Psychologie - Publications // Psychology - Publications

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/10393/23359

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Experiences of Racism Among Students of Colour at the University of Ottawa
(2025-06-08) Williams, Monnica; Nepton, Arghavan; Olaoluwa, Ifeoluwa; Farahani, Hesam
This study investigates the prevalence and impact of racial microaggressions on Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour (BIPOC) students at the University of Ottawa (uOttawa), revealing critical implications for institutional policy and support services. Racial microaggressions, often subtle yet pervasive, contribute to significant psychological distress among students, negatively impacting their mental health and sense of belonging on campus. This report details findings from a survey of uOttawa BIPOC students, highlighting the frequency of microaggressive experiences, their association with mental health challenges, and the coping mechanisms students employ.
Primary Care Providers’ Perspectives on Providing Follow-up Cancer Care: A Qualitative Analysis of Survivorship Care Plan Use
(2021-04-12) Garcia Mairena, Paola M.; Mutsaers, Brittany; Lebel, Sophie
This study’s main objective was to investigate how primary care providers (PCPs) perceive their new roles in providing follow-up cancer care. Survivorship care plans (SCPs) encompass a summary of the cancer treatment and follow-up care that cancer survivors need to pursue with their PCP. In short, SCPs are meant to enhance the communication and the organization regarding follow-up cancer care, ameliorate the patients’ satisfaction and ensure survivorship care needs are addressed. Thirteen PCPs in the Ottawa region who provide follow-up care to breast and colorectal cancer survivors were recruited across urban and rural settings. Telephone interviews of 15-20 minutes were conducted with PCPs. The interview guide was developed based on the second version of the Theoretical Domains Framework (TDF-2). Thematic analysis was used to identify themes and subthemes related to PCP’s views on SCPs and their role in providing follow-up cancer care. According to these results, PCPs encounter communication issues that lead to increased workload, PCPs have favourable views of SCPs, PCPs have different attitudes when providing follow-up care or using SCPs, PCPs notice that their patients view SCPs positively, and PCPs recommend constant updates in SCPs. Understanding the perceptions of PCPs regarding their role in providing follow-up cancer care and SCPs’ use will facilitate the implementation of SCPs as transition tools from tertiary back to primary care.
La modélisation par équations structurelles -- Un guide d'accompagnement pour l'interface R
(2021-08-01) Dion, Karianne; Bodnaruc, Alexandra Maria; Trudel, Geneviève; Lamarche, Jani; Ranger, Valérie; Fobert, Sophie; Church, Kinsey Antonina; Ntumba Mukunzi, Joana; René, Jean-Louis
La modélisation par équations structurelles avec Mplus (Caron, 2019) est un ouvrage de référence qui, divisé en trois parties, aborde les fonctions de base de Mplus (Partie 1 -- Les rudiments), le traitement de données avec Mplus (Partie 2 -- Traitement de données), ainsi que l'exécution d'un ensemble d'analyses statistiques impliquant de la modélisation par équations structurelles en utilisant Mplus (Partie 3 -- Les analyses). Reconnaissant l'utilisation croissante de la modélisation par équations structurelles dans le domaine des sciences sociales, ainsi que le nombre limité de ressources éducatives disponibles à ce sujet, nous proposons un guide d'accompagnement pour la troisième partie du livre de Caron (2019), qui étendra son application à l'interface de programmation R. R est une interface de programmation libre d'accès et très versatile qui, similairement à Mplus, permet la réalisation d'analyses statistiques impliquant de la modélisation par équations structurelles. L'objectif de cet article est de présenter la traduction en langage de programmation R des syntaxes de la troisième partie du livre de Caron (2019) ainsi que les résultats des sorties associées. Puisque cet article vise à servir de guide complémentaire au livre de Caron (2019), les bases théoriques sous-tendant les analyses statistiques qui y sont couvertes ainsi que l'interprétation des résultats issus de celles-ci ne font pas l'objet du présent article. Cet article couvre les analyses suivantes : la régression logistique, l'analyse de trajectoire, l'analyse factorielle exploratoire et confirmatoire, la médiation, la modération, la médiation modérée, l'analyse de classes latentes, l'analyse de modèles autorégressifs et autorégressifs croisés, l'analyse de trajectoire latente, et l'analyse de groupes multiples.
