Gustavus Adolphus College

Welcome to the first issue of this year's Psychology Department on-line student newsletter. My name is Lee Sande and I'm the administrative assistant in the department and the editor of this newsletter. Our look and format is new (and would you agree, improved?). We welcome comments and suggestions and are always looking for interesting articles submitted by even more interesting psychology majors! In addition to reading through the articles each month - look closely at the links in the left hand column -- a wealth of information lies beneath. (And happy Halloween from my little Yorkie, Princess Cricket!) ...

• Conference Dates and Deadlines
• Department Happenings
• Did you Know?... Spotlight on Majors
• Did you Know?... Spotlight on Faculty
• Psi Chi Sponsored Updates
• "Need to Reads"
• Just for Fun

Conference Dates & Deadlines

National Conference on Undergraduate Research (NCUR) April 10-12, 2007 NCUR® 22 will bring together undergraduates involved in scholarly and artistic activities from more than 300 colleges and universities in the nation. Since the first conference in 1987, NCUR® has grown to become a major annual event drawing well over 2200 undergraduates, faculty and administrators to promote undergraduate research in all fields of study. NCUR Application Deadline -- Saturday, December 1

Minnesota Undergraduate Psychology Conference (MUPC) Date TBA

MidBrains Conference - Macalester College - May 3, 2007 - The conference is a joint effort of the MidBrains Neuroscience Consortium-- a network of faculty from undergraduate neuroscience programs in the upper midwest. This annual event provides a forum for undergraduate students in the Midwest to present research findings, to attend research lectures and special panels, and to meet other undergraduate students interested in the neurosciences. Representatives from several major research universities are also present to discuss graduate school opportunities. Students are encouraged to submit abstracts in all fields of the neurosciences and related disciplines!

Honors Day - May 3

Department Happenings

Gustavus Psychology Symposium -- Friday, December 7

"Frost Your Own" Holiday Cookies and Cider Day (Final Day of Classes) -- Friday December 14

Did you Know? Spotlight on Majors...

Gustie Psych Majors learning both on campus and off...

Kim Maurelli

• I am a senior psychology honors and criminal justice double major.  I am a member of Psi Chi, Delta Phi Omega sorority, and the educational chair for Inter-Greek Senate.  I also have enjoyed volunteering for Wednesday Friends (on Monday) for the past three years.  I am planning on taking the GRE subject test in psychology in early November, and will begin applying to graduate schools in December. My intent is to enroll in graduate school for a PhD in clinical psychology, with a post-doctorate internship in a forensic setting.  Currently, I am interning at the Leo A. Hoffman Center where I work with adolescent males with sexual behavior problems.  I really enjoy my work and am learning a lot about the different types of therapy.  It is rewarding to observe these individuals as they grow and overcome their problems.  I hope to one day work in a similar setting, but hopefully I will be the individual conducting the therapy. 

Taylor Olson -- A Summer Spent Learning

• Over the summer months I had the opportunity to work at the Leo A. Hoffmann Center for adolescent males with sexual behavior issues.  This job gave me first-hand knowledge of aspects of both abnormal psychology and particularly developmental psychology.  The boys I worked with were developmentally delayed and interacting with them on a daily basis helped me realize what is required of clinicians and therapists in this setting.  I was amazed at how much paperwork is necessary and how many state/federal regulations there are.  It takes people with incredible training and skill to work in these environments and not "burn out."   This position provided me with training that will be a resource for me in graduate school.  This opportunity was extremely beneficial for me, reassuring me that this is the direction in which I want to continue to move.  I encourage all students to contemplate what they want to do with a psychology degree by getting active and trying things first hand.

Christine Grotjohn -- Guess what I did this summer?

• I took an adventure by myself to upstate NY and worked at a camp in the Adirondack Mountains! I lived at Paul Smiths College, which is a Forestry and Culinary Arts school about the size of Gustavus. The greatest part about the location was that the school is located on a lake surrounded by mountains. Wellspring Camps have proven to be one of the world’s best weight loss camps because of their successful aftercare program for continued weight loss and maintenance. Wellspring NY is geared towards females between the ages of 11-25 years old. My job was as a counselor of the 11-13 year girls as well as being a member of the adventure staff. I spent my days leading hikes up and down mountains, mountain biking, life guarding for canoe trips, and belaying on a low and high ropes challenge course. I was also lucky enough to be a part of the two week camping expedition where girls spent the entire time learning to cook and survive in the rugged mountains of NY. Pretty incredible…right? But you’re probably wondering what any of this has to do with psychology. Besides the camp’s main objective to help the girls lose weight healthily, it was also a therapeutic camp. A cognitive behavioral approach is used, which requires the campers to set individual goals and monitor themselves. Each girl had a behavioral coach that they met with at least once a week to discuss the possibilities of what might be causing them to eat in such a way as to gain weight. They kept a daily journal where they self-monitored everything they ate for the day and what physical activities they had done. In addition, there was a portion of the journal called Think and Ink where the girls were asked to write down their feelings throughout the day that they thought might be linked to why they felt like eating at certain times. Cognitive behavioral group sessions were also held throughout the week, which gave the girls an opportunity to offer support to each other by sharing their stories and finding out what they had in common in their struggles with weight loss. Cognitive behavioral therapy is one of the most widely accepted approaches to successful long term weight loss. It involves techniques that are important in behavior modification. Dr. Daniel Kirschenbaum who is a professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Northwestern helped designed the program and also provided sessions to help the parents learn what they can do to provide a healthy environment for their child to continue being successful in weight loss. Dr. Kirschenbaum said, “Self-control is a process in behavioral terms - keeping track of target behaviors and systematically evaluating these behaviors and goal setting. It can be taught like any other skill through instruction, modeling and encouragement.” My summer at Wellspring was an incredible and successful learning experience. In terms of my psychology career, it proved to be a most challenging experience, but one that might lead me in the direction of continued study in the psychology of weight loss.

