Alumni
Former members of the Peer Relations Research Group have gone far and wide to do great things in other places.
Callie Gibson
Callie received her BA in 2012 from Samford University with a double major in Psychology and History. She received her MS in Experimental Psychology in 2014 from Georgia Southern University. She completed her PhD in 2018, with a dissertation titled “Who cares? Negative peer experiences and empathy for rejected others.” She is currently an Assistant Professor at Drury University in Springfield, MO. Callie enjoys reading, playing a variety of sports, and New Orleans Saints football.
Stephen Ungvary
Stephen received his BA in 2012 from SUNY Buffalo with a major in Psychology and a minor in Philosophy. Before graduate school, Stephen spent a year Boston, MA working for the Department of Children and Families. Stephen received his Master’s degree from the University of Alabama and completed his PhD in 2018. He currently works in market research at Skim.
Hwaheun Kim
Hwaheun received her BA from the University of Texas at Austin with a double major in Anthropology and Sociology and a minor in Violin. Hwaheun earned her MA in Experimental (Developmental) Psychology at UA in 2014. She completed her PhD at the University of Alabama in 2018. Hwaheun is currently an Assistant Professor at California State University at Bakersfield.
Kelsey Chapetta
Kelsey earned her BS from the University of New Orleans and her MS from the University of Louisiana at Monroe. Her research interests center around online dating, romantic relationships, attraction, gender roles, and computer mediated communication. She completed her PhD in 2018.
Blake Nielsen
Blake received his Bachelor’s degree from the University of Nebraska and his Master’s and PhD from the University of Alabama. Under the mentorship of Drs. Jeff Parker and Kristina McDonald, his research at Alabama explored children’s and adolescents’ experiences with their friends and other peers. His dissertation focused on the roles that parents played in promoting their children’s self-esteem and prosocial behavior.
He is now Assistant Professor at Monmouth College in Illinois. Within this liberal arts setting, He has enjoyed mentoring undergraduate students with their research endeavors, teaching courses in Developmental psychology and Research Methods, and serving as the faculty advisor for Monmouth College’s Psi Chi chapter.
Chris O’Brien
Chris graduated with his Ph.D. in 2014. He is currently an assistant professor at Chatham University.