2005-06 Allyn & Bacon Award Abstracts
The Relationship Between Identity Development and Psychological Adjustment in Adopted Korean-Americans
Elizabeth Jane Lilley, Lafayette College (PA)
First Place Allyn & Bacon Award Winner
Faculty Sponsor: Susan Basow, PhD
Because of the unique experience of adult Korean-American adoptees, their development and outcome should be studied and considered separately from both Caucasian and Korean Americans. Ethnic identity was considered in terms of its possible role as a mediating variable in the relationship between cultural socialization and psychological well-being. Adoptive identity was measured as adjustment to adoption. Participants in this study were 83 adult Korean-American adoptees. It was predicted that (1) Cultural socialization experiences and adjustment to adoption would correlate with psychological adjustment and (2) Strength of ethnic identity would mediate the relationship between cultural socialization and psychological adjustment. Results partly supported predictions. Ethnic identity was found to mediate the relationship between cultural socialization and personal growth, and adjustment to adoption predicted self-acceptance. Implications and suggestions for future research are discussed.
The Good Subject Effect: Investigating Participant Demand Characteristics
Austin Lee Nichols, Florida State University
Second Place Allyn & Bacon Award Winner
Faculty Sponsor: Jon Maner, PhD
Although experimental researchers often concern themselves with the presence of participant demand, few studies have directly examined the effects of demand on participant responding. With relevance to all researchers, the current study, therefore, examined effects of participant demand on responding within a laboratory study. Before beginning the study, research participants were informed of the study's purported hypothesis by a confederate posing as another participant. Participants then performed a laboratory task designed to evaluate the extent to which participants would respond in ways that might confirm–or disconfirm–the study's hypothesis. Results indicated that participants tended to respond in a way that confirmed the hypothesis. However, there were also individual differences in this tendency, and positive attitudes toward the experiment and the experimenter were associated with greater degrees of hypothesis confirming responses. These results were not accounted for simply by social desirability. The results of this study indicate the need for more research, as well as careful consideration of participant demand in the design of laboratory studies and analyses of data.
Underpinnings of Academic Success: Effective Study Skills Use as a Function of Academic Locus of Control and Self-Efficacy
Blaine D. Landis & Jennier D. Cavin, Washburn University (KS)
Third Place Allyn & Bacon Award Winner
Faculty Sponsor: Joanne Altman, PhD
The literature shows that an internal locus of control (LOC) and high self-efficacy (SE) are tied to greater academic performance. However, how effective studying mediates this relationship is not entirely clear. The authors hypothesized that greater use of effective study skills, a known precursor to academic success, would correspond to an internal locus of control and high self-efficacy. Participants' scores on LOC and SE scales were split down the median, yielding 4 distinct groups. The results revealed that students with an internal locus of control or high self-efficacy reported greater use of study skills than their less industrious counterparts. These data support the hypothesis that one way in which LOC and SE are related to academic success is through effective studying.