Zeitgeist Department of Psychology

Fall 2014

VCU Psychology Goes Global

2

PROGRAM DIRECTORS

Eric Benotsch

Health

Rosalie Corona

Clinical

Jeff Green

Social

Barbara Myers

Developmental

Everett Worthington

Counseling

Jennifer Elswick

Newsmagazine Production

Michael Southam-Gerow

Director, Graduate Studies

Dorothy Fillmore

Associate Director for Academic Operations

Wendy Kliewer

Chair

Linda Zyzniewski

Director, Undergraduate Studies

Important Alumni Links

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Jody Davis

Website and Facebook

3

Cover Murmur

Oil on paper

Richard Bargdill, Ph.D.

4-5 Class Notes

6-7 Department news and updates

8-9 Center for the Study of Tobacco

Products earns special designation

10-11 New faculty member

Caroline Cobb, Ph.D.

13 Faculty in the media

14-16 Research spotlight

Suzanne Mazzeo, Ph.D.

17 Graduate student spotlight

Morgan Maxwell

24-26 New grant funding

27 Undergraduate student spotlight

Sam Keeble

28-31 Alumni leadership in psychology

Kristin Perrone McGovern, Ph.D.

(M.S. ‘95, Ph.D. ‘98)

32 Visiting speakers

33 August graduates

34 Faculty awards 2013-14

35 Department contact information

Undergraduate students Becca Easter, left rear, Eric Cudiamat, Josh Brown and Jessica Bowers participated in the 15th annual James River Regional Cleanup as part

of our PSYC 493 service learning course led by Victoria Shivy, Ph.D. The students assisted with managing volunteers and removing invasive species (English Ivy). They

also collected data regarding volunteers' attitudes towards recycling.

Feature story

18-23

VCU Psychology Goes Global

by Sarah Braun

4

UPDATES

1980s

Glen A. Martin (Ph.D. ’83) is a

licensed psychologist in inde-

pendent practice in Chapel Hill,

North Carolina. He was a thera-

pist, instructor, supervisor and

administrator at the counseling

center at the University of North

Carolina at Chapel Hill for more

than 30 years. An active Ameri-

can Psychological Association

member and past co-chair of

their advisory committee on col-

league assistance, Martin cur-

rently serves as president-elect

and co-chair of the colleague

assistance committee for the

North Carolina Psychological As-

sociation. He and his wife Lynn

have three children and two

grandchildren.

1990s

Congratulations to Roger Reeb

(Ph.D. ‘93), professor and direc-

tor of graduate programs in psy-

chology and clinical psychology

at the University of Dayton, who

was named the Roesch Endowed

Chair in the Social Sciences.

2010s

Tracey Gendron (Ph.D. ‘13) is a

service learning faculty fellow

and assistant professor in the

Department of Gerontology in

the School of Allied Health Pro-

fessions at VCU. She teaches

several graduate and undergrad-

uate service-based courses in-

cluding Grant Writing, Research

Methods and Old is the New

Young. Her community-engaged

research interests include the

professional identity develop-

ment and career commitment of

gerontologists, education

through community engagement

and service-learning, aging anxie-

ty, ageism and gerontophobia,

LGBT aging and staff knowledge

and quality of care.

Gendron was named as a finalist

for the 2014 Ernest A.

Lynton Award for the

Scholarship of Engage-

ment for Early Career

Faculty given by the

New England Resource

Center for Higher Edu-

cation and the Center

for Engaged Democracy

at Merrimack College.

Read the VCU News

article.

Joshua Hook (M.S. ’07, Ph. D ‘10)

has worked as an assistant pro-

fessor of counseling psychology

at the University of North Texas

since 2010. His research inter-

ests are in humility, forgiveness

and religion/spirituality. He re-

cently received a grant from the

John Templeton Foundation to

study peoples’ humility about

their religious beliefs, values and

convictions.

Kimberly Waits (B.S. ’10) was

accepted to the Peace Corps and

left for South Africa on July 1 to

begin training as an English

teacher. She will work in cooper-

ation with the local people and

partner organizations on sustain-

able, community-based develop-

ment projects that improve the

lives of people in South Africa.

Class Notes

Kimberley Waits (B.S. ‘10)

5

Congratulations,

Jillian DeBold (B.S. ‘10) and Alec Rountree (B.S. ‘11/SOB)!

Jillian is a former member of our department’s alumni committee.

(Look who dropped by the wedding!)

6

Health disparities

research conduct-

ed by clinical doc-

toral student Am-

ma Agyemang

was recently fea-

tured by the Cen-

ter for Advancing Health’s Health

Behavior News Service. “We

found depression treatment be-

low par for minorities, even

those with co-morbid diabetes or

hypertension. Having a mental

illness and a medical illness

makes both more complex to

treat, and the rate of obtaining

depression treatment remains

low for this population.” Read

the full article.

Richard Bargdill, Ph.D., released

the second edi-

tion of his book,

“The Artist’s

Thought Book:

Intriguing

Thoughts About

the Artistic Pro-

cess.”

Faye Belgrave,

Ph.D., professor

of health psy-

chology, is facul-

ty fellow for re-

search mentor-

ing in the Divi-

sion for Inclusive Excellence. In

this role, she facilitates the Re-

search and External Funding

Academy, which just kicked off

its inaugural year. The REF Acad-

emy is designed to increase ex-

ternal funding opportunities for

underrepresented ethnic minori-

ty faculty. It will provide year-

long training and support to a

select cohort of investigators

through grant-writing workshops

and mentors and coaches.

Heather Jones, Ph.D., assistant

professor of

clinical psychol-

ogy, has been

selected to par-

ticipate in REF

for her project,

“Motivational

Interviewing

Intervention and ADHD Help-

Seeking Behaviors for African

American Families With Children

With ADHD.” Read more about

the REF Academy.

Clinical psychology doctoral stu-

dent Adrienne Borschuk was

named a semi-

finalist for the

Junior Investiga-

tors Best Abstract

in Clinical Re-

search Award

from the Cystic

Fibrosis Foundation. She will

present her abstract,

“Characteristics Associated with

Disease Disclosure in Older Ado-

lescents and Adults with Cystic

Fibrosis," at the Annual North

American Cystic Fibrosis Confer-

ence this month.

Rosalie Corona, Ph.D., professor

of clinical psychology and direc-

tor of clinical training, attended

the second annual faculty devel-

opment seminar at University of

KwaZulu-Natal in Durban, South

Africa. Sponsored by the Global

Education Office and the Division

of Community Engagement, the

faculty development seminar

connects a cohort of VCU faculty

to counterparts at strategic part-

ner universities for the purpose

of exploring collaborative re-

search and teaching linkages.

News and updates

Susan Bodnar-Deren, Ph.D., left, assistant professor of

sociology, and Rosalie Corona, Ph.D., associate profes-

sor of clinical psychology, in South Africa. (If you look

closely, you can see elephants in the background.)

Agyemang

Bargdill

Borschuk

Jones

Belgrave

7

Robin Everhart,

Ph.D., has been

named a VCU

service-learning

faculty fellow.

The VCU Service-

Learning Faculty

Fellow Program supports faculty

members who have experience

in teaching service-learning clas-

ses to improve, document and

disseminate their mastery of ser-

vice-learning to others. Fellows

are appointed for one year with

the potential of extending their

appointment for one additional

year and receive a stipend for

each year in the program.

A publication authored by Nao

Hagiwara, Ph.D., and colleagues

received the

Kales Award

from the

Karmanos Cancer

Institute in July

and was

acknowledged as

the best publica-

tion in cancer research. Read

more about the research and get

the citation. Hagiwara has also

been selected to participate in

the second year of VCU’s New

Investigators’ Grant Writing Insti-

tute, which provides yearlong,

intensive proposal development

and interdisciplinary communica-

tion training for VCU faculty from

across the university who will

apply for extramural funding

within 12 months. The program

offers monthly intensive grant-

writing workshops, peer review,

mock review, funding agency

visits and mentoring. Read more

about the program.

Joshua Langberg, Ph.D., associ-

ate professor of clinical psycholo-

gy, and Everett Worthington,

Ph.D., professor of counseling

psychology and director of clini-

cal training, have newly released

books. Langberg’s “Improving

Children’s Homework, Organiza-

tion, and Planning Skills (HOPS)”

is a how-to manual with an easy-

to-follow format that gives par-

ents and caregivers practical

techniques to improve their chil-

dren’s homework, organization

and planning skills. In “Couple

Therapy: A New Hope-Focused

Approach,” Worthington and co-

author Jennifer Ripley, Ph.D.,

offer more than 100 exercises to

repair rocky relationships. The

book is geared toward couples

counselors but is also accessible

to anyone who wants to work on

their relationship. Read more

about the book on VCU News.

