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Academic Motivation & Resilience Lab
We are based in the intersection of developmental psychology, motivation, and education. Broadly, we study how students overcome various challenges in secondary and post-secondary education as they pursue and persist in educational goals. We focus on specific skills and strategies students use to attain difficult goals, like being the first in their family to go to college. Our lab is guided by students’ capacity for resilience and change as co-producers of their development.
Principal Investigator - Dr. Brandilynn Villarreal
Dr. Villarreal is a lifespan developmental psychologist with research interests in motivation and educational goal pursuit. She studies adolescents and young adults as they navigate the transition into adulthood, particularly through higher education. She has a special interest in motivational and self-regulatory strategies used by first-generation, low-income, and traditionally underrepresented students in academia.
How to Join
Undergraduate Students
Undergraduate research assistants are a valuable core part of our research team. As a research assistant, students have the opportunity to contribute to research projects, gain experience critiquing research articles, and share ideas with one another. Depending on your level of involvement, roles may include working on an Institutional Review Board (IRB) proposal, running research participants, or preparing a poster presentation to present at an academic research conference like Humboldt’s ideaFest or the Western Psychological Association (WPA) convention. Joining a research lab is especially valuable for undergraduates who will apply to graduate school.
If you are interested in becoming a research assistant in the Academic Motivation and Resilience Lab, send an academic resume or curriculum vitae (CV) to the Lab Manager Alice Zhang at alice.zhang@humboldt.edu. There is the possibility of earning units for your participation in the lab.
Please make sure to meet the following requirements:
- Completed PSYC 240 (Research Methods)
- Be able to attend weekly lab meetings for at least one semester, preferably two or more semesters
- Have an interest in academic success or educational goals (broadly defined), motivation, and/or groups that are traditionally underrepresented in academia (e.g., racially minoritized students, students with disabilities, nontraditional students, etc.)
Graduate Students
The Academic Motivation and Resilience Lab is currently seeking graduate applicants for the Academic Research (AR) M.A. or blended program in Psychology with a specialization in Developmental Psychology. Although specific research interests may vary, incoming students typically have an interest in academic success or educational goals (broadly defined), motivation, and/or groups that are traditionally underrepresented in academia (e.g., racially minoritized students, students with disabilities, nontraditional students, etc.).
If you are interested in applying to the AR program to work with Dr. Villarreal, send an email to brandilynn.villarreal@humboldt.edu. More information about the AR graduate program at Humboldt and application instructions can be found here: Academic Research Master's Program
Graduate Students
Rebecca Barish
Rebecca is completing her M.A. in Academic Research in Psychology with a specialization in Developmental Psychology. Rebecca is interested in the student-athlete population and is researching the relationship between academic performance, motivation, identity foreclosure, and athletic identity. During her undergrad, Rebecca used to tutor student-athletes as well as mentor them. She currently works as a Graduate Research Assistant as well as a Lab Assistant for the AMR Lab. She is also on the officers board of Scholars of Academic Research. Outside of academia, Rebecca loves to go golfing and spend time with her loved ones.
Kay Hall
Kay is a blended student completing her undergrad in Psychology with a minor in Early Childhood Development and her M.A. in Academic Research in Psychology. She transferred to Cal Poly Humboldt three years ago. Kay is interested in relationships with food, parenting and family relationships, and different types of education. Kay has experience working with children and currently works in childcare.
Skye Honor
Skye is completing her M.A. in Academic Research in Psychology with a specialization in Cognitive Psychology. She is currently researching the combined effects of humor on mindfulness, math anxiety, and performance. Her research interests include anxiety, academic performance, and cognitive reappraisal.
Gabriella Nakamaru
Gabriella is completing her M.A. in Academic Research in Psychology. She is from the Big Island of Hāwai’i, and her interest is in I/O Psychology and AI Research. Her thesis is on the Intentional use of AI in the Workplace where she will study the impact of AI use on motivation and performance-based variables. Specifically, if AI were to be used intentionally (AI-as-partner) or (AI-as-replacement), would that have an impact on motivational and performance-based outcomes? Gabriella works at Cal Poly Humboldt’s Office of Institutional Research, Analytics, and Reporting (IRAR) as an intern where she is responsible for cleaning and extracting data, and creating dashboards by building interesting and intuitive visuals to analyze trends and present data. At IRAR, Gabriella is able to apply skills from psychology and data analysis to make a change and support her future career in research and data analysis.
Alice Zhang
Alice is completing her M.A. in Academic Research in Psychology with a specialization in Developmental Psychology. Her research interests lie at the intersection between culture, education, and language. She completed a B.S. in Human Development with a minor in Education Studies, and has previously worked as an English educator abroad. Her current work examines ethnic identity and dual language programs, and how those contexts affect the development of ethnic identity in young children. She hopes that her research will help shed light on how schools can support children from non-English speaking households, and how they might better foster the growth and development of multilingual children.