Kelly Bielonko Participates in Psychology Summer Research Institute

2017 May 30

The Department of Psychological Science at Eastern Connecticut State University held its 2017 Summer Research Institute on May 18-24 on the Eastern campus. This year's institute involved 10 undergraduate students and focused on the various factors that influence healthy eating. The institute was led by professors Jenna Scisco and Joseph Dracobly.

Among the participants was Kelly Bielonko '18 of Willington, whose independent study was titled "The Effects of Health Consciousness and Familiarity with Direct to Consumer Advertising on Perceptions of Natural Dietary Supplements and Their Prescription Counterparts." Bielonko majors in Psychology.

The Summer Research Institute introduced participants to topics about healthy food choices, including variables that influence our short- and long-term decisions about what foods to eat. The students also learned how to search and review peer-reviewed literature, develop a research question and design an empirical study to answer that question, as well as analyze their results using graphical and statistical analysis. After conducting their independent studies, each student developed a poster and presented it to the group.