Paul Perrin,

Ph.D., assistant

professor of

health psycholo-

gy, will lead a

group of ten doc-

toral and under-

graduate students to the Univer-

sity of Deusto in Bilbao, Spain, to

participate in a comprehensive

research training opportunity on

racial and ethnic disparities in

health. The trip will be funded

through a VCU Quest Global Im-

pact Award, a grant that sup-

ports the university’s global pri-

orities to improve the recruit-

ment and retention of interna-

tional students and scholars, in-

crease the global engagement of

VCU students and faculty and

expand VCU’s global footprint

through research, teaching and

global engagement.

Visiting scholar Muzafar Mohd

Razali, Ph.D., served as an expert

consultant in

the planning

and develop-

ment of the

Universal Pre-

vention Curric-

ulum (UPC),

Series 2, for Applied Prevention

Science, Inc. The Universal Pre-

vention Curriculum, Series 1 and

2, are designed to introduce and

disseminate evidence-based sub-

stance use prevention interven-

tions to prevention specialists

worldwide.

News and updates

Langberg Worthington

Razali

Perrin

Hagiwara

Everhart

8

The Center for the Study of Tobacco

Products (CSTP) in the Department of

Psychology has been named a World

Health Organization Collaborating

Centre that will assist the global

health organization with questions

related to tobacco product testing and

research.

WHO Collaborating Centres are desig-

nated by Margaret Chan, M.D., direc-

tor-general of the WHO, to carry out

activities in support of the WHO's mis-

sion to provide leadership on global

health matters, shape the health re-

search agenda, set norms and stand-

ards, articulate evidence-based policy

options, provide technical support to

countries and monitor and assess

health trends.

Officials from the WHO conducted a

site visit to the new WHO Collabo-

rating Centre for Tobacco Product

Testing and Research on Oct. 6.

"Virginia Commonwealth University’s

Center for the Study of Tobacco Prod-

ucts is the latest addition to WHO’s

global network of Collaborating Cen-

tres," said Carissa Etienne, M.B.B.S.,

regional director of the Pan American

Health Organization/World Health

Organization. "The network brings

together more than 700 highly regard-

ed academic and scientific institutions

in over 80 countries, supporting WHO

programs and priorities with time, ex-

pertise and funding."

There are 84 Collaborating Centres in

the United States and VCU's Center for

the Study of Tobacco Products is the

only Collaborating Centre on tobacco

product testing and research in the

Americas, Etienne said.

"With this designation, we become a

resource that the WHO can reach out

to when they have issues related to

tobacco product testing and re-

search," said Thomas Eissenberg,

Ph.D., co-director of the CSTP, profes-

sor in the Department of Psychology

and member of the Cancer Prevention

and Control research program at the

VCU Massey Cancer Center. "It's an

honor."

As a WHO Collaborating Centre, the

CSTP will disseminate novel methods

to evaluate tobacco products, provide

research results and support evalua-

tion of e-cigarettes, train scientists in

methods to evaluate non-cigarette

tobacco products and prepare briefing

and education materials related to the

evaluation of non-cigarette tobacco

products, such as e-cigarettes.

By earning the designation as a WHO

Collaborating Centre, the CSTP could

play an important role in the WHO's

work under the Framework Conven-

tion on Tobacco Control, a legally

binding treaty that aims to reduce

World Health Organization taps VCU Psychology’s Center for the Study of Tobacco Products as a collaborator

Courtesy of VCU News

9

death and disease associated with

tobacco use.

"I've been working for so long to un-

derstand the health and other effects

of tobacco products — especially non

-cigarette products, like water pipes,

e-cigarettes or smokeless tobacco —

that [this designation] was something

that I was, of course, very much inter-

ested in," Eissenberg said. "It's about

how to make people not die from dis-

eases associated from these various

products."

Douglas Bettcher, Ph.D., M.D., direc-

tor of WHO's Department for Preven-

tion of Noncommunicable Diseases,

called the designation a "win-win re-

lationship for WHO, the Collaborating

Centres and for public health."

"The partnership gives WHO access to

top research centers," he said. "The

Collaborating Centre gains enhanced

recognition by national authorities

and new opportunities to exchange

information and develop technical

cooperation with other institutions."

The Virginia Centre is WHO’s fifth Col-

laborating Centre on Tobacco Product

Testing and Research and the first in

the Americas. The other four are lo-

cated in Burkina Faso, Japan, the

Netherlands and Singapore.

"We believe that the collaboration of

these tobacco testing and research

centers will strengthen implementa-

tion of the product regulation provi-

sions of the WHO Framework Con-

vention on Tobacco Control,"

Bettcher said.

The Center for the Study of Tobacco

Products launched in September 2013

with an $18.1 million grant from the

U.S. Food and Drug Administration

and the National Institutes of Health

to study modified-risk tobacco prod-

ucts and other novel tobacco prod-

ucts, such as e-cigarettes, and to

demonstrate methods that can be

used to help inform national tobacco

regulatory policies.

The Centre will not use any of its fed-

eral grant funding for its work for the

WHO. Instead, VCU Massey Cancer

Center has put forward funds to be

used should the WHO call on the Cen-

tre for assistance, Eissenberg said.

World Health Organization taps VCU Psychology’s Center for the Study of Tobacco Products as a collaborator

Thomas Eissenberg, Ph.D., is co-director of the Center for the

Study of Tobacco Products in the Department of Psychology.

10

VCU Psychology is pleased to

welcome its newest faculty

member, Caroline Cobb, Ph.D.

Cobb, an alumna of the biopsy-

chology program, joins us as an

assistant professor in our health

psychology program.

Having received her bachelor’s

degree in psychology from Amer-

ican University in 2005, Cobb

came to VCU and earned her

master’s and doctorate degrees

in experimental psychology

(biopsychology concentration) in

2009 and 2012, respectively. Her

dissertation was titled

“Evaluating caffeinated water-

pipe tobacco in waterpipe smok-

ers.” Upon graduation, she

headed to the Schroeder Insti-

tute for Tobacco Research and

Policy Studies at the American

Legacy Foundation in Washing-

ton, D.C., where she served until

2014 as the Ellen R. Gritz fellow

in tobacco control.

Cobb’s expertise complements

and expands the research efforts

in our Center for the Study of

Tobacco Products. The heart of

her research program involves

understanding how tobacco use

relates to biological and behav-

ioral measures such as nicotine/

toxicant exposure, subjective

effects and consumption

patterns, as well as examining

broader population-level

patterns and predictors of tobac-

co use. More specifically, she is

interested in assessing these out-

comes in relation to novel and

alternative tobacco product use,

an area with a limited literature

base and of high interest to the

regulatory and public health

community. One primary re-

search focus involves the evalua-

tion of electronic cigarettes or e-

cigarettes. These novel products

may hold promise as a means to

reduce cigarette smoking and

associated harm, though little

research exists on their effective-

ness for this purpose.

Recently, the National Cancer

Institute gave Cobb an award to

examine whether dual use of

cigarettes and e-cigarettes de-

creases, has little effect on or

increases measures of harm po-

tential relative to single product

use and no tobacco/nicotine use.

Results from this work will help

inform tobacco regulatory deci-

sions concerning e-cigarettes.

Cobb’s teaching interests align

with her research interests and

include teaching the courses Ex-

perimental Methods (PSYC 317)

and Physiological Psychology

(PSYC 401). On pedagogy, Cobb

says, “I strive to encourage ex-

citement and interest in all

course material by using exam-

ples from my own life and re-

search experiences and assist

students in finding examples in

their own. In turn, I find that stu-

dents inspire and encourage me

to examine new hypotheses and

research ideas.”

New faculty member

Caroline Cobb, Ph.D.

11

Why did you choose VCU?

There are several reasons I was drawn

to VCU’s Department of Psychology to

begin my faculty career. As a previous

graduate student, I was well aware of

the high caliber of faculty and graduate

students drawn to the department and

university, as well as the unique and

gifted undergraduate population. The

collaborative opportunities at VCU

were another important motivation.

Few institutions can boast such an array

of scholars, centers, institutes and acco-

lades in areas relevant to my research.

In particular, the recent Tobacco Cen-

ters of Regulatory Science award to

VCU emphasized that this university

would be a place where exciting and

influential research in tobacco control

would be performed and would be val-

ued.

On a more personal note, despite living

in Richmond throughout graduate

school, this city’s offerings of restau-

rants, concerts and community events

continue to surprise and impress me.

With my family and fiancé nearby, I feel

very thankful for the opportunity to

enjoy them fully.

What do you do in your spare time?

I’ve always enjoyed painting, particular-

ly watercolors. Most of my friends and

family have ended up with a painted

card or two. Crossfit is a new hobby

that my fiancé and I just started. We

are one month in and loving it.

What are some interesting facts about yourself that people may be unaware of?

