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PBS 2017 Spring NewsletterCollege of Natural Sciences Faculty/Staff AwardsFrom left: Caren Rotello, Christina Metevier, and Michael McDermottCollege of Natural Sciences Award CeremonyThe College of Natural Sciences Award Ceremony was held on April 27th.Interim Department Chair Caren Rotello introduced Christina Metevierand Michael McDermott, each of whom gave an acceptance speech abouttheir accomplishments within the college. Awardees were presented with acertificate by Steve Goodwin, Dean of the College.Former PBS Chair Hal Grotevant and Michael McDermottChristina Metevier, Associate Undergraduate Advisor andLecturer, received the CNS Outstanding Advisor Award forher exceptional contributions to undergraduate advisingin PBS. Students who have worked with ProfessorMetevier in the advising office and the classroom knowfirsthand that this recognition is very well-deserved givenher endless enthusiasm, knowledge, and dedication tostudent success.Michael McDermott, Project Manager and WebsiteAdministrator, was also presented with the well-deservedCNS Outstanding Staff Award. His recent work includesthe development of the new PBS website and themanagement of clinical data within the department.6

PBS 2017 Spring NewsletterGraduate Student AwardsNicholas Morrison, a 5th yearstudent in the PsychotherapyResearch Lab, was recentlyelected as Chair of the StudentDevelopment Committee of theSociety for the Advancement ofPsychotherapy (SAP), a Division(29) of the American PsychologicalAssociation (APA). Morrison’s termwill began January 2017.Alice Coyne, a 3rd year graduatestudent in the PsychotherapyResearch Lab, was awarded a 500 Pre-Dissertation ResearchGrant from the University ofMassachusetts Amherst GraduateSchool. This grant will partiallyfund her project, “Determinants ofbetween-therapist differences inalliance quality and the allianceoutcome association.”Coyne was also awarded the North American Society forPsychotherapy Research Laura Rice Memorial StudentTravel Award for her forthcoming paper presentation,“The longitudinal association between patient andtherapist expectancy and working alliance: An actorpartner interdependence model,” at the June 2017meeting of the International Society for PsychotherapyResearch.Felicia Romano, a projectcoordinator in the PsychotherapyResearch Lab, was awardedthe North American Society forPsychotherapy Research SolGarfield Memorial Student TravelAward for her forthcoming paperpresentation, “Patient interpersonalproblems as a mediator of longterm outcome in cognitivebehavioral therapy integrated with motivationalinterviewing for generalized anxiety disorder,” at theJune 2017 meeting of the International Society forPsychotherapy Research.Samantha Bernecker, a 6thyear graduate student in thePsychotherapy Research Lab andcurrent predoctoral intern at theUniversity Mississippi MedicalCenter/VA Jackson, has accepteda postdoctoral fellowship positionfor fall 2017 at Harvard University.Sam will work with a large,multi-site network of researchersleading the Army Study to Assess Risk and Resilience inServicemembers (Army STARRS) and the Military SuicideResearch Consortium (MSRC). Army STARRS is focusedon identifying risk and protective factors for suicidalbehavior and related conditions, and MSRC is focused ondeveloping and testing effective treatments for suicidalbehavior.Bernecker was also given the 2018 Society for theExploration of Psychotherapy Integration (SEPI)Dissertation Award. The award comes with 1,000 tosupport her project, “Testing a skills training course foruse in a peer-delivered mental health intervention.”Brien Goodwin, a 3rd year studentin the Psychotherapy Research Lab,was recently (and competitively)appointed as the studentmember of the Publications andCommunications Board of theSociety for the Advancement ofPsychotherapy (APA Division 29).Genna Santorelli, a graduatestudent in the Clinical Program,was awarded a Dissertation Grantfrom the Graduate School for herproject entitled, ‘Emotional Responseto Negative Mood Induction inOlder Adults with Mild CognitiveImpairment.’ She also is first authoron a paper that was accepted forpublication in Aging and MentalHealth, entitled ‘Perceptions of emotion and age amongyounger, midlife, and older adults.’ Molly Mather, agraduate student in the Clinical Program, was a co-authoron this paper and data collection for several follow-upstudies are underway.7