Reliable developmental research: Not only for infancy
(2022) Brosseau‐Liard, Patricia E.
Reliability in developmental research is important to consider not only for infant research, but also for researchers who wish to study individual differences at all ages. Forced-choice behavioural tasks are popular in cognitive developmental research with preschoolers and young school-age children because of their ease of administration and interpretation, however the fact that guessing correctly is possible introduces noise that reduces reliability. An informal simulation is presented to illustrate this issue. Researchers wishing to investigate individual differences are encouraged to consider the reliability of the tasks they choose and not reflexively rely on familiar tasks that may be poorly suited to the study of true individual differences.
Social isolation induces hyperactivity and exploration in aged female mice
(2021) Sullens, D. Gregory; Gilley, Kayla; Jensen, Kendall; Vichaya, Elisabeth; Dolan, Sara; Sekeres, Melanie
Prolonged social isolation is associated with poor physical and mental health outcomes, findings observed in both humans, and rodent models of isolation. Humans, like mice, may engage in enhanced exploratory and social behaviour following isolation, which may protect against subsequent cognitive decline and psychological distress. Understanding how these effects may impact behaviour in older adults is particularly relevant, as this population is likely to experience periods of late-life social isolation. We report that late-life social isolation in female mice did not lead to robust depressive-like symptomology, altered social interaction behaviour, sensitivity to context fear acquisition and memory, or alterations in inflammatory cytokines (IL-6, IL-1β, Tnf-α) or microglial activation (Itgam) within the hippocampus. Rather, isolation increased hyperactivity and exploration behaviours. These findings have translational value as the first female mouse model of late-life social isolation, and provide evidence to inform the development of interventions aimed at promoting functional recovery following isolation in late-life.
Chemotherapy-Induced Cognitive Impairment and Hippocampal Neurogenesis: A Review of Physiological Mechanisms and Interventions
(2021) Sekeres, Melanie; Bradley-Garcia, Meenakshie; Martinez-Canabal, Alonso; Winocur, Gordon
A wide range of cognitive deficits, including memory loss associated with hippocampal dysfunction, have been widely reported in cancer survivors who received chemotherapy. Changes in both white matter and gray matter volume have been observed following chemotherapy treatment, with reduced volume in the medial temporal lobe thought to be due in part to reductions in hippocampal neurogenesis. Pre-clinical rodent models confirm that common chemotherapeutic agents used to treat various forms of non-CNS cancers reduce rates of hippocampal neurogenesis and impair performance on hippocampally-mediated learning and memory tasks. We review the pre-clinical rodent literature to identify how various chemotherapeutic drugs affect hippocampal neurogenesis and induce cognitive impairment. We also review factors such as physical exercise and environmental stimulation that may protect against chemotherapy-induced neurogenic suppression and hippocampal neurotoxicity. Finally, we review pharmacological interventions that target the hippocampus and are designed to prevent or reduce the cognitive and neurotoxic side effects of chemotherapy.
mindyourmind: An Overview and evaluation of a web-facilitated mental health program that applies empowerment strategies for youth
(2014) Halsall, Tanya; Garinger, Christine; Forneris, Tanya
Many youth experiencing mental health issues in Canada do not access the services they need. Research has begun to support the use of the Internet for mental health promotion. However, there is a need for more evaluation of existing programs. mindyourmind is a web-facilitated community mental health program with a website developed to improve access to services for youth dealing with mental health issues. This paper provides an in-depth description of youth engagement strategies used by mindyourmind and the results of a preliminary evaluation to determine the characteristics and usage patterns of web-site users and impacts on help-seeking behaviour.
Social isolation induces hyperactivity and exploration in aged female mice
(2021) Sullens, D. Gregory; Gilley, Kayla; Jensen, Kendall; Vichaya, Elisabeth; Dolan, Sara; Sekeres, Melanie
Prolonged social isolation is associated with poor physical and mental health outcomes, findings observed in both humans, and rodent models of isolation. Humans, like mice, may engage in enhanced exploratory and social behaviour following isolation, which may protect against subsequent cognitive decline and psychological distress. Understanding how these effects may impact behaviour in older adults is particularly relevant, as this population is likely to experience periods of late-life social isolation. We report that late-life social isolation in female mice did not lead to robust depressive-like symptomology, altered social interaction behaviour, sensitivity to context fear acquisition and memory, or alterations in inflammatory cytokines (IL-6, IL-1β, Tnf-α) or microglial activation (Itgam) within the hippocampus. Rather, isolation increased hyperactivity and exploration behaviours. These findings have translational value as the first female mouse model of late-life social isolation, and provide evidence to inform the development of interventions aimed at promoting functional recovery following isolation in late-life.
