Fall 2018 Lab Members (Part 3)

Ethan Perkins

This summer, I was fortunate enough to work in Dr. Reavis’ Peer Lab, where I helped with studies involving bullying, praise, & disgust. This was one of the most rewarding experiences of the summer, as I got a first-hand look at what a full-time (or closer to full-time) research job might look like. Being able to spend hours researching a specific topic can get taxing, but finally applying that knowledge to help create a study is one of the most rewarding things you can do. The Peer Lab is rewarding for a variety of reasons, but I like it most because it allows you to work on different projects in different roles. This is both rewarding in and of itself and helpful for those who have not yet decided how they want to integrate their interest in human behavior into their future, whether it relates to what graduate school they apply to, how they approach their medical career, who they specialize with during their social work, and more.

After my summer research position, I was fortunate enough to visit a close friend in Brazil. The trip was fantastic – having never been to Brazil before, it was nice to have someone to help me skip some of the more touristy sites. I was also able to go during the World Cup, which is in my personal view one of the best times to go. While Brazil did not end up winning the World Cup, being able to root for the home team in a country so involved in soccer was great.

Jada Wilbanks

This summer I worked as a behavioral and inclusiveness intern in downtown Indianapolis. I helped out with dealing with children with behavioral issues and creating weekly lesson plans. I wanted to work in the Peer Lab in order to gain more experience with children in a research setting and to further my knowledge about the research process in Psychology.