24 Psychology Undergraduates to Present Research at Western Psychological Association

Twenty-four Dominican University of California undergraduate psychology students have been accepted to present their research at this year’s Western Psychological Association (WPA) conference in San Francisco, April 24-28.

Presenting at the WPA has become an annual tradition for Dominican students. This year Dominican is serving as the conference co-sponsor.

The conference theme is “Psychology in Action.” Thirty invited speakers from universities throughout California – including Dominican professor Dr. Rosalie Chen – will present their work. Dr. Chen’s lecture is titled: "Psychology of Political Ideology: Left and Right in the Chinese Cultural Context."

Dr. Chen is a social psychologist by training and has taught courses on social psychology, political psychology, and cross-cultural psychology. Her research interests are interdisciplinary in nature and lie at the intersection of social, political, and cultural psychology. Particularly, she focuses on the role of culture in the political psychology of intergroup relations. Her overarching research goal is to contribute to the understanding of intergroup conflict by elucidating how ideology, identity, and emotion motivate political perception, attitudes, and behavior.

A new requirement in the Department of Psychology ensures all students in the program benefit from working on a research project, says Dr. Ben Rosenberg, assistant professor of psychology.

In addition to the fundamental core curriculum, there are two components which make the Dominican psychology curriculum distinctive: first-hand experience in the field and the selection of a personal research focus through the field placement requirement and senior research project.

“We this year started requiring all senior thesis students to submit an abstract for review to WPA,” he says. “Along with this requirement, we are co-sponsoring WPA this year to highlight our program's unique commitment to student-faculty research collaboration.”

These collaborations come in two primary forms, both of which are represented at WPA this year.

“All senior psychology students complete a year-long senior thesis course that is akin to what many students do in a MA or MS program,” Rosenberg says. “In addition, many of our students collaborate on research with faculty as research assistants in faculty labs.”

Three such collaborations are being presented this year, from Dr. Bill Phillips' lab, Dr. Veronica Fruiht's lab, and Dr. Rosenberg’s Health and Motivation Lab.

“Another aspect of our program that this commitment to WPA highlights is our unique dual capstone approach – students not only complete the yearlong thesis, but they also complete 90 hours of psychology-related work as part of a field placement course,” Rosenberg says. 

About 40-50 percent of Dominican students graduating with a degree in psychology go on to graduate school in psychology, with most seeking MA-level degrees in clinical psychology.

The Dominican students accepted to present at WPA 2024 are:

Diara Navarrete Amaral: “Climate Hope-Keepers: The Role of Mentoring and Social Media in Developing and Sustaining Hope about Climate Change Among US Adolescents”

Caelyn Anderson: “The Framing of Decisions and the Psychology of Choice Regarding Novel Treatment of a Deadly Disease”

Erika Anderson: “Climate Hope-Keepers: The Role of Mentoring and Social Media in Developing and Sustaining Hope about Climate Change Among US Adolescents”

Carmen Hurtado Aragon: “Academic Self-Efficacy, Belongingness, and Parental Acceptance in LGBTQ+ College Students”

Eunice Contreras: “The Framing of Decisions and the Psychology of Choice Regarding Novel Treatment of a Deadly Disease”

Evet DeCota: “The Relationship of Stress and Impulsivity to Hyper-Palatable Food Consumption”

Lisa Delaplane: “A Comparison of What Types of Information Will Increase the Practice of Entomophagy (Consumption of Insects for Food)”

Jennifer Ciddelprado: “The Power of Social Media and Peer Pressure on College Students’ Alcohol Consumption”

Christina Garcia: “Reparations support for Indigenous People”

Sonali Goswami: “Ethnic Diversity on Campus: How are sense of belonging and classroom performance related?”

Sofia Guagenti: “The Framing of Decisions and the Psychology of Choice Regarding Novel Treatment of a Deadly Disease”

Chris Kenney: “Beyond a Freedom Threat: Expanding Outcomes of Psychological Reactance”

Zhari Malig: “Relationship of Attachment Styles, Academic Achievement, and Connectedness to University”

Macrus McCutchen: “The Relationship between Personal and Coach’s Morals and Values and Player Stress Levels”

Emily Melton: “Convergent and Divergent Thinking as Mediators of the Relationship Between Birth Order and College Major”

Kaylee Norris: “Beyond a Freedom Threat: Expanding Outcomes of Psychological Reactance”

Tamara Pacheco: “The Relationship between Career Self-Esteem and Parental Attachment in Higher Education Students”

Hanna Pedersen: “Parenting Under Authority: Unraveling the Echoes on Mental Health and Self-Worth Across Racial Spectrums”

Miriya Peneyra: “The Two Sides of Pamayanan: Exploring the Relationship Between Colonial Mentality, Family Conflict, and Anxiety in Filipino Americans”

Daniella Aguirre Puerto: “The Relationship Between Family Achievement Guilt, Imposter Syndrome, and College Students’ Mental Health”

Claudia Reyes: “The Relationships of Social Media Use, Self-Esteem, and Loneliness”

Romisa Shakeriniasar: “The Relationship Between Siblings on Leadership and Social Skills”

Renne Takahasi: “The Effects of Odor on Memory: Investigating the Impact of Aversive Odor on Semantic Memory”

Jonah Thomas: “Closeness of Parental Attachment and Effect on Later Adult Friendships”

Pictured: Alumna Criselle Ramos and Dr. Ben Rosenberg present research from Rosenberg’s HAM Lab  at WPA 2022 in Portland, Oregon. Criselle is now a doctoral student at Alliant International University.