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DEPARTMENT OF PSYCHOLOGY HOSTS 58TH SEMI-ANNUAL RESEARCH CONFERENCE

On Saturday, May 4, 2013, the Department of Psychology hosted the 58th semi-annual undergraduate research conference in Pollak Theater. The conference was coordinated this semester by Dr. Janice Stapley.

To begin the day, attendees were welcomed by the department chair, Dr. Lewandowski, as well as Dr. Stanton Green, Dean of the School of Humanities and Social Sciences. Dr. Green spoke of the importance of internship experiences, and he stayed to view some of the applied psychology presentations. Greetings were also provided by Brendan Mallon, President of Psi Chi, the International Honor Society in Psychology. Brendan reminded the audience how psychology can be found everywhere around them, using the sensation and perception areas of psychology as an example.

Conference attendees were treated to eight paper presentations, as well as applied psychology presentations. The applied psychology session included students from Dr. Dinella’s Six Flags field experience course, as well as Dr. Hatchard’s field experience course. Students spoke about a range of internship experiences, with sites such as CPC Behavioral Healthcare, Viacom, and MDSA (Making Daughters Safe Again) represented.

There were also 30 poster presentations, divided into two sessions throughout the day. Twenty-three students from field experience classes also presented posters outlining their internship experiences. Placements included Dottie’s House, Francis Asbury Manor, Monmouth Medical Center, Guiding Light Behavioral Health, and Long Branch Middle School.

The day concluded with an awards ceremony, first to honor the recipients of the departmental awards (Jeffrey Ascough, Amanda Branick, Veronica Ozog, and Carly Thibault). Also honored were the award winners for best presentations at the conference. Juan Gago received the honor for best paper presentation for his project titled “Practical Benefits of Power Posing and Emotional Priming.” Stacey Lepes won the award for best poster presentation for her project “The Effects of Exercise on Cooperation.” Joanna Raymundo received the award for best applied psychology poster describing her work at Middlesex County Adult Correctional Facility.