Research Experience
Mixed Methods Researcher
Early in college, I became very interested in how perception, cognitive function, and culture, can shape a person’s lived experiences, feelings, thoughts, and behavior. I was heavily involved in research at Loyola Marymount for three years, as a lab manager for LMU’s Visual-Vestibular Perception Lab and as a research assistant for the EEG & Cognition Lab. I was responsible for scheduling participants, running the tests, data collection and data analysis, and presenting findings at symposiums.
As a research assistant, as well as a teaching assistant for LMU Psychology Department’s Research Methods course, I had firsthand experience designing and executing complex experiments using a variety of mixed methodology tools. Working with both qualitative and quantitative data, I have become an expert at operationalizing and coding variables of behavior for data analysis.
You can find the abstracts of past research presentations below:
Changes in Heart Rate Variability and EEG Waveforms are Associated with Increases in Cognitive Demand During a Working Memory Task
Lakyn Kearns, Reanna Khimani, Sonia Lee, Sabrina McQuade, Camila De Pierola
Abstract: Encephalography (EEG) is a technique for recording underlying neural electrical activity of the brain from electrodes placed on the scalp. EEG waveforms are categorized according to a wide range of wave frequencies and amplitudes over time. In this study, we examined whether EEG waveforms displayed localized patterns of activity related to task difficulty in a test of working memory, confirmed by the measure of heart-rate variability (HRV). We recorded from 9 distinct scalp electrodes and two electrocardiogram electrodes in 30 undergraduate students (15 males, 15 females), and examined their EEG activity while they completed a standardized memory task consisting of three phases of increasing difficulty: baseline (resting quietly, eyes open), practice, and the memory test (two trials). Cognitive demand was confirmed by an ANOVA for the HRV measure which decreased significantly from baseline to practice to test, p = 0.001. EEG activity and power spectral densities (PSDs) were categorized for 4 separate frequency patterns: alpha, beta, gamma, and theta. 3 x 9 (Phase x Site) ANOVAs were conducted for each EEG waveband. Significant interactions were further explored with planned comparisons (Bonferroni). Our study revealed statistically significant results in which alpha PSD decreased, whereas beta, theta and gamma PSDs increased from baseline to memory task, as the tasks increased in cognitive demand. This study, the first to examine all of these EEG wavebands together with HRV in a working memory task, provides novel evidence for the role that these oscillatory brain processes play when cognitive demand increases.
Relationship Between Fear of Heights and Visual Dependence on Childhood Interaction With Heights
Authorship: Lee, S., Reinoso, S., Thorp, M., Choi, L., Hampton, S., Willey C.
Abstract: Visual field dependence refers to the relative dependence on visual cues people use to interact with their environment. Greater fear of heights has been associated with greater visual dependence. The rod and frame test (RFT) has been used to assess visual field dependence by measuring the participant’s ability to align a rod to true vertical, despite the influence of a tilted surrounding frame. The more visually dependent participants are, the more likely they will bias their estimates on the tilt of the frame. In this study, we examined if experiences of falling and climbing during childhood is associated with greater fear of heights and visual field dependence in adulthood. We used the 20-item self-report acrophobia questionnaire (AQ) to assess individuals’ anxiety associated with height-related events. Higher scores on the AQ indicate a greater fear of heights. We also tested participants using a virtual RFT to assess visual field dependence. Participants then completed the AQ and answered questions about climbing frequency as a child, the age they experienced a severe fall, and how severe the fall was. Results indicated that greater fear was negatively associated with less frequent climbing as a child. The age of the child at the time of the fall did not correlate with AQ results. No significant differences were found in frequency of climbing during childhood and RFT biases; however, there was a trend in the data suggesting that those who climbed less often tended to have slightly greater biases than those who climbed more often. There may be other mediating factors contributing to both fear of falling from heights and visual field dependence.
Senior Capstone, December 2019
Secondary research (literature review) on Forgiveness: How it is the Harder Thing To Do; Why it is the Better Thing To Do
This paper examines interpersonal forgiveness and self-forgiveness as distinct motivational constructs. Interpersonal forgiveness can be understood as an empathy-facilitated transformation from revenge motivations towards relationship-constructive motivations (McCullough, Worthington & Rachal, 1997). Empathy has been shown to facilitate interpersonal forgiveness through perspective-taking (cognitive component) and compassion towards offenders (affective component). Self-forgiveness marks the transition from self-destructive motivations towards self-constructive motivations. Interpersonal forgiveness has been found to promote self-forgiveness, which, in turn, facilitates interpersonal forgiveness (Hall & Fincham, 2008). Emotional and relational well-being, as well as physical health, have been related to higher levels of forgiveness. Self-forgiveness has also been found to moderate relational stress and well-being. Forgiveness restores meaning found in close relationships, necessary for well-being. These findings are consistent with an evolutionary perspective on forgiveness and the need to belong. Although forgiveness may be the harder thing to do, as it can be emotionally and cognitively taxing, it is ultimately the better thing to do.
Keywords: interpersonal forgiveness, self-forgiveness, well-being