Propriétés psychométriques de la version française (Mesure d’impact; MI-45) du Outcome Questionnaire-45 (OQ-45) en milieu clinique et universitaire
(2019) Brosseau-Liard, Patricia É.; Vandette, Marie-Pier; Jamshidi, Parastoo; Kogan, Cary S.; Aubry, Timothy
Cette étude a examiné les propriétés psychométriques de la Mesure d’impact (MI-45), traduction française de l’échelle couramment utilisée, le Outcome Questionnaire-45 (OQ-45). Cette mesure est un instrument d’autoévaluation conçu pour mesurer le changement quant au fonctionnement du client recevant des services de santé mentale. Deux échantillons non cliniques d’étudiants universitaires ont été recrutés ainsi qu’un échantillon clinique provenant d’un centre de services psychologiques universitaire et de formation offrant des services à la communauté. Les propriétés psychométriques de la MI-45 ont été calculées en fonction des réponses des participants. Les résultats suggèrent que la MI-45 est comparable à la version anglaise originale et aux versions dans d’autres langues. La MI-45 a de plus une bonne concordance avec la version anglaise administrée à une portion de l’échantillon universitaire ainsi qu’une bonne validité convergente avec des mesures de symptômes psychologiques ou, à l’inverse, de bien-être psychologique.
Theory of mind selectively predicts preschoolers’ knowledge-based selective word learning
(2015) Brosseau-Liard, Patricia; Penney, Danielle; Poulin-Dubois, Diane
Children can selectively attend to various attributes of a model, such as past accuracy or physical strength, to guide their social learning. There is a debate regarding whether a relation exists between theory-of-mind skills and selective learning. We hypothesized that high performance on theory-of-mind tasks would predict preference for learning new words from accurate informants (an epistemic attribute), but not from physically strong informants (a non-epistemic attribute). Three- and 4-year-olds (N = 65) completed two selective learning tasks, and their theory-of-mind abilities were assessed. As expected, performance on a theory-of-mind battery predicted children's preference to learn from more accurate informants but not from physically stronger informants. Results thus suggest that preschoolers with more advanced theory of mind have a better understanding of knowledge and apply that understanding to guide their selection of informants. This work has important implications for research on children's developing social cognition and early learning.
The Developmental Origins of Selective Social Learning
(2016) Poulin-Dubois, Diane; Brosseau-Liard, Patricia
The study of children's social learning is a topic of central importance to our understanding of human development. Learning from others allows children to acquire information efficiently; however, not all information conveyed by others is accurate or worth learning. A large body of research conducted over the past decade has shown that preschoolers learn selectively from some individuals over others. In the present article we summarize our work and that of others on the developmental origins of selective social learning during infancy. The results of these studies indicate that infants are sensitive to a number of cues, including competence, age, and confidence, when deciding from whom to learn. We highlight the important implications of this research in improving our understanding of the cognitive and social skills necessary for selective learning, and point out promising avenues for future research.
The roots of critical thinking: Selective learning strategies in childhood and their implications
(2017) Brosseau-Liard, Patricia É.
Long before formal education begins, young children learn from other people and from written and electronic media. Yet, with any second-hand information source, there is a danger of being misled by inaccurate claims. Far from being universally gullible, toddlers and preschool-age children possess both strengths and weaknesses in source evaluation. This paper summarizes research on children’s selective learning, or propensity to choose whether or not to accept information from different sources. To disseminate knowledge on these early abilities beyond cognitive-developmental researchers and to stimulate further research and the development of interventions, this review covers several areas including children’s understanding of knowledge, misleading information, their social biases and their learning from printed sources and media, as well as areas of ongoing research and future directions.
