Tags: psychology

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Helping minorities navigate racial trauma

Psychology faculty member Isha Metzger is engaged in vital work towards improving the health of our community, developing an expertise that grew out of her own experience as well as a heart for public health and wellness. The Office of Research shares a terrific deep-dive into her program and projects: For Isha Metzger, it’s a chicken and egg question. Which came first—her interest in psychology, or her interest in helping…

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Noted and Quoted, Nov/Dec 2020

COVID-19, election news and analysis, personality traits, weather and climate round out the recent trending topics for Franklin College faculty expertise in the media. A sample of the many stories: Study links cognitive disorders with severe COVID-19 risk – research led by Kaixiong Ye, assistant professor of genetics, reported by Devdiscourse, News Break, and Postdoctoral Fellow Jingqi Zhou, Drugs.com Hot or cold, weather…

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Noted and Quoted, October 2020

A few of the stories we've been following over the course of October, written by or featuring the work of Franklin College faculty members: Some COVID-19 rule-breakers could be narcissists, experts say — here’s how to approach them – psychology professor Keith Campbell quoted by The Spokesman-Review, Longview News Journal A post-presidential debate reality check on carbon dioxide and climate – Marshall Shepherd, Georgia…

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Building better teams through psychology

Dorothy Carter spends her days developing strategies that can help astronauts prepare for missions to Mars, assist military leaders in maximizing their troops’ performance, and coach corporate leaders to optimize organizational plans. It’s not what she thought she would be doing in the early 2000s when she was a professional dancer for a ballet company in Ohio. But, her long-range future was limited, she realized then. “There was no real…

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Psychology research links conflict resolution, long-term health

Money, jobs, children—all common topics of arguments in relationships. Previous research has shown that how couples work through disagreements on serious topics can often predict the success of their relationships. But a recent study from the University of Georgia found that the way couples approach conflict is associated with a key biomarker of physical health. “The links between relationships and health are quite strong,” said Richard…

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The health risks of poverty, racial discrimination

Longitudinal research studies – information about individuals gathered over time – help scientists understand the impacts of endemic phenomena by developing correlations that can be otherwise difficult to trace, despite the chronic negative effects on the population. Growing up in poverty and experiencing racial discrimination affect physical health and the UGA Center for Family Research has been leading longterm…

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Noted and Quoted, September 2020

Elections and hurricanes led the media coverage featuring Franklin faculty expertise during September. A sample of the many recent stories in print, on the air and screen: Mathematicians open a new front on an ancient number problem – mathematics professor Paul Pollack quoted by Quanta Magazine, Wired Flooding, blackouts in the wake of Laura – Marshall Shepherd, Georgia Athletic Association Distinguished Professor …

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UGA part of $52M NIH study on early detection of schizophrenia in young people

Researchers from the University of Georgia are part of an international investigation led by the Yale Department of Psychiatry to better understand the cause and effect of schizophrenia in some high-risk adolescents and young adults. The research, funded by a $52 million grant from the National Institutes of Health, will fund the development of the Psychosis Risk Outcomes Network, or ProNET. The consortium will be based at 27 institutions, where…

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Amazing student Alec Murphy

From teaching paddleboarding on Lake Herrick to leading trips through the Outdoor Recreation Center, Franklin double-major Alec Murphy (biology/psychology, Spanish minor) is committed to improving the lives of people around him. A future physician, he hopes to incorporate positive psychology research with medicine to make others happier and healthier: I volunteered at St. Mary’s Hospital in radiology and neurology departments and the wound…

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The toll of video fatigue

Something most everyone can relate to in our extended, present moment – Zoom Fatigue – has entered the lexicon to capture the emotional exhaustion, anxiousness, and worry that may accompany the high volume of virtual meetings. Kristen Shockley, associate professor of psychology, unpacks the HR impacts and how professionals can help in a new article: Understanding the physical and psychological factors behind video…

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EMPOWER Lab receive $1 Million SAMHSA Grant

The EMPOWER Lab in the department of psychology - Engaging Minorities in Prevention Outreach Wellness Education and Research – is an important new development within our campus community. Racial stressors, the verbal, behavioral, or environmental stressors that individuals experience because of their race, may include being ignored or insulted by White coworkers, not being considered for jobs or positions, being told that…

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Emotion coaching can help in treating anorexia nervosa

Important new research from the department of psychology about the role of parents in helping teenagers recover from anorexia: University of Georgia psychologists and collaborators at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital have developed supplemental interventions to use in addition to family-based therapy (FBT) to treat teens with anorexia nervosa. FBT is the gold standard treatment for anorexia, but there is a subgroup of families that are…

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COVID-19 Well-Being Guide

The University of Georgia’s Clinical Psychology Program has made available a mental health guide to provide information and recommendations to members of the UGA and Athens community who are struggling with significant life changes accompanying the COVID-19 pandemic: The spread of the coronavirus throughout the United States and broader world poses a number of significant stressors, each with effects on our mental health and well-being…

