Experience is the key to everyone’s emotional development, rather than knowledge and information gathering (Haidt, 2024). This study, conducted under Dr. April Masarik’s 'Human Universals Project' in the Human Development and Ecology Lab, explores shared human values and life philosophies across generations – challenging the idea that moral differences are solely generational. Using Jonathan Haidt and Jesse Graham’s Moral Foundations Theory and Braun and Clarke’s (2006) thematic analysis, I’m analyzing student autobiographical narratives from a PSYC 419 course (n = 94) to identify how value systems develop and function. In previous literature reviews and analyses, nine core themes emerged. A tenth theme has surfaced as data collection continues: “value systems ground us.” This multifaceted theme shows that values often serve as support systems, whether through fantasy, habit, or coping, in helping people navigate adversity. This finding is supported by Dr. Becky Kennedy’s parenting research, referencing Ronald Fairbairn: “for kids, it’s better to be a sinner in a world ruled by God than to live in a world ruled by the Devil” (2023). Even in maladaptive environments, belief systems offer structure and psychological security. This IRB-approved study is ongoing, with participant consent being collected for quote publication. Ultimately, this work highlights how iterative and ever-evolving value systems are as we aim to bridge the divide of intergenerational awareness and understanding, hoping to encourage a greater empathy for others.

Harm reduction is a set of evidenced based interventions aimed to reduce the harms associated with substance use disorder. Despite the evidence supporting the harm mitigating effects of harm reduction, widespread stigma has limited support and implementation of services in many communities. Destigmatizing harm reduction is a critical step towards addressing the substance use epidemic facing the United States. In this study, I will examine the efficacy of an educational video intervention, created in collaboration with harm reduction coalition Valley Streetz, for reducing stigma towards harm reduction amongst Stanislaus County, CA residents. The video features interviews with medical doctors, harm reduction volunteers, and individuals who receive services from Valley Streetz. The study will be hosted on the CSU Stanislaus online survey platform, SONA. Participants will be residents of Stanislaus County recruited through the SONA platform and social media channels. The study employs a pretest-posttest design using the Perceived Stigma of Substance Abuse Scale (Luoma et al., 2010) and the Harm Reduction Assessment Scale (Goddard, 2003) to measure changes in attitudes. After completing the study, participants will receive a $10 gift card and be given the option to donate a portion of their compensation to Valley Streetz, allowing me to assess willingness to support local harm reduction efforts. I predict that the intervention will be an effective tool for reducing stigma and increasing community support for harm reduction initiatives.

Yoga has become a common practice for physical and mental health interventions, especially in patient populations and the elderly who have balance and mobility concerns. To date, there have been few studies concerning the sensory effects of yoga on college student’s sensory re-weighting and no study on the multisensory effects after yoga training. For this study, a pre-and post-test will be conducted on students at the start of a beginners' yoga class and at the end of the class following 10–12 weeks of consistent yoga practice 2 hours a week. To measure changes to balance, students will be subjected to balance tests using a Wii Balance Board with eyes open and closed, on a firm or foam surface and practicing specific yoga poses which will determine postural sway and use of vestibular cues. Additionally, the Rod and Frame test conducted using a virtual reality headset will determine visual field dependence (i.e. the relative reliance on visual cues). Use of proprioceptive cues will be determined using the threshold of detection to passive motion of their limbs. By comparing the results from before and after taking the beginner yoga class, we will determine if yoga has the ability to improve the balance of college students and train the body to use visual, vestibular, and proprioceptive cues more effectively.

This project is designed to gather insight into failures of empathy and how it could be addressed through improvements in compassion meditation practices. Previous research suggests that people actively choose to feel apathy when they perceive that empathy is too costly or difficult. Other research suggests that people can engage in empathy with support of compassion meditation, but no existing work has looked at sustained empathy over multiple trials or at the psychological mechanisms underlying sustained empathy Participants of this project will take the Empathy Selection Task (EST), which involves decisions to engage in empathy over 40 trials. Participants will then complete seven days of meditation sessions, then take the EST again to assess changes. The meditations are split into three randomized conditions: loving kindness, relational, and a placebo control. Relational meditation helps one develop a secure base by thinking of receiving care from a benefactor, which might increase feelings of safety and support. We hypothesize that relational meditation will show the most improvement in one’s willingness to choose empathy as shown in the EST, followed by loving kindness meditation, then placebo control. We will employ a one-way ANOVA to search for significant differences in the pretest and posttest for each individual, condition, and for the study population as a whole. After this study has concluded, we plan to employ another study expanding on the effects of relational meditation.

Research on relationship burnout (i.e., a psychological syndrome characterized by emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and a reduced sense of personal efficacy) has focused almost exclusively on the interpersonal antecedents (i.e., infertility, parenting stress, infidelity), overlooking the impact of individual traits (e.g., emotion management (EM)). Given the emotional demands inherent in romantic relationships, the ability to manage emotions effectively may play an important role in mitigating relationship burnout. Thus, we sought to determine whether those more skilled at managing their emotions would report lower levels of relationship burnout than those less skilled. A total of 175 adults (76 men, 94 women), who were currently in a romantic relationship, were recruited via Prolific (an online crowd-sourcing website). All were tasked with completing the 44-item Situational Test of Emotional Management and a 7-point item assessing relationship burnout. Our results revealed a mean burnout score of 2.72 (SD = 1.73), suggesting fairly low levels of burnout. Contrary to our hypothesis, there was not a significant association between EM skills and relationship burnout (r = -.011, p = .16). These findings indicate that EM is not a significant predictor of relationship burnout. One explanation for the lack of association is that EM may not directly buffer against the deeper emotional exhaustion that defines burnout. Unlike transient conflict and dissatisfaction, burnout reflects a chronic depletion of emotional resources, which may be shaped more by external relationship stressors (e.g., role overload, chronic conflict) than internal regulatory capacity alone.

Maladaptive perfectionism refers to personal concerns over failures and other people’s evaluations or criticisms, and is related to self-defeating behaviors, which include self-doubt, concern about others' evaluation, and constant worry about making mistakes that can lead to other problematic behaviors. However, minimal research has investigated the antecedents of perfectionism, and even less has examined these among college students, who are at particular risk for developing maladaptive perfectionism. A growing body of research suggests that having poor relationships with parents and having poor emotion regulation skills may be linked to the development of perfectionism and similar constructs like academic anxiety, yet these possible antecedents have not been examined concurrently. This study examines associations between emotional neglect from mothers and emotion regulation skills, and maladaptive perfectionism in undergraduate students, to begin to understand factors that increase the risk of students developing perfectionism. Results suggest that less use of adaptive emotion regulation strategies was associated with a greater risk of perfectionism, and these associations were exacerbated when students also reported high levels of emotional neglect from their mothers. The present study highlights the important roles that both emotion regulation and family context play in the development of perfectionism. Future studies should continue to examine ways that academic professionals can support students with their performance, as well as effective interventions for students with poor emotional regulation abilities.