Update
So I know I haven't blogged for a while, but I've been busy... REAL busy! I'm taking 3 courses this semester to give myself a breather but it's actually been a lot busier compared to my usual 5 course semesters. So just an update, I'm in Couples Research and Therapy (I actually don't NEED it... but it looked interesting and I wanted a 3rd course), Applied Gerontology, and Health and Illness in Later Life. It's been a pretty good semester so far. All work, no exams to that makes me happy.Research
I've been working on several research projects lately, which is really exciting. One is for my Applied Gerontology class where we are looking at predictors of vaccination status and other potential mediators that might fit in there. I'm still working on the meta-analysis project on suppression for the lab and also our treatment study is starting up at the end of March! I'm really excited! I get to code videos of treatment sessions!
ABCT Poster
After attendng ABCT last year, which was probably the most exciting thing event I have ever attended (Yes, 10x better than cheerleading competitions), I started really thinking about contributing to research. So now I'm working on a poster to present at next year's conference. My topic is rumination as a mediator in the relationship between the socialization of emotion and depression. Originally, it was supposed to be rejection sensitivity and social avoidance but the measure for rejection sensitivity was really bad and things got too exciting when I was analyzing the data in the lab today so I could only choose one part of what I found to present.
Treasure Hunt
Analyzing data in the lab today made me realize that research is like a treasure hunt. You're not going to hit jackpot everyday, and that can get frustrating, but you have to celebrate little successes along the way. A tiny piece of gold, is still gold. When you start making constant findings, you're suddenly obsessed and you need to find that next piece. You'll probably find something small, then something bigger, and bigger and bigger. Then you put everything you found together and there it is: your treasure. Raw data is your map and syntax is your compass. To Keyne several years down the road in grad school: when you're feeling hopeless and tired in graduate school and reading this blog to procrastinate. Remember this feeling today. Remember to celebrate those little pieces of gold. Remember, it's worth it!