I grew up in a rural area of Virginia and

was completely enamored with horse-

back riding throughout my teenage

years. Someday I would like to live in

an area where I could keep horses and

ride again. Another high school fun

fact—I belonged to an all-female sing-

ing group called “The Divas.” We per-

formed at school events including grad-

uation. Just don’t ask me to sing in

public now!

Q&A

12

Donate $51 or more to our undergraduate scholarship

fund and receive a VCU Psychology tumbler!

13

Kirk W. Brown, Ph.D.

“Just a Few Moments of Meditation a Day Found to Have Profound, Near-Instant Benefits on Stress Reduction” read

Faye Belgrave, Ph.D.

“Building Resilience Among Black Boys” read

“Psychology Professor Not Surprised After Police Shoot And Kill Teen” watch (above)

Alison Breland, Ph.D.

“Electronic Cigarettes: Many Questions, Limited Research” read

Ev Worthington, Ph.D.

“Letting Go: a $1 Million Look at Forgiveness” read

“Why You Should Forgive and How You Should Do It” watch

“Suicide Grieving Process is Tricky” read

Shawn Utsey, Ph.D., and Ev Worthington, Ph.D.

“VCU Psychologist Advocates Forgiveness, for Health’s Sake” read

Tom Eissenberg, Ph.D.

“Benefits of E-Cigarettes May Outweigh Harms, Study Finds” read

“Deadly E-Cigarette Explosions Add to the Health Hazards of Vaping” read

“Deadly Explosions Added to List of E-Cigarette Dangers” read

“Peeling Back E-Cig Science” read

“Think Hookah is Safer Than Cigarettes? Think Again” read

“Tougher E-cigarette Regulation Will Damage Public Health on a Big Scale, Say Experts” read

Nao Hagiwara, Ph.D.

“Should Women 'Man Up' for Male-Dominated Fields?” read

Beth Heller, Ph.D.

“Children and School Anxiety” listen

Victoria Shivy, Ph.D.

“2014’s Best and Worst States for Women’s Equality” read

Faculty in the media

14

So her mother, Sabel Dujka, was

immediately interested when

she heard that Virginia Common-

wealth University researchers

were offering easy strategies to

help Richmond-area parents con-

cerned about their children's

eating and weight.

"I wanted my daughter to be ex-

posed to different ideas and

different foods," Dujka said. "I

heard about this program

through a friend who has a child

in a different school, so I signed

up."

As part of the NOURISH+ pro-

gram (Nourishing Our Under-

standing of Role Modeling to

Improve Support and Health),

Dujka learned strategies address-

ing a range of healthy eating and

exercise topics, including how to

read food labels, tips to teach

her daughter about nutrition and

exercise, developing mindful

eating habits for the whole fami-

ly, easy ways to prepare healthy

family meals and how to let her

daughter help when cooking.

Now, she said, Natalia is far

more willing to try — and enjoy

— healthier foods.

"She happens to like broccoli and

snap peas," she said. "She under-

stands that those items are im-

portant to being healthy and for

her diet."

NOURISH+ is a VCU research

study that seeks to promote

healthy eating and exercise in

children ages five to 11.

"NOURISH focuses on how par-

ents can be role models of

healthy choices," said Suzanne

Mazzeo, Ph.D., the project's prin-

cipal investigator and a professor

of counseling psychology. "The

whole idea is to give parents sim-

ple, practical tools they can use

to make their families healthier.

We want to make it easier for

parents."

So far, roughly 200 families from

the greater Richmond area have

taken part in the study. The re-

searchers are hoping to enroll

250 more parents concerned

about their child's eating and

exercise habits.

The five-year study, titled

"NOURISHing Families to Pro-

mote Healthy Eating and Exercise

in Overweight Children," is fund-

ed by a $2.6 million grant from

the National Institutes of Health

to test the efficacy of NOURISH+.

Under the study, participating

parents are randomly assigned

to either a more intensive or less

intensive group. Both groups,

however, offer an array of practi-

cal tips and strategies, the re-

searcher said. "In both interven-

tions, we tried to have equal

numbers of hands-on, practical

things so they learn about nutri-

tion, physical activity and more,"

Mazzeo said.

research spotlight Suzanne Mazzeo, Ph.D.

Natalia, an 11-year-old

from Chesterfield County,

had always been a picky

eater...

Courtesy of VCU News

15

One of the program's guiding

philosophies is that it takes more

than just education to improve

eating habits.

"Parents usually know what they

should do. The hard part is doing

it — especially doing it over and

over and over, multiple times a

day," Mazzeo said. "Eating is the

hardest thing to change because

it's something you do multiple

times a day. When you're a par-

ent, you can feel like you just

made a meal, you finish cleaning

up and now you're making an-

other one. It's a never-ending

cycle.”

Many parents have a tough time

trying to encourage healthy

eating habits among their chil-

dren, Mazzeo said, as they often

work long hours; their kids are

also very busy and families strug-

gle to find the time, money and

energy needed to prepare

healthy meals.

Moreover, she said, we live in a

"toxic environment" in which

advertising often encourages

unhealthy eating.

"There's not just the pressure of

getting it on the table — and

there are financial and practical

and time barriers that make that

challenging — there's also the

influence that all these market-

ers and their peers have on

them," Mazzeo said. "You're con-

stantly fighting what advertising

is telling your kids and what their

friends are eating and all those

other pressures."

Mazzeo added that NOURISH+

aims to provide help without

making parents feel guilty.

"A lot of what's out there about

pediatric obesity can lead par-

ents to feel blamed — 'This is

your fault.' A lot of our parents

have expressed that when they

take their kid to the pediatrician,

and the pediatrician says their

kid is overweight, they feel

blamed," Mazzeo said. "But, in

reality, it's really difficult in this

culture to raise healthy eaters.”

Rachel Gow, Ph.D., an assistant

professor of psychology and pe-

diatrics at VCU and a collabora-

tor on the study, said many of

the best ideas and tips for par-

ents have come from other par-

ents during group discussions.

"For example, there was a recent

group that I co-led [and] most of

the moms in the group were sin-

gle mothers, who all had at least

one job if not two jobs," she said.

"A lot of them were getting take-

out a lot, or eating frozen, un-

healthy foods. But this one mom

talked about her lists — she did a

really good job of meal planning

and budgeting and sticking to her

plan. Her talking about her strat-

egies and making her budget

stretch made such a difference."

By hearing from their fellow par-

ents, Gow said, the program

shows that encouraging healthy

eating may not be easy, but it is

possible.

"You can do it," Mazzeo said.

"You just have to be creative and

empowered."

For Dujka, NOURISH+ was a great

success, and one that she would

recommend to other parents.

"I would recommend it because

of the exposure [to helpful ide-

as], how to talk to children as

parents in a positive way and

getting them involved," she said.

For more information:

To find out more or to learn if

you are eligible, visit

www.nourishvcu.com, or contact

the NOURISH+ team by calling

827-9211 or emailing nour-

ish@vcu.edu.

Rachel Gow, Ph.D.

16

Never go to the grocery store without a plan, and stick to the plan while shopping.

While grocery shopping, buy food located on the periph-

ery of the store, such as the fresh produce section, rather

than in the middle of the store, where processed, un-

healthy foods are found.

Buy a crock pot, which makes preparing meals easier, particularly ahead of time.

Buy a blender. "Smoothies are such a great way to introduce and sneak in fruits," Gow says.

Do something active with your kids, such as taking a walk along trails at a Richmond park, or taking them roller skating.

Give your kids nonfood rewards, rather than sweets. "You have to brainstorm what would be best for your kids, but it can be something like an opportunity to do a special activity with Mom or Dad," Mazzeo says.

Tips for Promoting

Healthy Eating

Behaviors

NOURISH+ researchers Suzanne Mazzeo, Ph.D., and Rachel Gow, Ph.D., both of whom are VCU experts in healthy eating behaviors for children and families, offer a few tips that par-ents can employ to improve their families' eating habits.

17

Morgan Maxwell, M.S., a social

psychology doctoral student in

her third year of study, received

a David L. Boren Fellowship to

study in Brazil this academic

year. Maxwell is using the award

to become proficient in Portu-

guese while evaluating the im-

pact of culture on the quality of

HIV prevention service delivery

in Brazil.

“Brazil has the second-highest

number of HIV cases in the West-

ern hemisphere,” Maxwell said.

“I’m examining cultural factors,

stigma, cultural mistrust and per-

sonal perceptions – which can all

be barriers in the delivery of HIV

prevention services.”

Maxwell is living in Salvador in

the Brazilian state of Bahia dur-

ing her fellowship, which began

in late August and will run

through March 2015.

“Winning a Boren Fellowship is a

tremendous recognition of Mor-

gan’s work and passion for inter-

national issues and recognizes

her strong academic perfor-

mance,” said James S. Coleman,

Ph.D., dean of the College of Hu-

manities and Sciences. “Her pro-

ject examining cultural influences

on the quality of HIV prevention

services seems to me to be very,

very important to human

health.”

