Summer 2020 Remote Research 

This summer, I began developing an experiment with Dr. Day to explore the effects of explicit vs. implicit language in prescription drug ads on consumer understanding of side effects. I had previously collected data on the number of explicit and implicit side effects in recent ads as well as adverse events described on screen. This data was used to determine which ads to include in the experiment. Study participants will see ads that used either primarily explicit language, primarily implicit language, or equal amounts of both, and then perform specific recall and recognition tasks. Through the process of developing the study, I learned about a variety of cognitive psychology concepts and how to design rigorous experiments more effectively. The support from URS this term was greatly appreciated –it will enable me to understand research in future classes and to provide a foundation for future research projects.