Diversity and Inclusion in Psychology Programs

The University at Albany Psychology Programs welcome and celebrate  all people of any race, color, religion, creed, sex, pregnancy status, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, national origin, ancestry, age, veteran status, or disability. The Department of Psychology Diversity Committee continues to incorporate feedback and communicate changes in policies, programs, and resources to ensure inclusion and equity in our programs.

Each of our programs values a broad range of perspectives, recognizes diversity science as core to advancing knowledge and inclusivity in the discipline, and offers multiple opportunities for our students to learn about topics related to diversity, equity, and inclusion through coursework, research, and training opportunities. We are committed to fostering an environment that values and emphasizes multiculturalism and diversity of all kinds across our research, professional, and clinical endeavors, both within our programs and in the wider communities we serve.

Graduate Coursework

Our faculty foster an inclusive classroom environment in all our graduate courses by incorporating scholarship from diverse authors and focusing on diverse populations and samples to address issues related to race and ethnicity, socioeconomic status, age, gender, and sexual orientation, among other issues.

Selected Diversity-Related Courses

  • Cultural Diversity and Mental Health
  • Professional Issues and Current Directions in Clinical Psychology
  • Clinical Child Psychology
  • Survey of Developmental Psychology
  • Social Psychology and Law
  • Intergroup Relations
  • Workplace Diversity and Discrimination

Research

Many of our faculty and students have strong interests related to diversity, equity, and inclusion and actively explore these topics in their scholarship and research. Below are some highlights of such research conducted within the department.

Clinical Psychology Program
Social-Personality Psychology Program
Industrial and Organizational Psychology
  • Gender and cultural influences on performance appraisals (Roch lab)
  • Fair and equitable selection decisions (Dalal lab)
  • Minority health disparities (Dalal lab)
Cognitive Psychology Program
Clinical Training and Practice

The Clinical Psychology program further offers unique opportunities to integrate multicultural knowledge built in the classroom with clinical training and practice. In addition to working with diverse local populations, some clinical practicum sites incorporate seminars and didactic training on topics related to diversity. Of note, we have the opportunity to serve the following communities:

  • Racial/ethnic, gender, and sexual minority youth and families (Rensselaer County Mental Health, Psychological Services Center)
  • Low SES individuals & families (VA Medical Center, Albany Medical Center, Rensselaer County Mental Health, Psychological Services Center)
  • Learning, developmental, and intellectual disabilities in youth and adults (Center for Autism and Related Disabilities, Albany Medical Center, Sunnyview Rehabilitation Hospital)

 

Student Support

Each of our programs is committed to ensuring that students are supported during their time at Albany. 

  • Graduate student representatives from our five core areas serve alongside faculty on the department’s Diversity and Inclusion Committee, amplifying student voices in our broader efforts to increase the climate for diversity and inclusion. 
  • Students from all backgrounds are encouraged to engage with laboratory research and connect with faculty and peers both in and out of the classroom.

  • The department also promotes the work of student-led groups. Two such groups include the Psychology Undergraduate Mentoring Program (PUMP), and the Psychology Graduate Students of Color Committee (PGSOC). These groups offer both formal and informal opportunities for students to support and network with one another.

    • PUMP connects undergraduate psychology students – especially those from backgrounds that are underrepresented in STEM – with graduate students who provide mentorship and guidance regarding research training, career exploration, and professional development. 
    • PGSOC facilitates networking and professional development opportunities for graduate students of color across all five of our areas. Of note, PGSOC hosts professional development seminars and organizes social events throughout the Albany area each semester which allow students and faculty of color to build community and connect with one another in a more relaxed setting. 

    Finally, our faculty actively support research from students of underrepresented backgrounds, helping students identify and secure internal and external funding opportunities aimed at diversifying the field of psychology. Here are a few examples of support mechanisms offered through UAlbany:

    • Carson Carr Graduate Diversity Fellowship
    • CEMHD Presidential Doctoral Fellowship for Research Training in Health Disparities
    • UAlbany Initiatives for Women Award
       

