Article archive / March 1, 2015
Originally published: . Volume 6, No. 3. Source pages: 15.
Wichita, KS Southwestern Psychological Association April 10 to 12
The Southwestern Psychological Association (SWPA) will hold its Annual Conference at the Hyatt Regency in Wichita Kansas. from April 10 to 12, Friday to Sunday. The theme of this year’s conference is “Myths Meet Science.”
The Louisiana representative for SWPA is Dr. Kilian Garvey, Assistant Professor in the School of Behavioral & Social Sciences at the University of Louisiana at Monroe.
According to the program, one of the keynote speakers is APA Distinguished Scientist Lecturer Norbert Schwarz, Provost Professor in the Department of Psychology and Marshall School of Business University of Southern California. He will speak on “The Challenge of Debunking Myths: When Weird Ideas Feel True.”
Schwarz will discuss, how from “politics to the market place and work place, people often endorse beliefs that lack factual support. Worse, misinformation is notoriously difficult to correct and correction efforts may even backfire.”
In most cases, he says, “people rely on a subset of five criteria in evaluating truth: Is it compatible with other things I believe? Is it internally consistent? Does it tell a plausible story? Does it come from a credible source? Are there many supporting arguments?”
Other presenters include the Saul Sells Lecturer, Regan Gurung, Professor, University of Wisconsin – Green Bay from the Society for the Teaching of Psychology Master Teacher. His talk is, “Wearing Our Personalities? Examining Clothing Myths, Impression Formation, & Objectification.”
Other highlights include a Forensics Psychology Lecture that will be presented by Dr. Heather Berlin, Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Neuroscience at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, titled, “The Neuroscience of Free Will: Legal Implications.”
Dr. Travis Langley, Professor of Psychology at Henderson State University will discuss, “The Filter of Fiction: How Batman, Buffy, Breaking Bad, and More Teach Real Psychology.” Langley (Batman and Psychology: A Dark and Stormy Knight) explores “how the filter of fiction lets us face the best and worst events in life.”
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