Jennifer Manuola, Director of the Rutgers Psychology Child Development Center, receives award for outstanding contributions to operational excellence
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06 March 2024 Award, Staff

Jennifer Manuola, Director of the Rutgers Psychology Child Development Center, receives award for outstanding contributions to operational excellence

Jennifer is the director of the Rutgers Psychology Child Development Center. She started working in the center as a student and worked her way to the current director rank. Throughout the past decades, Jennifer has worked tirelessly to offer childcare to new students, faculty, and staff on campus. She worked with state and other funding agencies to secure support for families in need and successfully applied for multiple state grants that helped the staff and the center. During the pandemic,

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Candace Green, Senior Department Administrator, receives award for outstanding contributions to staff culture
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06 March 2024 Award, Staff

Candace Green, Senior Department Administrator, receives award for outstanding contributions to staff culture

Candace is the senior department administrator in the Department of Psychology. She goes above and beyond to keep the department afloat. For nearly a year, Candace alone coordinated everything that needed to be done administratively within the department. Candace has consistently demonstrated a high level of dedication, professionalism, and expertise in the HRM functions of the department. From the constant and direct assistance provided to the chair to HRM expertise, the department simply would not

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Qingqing Yin, Second Recipient of the G. Terence Wilson Award
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14 February 2024 Students, Award

Qingqing Yin, Second Recipient of the G. Terence Wilson Award

Qingqing Yin has been selected as the winner for the 2nd annual G. Terence Wilson Outstanding Graduate Student Research Award. This award was created to honor the lifetime contributions of retired faculty member, Dr. Terry Wilson, who spent a lifetime leading the field of clinical psychology and participating in Rutgers Clinical Psychology Ph.D. Program.

Qing is currently a Clinical Psychology Ph.D. candidate working under the supervision of Dr. Shireen Rizvi. Her project, "DBT Skills Video

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Measuring the Pain-Pleasure Gap in Sex Education
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01 February 2024 Faculty, Social Psychology, Media Appearance, Publication

Measuring the Pain-Pleasure Gap in Sex Education

 

A study conducted by graduate student Grace M. Wetzel and department chair Diana T. Sanchez found that gendered expectations for sexuality begin at a young age, with girls more likely to associate sex with pain. An article on the study was featured in the Rutgers Arts and Sciences News Digest

Allie Bond, Shelby Bandel, Ian Stanley and Michael Anestis publish “Law enforcement and firearms: understanding firearm ownership and storage habits”
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14 November 2023 Clinical Psychology, Publication

Allie Bond, Shelby Bandel, Ian Stanley and Michael Anestis publish “Law enforcement and firearms: understanding firearm ownership and storage habits”

Law enforcement officers own firearms at a high rate and often do not engage in secure firearm storage (e.g., storing a firearm locked or unloaded). Previous research has found that unsecure firearm storage is associated with increased risk for firearm injury and death. This is concerning given that 57.6% of law enforcement officers report experieicng thoughts of suicide thoughout this life. Finding ways to increase secure storage among law enforcement officers may help to reduce suicide

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Check out and share our website about undergraduate research in social psychology
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02 November 2023 Social Psychology

Check out and share our website about undergraduate research in social psychology

The Social Area Graduate Diversity & Climate Committee created a website about how undergraduate students can get involved in Social Psychology research at Rutgers: https://sites.rutgers.edu/ursp/. The website includes a video explaining what Social Psychology research is, testimonials from past undergraduates research assistants, and a resource page with links to Social Psychology research labs at Rutgers. We took on this initiative last year because we want to increase the accessibility of

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Danielle Hoyt awarded F31 predoctoral fellowship from the National Institute of Mental Health
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26 October 2023 Students, Award

Danielle Hoyt awarded F31 predoctoral fellowship from the National Institute of Mental Health

Danielle Hoyt, a fourth year Clinical Psychology PhD candidate, was recently awarded a two-year F31-diversity fellowship from the National Institute of Mental Health. The project, entitled “Mental Health and Occupational Functioning in Nurses: An investigation of anxiety sensitivity and factors affecting future use of an mHealth intervention”, will explore the relation of anxiety sensitivity to mental health and work-place outcomes in nurses. The project further considers organizational and nurse

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Undergraduate Jas Sarna receives award from the American Psychological Foundation
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19 October 2023 Students, Clinical Psychology

Undergraduate Jas Sarna receives award from the American Psychological Foundation

Jas Sarna is one of 8 students nationally to receive the 2023 Sharon Stephens Brehm Undergraduate Scholarship from the American Psychological Foundation. This award recognizes Jas’s outstanding involvement in psychological science and outreach

Beyond the Opioid Epidemic: Scientist Seeks to Develop non-Addictive Treatment for Pai
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25 September 2023 Faculty, Behavioral and Systems Neuroscience

Beyond the Opioid Epidemic: Scientist Seeks to Develop non-Addictive Treatment for Pai

David Barker, a professor in the Department of Psychology, School of Arts and Sciences, studies the pathways in the brain involved with psychiatric disorders with the goal of finding effective treatments. His work has recently focused on a receptor—a key protein for communication in the brain—that shows promise in promoting pain relief without triggering the addictive response associated with opioid receptors. Addiction to opioid prescription painkillers has fueled a public health crisis over

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Study Examines What Drives Belief
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25 September 2023 Faculty, Cognitive Psychology, Publication, Staff

Study Examines What Drives Belief

 

In a study published in Psychological Review, Drs. Sommer, Hemmer, and Musolino analyzed previous studies and have developed a new scientific theory they say is behind the psychology of belief.

