Research Interests
Parental Regret
With the anonymity of the internet more parents are coming forward to confess that if they could go back in time, they would not have children. My dissertation research looks at these individuals with a goal of understanding the predictors, specific regrets, and well-being of parents who regret their decision to have children. The ultimate goal of this research is to help parents experiencing such regret through the development of a theoretical model of parental regret, a Parental Regret Scale, and an intervention designed to help parents see their decision in a more positive light as well as to help individuals make a more informed decision when thinking about having children.
Women Creators
Historically, and into today, many women feel the need to create and publish under male pseudonyms. My master's thesis looked specifically at perceptions of women authors in comparison to male authors with the goal of examining whether people evaluate fiction passages differently if they believe the author to be male or female. This work also examines the seemingly negative evaluation of romance novels, despite the overwhelming popularity of the genre.
Sex Positivity
The term 'sex positivity' has become more commonplace in recent years both in popular media and in academic works. However, little research has been done examining what it is and its real-world effects. My research aims to better understand what we mean when we talk about sex positivity and develop an associated scale. From here we will be able to better examine the many claims that have been made about the benefits and drawbacks of sex positivity
Commitment to Transparency
I am committed to being open and transparent in all my research. All of my work will be preregistered prior to data being analyzed and all data, code, and materials from my personal research will be posted on the Open Science Framework.