HIGH POINT, N.C., Feb. 24, 2016 – High Point University psychology professor Dr. Deb Danzis was invited to present her research at the annual Society for Personality and Social Psychology (SPSP) conference held in San Diego at the end of January. HPU senior psychology majors Lisa Carlson and Lauren Rubenstein also presented their research at SPSP.
Danzis’ presentation titled, “Influence of Power on Interpersonal Behavior and Task-Related Experiences,” investigates the influence of power on social interaction.
“Results suggest that simply giving people power leads to subtle, but interesting changes in willingness to engage in social niceties, like making small talk or listening to others,” said Danzis. “The results suggest that these are due to a lack of effort in social interactions, not a reduction of attention or ability.”
Carlson’s research focused on the “Imposter Phenomenon,” which is the belief that one is not as skilled or competent as one appears and its correlation with other personality traits.
“At the SPSP conference, I had the chance to share what I had been working on and hear feedback on my work as to what I could do next, or what other things might be interesting to look at in the results,” said Carlson. “It has given me confidence in my work and has prepared me for future research I might work on.”
Rubenstein’s project focused on victim blaming in crime. Her results found that people’s tendency to blame a crime victim for his or her experience was related to both the type of crime committed and the gender of the victim and perpetrator. This project ties in to Rubenstein’s desired career path in forensic psychology.
“Conducting research as an undergraduate has given me a huge advantage for getting into graduate school,” said Rubenstein. “The skills 
that I have gained from this research project is something I will need for my future career in forensic psychology.”