Fellowship recipients are ex-

pected to fulfill federal service

requirements. Maxwell hopes to

work for the HIV sector of the

Centers for Disease Control and

Prevention and use her experi-

ences in Brazil to better inform

the delivery of HIV services in the

U.S.

“Morgan has consistently

demonstrated commitment to

international research and activi-

ty and the Boren fellowship will

support her efforts,” said Faye

Belgrave, Ph.D., professor of psy-

chology, who supported Max-

well’s application. “Morgan

brings outstanding interpersonal,

conceptual and

methodological

skills which will

support her in

conducting her

research on HIV

prevention in

Brazil.”

Maxwell, who is

from Charlotte,

North Carolina,

earned a bache-

lor’s degree in

psychology from

Howard Univer-

sity and a mas-

ter’s degree in

Latin American

studies from

Vanderbilt Uni-

versity.

Boren Fellow-

ships provide up

to $30,000 to U.S. graduate stu-

dents to add an important inter-

national and language compo-

nent to their graduate education

through specialization in area

study, language study or in-

creased language proficiency.

The fellowships promote long-

term linguistic and cultural im-

mersion and are part of National

Security Education Program, a

federal government initiative to

enhance national security by in-

creasing understanding and in-

teraction with foreign cultures

and languages.

Graduate student spotlight Morgan Maxwell, M.S. Courtesy of VCU News

18

VCU Psychology

Goes Global

19

Most researchers and practi-

tioners of psychology have

come to understand the im-

portance of the consideration of

culture in the reporting of re-

search findings and in practice.

More and more, psychologists

are seeking out opportunities

abroad to examine the similari-

ties and differences among

different cultures to refine both

the generalizability of research

findings and the efficacy of

mental health interventions

that reflect an approach rooted

in what Tervalon and Murray-

Garcia (1998) have called cultur-

al humility. Bullock (2011) de-

scribed this mindset as one that

adopts a “learning attitude, in-

cluding reflection, humility, ap-

preciation of privilege and ap-

preciation of cultural contexts

and explanatory frameworks

that stretch boundaries” (p. 9).

On an institutional level, two of

VCU’s overriding global goals

are to increase the global en-

gagement of VCU students and

faculty and expand VCU’s global

footprint through our research,

teaching and service, particular-

ly as they impact global health.

Our faculty and students in the

Department of Psychology have

served at the forefront of the

globalization of psychology and

have greatly contributed to our

field’s efforts to approach our

work with the cultural humility

necessary for the expansion of

our knowledge base. As such,

our department maintains an

active global presence with a

large number of faculty and stu-

dents collaborating with individ-

uals, institutions and communi-

ties abroad.

We have an especially robust

presence in Africa, and, in par-

ticular, South Africa. This is in

large part due to our strong ties

with the University of KwaZulu-

Natal (UKZN), a VCU interna-

tional partner institution locat-

ed in Durban, South Africa. In

fact, Shawn Utsey, Ph.D., pro-

fessor of counseling psychology,

is a Fulbright scholar who is

there now working on an oral

history project. Utsey’s work is

motivated by an interest in how

apartheid continues to affect

the people of South Africa. He is

working at the Sinomlando Cen-

ter for Oral History and Memory

collecting oral histories from

survivors of apartheid ethnovio-

lence.

Wendy Kliewer, Ph.D., is chair

of the department and a profes-

sor of developmental psycholo-

gy who studies youth resilience

– that is, children who do well

despite the odds. Kliewer also

received a Fulbright scholarship

to conduct research in Durban

in collaboration with UKZN. In

2011, she lived for six months in

one of Durban’s central neigh-

borhoods and in partnership

with UKZN researcher Basil Pil-

lay, M.D., launched Project

CARE: Community Assessment

of Risk and Resilience, which

continues today. The project

follows 400 children and their

maternal caregivers to assess

the children’s response to envi-

ronmental risk factors on

measures of social and academ-

ic competence, emotional diffi-

culties, aggressive behavior and

substance abuse. Kliewer

meets with the South African

research team regularly via

Skype and pays a visit to UKZN

yearly to meet in person.

This summer, Rosalie Corona,

Ph.D., visited UKZN to partici-

pate in their second annual fac-

ulty development seminar. The

seminar, whose theme was

community-engaged research,

was a collaborative effort to

further strengthen and build on

the research and teaching con-

nections between the two uni-

versities. Corona is an associate

professor of clinical psychology

and serves our department as

director of clinical training. Her

research focuses on health pro-

motion in minority populations.

by Sarah Braun

VCU Psychology

Goes Global

20

Also working in South Africa is

Daniel Snipes, a doctoral stu-

dent in the health psychology

program, who was awarded the

prestigious Graduate Research

Opportunities Worldwide grant

from the National Science Foun-

dation. The grant, which sup-

ports graduate students working

on international research pro-

jects, has allowed him to take

part in a project aiming to

strengthen South Africa’s female

condom program and curtail its

rates of HIV infection. South

Africa has the world’s highest

rate of HIV and this project will

draw data from several sources

to identify more effective ways

to encourage female condom

use.

Our department is bringing its

scholarship and collaborative

spirit to other parts of the Afri-

can continent, as well. For ex-

ample, Everett Worthington,

Ph.D., recently received an al-

most $1 million grant for a pro-

ject whose goal is to facilitate

and promote evidence-based

forgiveness research by native

researchers in West and South

Africa. Worthington, a professor

of counseling psychology and

director of clinical training, has a

long track record of internation-

al research and collaboration

surrounding his study of for-

giveness. In fact, his forgiveness

model has been integrated into

at least ten Latin and South

American countries and he con-

tinues to collaborate regularly

with researchers from other

countries to expand the scope of

forgiveness research to new and

relevant cultural contexts. He

also serves as a mentor to facul-

ty members abroad and recently

helped a professor in Barcelona,

as well as a professor in India,

win grants for forgiveness re-

search.

In a similar manner, Zewelanji

Serpell, Ph.D., associate profes-

sor of developmental psycholo-

gy, and Vivian Dzokoto, Ph.D.,

associate professor in the De-

partment of African American

Studies, are working together to

lead the Mental Health Assess-

ment Research Initiative for Afri-

ca. Their goal is to bring faculty

from VCU together with faculty

from institutions in Zambia and

Ghana under shared research

and training agendas surround-

ing child and adolescent mental

health. The program focuses on

developing mental health as-

sessment tools and intervention

programs for children and ado-

lescents that are culturally ap-

propriate and thus usable

around the globe. Serpell de-

scribed this initiative by placing

importance on the training com-

ponent of the work, which is “to

provide a structured context for

graduate students to participate

in internationally collaborative

research and service learning.”

In fact, one of Serpell’s graduate

students, Tennisha Riley, recent-

ly accompanied her to Zambia

and explored her own independ-

ent research project. Riley is

interested in the social and emo-

tional development of children

and adolescents and the effects

of aggressive behavior. While in

Zambia, through observation of

adolescents and youths at

school, Riley saw the impact of

context and culture on develop-

ment. She also forged im-

portant relationships with Zam-

bian graduate students she

hopes will lead to continued col-

laboration, and with community

organizations for intervention

resources and knowledge. The

work in Serpell’s lab is focused

on developing a path for contin-

ued service learning and re-

search, and opening more doors

for international collaboration.

These doors are opening up in

other parts of the world, too.

Thomas Eissenberg, Ph.D., pro-

fessor of health psychology and

co-director of the Center for the

Study of Tobacco Products in our

department, studies novel to-

bacco products, like electronic

cigarettes, to determine wheth-

er or not they pose a risk to us-

21

ers and to demonstrate methods

that can be used to help inform

national tobacco regulatory poli-

cies. (See pages 8-9 to read

about the Center’s important

new designation from the World

Health Organization.) One of

the main projects within this

framework is being conducted at

the American University of Bei-

rut with project director Alan

Shihadeh, Ph.D., a professor of

mechanical engineering at AUB.

Eissenberg, who also has collab-

orative research relationships in

Syria, says he and his team work

with Shihadeh and AUB because

their Aerosol Research Laborato-

ry has unique expertise in in-

venting and validating equip-

ment vital to the measurement

and recording of waterpipe (or

hookah) tobacco smoker behav-

ior in fine detail. For example,

Shihadeh and his team recently

developed equipment that al-

lows researchers to sample

smoke unobtrusively from a wa-

terpipe while a user is smoking

it, so they can measure smoke

toxicants generated in real world

environments (i.e., outside of

the clinical laboratory). Eissen-

berg’s team will soon be working

with colleagues at the Jordan

University of Science and Tech-

nology in Irbid, Jordan, to test

this equipment in the field.

