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VOLUME 21, ISSUE 2 Spring 2020

Providence College Department of Psychology

Analyze This!

May 4, 2020

PSYCHOLOGY DEPARTMENT NEWSLETTER 1


Table of Contents Analyze This! 1 Joe Neurotic: Personality disorders and the Law in Tiger King 3 The Role of Kindness in Advocacy 6 The Eye of the Beholder 7 Stories from a Fly on the Wall of Rhode Island Hospital 8 Rethinking Challenge 10 Inside NAMI: My Internship Experience 12 Neuropsychology Welcomes Mindfulness 13 An Interactive Way to Learn 15 Unexpected Opportunities 17 A Senior’s Perspective 18 Ending the Stigma by Educating the Youth 21 Studying Abroad as a Psych Major 23 Changing how we Think About the COVID-19 Pandemic 25 Going digital: Celebrating Research Online 27 Faculty Notes 27 Letter from the Editors 31 Letter from the Faculty Advisor 32 Helpful Resources 32



Joe Neurotic: Personality Disorders and the Law in Tiger King by Patrick Fuller

For many of us, the COVID-19 pandemic has been filled with social isolation, excessive handwashing, and Zoom classes. While students and faculty work hard to make remote learning the new reality, platforms like Netflix offer an escape from the many stresses of quarantine. I recently overcame my reluctance with the encouragement of my girlfriend, blowing through all seven episodes of the number one show on Netflix in the United States: Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem, and Madness. I will attempt to avoid any spoilers in this article, but if you plan on watching the show, I suggest you proceed cautiously.

Generally, Tiger King follows the cult of big cat owners and/or illegal breeders

throughout the United States of America. From Bhagavan “Doc” Antle’s Myrtle Beach Safari in South Carolina, to Joe Exotic’s G.W. Zoo in Oklahoma, to Carole Baskin’s Big Cat Rescue in Tampa, Florida, the show gathers a cast so unique it could be mistaken as a fictional series. The crime-drama docuseries focuses especially on the character of Joe Exotic and his unceasing feud against Carole Baskin, a self-proclaimed big cat activist who waged legal war against Exotic. Yet, from the very beginning, I could tell Tiger King was not going to be an indifferent, emotionless retelling a la Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood. The plot of the show is not its hooking point. The eccentric, larger-than-life characters are the real bait for consumers.

Not unlike the big cat zoo employees, I became captivated by the abnormality of

Exotic, Baskin, and Antle. Exotic, especially, was a mythical creature: a homosexual man from Oklahoma who shot guns at explosives, participated in polygamy, and, of course, owned a zoo full of exotic animals. Baskin, too, lives in a house full of big cat décor, has a troubled past, and is tied up in her ex-husband’s murder case. Meanwhile, Antle holds a



Chinese medicine degree, has an indeterminable number of “lovely girls” who act as wives and dressed-up zoo employees, and was previously named “Kevin.”

You really have to see the show for yourself to appreciate each character’s

eccentricities, but eccentricities do not necessarily presume psychological abnormalities. Over the course of the show, however, I observed behavior which could undoubtedly point to psychological diagnoses. It is important to remember that I am a third-year undergraduate psychology major with minimal exposure to abnormal psychology. Any observations made here are completely speculative in nature and should not be the basis of any real psychological diagnosis.

Despite their differences, Exotic, Baskin, and Antle all share an ability to target and

exploit the vulnerable. According to the testimonials of big cat owners throughout the show, owning these large animals comes with a great deal of power. Whether the big cats give the power, or grandiosely powerful individuals buy big cats, is hard to flesh out. The fact of the matter is that Joe Exotic recruited zoo employees straight out of prison. In some cases, he met lost wanderers at the local interstate bus stop. He used the allure of big cats, along with meth in some cases, to become a new support system for those feeling hopeless and unwanted. In the case of his ex-husbands, Travis Maldonado and John Finlay, Exotic used meth, guns, and cats to confuse their sexual orientation; multiple employees testified that neither Maldonado nor Finlay said they were gay.

What originally started as Exotic’s genuine love for big cats became an instrument

for manipulation and employee subjugation. Rick Kirkham, a documentarian sent to film a reality show at Exotic’s G.W. Zoo, recalled how Exotic spent all night watching the introduction to his own show—Exotic, donned in a crown and royal robe, sitting in the middle of a tiger cage on a massive throne. To Exotic and his employees, the zoo became more of a stage where he could be the star of the show rather than a place to safely preserve endangered species. Over the course of his legal battle with Baskin, he became self-absorbed to the point of neglecting his employees, his animals, and his personal relationships. His delusions of grandeur even led him to run for President of the United

States and Governor of Oklahoma.

Baskin, too, runs Big Cat Rescue, a supposed wild-life refuge that looks a lot like Exotic’s G.W. Zoo. She employs a crew of fanatics for free, working them through holidays and inhumane hours. She also became absorbed in the legal fiasco over G.W. Zoo,



dumping millions of dollars and countless hours into the unending feud.

Antle exploits young girls, forcing them to live in cockroach-infested quarters, work long hours, get breast implants, and sleep with him to get time off. His new name, Bhagavan, literally means “the blessed or fortunate one,” in Hinduism.

Antle and Exotic especially stood out as psychologically abnormal. Both appeared to

exhibit many of the characteristics of Narcissistic Personality Disorder. According to the Mayo Clinic, Narcissistic Personality Disorder is a mental condition in which people have an inflated sense of their own importance, a deep need for excessive attention and admiration, troubled relationships, and a lack of empathy for others. Many areas of life become affected including relationships, work, school, and financial affairs. Other symptoms include preoccupation with fantasies about success, power, brilliance, beauty, or the perfect mate, belittling those perceived as inferior, expecting compliance with expectations, taking advantage of others to get what is wanted, being envious of others, and having difficulty regulating emotions and behavior.

From the short list of behaviors I observed from Exotic especially, including his

self-absorption, self-worship, maladaptive relationships, lack of empathy, unbending expectations for employee loyalty, envy of competitors, and dramatic mood swings, I can hypothesize that he might have Narcissistic Personality Disorder.

Now, I came to this hypothesis after wondering how the court of law could let Joe

Exotic take the stand, testify, and serve jail time for the attempted murder of Carole Baskin. I thought that the court would find him not guilty on the basis of insanity. Apparently, the court’s relationship with personality disorders is complicated. According to researchers in the scientific journal Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience, “Although there is some argument to the contrary, within the criminal justice system, there has been a strong push to exclude personality disorders, specifically ASPD, from the type of mental illnesses potentially significant enough to warrant exculpation of fault or consideration of decreased criminal responsibility,” (Johnson & Elbogen, 2013). In other words, personality disorders are not typically used to absolve criminal defendants on the basis of insanity.

The distinction between personality disorders and more severe mental illnesses in

the legal system is a topic of great debate. Personality disorders are not well accepted as significant mental illnesses in the legal system because their incidence is high in criminal defendants, they are usually comorbid with other psychopathology, and it is hard to determine where on a trait continuum constitutes mental illness (Johnson & Elbogen, 2013). Furthermore, treatment is difficult, sufferers do not self-define symptoms as illness, and personality disorders are rarely viewed as removing an individual’s capacity to make a choice.



