Department of Psychology

Undergraduate 4990 Research Opportunities

UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH OPPORTUNITIES AVAILABLE

Psyc 4990 Research Assistant (RA) opportunities

Psyc 4990 is a class in which students work directly with a faculty member or graduate student concerning a specific research project. Duties may include, but are not limited to, tasks such as literature reviews, running subjects, or scoring questionnaires.
A maximum of 6 credit hours of Psyc 4990 may count toward degree requirements. Psyc 4990 projects are competitive and the numbers of positions available are limited.
To select a professor/ lab go to psychology.okstate.edu. Click on faculty (left menu). Read about the faculty and their research. Contact the faculty who’s research you are interested in and inquire about the possibility of you being a research assistant (RA) in their lab.

The process for enrolling in a 4990 project is as follows:
• First, you need to interview / seek permission of the professor who is willing to supervise your research practicum.
• Once you get that permission, ask the professor to notify your advisor via email that he or she gives the okay or have the professor sign a clearance form available here and return to your advisor.
• Your advisor then will complete a permission memo for you to take to the Registrar for enrollment in PSYC 4990
• Listed below are some projects for the upcoming semester. Not all faculty member post their openings on the department’s web page so if you don’t find them on this list feel free to email them.

Psyc 4990 research practicum opportunity - Summer 2014

• Dr. Beasley : the Child Trauma Lab is focused on child trauma broadly with a significant focus on child abuse and neglect prevention. During the 2014 summer sessions, research assistants will gain experiences in both qualitative and quantitative research. Duties include, but are not limited to transcribing interviews and focus groups with high-risk families and providers of home visiting programs, babysitting children of families during focus groups, and entering data in SPSS for various projects being conducted throughout the year. The opportunity for poster submissions to conferences is available as well. If taking research for credit, we ask that you attend lab meetings and dedicate hours to the lab each week (hours vary depending on summer session enrolled); if volunteering in the lab, please attend the lab meetings and dedicate 6 additional hours to the lab. If interested in setting up an interview for our research team, please email Dr. Beasley at lana.beasley@okstate.edu.

• Dr. Larry Mullins: Child Health Psychology Lab. In this lab, we are interested in investigating aspects of coping and adjustment in children with chronic health conditions, including pediatric cancer, sickle cell disease, asthma, and diabetes, among others. In particular, we are interested in looking at how parents cope with the uncertainty of their child’s illness, and we have developed interventions to assist their coping efforts. Primary responsibilities of assistants will include the conducting literature searches, development of databases (including library searches), assistance with grant preparation, and assistance with recruiting and running participants. At least sophomore standing and library skills are required. Computer skills (including data entry, programming, web design, and/or multimedia authoring) are also advantageous, but not required. Must be willing to commit to weekly lab meetings; other time very flexible. Needs for Summer or Fall of 2011: 3-4 students. Email: larry.mullins@okstate.edu 221 North Murray. Phone: 744-2341. Students are encouraged to visit www.osuABC.com

Psyc 4990 research practicum opportunity - Fall 2014

• Dr. Doug Hershey: Studies in the Retirement Planning Research Laboratory involve the examination of retirement preparation practices and other aspects of adult development and successful aging. Needs 2 to 3 students. Students will be involved in many different types of activities including data collection, data analysis, and interpretation of findings. Ideally, students should have completed a course in experimental psychology and a course in statistics. Weekly meetings are required, and a time commitment of approximately 6-8 hours per week is expected. Email: douglas.hershey@okstate.edu

• Dr. Larry Mullins: Child Health Psychology Lab. In this lab, we are interested in investigating aspects of coping and adjustment in children with chronic health conditions, including pediatric cancer, sickle cell disease, asthma, and diabetes, among others. In particular, we are interested in looking at how parents cope with the uncertainty of their child’s illness, and we have developed interventions to assist their coping efforts. Primary responsibilities of assistants will include the conducting literature searches, development of databases (including library searches), assistance with grant preparation, and assistance with recruiting and running participants. At least sophomore standing and library skills are required. Computer skills (including data entry, programming, web design, and/or multimedia authoring) are also advantageous, but not required. Must be willing to commit to weekly lab meetings; other time very flexible. Needs for Summer or Fall of 2011: 3-4 students. Email: larry.mullins@okstate.edu 221 North Murray. Phone: 744-2341. Students are encouraged to visit www.osuABC.com

• Dr. Tony Wells: is recruiting 2-3 motivated students interested in working on projects related to depression vulnerability and how mood impacts attention, memory, and decision-making.  Students planning on attending graduate school and/or pursuing research careers are particularly encouraged to apply. All research assistants are expected to commit to working in the lab for two semesters. Highly motivated research assistants will have the opportunity to be co-authors on presentations made at national and international scientific conferences as well as manuscripts submitted for publication in peer-reviewed journals. Responsibilities include assisting in participant recruitment, data collection, data management, and literature searches. Students in their second semester (or beyond) in the lab may also be given the opportunity to learn structured diagnostic interviews and assist in genetic sample collection. Email: tony.wells@okstate.edu