AU Student Presents Research at International Psychology Conference

Congratulations to Rachel Carson, a sophomore Psychology major, for presenting the results of a research project at the 2011 Society for Personality and Social Psychology (SPSP) Conference in San Antonio, Texas.  SPSP is a very popular international conference, and this year was no exception -- there were over 3100 attendees!  The research Rachel presented was done in collaboration with her advisor, Dr. Brent Mattingly, as well as Dr. Gary Lewandowski of Monmouth University.  The project examined how engaging in activities that expand individuals' sense of self increased the cognitive effort individuals exerted on a subsequent task.

Top Psychology Careers for 2011?

Various 'lists' often weigh in on what some believe to be the most sought-after careers for psychology students in 2011.  Two of the careers that often make such lists are School Psychologist and Marriage and Family Counselor, and we've sent AU Psychology graduates into both of these fields in the past few years.  In fact, graduates from our department have entered a variety of occupations/programs in the past 5-7 years.  Our alums have gained admittance to graduate programs in psychology, applied behavior analysis, law, medicine, occupational therapy, social work, marriage and family counseling, school psychology, and higher education administration, to name a few.  Other students are working in social service agencies, homes for troubled teens, research centers, universities, and human resource departments.  This goes to show that an undergraduate degree in psychology opens up the doors to many career paths, and our students leave Ashland University well-prepared for whatever occupation their future holds.  Psychology majors at AU are given broad training in foundational areas of the discipline, yet our curriculum is flexible and allows students to tailor the courses they take to specific career objectives.  Every student completes at least one research course (many of our students take an advanced research course), which develop critical thinking, writing, and communication skills.  All in all, students leave Ashland University with a deep understanding of why people think and behave the way they do.  This knowledge is applicable to a wide variety of career paths, thus giving our students the opportunity to explore a variety of occupations after graduation.

College of Arts & Sciences (CAS) Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (URCA) Symposium

The deadline is soon approaching for CAS URCA Symposium!

If you’ve worked on a research project this year, we hope you’ll consider applying to present your work at the 2011 College of Arts and Sciences Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity Symposium. This Symposium showcases the work of College of Arts and Sciences students in a day long program attended by faculty, students, college administrators, friends of the University, and community members. This year, the CAS URCA Symposium will be held on Wednesday, March 30, 2011 in Upper Convo.

Last year, the Symposium included Psychology-related poster presentations by Theresa Ardiri, Jenn Seda, Megan Sneeringer, Joe Stupica, and Blair Suppes. We’re hoping to have even more students participate this year!

The deadline to submit to the Symposium is this Friday, January 28, 2011 at 5:00 p.m. You can find more information and submission instructions here.

Seven New Psi Chi Members!

Please join us in congratulating the following students, who will be inducted into Psi Chi, the International Honor Society in Psychology, on February 2, 2011 at 7:00 p.m. in the Ronk Lecture Hall:

Jessie Bates

Rachel Carson

Lauren Goossens

Holly James

Brittany Potter

Nicolle Valentine

Shawn Yambor

These students join current Psi Chi members Courtney Long (President), Holly Frederick (Secretary-Treasurer), Cassie Baird, Brittany Bynum, Michelle Conti, Lauren Reichenbach, Stephanie Rickel, Megan Sneeringer, Ben Tracey, and Stephanie Whitesel.

Congratulations!

Relay for Life

It’s time to put together a team for this year’s Relay For Life. Ashland University’s second Relay For Life will be Saturday April 2nd until Sunday April 3rd. Relay is being kicked up a notch this year by holding it in Rec Center! This means more fun activities to do while you stand up to cancer.

Make any kind of team you want:
- The best floor on campus
- A group of crazy friends
- Fraternity/sorority family
- Your kick butt organization/club

To sign your team click here:

Celebrate – Remember – Fight Back

The Study of Forgetting Provides Useful Information About Memory Function

Dr. Mitchell Metzger has recently been studying a process known in the cognitive psychology literature as ‘directed forgetting’.  While instances of everyday forgetting (Where did I put my keys?, Where is my car parked?, etc.) are common occurrences, directed forgetting is an experimental procedure where participants are explicitly instructed to remember certain stimuli while disregarding others.  Results of these studies typically show that when memory is tested for all of the previously shown stimuli, participants show better memory for items they were instructed to remember, and poor memory for items they were told to forget.  These results are important because they demonstrate that previously-experienced stimuli can come under the control of later cues.  While much of the research in this area has focused on participant’s ability to remember verbal cues (e.g., word recall and recognition procedures are common in directed forgetting research), Dr. Metzger’s recent work has shown that these processes can also be observed in recognition memory for faces.  In some ways this is remarkable, given our ability to store and retrieve memories for people we have previously seen.  That is, while we might not always be able to put a name with a face we have seen before, we are very capable of recognizing that we've seen a face before.  Dr. Metzger’s research in directed forgetting has been ongoing since 2008, and undergraduate psychology majors Tim Batdorf and Jenn Seda (now both graduated from AU) have assisted in the data collection for these studies. 