Paul Perrin, Ph.D., assistant pro-

fessor of health psychology, is a

globetrotter in his own right. His

research interests include multi-

cultural health behaviors and

interventions. He is especially

interested in caregiver mental

health in Latin America, and re-

cently received a grant to study

the caregivers of traumatic brain

injury patients there. Illustrating

a previous point regarding in-

sufficient global generalizability

of research findings from the

U.S., Stephen Trapp, a doctoral

student in the counseling pro-

gram who has worked abroad

with Perrin says, “Compounding

the more general difficulties de-

veloping nations face is that the

current psychiatric tests used

there were developed based on

American and European cul-

tures.” Perrin added, “These

tests prove to be ineffective

when applied toward Latinos

and their families, who see it as

a cultural imperative to provide

high-quality care even to the

exclusion of their own needs.”

Last year he took a group of

graduate students to Spain to

collaborate on research in cul-

tural health disparities; this suc-

cessful experience led to anoth-

er trip to Spain this past sum-

mer. Perrin’s work continues to

open new avenues for interna-

tional collaboration and facili-

tates opportunities for graduate

level researchers to make global

impacts. Morgan Maxwell, a

doctoral student in the social

psychology program, also has

research interests in Latin Amer-

ica and is studying in Brazil this

semester after having been

awarded the prestigious Boren

fellowship. (See Maxwell’s full

story on page 17.)

In addition to transcending bor-

ders in scholarly endeavors, our

department values and seeks to

contribute to international col-

laborative pedagogy in our field,

as well. For instance, Mary

Loos, Ph.D., associate professor

of clinical psychology, is the pro-

gram director for the VCU Inter-

national Programme in Addic-

tion Studies (IPAS), an online

Master of Science in Addiction

Studies program available to

students from all countries that

is offered collaboratively with

King’s College London and the

University of Adelaide in Austral-

ia. The program provides stu-

dents with an advanced educa-

tional experience covering scien-

tific methodology, treatment,

public health issues and addic-

tion policy. Upon completion of

the degree, students receive a

diploma conferred by all three

partner universities. The goal of

the program is to train interna-

tional professionals capable of

translating research into effec-

22

tive treatment and prevention

practices for addiction around

the world.

Expanding the teaching and re-

search of psychology to new

frontiers is an especially exciting

prospect for Richard Bargdill,

Ph.D., who was invited to give

the opening keynote address

this summer for the Third Inter-

national Conference on Existen-

tial Psychology in Guangdong.

Psychology is a relatively new

discipline in China with many

universities having only added

psychology departments within

the last 25 years. Bargdill's

opening address was about the

basic principles of existential

psychology with the goal of ori-

enting the audience of counse-

lors and psychologists to this sub

-discipline within the the larger

field of psychology. Bargdill

said, “What made this confer-

ence unique was that Western

scholars were united with East-

ern scholars. One Western exis-

tential psychologist would speak

followed by an Eastern speaker

on indigenous forms of Chinese

existentialism. In general, exis-

tential psychology is primarily

interested in how people make

their lives meaningful, so there

is not one true form of it; rather,

most cultures have a line of

thinking that is complimentary.”

It was in this same spirit of inter-

cultural exchange that the de-

partment welcomed the VCU

Hubert H. Humphrey fellowship

program to its new home this

fall. Previously housed in the

VCU Institute for Drug and Alco-

hol Studies, this program, spon-

sored by the U.S. Department of

State’s Bureau of Educational

and Cultural Affairs, is an inter-

national exchange program sup-

ported by the people of the

United States. It is designed to

facilitate exchange activity

among international researchers

and scholars. The program

brings accomplished profession-

als from developing countries to

the United States for a year of

study and collaboration in their

relevant areas of research.

VCU’s Humphrey program focus-

es on a broad range of health

problems with an emphasis on

understanding the behavioral,

psychological, social and cultural

factors that affect people’s

health, and the use of behavior

change interventions to pro-

mote positive health outcomes.

The program emphasizes the use

of culturally appropriate, science

-based prevention, treatment

and policy interventions.

Randy Koch, Ph.D., whose re-

search focuses on tobacco use

prevention in at-risk youth, is

the associate coordinator of the

Humphrey program. For the last

several years, Koch has been

working with the South African

Medical Research Council to im-

plement a set of assessment

tools for the country’s treatment

services. He also coordinated

the International Health Re-

search Workshop on campus

this year, one of several efforts

to increase VCU’s global pres-

ence and impact. The aim of the

workshop was to help faculty

successfully pursue international

health research opportunities by

addressing such key issues as

securing funding, finding inter-

national collaborators, identify-

ing potential challenges and de-

veloping effective partnerships.

“Conducting international re-

search is not only personally re-

warding,” says Koch, “but it also

creates other funding opportuni-

ties for your research.”

A fuller portrait of our depart-

ment’s international research

and teaching efforts would in-

clude several other examples of

important work being conducted

abroad by our faculty. Bryce

McLeod, Ph.D., for example, has

active research collaborations

with colleagues in the Nether-

lands and Norway where he has

also given lectures and led work-

shops. Faye Belgrave, Ph.D.,

has been an engaged participant

in the Semester at Sea program,

23

a multiple country study abroad

program open to students of all

majors emphasizing comparative

academic examination, hands-on

field experiences and meaning-

ful engagement in the global

community. There are many,

many more such examples in

our department; interested

readers are urged to explore our

faculty members’ web pages for

more information about their

international work abroad and

at home.

Our faculty and students are

globally minded and create re-

search goals and teaching mis-

sions that impact international

communities. We actively con-

tribute to the international

effort to translate psychological

findings and insight into practical

applications for all through

scholarly activities in

South Africa, Brazil, Ghana, Leb-

anon, China and beyond. This

work is critical as world commu-

nities become more intercon-

nected with each passing day.

VCU President Michael Rao said

of working and studying abroad,

“We need to be more connected

with the world, especially based

on who we are as Americans.

This is supposed to be the place

where you can be the most suc-

cessful and that won’t happen if

we create isolation and don’t

connect ourselves with the rest

of the world.” The Department

of Psychology has answered this

call and hopes to continue to

serve as a university leader in

bringing its scholarly and peda-

gogical endeavors to bear on

academic and practical pursuits

in psychology throughout the

world.

Tervalon, M. & Murray-Garcia, J.

(1998). Cultural humility versus

cultural competence: a critical

distinction in defining physician

training outcomes in multicultur-

al education. Journal of Health

Care for the Poor and Under-

served, 9, 117-125. doi:10.1353/

hpu.2010.0233

Bullock, M. (2011, November).

APA’s international responsibil-

ity. Monitor on Psychology, 42

(10), 9.

.

Class of 2014-15: Hubert H. Humphrey Fellowship program

Author Sarah Braun is a doctoral student in the

clinical psychology program.

24

New Research funding

Topics

Behavior

problems in

preschool

Courtesy of VCU News

A $1.6 million grant awarded to

two VCU professors will help im-

prove services aimed at pre-

school children with problem

behaviors in early childhood edu-

cation and Head Start class-

rooms.

Bryce McLeod, Ph.D., an associ-

ate professor of clinical psycholo-

gy, and Kevin Sutherland, Ph.D.,

a professor of special education

and disability policy in the School

of Education, received the grant

from the U.S. Department of Ed-

ucation's Institute of Education

Sciences.

As part of the four-year grant,

"Development and Validation of

Treatment Integrity Measures for

Classroom-Based Interventions,"

McLeod and Sutherland will con-

duct research in Richmond-area

preschool and Head Start class-

rooms.

"We will observe teachers inter-

acting with their students over

the course of the academic

year," McLeod said. "We are

mainly interested in the types of

interventions and strategies they

use when they teach. The obser-

vations will involve trained cod-

ers visiting a classroom and ob-

serving the teacher for up to one

hour."

The grant's objective is to im-

prove the early intervention and

prevention services for young

children who have chronic prob-

lem behavior by improving the

implementation and efficiency of

delivery of evidence-based pro-

grams.

"Essentially, we hope to be able

to use this measure to help re-

searchers and program adminis-

trators to identify the practices

teachers are using with these

young children. We also hope

that the measure can assist re-

searchers and program adminis-

trators in improving the imple-

mentation of evidence-based

programs, as this will be a tool

that can be used to assess how

much, and how well, evidence-

based programs and the practic-

es that comprise them are imple-

mented," Sutherland said.

Sutherland and McLeod previ-

ously conducted a pilot study —

funded by VCU's Presidential Re-

search Incentive Program (PRIP)

— in which they refined the ob-

servational treatment integrity

measures used in "BEST in

CLASS," an early childhood inter-

vention program being evaluated

at VCU and the University of Flor-

ida.