Regardless of the legal restrictions surrounding personality disorders in the court of law, I could not help but think the trial of Joe Exotic could have benefited from a psychological consultation. Although there is jury bias against defendants diagnosed with personality disorders, simple administration of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) could have been tremendously informative in explaining the erratic, irrational behavior of Joe Exotic. Although the MMPI is not a diagnostic tool by any means, it may have provided valuable insight into the mind of the Tiger King, aiding his defense.

The Role of Kindness in Advocacy by Alex Baker

This year I was presented with an incredible opportunity to take on an internship at Day One: Rhode Island’s Sexual Assault and Domestic Advocacy Center. At my interview, I was told that I would become a member of the Adult Advocacy Team. When asked if I had any questions, my only one was “what is an adult advocate?” As it turns out, I was the advocate, and the survivor was the adult. If anyone in the state of Rhode Island goes to a hospital as a result of a sexual assault or domestic violence incident, they have the option to request an advocate from Day One to assist them throughout their time there. A contact person from the facility, usually a social worker, calls the advocate on duty and the advocate then meets with the survivor. Starting last October, I spent my Wednesdays waiting by the phone to get a call. I was extensively trained for the job and excited to finally get the chance to make a difference in someone’s life during an especially challenging time.

As an advocate, it was my job to

support the survivor, provide them with relevant resources, and accommodate as many of their needs as possible. I was not a therapist, a nurse, or a police officer. It was not my job to fix, heal, or report. I soon found out that my job was a lot of hand holding, pamphlet distributing, and interacting with the medical staff. This last aspect was the most difficult for me to take on. We are all well-aware of the downsides of the American healthcare system. These flaws became even more apparent during the time I spent in various hospitals. I had to simultaneously calm down survivors whose needs were not being met while trying to get the overworked hospital staff’s attention. Two of my best friends work in hospitals, so I understand how



grueling their days can be and did not want to add to their already heavy workloads. Yet as an advocate, my number one responsibility is to attend to the needs of the survivor. Balancing these opposing needs was difficult, but I found time and time again that above all else, people responded to kindness with kindness. Hospitals are typically not joyful places, so a little compassion went a long way.

It is easy to get caught up in the doom and gloom of the world, especially at such uncertain times. Understandably, many people want to respond to such darkness with more darkness. In my experience, this is not only inefficient but also detrimental to accomplishing your goals. The most valuable thing I learned during my time as an intern is the importance of kindness and how showing sympathy instead of cynicism can make an incredible difference. Regardless of who we are and the nature of our interactions, there is never a bad time to show kindness. Whether I was greeting a survivor, listening to a doctor, or walking up to the receptionist, humanity needed to be present in every exchange. It is what we owe to one another and how we can make the world a better place.

The Eye of the Beholder by Debra Nichels

Have you ever had a memory so insignificant and yet so vivid that you couldn’t help

but remember it years later? Though I can’t remember the exact day, or even month, during which it happened, I distinctly remember sitting at the dining room table of my best friend Julia’s house. As if overcome by some sort of epiphany, she ran to the cookie jar positioned on the corner of her kitchen counter, grabbed two Oreos, and briskly brought them upstairs. Though Julia came back a minute or so later, I couldn’t help but wonder why she had done that. Perhaps her younger sister texted her and asked for her to bring some cookies to her room. After all, Julia and her sister were pretty nice to each other in comparison to some other siblings. Maybe the Oreos were the last left in the jar and she wanted to be sure that her older brother wouldn’t eat them before she did. Perchance Julia took them upstairs because she wanted a snack while talking to her mother for a brief moment. Though you may be wondering, “why should I care about why this girl’s friend

stole the cookies from the cookie jar,” the scenario provides a perfect example of our subjective and objective realities. As defined by my professor for personality, a course that focuses on the psychological uniqueness and behaviors of individuals, our subjective reality is our



personal experience of a particular event. In comparison, he, Dr. Spiegler, uses one’s objective reality in reference to the observation of an event about which a number of observers would agree. If Julia had grabbed the two Oreos in a room full of people, every individual who was paying attention would have made the general consensus that she had, in fact, taken the two cookies and ran upstairs. However, regardless of how confident they may be of the reasoning as to why she did so, no one would be able to know exactly what motivated her unless they explicitly asked. Though I can’t speak for others, the idea that we can never fully understand another’s perspective often has me wondering about the drives of my friends and parents. While I don’t want you to question whether your friend of five or more years truly likes you, do you think he/she helps you out of the kindness of their heart or because they feel obligated to do so. Gets you thinking, doesn’t it?

Though Julia’s actions in the anecdote are far from being particularly important, the comparison between my perception and hers is astonishing. When you think about it, it’s as if our reality — the way we view others and, ultimately, the world around us — relies solely on our individual perception. While I don’t want to be too cliché and draw upon the well-renown film Matrix, we could quite possibly consider ourselves as being unknowingly trapped inside a false reality. Despite how powerful we may think our senses are or how accurate our thoughts, it is undeniable that there is so much in this world that is beyond our grasp. While such may seem intimidating, it’s these mysteries of human nature that keep moving science forward and make psychology courses like personality worth taking.

Stories from a Fly on the Wall of Rhode Island Hospital by Kat Fama

The smell of antiseptic fills my nose. I clutch my notebook to my chest as I follow Addie*, the neuropsychologist I am shadowing, down the hall to the patient’s room. A crowd of doctors is blocking the entrance, talking quietly to one another. Addie approaches one of them to inquire about what is happening as I stand off to the side, catching bits and pieces of the conversation. I hear Addie ask about the patient’s condition and catch the doctor saying that he is stable now, and we could give testing a try. There was an unspoken “good luck” at the end of the sentence. He knew this patient’s reputation.

This is our second time seeing David Harrington today. He is 65 years old and so

thin I can nearly count his bones. His skin is almost translucent, and his hair is long and tangled. I follow Addie into the room and see David lying in bed, oxygen flowing into his



nose through a cannula, his eyes half closed. Last time I had seen him, rude remarks flew from his mouth as we became the third neuropsychology team to be kicked out by him that week. Addie had resolved to try again later. Needless to say, a lot had changed in an hour.

I trail behind Addie, taking my place at the end of the patient’s bed. Immediately, it

was clear that David did not remember us. As a neuropsychologist, it is Addie’s job to evaluate these cognitive impairments. She assesses a patient’s memory and other cognitive abilities using different pen and paper tests, which help the doctors determine the steps they need to take to treat the patient and what type of care will be required upon their release from the hospital. I am there to observe this process and learn everything I can. Addie has two tests for David, the Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE), a short assessment that screens for cognitive impairments, and the Dementia Rating Scale-2 (DRS-2), which specifically tests for dementia. As she works her way through these, David makes jokes and dances around the questions. At one point, he is asked a question and instead of answering he looks at me making a face and sticking his tongue out. I stick my tongue out too. He laughs and turns back to Addie, answering her question.

