Psychology alumnae made King's proud at US-based conference

Dr. Imants Barušs, Professor of Psychology, and three of his thesis students (now alumnae), presented posters of the students’ research at the 41st Annual Conference of the Society for Scientific Exploration held at the University of Indiana, Bloomington, Indiana on July 24, 2023.

• Allison Liliom ’23, Honours Specialization in Psychology, presented on “Posttraumatic Growth Following the Covid-19 Pandemic.”
• Meglyn Murphy ’23, Honours Specialization in Psychology, Major in Criminology, presented on “The Social Self: Differences Between Individuals With and Without a Near-Death Experience.”
• Julia Nikolakakos ’23, Honours Specialization in Psychology, presented on “Attributions for Anomalous Object Displacement.”

“All three students made King’s proud. Their posters were well-prepared, and they were articulate, answered viewers’ questions well, and engaged substantively with viewers. Their research was well-received, with numerous laudatory comments,” says Dr. Barušs.

He adds that one participant told him that “the King’s presentations were better than many graduate students’ posters that she had seen.” In addition, in an email sent to him after the conference, Dr. Chantal Toporow, the education chair for the Society for Scientific Exploration told Dr. Barušs that she “could not have been more pleased with the calibre of students that [he] brought with [him].”

The three alumnae all agreed that this had been a valuable experience for them.

Nikolakakos says the conference was a great learning experience, especially the opportunity to talk to researchers from different fields and areas of expertise. She received a lot of helpful and informative feedback and also enjoyed attending the seminars.

Liliom enjoyed the chance to strengthen her public speaking skills and confidence as a researcher. “The opportunity to share with others what I worked so hard on over the past year was incredible. It was rewarding to have the opportunity to use the skills I have learned throughout my undergraduate degree to produce novel research in my area of interest,” she says.

“Studying at King's sparked my interest in psychology and the courses I took helped me develop my research interests. The faculty encouraged and supported me throughout my time at King's,” Nikolakakos says.

Liliom was also grateful to the King’s faculty for their support. She referred to Dr. Barušs as “an incredible mentor” and said that her thesis course was “well organized by an excellent faculty member, Dr. Wendy Ellis (Associate Professor of Psychology), and the course prepared me for what to expect during each step of the project.”

“Completing an undergraduate honours thesis at King’s University College honed my research skills and provided me with first-hand experience in each step of the research process,” she adds.