Research Symposium

BIO

I am pursuing a major in Behavioral neuroscience with a certificate in developmental
disabilities. My inspiration to go into this field comes from my little brother who was diagnosed
with Autism at the age of two. As he grew up, I worked closely with him on basic things such as
reading and writing, but also more complex things like such as
understanding others’ emotions and eating mixed foods. While teaching my brother these everyday
tasks I realized I had a passion for helping children with developmental disabilities. This fueled
my interest in behavioral neuroscience as I continued to work with children who have disorders
such as Jordan's Syndrome, Autism, ADHD, Anxiety, Depression, Disruptive Mood
Dysregulation Disorder, and Down Syndrome.Although understanding how
people present their behavior is fascinating, I am equally interested in how the behavior is
expressed in the brain. I would like to become a Child Psychiatrist while working specifically with individuals who have Neurodevelopmental disabilities.

Fostering Intercultural Interactions and Outcomes for Graduate Students Through Internationalization-at-Home Efforts

Abstract

This study examines the Intercultural interactions between domestic graduate students and international graduate students through the cultural partner program. In higher education within the United States, intercultural efforts are of utmost importance to help with cultural sensitivity and intercultural competency. These efforts help combat common multicultural stigmas and biases that American students may hold. The study comprises of nighty seven participants from the southeastern region of the United States. The experimental group of this study had sixty-eight participants. All these participants were paired with an international graduate-level student to complete multicultural activities throughout the semester. The students in the study had to complete other tasks such as pre-and post-surveys which included psychosocial measures such as well-being, stress, intercultural sensitivity, mindfulness, and perceived support. The statistical analysis found a significant difference in the variable of well-being, however, none of the other variables had a significant difference. Statistical analyses of the data found that there were improved reports of stress, perceived support, and interaction attentiveness throughout the semester.

Keywords: Intercultural, Diversity, Internationalization-at-home