76 University Drive
Hazleton, PA 18202-8025
Research Interests
Peer relationships; Academic & social adjustment during college transition; Social anxiety and social relationships during transition periods; Autism and social interactions
Publications
The impact of social anxiety and self-esteem on college adjustment, academics, and retention, Journal of College Counseling - April, 2014
Collaborators: Alicia Nordstrom, Author; Marnie Heister, Secondary Author
The impact of social anxiety and self-esteem on college adjustment, academics, and retention, Journal of College Counseling
Collaborators: Alicia Nordstrom, Author; Marnie Heister, Secondary Author
Associations among peer relationships, academic achievement, and persistence in college, Journal of College Student Retention - 2010
Collaborators: Lisa Swenson, Author; Marnie Hiester; Alicia Nordstrom
Stability and change in perceived attachment to parents and adjustment outcomes during the first semester transition to college life: The influence of gender and residence - September, 2009
Collaborators: Marnie Hiester; Alicia Nordstrom; Lisa Swenson
Adolescents' collaboration in the classroom: Do peer relationships or gender matter?, Psychology in the Schools - 2008
Collaborator: Lisa Swenson; JoNell Strough
The role of peer relationships in adjustment to college, Journal of College Student Development - November, 2008
Collaborators: Lisa Swenson; Alicia Nordstrom; Marnie Hiester
Students' Experiences with Internet-based Testing in an Introductory General Music Course, Journal of Technology in Music Learning (peer reviewed) - 2006
Collaborator: Thomas Smialek, Author
Education
Ph D, Lifespan Developmental Psychology, West Virginia University
Papers and Presentations
December 12, 2020
Posters and Oral Presentations
Jonesing for a Facebook fix: Men, Women, & the link between social stress & Facebook addiction
International Conference on Social Sciences and Arts
Online virtual conference
October, 2019
Posters
Investigation of complex links among social anxiety, self-efficacy, and adjustment to college
Meeting of the Society for the Study of Emerging Adults
Toronto, ON, Canada
College students are in a period of transition, learning to live more independently. They need to adapt thinking processes and ways of interacting with others. The confidence these students bring to their new environment and the extent to which they are socially anxious are factors that could affect how well this transition goes.
November, 2017
Posters
Sense of Belonging and Adjustment to College: Comparisons of Residential and Commuter Students
Meeting of the Society for the Study of Emerging Adults
Washington DC
March 5, 2016
Posters
Attachment, Feelings of Connectedness, & Adjustment to College
87th Annual Meeting of the Eastern Psychological Association
New York, NY
Attachment style and feelings of connectedness due to components of a new student orientation program were examined in relation to adjustment among first-semester college students. Results confirmed our hypotheses in that lesser feelings of connectedness related to poorer adjustment to college, and students with greater insecure attachment reported lesser feelings of connectedness and poorer adjustment to college.
February 8, 2016
Oral Presentations
Making connections during the transition into college
HN Campus Faculty Talk Series
Hazleton campus
March 7, 2015
Posters
The relationship between social anxiety and college students’ feelings of connectedness
86th Annual Meeting of the Eastern Psychological Association
Philadelphia, PA
we focused on how social anxiety related to students’ feelings of connectedness during components of the orientation programming for new students, expecting a negative association. Participants were 206 first-year college students who completed a questionnaire about the “move-in-weekend” orientation program, and a social anxiety questionnaire. Results confirmed our hypothesis and supported previous literature, allowing us to better understand how social anxiety can impact students during their transition to college.
2014
Posters
The relationship between social anxiety and college students’ feelings of connectedness
86th Annual Meeting of the Eastern Psychological Association
Philadelphia, PA
we focused on how social anxiety related to students’ feelings of connectedness during components of the orientation programming for new students, expecting a negative association. Participants were 206 first-year college students who completed a questionnaire about the “move-in-weekend” orientation program, and a social anxiety questionnaire. Results confirmed our hypothesis and supported previous literature, allowing us to better understand how social anxiety can impact students during their transition to college.
October 29, 2009
Oral Presentations
The effects of peer attachment and social anxiety on United States college students' friendships
4th Conference on Emerging Adulthood
Atlanta, GA
New friendships formed in college can affect adjustment, achievement, and retention, thus difficulties with friendships can have serious implications. Research shows that greater social anxiety and insecure attachment styles are associated with lower quality friendships. In our study, first-year college students completed measures of peer attachment, social anxiety, and friendship quality. Closer attachment relationships were associated with lesser social anxiety. Social anxiety at the beginning of the first semester related to the quality of new friendships. Females experienced greater friendship quality, but also greater social anxiety, although their social anxiety reduced from the beginning to the end of the semester. Our results suggest we should monitor insecure or socially anxious students to prevent possible problems with friendship formation and, consequently adjustment to college.
March 25, 2009
Oral Presentations
The transition into college: How we can help our students
HN campus Enrollment Management Committee meeting
Hazleton campus
February 26, 2009
Oral Presentations
The transition into college: How we can help our students
HN Campus Faculty Talk Series
Hazleton campus
May 24, 2008
Parental attachement and intrusiveness predict psychological health and adjustment for college freshmanAnnual meeting of the American Psychological Association
Chicago
March 9, 2008
Effects of social anxiety and self-esteem on the transition to collegeBiennial meeting of the Society for Research on Adolescence
Chicago
March 9, 2008
Linking social and cognitive development among first-year college studentsBiennial meeting of the Society for Research on Adolescence (SRA)
Chicago
March 8, 2008
Friendship quality and adjustment during the transition to collegeBiennial meeting of the Society for Research on Adolescence (SRA)
Chicago
2007
Predictors of college retention, adjustment, and academic performance in first-year undergraduatesNovember 03, 2007
Conference presentations acceptedFebruary 15, 2007
Examining parental correlates of college adjustment: Parental attachment, intrusiveness, and adjustment (Poster accepted but did not attend conference due to snow storm)February 15, 2007
Examining parental correlates of college adjustment: Parental attachment, intrusiveness, and adjustment (Poster accepted but did not attend conference due to snow storm)3rd Conference on Emerging Adulthood
Tucson, AZ
January 01, 2007
Friendship quality and adjustment during the transition to college (Poster accepted but unable to travel due to snow storm)3rd Conference on Emerging Adulthood
Tucson, AZ
2006
Predictors of college retention, adjustment, and academic performance in first-year undergraduatesApril 10, 2005
Attended research conference for the Society for Research in Child Development2004
Biennial Meeting of the Society for Research on Adolescence