Did you Know? Spotlight on Faculty

Dr. Patricia Costello

Dr. Costello gave a poster presentation at the Vision Sciences Society in Sarasota, Florida in May 2007.
The title and abstract: *Perception of Age in Human Faces: Upright and Inverted Results * Read more...

Psi Chi Sponsored Updates

Don't miss the deadline to order the Psychology t-shirts!

• A message from Taylor Olson, Psi Chi president:

Every year Psi Chi, the National Honor Society of Psychology, designs and sells a t-shirt (below) that somehow relates to Psychology.  This year the slogan is "Keep Talking....I'm Diagnosing You"  They are forest green and come in either long or short sleeve.  Anyone is welcome to buy one, $15 for the short sleeve t-shirt and $20 for long sleeve.  The sign up sheet, along with a picture, can be found outside SSC 27.  The profits from the shirts go to various Psychology-related events throughout the year (i.e. bowling with the Professors, Gingerbread House making - dates to be announced).  You can bring your money to Lee in SSC 04.  The deadline to order is October 30th and the shirts will be delivered to you through your P.O.  All questions should be sent to Taylor Olson at tolson@gac.edu.

News of Psi Chi:

Current members of the Gustavus Chapter of Psi Chi are:

• Holly Andersen, Kelly Anderson, Alicia Blomquist, Joy Braband, Lindsey Carlson, Lindsey Cattau, Shanna Dawson, Erica Dobson, Margaret Dorer, Sarah Erickson, Carly Ernst, Emma Espel, Naomi Garbisch, Christine Grotjohn, Stephanie Johnson, Melissa Jones, Krista Koenen, Erin Larson, Noemi Lopez, Brittney Lovdahl, Jessica Malmquist, Ashley Martin, Kimberly Maurelli, Kristine McGlennen, Hawine Merdasa, Eric Miller, Lor Moua, Eryn Nelson, Katie Nelson, Matt Novakovic, Taylor Olson, Jennifer Pelowski, Andrew Pothen, Samantha Pugh, Greta Rittenhouse, Garrett Rorem, Siri Rydholm, Christa Saeger, Alyssa Schlager, Christopher Stark, Jennifer Stout, Yoshikazu Suzuki, Katie Thomas, Amy Veerkamp, Valerie Wilbur, Jessica Woulfe

Psi Chi Member Grill Out: On October 1st, Psi Chi members enjoyed their first event of the year.  We had our annual Grill Out at the president’s house.  Many members showed up with items to share.  We started the night off with some music and grilling.  It ended, of course, with a bonfire and s’mores.  Taylor Olson

• Psi Chi Member Meetings
• October Meeting Tuesday Oct. 30th @ 8pm in Gustie Den
  November Meeting Monday Nov. 26th @ 7pm in Gustie Den
  
  

"Need to Reads"....

Kisses of Death in the Graduate School Application Process

A survey of psychology graduate admissions committee chairs revealed 5 categories of mistakes applicants make that diminish their probability of acceptance. We discuss 3 strategies that psychology departments can use to decrease the likelihood that students will commit these mistakes in their graduate school applications and provide suggestions that will help students avoid these mistakes. Read more...

Just for Fun...

Deductive Reasoning:

Taking a well-earned break from the detective business, Sherlock Holmes and Watson were on a camping/hiking trip. They had gone to bed and were lying there looking up at the sky. Holmes said, "Watson, look up. What do you see?" "Well, I see thousands of stars." "And what does that mean to you?"

"Well, I suppose it means that of all the planets and suns and moons in the universe, that we are truly the one most blessed with the reason to deduce theorems to make our way in this world of criminal enterprises and blind greed. It means that we are truly small in the eyes of God but struggle each day to be worthy of the senses and spirit we have been blessed with. And, I suppose, at the very least, in the meteorological sense, it means that it is most likely that we will have another nice day tomorrow. What does it mean to you, Holmes?"

"To me, it means someone has stolen our tent."