psychology contemporary studies

• stressors in the environment - Black and Black (key)

  
  

  aim - aircraft noise = low quality of life?

  aim - aircraft noise = high blood pressure?
• stressors in the environment - Black and Black (key)

  sample =

  • around 700 questionnaires
  • Sydney Airport
• stressors in the environment - Black and Black (key)

  method

  • questionnaire used and measured health, hypertension, annoyance, other factors (smoking, drinking)
• stressors in the environment - Black and Black (key)

  results

  • higher annoyance and higher hypertension by airport
• stressors in the environment - Black and Black (key)

  conclusion

  • negative health affects with aircraft noise
  • solutions could be curfew hours, stress management techniques
• stressors in the environment - Black and Black (key)

  
  

  evaluate on individual debate, wide age range, all one area
• stressors in the environment - glass and singer

  
  

  looked at 3 variables of volume, predictability and perceived control as to why noise is stressful

  
  

  greatest negative effect was with loud, unpredictable and low perceived control
• stressors in the environment - ellis
• stressors in the environment - Kenrick and Macfarlane

  • arizona participants
  • an observer counted car honks
  • green light set and confederate driver didn't go on green light and not move until light was red.
  • higher honks when temperature was higher
• stressors in the environment - Lundberg

  • collected urine samples from passengers on train to sweden
  • either a high or low density train
  • high density train = higher adrenaline levels
• biological rhythms - Czeisler (key)

  • conducted at potash factory in USA
  • work shifts used to change in phase advance direction
• biological rhythms - czeisler (key)

  sample was around 150 male employees
• biological rhythms - czeisler (key)

  method

  • initial self reports done on old shift schedule
  • some workers moved to phase delay schedule, rotating to either a 7 day rotation or 21 day rotation
  • 3 months after, questionnaire given to workers
  • 9 months after, productivity was analysed
• biological rhythms - czeisler (key)

  results:

  • intial self reports showed workers used to fall asleep at work|
  • more workers preferred phase delay schedule and 21 day rotation
  • more productive
• biological rhythms - siffre

  • lived underground in a cave in the alps for 2 months
  • found his body went through a 25 hour clock
  • suggests humans have their own body clock independent from day/night schedule
• biological rhythms - melatonin
• biological rhythms - preckel

  • german students given a lark/owl chronotype test
  • found being an owl was a negative predictor of overall grade
  • early starts benefit larks not owls
• biological rhythms - costa

  • people can sit near box that emits artifical light
  • found it improved performance of nurses working night shifts over using normal lighting
• recycling and conservation - lord (key)

  aim:

  • investigate positive or negative messages on improving recycling
• recycling and conservation - lord (key)

  sample

  • 140 households in USA
• recycling and conservation - lord (key)

  
  

  • students recorded contents of bins
  • gave sources to neighbourhood including adverts, news article and personal letter, either positively or negatively framed
  • bin contents was recorded again
  • questionnaires done
• recycling and conservation - lord (key)

  results:

  • found that positive adverts was best at improving beliefs
  • found that negative personal letter was best at improving recycling behaviour
• recycling and conservation - yale model of persuasion
• recycling and conservation - luyben and bailey

  • used mobile home parks and increased the number of bins to use and rewards
  • rewards incuded giving toys to children who recycled newspapers
  • both changes increased recycling behaviour
• recycling and conservation - cialdini

  • hotel rooms
  • looked at whether people reused their towels
  • had messages like help the hotel, help save the environment and join your fellow citizens to save the environment
  • the last message describes a social norm and most increased towel reusage.
• recycling and conservation - positive reinforcement

  • when you get people to repeat behaviours by giving them a reward each time they do the behaviour.
  • in oregan, people earned 5 cents when they gave back a bottle.
• ergonomics - drews and doig (key)

  aim:

  • to reduce cognitive overload of intensive care nurses by changing the display system with different colours and shapes
• ergonomics - drews and doig (key)

  sample:

  • used around 40 nurses
  • majority female
• ergonomics - drews and doig (key)

  method:

  • nurses either in traditional ICU display group or new CVS display group
  • 4 fake but realistic patient scenarios used to measure effectiveness, including one about septic shock
  • measured response time and accuraccy of data interpretation
  • nurses given self report and likert scale afterwards
• ergonomics - drews and doig (key)

  results:

  
  

  • better response time in new display group
  • better accuracy in new display group
  • nurses liked the new display
• ergonomics - drews and doig (key)

  • concluded that the new CVS display could help nurses detect earlier and help patients
• ergonomics - drews and doig (key)

  evaluate based on:

  • determinism
  • usefulness
  • high population validity
• ergonomics - higuera-trujillo

  • spanish university students
  • wore VR headset simulating classrooms whilst changing the colour of it
  • participants did cognitive tasks
  • participants performed better in purple coloured room
• ergonomics - hawthorne studies

  
  

  • looked at light levels on the productivity of workers
  • found no changes
  • concluded that productivity increases when workers know they are being observed
• ergonomics - miller

  • most people can hold 7 pieces of information in their short term memory ( + / - 2 )
  • chunking can help information be remembered better
• psychological effects of built environment - ulrich (key)

  aim:

  • investigates effect of natural views on patients surgery recovery time
• psychological effects of built environment - ulrich (key)

  sample:

  • 46 patients
  • pennsylvania
  • gall bladder surgery
• psychological effects of built environment - ulrich (key)

  method:

  • patients rooms were all identical
  • patients either had view of a brick wall or of trees
  • researchers measured: days of hospitalisation, record of analgesics, nurses notes and complications
• psychological effects of built environment - ulrich (key)

  results:

  • length of hospitalisation lower when facing trees
  • less analgesics taken when facing trees
  • less negative notes from nurses when facing trees
• psychological effects of built environment - ulrich (key)

  
  

  • evaluate based on: deterministic, situational, socially sensitive