The SPSP Student Committee, one of the association’s most active committees, works to promote the interests of SPSP’s graduate and undergraduate student members. Their work includes producing a student-focused monthly newsletter, SPSPotlight, liaising with committees across SPSP on behalf of the student voice, and organizing and executing events and activities specifically for students at the annual SPSP convention as well as year-round. The 2019-2020 committee will transition to their roles during the 2019 SPSP Annual Convention.

We asked them to introduce themselves, give us a fun fact about their non-academic life, and talk about what they are most excited about at the 2019 convention.

Chair

Heidi Vuletich headshot

Heidi Vuletich, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Hello everyone! I am a fifth-year Ph.D. candidate at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. As a dual-program student, I’m officially enrolled in both the Developmental and Social Psychology Programs. I attended Regis University in Denver, CO for my undergraduate degree in Neuroscience. My current research focuses on the psychological factors contributing to inequalities by socioeconomic status (SES), gender, and race. I am interested in the role of subjective SES, stereotypes, implicit biases, and causal attributions in producing and maintaining social disparities, particularly in educational contexts. I’m really excited to serve you and be a resource for you as part of the student committee! Please feel free to contact me at [email protected].

Fun fact: I really enjoy creative writing. In 7th grade, I wrote a short story about the Mexican National Emblem that won a school-wide competition.

2019 Convention: Looking forward to presenting the Outstanding Research Awards and Student Poster Awards, and meeting the new members of our student committee.

Vice-Chair

Fernanda Andrade headshot

Fernanda Andrade, Duke University

I am a first-year PhD student in the social psychology program at Duke University, and I work with Dr. Rick Hoyle. Very broadly, I am interested in the role of context and individual differences on the self-regulation of behavior. More specifically, I am interested in how salient and valued identities influence people's valuing and pursuit of health goals. I earned a master's degree in experimental psychology from Towson University in Maryland, where my research focused on the individual differences that influence how people manage self-threats. I am looking forward to serving SPSP student members alongside the Student Committee! Please don't hesitate to contact me with suggestions or questions at [email protected].

Fun fact: I love weightlifting and chocolate chip cookies. I have yet to find the perfect cookie so if you have a good recipe, please share!

2019 Convention: I will attend my first preconference this year, so I am really looking forward to it! I am also looking forward to the poster sessions, I think they are great opportunities to meet new people and get a quick peek at a large variety of work.

Past-Chair

Miao Qian headshot

Miao “Kitty” Qian, University of Toronto

Hi everyone, I am Kitty. I am now a fourth-year Ph.D. student at the University of Toronto. I am also the student committee chair for the 2018-2019 Student Committee. Being involved in the Student Committee is fantastic! By serving on the committee, I developed skills such as collaboration, communication, and decision-making. It is inspiring to work with other brilliant graduate students and SPSP staff. 

Fun fact: Although I enjoy doing research and student service, nothing could beat Karaoke! I was the top-10 singer in my university, yeah! 

2019 Convention: I am very much looking forward to the 2019 SPSP Convention to meet my collaborators and friends, and wash my brain with brilliant ideas by students, scholars, and others. See you all at the convention!

Members at Large

Diego Guevara Beltrán, Arizona State University

Diego Guevara Beltrán headshot

Hello! I am a second-year graduate student in the Social Psychology Program at Arizona State University, where I work with Dr. Athena Aktipis. I am interested in how cooperation and prosociality emerge across human societies, and how emotions such as empathy and features of the ecology guide prosocial or cooperative behavior. 

Fun fact: You mean besides the fact that I get to do research in social psychology? 

2019 Convention: I am most excited about the poster sessions, and finding peers who are currently working in some capacity on empathy research. I am also really looking forward to the evolutionary psychology preconference. Last but not least, I am thrilled to meet this year's students committee and collaborate with an awesome group of psychology researchers!


Kori Krueger, University of Pittsburgh

Kori Krueger headshot

Hi everyone! My name is Kori Krueger and I am a 5th year graduate student in the Social Psychology PhD program at the University of Pittsburgh (working with Dr. Mandy Forest). Broadly, I am interested in interpersonal processes related to communication and self-presentation. I am currently working on projects that examine factors related to expressivity and responsiveness between romantic partners, as well as how people present themselves to others in the presence of romantic alternatives and online. I am looking forward to serving on the Student Committee this year and working to improve the graduate school experience. Feel free to contact me at [email protected]!