The science behind neuropsychology is what drew me to this internship—what parts

of the brain control certain cognitive functions, how these can be impacted by injury, alcohol, or time—it is one way to explore part of the mind-body connection. However, the most impactful part was my time with patients. Though the patients I saw were short, inpatient consults, I felt the highs and lows of their experience. I silently cheered when they remembered a word they struggled with, I shared in the hope that many families had for their loved ones, and my heart broke as I listened to difficult life stories and helped calculate devastating test results. The solace in the lows was that they served a purpose. While I had no direct role in the process, I listened as neuropsychologists discussed test results, debated differential diagnosis, and ultimately came up with a plan of action. I learned about, and witnessed, the positive impact neuropsychologists have on patients, even in difficult situations.

I also learned that the system is not perfect. Most patients would not cooperate, like

David initially. In these cases, the healthcare professionals believe there is nothing that can be done, and I watched many reluctantly interact with patients and give up easily when they would not cooperate (and the situation was not urgent). While there were patients who were resistant, and even rude, the neuropsychologists I followed worked around this and successfully tested difficult patients. When they tailored their approach to the individual, they were able to get through to these patients and provide them with the care they needed and deserved.

Though I did not have any active part of treatment, what I observed taught me

about neuropsychology and more importantly, about people. I learned to do everything in my power to work with and for the people in my care, to always keep an open mind, and



above all to never forget that there is nothing more important than the well-being of others. These will stay with me throughout my career in health care and already influence my daily interactions with others.

*All names have been changed to respect the privacy of the individuals mentioned

Rethinking Challenge by Allie Powers

New experiences often present us with challenges. Such challenges may be easily overcome, or not so much. When we speak of challenges, there is often a negative connotation. Challenges are hard. They are difficult to overcome. They are… well, challenging. Opportunity is more promising. If we think of new experiences as bringing opportunity, rather than challenges, we see a chance for growth and knowledge.

In January of 2019, I spent two weeks in the district of Adaklu Waya, Ghana teaching

English in the village schoolhouse as well as showing children how to brush their teeth. It was challenging an amazing opportunity. Teaching in a culture different than my own demonstrated to me the importance of valuing differences in culture, language, and appearance. It has also allowed me to gain a greater appreciation for the worth in listening and communicating through smiles and hand gestures, rather than words.

Teaching skills to others, whether it be speaking a new language or brushing teeth

for the first time in their lives, has shown me the significance of reciprocal teaching: learning from children, and adults, as much as they learn from you. Each morning in Adaklu Waya, I would stand in the middle of a circle of eager children. All eyes were on me, on my toothbrush, on my drastically different appearance. I spoke hesitantly in English walking around the circle. I was teaching language at the same time as brushing, trying to act out every word. I was playing the game, Simon says. Each child copied my every move, sometimes too much. During one of the circles I dropped my toothbrush.



Suddenly, some of the younger children did the same. I could not help but to laugh. This illustrated to me the importance of a model in learning, especially cross culturally.

Once everyone’s toothpaste was squeezed on the brush, we danced for two minutes

until it was time to rinse. Not only did I learn how terribly awful my dancing was, I learned that dance can be a form of creative communication, often misinterpreted. When it came time to spit the toothpaste out almost every child had it dripping down their shirt. Towards the end of the first day I learned to make spitting out toothpaste into a game. I drew a line in the dry sand with a nearby stick, then motioned for everyone to stand with two feet on the line. I wanted to see who could spit their toothpaste the farthest. They were so excited that their bare feet could hardly stay on the line. Nonetheless, there were very few kids who got toothpaste on their shirt from that point forward.

When teaching English in the classroom, I turned many of my lessons into creative

games. For example, when learning letters and numbers we tried to turn our bodies into the respective shapes. To learn colors, I asked them to go around the room and find a friend who was wearing the color in question. All learning opportunities were turned into games and interactive activities. Although at times out of control, everyone’s English improved at the end of one week through my interactive lessons. Even if the kids could not correctly pronounce “seven”, they would immediately find a friend to make the number with their bodies when asked in English. Through this experience, I realized that learning can happen even in an uncontrolled, at times chaotic, environment. It makes the experience more memorable.

I have both learned and grown from my experience across the world. The

opportunity to teach in Ghana has instilled in me the skills and ability to both educate and learn from individuals with diverse backgrounds. I have gained an appreciation for the consideration of culture as well as ability in education. In the end, my experiences have taught me how to overcome cultural, lingual, as well as physical barriers. Overall, the lessons I learned and skills I acquired in Ghana can be projected onto my undergraduate career at Providence College, graduate studies, eventual career in occupational therapy, and future family life.

Inside NAMI: My Internship Experience by Callie Orsini



I have always been drawn to the idea of helping people. Even before I knew what I

wanted to major in, I knew that I wanted it to be something that would give me the opportunity to help others. This semester, I had the opportunity to intern at NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness. In looking for an internship, I was excited to read about NAMI, I knew it would be fulfilling, I would learn a lot, and most importantly I could make a difference and help others. Mental illness is something that everyone has heard of, but no one really talks about because of the stigma surrounding it. So, I was intrigued to learn more about it and find out why people are so afraid to discuss it. Furthermore, I have always been someone who likes to work with others and talk through things rather than working alone. So, I was excited to find out that this internship consisted of a lot of conversations with my supervisor, Penny, as well as interviews with other NAMI employees. I had many conversations with them in the office that I will never forget. It didn’t feel like work, it felt like people were talking about meaningful issues in the world, yet I was still learning so much from those conversations.

There are so many people in the world suffering from a mental illness, whether it’s

severe or mild, including myself and several people that are close to me. Therefore, what I learned at NAMI is extremely applicable to my life and the lives of others because I know so much more about the warning signs and best courses of action to help someone who might be struggling. I am now confident in myself to recognize someone who is potentially dealing with a mental illness. I wouldn’t ignore the signs and I would be able to help them. I can also use my knowledge to teach others so they can help the people around them. There is always an answer and there are always people that can help. Therefore, being educated about mental illness is important because more people are dealing with mental illnesses than anyone realizes.

The most surprising thing to me is the number of individuals that suffer from a

mental illness every day and how few people are aware of it because they handle themselves so well and appear to be doing fine on the outside. When I started interning at NAMI, I was shocked to find out that every employee working there is dealing with mental illness. If Penny hadn’t shared that with me, I would’ve had no idea. What surprised me even more is how much some of them have been through during their lives. I got the opportunity to interview a few employees, and their stories were shocking but also inspiring to see that they were able to persevere and make it through the pain. I know people always say that you shouldn’t judge someone before you get to know them, and this internship has taught me that that is something every



person should take to heart because there is so much more to someone than how they appear on the outside. Furthermore, it is important to be kind to everyone whether they’re a stranger or your best friend. This is because they could be going through something really terrible and it is a struggle for them to get up in the morning. All they may need is a smile from a stranger to give them hope and tell them that it will be okay.

Neuropsychology Welcomes Mindfulness

by Hope Tiboni

I have had the privilege of interning at the Neuropsychology Department at the Rhode Island Hospital this past fall semester. As an intern, I have been able to shadow doctors during cognitive impairment testing and complete research on various psychological topics. Interestingly, one of the most prevalent topics in the office has been mindfulness. Mindfulness can be described as a way of thinking that aims to reduce a plethora of mental and physical stressors. Additionally, mindfulness can be achieved through various ways; yoga and meditation have become the most common.

