improve performance on the attentionally demanding task (Experiment 1, 2 & 3). In Experiments 1 and 2 participants were asked to complete an attentionally demanding task (2-back; primary task) and completed the 2-back task on its own (no distraction condition) or while a distracting video was played on the computer screen above the 2-back task stimuli (distraction condition). Critically, participants were given a preview of the 2-back task and the video (if present). After being given a preview of the task, they were asked to set how many (if any) reminders they wanted to receive during the task. We followed this up in Experiment 3, where we removed the choice component. Specifically, in this study, half of the participants received experimenter-set attentional reminders (every 2 minutes) while the other half did not receive any reminders. Findings from Experiments 1 and 2 indicated that people will opt to select attentional reminders when asked to complete an attentionally demanding task, however, their modulation of the reminders was irrespective of the presence or absence of a distracting video. In addition, the attentional reminders people set did not influence performance on the 2-back task. Experiment 3 demonstrated that people who received experimenter-set attentional reminders did not significantly perform better on the 2-back task in the presence of a distracting video. These results suggest that the attentional reminders may influence performance, however, their influence might be dependent on the contingent timing of the deployment of the attentional reminders.
Assessing the association between the error-related ERPs and trait anxiety using mass univariate statistics
(University of Waterloo, 2023-09-28) Chen, Zelin
Enhanced error monitoring, as reflected in increased amplitude of the error-related negativity (ERN) ERP component, has been suggested to be a vulnerability neuro-marker of anxiety disorders. However, the association between an enhanced ERN amplitude and increased anxiety levels in the nonclinical population have been inconsistent. In a sample of 82 adults, we examined the association between anxiety and the ERN with different analytical methods (mass-univariate statistics and conventional analyses), self-reported anxiety scales (STAI and STICSA), and trial numbers (all correct trials and equal numbers of correct and error trials). Both the conventional and mass-univariate analyses demonstrated a robust enhancement of the ERN and Pe relative to the correct-ERPs. However, the mass-univariate approach additionally unveiled a wider array of electrodes and a longer duration of involvement in this error enhancement. There was no consistent moderation of the findings by trial numbers, analyses, and anxiety scales. Across the analytic methods, the results showed a lack of consistent correlation between trait anxiety and error-related ERPs. The present results suggest a lack of enhancement of error monitoring by anxious traits in individuals with sub- clinical anxiety and those with clinical anxiety but without a clinical diagnosis. Importantly, the absence of such correlation questions the validity of the ERN as a neural marker for anxiety disorders. Future studies that investigate neuro-markers of anxiety may explore alternative neural signatures and task designs and employ robust statistics to provide a more comprehensive understanding of anxiety vulnerability.
A Metamotivational Approach to Understanding Managers’ Beliefs About Motivationally Diverse Teams in the Domain of Regulatory Mode
(University of Waterloo, 2023-09-26) Jansen, Erik
Cultivating effective teams requires managers to integrate the efforts of individuals who often vary in their backgrounds, skills, and identities. One way that team members can differ from each other is in their motivational orientation, or the reasons and ways that people pursue goals. Extant literature demonstrates that the complementary nature of two regulatory mode motivational orientations (locomotion and assessment) can benefit the performance of individuals and teams. Yet relatively little is known about what managers believe about how to manage this type of motivational diversity in teams. In this dissertation, I combine insights from the literature in motivation science, team management, and diversity to propose a novel perspective on managing motivation in teams. The first part of this dissertation (Studies 1-3) examines what people believe about the role of regulatory mode motivation in teams. Study 1 demonstrates that people, on average, recognize the differential benefits of locomotion and assessment for task performance. Using complementary methodologies, Studies 2 and 3 revealed that although people perceive motivationally diverse (vs. homogenous) teams as prone to conflict (Study 2), when prompted to describe their beliefs about motivation in teams they also recognize its potential benefits (Study 3). Following this, in the second part of this dissertation (Studies 4 and 5) I draw on recent advances in the management of team diversity to examine the strategies managers use when managing motivation in teams. In both hypothetical (Studies 4A and 4B) and consequential (Study 5) contexts, managers recognized the differential utility of different kinds of management strategies and were sensitive to intrateam dynamics in motivationally diverse and homogenous teams, but did not vary their use of different kinds of management strategies when managing motivational diversity in teams. By focusing on what managers themselves believe and do when managing motivational diversity in teams, this research offers a novel perspective on an understudied area of team management with implications for the theoretical and practical study of team management.
