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Individualized Learning Experiences for UWGB Human Development and Psychology Students

Category: Independent Study

Research Opportunity: Fall 2020 for Students Interested in Industrial and Organizational Psychology

Dr. Allen Huffcutt currently works in the Cofrin School of Business, but his background is in Industrial and Organizational (I-O) psychology. He runs a student research group comprised of both psychology and business students that investigates various organizational issues. One study currently underway assesses the effects of allowing company interviewers to ask follow-up questions with candidate responses in a modern behavioral interview. Some researchers advocate that interviewers not be allowed to do so in order to main the highest level of standardization, thereby putting these highly structured interviews essentially on par with other common selection measures such as intelligence and personality tests. Other researchers believe that asking follow-up question such as “Could you tell me more about…” is necessary to understand fully the skills and abilities of candidates. Members of his team helped design the study (including its measures) last fall and are currently testing volunteer participants. That testing will most likely continue next fall. Additionally, a few members of his team are also involved in an analysis of career paths with a local bank, and similar projects could emerge next fall.

Please contact Dr. Huffcutt directly if you have any questions and/or are interested (huffcuta@uwgb.edu). There is a possibility of getting course credit (e.g., Research Assistantship, Independent Study) as part of your involvement in this team.

Spring 2020 Research Assistants for Projects on Motivation and Biases in Sport

Dr. Alan Chu (see his research work here: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=znowtv4AAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao) is recruiting three to four students to serve as research assistants for several research projects in Spring 2020:

  1. Four projects are related to sport motivation and physical/psychosocial outcomes (well-being, burnout) in current or former high school athletes. Because most of the data have been collected, the main responsibilities for these projects will be data organization, data analysis, and report writing and formatting. Some planning and hands-on research tasks will also be included for data collection in high schools in the Northeast Wisconsin area.
  2. Two projects are related to collegiate and table tennis athletes’ motivation and mental skills profiles. These are nationwide online survey studies. The main responsibilities for these projects will be communicating with athletic staff (e.g., coaches) for participant recruitment, as well as data organization and data analysis.
  3. One project is related to gender and racial biases in sport, particularly how they influence referees’ decision-making in soccer. This is a new experimental study, and the main responsibilities will be hands-on data collection and analysis, which include the use of physiological measures such as eye tracking.
  4. One project is related to human’s need in novelty and its relationship with motivation based on psychosocial and physiological perspectives. This is a new experimental study, and the main responsibilities will be literature review, participant recruitment and data collection, and potentially some data analysis, which may include the use of physiological measures such as heart rate.

Any student who has taken a Research Methods course can apply. Selected students will attend weekly meetings (most likely as part of a research team) and earn 3 credits in Spring. If students who are senior want to work on only data analysis and writing, there will also be an option of take only 1 or 2 credits. To apply, students should email an unofficial academic transcript and a statement (one page, double-spaced, APA format) describing your research experience, project(s) of interest, and your expectations of the assistantship (e.g., what you want to learn and accomplish) to Dr. Chu (chua@uwgb.edu). Feel free to email Dr. Chu if you have any questions.

Interested in doing an Internship, Honors Project, etc.?

If you are considering an Internship working with older adults, or in the area of vocation rehabilitation, or are interested conducting a Research Project, Independent Study, Honors Project, or would like to serve as a Teaching Assistant, I would be happy to work with you in developing your individual learning experience (or will direct you to another Faculty member who might be interested in working with you).

You can contact  Dr. Dean VonDras (vondrasd@uwgb.edu) at any time to discuss a possible project. And you can read a bit more about each of these types of independent learning opportunities through the links at the bottom of my web-page:  https://www.uwgb.edu/vondrasd/

Research Assistants and Independent Study Students Sought for Humanistic Gerontology Project:

Project description and goals: To learn about and explore the area of humanistic gerontology, focusing on questions of meaning and purpose, developmental insights, inter-generational relations, and self-actualization in the lives of older people as reflected in the arts, literature, philosophy, history, and life-stories. We also hope to develop skills in science journalism, oral history, and narrative writing as we seek to elucidate connections between psychological, social, cultural, and biological factors that influence development and change in old age. 
Please contact Dr. Dean VonDras (vondrasd@uwgb.edu) to ask questions and express interest in participating in this project.