In choosing themes for our psychology lecture series, we look for topics that have broad interest and that generate scientific research from a variety of perspectives. All invited speakers meet and network with St. Mary’s psychology students. Lectures may be used to fulfill the Lecture Reflection Requirement in PSYC 303, PSYC 490, and PSYC 493/494. All lectures are free and open to the general public.
2018-19 Series:
Psychology of Work and Play
Psychologists have long been interested in work and play. Early psychological theories, such as Freud’s view of adult personality, suggests that work (along with love) are primary motivating forces in human life. Play is also considered an essential part of childhood and learning. Over the last 70 years, the field of vocational psychology has studied many elements of work and career development, from the role of interests and skills to work-life balance.
The AY18-19 Psychology speaker series will explore various elements of the “Psychology of Work and Play” by inviting four academic psychologists whose professional research and expertise is situated in the examination of various elements of career psychology – work and play. In particular, given the important of “last mile skills” being focused on at SMCM, we would align our speaker series to reflect the current empirical research on skills and the broader impact of career development on work, play, and health. We would encourage our speakers to discuss their expertise in ways that highlight how psychological knowledge informs our understanding of the role of work and play in human health and well-being.
Series Lectures
Wednesday, October 3, 2018
4:45 pm in Goodpaster Hall 195
Dr. Lisa Flores ’06 presents “Latina/o Students’ Persistence, Intentions, and Academic Satisfaction in Engineering.”
Lisa Y. Flores (PhD, University of Missouri-Columbia) is a Professor and Program Director of the Counseling Psychology program at the University of Missouri-Columbia). She has expertise in the career development of women and Latino/as and the integration of Latino/a immigrants in rural communities. She has published over 65 journal publications, 18 book chapters, and 1 co-edited book and presented over 200 conference presentations in these areas. She has been PI and co-PI on grants funded by NSF and USDA to support her research.
Her current grant supported research is a 5-year longitudinal study of cultural and social cognitive influences in the persistence intentions, academic engagement, and academic satisfaction of women and Latino/as in engineering. She is Editor of the Journal of Career Development and past Associate Editor of the Journal of Counseling Psychology, and has served on the Editorial Boards of the Journal of Vocational Behavior, The Counseling Psychologist, Journal of Counseling Psychology, and Career Development Quarterly.
Friday, November 16, 2018
2:45 pm in Goodpaster Hall 195
Dr. Roberta Golinkoff presents “Becoming Brilliant: Re-imagining Education Through the Lens of Playful Learning.”
Roberta Golinkoff (PhD, Cornell University) is the Unidel H. Rodney Sharp Professor of Education, Psychological and Brain Sciences, and Linguistics and Cognitive Science at the University of Delaware and director of the Child’s Play, Learning, and Development laboratory. Her research has been funded by the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, the Institute of Education Sciences, and the LEGO Foundation.
In addition to over 150 journal publications and book chapters, she has authored 16 books and monographs. Passionate about the dissemination of psychological science for improving our schools and families’ lives, she and Hirsh-Pasek (her long standing collaborator) also write books for parents and practitioners. How Babies Talk (1999); the award-winning Einstein Never Used Flash Cards (2004) and A Mandate for Playful Learning in Preschool (2009). Her latest book, Becoming Brilliant: What Science Tells Us About Raising Successful Children is with APA Press and reached the New York Times best seller list in 2016.
SP19 Lectures TBA
Previous lecture series topics:
- 2017-18: Psychology of Oppression
- 2016-17: Psychology Across the Globe: Cross-Cultural Perspectives
- 2015-16: Autism Spectrum Disorder: Fact and fiction
- 2014-15: Benefits and Risks of Technology Use on Children in the Home and at School
- 2013-14: Health and the Obesity “Crisis”
- 2012-13: Diagnosis, Treatment, and Prevention
- 2011-12: Populations in Need