UTPB psychology undergraduate and graduate students—Chris McLain, Daniel Jurado, Luke Christensen, and Noelle Filoteo Young (an alumnus from our M.A. program who recently started a Ph.D. program at New Mexico State University)—presented their research at the Annual Meeting of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology (SPSP) held in San Diego, CA in February 2024.
For the unfamiliar, SPSP is a professional organization for social psychological researchers (the largest in the world) and their annual conference brings together thousands of researchers (both students and professionals) from all over the world. Being accepted to present your research at this prestigious conference is quite an accomplishment.
Below are summaries of these psychology students' fabulous work:
In their work, Chris McLain (working with Dr. Justin W. Vollet) sought to identify links between empathy and mystical experiences as they relate to spiritual practice. They found that individuals who reported mystical experiences of higher intensity also reported significantly higher levels of both overall empathy and affective (emotional) empathy. Additionally, they found that those who participated in a variety of forms of spiritual practice more frequently were also more likely to report higher levels of empathy. Findings from their work serve as a foundation for future research interested in the effects of mystical experiences on prosocial constructs such as empathy.
In his work, Daniel Jurado (working with Dr. Wei-Ju Chen, Chris McLain, and Luke Christensen) sought to identify the role of antisocial behavior on alcohol consumption, drinking motives, and mental health. They found significant and positive associations between antisocial behavior, alcohol consumption, and negative mental health. They also found that those who exhibit more antisocial behaviors tend to drink for coping reasons among a general population.
In his work, Luke Christensen (working with Dr. Wei-Ju Chen, Chris McLain, and Daniel Jurado) explored the interconnected roles of mindfulness, spirituality, and religiosity as predictors of psychological distress. Using data collected from 332 participants, they found that mindfulness and spiritual self-discovery were key predictors of reduced distress. These findings highlight the importance of integrating these practices into mental health interventions. Although spiritual relationships and eco-awareness did not significantly contribute to their predictive model, overall findings emphasized the significance of personal meaning, mindfulness, and faith in enhancing psychological resilience.
In her work, Noelle Filoteo Young (working with Dr. Chen) examined predictors of college belongingness and campus climate perception in a minority-serving institution. Data collection is ongoing; however, preliminary findings indicate that perceived support from family, significant others, peers, and faculty each significantly predict belongingness. However, their findings show that perceived faculty support may be the most crucial predictor of college students' belongingness. Their research underscores the import role faculty support can play in shaping college students' sense of belongingness and their general college experience, above that of other sources of support.
Working with these students to develop their research has been immensely rewarding, and we could not be more proud of their recent success. As faculty in the Department of Psychology, we encourage students who are interested in becoming more involved in the process of conducting research to reach out to faculty.