Fun fact: I'm obsessed with my dog, Koda. He's a German Shepherd/Boxer mix and uses a doggie wheelchair. He even has an Instagram account. 

2019 Convention: I'm most excited for the professional development panels and events at the 2019 convention. I think that they will be a great resource for students and help us to identify what future resources are needed to address graduate students' needs and concerns about their future. 


Juan Ospina, Stanford University

Juan Ospina headshot

I'm Juan Ospina, a research coordinator on social psychology at Stanford. My research interests are about lay theories, motivation, construal-level theory, and self-regulation. I aim to begin my PhD next year where I could test and design wise interventions to help young people explore and develop their life goals. If you would like to talk with me, I can be reached at [email protected].

Fun fact: I'm from Colombia, but when I was in high school, I lived in Chile. When I moved back to Colombia to start college, my friends started calling me "Chile" because I had a funny accent.

2019 Convention: I'm looking forward to seeing my friends again and connecting with excellent researchers from around the world.


Stephanie Schwartz,  University of Toronto

Stephanie Schwartz headshot

I am a third-year PhD student working with Yoel Inbar at the University of Toronto.

My research interests lie largely in the field of moral judgment and decision-making. I study how people form moralized and other attitudes towards controversial and risky technologies. I also study the ways in which emotions inform moral judgments, as well as the nature of everyday acts of immorality. 

Fun fact: I have played ultimate frisbee for 15 years. 

2019 Convention: SPSP feels like a giant high school reunion (in a good way)! I look forward to seeing my friends from different stages in my career thus far. I also love the JDM preconference. 

Member at Large for Undergraduate Affairs

Jesus Saavedra, Weber State University

Jesus Saavedra headshot

Hello all! My name is Jesus Saavedra, an undergraduate student concluding my senior year at Weber State University in Utah. My primary research interest is in the field of social neuroscience and its ability to allow us to understand the neural underpinnings of concepts like prejudice, ingroup/outgroup salience, and our evaluations of others. I am looking forward to being a part of SPSP's Student Committee for the upcoming year. If you'd like to contact me, you can reach me at: [email protected] 

Fun fact: I love the performing arts! I enjoy playing the violin and singing baritone/bass in local choir groups.

2019 Convention: The upcoming convention will be my first time attending an SPSP conference and I'm excited to say the least! I am really looking forward to meeting with potential graduate school advisors and connecting with current graduate students in preparation for my own graduate school experience in the near future. Along with this, I am eager to learn about current research being conducted in the many facets of psychology and hope to add my own contributions to this conversation throughout the convention.

SPSPotlight Co-Editors

Lucy Zheng, University of California, Davis

Lucy Zheng headshot

Hello! I am a third-year Ph.D. student at UC Davis. As a previous high school teacher and a current college applications consultant, I have experience in mentoring adolescents through exciting (but often stressful) transitions in their academic lives. These experiences led to my interest in examining the relationship between personality and academic achievement and how these associations may change from childhood to adulthood. Recently, I’ve also become interested in how specific extracurricular activities (e.g. tabletop roleplaying games) in the K-12 context affect achievement through personality changes. If you’d like to talk about research or have a suggestion for a newsletter article, please email me at [email protected]

Fun fact: Skydiving, bungee jumping, and hanging out with wolves are a few things I enjoy. I’m a huge adrenaline junkie, but I draw the line at popping wheelies on the freeway.

2019 Convention: I’m really excited to learn about all the new research and share it with the broader SPSP community!


Hasagani Tissera, McGill University

Hasagani Tissera headshot

I'm a second-year graduate student in experimental psychology at McGill University. I am currently working under the supervision of Dr. John Lydon. My main research interests lie in the domain of impression formation. More specifically, I am interested in examining how people's motivations may influence the way they form first impressions about others. I am really excited to be a part of this year's Student Committee! If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me at [email protected]

Fun fact: I love doing arts and crafts and planning events, whether it's a birthday party, holiday party or even an academic gathering!

2019 Convention: I'm really excited to meet the rest of the SC committee!