PBS 2017 Spring Newsletter ap-Ching Keung, graduateLstudent in the UMassEyetracking Lab, was justawarded the Jerrold J. KatzYoung Scholar Award at the2017 CUNY Conference atMIT. The award “recognizesthe paper or posterpresented at the AnnualCUNY Conference on HumanSentence Processing that bestexhibits the qualities of intellectual rigor, creativity, andindependence of thought exemplified in Professor Katz’slife and work.”Lap received the award for his paper, co-authored withAdrian Staub, Associate Professor in PBS, “Closest conjunctagreement in English: A comparison with numberattraction,” presented at the 2016 CUNY Conference onHuman Sentence Processing at the University of Florida.The paper presents evidence from both productionstudies and eyetracking during reading that agreementwith a conjoined subject (e.g., The dog and the cat ) isnot reliably plural when the second conjunct is singular.Two CNS graduate students, Fiona Ge, Psychological andBrain Sciences, and Sarah Winokur, Neuroscience andBehavior Program, have received 2016 Fall Travel Awardsfrom the Center for Research on Families. Ge’s researchbroadly focuses on psychosocial factors that contributeto well-functioning romantic relationship processes. Shewill attend the 18th Annual Meeting for the Society forPersonality and Social Psychology Conference in SanAntonio, CA with the help of her travel award. Winokurstudies the neurobiology underlying parental behavioracross the postpartum period. She will use the award totravel to The Society for Neuroscience Conference in SanDiego, California. CRF News ReleaseUndergraduate Student AwardsKatie Davis, an undergraduatehonors student in thePsychotherapy Research Lab,received a competitively awarded 900 Commonwealth HonorsCollege Research Grant in supportof her thesis research, “The indirecteffect of alliance convergence onpost treatment outcome throughhomework completion in two treatments for generalizedanxiety.”Katherine Gnall, an undergraduateResearch Assistant (RA) in thePsychotherapy Research lab, wasselected to receive the Departmentof Psychological and Brain Sciences’2017 RA Appreciation Award.Katherine has worked on multipleprojects over her three semesters inthe Lab, demonstrating a rare blend of academic prowess,interpersonal skill, and professional responsibility/productivity.Bob Sommer, an undergraduatehonors student conducting his thesisin the Psychotherapy Research lab,received a competitively awarded 648 Commonwealth HonorsCollege Research Grant in supportof his thesis research, “Existentialisolation as a risk factor for clinicaldistress and negative beliefs aboutpsychotherapy.”Sommer was also selected to receive the Departmentof Psychological and Brain Sciences’ Outstanding ThesisAward.8

PBS 2017 Spring NewsletterDistinguished Alumni AwardsDanielle Dean ‘10Michael G. Wessells ’73 MA, ’74 PhDDanielle O’Connor Dean ’10 isa Senior Data Scientist Lead atMicrosoft Corporation in theAlgorithms and Data ScienceGroup within the Cloud andEnterprise Division. She leadsan international team ofdata scientists and engineersworking on machine learningsolutions, within the field of artificial intelligence, thataddress a variety of business needs.Michael Wessells ’73 MA, ’74PhD is a Professor of ClinicalPopulation and FamilyHealth in the Program onForced Migration and Healthat Columbia University.His work emphasizes theresilience of children, families,and communities and theimpact of distress due to armed conflict, disasters, familyseparation, and deprivation of basic needs such as food,shelter, and security.Dean is recognized for her novel combination of survivalanalysis and mixture modeling to simultaneously modelmultiple event processes. She is the lead author of threemajor publications and co-author of the data sciencemodeling book, Data Science with Microsoft SQL Server2016.Dean is also dedicated to mentoring young women. Sheis an active advisor with Girls Who Code, a board memberof Microsoft’s Women@NERD (New England Research& Development) resource group, and a career advicecontributor through Microsoft’s Professional Data ScienceDegree Program.During her time at UMass Amherst, Dean earned twobachelor’s degrees: the first in psychology with aminor in mathematics and statistics, and the secondin organizational behavior through statistical analysisthrough the Bachelor’s Degree with IndividualConcentration (BDIC) program. She went on to completeher doctorate degree in quantitative psychology with aconcentration in biostatistics at the University of NorthCarolina at Chapel Hill where she studied the applicationof multi-level event history models to understand thetiming and processes leading to events between dyadswithin social networks.Dean has been recognized with multiple awards andhonors such as the UMass Amherst 21st Century LeadersAward, Senior Leadership Award, the LeBovidge ResearchFellowship, and Psi Chi Regional Research Award.UMass Amherst Alumni Association. (2017, April). DistinguishedAlumni Awards. Retrieved from http://www.umassalumni.com/s/1640/alumni/In addition to research and teaching, global humanitarianwork is a central life calling for Wessells. For severaldecades, he has focused on psychosocial and childprotection supports for war-affected children primarilyin sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, and Latin America. He hasworked to highlight the importance of communitymobilization building on existing strengths and resources,including traditional practices and working in a spirit ofhumility and co-learning.Believing that psychology has much to contribute topeace and social justice, he helped to establish andserved as president of the Division of Peace Psychologyin the American Psychological Association. He also servedas president of Psychologists for Social Responsibilityand chair of the Committee for the Psychological Studyof Peace, which develops scholarly symposia worldwideand brings in the voices and work of people in difficultpolitical and economic circumstances.Along with the World Health Organization, Wessellscoordinated the development of the first globalguidelines on mental health and psychosocial supportin emergency settings. In a deeply polarized field,this work helped to develop a more comprehensive,multidisciplinary approach to supporting war-affectedpeople. A legacy of this work is that today, mental healthand psychosocial supports are seen not as afterthoughtsbut as central to humanitarian action.Wessells earned his master’s and doctorate degrees inpsychology from UMass Amherst, where his supervisor,John Donahoe, nurtured an enduring interest in science,a keen appreciation of environmental determinants ofbehavior, and a love of teaching.UMass Amherst Alumni Association. (2017, April). DistinguishedAlumni Awards. Retrieved from http://www.umassalumni.com/s/1640/alumni/9

