Senior Psychology Major Received Drinko Grant to Present Research
Posted on Monday, March 15, 2010
Westminster College psychology major Miranda Gruber presented her senior capstone research March 5 at the 81st annual Eastern Psychological Association (EPA) Conference in Brooklyn, N.Y.
Gruber is a daughter of Ellen Gruber of Erie and a graduate of McDowell High School.
Gruber's research, "Social Competence and its Relationship to Coping Strategies in Preschool Children," was presented as a poster.
The summary of the project states: "Early childhood is considered the foundation of social and emotional competence in later years. There has been very little research, however, on how preschool children cope with stress. Using a newly developed survey for teachers on coping strategies, we found that children with high social persistence were rated by teachers as having more adaptive coping strategies and more flexibility in using these strategies. This research has valuable implications for preschool curricula."
"Attending the EPA conference was an extremely valuable experience," Gruber said. "I learned a lot from presenting the poster and listening to the speakers. It was a great way to showcase the research that I worked so hard on. I am glad that I went and I'd highly recommend it to anyone."
The research was advised and co-authored by Dr. Mandy Medvin, professor and chair of Westminster's Department of Psychology and director of the Westminster College Psychology Preschool Lab.
"Miranda's high-quality senior thesis was well received by psychology researchers and clinicians at the EPA conference," Medvin said. "For her research, she developed a new questionnaire for assessing coping strategies in preschool children. We are hoping to build on this work in future studies."
Gruber received a travel/presentation grant from Westminster's Drinko Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning to help fund her attendance at the conference.
The Drinko Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning was created to enrich undergraduate education at Westminster through advancing world-class teaching as well as by participating in collaborations that address community and regional needs including strengthening K-12 education. The Undergraduate Research Initiative provides funding for students to conduct research and to present their research at regional and national conferences.
Contact Medvin at (724) 946-7360 or e-mail medvinm@westminster.edu for more information.
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