Michelle Horhota

Michelle Horhota

Associate Dean for Mentoring and Advising; Professor of Psychology

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Michelle Horhota is the Associate Dean for Mentoring and Advising and a Professor of Psychology. She joined the Furman psychology faculty in 2008. As Associate Dean for Mentoring and Advising she is responsible for the strategic oversight and coordination of Furman’s advising and mentoring efforts in a manner that is consistent with the Furman Advantage’s promise of an integrated four-year pathway and interconnected community of advisors and mentors.

Michelle earned her M.A. and Ph.D. in Psychology, specializing in Cognitive Aging, from the Georgia Institute of Technology, and her B.S. in Psychology from the University of Toronto. Michelle teaches General Psychology and courses related to Adulthood and Aging. She also teaches a course on minimizing memory decline for seniors in the OLLI program. Her research examines the social judgments of older adults, perceptions of ageism, and the role of beliefs and stereotypes on memory performance. Dr. Horhota has mentored over 20 student researchers through the Psychology Department’s summer research program, resulting in numerous co-authored papers and posters at regional and national conferences.

Dr. Horhota was the recipient of the Alester G. Furman, Jr. and Janie Earle Furman Award for Meritorious Advising in 2017.

Education

  • Ph.D., Georgia Institute of Technology
  • M.A., Georgia Institute of Technology
  • B.Sc., University of Toronto

Research

When most people think about aging they focus on declines that occur with advancing age.  In my lab, I am interested in studying areas in which adults continue to grow and develop with age. Much of my research examines how older adults' beliefs and experiences inform their social and cognitive functioning. In  the social domain, my research asks how a person's beliefs influence their perceptions of social situations and the judgments they form of others.  I am also interested in how our expectiations of older adults affect the way that we treat them.  In the cognitive domain, I am interested in learning how a person's expectations affect their cognitive performance.  For example, what memory strategies do older adults believe will positively affect their memory performance?  Do these strategies actually work?

The overarching goal of my research is to better understand the types of behaviors that are adaptive for older adults. The hope is that understanding the underlying processes that drive behavior will not reveal when older adults will benefit from their accumulated experience and demonstrate exceptional performance.

I have also been involved with the Shi Center for Sustainability as part of the Conservation Culture Research Initiative. My role in this collaborative team is to research beliefs about environmental issues and monitor behavioral changes on campus as Furman implements sustainability initiatives on campus.

Publications

  • Lineweaver, T.T., Fansler, S.D., Horhota, M., Crumley-Branyon J.J., & Wright, M.K. (2021, August 17). Older adults’ memory beliefs predict perceptions of strategy difficulty and effectiveness. Aging, Neuropsychology, and Cognition. Advance access publication. Doi: 10.1080/13825585.2021.1962794;
  • Chasteen, A. L., Horhota, M., Crumley-Branyon, J.J. & Haseley, E*. (2021, July 22). Unwanted help: Accepting versus declining ageist behavior affects impressions of older adults. Psychology and Aging. Advance online publication. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/pag0000620;
  • Chasteen, A.L, Horhota, M., Crumley-Branyon, J. (2020, April 3). Overlooked and underestimated: Experiences of ageism in young, middle-aged, and older adults. The Journal of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences & Social Sciences. Advance access publication. doi: 10.1093/geronb/gbaa043;
  • Criss, S., Horhota, M., Wiles, K., Norton, J., St. Hilaire, K., Short, M., & Blomquist, K. (2020). Food cultures and aging: A qualitative study of grandparents’ food perceptions and influence of food choice on younger generations. Public Health Nutrition, 23(2), 221-230. doi:10.1017/S1368980019002489;
  • Lineweaver, T. T., Crumley-Branyon, J. J., Horhota, M., & Wright, M. K†. (2019). Easy or effective? Explaining young adults’ and older adults’ likelihood of using various strategies to improve their memory. Aging, Neuropsychology and Cognition, 27, 1-17. DOI: 10.1080/13825585.2019.1566432;
  • Horhota, M., Chasteen, A. L, & Crumley-Branyon, J. (2019). Is ageism acceptable when it comes from a familiar partner? Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences & Social Sciences, 74, 595-599, DOI: 10.1093/geronb/gby066
  • Chasteen, A.L, Horhota, M., Crumley-Branyon, J. (in press). Overlooked and underestimated: Experiences of ageism in young, middle-aged, and older adults.  In press at The Journal of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences & Social Sciences.
  • Criss, S., Horhota, M., Wiles, K.*, Norton, J.*, St. Hilaire, K.*, Short, M.A.*, & Blomquist, K. (in press) Food cultures and aging: A qualitative study of grandparents’ food perceptions and influence of food choice on younger generations. In press at Public Health Nutrition.
  • Lineweaver, T. T., Crumley-Branyon, J. J., Horhota, M., & Wright, M. K†. (2019).Easy or effective? Explaining young adults’ and older adults’ likelihood of using various strategies to improve their memory. Aging, Neuropsychology and Cognition, 27, 1-17. DOI: 10.1080/13825585.2019.1566432
  • Horhota, M., Chasteen, A. L, & Crumley-Branyon, J.  (2019). Is ageism acceptable when it comes from a familiar partner? Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences & Social Sciences, 74, 595-599, DOI: 10.1093/geronb/gby066
  • Lineweaver, T.T., Horhota, M., Crumley, J.*, Geanon, C.T†., & Juett, J.J†. (2018). Age differences in perceptions of memory strategy effectiveness for recent and remote memory. Aging, Neuropsychology and Cognition, 25, 146-166. doi: 10.1080/13825585.2016.1269146
  • Lineweaver, T.T., Horhota, M., Hull, R.*, McRoberts, S.M†. & Fishbaugh, M.E†. (2016).  Compared to what? The effects of a frame of reference on older adults’ subjective memory.  Aging, Neuropsychology, and Cognition, 23, 327-337. doi: 10.1080/13825585.2015.1099606

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