Savvy or Haphazard? Comparing Preschoolers’ Performance Across Selective Learning Tasks Based on Different Epistemic Indicators
(2018) Brosseau-Liard, Patricia E.; Iannuzziello, Alana; Varin, Jade
Children frequently select learning sources based on epistemic cues, or cues pertaining to informants' knowledge. Previous research has shown that preschoolers preferentially learn from informants who have been accurate in the past, appear confident, or have had visual access to relevant information. The present series of studies aimed to investigate the relation between these three types of epistemic selective learning abilities in a total of 176 children ages 3 to 6. Results indicate that children’s performance was mostly uncorrelated across the different selective learning tasks, and tasks measuring theory of mind and executive function were not found to predict any selective learning skills. Implications for the reliability and current conceptual understanding of these selective learning tasks are discussed.
Driving reservoir models with oscillations: a solution to the extreme structural sensitivity of chaotic networks
(2016) Vincent-Lamarre, Philippe
A large body of experimental and theoretical work on neural coding suggests that the information stored in brain circuits is represented by time-varying patterns of neural activity. Reservoir computing, where the activity of a recurrently connected pool of neurons is read by one or more units that provide an output response, successfully exploits this type of neural activity. However, the question of system robustness to small structural perturbations, such as failing neurons and synapses, has been largely overlooked. This is in contrast to well-studied dynamical perturbations that lead to divergent network activity in the presence of chaos, as is the case for many reservoir networks. Here, we distinguish between two types of structural network perturbations, namely “local” (e.g. individual synaptic or neuronal death) and “global” (e.g. network-wide fluctuations). Surprisingly, we show that while global perturbations have a limited impact on the ability of reservoir models to perform various tasks, local perturbations can produce drastic effects. To address this limitation, we introduce a new architecture where the reservoir is driven by a layer of oscillators that generate stable and repeatable trajectories. This model outperforms previous implementations while being resistant to relatively large local and global perturbations. This finding has implications for the design of reservoir models that capture the capacity of brain circuits to perform cognitively and behaviorally relevant tasks while remaining robust to various forms of perturbations. Further, our work proposes a novel role for neuronal oscillations found in cortical circuits, where they may serve as a collection of inputs from which a network can robustly generate complex dynamics and implement rich computations.
Floral guidance of learning a preference for symmetry by bumblebees
(2017) Plowright, Catherine M. S.; Bridger, Jeremy J. M.; Xu, Vicki; Herlehy, Racheal A.; Collin, Charles A.
This study examines the mechanism underlying one way in which bumblebees are known to develop a preference for symmetric patterns: through prior non-differential reinforcement on simple patterns (black discs and white discs). In three experiments, bees were given a choice among symmetric and asymmetric black-and-white non-rewarding patterns presented at the ends of corridors in a radial maze. Experimental groups had prior rewarded non-discrimination training on white patterns and black patterns, while control groups had no pre-test experience outside the colony. No preference for symmetry was obtained for any of the control groups. Prior training with circular patterns highlighting a horizontal axis of symmetry led to a specific subsequent preference for horizontal over vertical symmetry, while training with a vertical axis abolished this effect. Circles highlighting both axes created a general avoidance of asymmetry in favour of symmetric patterns with vertical, horizontal or both axes of symmetry. Training with plain circles, but not with deformed circles, led to a preference for symmetry: there was no evidence that the preference emerged just by virtue of having attention drawn away from irrelevant pattern differences. Our results point to a preference for symmetry developing gradually through first learning to extract an axis of symmetry from simple patterns and subsequently recognizing that axis in new patterns. They highlight the importance of continued learning through non-differential reinforcement by skilled foragers. Floral guides can function not only to guide pollinators to the source of reward but also to highlight an axis of symmetry for use in subsequent floral encounters.
Bumblebees at work in an emotion-like state
(2017) Plowright, C. M. S.
Pretest sucrose affects a dopamine-modulated response of bumblebees to an ambiguous cue to reward as well as a response to a simulated attack (Perry, Baciadonna, & Chittka, Science, 353(6307), 1529-1531, 2016). The contribution of the study lies in opening the door to research on the inner experience of insects, the learning and motivational mechanisms of their behavior, and the evolutionary analysis of emotions.
Food restriction and threat of predation affect visual pattern choices by flower-naïve bumblebees
(2015) Service, E.W.; Plowright, C.M.S.
