Awarded CET SEED Grant Projects 2019-20
Creating and Piloting an Image Classification System for Instagram HPV Vaccine Message Images
Julia Alber, David Askay, Hunter Glanz
Instagram, an image-based social media site allows users to share and interact with visual and textual content. Instagram provides a unique way for obtaining thoughts, reactions, and beliefs about health behaviors (e.g., getting a HPV vaccine). By harnessing Instagram, targeted health messages can be developed that are more relevant and reflective of the intended audience compared to messages developed using self-report measures or expert review. The overall goal for this project are to gather and code a training set for an image classification system (i.e., a method for categorizing different features of the messages). The classification system would then be used to classify a large sample of vaccine-related Instagram message images as part of a future study. A sample of 300 messages will be collected using a set of HPV vaccine-related hashtags. Using a codebook, two data minor students will create a training set for the classification system that would capture the following information: 1) number of faces, 2) sex of person(s), 3) quality of image based on pixels, 4) age of person(s), and 5) presence of an arm or syringe. After creating the training set, the data minor students would create the algorithm for the classification system. The classification system would be built into an Internet browser to capture the data from the Instagram messages. Findings from the project could inform a future project that applied the image classification to inform the development of HPV vaccine messages.
Developing and Integrating a Virtual Reality Video into Novel Bystander Intervention
Christine Hackman and James Werner
The gold standard for violence prevention on college campuses,bystander intervention has been readily applied in varioustraditional methods. It is unknown if new advances in technology, such as virtual reality (VR), can increase bystander behavior among college students when used in BI prevention programming. Theproposed project will be conducted by researchers Dr. Christine Hackman and Dr. James Werner to mentor students in the development of a novel VR video for use by WITH US, a national bystander intervention center housed at Cal Poly.The goals of the proposed project are: 1) to lead a multidisciplinary group of undergraduate students to plan and develop a novel 360 VR BI video; 2) to collaborate with WITH US to integrate the 360 VR BI video into their novel multi issue program, EmpACT; and, 3) to determine one or two specific funding opportunities to fund testing of the 360 VR BI to enhance effectiveness of the EmpACT program. Amajor outcome of this project will be a model 360 VR BI video to be used for the development of future VR educational experiences and new research on novel approaches to violence prevention.
Physiological Correlates of Empathy and Mindfulness
Anuraj Dhillon and Lauren Cooper
Empathy is a critical skill and professional orientation for students, but teaching, learning, and developing empathy in a rigorous academic setting remains a challenge for a number of contextual, cultural, and psychological reasons (Walther, Miller, & Sochacka, 2017). However, with a greater capacity for empathy, students can become more effective and compassionate decision makers, designers, and leaders. They are also more likely to enjoy greater mental health and quality of life (Tan, 2012). Promising research has pointed to the benefits of a certain kind of mental training, called “mindfulness practice,” on improving empathic ability and mental health. The goal of this research is to pilot the development and implementation of a technology-based mindfulness intervention for engineering students at Cal Poly. We will explore the impact of mindfulness practice on engineering students’ self-reported measures of empathy and mental health, and physiological stress markers. Using a mixed-methods research design, we will document the ways that students understand, experience, and apply mindfulness practice in an academic setting. By understanding the ways that mindfulness can impact students’ empathy, physiological stress responses, and mental health, educators can more effectively develop curricular interventions to enhance the empathic skills and orientation of students.