Publications

Selected Recent Publications
  • Dowden, A., Danna, G., Randall, J. G., & Dalal, D. K. (2023). Selecting and training contact tracers to address minority health disparities: Lessons from COVID-19. In H. Rodriguez, D. B. Gayle, D. Holtgrave, L. Warner, & T. Pardo (Eds.), Addressing differential impacts of COVID-19 in New York State. Albany, NY: SUNY Press.
  • Flagg, A. M., Welch, L., Chong, L. S., Gordis, E., Lin, B. (2023). Exploring Differential Impacts of COVID-19 Related Fear and Psychological Health Consequences on College Students. Addressing Differential Impacts of COVID-19 in New York State. Albany, NY: SUNY Press.
  • Chong, L. S., Lin, B., & Gordis, E. (2023). Racial differences in sympathetic nervous system indicators: Implications and challenges for research. Biological Psychology, 177, 108496. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biopsycho.2023.108496
  • Lin, B., Flagg, A. M., Yeo, A. J., Pieterse, A. (2022). The psychophysiological salience of past experiences of discrimination. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology.
  • Lin, B., Appleton, A. (2022). Developmental Origins of Pregnancy-Related Morbidity and Mortality in Black U.S. Women. Frontiers in Public Health, 10:853018. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2022.853018
  • Yeo, A. J., Halpern, L. F., Flagg, A. M., Lin, B. (2022). Discrimination and depressive symptoms among Black and Asian American College Students: Shared and Group-Specific Processes of Self-Concept. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology. doi: 10.1037/cdp0000549.
  • Yeo, A. J., Flagg, A. M., Lin, B., Crnic, K. A., Gonzales, N. A., Luecken, L. J. (2021). The integrative model of family stress underlying Spanish and English vocabulary development in Mexican American children: Unique effects of financial and sociocultural hardships. Developmental Psychology, 57(11), 1880-1892. doi: 10.1037/dev0001249
  • Altman, B. R., Mian, M. N., Dalal, D., Ueno, L. F., Luba, R., Slavin, M. N., & Earleywine, M. (2021). Gender-based differential item functioning in the Cannabis-Associated Problems Questionnaire: A replication and extension. Addictive Behaviors, 112, 106658.
  • Lin, B., Lemery-Chalfant K., Beekman, C., Crnic, K.A., Gonzales, N.A., Luecken, L.J., (2021). Infant temperament profiles, cultural orientation, and toddler behavioral and physiological regulation in Mexican American families. Child Development, 92(6), e1110-e1125. doi: 10.1111/cdev.13637
  • Ciancetta*, L., & Roch, S. G. (2021). The role of gender in performance feedback: Uncovering new areas of the backlash effect. Human Resource Management, 60(4), 641-657. https://doi.org/10.1002/hrm.22059
  • Boswell, J.F., Constantino, M.J., Coyne, A.E., & Kraus, D.R. (2021). For whom does a match matter most? Patient-level moderators of evidence-based patient-therapist matching. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 90, 61-74. https://dx.doi.org/10.1037/ccp0000644
  • Scharff, A., Roberson, K., Sutherland, M.E., & Boswell, J.F. (2021). Black therapists working with Black clients: Intervention use and caseload preferences. Practice Innovations. 6(2), 77–88. https://doi.org/10.1037/pri0000147
  • Dalal, D. K., Randall, J. G., Danna, G. C.*, & Ash, J.* (January, 2021). Key Psychological Characteristics Related to Success as a Contact Tracer. Differential Impacts of COVID-19 in New York State: Understanding and eliminating minority health disparities in a 21st-century pandemic White Paper Series.
  • Lin, B., Yeo, A. J., Roubinov, D., Luecken, L. J. (2020). Effects of maternal and paternal postnatal depressive symptoms on infants' parasympathetic regulation in low-income, Mexican American families. Developmental Psychobiology. doi: 10.1002/dev.22073
  • Randall, J. G., Dalal, D. K., & Dowden, A.* (November, 2020). Improving contact tracing in minority communities by combating misinformation and distrust. Differential Impacts of COVID-19 in New York State: Understanding and eliminating minority health disparities in a 21st-century pandemic White Paper Series.
  • Refki, D., Ahmed, R., Altarriba, J. (2021). Closing the Health Disparity Gap in U.S.Immigrant Communities in the Era of COVID-19: A Narrative Review. Understanding and eliminating minority health disparities in a 21st-century pandemic: A White Paper Collection. University at Albany, SUNY: Scholars Archive.
  • Najdowski, C. J. (2023). How the “Black criminal” stereotype shapes Black people’s psychological experience of policing: Evidence of stereotype threat and remaining questions. American Psychologist, 78(5), 695-713. https://doi.org/10.1037/amp0001159
  • Najdowski, C. J., & Goff, P. A. (2022). Towards a psychological science of abolition democracy: Insights for improving theory and research on race and public safety. Social Issues and Policy Review, 16(1), 33-78. https://doi.org/10.1111/sipr.12083
  • Najdowski, C. J., & Stevenson, M. C. (2022). A call to dismantle systemic racism in criminal legal systems. Law and Human Behavior, 46(6), 398-414. https://doi.org/10.1037/lhb0000510
  • Noel, M., & Najdowski, C. J. (2022). Caregivers’ expectations, reflected appraisals, and arrests among adolescents who experienced parental incarceration. Youth & Society, 54(7), 1099-1125. https://doi.org/10.1177/0044118X20951068
  • Najdowski, C. J., Bernstein, K. M., & Wahrer, K. (2020). Do racial stereotypes contribute to medical misdiagnosis of child abuse? Investigating tunnel vision in the emergency room. Wrongful Conviction Law Review, 1(2), 153-180. https://doi.org/10.29173/wclawr23
  • Najdowski, C. J., & Weintraub, J. N. (2020). Juror gender and confession evidence: An exploratory study of effects on empathy and trial outcomes for juvenile defendants. Journal of Experimental Criminology, 16, 595-606. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11292-019-09396-9
  • Reiman, A. K., Ocasio, T. S., & Mezzapelle, J. L. (2023). How cisgender people define “transgender” is associated with attitudes toward transgender people. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 52(3), 991-1007.
  • Mezzapelle, J. L., & Reiman, A. K. (2023). How Do Non-Black U.S. College Students Think They Would Feel After Committing a Race-Related Interpersonal Transgression? Race & Social Problems, 15, 474–489. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12552-023-09392-9
  • Hayes, T. R., & Reiman, A.-K. (2022). Evoking gender distinctiveness threat in cisgender women lowers their support for gender-inclusive bathroom policies. Group Processes & Intergroup Relations, 25(7), 1760-1780. https://doi.org/10.1177/13684302211042417