COVID-19 Risk Perception in Urban and Architectural Environments
(University of Waterloo, 2023-09-20) Borkenhagen, David
The COVID-19 pandemic presented a profound challenge for cities. Cities are designed to maximize the benefits of density, yet this same density becomes a liability during an outbreak of a socially communicable infection. How did members of the general public perceive COVID-19 transmission risk in the urban and architectural environments they live in? And what effect do these perceptions have on pandemic-safe behaviours? The aim of this dissertation was to answer these questions using the methodologies of research psychology. Across five experiments, it was demonstrated that members of the general public hold complex perceptions of COVID-19 risk in urban and architectural environments, and utilize different visible and non-visible features to render judgments about risk. Moreover, risk perception consistently held a significant positive relationship with the likelihood to engage in pandemic-safe behaviours. These results provide insight on the subjective experience of citizens during the COVID-19 pandemic, and offer designers and policymakers information about human behaviour and psychology during this time of crisis. The results from these investigations are summarized in the form of design and policy insights so that designers can create spaces that are perceived as safe, and so that public policymakers can create more nuanced public health policy interventions that leverage the intrinsic motivation of citizens to protect themselves against the risk of infection. Given the inevitability of future pathogen outbreaks, the results from this dissertation stand to make a meaningful contribution to the fight to keep citizens safe during these times of crisis.
Environmental Influences on the Development of Child-Directed Speech Modifications in Young Children
(University of Waterloo, 2023-08-30) Rioux, Jillian
Background. Siblings play a big role in our early lives. Having an older sibling has been shown to contribute to later-born children’s socio-emotional understanding and prosocial skill development (Barr & Hayne, 2003; Brody, 1998; Dai & Heckman, 2013; Downey & Condron, 2004; Kheirkhah & Cekaite, 2018). However, their influence is often overlooked in the domain of language. In particular, it’s unknown whether older siblings contribute to later-born children’s pragmatic abilities, and whether this relationship is influenced by an older sibling’s gender. Current Research. In this thesis, I focus on the role that older siblings may play in the development of their younger sibling’s ability to adjust their speech for other listeners. This influence could potentially happen in two ways: First, older siblings could provide examples of modifications in their own speech directed towards their younger sibling. From this, younger siblings may learn to use these modifications with other listeners. Second, older siblings may act as a “bridge” to a large community of speakers and listeners (Mannle & Tomasello, 1987). If older siblings are less adept at understanding their younger siblings and accommodating their speech (than adults are), this may motivate later-born children to work on effective communication skills so they can be understood. Methods. This investigation consisted of two parts: An at-home picture completion game, and a virtual guessing game that was completed over Zoom. In the at-home task, target children between the ages of 4-6-years-old, their older sibling (if applicable), and their caregiver were asked to direct each other to complete elements of incomplete images. In an online task via 4 Zoom, target children were asked to direct simulated listeners (i.e., a baseline adult, a toddler, and a non-native accented child) to select the correct target image out of a set of three. Results. Due to time constraints surrounding data transcription and coding, this thesis focuses on the data from the at-home task. Older siblings had a significantly higher pitch and greater proportion of attention-grabbing devices when speaking to their younger sibling vs. their parent. Most notably, their speech to younger siblings was also more fluent (e.g., fewer “uhhs” and “umms”) than their speech to parents. Moreover, these patterns held for both older female and older male siblings, suggesting that there are no gender differences in children’s ability to modify their speech for a younger listener. Implications. The findings from the first half of this two-part investigation demonstrate that, during a structured task, older siblings do modify their speech for their later-born siblings, and most notably, speak more fluently than when speaking to their caregiver. This both replicates and extends previous demonstrations of older siblings’ abilities to modify their speech for their younger siblings.
