John Yost, PhD

Expertise: Social Psychology

Teaching interests

My personal research interests are in the areas of prejudice, implicit cognition, and Terror Management Theory. However, the major focus of my research efforts over the last several years has been in mentoring students and encouraging them to pursue their own research interests. Over the past 10 years, I have mentored over 170 independent undergraduate research projects and over 20 Honors Theses at John Carroll University.

In addition, I have mentored over 70 student conference presentations, including the sponsoring of 10 Midwestern Regional Psi Chi Research Award winners (competitive awards traditionally given to top 3% of over 600 submissions each year).

Sample of Midwestern Regional Psi Chi Award Winners Mentored:

• Koepke, Juliette. (April, 2020). Effect of threat and Conservatism on simplicity and certainty. To be presented at the 92nd annual meeting of the Midwestern Psychological Association, Chicago.
• Sayers, B., Djakovich, H., & Valentine, A.  (May, 2018).  That’s Not Me: Distancing      Reactions to Stereotype Threat Involving Sexual Assault.  Presented at the 90th annual  meeting of the Midwestern Psychological Association, Chicago.
• Otis, Z. (May, 2017).  Fear of a Woman President: The Effect of Precarious Manhood on the 2016 Presidential Election. Presented at the 89th annual meeting of the Midwestern Psychological Association, Chicago.
• Corridoni, G. (May, 2016). Twitter vs. Textbook: Differences in Source Memory and the Bizarreness Effect.  Presented at the 88th annual meeting of the Midwestern Psychological Association, Chicago.
• Palmieri, S. (May, 2014). The Effect of Collective Self-Esteem on Heterosexual Assessment of Same-Sex Relationship Quality. Presented at the 86th annual meeting of the Midwestern Psychological Association, Chicago.
• Polasky, S. (May, 2013). Obama’s Digging My Grave: Worldview Threat Reduces      Predicted Age of Death.  Presented at the 85th annual meeting of  the Midwestern      Psychological Association, Chicago.
• Benich, M. (May, 2008). Recategorization Due to Disability Information: A Test of the      Continuum Model.  Presented at the 80th annual meeting of  the Midwestern      Psychological Association, Chicago.
• Widman, S. (May, 2007). Rationalizing Away Guilt: The Role of Cognitive Dissonance     in Academically Dishonest Behaviors.  Presented at the 79th annual meeting of the      Midwestern Psychological Association, Chicago.
• Williams, A. (May, 2007). Rape Myth Acceptance and the Unobtrusive Presentation of     Sexually Degrading Images.  Presented at the 79th annual meeting of the      Midwestern Psychological Association, Chicago.

Selected Research Presentations by Mentored Students:                                                  

• Floss, H. (May, 2019). Peer Pressure as a Barrier to Reporting Date Rape. Presented at  the 91st annual meeting of the Midwestern Psychological Association, Chicago
• Koepke, J. (May, 2019). The Effect of Threat on Need for Certainty in Conservative      Males. Presented at the 91st annual meeting of the Midwestern Psychological      Association, Chicago.
• DuBois, R. (May, 2019).  A Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing: The Effect of Gender and Political   Ideology on when “No” means “No.” Presented at the 91st annual meeting of the      Midwestern Psychological Association, Chicago.
• McVay, T (May, 2019). Perceptions of Coach’s Response to Stress on Football Player’s Quality of Experience: A Test of Cognitive Resource Theory. Presented at the 91st annual meeting of the Midwestern Psychological Association, Chicago.
• Djakovich, H (May, 2019). Effect of Participant and Perpetrator Gender on Reactions to   Verbal vs. Physical Sexual Harassment. Presented at the 91st annual meeting of the      Midwestern Psychological Association, Chicago.
• Gebhardt, B. (May, 2017).  Effect of Vicarious Learning on the Career Self-Efficacy of      Adolescent Females in Rural Honduras. Presented at the 89th annual meeting of the      Midwestern Psychological Association, Chicago.
• Trautman, K. & Simonovic, N. (May, 2016). Smells Like Summer: Scent of Sunscreen     Implicitly Primes Body-Image Words.  Presented at the 88th annual meeting of the      Midwestern Psychological Association, Chicago.
• Farrell, K. (May, 2015). The Scent of Summer: Implicit Activation of Body-Image      Concerns.  Presented at the 87th annual meeting of the Midwestern Psychological      Association, Chicago.
• Berry, B.  (May, 2014). Ego-Depletion in the Context of Stereotype Suppression.       Presented at the 86th annual meeting of the Midwestern Psychological Association,      Chicago.
• Yost, J.H., & Sauter, M.J. (May, 2011). Tombstones in the Rocks: Biased Attention to       Mortality-Salient Stimuli.  Paper presented at the 83rd annual meeting of the         Midwestern Psychological Association, Chicago.