*The results of these experiments will be published in an upcoming issue of the Journal of General Psychology

Psychology Students Are Going Places!

Three psychology students will be traveling abroad during the 2010-2011 academic year.  Ben Thomas spent the fall semester studying at Edge Hill University in England, Morgan Briggs will be going to the Bahamas for a mission trip over spring break, and Niki Valentine will participate in the AU in Germany program this coming summer.  These students join what is becoming a long list of psychology majors who have taken advantage of these great opportunities while enrolled at AU.

Congratulations to Nicki Tiberi!

Congratulations to Nicki Tiberi, a senior psychology major!  She was recently accepted to Barry University's Graduate School of Education for the Master of Science in Counseling program in Miami Shores, Florida.  This is a great accomplishment, and the Department of Psychology wishes Nicki good luck in her graduate studies!

Save the Date for the Spring Research Colloquium!

Save the Date for the Spring Research Colloquium!

Mark your calendars!  On Tuesday, March 15^th, the Psychology Department will welcome Dr. Bob Weis, Associate Professor of Psychology at Denison University, who will give a presentation on his research on the identification of specific learning disabilities in college students.  

Dr. Weis is a licensed clinical psychologist and researcher who specializes in developmental psychopathology.  He is the author of empirical articles on learning disabilities, hopefulness and psychotherapy outcomes, and the effects of videogame ownership on the behavior of boys.  He is also the author of Introduction to Abnormal Child and Adolescent Psychology, the textbook that is currently in use in PSYC 308.

Dr. Weis will give his talk at 7:00 p.m. in the Ronk Lecture Hall in the Schar College of Education building.  Hope to see you there!

Psychology Students to Present Their Research at the Midwestern Psychological Association Conference

Congratulations to several of our Psychology undergraduates for being accepted to present their research at the annual meeting of the Midwestern Psychological Association Conference!  Below is a list of the students and the projects they will be presenting:

• Jessica Bates, Lauren Goosens, and Nicole Valentine (faculty sponsor: Dr. Bonfiglio): Weight changes in first semester university students.
• Rachel Carson and Kayla Hoover (faculty sponsor: Dr. Mattingly): The effect of self-expansion on effort exerted on a physical task.
• Fred Grant and Falynn Almeda (faculty sponsor: Dr. Mattingly): Environmental factors on mood: A look at how clothing can affect people's mood.
• Jennifer Schultz and Shawn Yambor (faculty sponsor: Dr. Mattingly): Don't cheer me up, I'm afraid to die: The effects of terror management theory and positive encouragement on motor skill abilities.
• Nicole Tiberi and Stephanie Gordon (faculty sponsor: Dr. Mattingly): The association of attachment with romantic relationship satisfaction.
• Megen Valerino and Sarah Sladick (faculty sponsor: Dr. Mattingly): Strangers: Why individuals accept their digital candy on Facebook.

Once again, congratulations!

Undergraduate Psychology Conference at Kennesaw State University

The Psychology Department at Kennesaw State University is hosting the 10th Georgia Undergraduate Research Conference in Psychology (GURP) on April 2, 2011.  The one-day conference will be held in the new Social Sciences Building on the KSU campus in Kennesaw GA.  Undergraduate students are encouraged to  present the results of their empirical research, either in poster form or as a paper presentation.  They will be awarding prizes for the best paper and poster.

The deadline for submitting abstracts for review is March 13, 2011.  Further information about submissions, plus directions to the college, lodging, etc., are available at  http://www.kennesaw.edu/gurp/.  If students have any questions about the conference, please contact Pam Marek, at pmarek@kennesaw.edu, or the Department Chair, Sharon Pearcey, at spearcey@kennesaw.edu.

Psychology Students Receive 2010-2011 "Who's Who" Status

Congratulations to Michelle Conti, Courtney Long, Brittany Potter (psychology majors) and Lauren Reichenbach (psychology minor) who were recently awarded Who's Who Among Students in American Universities and Colleges status for 2010-2011.  Way to go!

