Complimenting my context focused question, I ask myself this question on a daily basis. Taking social psychology courses have impacted my answer to this question. If our brain is trained to distinguish how the outgroup or “other” group is different, how can race relations in the U.S. ever change? In my Social Policy and Identity Research Lab, the study that impacted me the most was how even if a person is not explicitly racist in a hiring decision, the negative comments of peers towards the job candidate who is a person of color can cause an evaluator to rate that candidate more negatively. This study made me question further how much agency I have in my decision-making process. My experiences as a campus tour guide, orientation leader, and customer service employee has taught me that I can rattle my mind all I want but, ultimately, I have to meet people where they are at. College has helped me not take impacts of a naïve individual’s actions personally. I have grown a tougher skin over college. However, I do believe that the brain has the capacity for growth. How much the brain can learn will still be a question I have post-graduation.
Even if we study human behavior, will that change us?
What do we do with our knowledge? Public policy can implement social psychology phenomena, like stereotyping, to improve an institution. However, sometimes policy's goals can get lost in translation. I joined the Social Policy and Identity Research Lab (SPIR) under Dr. Ines Jurcevic the fall of my junior year. I learned how to create stimuli, code data, and review past literature for studies that peaked my innate interests. We studied at diversity policies in companies, the impacts of revealing a concealable stigma, and dynamics of hiring committees. This lab bridge the gap between what I was learning in the classroom and what I was experiencing in the real world.
Do we actively seek new experience?
I was lucky enough to receive an offer to become the Consular Affairs Intern at the U.S. Embassy in Kathmandu, Nepal. The location was my first choice as I wanted to see how Hinduism and Buddhism interacted in this South Asian country across the world. Over the summer, I helped American citizens navigate emergency situations, participated in educational outreach and spoke Nepali to citizens looking to obtain visas to America. Everyday new challenges would arise and I absolutely loved it. One day I would be focusing on immigration visas and another day processing new passport applications. In addition, my interactions with the local staff greatly enhanced my learning of the culture. They taught me how to address people respectfully, what the names of people signify, and how to barter with local taxis. I am thankful that I had a whole team to teach me the ins and outs of living in Nepal.