Supervising Faculty: Dr. Joel Le Forestier
Contact: Nalanda Ray (IIRLAB@pitt.edu)
Area of Research: Social psychology; intergroup relations; diversity science; self & identity; social-psychological interventions
Description of Research: In the Identity & Intergroup Relations Lab, we research interactions between members of different social groups (e.g., gay people and straight people, Black people and White people, etc.), what makes these interactions go well, what makes them not go well, and what we can do to improve them. We also research the outcomes that follow from these interactions, particularly for members of minoritized groups (e.g., disparities in health and wellbeing, identity threat, etc.). Current projects in the lab examine when and why people choose to reveal or conceal their stigmatized identities, and what the downstream effects of prejudice reduction interventions are for minoritized-group members.
We are looking for organized, reliable, collaborative, and energetic psychology students to join the lab! Students will have the opportunity to learn about, and participate in, multiple phases of the psychological research process. Students will take on a mix of independent and collaborative work and will also attend biweekly lab meetings where they will interact with other lab members, present, and give feedback on, work being done in the lab, and participate in journal club-style meetings.
To learn more about the lab and the research we do, visit the lab website: www.joelleforestier.com
Duties of Students: Specific tasks will vary by semester and by student, and efforts will be made to match students with tasks that are relevant to their interests and goals. In general, participant recruitment, data collection, literature review, transcribing and coding video recordings of participant interactions, assisting with developing study materials and procedures, and attending lab meetings will be common tasks.
Students will be trained on the responsible and ethical conduct of research and on all tasks relevant to their duties. We consider Directed Research Opportunities to be training positions, and while we look for applicants with strong potential and enthusiasm, we do not expect that students will enter the lab already having expertise in the tasks we will assign. Rather, we expect that students will develop relevant expertise with the lab’s support.
The anticipated time commitment is approximately 8 hours per week (for 3 credits). Students wishing to take a lower number of credits can also be considered.
Requirements:
- Overall GPA of 3.0 or higher
- 12 credits of Psychology (including current term)
- STAT 0200/1000/1100 Statistics
- PSY 0036 Research Methods Lecture
- PSY 0037 Research Methods Lab
Recruitment Process: Please fill out the following survey: https://pitt.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_b8INqHeveeROexM. Once you have completed the survey, you will be contacted by the lab manager, Nalanda Ray (IIRLAB@pitt.edu), regarding next steps.
Terms offered: Fall, Spring, Summer
Number of Students: 4
Lab website: www.joelleforestier.com