Dr. Susan Bluck, Associate Professor, Lab Director
Jacqueline Baron, Graduate Student, Lab Manager
Jacqueline Baron is a fourth year graduate student pursuing her Doctorate degree in Developmental Psychology. Broadly, her research interests include lifespan development with an emphasis on adult development and aging. In particular, Jacqueline has interest in studying the functions of autobiographical memory and the characteristics of autobiographical memory stories in everyday life. Ms. Baron completed her Master's thesis, which focused on the characteristics of a 'good' memory story, and was granted her Master of Science degree in the spring of 2005. Jacqueline was awarded a three year funded pre-doctoral fellowship from the National Institute on Aging and a master's proposal award from the American Psychological Association (Division 20). She also has the distinguished honor of being on both the National Chancellor's List and the National Dean's List. Ms. Baron has taught a guided autobiography group sponsored by the Center for Gerontological Studies and loves working with older adults in the community. In spring 2007, she received the Leighton E. Cluff Award for aging research. Jacqueline's interest in the lab was sparked by her close relationship to her late grandmother and while working in the elderly community. Before being admitted to graduate school, Jacqueline graduated summa cum laude from the University of Florida with a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology.
Michael MacKay, Graduate Student
Mike is a second-year Alumni Fellow pursuing his Ph.D. He completed his Bachelor's degree in Psychology at the University of British Columbia, Canada. Mike recently finished the Directive Memories Project, which compared experienced and inexperienced hospice volunteers with regards to their attitudes towards death and their use of death-related memories in their current life. He presented the study's results in a symposium at the 2007 APA convention. Currently, Mike is preparing to defend his Master’s thesis, which examines how the process of coping with negative life events, such as bereavement, is manifested in people's autobiographical memories. Mike is also in the process of planning a study regarding Terror Management Theory, which attempts to show that reminding people of their inevitable mortality leads them to score higher on measures assessing spirituality (i.e. yields to stronger endorsement of spiritual beliefs). Mike also volunteers at Haven Hospice, where he provides support to dying patients and assists with bereavement support groups.
Burcu Demiray, Graduate Student
Burcu completed her Bachelor's degree in psychology and her Master's degree in developmental psychology at Koc University, Istanbul. The bi-directional relationship between self and autobiographical memory has inspired both her undergraduate and graduate work to date. Her Master's thesis demonstrated the lifespan distribution of adults' autobiographical memories and focused on the reminiscence bump. She also investigated the phenomenological characteristics of memories and examined unique events, first-time events and significant life transitions. She presented her thesis findings at conferences such as the 4th International Conference on Memory in Sydney and the 47th Annual Meeting of the Psychonomic Society in Texas. She is currently a first year graduate student pursuing her Doctorate degree in developmental psychology. Her research interest include the development of self, personality and autobiographical memory in relation to each other. As an international student she is also interested in cultural differences in the nature and functions of these concepts.
Sarah Ainsworth, Research Assistant
Sarah Ainsworth is a post-baccalaureate student in psychology. She graduated in May 2007 with a German major and gerontology minor and she is hoping to attend graduate school to study counseling psychology. She also volunteers for Haven Hospice because she can't resist the idea of becoming involved in an organization whose ideals she values so much. She is interested in autobiographical memory research and other topics related to gerontology just because she thinks that things older people can say after a lifetime of experience are enchanting, and memory makes it all possible.
Heather McKently, Research Assistant
Heather McKently is a second year
undergraduate student pursuing a major in psychology. She was drawn to the
Life Story Lab because she is interested in the many functions that
autobiographical memory serves us. She loves a good story and believes there
are years of wisdom in the narratives that our elders share with us. Heather
hopes to eventually pursue graduate study in the field of clinical or
counseling psychology.
Erin Smith, Research Assistant
Erin Smith is a fourth year undergraduate student pursuing a Bachelor's of Science Degree in Finance with a minor in gerontology. Erin's interest in gerontology is the result of her volunteer experiences with the Foster Grandparent Program and Haven Hospice. Her goal is to study elder law and financial planning. She is interested in autobiographical memory research as she feels that it will serve as a great way to better understand her future clientele in the legal and financial fields.
Dallas Carey, Research Assistant
Dallas Carey is a senior here at the University of Florida getting ready to graduate in Spring 2008. It is her ambition to take the knowledge gained from the Life Story Lab coupled with information learned from majoring in psychology to continue on to a clinical graduate program that will equip her with the skills necessary to shed some light on our growing criminal population.The ability to share our stories and memories is one of the continuous threads that allow connections and relationships to flourish between friends, peers, and pretty much anyone we will come to meet and know. Dallas is interested in gaining knowledge in this very interesting field of Autobiographical Memory in hopes that she will be able to apply and relate it to her developed interest in forensic psychology. For example: How interesting to think that perhaps the criminal mind differs from that of the non-criminal mind in autobiographical memory's function to learn from the past and guide future behavior.