Study Examines What Drives Belief

Prof. David Barker Receives Grossman Innovation Award
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25 August 2023 Faculty, Behavioral and Systems Neuroscience, Cognitive Psychology, Award

Prof. David Barker Receives Grossman Innovation Award

 

The Barker Lab was awarded the Grossman Innovation Prize. The Prize, named for Alan H. Grossman, provides funding for proof-of-concept studies that allow faculty innovators to develop product ideas with the hope that these nascent products might eventually transform into an independent business or attract venture capital funding.His work has recently focused on an 'orphan' receptor—a key protein for communication in the brain with no known binding target—that shows promise in promoting pain

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Prof. Elizabeth Torres, Rutgers Professor Receives Career Development Award
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27 July 2023 Faculty, Behavioral and Systems Neuroscience, Cognitive Psychology, Award

Prof. Elizabeth Torres, Rutgers Professor Receives Career Development Award

 

Professor Torres, Director of the Sensory Motor Integration Laboratory, receives Career Development Award from the Nancy Lurie Marks Family Foundation. The award, a second in her tenure at Rutgers University, is to lend continuity to her research program in autism and embodied cognition. This brings the generous contributions of the Foundation to over 1.3 million dollars to the Torres lab, for research in autism.

Rutgers Sensory Motor Integration Lab Awarded by the I-ASC
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26 June 2023 Faculty, Students, Behavioral and Systems Neuroscience, Cognitive Psychology

Rutgers Sensory Motor Integration Lab Awarded by the I-ASC

Professor Torres’ Sensory Motor Integration Lab has received the Community Partner Award from the International Association for Spelling as Communication. This award is for developing accionable science that helps autistic non-speakers understand their sensory motor differences and educates society to support them and help improve communication. The SMIL students and postdocs hosted Autistic Non-Speakers and their families at their April 2023 NJACE Global conference.

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Dr. Diana Sanchez has been elected as the 2025 president of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology (SPSP).
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08 June 2023 Faculty, Social Psychology, Department Leadership, Award

Dr. Diana Sanchez has been elected as the 2025 president of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology (SPSP).

Dr. Diana Sanchez has recently been elected as the the 2025 president of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology (SPSP), the largest organization of personality and social psychologists in the world. She will begin her term as president-elect in 2024 and past president in 2026. During her term, Dr. Sanchez will strengthen SPSP’s outreach and advocacy efforts, and work to diversify representation at all levels of SPSP. For more info, visit

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Professor Elizabeth B Torres Awarded 4 Patents!
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23 May 2023 Faculty, Award

Professor Elizabeth B Torres Awarded 4 Patents!

The Rutgers of Innovation Ventures celebrated the Research Inventors on May 22, 2023 and Prof. Torres received an award for her US patents. They will accelerate the translation of the Sensory Motor Integration Lab discoveries to real-world applications and will bring revenue to the SAS unit, the Psychology Dept. and the Torres SMIL.

Professor Tracey Shors provided the Richard D. Church Public Lecture in Neuroscience at St. Lawrence University
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09 May 2023 Faculty

Professor Tracey Shors provided the Richard D. Church Public Lecture in Neuroscience at St. Lawrence University

Professor Tracey Shors provided the Richard D. Church Public Lecture in Neuroscience at St. Lawrence University this April.

Everyone experiences trauma. Whether it’s a specific harrowing event or a series of stressful moments that accumulate over time, trauma can echo and etch itself into our brains. In her lecture, neuroscientist Dr. Tracey Shors will discuss how our brains are inclined to ruminate on painful memories and how this process can interfere with our everyday lives, while making

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2023 Psychology Honors Students
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09 May 2023 Students, Undergrad Announcments

2023 Psychology Honors Students

Dear Honors Students, Graduate Students, Faculty, and Staff,

You undoubtedly know that we are part of a very large department with a huge undergraduate education and research component. This year, over 700 students will graduate as Psychology majors. Of those 700+ majors, only 22 will graduate with the designation “Honors Research Scholar in Psychology”. These 22 represent our most dedicated, intellectually engaged, and hard-working students.

Completing an Honors Thesis is a test of tenacity,

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Allison Bond featured in The Press of Atlantic City and the Rutgers SAS News Digest.
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09 May 2023 Students, Publication

Allison Bond featured in The Press of Atlantic City and the Rutgers SAS News Digest.

Allison Bond has been features in multiple publications at The Press of Atlantic City and the Rutgers SAS News Digest.

https://pressofatlanticcity.com/lifestyles/health-med-fit/health-care-providers-rarely-screen-for-firearm-access/article_db88a408-4549-5bcf-8450-f5e9c79fccdd.html

Dr. Karin Stromswold 2022- 2023 Chancellor -Provost Award Winner
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09 May 2023 Faculty, Cognitive Psychology, Award

Dr. Karin Stromswold 2022- 2023 Chancellor -Provost Award Winner

Dr. Karin Stromswold is the recipient of the 2022- 2023 Chancellor -Provost Award for Faculty Excellence in Teaching

https://newbrunswick.rutgers.edu/chancellor-provost/faculty-excellence-awards

The Torres Sensory Motor Integration Lab is in the news
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14 April 2023 Faculty, Students, Behavioral and Systems Neuroscience, Cognitive Psychology

The Torres Sensory Motor Integration Lab is in the news

Rutgers researchers team with ballet company for autism communication study

The Rutgers SMIL has teamed up with the ROXYE ballet to build a platform of data collection and analyses of complex dyadic and group motions that help advance autism research, education and practices. In a collaborative project between STEM and the Arts, a new body-language based code will be use to support communication in autism.