Ongoing Studies:
Learning During a Global Pandemic: Optimizing remote learning through reducing cognitive load
This study aims to identify the factors in remote learning that contribute to cognitive load and overall student learning. The study examines how the presence of the instructor’s face in the lesson impacts the students’ retention of material, cognitive load, perceived social presence, and fatigue dependent on the presence of the instructor’s face in the lesson. Through this study, we aim to determine how best to design remote lessons to optimize students’ learning while minimizing cognitive load.
Use of Digital and Print Text in Older and Younger Adults
This study is investigating what factors may be affecting an older adult’s performance on e-readers. The study explores the differences of older adults’ general retention and comprehension of information from print versus electronic texts. In addition, it aims to determine which device on the market (e.g., Kindle or iPad) may be best suited for an older population, the ideal device for the population being the one in which the older population feels most natural and comfortable while being least intimidating.
If you are in the University of New England Legacy Scholar Program and interested in participating, the RCC lab is currently recruiting participants. Participants would be asked to come to our lab for a one hour appointment in which they would read passages on either an e-reader or paper and answer questions about the passage. Please email sbcoglab@gmail.com for more information
Differences in Reading Performance Across Text Types
This study is examining how three different standardized tests (the Nelson Denny Reading Test, the Multimedia Comprehension Battery and Gates-MacGinitie Reading Test) correlate to each other and with processes of working memory and meta cognition. Additionally, the study aims to evaluate how well the different tests predict performance on different types of texts (e.g., narrative and expository).
Optimizing Performance on E-readers
This study aims to be a string of studies all with the the goal of learning how to optimize individual’s reading on E-readers. The aim of the current study is to examine whether people learn information, read at a different pace, or experience varying levels of fatigue when text is presented in a serif font compared to when text is read in a sans serif font. Specifically, we were examining this effect on a Kindle, with fonts designed to maximize reading speed and decrease eyestrain.
Publications:
Stiegler-Balfour, J.J., Roberts, Z.S., LaChance, A.S., Sahouria, A.M., & Newborough, E.D. (2023). Is reading under print and digital conditions really equivalent? Differences in reading and recall of expository text for higher and lower ability comprehenders. International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, 176, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhcs.2023.103036
Smith, E.R., Stiegler-Balfour, J.J., Williams, C.R., Walsh, E.K., & O’Brien, E.J. (2020). Access to prior spatial information. Memory & Cognition, 48(7), 1234-1248. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13421-019-00996-4
Stiegler-Balfour, J. J., Jakobsen, K. V., Stroud, M. J., & Daniel, D. B. (2020). APA-style citations can create a roadblock to textbook comprehension for less-skilled readers. Teaching of Psychology, 47(2), 147-155. https://doi.org/10.1177/0098628320901384
Stiegler-Balfour, J.J. & Benassi, V. A. (2015). Guiding questions promote learning of expository text for less-skilled readers. Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Psychology, 1(4), 312-325. https://doi.org/10.1037/stl0000044
Stiegler-Balfour, J. J. (2015). Teaching online courses in psychology. In D. Dunn (Ed.). The Oxford Handbook of Undergraduate Psychology Education (pp. 275-285). Oxford University Press, NY: NY.
Troisi, J.D., Leder-Elder, S., Stiegler-Balfour, J. J., Fleck, B.K.B., Good, J.J. (2015). Effective teaching outcomes associated with the mentorship of early career psychologists. Teaching of Psychology, 42(3), 242-247. https://doi.org/10.1177/0098628315587623
Troisi, J. D., Leder-Elder, S., Stiegler-Balfour, J. J., Fleck, B. K. B., Good, J. J. (2015). Not all types of mentors are created equal: Comparing the effectiveness of intra-departmental, intra-university, and self-selected mentors. The Journal of Faculty Development, 29(3), 17-22.
Stiegler-Balfour, J. J., Benassi, V. A., Tatsak, H., Taatjes, A. (2014). The influence of guiding questions on skilled- and less-skilled readers’ understanding of written discourse. In V. A. Benassi, C. E Overson, & C. M. Hakala (Eds.), Applying the science of learning in education: Infusing psychological science into the curriculum (pp. 293-298). Retrieved from the Society for the Teaching of Psychology website: http://teachpsych.org/ebooks/asle2014/index.php. ISBN: 978-1-941804-29-2.
Benassi, V. A., Tappin, E. M., Overson, C. E., Lee, M. J., O’Brien, E. J., White, B. P., Stiegler-Balfour, J. J., & Hakala, C. M. (2014). Applying the science of learning: The cognitive toolbox. In V. A. Benassi, C. E Overson, & C. M. Hakala (Eds.), Applying the science of learning education: Infusing psychological science into the curriculum (pp. 194-205). Retrieved from the Society for the Teaching of Psychology website: http://teachpsych.org/ebooks/asle2014/index.php. ISBN: 978-1-941804-29-2.
Stiegler-Balfour, J. J. (2014). Turning your foundation into a launching pad. In J. Busler, B. Beins, & W. Buskist (Eds.), Preparing the new professoriate: Helping graduate students to become competent teachers, 2nd ed (pp. 220-225). Retrieved from the Society for the Teaching of Psychology website: http://teachpsych.org/page-1862898. ISBN: 978-1-941804-33-9.