PBS 2017 Spring NewsletterIn the MediaMichael ConstantinoInterviewed forPsychotherapy Expert TalksRobert S. FeldmanComments On Lying inBusinessMichael Constantino, Director of thePsychotherapy Research Lab at UMassAmherst, was recently interviewedfor the YouTube "PsychotherapyExpert Talks" series. The interviewcenters on Constantino's contextresponsive psychotherapy integration(CRPI) model and related CPRIresearch being conducted in hisLab. The impetus for the video wasConstantino's article published inThe Integrative Therapist entitled,"Testing, analyzing, and establishingmarkers for responsiveness inpsychotherapy."Robert S. Feldman, DeputyChancellor and Professor ofPsychology, commented in a storyabout lying in business. He said hisyears of research show that peoplelie because it “greases the wheels ofsocial interaction.” Feldman also saidthat it isn’t easy to tell from bodylanguage whether or not a person istelling the truth.Psychotherapy Expert Talks. (2016,November 29).Startup Smart. (2016, December 20).Feldman has also commented in astory about why lying is particularlyprevalent in the current age ofnarcissism. Feldman said people liebecause that’s what others want tohear. He said it is an effective socialtactic and notes that people whodon’t lie are usually seen as rude andblunt. He also said President Trumpuses lies because it has apparentlybeen a useful tactic for him in bothbusiness and politics.Jeffrey Blaustein Featuredon National Public RadioJeffrey D. Blaustein, ProfessorEmeritus in the Department ofPsychological and Brain Sciences, wasfeatured on National Public Radioshow “The Academic Minute” wherehe talked about the pros and consof estrogen blockers for treatmentof breast cancer and what womenshould know about this type oftreatment. He said it is important forwomen to know that estrogens havemany effects on the human body,and some of those have a significantimpact on quality of life.The Academic Minute, Inside HigherEd. (2016, December 20).Toronto Sun. (2017, May 6).Compiled by UMass Amherst News andMedia Relations.10

PBS 2017 Spring NewsletterFaculty HonorsAgnes LacreuseSelected asSection Memberat the Center forScientific Review,National Institutesof HealthCongratulations toAgnes Lacreuse whohas been selected for a 4-year term as a member of theNeuroendocrinology, Neuroimmunology, Rhythms andSleep Study Section at the Center for Scientific Review,National Institutes of Health! She will be contributing tothe national biomedical research effort through grantapplication reviews, recommendations and status surveysof field research. This honorable position is representativeof Lacreuse’s accomplishments in her field of study.Paula Pietromonacois the IncomingEditor-in-Chief ofEmotionPaula Pietromonaco,Professor in the Departmentof Psychological andBrain Sciences, is theIncoming Editor-in-Chief ofEmotion, a prestigious peer reviewed scientific journalpublished by the American Psychological Association.Emotion showcases significant theoretical and empiricalcontributions to the study of emotional processes.Research published in the journal cuts across multipleareas within psychology (e.g., social, developmental,personality, clinical, cognitive, health) as well as otherdisciplines (e.g., neuroscience, physiology, economics,business, anthropology).For an interview spotlighting the newly appointed editor,see t/emo-pietromonaco.aspxResearch ScholarsJeff Starns selectedas CRF FamilyResearch ScholarJoseph Berganselected as ISSRscholarJeff Starns, AssociateProfessor in Cognition andCognitive Neuroscience,has been selected as a2017-18 Center for Researchon Families (CRF) FamilyResearch Scholar. Jeff willdevelop a grant proposalon Bayesian reasoning as alife skill. Congratulations Jeff!Joseph Bergan, AssistantProfessor in BehavioralNeuroscience, has beenselected as an Institute forSocial Science Research(ISSR) scholar for the 201718 academic year. Duringthis time, he will develop a research proposal on synapticfoundations of sexually dimorphic circuit architecture.Congratulations Joe!11

