Workshop: An Annual Retreat to Broaden Participation of Black Social and Personality Psychologists: Oregon 2019, Louisiana 2020

Society For Personality And Social Psychology, Annandale VA

Investigators

Abstract

This award was provided as part of NSF's Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences Postdoctoral Research Fellowship (SPRF) and Social Psychology programs. The Black Social and Personality Psychologists' Retreat (BlaSPR) is an annual conference that focuses on broadening the participation of Black scholars within the field of social and personality psychology. As of 2016, 3% of members within the international organization of social and personality psychologists (SPSP) self-identified as Black or African-American. The underrepresentation of Black members in the field means that graduate students and early career scholars are less likely than their White peers (who comprise 63% of SPSP membership) to have role models and mentors from their racial/ethnic group, negatively impacting persistence and perceived fit within the field. BlaSPR will create opportunities for Black scholars to build community among their peers and share critical information to facilitate success. The conference features workshops on professional development and productivity, research presentations, and collaborative writing time. A core emphasis throughout each component of the conference is helping attendees network among peers and connect with senior scholars who can serve as mentors. Ultimately, this conference offers an opportunity to enhance the professional and scientific development of Black social and personality psychologists and their colleagues, ensuring a robust pipeline of scholars who will serve as role models for future scientists and create more inclusive climates in higher education and science. Junior scholars face many hurdles as they traverse the pipeline from undergraduate study to graduate school and beyond. Although challenges and hurdles exist for people from all backgrounds who pursue graduate study in the fields of social and personality psychology, Black scholars represent a small proportion of the field, which creates additional academic and psychological challenges and hurdles. Attributional ambiguity can raise questions about whether one's treatment is because of their race or some other factor, and the lack of mentorship and low visibility of Black senior scholars can undermine sense of fit and belonging within the field to threaten persistence. This conference intervenes to mitigate these consequences and positively impact the professional trajectories of Black social and personality psychologists. Over two and a half days, attendees will attend professional development workshops on productivity, navigating the job market, and applying for fellowships; participate in research presentations where they will give and receive critical feedback; and network with peers and senior scholars who may ultimately become research collaborators, tenure letter writers, and accountability partners. Overall, by creating a space for Black scholars to reinforce these crucial research skills and build community, the proposed conference will help broaden the participation of Black social and personality psychologists. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.