Elizabeth Parks-Stamm

University of Southern Maine | USM · Department of Psychology

Empirical studies often assume cash is more transparent than digital payment. In our pre-registered study, we compared perceptions of Americans from Generation X and the Baby Boomer Generation (currently aged 43–77) to Generation Z (currently 18–26). Whereas older adults perceived cash as significantly more transparent, real, harder to forget, and...

Global population aging trends create an increased need for educated workers in the health domain. At the same time, communal degree programs (i.e., health care and early education [HEE]) show high dropout rates—particularly for men. Extending person-environment fit theory and the lack of fit model, we investigate whether students' (gendered) self-...

Based on stimulus–response learning accounts, we argue that including situational cues in thought about intended actions is an important aspect of self-regulation success in general and in successfully implementing delayed intentions. Accordingly, in Study 1 ( N = 328), we replicate a previous study and show a positive relationship between the self...

As parental leave policies increasingly encourage new fathers to take paternal leave, the present experimental study explores evaluations of male and female workers who do (or do not) complete work‐related tasks during leave. In line with our preregistered hypotheses, not completing work‐related tasks during leave resulted in costs for men's (but n...

In many countries, labor markets are still highly gender segregated, with very few men working in communal occupations such as nursing. Because occupational aspirations start to develop during early childhood, it seems crucial to foster our understanding of which factors affect occupational aspirations during this period. Earlier correlational rese...

School boards in the United States have become a battleground for contentious local and national issues. As elected officials, school board members often lack training in leadership and conflict resolution. Training that does exist often fails to develop the competencies that research in peace psychology suggests are essential to building positive...

The COVID‐19 pandemic had negative effects on many people's well‐being and quality of life. In the present work, we focused on Norwegian mothers with elementary school children, and investigated whether their well‐being, stress, and worries (and the relationships between them) changed across the early months of the pandemic. We collected data at tw...

Objective The goal was to investigate whether and how the well‐being of mothers and fathers was differentially affected by the COVID‐19 pandemic in four European countries and whether differences in stress and social support explain observed gender differences. Background Previous research documents that the COVID‐19 pandemic had a significant imp...

According to the ideomotor principle, repeated experience with an action and its perceivable consequences (effects) establish action-effect associations. Research on verbal instructions indicates that such associations are also acquired from verbal information. In the present experiment (N = 651), first, we aimed to replicate unintentional response...

This study provides compelling evidence for Black underrepresenation in the financial advisor industry. Using a dataset of all U.S. securities‐licensed individuals ( N = 642,543), we first estimate the racial and ethnic composition of the industry using an algorithm that accounts for name, gender, and location. Second, we use a dataset enhanced by...

Research investigating occupational aspirations in childhood is scarce. In addition, most research on occupational aspirations has focused on increasing the number of women in agentic jobs. In the present work, we investigate factors associated with communal occupational aspirations in two studies with young children (Study 1: 159 children [84 boys...

The present work investigates how the increased domestic responsibilities created by the Spring 2020 lockdown of the COVID-19 pandemic in Norway and gender ideologies relate to the well-being of mothers with elementary school children. In June 2020, we conducted a cross-sectional online study including current and retrospective measures with 180 mo...

The popular concept of “finding common ground” suggests that recognizing similarities, as opposed to differences, can lead to positive interactions among group members. This adage is supported by the literature on intergroup contact theory, with research indicating that a key pillar in mitigating intergroup bias is positive and meaningful intergrou...

The longitudinal relationship between students’ pre-existing adaptability and subsequent sleep and mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic has not been studied. The present study examines the relationship between adaptability and students’ anxiety, depression, and insomnia during and after the lockdown related to COVID-19. 5,235 university stude...

Action–effect learning is based on a theoretical concept that actions are associated with their perceivable consequences through bidirectional associations. Past research has mostly investigated how these bidirectional associations are formed through actual behavior and perception of the consequences. The present research expands this idea by inves...

This study examined marital and parental income premiums among financial advisors. Financial advisors provide an interesting context for exploring such premiums, as financial advising is a historically male-dominated profession that has been found to exhibit large unadjusted gender pay gaps. Using a large, cross-sectional sample of financial adviso...

Successful everyday self-regulation often hinges on implementing intended responses at a later time–often in specific situations. We address this self-regulation challenge by examining the role of individuals’ thought about intended actions–and specifically whether it does or does not include situational cues. We hypothesized that including situati...

Flooding, already the most damaging type of natural disaster in China, is expected to become increasingly costly around the world. However, few studies have examined residents’ flood-preparedness intentions and the effect of flood experience and other variables on general financial risk-taking. This study explored the effects of Chinese residents’...