Mindfulness has greatly piqued my interest because of its high efficacy in the field of science. Fortunately, one of my roles as an intern

is to help the staff develop an app called CareWell. The aim in the upcoming study, which will use the CareWell app, is to reduce the caretaker burden for those caring for family or loved ones with Alzheimer’s disease. One of my roles is to read psychological studies that have found positive correlations and effects between improved cognition and yoga/meditation practice, especially within elderly populations.

My research has led me to conclude that mindfulness is beneficial to all populations. In fact, my work at the hospital has inspired me to enroll in a weekly mindfulness course offered to Providence College students and staff. I am grateful to have immersed myself in this field because it has illustrated to me the importance of mental health. Although modern American culture inundates the media with the newest exercises and diets, I am always left wondering, how can I work out my mind?



At first, mindfulness felt difficult to accomplish. Trying to find quiet in such a loud world seemed nearly impossible. My research as an intern, however, was able to show me otherwise. Since most of the research at the Neuropsychology Department pertains to the geriatric population, I have learned that yoga does not have to be physically taxing in order to gain benefits. Brenda Fingold, a member of the Mindfulness Center at Brown University and mindfulness instructor at Providence College, further explained mindfulness practice as “doing bicep curls for the brain” because of the practice’s ability to “strengthen the muscle of attention.” Simply meditating for short periods of time, five minutes for example, can have great impacts on the brain and one’s awareness of the world around them.

Although an internship can be stigmatized as a stressful and a “busy-work” type of role, interning at the Neuropsychology Department has inspired me beyond measure to continue my pursuit in obtaining a degree in psychology and in practicing better health. By working alongside research assistants, doctors, and bioengineers, I have been able to see the diverse options a student has after graduating college. These interactions have also taught me how to become more mindful about my academic decisions. The foundation of mindfulness is rooted in this idea of living in the present moment; therefore, learning from

the most qualified individuals about psychology has demonstrated to me the effectiveness of mindfulness. For example, if doctors worried about their upcoming schedules, anxiety would hinder them from giving their current patients the attention and respect they deserve. I found this interesting because it sheds light on this new idea that mindfulness can improve ethics within the medical workforce as well.

Overall, my internship has broadened my understanding of mindfulness. Mindfulness is more than just a trendy headline in magazines. It is a way to strengthen resilience against both academic and life stressors. Consequently, the topics I study at my internship have ironically helped me cope with the daily anxieties that come with living in a highly driven and labor-oriented society. At the end of the day, it is reassuring to know that everyone has control, to a great extent, over their wellbeing. If I could take one lesson from my internship, it would be that mindfulness is no longer a hippie phrase, but rather a field of knowledge that has taken over the scientific world.



An Interactive Way to Learn by Kate Evangeline

As I entered into the world of higher education in the fall of 2019 at Providence College, my anticipations were prompted by societal expectations. My thoughts were something like the following: it is my chance to discover what I want to learn, or, this is my education. I was an undeclared student looking to explore what the specialized academic world might look like for me, broadly acknowledging that my interests might lie somewhere in the social sciences. It was not until my second semester that I understood that a double major in the fields of economics and psychology would be the path to take, and Dr. Spielger’s unique class of Personality Psychology helped to solidify my interests.

As I read through the prospectus over winter break, I was initially weary of the

course as it was described. We were told we would be participating in an interactive form of learning called Interteaching, which I had never heard of before this course. Interteaching involves the students taking control of their own education, promoted and encouraged by their professor. Before coming to class, we are expected to read and answer preparation questions on a specific portion of assigned reading. Then, we are assigned to small groups where without utilizing our notes, we aid one another in coming up with answers to the preparation questions, based on our responses that we came up with before entering into the classroom. As we work through Interteaching, Dr. Spielger stops us to make sure that we have a detailed understanding of the material, and clarifies any questions that might remain after our interteaching session concludes. We also have “coaches,” or students that excelled in the course in a previous semester, who analyze our discussion and ensure that our answers are suitable to allow us to succeed in having a full understanding of the material.

To use one of

the many terms that I have learned over the course of the semester, this course truly allows students to have an Internal Locus of Control when it comes to their education. In other words, our learning is our responsibility, and how



well we do in the course is a product of our preparation and participation in discussion. Our learning is in our control, and our failure to do so could only be a product of our own personal initiatives rather than external factors. With that being said, I have never felt as though I had as deep of an understanding of material as I do in this course. We are forced to learn rather than simply memorize, as our understanding of the material is challenged and embellished in every Interteaching discussion we enter. Additionally, in our preparation questions, material is constantly brought up from previous chapters, forcing us to make connections between the various strategies of understanding personality that we study throughout the course. Without learning the material, this cumulative course would challenge one’s ability to have a full understanding in the Interteaching session of that class.

Through Interteaching, this class studies four broad strategies of personality

psychology: the dispositional strategy, the psychoanalytic strategy, the behavioral strategy, and the phenomenological strategy. With each strategy we dive into, we analyze the similarities, the differences, the failures, and the successes of the strategy as a comparison to previous strategies. This requires building on previous knowledge, which I feel would be impossible to do without the in depth learning that Interteaching fosters. Additionally, in a discussion setting it is possible for each student to delve into specific examples of how each term is fitting to their own personal life. This allows students to make connections and form real life applications that may not have been addressed in a typical lecture setting. Also, hearing examples from the lives of other students allows us to make connections that we may not have been able to make due to the varying backgrounds of each of us.

My initial thoughts coming into college were echoed by Dr. Spielger’s course of

Personality Psychology, as I have truly felt as though I am responsible for my own education. Interteaching has allowed me to feel as though I am responsible for my own learning. Rather than sitting in a lecture hall where facts are simply spewed, I am involved in the process of my education and that of my classmates as well. This intriguing and innovative classroom setting has only positively affected my experience as a college student, and have given me tips for how to continue to succeed as a member of the academic world.

Unexpected Opportunities by Kelly Martella



If you had asked me four months ago when I registered for the Psychology Internship course, I definitely would not have predicted I would be working on administrative projects remotely from my home. As an in-office intern, I knew I would be working less directly with individuals, but I was hopefully going to interact more personally as the semester went on; unfortunately, I did not get much of a chance to do this due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This has made me look back on my experience and see how seemingly insignificant work I have done may have had a positive influence on individuals.

My internship is at Kaleidoscope Family Solutions, or KFS, which offers services in

six states, and supports a variety of populations. The Rhode Island branch specifically works with individuals who have intellectual or developmental disabilities. I work directly with the clinical coordinators, who manage individual cases. I have frequently sat in on the coordinators’ weekly meetings with the program director, where they go over their respective caseloads. Just by sitting in these meetings, I have been able to see how ideas from my psychology courses are integrated in ways I did not anticipate. I assumed that material from “Psychology of Abnormal Behavior” would be most applicable, and although it was relevant, I was surprised to see the connection to my other psychology courses as well. For example, on my first day in the office, I was looking through some of the Individual Support Plans, or ISPs, and I saw mention of the power of attorney – something I had learned about in-depth in my Psychology and Law course. Throughout my internship I have seen countless other real-world applications of the material I have studied on campus, from DSM diagnoses to neuropsychological evaluations.