Goal-Striving and Pilot Goal Management Training in Adolescents with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder
(University of Waterloo, 2023-08-29) Sadeghi Janbahan, Mahsa
Goal-striving across academic, social, and psychological domains of life is associated with many positive outcomes. Unsuccessful goal pursuits increase the risk of engagement in health-risk behaviours, future vocational difficulties, and interpersonal challenges. Individuals with ADHD have difficulties in academic and interpersonal areas of life, with well-documented motivational and executive functioning (EF) challenges. Stimulant medications, the most used treatment for ADHD, do not target these challenges and few interventions offered to adolescents with ADHD appear to support goal-striving. Although research investigating motivational and EF difficulties in ADHD has determined that support is necessary for successful goal-pursuit, little is known about how motivation, EF, and other factors such as grit (i.e., task persistence) impact efforts made by adolescents with ADHD to work on their goals. The current dissertation focuses on the EF deficits and motivational insight of adolescents with ADHD, in service of best supporting youth in both everyday contexts and interventions. The work presented in Studies 1 - 3 sought to present a fulsome description of how goal-striving difficulties lead to the functional impairments noted in adolescents with ADHD (i.e., ineffective goal-striving), by describing the motivation and EF of adolescents with ADHD compared to their same-aged peers and emerging adults in university. The sample included adolescents aged 14 – 17 years with and without ADHD, as well as emerging adults aged 19 – 22 years; each group was approximately 50% female. Study 1 highlighted that adolescents, as compared with their emerging adult peers, appear to require more effort and support to work on their goals. However, adolescents with ADHD also endorse less interest towards their academic goals, demonstrate difficulty linking their immediate goals to their future ambitions, and do not apply flexibility to their goal-pursuit strategies. In Study 2, adolescents with ADHD endorsed significantly more EF challenges and less grit compared to their peers, suggesting that support for adolescents with ADHD must uniquely address these challenges. For all adolescents, more external motivation was associated with higher levels of EF challenge. When considering motivation across any kind of goal (i.e., academic and non-academic), adolescents with ADHD demonstrated both internal and external motivational styles. This may indicate that adolescents with ADHD demonstrate nuances in their motivation not captured in previous studies, such that they are not simply “less motivated” than their peers, but rather that their EF difficulties may lead to less internal motivation towards academic goals. Building upon this, Study 4 outlined how these groups regulate their motivation by attempting to create a fit between their motivational state and task strategies, an ability known as metamotivation. Generally, all groups reported their experiences of both high and low motivational states (e.g., interest, meaningfulness, boredom, frustration), and strategies that bolster their goal striving in response to those feelings. However, there was variability in the metamotivational insight held by participants, such that those with ADHD tended to have a harder time recognizing feelings of low motivation and strategizing for conflict between complex goals. Results from these studies supported the need for a goal-striving intervention targeted for adolescents with ADHD, for whom EF difficulties and motivational awareness appear to create barriers to their goals. The final study of this dissertation piloted a modified Goal Management Training intervention for adolescents with ADHD, providing preliminary evidence of the feasibility of this EF intervention. Six participants (Mage = 15 years, SD = 1.1; 2 females; 66% taking stimulant medication for ADHD management) demonstrated adherence and tolerance to the training, and for some participants there was reliable change in self-reported executive functioning, functional impairment, and tasks of inhibition/switching, as well as parent-rated executive functioning. All parents reported improvements in their adolescent’s functional impairment. All but two participants met the goal they had selected prior to training. Results show that further exploration of the benefits and effects of training is warranted, showing the potential for a goal-based intervention as a new direction for treatment of difficulties associated with ADHD. Overall, the studies presented in this dissertation demonstrate the possibility of integration various social and clinical psychological constructs and provides a framework for future larger-scale studies.
Long-Term Consequences of Mild Traumatic Brain Injury in Younger Adults on Cognitive Performance and Emotional Regulation: Comparisons with Older Adults
(University of Waterloo, 2023-08-28) Cox, Adam William
Concussions, or mild traumatic brain injuries (mTBI), are common and seemingly innocuous. However, even long after individuals experience a mTBI they often report psychological consequences such as fatigue, unstable mood, and poor concentration. Individuals with a history of mTBI also often complain of difficulties in focusing attention, and lingering memory problems, though documenting deficits using standard neuropsychological testing typically fails to corroborate these effects. Many of their cognitive complaints are also voiced by typically aging older adults. Given this, we examined whether the cognitive signatures in aging and in those in young adults with a remote mTBI would be similar. We predicted a memory deficit relative to young adults with no mTBI history, on a recognition test for pairs of unrelated words (Associative memory) but not on an easier recognition test for individual words (Item memory) due to predicted deficits in available cognitive resources. We also predicted that deficits would be greater when encoding was done under conditions of reduced attentional resource availability, known to negatively affect older adults, and likely to exacerbate cognitive and psychological symptoms in mTBI. Data for Experiment 1 were collected in an in-person sample. Experiment 2 followed the same design, but data were collected in an online sample using crowd sourcing. Participants were asked to study pairs of unrelated words under either full or divided attention conditions. We found the expected main effect of Test Type on recognition memory, in both experiments, with Associative memory being poorer than Item memory. Moreover, we found the expected main effect of Attention with memory being poorer when encoding was done under divided attention. In terms of cognitive performance, we replicated the known ‘associative memory deficit’ in our older adult sample in Experiment 1, but not 2. We found that the drop in recognition accuracy from full to divided Attention conditions on the Associative memory test was significantly greater in mTBI compared to young controls and was like that seen in older adults. In terms of psychological measures, we found that self-reported mental fatigue increased significantly, only in the mTBI group, as performance on the Associative test under divided attention decreased. In conclusion, our findings suggest that younger adults with a remote mTBI, like older adults, have a tougher time coping when tasks increase in cognitive demand. Cognitive tasks may be experienced as more demanding in those with a mTBI group, even months after injury.
