Guy A. Boysen

The Role of Outcome Expectations and Attitudes on Decisions to Seek Professional Help.

Two studies examined the predictors of seeking psychological services. Study 1 examined the role of attitudes in mediating the relationship between 11 psychological factors and intent to seek help for 3 psychological problems. The results demonstrated that (a) the psychological factors and attitudes predicted 62% of the variance in intent to seek help for interpersonal problems and 18% of the variance for drug problems and (b) attitudes toward counseling mediated most of the relationships between the different psychological factors and help-seeking intent. Study 2, in turn, demonstrated that (a) anticipated outcomes of talking with a counselor were associated with the use of psychological services and (b) anticipated risks of disclosing emotions were salient for those having experienced a distressing event.

The Relationship Between Level of Training, Implicit Bias, and Multicultural Competency Among Counselor Trainees

The assessment of attitudes toward diversity among counselor trainees has relied on self-report measures. Implicit measures might offer a valuable addition to self-report because they assess biased attitudes indirectly, do not rely on conscious introspection, and often demonstrate bias that contradicts selfreported attitudes. A sample (N 105) of counselor trainees was assessed with measures of implicit bias toward African Americans and lesbians and gay men and a measure of self-reported multicultural competency. Implicit bias was present among counselor trainees despite high self-reported multicultural competency. In addition, self-reported multicultural competency varied by training level, but implicit bias did not. The results suggest that implicit bias can add to the understanding, assessment, and training of multicultural counselor competency.

Revenge and Student Evaluations of Teaching

One of the biggest concerns about student evaluations of teaching is the positive correlation between them and expected grades. Past research has been unable to clarify if intentional revenge for low grades or a more subtle process such as cognitive dissonance leads to low evaluations. This study included a survey of college students (N = 143) that indicated only 8% of students admitted to taking revenge on evaluations and that they rarely cited low grades as a reason for giving low evaluations. However, an experimental manipulation indicated that students may give a low evaluation if they receive a low grade even when they know that most students are doing well in the course. Overall, revenge appears to be one of the less important factors in predicting student evaluations.

Teacher and Student Perceptions of Microaggressions in College Classrooms.

Subtle forms of prejudice called microaggressions occur in college classrooms, but the effective methods of managing such prejudice are not clear. This study explored teachers’ (N = 222) and students’ (N = 166) perceptions of vignettes describing classroom microaggressions and the effectiveness of various teacher responses to the microaggressions. Teachers of courses focused on diversity perceived microaggressions more negatively and were more likely to respond to the microaggressions than teachers of nondiversity courses. Students believed that teacher responses to microaggressions were effective and ignoring microaggressions was ineffective. The results suggest that teachers should in some way respond to classroom microaggressions. They also suggest that diversity awareness may be a factor in the ability of teachers to recognize subtle prejudice in the classroom.

Bias in the classroom: Types, frequencies, and responses.

Incidents of bias still occur in college classrooms, but no research has specifically explored this topic. To address this gap in the literature, professors (N = 333) completed anonymous surveys assessing types of bias they perceived in their classroom, their responses to the bias, and the perceived success of their responses. Results indicated that 38% of professors perceived an incident of bias in the classroom in the last year, and that they perceived overt (i.e., explicit) and subtle (i.e., implicit) bias with similar frequency. Professors believed their responses to bias were successful on average, but many could not assess success. Bias, in all its forms, still exists in college classrooms, and more discussion and research about its management is necessary.

Teacher Responses to Classroom Incivility: Student Perceptions of Effectiveness

Incivility occurs frequently in college classrooms. However, recommendations to teachers for handling student incivility are based on anecdotal evidence. To address this gap in knowledge, students (N = 150) in the current study evaluated the effectiveness of several teacher responses to classroom incivility. Incidents of incivility, described in vignettes, varied in disorderliness and harmfulness. Students perceived ignoring incivility as the only ineffective response. Direct confrontation of uncivil students in class or outside of class received the highest overall ratings of effectiveness, and students tended to see immediate responses to disorderly behaviors as more effective than delayed responses. These results suggest that students perceive teachers as having a responsibility to manage classroom incivility, especially when it disrupts classroom order.

Diversity Topics Covered in Teaching of Psychology Courses.

Teaching of psychology courses trains graduate students in pedagogy, but little is known about how diversity is addressed in these courses. A survey of instructors in teaching of psychology courses assessed their coverage of diversity and classroom bias, as well as the instructional methods used to cover them. Results indicated that 87% of instructors covered diversity issues, and 78% covered bias that occurs in the classroom. Instructors who covered diversity and bias devoted 3 to 5 hr to the topics and primarily used traditional instructional methods, such as discussion, readings, and lectures. Older instructors tended to cover fewer topics than younger instructors. Although diversity topics are part of teaching of psychology courses, it is unlikely that the time devoted to the topics is sufficient preparation for teaching in diverse classrooms.

The Prevalence and Predictors of Teaching Courses in Doctoral Psychology Programs.

Graduate students in psychology frequently receive training to prepare them for teaching responsibilities. However, little is known about the different types of teaching courses that exist or what leads graduate programs to offer such courses. This study explores archival data to determine the prevalence and predictors of formal teaching coursework in doctoral psychology programs. The archival data included department size, university size, university research productivity, university mission, and teaching course offerings. A majority of programs (65%) offered a course related to teaching. The courses tended to be offered by public universities with a smaller percentage of graduate students but a higher number of undergraduates and department faculty. The results suggest widespread but varied access to teacher training in psychology programs.

The impact of religiosity and attribution theory on attitudes toward addiction and cancer

Little is known about the relation between religiosity and illness stigma. This study examined the relationship between religiosity and stigmatizing attitudes toward the mental illness of addiction and the physical illness of cancer. Participants (N = 120) completed a measure of religiosity and evaluated a vignette describing either a person with addiction or cancer. The results indicated that attitudes were more negative toward a person with addiction than a person with cancer, which is consistent with attribution theory. However, religiosity was generally unrelated to stigmatizing attitudes. These results suggest that religiosity may be a less powerful determinant of stigmatizing attitudes than attributions about the illness.