Stiegler-Balfour, J. J. (2013). Maximize student- and peer evaluations: Leveraging feedback to become a more effective teacher and improve student learning. In J. Keeley, S. E. Afful, J. J. Stiegler-Balfour, J. J. Good, & S. Leder (Eds.), So you landed a job – what’s next? Advice for early career psychologists from early career psychologists (pp. 14-26). Retrieved from the Society for the Teaching of Psychology website: http://teachpsych.org/ebooks/ecp2013/index.php. ISBN:978-1-941804-26-1.
Afful, S. E., Stiegler-Balfour, J. J., Good, J. J., Leder, S., & Keeley, J. (2013). Realistic expectations for your first few years. In J. Keeley, S. E. Afful, J. J. Stiegler-Balfour, J. J. Good, & S. Leder (Eds.), So you landed a job – what’s next? Advice for early career psychologists from early career psychologists (pp. 128-131). Retrieved from the Society for the Teaching of Psychology website: http://teachpsych.org/ebooks/ecp2013/index.php. ISBN: 978-1 941804-26-1.
Keeley, J., Afful, S. E., Stiegler-Balfour, J. J., Good, J. J., & Leder, S. (2013). Introduction: A field guide to this book. In J. Keeley, S. E. Afful, J. J.Stiegler- Balfour, J. J. Good, & S. Leder (Eds.), So you landed a job – what’s next? Advice for early career psychologists from early career psychologists (pp. 1-4). Retrieved from the Society for the Teaching of Psychology website: http://teachpsych.org/ebooks/ecp2013/index.php. ISBN: 978-1-941804-26-1.
Stiegler-Balfour, J. J. (2013). Consciousness. In S. E. Afful, J. J. Good, J. Keeley, S. Leder, & J. J. Stiegler-Balfour (Eds.), Introductory psychology teaching primer: A guide for new teachers of psych 101 (pp. 37-41). Retrieved from the Society for the Teaching of Psychology website: http://teachpsych.org/ebooks/intro2013/index.php. ISBN: 978-1-941804-27-8.
Stiegler-Balfour, J. J. (2013). Memory. In S. E. Afful, J. J. Good, J. Keeley, S. Leder, & J. J. Stiegler-Balfour (Eds.), Introductory psychology teaching primer: A guide for new teachers of psych 101 (pp. 26-30). Retrieved from Society for the Teaching of Psychology website: http://teachpsych.org/ebooks/intro2013/index.php. ISBN: 978-1-941804-27-8.
Good, J. J., Keeley, J., Leder, S., Afful, S., & Stiegler-Balfour, J. J. (2013). Supporting our junior faculty: Assessing the concerns and needs of early career faculty. Teaching of Psychology, 40(4), 340-345. https://doi.org/10.1177/0098628313501048
Stiegler-Balfour, J. J., & Overson, C. E. (2012). Useful resources for preparing the new professoriate. In W. Buskist, & Benassi, V. A (Eds.), Effective college and university teaching: Strategies and tactics for the new professoriate (pp. 207-217). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. ISBN: 978-1-4129-9607-5.
Cook, A. E., Lassonde, K. A., Splinter, A., Guéraud, S., Stiegler-Balfour, J. J. & O’Brien, E. J. (2012). The role of relevance in the activation and instantiation of predictive inferences. Language, Cognition and Neuroscience, 29(2), 244-257. https://doi.org/10.1080/01690965.2012.748926
Blanc, N., Stiegler-Balfour, J. J., & O’Brien, E. J. (2011). Does the certainty of information influence the updating process? Evidence from the reading of news articles. Discourse Processes, 48(6) 387-403. https://doi.org/10.1080/0163853X.2011.552844
Funded Grants
Fund for Teaching and Public Understanding of Psychological Science ($1,000), Association for Psychological Sciences, “Learning during a global pandemic: The effects of cognitive load and social exhaustion on learning,” 2020.
Center for Excellence in Aging and Health ($9,950), University of New England, “The use of digital text and print in older and younger adults,” 2019-2020.
Center for the Enrichment of Teaching and Learning ($1,570), University of New England, “Flipping problem-based learning on its head: Creating more dynamic learning experiences through the inverted classroom model,” 2016-2017.
Center for the Enrichment of Teaching and Learning ($2,113), University of New England, “Using an inverted classroom approach to support problem-based learning in a research methods course,” Spring 2016.
College of Arts and Sciences Scholarly Research Mini-Grant ($3,000), University of New England, “Reading Comprehension and Alzheimer’s Disease: Understanding the effects of related and unrelated text distracters” (Co-PI: Regula H. Robnett), 2012-2013.
College of Arts and Sciences Scholarly Research Mini-Grant ($3,000), University of New England, “Learning from text: Effects of reading skill and text factors,” 2011-2012.
Partnership Grant ($2,000), Society for the Teaching of Psychology (Division 2, American Psychological Association), “Applying the science of learning in face-to-face and online psychology courses” (Co-PI: Victor A. Benassi), 2011-2012.
Master Teacher Program Award ($1,000), Society for the Teaching of Psychology (Division 2, American Psychological Association), “Applying the science of learning in face-to-face and online psychology courses,” 2012.