News & Events

Recent News

Undergraduate Seniors are Awarded the Borine Award for Spring 2020
All students graduating with a psychology major complete a capstone project during their senior year. This project demonstrates expertise in an area of psychological research. The Sharon Borine Award for Top Capstone was established to recognize the best of these projects every semester; Psychology Honor Students are nominated yearly for the top prize. Capstone Student projects are reviewed by section leaders, the course instructor, and a group of faculty reviewers in the Department of Psychology to select and rank the recipients. Honors students are nominated by their faculty mentor and submissions are evaluated and ranked by a faculty panel. Congratulations to the Spring 2020 recipients: Claudia Herbert, Samantha Gardow, Samuel Lee, and Rachel Jensen!
Headshots of Drs. Frazier, Meredith, and Nguyen-Feng

Helping students cope with stress during COVID-19
Patricia Frazier’s, PhD, research could not be more timely. This spring, Frazier, in collaboration with fellow counseling psychologists (and former PhD students!) Drs. Liza Meredith (UMN - Twin Cities) and Viann Nguyen-Feng (UM - Duluth), adapted a previously developed online intervention (Frazier et al., 2015; Hintz, Frazier, & Meredith, 2015; Meredith & Frazier, 2019; Nguyen-Feng et al., 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019) to evaluate its effectiveness in helping students cope with stress in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. 
Headshot of Dr. Monica Luciana

Teenagers and Sheltering-in-Place: Special Challenges
Monica Luciana, PhD, is concerned that measures like the COVID-19 shelter-in-place orders present unique challenges for adolescents. In her research, Luciana considers the scientific underpinnings of why adolescents engage in more risky behavior than either children or adults.  Currently, she is exploring why adolescents are so positively motivated to seek rewards, including a particularly potent source of reward for adolescents: the presence of peers.

Mann Receives 2020 COGS Outstanding Mentor Award
Traci Mann, PhD, professor in the Department of Psychology has received the 2020 Council of Graduate Students (COGS) Outstanding Mentor Award. Mann was considered for this award because of her outstanding work with graduate students. Erin Standen, graduate student in the social area, says, “We (as Traci Mann's graduate students) are so proud and so grateful to have her as our advisor!”

Snyder Discusses Volunteering on Dialogue Minnesota
Mark Snyder, PhD, professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Minnesota was invited to discuss helping and volunteering in our state during COVID-19 for Dialogue Minnesota’s latest episode entitled “Minnesotans Step Up To Help Despite the Pandemic.” Minnesota has one of the highest volunteer rates in the nation and while we are still under stay-at-home orders, our volunteering has not suffered. Snyder explains why people volunteer, and the benefits of volunteering for individuals, communities, and society.

May Means Mental Health
This semester has been historic, to say the least, but now as it comes to a close and finals begin it is an important time to remember that May is Mental Health Awareness month. This tradition was established in 1949 by the Mental Health America organization and has been a lasting observance ever since. Now more than ever it is crucial that we take this opportunity to evaluate our own emotions, thoughts, and mental states. While everyone has their own way to keep their mind healthy, here are some extra tips to incorporate during this quarantine.
More news

Upcoming Events

More events