Associate Professor, Psychology
Lisa Allen
My earliest research explored age-related changes in cognitive functioning, how memory and attention are affected by the aging process. Currently, my scholarly interests are in three areas: 1) The impact of personal and social context on memory, How do personal characteristics, experience and social context change the way we think and remember? This work has been conducted with the help of students in the CAMP research group; 2) Assessment of learning in higher education. What do professors want students to learn in college? What do students get out of their college experience? As a psychologist, I know that many human characteristics and capacities are difficult to measure accurately, with confidence. And many of the things that professors want students to get out of their college experience fall into the category of potentially unmeasurable qualities. You can learn more about this research at my website for the Dreams of Learning Project; and 3) statistical methods in psychology. How have statistical methods changed over time, and what should psychology majors be taught about statistics to be best prepared for careers and graduate school?
Shaw, R. J. (2017, July 27). “Assessing the Intangible in Our Students.” The Chronicle of Higher Education.
Shaw, R. J. (2014). [Review of the book “Freud and Augustine in Dialogue: Psychoanalysis, Mysticism and the Culture of Modern Spirituality,” by W. B. Parsons]. Augustinian Studies, 45, 334-339. DOI: 10.5840/augstudies201445236
Shaw, R. J. (2013). “Augustine’s Extraordinary Theory of Memory.” In S.L. Dixon, J. Doody, and K. Paffenroth (Eds.) Augustine and Psychology (pp. 185-202). Lanham, MD: Lexington Books.
Sendall, P., Shaw, R.J., Round, K., and Larkin, J.T. (2009). “Fear Factors: Hidden Challenges to Online Learning for Adults.” In T.T. Kidd (Ed.) Online Education and Adult Learning: New Frontiers for Teaching Practices. Hershey, PA: Information Science Reference.
Matvey, G., Dunlosky, J., Shaw, R.J., Parks, C., and Hertzog, C. (2002). “Age-Related Equivalence and Deficit in Knowledge Updating of Cue Effectiveness.” Psychology and Aging, 17, 589-597.
Shaw, R.J. (2002). “Using and Conducting Aging Research in Experimental Methods and Statistics Courses.” In S.K. Whitbourne and J.C. Cavanaugh (Eds.), “The Aging Dimension in Undergraduate Psychology Courses: A Practical Guide for Teaching” (pp. 43-56). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Long, L.L., and Shaw, R.J. (2000). “Adult Age Differences in Vocabulary Acquisition.” Educational Gerontology, 26, 651-664.
McDowd, J.M., and Shaw, R.J. (2000). “Attention and Aging: A Functional Perspective.” In F.I.M. Craik and T.A. Salthouse (Eds.), Handbook of Aging and Cognition, 2nd Ed. (pp. 221-292). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
An associate professor in Merrimack College’s School of Arts and Sciences, Noori’s research uses plant science to protect human health and restore environmental health.