"The PRIP funding allowed us to

develop these measures, and the

developed measures will serve as

a starting point for the assess-

ment tools we propose to devel-

op in the current project," Suth-

erland said.

School

bullying

Terri Sullivan, Ph.D., has been

awarded a $2.66 million grant

from the National Institute of

Justice titled "Evaluation of the

Effectiveness and Sustainability

of the Olweus Bullying Preven-

tion Program in Increasing School

Suzanne Mazzeo, Ph.D.

Bryce McLeod, Ph.D.

Terri Sullivan, Ph.D.

25

Safety in Urban Middle Schools."

This four-year project builds on

an evaluation of the Olweus Bul-

lying Prevention Program (OBPP)

being completed as part of a CDC

-funded Youth Violence Preven-

tion Center within the VCU Clark-

Hill Institute for Positive Youth

Development and in partnership

with Richmond City public mid-

dle schools. OBPP is a compre-

hensive school-based program

designed to prevent youth vio-

lence and bullying by improving

school climate. Although this

program is being implemented in

hundreds of schools across the

U.S., few studies have evaluated

its impact on schools. The goal of

this project is to increase the

knowledge gained from our cur-

rent Youth Violence Prevention

Center project by supporting the

continuation of OBPP in two mid-

dle schools, implementing this

program in a third school and

collecting three additional years

of data on proximal and distal

outcomes for OBPP. The exten-

sion of the multiple baseline re-

search design will provide a

clearer picture of the relation

between implementation of

OBPP and changes in outcomes

over time in the two schools

where OBPP is currently being

implemented, and will allow us

to examine changes in outcomes

that occur after implementing

this program in the third school.

School

nutrition

Courtesy of VCU News

After new federal school meal

regulations were rolled out in

2010, widespread news reports

circulated that school children

were “grossed out” by the

healthier lunches and were simp-

ly tossing the newly required

fruits and vegetables and whole

grains.

But are the children actually

throwing away the healthier

food rather than eating it? And,

moreover, are there ways school

systems could encourage chil-

dren to eat their fruits and veg-

gies?

Suzanne Mazzeo, Ph.D., profes-

sor of counseling psychology, has

received a two-year, $100,000

grant from the National Insti-

tutes of Health to find answers

to those questions and potential-

ly improve the National School

Lunch Program, which provides

low-cost or free meals to 31 mil-

lion children every day across the

country.

"As a scientist, I wondered: How

much plate waste is really hap-

pening? Are kids really throwing

away the lunches?" said Mazzeo.

"So I looked into the literature

and saw that there really wasn't

a lot of data on whether kids

were actually eating less or if

they were just complaining

about it."

This fall, Mazzeo is leading a

team of researchers in two Ches-

terfield County elementary

schools to observe how much

fruits and vegetables are being

thrown away by first, second and

third graders at breakfast and

lunch.

“This is probably the most un-

glamorous grant ever. We're

going to be standing at the gar-

bage cans. It's going to be

messy,” said Mazzeo, a leading

expert in healthy eating and ex-

ercise promotion for children

and families. "We're focusing on

the fruit and vegetable consump-

tion, looking to see whether they

ate [the fruits and vegetables],

and what percentage they ate.

We anticipate that it's going to

be somewhat chaotic."

The study will be conducted in

partnership with the nonprofit

organization Greater Richmond (Continued on page 26)

Suzanne Mazzeo, Ph.D.

26

Fit 4 Kids, along with other VCU

faculty, graduate students and

undergraduate research assis-

tants.

For the second phase of the pro-

ject, Mazzeo and the research

team will hold a "tasting inter-

vention" in one of the schools,

offering the students a sample of

a fruit or vegetable that will be

on the cafeteria's

menu the following

week.

"The research shows

that if you have kids

taste a food, then

they're more willing to

actually eat it," Mazzeo

said. "So we're actual-

ly going to be in the

cafeteria with a little

cart and little sample cups. And

we'll see if they're willing to try

foods that will be on the menu."

The tasting interventions will be

held twice a week over eight

weeks during this school year.

"The baseline is: What are they

throwing away?" Mazzeo said.

"Then we'll do the tasting inter-

vention. And then we'll measure

what they're throwing away after

[we've done the tasting interven-

tion]."

The third phase of the project

will involve qualitative interviews

with parents, teachers, adminis-

trators and cafeteria workers to

better understand their perspec-

tives on what is realistic when it

comes to promoting healthy

eating for children and their fam-

ilies.

"What do parents or primary

caregivers wish schools would do

more of?" Mazzeo said. "What

do schools wish parents would

do? The idea is that qualitative

interviews will extend the re-

search a little further for the next

step."

Mazzeo was inspired to study the

overhaul of the National School

Lunch Program because in recent

years she has been working with

families of overweight children

as part of a larger research pro-

ject aiming to curtail childhood

obesity. (See pages 14-15.)

"We saw how these families

were doing all these really posi-

tive things but there's just a lot

of structural challenges that

make it difficult in everyday life,"

Mazzeo said. "It shouldn't be

this hard for families."

She was also inspired, she said,

by her own family's experience.

"Having my own kids and, espe-

cially in the last five years,

they've both gone to elementary

school," she said. "And you see

that you really do start to lose

control [of the children's healthy

eating]."

One of the ideas behind

Mazzeo's new study is that

school systems would be able to

easily replicate the "tasting inter-

vention" strategy to get the stu-

dents to try unfamiliar fruits and

vegetables.

"What we're doing is

pretty low-impact.

We're using food that's

already there, and that

the cafeteria workers

know how to make

already," she said.

"We're not doing any-

thing fancy. It's very

translatable and sus-

tainable."

Ultimately, Mazzeo said, the

study should help answer the

debate over whether the Nation-

al School Lunch Program policy

changes – championed by

Michelle Obama – have proven

effective.

"We want to know whether re-

quiring fruits and vegetables was

a good change," she said. "We

are truly not sure. Because some

of the research says you should

give children a choice of whether

they want to take the fruits and

vegetables or not. And that you

should do tastings, but ultimately

give them the choice."

Listen to Mazzeo’s interview on public radio.

27

We caught up with Sam Keeble

recently to interview him about

his experiences as an undergrad-

uate psychology major at VCU.

Why did you choose psychology as your major?

I am a returning adult student. I

received a B.A. in philosophy at a

liberal arts university motivated

by an interest in the work of Carl

Jung. After graduation, I spent

several years in clinical research

and then entered the business

world. A major life-altering

event provided the insight that

the “good life” for me was

grounded in helping others.

Choosing psychology as a major

was my next step.

What has been your favorite psychology course at VCU so far?

Abnormal Psychology with Mary

Loos, Ph.D., was my favorite

course. I had the privilege of

serving as a preceptor for the

class the following semester.

The experience ignited my pas-

sion for clinical work and gave

me a deep appreciation for the

art of teaching. Physiological

Psychology with Joseph Porter,

Ph.D., and History of Psychology

with Richard Bargdill, Ph.D.,

come in as close seconds.

Lifespan Human Development is

a course that would greatly ben-

efit students of any major.

What are your plans for the fu-ture?

I am very excited by the develop-

ing field of medical psychology.

Following graduate training, I see

myself working in a clinical envi-

ronment utilizing a variety of

therapeutic modalities. I also

have an interest in writing.

What do you do in your spare time?

I travel whenever possible. I en-

joy gourmet cooking—a hobby

that grows out of my interest in

other cultures. I find comfort

perusing the shelves of old

bookstores but love the excite-

ment of snow skiing and other

outdoor activities. Long, medita-

tive walks renew my faith and

bring me great joy.

Is there anything else you’d like our readers to know?

While pursuing my B.A. in philos-

ophy, a part-time job in a labora-

tory led to a full time position

following graduation. I strongly

encourage students to pursue

the incredible internship oppor-

tunities offered by the VCU De-

partment of Psychology.

Returning to school as an adult

student is a tumultuous under-

taking. VCU is a diverse, fantas-

tic place for the adult learner.

The patient encouragement of

fellow students here is so appre-

ciated. Especially invaluable in

my journey have been the guid-

ance and empathetic support of

my advisors and faculty whose

numbers are too great to men-

tion.

undergraduate student spotlight

Sam Keeble, Class of ‘14

28

As an alumna of the doctoral

program in counseling psycholo-

gy at VCU, I am honored to have

been asked to write this article

regarding my career develop-

ment and leadership roles.

Although my roots are firmly

planted in counseling psycholo-

gy, my current passion is affec-

tive neuroscience and brain-

behavior relationships. I will

briefly describe my career jour-

ney and highlight a few leaders

in the field who have influenced

and guided me.

All of my life I have been a plan-

ful and goal-oriented person. I

see myself in my daughter

whose first full sentence at the

age of three was, “I am a prin-

cess and a butterfly… and when I

grow up I will be a doctor and

listen to your heart with my

stethoscope!” My point is that,

like my daughter, I always knew

what I wanted to do when I grew

up.

