Looking for a new way to connect with other SPSP members? Join a Free-Form Friday session. These small, virtual meeting rooms (generally maximum 15 attendees) are hosted by members for a variety of activities, including: Sharing career advice, pondering big picture questions together, meeting members with a similar background, brainstorming sessions, and more. Take advantage of this unique opportunity!
Have an idea to host a Free-Form Friday session? Apply to host a future session (submit a meeting name, host, description, and preferred dates/times). Submit your November session idea by October 11, 2021.
Changes for 2021–2022
To make participation more equitable and inclusive, the following changes will be implemented:
- Sessions may be recorded for inclusion in SPSP Learning Online
- Sign-up times will be spread out and with advanced notice
Sign-ups
- Sign-ups for October 1st and 8th will open Monday, September 20th at 3 pm ET
- Sign-ups for October 15th and 22nd will open Monday, October 4th at 11 am ET
September/October Free-Form Schedule
All Times U.S. Eastern Time Zone
Are you interested in writing about psychology for the non-academic public? If so, join us to chat about how public writing differs from academic writing, how to get started with an idea, how to locate venues that might be right for your writing, and how to persist in the face of rejection and failure.
Host: Michael McCullough (memccullough@ucsd.edu), University of California San Diego
SPSP members are increasingly interested in applied Psychology careers in non-academic settings, as well collaborations with industry, government, and non-profit orgs via their academic positions. Ideally, such interests are supported throughout graduate school via special resources, courses, invited speakers, internship opportunities, etc. The session host (Dr. Eric Lang) is a longtime supporter and mentor in this area, and has been recruited by a major research university to help their Applied Social Science Task Force to better meet the needs of students and faculty with applied Psych interests. This session will be an opportunity hear some insights from the host about preparing for, and pursuing, Applied Psychology jobs and collaborations. There will be significant time to address your questions, which will also help the host in his ongoing roles on SPSP’s Applied Psychology committee and the university Task Force to understand and meet your needs in this important area.
Host: Eric Lang (Eric.L.Lang6.civ@mail.mil) , Personnel & Security Research Center (PERSEREC)
This session will discuss developing and managing effective research collaborations, as well as tips for ending collaborations that are no longer working for you. We will discuss collaborations with both academic researchers as well as non-academic research partners. Feel free to join with specific questions about how to handle an ongoing research collaboration, or just to learn more about collaborating effectively in general. This session is geared toward grad students/postdocs, although all are welcome.
Host: Kate Turetsky (kturetsk@barnard.edu), Barnard College, Columbia University
According to the WHO (2019), burnout is a combination of work-related exhaustion, cynicism, and a sense of inefficacy. Add global instability and endemic disease threat to the mix and burnout may seem like an overwhelmingly challenge. What should we do when burnout looms, for our students, colleagues, and ourselves? In this session, we’ll have a conversation about the psychological and structural components of burnout, including loss of meaning, control, and resources. We’ll identify how burnout manifests in the research lab, classroom, and other areas of work life, and talk about simple ways to refuel.
Host: Laura Niemi (ln279@cornell.edu), Cornell University
Come meet fellow members from your area. This will be an informal time of intros and conversation (in breakout rooms depending on number of attendees).
The political landscape (in the United States at least) feels extremely divided along political lines. And education at all levels has been pushed into the ongoing “culture wars”. Many of the courses we teach in social psychology touch on (or are centered upon) a number of “hot button” issues such as race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, power, privilege, etc. In this discussion, we will explore whether and how this impacts our pedagogical decisions. For example, asking questions such as: Is a political divide something you’re conscious of in your own teaching? How are you managing this in your courses? Do you feel your approach to such issues has changed over the past couple of years? How much of yourself do you bring vs. minimize when in the classroom?
Host: Colin Smith (colinsmith@ufl.edu), University of Florida
Come meet fellow members from your area. This will be an informal time of intros and conversation (in breakout rooms depending on number of attendees).
Graduate school can be difficult to navigate, and there may be concerns and issues uniquely related to being an Asian social-personality psychologist. Joanne Chung and Jin Goh invite Asian-identifying graduate students to come hang out virtually and discuss these topics candidly and informally. Bring your questions to uncle Jin and auntie Joanne! Disclaimer: Joanne identifies as a Korean American and Jin identifies as a Malaysian American, and our experience may not cover the experiences and concerns of other groups though all are welcome.
Hosts: Jin Xun Goh (jin.x.goh@gmail.com), Colby College & Joanne Chung (joanne.chung@utoronto.ca), University of Toronto
This session provides an opportunity for faculty to learn about submitting a proposal to the Social Psychology Program at the National Science Foundation. The session covers information and tips and allows time to ask and answer questions. The session is intended for current faculty and post-docs who are preparing proposals that advance Social Psychology; we will not cover funding mechanisms in other NSF programs (e.g., no coverage of the Graduate Research Fellowship Program).
Hosts: Ximena Arriaga (xarriaga@nsf.gov), National Science Foundation & Steve Breckler (sbreckle@nsf.gov), National Science Foundation
Come meet fellow members from your area. This will be an informal time of intros and conversation (in breakout rooms depending on number of attendees).
The hosts of this session have served as editors for many of the journals that publish research on social and personality psychology. This informal discussion session will focus on answering questions about all aspects of the peer review process, including the process of submitting papers, responding to editor and reviewer concerns, writing useful and effective reviews, and becoming an editor. Although the discussion will be geared toward early career researchers who want to know more about this process, we also welcome anyone who has questions, concerns, or opinions about the peer review process.
Hosts: Rich Lucas (lucasri@msu.edu), Michigan State University & Simine Vazire (simine@gmail.com), University of Melbourne
This Free-Form Friday session is an information and discussion session about Flourish - a network for pre-tenure faculty of color in social and personality psychology entering its third year. In February of 2020 and 2021, we hosted Flourish retreats after the SPSP conference that featured participant- and mentor-led workshops on professional development, teaching strategies, and research productivity for scholars to strengthen their academic profiles, build a successful case for advancement, and make connections with other faculty of colour in SPSP. Throughout the year, we host weekly collaborative writing sessions on Zoom. We recently received NSF funding to expand Flourish's scope and reach, and we're excited to share what we have in store.
Applications to participate in the third year of Flourish open in November. Whether you're interested in participating in Flourish for the first time and have questions for us, or you've attended Flourish in the past and would like to see some familiar faces, please join us for this session! We look forward to connecting with you.
Hosts: Kelci Harris (kelciharris@uvic.ca), University of Victoria; Angela Bell (bellac@lafayette.edu), Lafayette College; Morgan Jerald (mjerald@macalester.edu), Macalester College
The past two decades witnessed a surge in interest in psychological reactance theory (PRT). In brief, PRT is a motivation theory, used heavily in persuasion and health research, that outlines people's responses to freedom threats (e.g., being told what to do). The goal of this Free-Form Friday is to bring together scholars interested in investigating and applying this theoretical framework. We invite researchers with experience with PRT as well as those looking to learn the value of Jack Brehm’s theory.
Hosts: Benjamin Rosenberg (benjamin.rosenberg@dominican.edu), Dominican University & Jason Siegel (jason.siegel@cgu.edu), Claremont Graduate University
Come meet fellow members from your area. This will be an informal time of intros and conversation (in breakout rooms depending on number of attendees).
