Research in the Department of Psychology

Dr. Laura Dixon is studying misophonia—a rare disorder that causes extreme sensitivity to noises like chewing and slurping—with aid from a grant funded by the Misophonia Research Fund. Her research on misophonia and other disorders focuses on understanding the processes contributing to symptoms and causing impairment. In the future, Dixon hopes to test intervention components for misophonia and continue to collect data on the understudied disorder.

Dr. Sarah Bilsky is the director of the PANDAA lab at the University of Mississippi. The primary aim of the PANDAA lab is to improve our understanding of the development and maintenance of anxiety and related problems. Although this goal encompasses a broad range of foci, our research is currently primarily focused on projects examining the development and maintenance of anxiety and substance use vulnerabilities among parents and adolescents. Recent work includes looking at transdiagnostic factors such as anxiety sensitivity, parenting stress, and sleep difficulties and how they are related to affective symptoms and substance use among adolescents and parents. Dr. Bilsky is currently the Principal Investigator for a CDC funded project aimed at reducing adolescent use of alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana use.

Zeina Ramadan is completing a practicum at Communicare, a Mississippi Department of Health Agency in Northern Mississippi. As a student therapist, she provides mental health care to those from vulnerable populations. Specifically, Ramadan works with individuals who are dependent on Medicaid or unable to pay for mental health services. She has a passion for helping others, and the R. Kelley Thueson Graduate Fellowship affords her the opportunity to impact the lives of those who otherwise might not have access to crucial mental healthcare.

"My project, which received 2nd place by the MS Academy of Sciences, examined the relationship between gender, social support, and disordered eating behaviors among bariatric patients. Using a moderation analysis, we explored whether social support serves as a protective factor and if its impact varies by gender. Our findings challenge prior assumptions, demonstrating that social support did not significantly predict disordered eating behaviors in this population. This research underscores the need for longitudinal studies and a more detailed examination of specific types of social support to better understand its role over time among bariatric patients." 

Anna Papillion
(B.A. in Psychology with a Sign Language minor)

Dr. Andrew Hales recently published research on the psychology of gossip, to better understand why and when people may actually desire to be the topic of other people’s gossip. The research shows that, overall, most people prefer not to be gossiped about. However, on average, people who are higher in the trait of narcissism prefer to receive this attention, even when it is explicitly negative. This research helps us understand how different people handle the conflict between two fundamental human motives that sometimes clash: we want to be liked, and we want to be noticed.

The CUB Lab is part of an interdisciplinary collaboration with the School of Education (Early Childhood Education, Health and Physical Education) and Nutrition & Hospitality Management working to deliver and understand the benefits of a supplemental standards-based curriculum grounded in mindfulness focused on family and community engagement, gardening and nutrition, social-emotional learning, and physical activity. The CUB lab team works to demonstrate positive contributions of this supplemental curriculum to executive function and social-emotional development during preschool. More information about the Growing Healthy Minds Bodies and Communities curriculum and the research related to this program can be found at their website.

“My lab focuses on memory research, and we are currently working on a project that examines how presenting educational content in different formats can impact students' knowledge retention. We are exploring whether presenting information as a narrative, rather than through a traditional lecture style, enhances students' ability to remember what they have learned. Through this project, we aim to generate meaningful insights that can help educators optimize their teaching methods for better student learning and engagement.”

"In the study Storytelling: A Natural Mnemonic, I explored whether storytelling enhances memory retention compared to traditional lecture-based instruction. My research lies at the intersection of cognitive psychology and education, and I aim to investigate further how different instructional strategies can optimize learning outcomes. This work challenges common assumptions about storytelling as an inherently superior teaching method by demonstrating that its effects on memory retention may be context-dependent. This research can inform the development of more effective instructional approaches tailored to diverse learning needs. My goal is to contribute to creating teaching strategies that engage students and enhance their ability to retain and apply knowledge."

Hailey Stephens
(B.A. in Psychology with a minor in Criminal Justice)