This study examines gender differences in COVID-19-related stress and the relationship between COVID-19-related stress and life satisfaction in a large sample of financial advisors in the United States (n = 499). Compared to men, women reported greater increases in work-related stress since the onset of COVID-19, higher levels of stress from managi...

In spring 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic led to the shutdown of schools in many countries. Emerging research documents the negative effects of the pandemic and particularly of the shutdown of schools on children's well-being. The present research extends this research by investigating how structural changes made in schools upon reopening to align with...

Guided by an integrative model of top‐down and bottom‐up influences on financial satisfaction, this study examines gender differences in the predictors of financial satisfaction in Taiwan. Using the 2016 wave of the Panel Study of Family Dynamics (PSFD), gender differences in the extent to which top‐down (trait positive and negative affect) and bot...

COVID-19 triggered social restrictions worldwide including the shutdown of schools. Whereas research has documented the negative effects on parents’ well-being, less is known about children’s well-being during the pandemic. We investigated the well-being, emotions, and COVID-19-related attitudes of 87 Norwegian elementary children (42 boys, 45 girl...

Although accumulating evidence suggests the COVID-19 pandemic is associated with costs in mental health, the development of students' mental health, including the change from their previous levels of depression and anxiety and the factors associated with this change, has not been well-studied. The present study investigates changes in students' anx...

This study investigates whether racial animosity across metropolitan markets is associated with Black financial advisor underrepresentation. Using a dataset of all U.S. securities-licensed individuals (N = 642,543), we first estimate the racial and ethnic composition of the industry using an algorithm that accounts for name, gender, and location. S...

This study examined gender differences in the intended use of parental leave benefits. In a targeted sample of relevant adult respondents (i.e., adults aged 25–45 who work full-time, plan to have children, and are in a financially stable marriage or domestic partnership; N = 82), large gender differences were observed in work-related attitudes, int...

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, millions of students in China followed an emergency policy called “Suspending Classes without Stopping Learning” to continue their study online as schools across the country were closed. The present study examines how students adapted to learning online in these unprecedented circumstances. We aimed to explore...

Using an integrative model of top-down and bottom-up influences on financial satisfaction, this study examines gender differences in the predictors of financial satisfaction in Taiwan. Using the 2016 wave of the Panel Study of Family Dynamics (PSFD), gender differences in the extent to which top-down (trait positive and negative affect) and bottom-...

Upper elementary school girls were surveyed about their mothers’ and fathers’ warmth, competence, and agency at home and how they imagine their parents at work. Mothers’ warmth at home was positively correlated with perceived competence and agency both at home and at work. Differences between daughters’ perceptions of their mothers and fathers at w...

This study examined marriage and parental income premiums among financial advisors. Financial advisors provide an interesting context for exploring such premiums, as financial advising is a historically male-dominated profession that has been found to exhibit large unadjusted gender pay gaps. Using a large sample of financial advisors recruited via...

Past research has demonstrated the self-regulatory function of prayer in response to personal problems. In the present research, we examined whether the direction of prayer (inward, outward, or upward) impacts the effect of prayer on emotional acceptance and cognitive understanding of a personal problem when compared with an equivalent time of thou...

The theory of enclothed cognition proposes that wearing physical articles of clothing can trigger psychological processes and behavioral tendencies connected to their symbolic meaning. Furthermore, past research has found that increases in power are associated with greater approach orientation and action tendencies. In this study, we integrate thes...

Background: Visual art and music have been found to improve the emotions and moods of patients and healthcare staff, and attendance of live performances has been shown to foster social interaction. Objectives: The aim of the study was to explore the effects of a visual artist on patients and nursing staff in an outpatient chemotherapy treatment...

In two experiments, we examined the mechanisms underlying the wide-ranging benefits of prayer on well-being. In line with research on psychological distance, we hypothesized that greater perspective mediates the emotional benefits of prayer. Participants were randomly assigned to pray or think about a personal problem and then reported their emotio...

Although sexual harassment remains a common problem in the workplace, many victims and witnesses fail to report it to organizational authorities. Fear of retribution as well as perceptions of futility are widely cited as reasons for these reporting failures. Attitudes toward reporting sexual harassment in the workplace have only been marginally con...

In the present study, we investigated the relationship between egalitarian gender role endorsement, gender role satisfaction, and satisfaction with life among women in two cultural contexts, Kurdistan in Iraq and Norway, which differ widely in their acceptance of gender inequality according to the World Values Survey and the UN Gender Inequality In...