Family Health Service Utilization Patterns: Analysis of Predictors, Economic Costs, and Preventative Factors
(University of Waterloo, 2023-08-28) Urusov, Alexey
This study examined the family and individual-level predictors of caregiver/child health and social service utilization expenditures during the COVID-19 pandemic. A sample of UK caregivers (n = 418) provided reports on their families and two of their children between the ages of 5-18 (n = 836) during May and November of 2020. Caregiver report measures included COVID-19 distress, family functioning, caregiver distress, social support, child functional impairment, social and health service utilization expenditures, and demographic variables. Kruskall-Wallis non-parametric tests revealed significant group differences among families in relation to service expenditures based on family social support, caregiver distress, and child impairment. Zero-inflated negative binomial regressions revealed that for the younger child, COVID-19 stressors were the most important predictor of service expenditures. For the older child, functional impairment in different areas (e.g., school, home) was the most important predictor. For the caregiver, their own mental health, and demographic characteristics (e.g., relationship status, age), were the most important predictors. For the whole family, child impairment played the biggest role in predicting service utilization expenditures. These results demonstrate the importance of considering family and individual variables in relation to social and health service utilization expenditures. These outcomes highlight the importance of supporting families with prevention and early intervention initiatives that consider systemic factors across the family ecology, especially during large-scale social disruptions. Additionally, the findings highlight that there are multiple family processes at work associated with family well-being and the resulting societal healthcare expenditures.
Deeper insights into the construct of sexual communication: Understanding of the role of individual and relationship factors and the development of a process model
(University of Waterloo, 2023-08-23) Wasson, Kendra
Successful and fulfilling intimate relationships are an integral part of overall wellbeing, and their success and meaning are determined by many factors, including sexual communication within the relationship (Byers & Demmons, 1999; Rehman et al., 2011). Despite the substantial body of research that explains the impact of sexual communication on relational and sexual functioning, less is known about the process of communicating sexual topics. Sexual communication is a complex process involving the capacity for vulnerability as well as communication and perspective-taking skills (e.g., Buluş et al., 2017). Theoretical models have important utility in both research and clinical practice, but there are few models of sexual communication that capture its multidimensional nature. The goal of the current program of research was to expand on the foundational work by Brown and Weigel (2018) to develop the Process Model of Sexual Communication (PMSC). This model explains the relationships between individual factors, relationship context factors, and the process of sexual communication and their collective impact on outcome variables such as sexual satisfaction. I conducted two separate two-part studies (total n = 373) to explore the relationships between these factors and develop the PMSC using quantitative (Studies 1a and 1b) and mixed-method (Studies 2a and 2b) approaches. The results support the multidimensional nature of sexual communication and highlight the different topics that individuals discuss with their partners. They also highlight the importance of motivations for engaging in sexual communication and how those motivations impact the other components of the model. Using these results, I constructed the PMSC and tested associations between the model components. I discuss implications for research and clinical practice as well as future directions to test the full PMSC.
The Effects of Video Quality on Online Video Lectures
(University of Waterloo, 2023-08-23) Salvatierra, Julianna
With the increase in online learning, there is an increasing need to determine the most effective way to present lectures online (e.g., video lectures). While video lectures have several benefits, when delivered online as they typically are, they are vulnerable to video quality issues such as freezing (i.e., disruptions in audio and video playback). Such events have the potential to compromise learning and the lecture experience more broadly. In this study, we manipulated the presence of freezing in video lectures to examine how freezing might impact students’ attention, affect, effort, metacognition, and memory for lecture material. Across our four experiments, we found no consistent effects of the freezing condition on learning, load, and metacognition. There were modest impacts of the freezing condition on affect and attention (i.e., mind wandering), particularly with dense bouts of freezing.
Predictors of Excessive Reassurance Seeking in Social Anxiety
(University of Waterloo, 2023-08-22) Bui, Van
Excessive reassurance seeking has been conceptualized as a maladaptive coping strategy to lessen psychological distress among people struggling with anxiety and depression. Surprisingly, little research has been conducted on the nature and consequences of excessive reassurance seeking in individuals with social anxiety, who tend to worry about the impression they make in evaluative social contexts. We theorized that heightened feelings of social self- doubt may contribute to reassurance seeking behaviours in social anxiety, and that this association may be amplified by increased engagement in post-event processing, a form of ruminative mental replay in which negative self-evaluation is prominent. To address these questions in an initial study, we recruited 461 undergraduate participants for a pre-registered correlational study. Hierarchical regression analyses supported hypotheses, revealing that for participants with more impairing symptoms of social anxiety, greater self-doubt was associated with greater levels of reassurance seeking, but only when post-event processing was high. These findings, which are consistent with cognitive models of social anxiety, require replication and extension in naturalistic and experimental studies with diverse samples. The use of excessive reassurance seeking represents a potential barrier in interpersonal communication that may push others away and lead to suboptimal social support. Insights gleaned from this study as well as subsequent replication and extension studies could be beneficial for helping to develop therapeutic interventions that reduce self-doubt and rumination and improve social support seeking strategies and outcomes for those struggling with social anxiety.

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