Psychological Research
Our faculty members are involved in research both for their
own professional development and for the enrichment of students’ experiences at
Hamline University. Students often take on research apprenticeships to assist
with professional research, and faculty members often collaborate with students
to further their research skills.
Dr. Dorothee Dietrich has several lines of research in which
she involves undergraduate students. She studies effects of Ostracism,
Self-Handicapping, and Culture of Honor effects. She currently has
collaborations with undergraduates under review for publication.
Dr. Kim Guenther has a wide variety of research interests,
ranging from bilingual memory representation to arousal effects on memory
retrieval to topics in Evolutionary Psychology. He has published a number of
papers with undergraduates as collaborators and co-authors. He is currently
supervising Kelsey Eatherton, who is studying eye-witness memory, and Brittney
Wirth-Petrik, who is studying Terror Management Theory.
Dr. Serena King has won a prestigious Harvard Institute
Grant and a New Investigator Grant Award (Institute
for Research on Gambling Disorders) to study gambling behaviors among youth
from a behavioral genetic perspective. She often collaborates with
undergraduate students on their own projects or takes them as research
apprentices. She is currently supervising Emmy Kelly, who is studying the
effects of Mindfulness Practices on substance abuse.
Dr. Paula Mullineaux has an ongoing research project
investigating interactions between parents (usually mothers) and their
children. She is currently supervising senior honors student, Taylor Listul
(pictured on our landing page), as he studies parents’ feelings of
optimism/pessimism and parental efficacy. She is also supervising Christine
Dudero, who is examining media effects on body image.
Dr. Matt Olson has supervised research apprentices and
collaborators in a number of areas. These include recent projects in color
vision acuity, spreading activation in verbal memory, stress and arousal
effects in risky decision-making, and cultural differences in biofeedback
efficacy. He is currently supervising Asho Kalif, who is examining gender
differences in conformity among first-generation Somalis, and Danielle Drasher
who is studying the effects of biofeedback training for people with
Restless-Leg Syndrome.
Dr. Robin Parritz has ongoing research programs that focus
on disorders in children. Some of her most recent studies involve
stigmatization of children who have been diagnosed with psychological
disorders. Her successful research program has often included undergraduate
collaborators and apprentices. She is currently supervising Tate Halverson
(pictured on our landing page) as she studies pre-frontal lobe activity and the
development of empathy.