We provide a theoretical framework and empirical evidence for how verbally planning an action creates direct perception-action links and behavioral automaticity. We argue that planning actions in an if (situation)–then (action) format induces sensorimotor simulations (i.e., activity patterns reenacting the event in the sensory and motor brain areas...

Student participation in online discussion forums is associated with positive outcomes for student achievement and satisfaction, but research findings on the impact of class size and instructors’ participation on student participation have been mixed. The present study analyzed the frequency of instructor and student posts in asynchronous discussio...

Past experimental research has shown that women are penalized with harsh evaluations when they violate gender prescriptions to be nurturing and helpful. Instructor participation in an asynchronous online discussion forum and end-of-class evaluation data from 360 courses was used to test the hypothesis that students would penalize female, but not ma...

Students at all levels struggle with using correct American Psychological Association (APA) style to format their papers and cite their sources. With increased access to online sources and electronic plagiarism checkers, it is more important than ever that even freshmen students understand and master the basics of APA style. To this end, we examine...

Based on research on stereotype threat and multiple identities, this work explores the beneficial effects of activating a positive social identity when a negative identity is salient on women's performance in sports. Further, in line with research on the effects of anxiety in sports, we investigate whether the activation of a positive social identi...

Based on research on stereotype threat and multiple identities, this work explores the beneficial effects of activating a positive social identity when a negative identity is salient on women’s performance in sports. Further, in line with research on the effects of anxiety in sports, we investigate whether the activation of a positive social identi...

Three studies examined the consequences of subtyping ingroup members for evaluations of the self. The first study examined the impact of subtyping high-performing or low-performing ingroup members on self-evaluations. Study 2 employed an alternative manipulation of subtyping. Given the observed benefits of subtyping low-performing ingroup members f...

Studies of implicit memory for novel associations have focused primarily on verbal materials and have highlighted the contribution of conceptually unitized representations to such priming. Using pictorial stimuli in a perceptual identification task, we examined whether new association priming can occur at a purely perceptual level. By manipulating...

Previous research has found that performing norm-violating behaviors based on a nonconsciously-activated goal elicits negative affect (Oettingen, Grant, Smith, Skinner, & Gollwitzer, 2006). In the present research we explored whether this negative affect is eliminated when an earlier conscious goal with congruent behavioral effects can be used to e...

College students whose test anxiety was measured completed a working memory-intensive math exam with televised distractions. Students were provided with implementation intentions (if–then plans; Gollwitzer, 1999) designed to either help them ignore the distractions (i.e., temptation-inhibiting plans) or focus more intently on the math exam (i.e., t...

-

Although the relationship between goals and behavior is substantial (Webb & Sheeran, 2006), even very motivated individuals at times fail to act on their goals. In this chapter, we discuss the role of plans in linking goals with actual behavior. We focus specifically on a certain type of plan, an if-then planknown as an implementation intention, an...

In the last decade, there has been a tremendous surge of research on the mechanisms of human action. This volume brings together this new knowledge in a single, concise source, covering most if not all of the basic questions regarding human action: what are the mechanisms by which action plans are acquired, mentally represented, activated, selected...

Two studies tested the hypothesis that females penalize women who succeed in male gender-typed jobs to salvage their own self-views regarding competence. The authors proposed that women are motivated to penalize successful women (i.e., characterize them as unlikable and interpersonally hostile) to minimize the self-evaluative consequences of social...

This chapter focuses on the implications of both the descriptive and prescriptive aspects of gender stereotypes for women in the workplace. Using the Lack of Fit model, we review how performance expectations deriving from descriptive gender stereotypes (i.e., what women are like) can impede women's career progress. We then identify organizational c...

Past research has demonstrated that implementation intentions (i.e., if–then plans) facilitate goal striving by two processes: increasing the activation of the anticipated situational cue (the if–process) and automating the goal–directed response to that cue (the then–process; Gollwitzer, 1999; Webb & Sheeran, in press). Two studies investigated th...

Goal-directed behavior possesses various observable features (Gollwitzer and Moskowitz, 1996). First and foremost, it is characterized by persistent striving until the goal is reached. Second, goal-directedness expresses itself in energization when situations or means that can be used to reach the goal are encountered. And third,goal-directed organ...

In two experiments, we evaluated the status of implicit memory for novel associations in amnesia. Experiment 1 assessed priming in a category exemplar generation task in which contextual information associated with a target could increase the likelihood of target generation. Control participants, but not amnesic patients, showed associative priming...