PBS 2017 Spring NewsletterPBS Welcomes New Faculty and StaffAdam GrabellBruna MartinsTara MandalaywalaAssistant Professor (Fall 2017)Assistant Professor (Fall 2018)Assistant Professor (Fall 2018)Clinical PsychologyClinical PsychologyDevelopmental SciencesArea of Study:Area of Study:Area of Study:Neural correlates of emotionregulationEmotion, cognition, agingComparative psych; children’sunderstanding of raceEvan YeadonCommunications AdministratorPBS is pleased to introduce Evan Yeadon as Communications Administrator.Evan will be promoting the department’s activities throughout the universityand to the general public. His experience in graphic and web design will beput to great use as he creates new digital communications for PBS. Evan willact as liaison with the Office of News and Media Relations, Alumni Relations,the Development Office and the College of Natural Sciences. He will beworking to expand alumni connections and broaden the PBS social andscientific community. Establishing opportunities for alumni, graduates andundergraduates to create professional relationships will also be his focus.Evan holds a B.F.A. in Industrial Design and a Certificate in Web Development.He is a native of Conway, MA, enjoying every opportunity to pursue outdooradventures.12

PBS 2017 Spring NewsletterRespite Care TrainingOn Sunday, April 9th from 9am to 5pm, UMass Studentsand community members attended the first annualrespite care training offered by the DevelopmentalDisabilities and Human Services Program (ProgramDirector: Ashley Woodman, Lecturer in Psychologicaland Brain Sciences). Participants were given basic trainingon supporting children, adolescents and adults withdisabilities at home and in the community, providingtemporary relief to their caregivers. Participantscompleted CPR training with the American Red Cross andmet with professionals and parents in the community.Website: http://blogs.umass.edu/ddhs/respite/Diversity Event: Being an Effective AllyThe PBS Diversity Committee sponsored an event onApril 21st entitled ” Being an Effective Ally: UnderstandingAlly Development and Selecting Allied Action”. About 30graduate students, staff, and faculty had the opportunityto learn about research and theory on ally development.Given recent increases in targeting of marginalizedgroups, there has been an accompanying increase inmotivation to be effective allies to members of thesegroups. However, becoming an effective ally can be adaunting and intimidating task. Alissa Hochman and LGRollins, from UMass Boston, discussed what it means tobe an ally from both a research and practical perspective.The presenters provided practical guidance on concreteactions that those interested in allyship can take. Allattendees had lively smaller group discussions aboutbecoming an effective ally.13

PBS 2017 Spring NewsletterWeCelebrateAdoptionWe Celebrate Adoption was an eventhosted by students in the UMassUMass Adoption Mentoring PartnershipUMassStudentAdoption AdvisoryBoard BoardStudentAdoptionAdvisoryRudd Adoption Research Program(USAAB) and the Adoption MentoringPartnership (AMP) on the evening ofApril 27, 2017 in the UMass CampusCenter. The goal of the event wasto educate the college and localcommunity about adoption relatedtopics such as adoption identity,policies and laws, foster care, raceand ethnicity to name a few. Eachteam of two or three studentsresearched the topic of their choiceand presented the information ona trifold poster board. The studentsfielded questions and shared handouts with event attendees lookingto broaden their understa

A graduate of Smith College, Dasgupta earned an M.S. and an M.Phil. in social psychology at Yale University, where she was awarded her Ph.D., also in social psychology. UMass Amherst News and Media Relations. (2017, April 13). UMass Amherst Professor Nilanjana Dasgupta to Discuss Strategies for Encouraging Young Women to Pursue Careers in STEM .