This is partly because I had a

very important career role mod-

el in my life, even as a young

child. My father, Phil Perrone,

was a professor of counseling

psychology at the University of

Wisconsin-Madison and was a

crucial role model to me during

my childhood, as he continues to

be a model for me now that I am

an adult. I saw what an inspira-

tional teacher he was, what a

caring mentor he was to his stu-

dents and how interesting and

meaningful his work was. Alt-

hough not a psychologist, my

mother has been (and is) an

equally influential and important

role model to me, with her sen-

sitivity and compassionate na-

ture and her insightful perspec-

tives on people and interperson-

al behavior. I will discuss other

important role models and men-

tors throughout this essay, for it

is impossible to talk about lead-

ership without also talking about

the leaders I myself have fol-

lowed in my career.

As an undergraduate psychology

major at the University of Min-

nesota, I was fortunate to work

with Pat Frazier as a member of

her research team. This was an

excellent introduction to re-

search, and she helped me to

obtain my first research grant

and to make my first conference

presentation. Working with her

helped solidify my goal to some-

day be a professor of counseling

psychology myself.

After college graduation, I

served as a Volunteer In Service

To America or VISTA (a.k.a. the

domestic peace corps) for a year

in Los Angeles. While there, I

worked at a homeless assistance

agency developing job programs.

We made connections with local

businesses to persuade them to

hire workers on a temporary

basis with the option to keep

them permanently if they did a

good job. We offered training

on interviewing and job skills,

provided work attire and trans-

portation costs and found our

clients housing in single room

occupancy hotels if they did not

have a place to live. It was here

where I saw the transformative

power of employment and the

meaning of work in peoples’

lives. As I began applying to

graduate schools in counseling

psychology, I knew that I wanted

to focus on vocational develop-

ment in my research.

Alumni Leadership in psychology Kristin Perrone McGovern (M.S. ‘95, Ph.D. ‘98)

29

At VCU, I was able to assist Judy

Chartrand in her work with Pro-

ject PROVE (Preventing Recidi-

vism through Opportunities in

Vocational Education) helping

offenders make the transition

from incarceration to living on

their own and finding work. My

original doctoral chair, Lauren

Weitzman, introduced me to her

work on women’s strategies for

integrating family into their ca-

reer plans, which planted a seed

that later grew into an interest

for me in work-family interface

and gender roles for men and

women. She left VCU less than a

year after my arrival, but I am

grateful for the introduction she

provided into this area. Briefly

orphaned, I was thrilled when Ev

Worthington, Jr. agreed to serve

as my chair. There are so many

wonderful things that I could say

about Ev that it is hard to nar-

row down. I think what ap-

pealed to me at the time was his

combination of genius and hu-

mility, his work ethic and the

obvious care he put into mentor-

ing his students. I follow his

model today in my own mentor-

ing of graduate students at Ball

State University with regular

meetings, structure and organi-

zation, promotion of the unique

goals of each student and break-

ing large tasks into small goals

(he used to have a sign in his

office that read “by the inch it’s

a cinch, by the mile it’s a trial”).

I am eternally grateful for the

example he set and the support

and guidance he provided.

My internship year at the Uni-

versity of Maryland Counseling

Center was also a formative ex-

perience in my career. I joined

Karen O’Brien’s research team

while I was there and loved the

way she created a supportive

community among her students

with a genuine team feeling. I

carry this forward today with my

research team and it’s wonder-

ful to see my students support

each other and celebrate one

another’s successes. I also owe

a debt of gratitude to Bill Sed-

lacek (affectionately known

simply as “Sed”) who led my re-

search rotation during internship

year. Research always felt easy

and fun when working with him,

and his unwavering belief in my

abilities strengthened my confi-

dence as a researcher.

Currently I am a professor of

counseling psychology at Ball

State University where I teach

graduate students in our mas-

ter’s of counseling program and

doctoral students in our APA-

accredited Ph.D. program. Truly

the best part of my job is being

able to play a role in shaping the

future of our field through train-

ing the students who will be our

next leaders. I have been hon-

ored to serve an incredible facul-

ty at Ball State. Words cannot

express my gratitude to my Ball

State faculty mentor Phyllis Gor-

don, who is like a wise and car-

ing big sister, and whose exam-

ple I try to follow every day in

my work as a professor. I would

be remiss in writing an essay

pertaining to leadership without

expressing my sincere respect

and admiration for my friend

and colleague Sharon Bowman,

who has set an amazing example

first as chair of my department

and currently as the president of

the Society for Counseling Psy-

chology (SCP). It has been an

honor to serve with her on the

executive board for our society.

Another faculty colleague, Larry

Gerstein, has also been a role

model for me as someone who is

always doing innovative re-

search and has never slowed

down, even many years after

achieving tenure and promotion.

Sharon and Larry encouraged

me towards leadership in SCP.

My friend Tania Israel (herself an

inspirational and transformative

leader) was SCP president at the

time so I asked for her advice.

She suggested I run for secre-

tary, which I did, and now I am

currently coming to the end of

my three-year term as SCP sec-

retary. It has been a good expe-

rience: I have learned a lot about

governance for our profession. I

have gotten to know the leaders (Continued on page 30)

Alumni Leadership in psychology Kristin Perrone McGovern (M.S. ‘95, Ph.D. ‘98)

30

of our society and have been

inspired by their passion and

commitment to the field.

On a personal note, I want to

recognize my husband T.J.

McGovern, without whose sup-

port and encouragement, I could

never have achieved all of the

goals I set for myself. He is him-

self a true leader, full of wisdom

and possessing a strength, vision

and decisiveness I have always

admired.

Returning to my point about be-

ing planful and goal-oriented, I

progressed through my time at

Ball State moving methodically

through my life to-do list. Pro-

motion from assistant to associ-

ate professor—check. Tenure—

check. Have children (boy/girl

twins of course!) —check, check.

Promotion to professor—check.

Suddenly I found I had achieved

all the goals I had set for myself.

I was ready for a new challenge.

For years at psychology confer-

ences, I had been drawn to the

neuroscience presentations. I

marveled at the advances in sci-

ence and the groundbreaking

discoveries about the brain. I

nursed a secret desire to be-

come a neuropsychologist in

practice and a neuroscientist in

research, but I had no training

other than a course or two on

physiological psychology in grad-

uate school. I began taking clas-

ses on neuropsychology and

physiological psychology from

colleagues at my university and

applied for a full-year sabbatical

to do a postdoctoral fellowship

in neuropsychology. I complet-

ed two years of supervised neu-

ropsychological practice with

Andrew Davis, whose depth and

breadth of knowledge in the

field is astounding and from

whom I have learned so much

about the practice of neuropsy-

chology.

Perrone McGovern (middle) poses with fellow counseling program doctoral students in 1998: Ron Seel (left, M.S. ‘96, Ph.D.

‘99), Eloise Berry (M.S. ‘96, Ph.D. ‘99), Perrone McGovern (M.S. ‘95, Ph.D. ‘98) Susanna Owens (B.S. ‘92, M.S. ‘95, Ph.D. ‘99)

and Taro Kurusu (M.S. ’96, Ph.D. ’99).

31

On the neuroscience research

side, I have been profoundly in-

fluenced by Oscar Goncalves.

He is a true pioneer of our field

who is both a counseling psy-

chologist and a neuroscientist,

and he is doing some of the

most cutting edge research of

our time. Oscar Goncalves and I

met through colleagues and

bonded via email over our

shared experience as counseling

psychologists with interests in

neuroscience. In May 2011, he

invited me to visit the University

of Minho in Braga, Portugal,

where he was the head of the

psychology department and

where he had built an awe-

inspiring neuropsychophysiologi-

cal research laboratory.

While in Portugal, I met

with his impressive re-

search teams at their lab to

learn about the work they

were doing and discuss ide-

as for collaboration. By the

time I returned home, I had a

clear plan for my next research

study. In the spring of 2012, a

doctoral student from Dr. Gon-

calves’ laboratory, Patricia

Oliveira Silva, came to work with

me at Ball State University and

complete a research project on

empathy, conflict resolution and

psychophysiological factors for

couples. Also, in 2012 we were

honored to have Oscar come to

Ball State to speak to our faculty

and students about his research,

and to sign a memorandum of

understanding between our two

universities. In the summer of

2013, my colleague Stephanie

Simon-Dack and I led a group of

undergraduate and graduate

students on a study abroad trip

to visit the lab at the University

of Minho in Portugal, where our

students were able to gain

hands-on experience and train-

ing on fMRI, ERP, neurobiochem-

istry and peripheral measures

research methodology. Recently

Oscar and I co-edited a special

section for the Journal of Coun-

seling Psychology on the inter-

face of neuroscience and coun-

seling psychology that will be in

the October 2014 issue.