Psychology Club meeting on January 20th

Hey Psych Clubbers!
Welcome back and I hope break went well. I know everyone is enjoying all the massive amounts of snow, but have no fear, Psychology Club returns. We need to meet ASAP because we have a fun cool project to do and you get fed! We are helping art club raise money for the hungry by drawing and painting on a flag which will be auctioned off. All we have to do is paint and hang out and eat. So please meet with us Thursday, January 20th at 9:30pm in the resource room. :) 

Thanks!

-Candy (Psych Club president)

Internship Opportunities for Students - Important!

Are you interested in an internship?  The Community Service Intern position may be for you!  Here are some of the details:

• The intern will work in the Center for Community Service for 15 hours per week (during office hours between 8am and 5pm)
• Students receive an on-campus housing room waiver ($5000 value) and $125 stipend per semester (for the first year of the internship)

Students interested in this position must have a minimum 3.0 cumulative GPA and have no level 1 or 2 judicial or off-campus violations.  Other Student Affairs intern openings include: Career Services, Greek Life, Student Activities, Multicultural Student Services and Student Conduct.  All of these intern openings have the same application process, although some may have additional requirements.  The office is looking for someone with a great deal of creativity in advertising and marketing, capability of utilizing technology and an excellent representative of the office.

If you are interested, you should stop by the Student Affairs office on the 2^nd floor of the HCSC and pick up an application.  Applications are DUE by noon on February 7, 2011.  Late applications will NOT be considered.  An interview process will be held with selected candidates after applications are turned in.

If you have any questions, contact Becky Schaff at rschaaf@ashland.edu .

New Research on Relationship Sacrifice

Research consistently indicates that individuals who are willing to make sacrifices – both small and large – for their romantic partners tend to have more satisfying romantic relationships.  However, some of my research has demonstrated individuals’ reasons for making these sacrifices may be just as important as the sacrifice itself (Mattingly & Clark, in press at JASP*).  In particular, individuals who make sacrifices as a way of obtaining positive outcomes in their relationship (e.g., make the partner happy, become closer to the partner) tend to be more satisfied in their relationships, whereas those who make sacrifices as a way of avoiding negative outcomes (e.g., avoid conflict, avoid upsetting the partner) tend to be less satisfied.  What this means is that the same sacrifice (e.g., going to the opera if you would rather stay at home and watch football) can lead to different relationship outcomes.  If the reason an individual makes this sacrifice is because he/she wants to become closer to his/her partner, then the relationship will likely benefit.  However, if the individual makes this sacrifice more so out of obligation or because he/she wants to avoid an argument, then the relationship may actually suffer.  In essence, doing the behavior isn’t good enough – you have to WANT to do the behavior in order for it to be beneficial (and in fact, begrudgingly doing the behavior may be counterproductive).

*Results of this study will be published in an upcoming issue of the Journal of Applied Social Psychology.

Psi Chi Awards and Grants for Undergraduate Students

The Psychology undergraduate honorary society, Psi Chi, has many grants and awards that are available to undergradute psychology majors.  Please click here to find out descriptions of these awards/grants, guidelines for submissions, and deadlines for consideration.  Psi Chi members should regularly check the psi chi website for important details about graduate studies, research opportunities, conferences, and other information.  This content on this page changes often, so be sure to check back regularly for updated information. 

Dr. Gary Lewandowski recently featured on CNN interview

Gary Lewandowski, PhD, Associate Professor of Psychology at Monmouth University in New Jersey, was recently interviewed by CNN regarding some of his recent relationship research.  Some of you may remember that Dr. Lewandowski  came to Ashland University in the spring of 2010, and gave a colloquium to a packed audience in the Hawkins Conard Student Center auditorium.  Click here to watch his presentation, which was both enlightening and entertaining.  The title of his presentation was "Casting Light on the Darkness of Dissolution:  Endings, Beginnings, and Wanderings".  Dr. Brent Mattingly is currently engaged in collaborative research with Dr. Lewandowski and his students.

Eastern Conference on the Teaching of Psychology

The Department of Psychology at James Madison University will host the next Eastern Conference on the Teaching of Psychology (ETOP) on Friday, June 24 and Saturday, June 25, 2011. The conference will be held at the historic Stonewall Jackson Hotel and Conference Center in Staunton, Virginia. All participants are invited to submit proposals for the concurrent sessions or poster session. Proposals received by March 1, 2011 will be considered for the program. Submissions must be related to the teaching of psychology, including but not limited to teaching techniques, demonstrations or activities for teaching a particular topic or course, effective uses of technology, assessment strategies, etc. We are particularly interested in proposals that describe innovative practices and include some type of empirical assessment of their effectiveness. For more information about the conference and the Call for Proposals, go to: http://www.psyc.jmu.edu/undergraduate/etop.html