My internship has also given me the opportunity to advocate for individuals with

disabilities, but again, not in ways I anticipated. The best example of this was through my work with the recruiting manager. As an agency, Kaleidoscope staffs the community support workers, or CSWs, for their individual cases. I have done a lot of phone screenings and interviews with potential staff, and a part of this process is explaining the expectations of the role he or she is applying for. I am happy to help with whatever is asked of me, but I will admit that I did not initially think this task connected to psychology; however, in describing the individuals that KFS works with, I found myself serving as an advocate of sorts for those with disabilities. I make sure that the applicants understand the individuals are capable, and ultimately, their job is to serve as additional support to help them achieve independent living.



I often help the program director with agency-wide tasks, such as planning KFSRI’s monthly events. One in particular was scheduled for St. Patrick’s Day, but obviously in light of the social-distancing guidelines, gatherings like this have been postponed indefinitely. I had hoped to attend one of these events in the coming months, but unfortunately that will not be possible. While I was personally disappointed, I was especially saddened for the individuals, many of whom look forward to these events. One of Kaleidoscope’s missions is to help the individuals become more involved with their communities, and the agency’s monthly events serve as a personal social goal for many of them. I find some comfort, though, knowing that the KFS staff is doing everything they can to ease the uncertainty that this disruption has caused.

Life often takes us in an unexpected direction, as we have seen in recent weeks with

the COVID-19 pandemic. In a way, my own internship has been a similar experience to the unexpectedness of the world right now. We all need to support one another during these challenging times, especially those among us who may need additional care. I hope I am able to help do so – even if indirectly – through my internship.

A Senior’s Perspective by Ella Clifford

Senior year of college involves a heavy dose of reality. It is the time when you have

to decide where you are going to go, what you are going to do, and who you are going to be in the years to come. It is a chance to say goodbye, both to the people who have made an impact on your life and the place that you’ve lived the past few years. But more than anything, senior year is a period of reflection – looking back on your four years and making sense of it all.

A key aspect of your reflection is centered on what you have chosen to dedicate

years of study to. For me, I chose to study biology and psychology. My reflection on biology was relatively simple because, having spent years learning about the human body, research studies, and laboratory techniques, the progressive journey from curriculum to real-world application was straightforward. However, my reflection on my psychology major was more complex because I had not anticipated the countless ways that the lessons I learnt from psychology courses had infiltrated my everyday life. Beyond the clearly defined relationship between psychological theory and clinical application, I could trace the influence of psychology in my other courses, my personal life, and my worldview. Upon my realization of its profound impact on my life, it became clear that psychology had helped me in one area in particular: understanding.



When I say “understanding,” I mean more than just comprehension, because while

the major has enabled me to learn about a range of psychological phenomena and commit theories and ideas to memory, it offered a much greater challenge: explaining the thoughts and behaviors of its organism of choice – the human person. Now, in no way do I, or any human being, possess a complete understanding of why people do the things they do and say the things they say. However, I do believe that psychology has broadened my awareness of the factors that contribute to my thoughts and actions.

So, as part of my “senior reflection,” I would like to share a few of the lessons I have

learnt from the psychology courses I have taken at PC. Human Neuropsychology: Although we possess a limited knowledge of its structure

and function, the brain is an unbelievably powerful and exceptionally cool organ. From a study of neuroanatomy, it is clear that a relationship exists between the brain’s structure and its physical function, but a full picture of the brain’s role in our “human-ness” may only be established in consideration of its extended impact on our personality, cognition, and social life. Further, it is often only when the “meat” between our ears is not functioning properly that we appreciate its power in shaping who we are, how we feel, and what we do.

Child and Adolescent Development: There are an infinite number of things that can

go wrong during child and adolescent development. This fact, yes, is scary. However, it also demonstrates how important psychological theory and research are to real life. While the process of raising a “virtual child” may seem silly to some, it made me appreciate how lucky I was to make decisions about how to raise a child without any of the consequences of making a “bad” choice.

RDSA I/RDSA II: Research is hard, but

rewarding, and statistics are intricate, but revealing. In trying to design and conduct my own research project, I immediately garnered a sense for how complicated it is to find an ideal population, delineate confounding variables, and actually measure what I wanted to know. I soon recognized that human beings are profoundly influenced by the circumstances of their existence – a realization that forced me to consider more factors than I could have ever imagined. But, by identifying how individuals’ experiences, education, and environment influence their perspective, I could also start to understand why someone’s perspective, thoughts, or behavior differed from my own.



Research in Neuropsychology: Communicating research successfully is just as important as conducting it. While the primary objective of a research project is to answer the question of interest, the secondary intention is to broaden the current field of knowledge. Research findings must be shared with both the leaders of one’s field of study and the general public. Further, appropriate design and methodology mean nothing if data interpretation is incorrect.

Psychology of Abnormal Behavior: There is a keen difference between sympathy and

empathy. It is one thing to acknowledge the difficulty that an individual faces or the pain they experience (sympathy), but it is a completely different thing to share their burden and experience their pain alongside them (empathy). By taking on their perspective, instead of remaining in the comfort of one’s own, one may develop a more “human” understanding of what it is like to be afflicted with something that you have no control over. Rather than just knowing what someone who possesses schizophrenia “looks like,” one can garner a greater understanding of their experience by asking how that individual feels, how the disorder impacts day to day life, and how others can help. Further, an enhanced perspective reveals that the rigid diagnostic guidelines that comprise the DSM, while useful in some circumstances, do not always match the manifestation of a disorder in a particular individual. By enhancing understanding of such conditions, psychology helps individuals avoid making immediate, and usually inaccurate, judgments.

Psychology of Gender: Identity is a complicated matter because we are all heavily

influenced by our society. Living in the U.S., we often want to believe that we are completely independent and self-reliant. However, most aspects of ourselves, including our conception of gender, is strongly influenced by the things we hear from others and the things we see in the media. Additionally, much of our behavior is based on expectations and stereotypes that often have little to no foundational validity. As such, it is important to take the time to ask yourself questions like: Why do I believe this? Why do I want to do that? Do I actually want to do that? If you are really honest with yourself, your answers might surprise you.

Psychology and Law: Human behavior is unbelievably confusing and complex, but so is human decision making. Psychology has the power to inform those in the legal field about the various ways our behaviors and thought processes are shaped. By identifying when prejudice, discrimination, and coercion corrupt legal proceedings, psychology prevents harm to innocent parties. For a field such as law, where a key goal is fairness and



where one decision may determine imprisonment or death, things as simple as the wording of questions or the method of photograph presentation are significant.

As a senior, I leave with the knowledge that each of the before mentioned courses has provided me with lessons that I will carry with me long after I leave PC and that the impact of psychology on my life will be long-lasting. On a final note: To those who are new to psychology – Embrace the uncertainty, be okay with “not knowing,” and do not be afraid to ask questions that may not have obvious answers. To the PC psychology department – Thank you for everything, it has been a truly unforgettable journey.

Ending the Stigma by Educating the Youth by Sarah Bica

This semester, I have been interning at the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). This is a nationwide program that provides support and resources to those who live with mental illness, while, at the same time, educates the community about the importance of ending the stigma around mental health. All of the people who work for NAMI live with mental illnesses as well. Through my time spent at NAMI, I have learned a great deal about different mental illnesses themselves, the inner workings of the mental health programs in Providence, and how educating young children about mental health is extremely important to end the stigma altogether.