With the leadership of Stephanie

Simon-Dack, my talented physio-

logical psychologist friend and

colleague, and two other col-

leagues from the Psychological

Sciences Department at Ball

State University (Thomas Holt-

graves and Michael Tagler), we

obtained a Major Research In-

strumentation Grant from the

National Science Foundation to

purchase equipment that al-

lowed us to set up an Event Re-

lated Potential research labora-

tory over the 2013-14 academic

year. My future research direc-

tions will include using this

equipment to examine con-

structs related to attachment,

empathy and interpersonal rela-

tionships. I will also be training

students in counseling psycholo-

gy and neuroscience interface

and neuropsychological assess-

ment and practice (and hopeful-

ly inspiring them towards future

work in this area).

It’s been an exciting and won-

derful journey and I feel blessed

by the mentoring, support and

encouragement I have received

from my incredible colleagues.

I will end with three pieces of

advice to aspiring future leaders.

First, be curious. In the

words of Albert Einstein,

“The important thing is not

to stop questioning. Curios-

ity has its own reason for

existing.”

Second, take risks. Don’t try to

follow current trends or do what

everyone else is doing. Set the

trend yourself and others will

follow.

Third, choose work you are pas-

sionate about. Joseph Campbell

said it best when he said,

“Follow your bliss and the uni-

verse will open doors where

here were only walls.”

“By the inch it’s a cinch;

by the mile it’s a trial.”

32

Hulsey Van Tongeren Green

Scott Allison, Ph.D., professor of psychology at the University of Richmond, pre-

sented a talk titled, "Heroic Leadership: The Elevation of the Human Spirit."

Allison’s research focus is on heroes, villains, legends, leaders, underdogs and

martyrs. He has published nearly 100 articles and four books on heroes. His

work has been featured in media outlets such as National Public Radio, USA To-

day, the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, Slate Magazine, MSNBC, CBS,

the Christian Science Monitor and Psychology Today.

Gerald Clore, Ph.D., commonwealth professor of psychol-

ogy at the University of Virginia, presented a research talk

titled, "Emotional Impact." Clore is co-author of “The Cognitive Structure of Emo-

tions,” a book detailing a general theory of how psychological situations elicit

emotions and make them intense. With funding from the National Institutes of

Mental Health and the National Science Foundation, he explores the affect-as-

information hypothesis, which clarifies how affective information about value and

urgency regulates cognition, motivation and memory. In 2010 he was elected to

the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and in 2013 he received the William

James Award for lifetime scientific achievement from the Association for Psycho-

logical Science.

Bethany Teachman, Ph.D., professor of psychology at the University of Virginia, deliv-

ered a research talk titled, "It’s Not a Heart Attack, You’re Just Out of Breath: Chang-

ing Threat Interpretations to Reduce Anxiety." Teachman’s research lab investigates

cognitive processes that contribute to the development and maintenance of anxiety

disorders. They are especially interested in how thoughts that occur outside of our

control or conscious awareness contribute to fear and anxiety.

Abstract: If we want to understand why an intelligent, normally rational person with a

spider phobia has refused to go down to her basement for ten years, why a person

with social phobia sees only the one scowling face in a room full of smiles, why a per-

son with panic disorder is convinced that the 200th panic attack is the one that will

bring on a heart attack, we need to consider the role of automatic processing of emo-

tional information in these disorders. Each of these seemingly irrational decisions, beliefs and behav-

iors is likely fueled by some aspect of automatic cognitive processing, whereby anxious individuals in-

terpret their environment in such a way that these maladaptive reactions make sense to them in the

moment.

Teachman’s research investigates how these processes contribute to the onset and persistence of anxi-

ety problems and whether it is important to change these processes in order to ameliorate anxiety.

Visitingspeakers

Clore

Teachman

Allison

33

Doctor of Philosophy

Shelley Avny

Robert Goodman

Chelsea Greer

David Guion

Hannah Lund

Janet Lydecker

Kathryn Maher

Annabella Opare-Henaku

Kimberly Parker

Vivian Rodriguez

Claire Russell

Master of Science

Melissa Dvorsky

Shaina Gulin

Autumn Lanoye

Zachary Radcliff

Bachelor of Science

Amielia Altice

Christian Ammons

Alexis Ashby

Stephanie Azango

Priya Barot

Catherine Brannock

Emily Bregman

Jeremy Brown

Brandon Burgess

Brandon Burneson

Jun Chang

Courtney Coleman

Kamile Conley

Kyle Cox

Stephanie Cunningham

Lianna Davies

Sarah Debaerien

Kaylah Degree

Amir Elsayed

Amel Eltayeb

Samantha Estep

Bobbi Finkelstein

Anneliese Grant

Channing Gravely

Harold Hallock

Nicole Harrig

Ashley Harris

Abdisamad Hassan

Matthew Hatheway

Laura Hazlett

Ashley Hedge

Ashley Hefner

Edward Huffman

Nicole Jolly

Christina Jones

Samuel Keeble

Tara Kelley

Michael Ko

Katherine Lazenby

Melanie-Grace Licen

Walid Mansoor

Crystal Mcnair

Nighat Mehrzad

Caroline Mills

Abir Muhammad

Leah Neary

Modesta Nzekwesi-Albert

Leah O'Connor

Marissa Oden

Junko Omoto

Christian Ostrowski

Taylor Owens

DaJuan Pitts

Michael Pivik

Sarah Ripp

Lindsay Runner

Annaliese Santos

Samantha Shaw

Sarah Sitler

Lauren Smallwood

Tracy St. Hill

Kyle Sutherland

Nathaniel Thomas

Sherrie Timberlake

Lauren Troublefield

Elexis White

Deborah Wilde

Camerina Younce

augustGraduates

34

Teaching

Jody Davis, Ph.D., was this year’s

recipient of the Outstanding Fac-

ulty Teaching Award for her ex-

emplary year of teaching and

mentorship. An excellent class-

room instructor, Davis has been

a department leader in advanc-

ing online teaching initiatives.

For example, her social psycholo-

gy course has been presented as

an online course showcase

through VCU’s Academic Learn-

ing Transformation lab (formerly

the Center for Teaching Excel-

lence). She was also a member

of VCU’s Summer Online Learn-

ing Initiative, where she present-

ed information about her online

course assignments (among oth-

er things) as a resource for other

faculty. Davis is also an excep-

tional mentor to not only gradu-

ate and undergraduate students,

but also to junior faculty mem-

bers through the ALT lab’s junior

faculty mentorship program.

scholarship

The Outstanding Faculty Scholar-

ship Award was given to Paul

Perrin, Ph.D., assistant professor

of health psychology. Perrin had

an extraordinary year of research

productivity with 29 peer-

reviewed publications, on six of

which he was listed as first au-

thor. Notably, his students were

first author on 16 of these publi-

cations, demonstrating his devo-

tion to mentoring and teaching

students about research and

writing.

Perrin also continued to establish

an excellent research trajectory

by securing his first grant from

the National Institutes of Health

in 2013-14. With this grant, he

will evaluate a culturally sensitive

intervention for traumatic brain

injury caregivers in Latin Ameri-

ca. Perrin’s research interests

are in minority mental health,

health disparities and multicul-

tural awareness and competence

in health care providers.

Service

For her for her exceptional ser-

vice to the department, College,

university, community and pro-

fession, the department awarded

Terri Sullivan, Ph.D., the Out-

standing Faculty Service Award.

Sullivan continues to serve on

the Institutional Review Board’s

biomedical panel reviewing ex-

pedited and full board research

proposals on a monthly basis, a

task that is particularly work-

intensive. At the department

level, she is a member of the per-

sonnel committee—also a ser-

vice that requires a great deal of

time and effort and involves re-

viewing faculty reports and

writing evaluations. In service to

the profession, Sullivan sits on

the editorial board of two jour-

nals and served on the Institute

of Educational Sciences’ social

and behavioral grant review pan-

el in 2013-14.

Jody Davis, Ph.D. Terri Sullivan, Ph.D. Paul Perrin, Ph.D.

Department faculty awards for 2013-14

35

On the Examination for the Profession-

al Practice in Psychology, the national

exam taken by those seeking licenses

in clinical psychology, our counseling

doctoral program was ranked 12th of

60 doctoral counseling psychology

programs with a 92.31% pass rate.

Virginia Commonwealth University is an equal opportunity, affirmative action university providing access to

education and employment without regard to age, race, color, national origin, gender, religion, sexual

orientation, veteran’s status, political affiliation or disability.

Virginia Commonwealth University

College of Humanities and Sciences

806 W. Franklin St.

P.O. Box 842018

Richmond, VA 23284

Phone: 804.828.1193

Fax: 804.828.2237

Email: jlelswick@vcu.edu

Website: psychology.vcu.edu

Congratulations!