The aim of this study was to determine whether a preference by flower-naïve bumblebees could be created or enhanced by manipulating variables relevant to food collection and to defense against predation. In two experiments, colonies of bumblebees (Bombus impatiens) were deprived of pollen, exposed to CO2, or neither. Choices of individual workers in a radial arm maze were monitored. In Experiment 1, both variables lead to a preference for corridors occupied by a conspecific bee. The effect was specific: no change in preference for corridors occupied by other objects (a coin and a piece of Styrofoam) was detected. In Experiment 2, radial and concentric patterns were used, both of which were unoccupied. Only pollen deprivation increased preference for radial stimuli, while CO2 had no discernible effect. Preferences for visual patterns by bees leaving their colony for the first time are modulated by variables that affect the internal state of the bees in problem-specific ways
An Inconclusive Study Comparing the Effect of Concrete and Abstract Descriptions of Belief-Inconsistent Information
(2018-01) Collins, Katherine A; Clément, Richard
Linguistic bias is the differential use of linguistic abstraction (as defined by the Linguistic Category Model) to describe the same behaviour for members of different groups. Essentially, it is the tendency to use concrete language for belief-inconsistent behaviours and abstract language for belief-consistent behaviours. Having found that linguistic bias is produced without intention or awareness in many contexts, researchers argue that linguistic bias reflects, reinforces, and transmits pre-existing beliefs, thus playing a role in belief maintenance. Based on the Linguistic Category Model, this assumes that concrete descriptions reduce the impact of belief-inconsistent behaviours while abstract descriptions maximize the impact of belief-consistent behaviours. However, a key study by Geschke, Sassenberg, Ruhrmann, and Sommer [2007] found that concrete descriptions of belief-inconsistent behaviours actually had a greater impact than abstract descriptions, a finding that does not fit easily within the linguistic bias paradigm. Abstract descriptions (e.g. the elderly woman is athletic) are, by definition, more open to interpretation than concrete descriptions (e.g. the elderly woman works out regularly). It is thus possible that abstract descriptions are (1) perceived as having less evidentiary strength than concrete descriptions, and (2) understood in context (i.e. athletic for an elderly woman). In this study, the design of Geschke et al. [2007] was modified to address this possibility. We expected that the differences in the impact of concrete and abstract descriptions would be reduced or reversed, but instead we found that differences were largely absent. This study did not support the findings of Geschke et al. [2007] or the linguistic bias paradigm. We encourage further attempts to understand the strong effect of concrete descriptions for belief-inconsistent behaviour.
Emerging Adults & Prosocial Behaviour On- and Offline
(2017-11-02) Connick-Keefer, Sarah Jayne A.; Hill, Robert; Hammond, Stuart I.
Poster presented at the 43rd Association for Moral Education Conference 2017, Saint Louis, MO. Social media has become integrated into the daily lives of most emerging adults as a means of general communication as well as a source of social and global information; what is less well known is how emerging adults use social media to help others. Most literature on online prosocial behaviour focuses on traditional volunteerism and charitable giving, or on how online activities breed ‘slacktivism,’ i.e., acts that have only surface features of prosocial behaviour, but are of little benefit to others (Bucy & Gregson, 2001; Kristofferson, White, and Peloza., 2014; Penny, 2014). What is unique to emerging adults is that they, unlike previous generations, have ‘grown up with the Internet’ and they may engage in and express prosociality through less traditional actions and behaviours, such as, participation in online forums and communities, petitions, and advocacy. This exploratory study aims to examine the various forms of prosocial and civic participation emerging adults may undertake in online contexts and its relation to more traditional forms of service and volunteering. Looking at data from approximately 100 undergraduate students, including those engaged in traditional service and volunteering, and others who are not, this study will examine how emerging adults express prosociality online and attempt to categorize these activities, and explore their relation to current levels of service and volunteering.
Datasets for paper entitled "Psychometric Validation of the English and French Versions of the Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist for DSM-5"
(2016-07-08) Ashbaugh, Andrea; Houle-Johnson, Stephanie; Herbert, Christophe; El-Hage, Wissam; Brunet, Alain
There are two datasets - one for the English participants and one for the French participants. The following measures are included in each dataset - Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist for DSM-5 (time 1 and time 2); Centre for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale; Impact of Event Scale - Revised. Participants are trauma-exposed undergraduate students. Missing values have been imputed.

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