When my internship first began, I was very nervous to be working with people who

live with mental illnesses. That is not to say I did not want to be around people with mental illnesses, because this was not the case at all, but I was worried about saying the wrong thing and offending someone. One of my responsibilities working at NAMI includes interviewing some of the employees about their lives, which was terrifying to me. I have learned in my psychology classes what is appropriate and what is not appropriate to say, however, we are never thrown into any real-life scenarios inside the classroom. My first



interview was extremely nerve-wracking, and I was very hesitant to ask personal questions. Later, I became more comfortable and realized that everyone who works at NAMI is extremely personable and they are all very open to talking about their mental health. Even though I have always been someone who advocates for ending the stigma around mental health concerns, I was experiencing the effects of stigma in that very moment. We are so accustomed to hiding our mental health that it becomes uncomfortable to talk about your own wellbeing, or even ask someone the question, “What is it like to live with obsessive-compulsive disorder?” Through my internship, I have learned what it really means to end the stigma. It means we should no longer be afraid to start a conversation about mental health, and that talking about mental illness should not be so taboo, as mental illness affects much more people than others would like to believe.

Ending the stigma needs to start at a young age. We cannot teach our young boys to

“be a man” and not let them see our emotions. It is not acceptable to call someone “crazy” because they are hearing voices, or because someone has not gotten out of bed in a week. If we teach children the signs, symptoms, and prevalence of these illnesses at a young enough age, then maybe their generation will finally treat mental health with the same respect as other illnesses, such as heart disease or diabetes. NAMI is starting this conversation by speaking to middle schools and high schools all over Rhode Island, and I have been lucky enough to sit in on these presentations. I have seen the success of these lectures to the young students, as they are fully engaged in the material and have so many questions and insights on the topics presented. If we can get all children across the globe to feel this comfortable talking about mental illness, then I believe we can end the stigma once and for all. I have been beyond grateful for the opportunity to be a part of this process, as one of my jobs interning at NAMI consists of creating and redesigning the PowerPoints used at these presentations. It is one of the best feelings to see your hard work being presented in front of hundreds of students, hoping that your message gets through to at least one of these children or faculty members.

Through my time spent at NAMI, I have learned more than any psychology course

could teach me. I have felt the effects of stigma myself throughout this internship, and I have also heard about the emotional and physical pain stigma creates on people suffering with mental illness every day. Although there is still so much to be learned about mental health, I have learned that it is possible to create a much more open, understanding, and loving world through NAMI. It all starts with a conversation.

Studying Abroad as a Psychology Major



by Alex Shute

One year ago, I had the opportunity to spend a semester studying abroad in Copenhagen, Denmark. Before arriving in Denmark, I knew very little about the country. To be honest, I probably would not have been able to locate it on a map. Although I chose to study abroad in Denmark because it was the only place I could get the psychology and biology credits I needed, it soon became my home away from home.

After arriving in Denmark, I had no idea what was going on –I could not read any of

the signs, I was disoriented, and I had no clue what I was supposed to be doing. I challenged myself to integrate into the Danish culture as much as I could. I rented a bike and rode it to class along with the majority of the population. I pushed myself to explore a new area of the city each week so that I could eventually navigate around without using Google Maps. I made Danish friends (who I still talk to today) who cooked me traditional Danish food and introduced me to their favorite non-touristy parts of the city. After five months, I went from a terrified tourist to a knowledgeable local. My friend, Asger, even joked that I had seen more of the city in five months than he had in his entire life. I became more confident in myself, more secure in my independence, more open-minded and honestly just more excited about life.

While most people think studying abroad is all about traveling the world and having

fun while taking “fake,” “easy-A” classes, I can assure you it is not (at least not in Denmark). The classes I took were rather difficult and required a decent amount of effort even to get a B. Most of my professors did not believe in giving A’s unless your work was truly exceptional, usually around 1-2 people per class. While this might seem annoying and unfair to some people, I found the challenge exciting. Academically, I was pushed farther than I had been in most classes I’d previously taken, and found I learned the most in these challenging classes. My two favorite classes were Psychopharmacology, which I loved because it was an interesting blend of my two majors –psychology and biology, and Psychology of Human Sexuality, which I loved because it pushed me out of my comfort zone and gave me the opportunity to learn about a fascinating topic I otherwise would not have had the chance to study.

Studying abroad is an incredible experience, and I truly believe it is invaluable to any

psychology major. Aside from the psychology classes you might take abroad, it is essentially an opportunity to witness psychology in action every day. After taking Cultural Psychology



at Providence College, I was able to make distinct connections between the course and my time abroad. For the first time in my life, I was able to fully immerse myself in a culture different than my own. I was able to integrate myself into a new way of life. I experienced language barriers and other various communication difficulties. I was able to watch how my friends and I were adapting to our new environments, witnessing a variety of integration techniques and coping mechanisms. Now of course, it is easy to see the connections between studying abroad and Cultural Psychology. However, I made other connections that to this day I believe are some of the most valuable lessons in psychology I have made. I made friends who studied biology or psychology back at their universities in America and was able to have conversations about topics in our field that interested us. Whereas at PC, most of my friends were from clubs or residence halls, most of my friends in Denmark were from my classes, meaning we all had some sort of shared interest in biology or psychology. We would talk about topics that interested us such as mental health, psychopharmacology, human rights issues, and other major-related topics. These were never things that I would discuss with my English and business major friends. It was a refreshing new outlook.

Reflecting on my time spent in Denmark, I am extremely grateful for all the

opportunities I was given and everything I learned throughout my time there. My experiences gave me a new perspective and a new sense of independence. During the five months I spent abroad, I was constantly learning, growing, and exploring. The experiences I had while studying abroad have taught my many invaluable lessons about myself, the world at large, and my place in it. Studying abroad is something that I recommend to everyone who has the ability to do so, but especially to any psychology major. After studying abroad, I am constantly making associations between things I learned abroad and my psychology classes at Providence College. The experience of studying abroad provides a new perspective that I believe is an incredible complement to a psychology major.



Changing how we Think About the COVID-19 Pandemic by Sydney Amaral

We tend to adopt the prevailing view that the emotional upset we experience in our lives results directly from the external situations we are facing, whatever they may be: a grade or work review that did not meet our expectations, an attempt at a new recipe gone wrong, a coffee stain on our favorite shirt right before a big presentation, or a sudden downpour that ruins our outdoor plans. To these situations, among others, we might say something along the lines of “The review made me upset. It seems like it’s just going to be one of those days where nothing goes right,” or “The grade on the philosophy paper I worked so hard on made me angry. I’m just a terrible writer.” However, psychologist Albert Ellis would say otherwise.

Ellis developed the rational-emotive model, a behavioral approach to understanding personality. The behavioral strategy of personality holds that a person’s behavior is specific to the situation, rather than a result of one’s overall disposition that comes through cross-situationally, or the result of unconscious desires. During the 1950s, a time in the history of psychology where there was a growing emphasis on cognitive psychological

theories, Ellis presented his belief that negative emotions are only an indirect result of the external events that lead to our maladaptive cognitions, thoughts that result in poor life adjustment. Rather, he believed negative emotions are direct products of the maladaptive thoughts themselves. Put simply, we do not feel upset, sad, angry, and so on, as a result of what actually happened, we feel those negative emotions as a direct result of how we think about it. The external circumstance leads us to hold irrational and illogical beliefs about the world or ourselves. These beliefs, in turn, lead to negative emotions or possibly even maladaptive behaviors.