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Lillian Eby receives SEC Faculty Achievement Award

Lillian Eby, a professor of psychology and director of the University of Georgia Owens Institute for Behavioral Research, has been named UGA’s 2020 recipient of the Southeastern Conference Faculty Achievement Award: Eby, a professor in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences, is recognized both nationally and internationally for her impact on the field of industrial-organizational psychology, with particular emphases…

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Social scientists worldwide collaborate on COVID-19

More than 100 international social scientists are working together to collect immediate and longitudinal information on the key social science factors that might predict the spread of COVID-19. The project, known as PsyCorona, will pair social and data scientists to connect data across multiple layers—individual survey reports from 10,000-plus participants from more than nine countries, satellite data documenting social distancing, and…

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Amazing student: Emily Austin

The senior psychology major/biology minor from Douglasville is working toward fulfilling her childhood dream of becoming a physician and bringing creativity and innovation to health care delivery: My sophomore year, I was selected to represent UGA as an Orientation leader, welcoming over 5,000 new students to the university alongside 14 incredible student leaders I now consider family. Orientation was an electrifying…

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New psychology research: changing self-concept can lower well-being

American culture values the freedom to change and reinvent one’s self. A new study, however, reveals that Americans who do change tend to report a lower sense of well-being. University of Georgia psychologists compared individual self-concepts between Americans and Japanese counterparts and uncovered this essential contradiction about the heroic myth of American individualism: “In Western and particularly American culture there is a notion…

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Noted and quoted, February 2020

Critical views, insights, commentary, and explanation from Franklin College faculty over the month of February. A sample: Column: If you drink milk, thank Big Government, Stephen Mihm, associate professor of history writing in his regular column at Bloomberg February: The cruelest month, Georgia Athletic Association Distinguished Professor Marshall Shepherd in the Eau Claire (WI) Leader-Telegram Clay — incredibly…

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Alumni Association reveals 2020 Bulldog 100 list

The University of Georgia Alumni Association recognized the fastest-growing companies owned or operated by UGA alumni during the 11th annual Bulldog 100 Celebration on Feb. 8: The 2020 fastest-growing business, LeaseQuery LLC, is led by CEO George Azih and Chief Revenue Officer Chris Ramsey. Azih earned his bachelor’s degree in business administration in 2003 and Ramsey earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology in 2005.…

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Amazing student: Samantha Summers

Biology/Psychology double-major Samantha Summers explains her passion about “integrating sustainability in health care on both individual and systems levels,” and her plans as a doctor to improve the health literacy disparity in Georgia and beyond: Sustainability focuses on living in a way conscious of the generations of tomorrow. Unfortunately, many hear “sustainable” and tune out believing it to be only about climate change.…

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New research shows promise for treating schizophrenia

A new psychology study confirms that targeting one particular symptom of schizophrenia has a positive effect on other symptoms, offering significant promise for treating an aspect of schizophrenia that currently has no pharmaceutical options: A team led by Gregory Strauss published a study confirming that successfully treating the symptom avolition—reduced motivation—has a positive effect on other negative symptoms of schizophrenia.…

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Noted and Quoted, January 2020

Franklin faculty provided expert commentary and analysis as well as important new research in a strong start to 2020. Here are a few of the top stories so far this year: Voting rights restoration gives felons a voice in more states – associate professor sociology Sarah Shannon quoted by PEW,  St. Louis Post-Dispatch, The Crime Report, KyForward Five social media posts about weather that need to go…

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Amazing student: Madison Read

Phi Beta Kappa and Biochemistry Peer Learning Assistant Madison Read (Biology (B.S.) and Psychology (B.S.), Spanish minor) plans to serve as advocate to people as a doctor, helping them realize their full potential to take control of their health: During my freshman year, an older friend invited me to a CURE body meeting, and I fell in love with the mission of the organization. CURE at UGA is a campus organization that sponsors a…

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Amazing student: Michael Bowler

From the impact of great mentors to lab opportunities and guiding campus tours, senior biochemistry and molecular biology /psychology double-major Michael Bowler has learned the importance of helping others pursue their passions: My experiences at UGA have been shaped by numerous organizations and their members. Dawg Camp, an extended orientation program, created immediate connections with upperclassman mentors and a vision for how I…

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Amazing student Cameron Liss

Senior biology and psychology double major Cameron Liss has used her many opportunities at UGA to pave a path to her future as a physician: One of my biggest highlights has been volunteering at Mercy Health Center. The summer after my freshman year, I decided to stay in Athens to take on the beast … Organic Chemistry. I met with my advisor, professor Karl Espelie, and I expressed that I wanted to do something more meaningful with my summer…
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