When we learn to accept Ellis’s model as a guide for ourselves, we can gain a greater

sense of control over both how we are feeling and how we behave. Truly, there is likely no external event weighing as heavily on all of our minds right now than the COVID-19 pandemic. Coronavirus disease 2019 is a respiratory illness that has had and continues to



have overwhelming impacts on human lives worldwide. Given that the virus is so new, there is no known vaccine or cure. As a result, we have been instructed by doctors and scientists to be more conscious of our personal hygiene, washing our hands well and often, not touching our faces, and a more unfamiliar and unsettling precaution, to engage in social distancing.

We are experiencing anxiety. We are living with the perpetual fear that this

widespread “enemy” may reach us or someone we love. Of course, much of this concern is based in the facts and is likely adaptive to some extent to where we feel inclined to adhere to the precautionary measures suggested by those with more information than ourselves. However, we often say things like, “The illness and isolation are never going to end,” “I will never get to spend time with my family and friends again,” or “I will always be afraid to go out in public or be in too close proximity to anyone in fear of catching the virus.” According to Ellis’s model, this is the form of irrational thinking known as absolute thinking, holding beliefs that are all or none, without any sort of in-between.

When we are finally able to “flatten the curve” and begin to resume our typical lives,

we will have a new-found appreciation for the time spent together with our family and friends. We will indulge in those hugs we once might have taken for granted. Maybe we will be truly present with our loved ones, more so than ever before. The little things we once overlooked will have a whole new meaning.

So, please remember, not everything is put on hold. We can and still should get our

exercise in, listen to music that makes us happy, pour a cup of coffee, or try out new recipes, even if we “fail.”

We will gather with our family and friends again. We will share hugs with people we

love. We will go to the store, the movies, concerts, and sporting events at some point. The most difficult part is the uncertainty of wondering when. We must, though, remind ourselves that how we feel is the result of how we think, not what is actually going on around us.

The illness and isolation will end.



Going Digital: Celebrating Research Online by Liz Perrone

In a spring season brimming with cancellations, many research conferences met a

similar fate. I myself was looking forward to presenting at the Eastern Psychological Association’s Annual Meeting, this year in Boston, on March 14th. Disappointment struck again when Providence College had to cancel all in person classes, and likewise events, for the remainder of this academic year, which meant I could not present my research poster at PC’s Celebration of Student Scholarship and Creativity either. The annual event, scheduled for April 22nd, provides an opportunity for students across academic disciplines to share their research with the PC community. Luckily, the Center for Engaged Learning embraced the challenge of adapting this event to the digital campus community. Students were invited to submit posters, abstracts, quotes, or short videos detailing their research projects to create a digital celebration webpage. I encourage you to check out the submissions, especially if you are interested in psychology research, as several students from the psychology labs participated. If you feel particularly inspired by a poster, make sure you reach out to either the student presenter or faculty mentor, and they can let you know more about future opportunities at their lab. The 11th Annual Celebration of Student Scholarship and Creativity can be accessed at: https://engaged-learning.providence.edu/11th-annual-celebration-of-student-scholarship-and-creativity/

Faculty Notes Dr. Caple: As I see it, with the current global pandemic, higher education is experiencing a dramatic shift unlike anything previously encountered. Remote learning has been an adjustment not only for myself, but for many students and educators alike. Despite this shift, what remains my forefront goal is student success, not only from an educational standpoint but from a mental and physical health aspect as well. I am fortunate that education can exist in different mediums and as long as individuals possess the desire for knowledge, learning can occur anywhere.


https://engaged-learning.providence.edu/11th-annual-celebration-of-student-scholarship-and-creativity/

https://engaged-learning.providence.edu/11th-annual-celebration-of-student-scholarship-and-creativity/


Fr. Guido: What impressed me most about the mid-semester transition to online instruction was the resilience and tenacity of students. In difficult and worrisome circumstances, without much advance notice, and with extra work and effort demanded of them, students rallied to the cause. This was particularly noticeable in Freud's Revolution of Mind, which is heavily discussion based, where students were thoughtful, insightful and diligent in the journal postings that substituted for class discussion, and in Psychology of Abnormal Behavior, where student questions and postings on Sakai prompted a good deal of student-to-student interaction, and helped shaped each week's lectures. Kudos as well to two students pursuing independent studies who were forced to withdraw from the internships they were pursuing but continued with their research nonetheless. The hardest part? Missing the actual classroom and office hour experience and interaction, for which even the best technology cannot substitute. Dr. Johnson (a self-proclaimed Intro Queen): Over the past several years, I’ve been teaching a lot of Introduction to Psychology. Some (students) might say too much, but I enjoy teaching this class. I think of Intro as almost a sales pitch for psychology—that might sound bad, but I mean it in a positive way. Intro is, for some students, the only time they will learn anything about the field of psychology, so I feel a responsibility to represent the field well and teach concepts that have the potential to stay with students and impact their lives over the long haul. I am not sure I always hit the mark, but I do try.

The interruption in teaching, caused by the very necessary precautions we are all taking to decrease our chances of contracting COVID-19, has really been a challenge. Although I have covered all the material I planned to cover this semester, I don’t necessarily feel that I have conveyed that information well. My recorded Zoom lectures—a voice over of my PowerPoints with a little picture of me in the upper right corner, gesturing wildly and really touching my face to a concerning degree—are a questionable substitute for our in-person lectures. And my lonely office hours—those have been so sad.

As I go about my other job as a neuropsychologist on the inpatient (medical) rehabilitation unit at Kent Hospital, I have had so many experiences that make me think about my students at PC. Often, something will happen and I will think “I should tell this story in class.” And then I realize that I can’t—that I won’t be seeing all of my students, and it really bums me out. I could tell the stories over Zoom, but somehow that doesn’t seem the same. It feels weird, like a standup comic with no audience.

Here are a couple of stories for my students and everyone else from my experiences during the time of corona—stories that I would have shared in class. (Warning, I write my stories the way I tell my stories—in a long and rambling fashion, so be prepared.)



We have discussed the importance of facial recognition in our class, including the idea that our brains are wired for this very important skill. We have a specific part of our brain whose job it is to recognize faces: that’s right, the fusiform gyrus, and the inability to recognize faces is called, that’s right, a prosopagnosia. So, what happens when patients, sometimes for weeks on end, see only faces that are covered? Since visitors are not allowed in the hospital, patients don’t see the familiar faces of their friends and family. That is difficult, but perhaps worse, patients met a whole new set of people—doctors, nurses, therapists, housekeeping personal, and dietary workers—that they interact with every day, but they never see their faces. Every person who comes into their room is wearing a surgical mask, and for many patients, they are also wearing plastic face shields. As a psychologist, I know the importance of facial recognition, so I became concerned that the inability to see our faces would interfere with our interactions with our patients, and I think it has. I have noticed that it was hard for patients to learn the names of their nurses, therapist, and doctors, despite the fact they interact with us frequently. Being unable to associate a face with a name really interferes with this process. One solution to the problem occurred to us this week; we decided to put a small picture of our faces on the headband of our face shield so that patient can at least see what we look like.

The surgical mask also impacts my ability to form a personal connection with patients. It takes more time and effort to engage with patients on a human level; I think this is because they cannot see my face. I am not sure that having a picture on the face shield will help with that issue--there is no easy fix to this problem, but I think being aware of the impact of the surgical mask and face shield present is important.

In Intro, we also talked about the importance of non-verbal communication and the vital role it plays in helping us determine the emotional state of other people. Masks interfere with this, making it difficult to judge how other people are feeling. I realize that when I walk past my coworkers in the hallway, I tend to make eye contact and smile—not in a creepy way, just normally. I continue to do this, but with my face covered, I am now I am just making eye contact. This does not convey my emotional state to the person I am walking past, and their lack of facial expression makes it impossible for me to do the same. To deal with this, I have decided to start smiling with my eyes—I squinch (is that a word?) my eyes up as much as I can and I say hello to convey my emotions. I have to make a conscious effort to do this, which makes me realize how much of my nonverbal communication is happening outside of conscious awareness (Freud, anyone?).

Thank you for “listening” to my stories. I am glad I was able to tell them. In this time of corona virus, I miss so many things these about normal life, but being with my students in Introduction to Psychology and Psychology of Abnormal Behavior is at the top of my list. I am thinking about all of my students, all of my colleagues, and all of my coworkers at PC. I hope you are safe and well, and I look forward to being with you again.



Dr. Spiegler: Like the rest of my colleagues, I have very much missed face-to-face interactions with my students. I think I was able to provide my students with worthwhile learning experiences so there is some solace in that. My Psychology Internship students very reluctantly continue work for their internships at home after Spring Break which was not a substitute for the internship experience but did allow them in diverse ways to still do work related to their internships. Fortunately, my Personality class is taught totally through interteaching (students learn, in small groups, course material through discussion of questions that they prepare the answers to ahead of time). Fortunately, interteaching is possible, though not optimal, through Zoom which students did with four very talented coaches (students who excelled in the course previously and are skilled at facilitating the student discussions through Socratic dialogue: Madison Gilmore, Abbie O’Connell, Kristen Parmiter, and Sara Tabora). And, the coaches not only enhanced their knowledge of personality psychology—one always learns through teaching—but gained valuable experience in teaching.

Learning to post exams on Sakai was a painstakingly laborious task which I finally mastered with much guidance from our Sakai Help staff which is just one example of the many ways that the PC community has stepped up to support faculty and students.

As for scholarship, I was able to continue gathering data for my ongoing research on interteaching as an innovative learning platform. I had two presentations at the Southeastern Psychological Association meeting cancelled! I have been invited to present them at the SEPA meeting next spring which I hope will be possible.

Finally, I have been doing a great deal of traveling since we have been (wisely) ordered to quarantine. I have traveled extensively between the bedroom and bathroom, kitchen and my study, and to the front porch to pick up delivered groceries and my supply of Lysol with hypodermic needles. Dr. Templer: I miss seeing my students in person! That is one of the most challenging aspects of this whole pandemic experience. I do like that I get to see my children more, but it is definitely harder to juggle it all while working from home. Zahava, my 4 year old, follows me around like a puppy and sometimes like to crash my zoom classroom meetings! Jack is 18 months and is very destructive so keeping up with him is challenging!

Earlier this semester our lab published a paper that demonstrated socially housed rats learned a spatial memory task faster than their non socially housed counterparts. In short, social interaction is good for our cognitive health. Two previous students, Brittany Hemmer ’17 (now a neuroscience PhD student at Mt. Sinai) and Judith Dayaw ’19 (now a PsyD student at William James College) were authors, so I am very proud of them! Together with my students, Carina Alessandro, Colin Call, and Robert Vera, we were just about to



start a new experiment using the new lab space for the first time where we were planning to temporarily inactivating the amygdala of rats, when PC closed. So, this research is currently on hold and we are instead working on other reading and writing projects.

As a psychologist, I encourage everyone to take their mental health seriously during this difficult time: be kind to yourself, get outside when you can, exercise, sleep well, and connect with loved ones. Take good care everyone and don’t hesitate to reach out to your professors; it would make me happy to jump on zoom anytime and see your face. We are all going through this together! Dr. Van Reet: Julia Culhane '20 and Dr. VR were accepted to present Julia's Independent Study research on preschoolers' and parents' approach to solving children's magical problems at a Special Topics meeting on Learning through Play and Imagination, now happening in December 2020. Dr. Warmuth: My students and I in the Family & Development Lab have shifted their study online and are currently conducting Zoom meetings with child participants and parents are completing Qualtrics surveys. Currently, Dr. Warmuth, Angel DeCapua '20, and Abby Fielding '20 are working on a manuscript to explore college students' perceptions of and responses to interparental conflict. In addition, Dr. Warmuth had a publication entitled "PechaKucha as an alternative to traditional student presentations" accepted to Currents in Teaching and Learning and will be collaborating with Dr. Caple over the summer to continue this work. Dr. Warmuth misses being on campus with everyone and hopes all her colleagues, students, and their families are staying safe and healthy!

Letter from the Editors

We hope you enjoyed this semester’s issue of Analyze This. Though these are uncertain times, our goal was to provide a few minutes of escape while you read this newsletter. We would especially like to thank all our student writers for this semester’s issue, as well as our faculty supervisors, Dr. Spiegler and Mrs. Mullen. We applaud your efforts to help maintain a sense of normalcy and your contributions to making the production of AT Spring 2020 possible.

As the two of us end our studies at Providence College, we want to thank the students, faculty, and staff of the Psychology Department in particular for positively impacting our experiences. To the students returning to PC this fall, we hope the newfound importance of expressing your gratitude for not just this community, but also the others



you are a part of within and outside of PC, goes without saying. Good luck on your finals, and please stay safe and healthy this summer.

Best, Allie Powers and Liz Perrone

Letter from the Faculty Advisor I’ve enjoyed serving as faculty advisor to Analyze This for a number of years and had the privilege of working with very capable student editors, year after year. This year’s editors, Liz Perrone and Allie Powers, deserve special thanks for agreeing to publish a completely electronic edition this semester in the midst of all the additional work and stress that students have had in the past two months.

Helpful Mental Health Resources Personal Counseling After Hours Emergency: Lower Bedford Hall On-campus:Please call Phone: 401.865.2343 Public Safety at 401.865.2222 Fax: 401.865.1343 Off-campus: Call 911 Office Hours: Monday - Friday: 8:30am to Hall Director on call: 401.639.9110 4:30pm; limited evening hours are available by appointment only Answering Service: 401.865.1333 (answered by Public Safety)

Crisis Resources and Hotlines Off Campus

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: Crisis Text Line: 24/7 | Free | Confidential 24/7 | Free | Confidential 1.800.273.8255 Text HELLO to 741-741 Text HELLO to 741-741

Day One (The Sexual Assault & Trauma Resource Center) Helpline: 24/7 | Free | Confidential 1.800.494.8100


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