Support Page Content
MS in Psychological Research
Students in the Psychological Research program can create individual programs in conjunction with the faculty to prepare for doctoral programs and careers in a variety of specialized fields such as:
- Clinical (Clinically-oriented students in this program will train in clinical research, but will not receive formal clinical skills training or earn licensure).
- Cognitive
- Community
- Cultural
- Developmental
- Educational
- Evolutionary
- Experimental
- Neuroscience
- Quantitative
- Social Psychology
Students also take graduate courses in research methods, analysis of variance, multiple regression analysis, multivariate analysis, and psychological measurement.
Psychological Research Program Catalog Information
Psychological Research M.S.
Psychological Research M.S. students regularly participate in supervisory and experiential coursework beginning in their first semester and continue each semester after that. These students involve themselves in research projects, either as members of research teams or individually under the supervision of a faculty member.
Upon completion, they present their work at a variety of research conferences including the Sacramento Valley Psychological Association's Student Research Conference, Western Psychological Association Research Conference, and other local, regional, and national meetings.
Students may also have the opportunity to acquire experience as Teaching Associates (paid instructors of record) or as Instructional Student Assistants (paid) in our undergraduate lower division and lab courses.
Admission Requirements & Application Instructions
Psychological Research Faculty
Applicants will be asked to select and rank three faculty from the list below in their application. Please review the table below to determine which faculty will be accepting applicants for Fall 2027.
| Name | Subdiscipline | Research Interests | Contact Information | Accepting applications for Fall 2027 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Itzel Aceves Azuara, Ph.D. (UC Santa Cruz) | Cultural Psychology | Sociocultural Developmental Psychology, Cultural Differences In Childrearing Practices, Cultural Differences in Collaboration, Communication, and Attentiveness, Strengths for Learning of Latinx and Indigenous Children of the Americas. | itzel.aceves-azuara@csus.edu | Yes |
| Phillip Akutsu, Ph.D. (UCLA) | Clinical Psychology | Help-seeking, Referral, and Mental Health Service Use and Delivery, Racial/Interpersonal Microaggressions, Abuse, and Intervention, Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology. | akutsup@csus.edu | No |
| Lisa Bohon, Ph.D. (UC Riverside) | Social/Evolutionary Psychology | Life History and Risk, Evolutionary Psychology, Social Cognition. | bohonlm@csus.edu | No |
| Jeff Calton, Ph.D. (University of Missouri) | Behavioral Neuroscience | Spatial Cognition, Animal Navigation, Physiology of Learning. | calton@csus.edu | No |
| Melikşah Demir, Ph.D. (Wayne State University) | Developmental Psychology and Happiness | Happiness, Happiness Interventions, Culture, Close Relationships, Romantic Relationships, Friendship, Playfulness, Need Satisfaction, Capitalization, Responsiveness, Perceived Understanding, Volunteer Bias. | demir@csus.edu | Yes |
| Erin Ellison, Ph.D. (UC Santa Cruz) | Community Psychology | Relational Empowerment, Collective Action, Mutual Aid, Youth and Community Development, Intersectional Solidarity (community organizing across difference), Community Responses to Housing Issues, Critical Social-Community Psychology. Methodologies: Ethnography, Participatory Action Research, Social Network Analysis. | ellison@csus.edu | Yes |
| Sharon Flicker, Ph.D. (University of New Mexico) | Clinical Psychology | Romantic Relationships, Love Languages, Consensual Non-Monogamy, Polyamory, Family Relationships. | flicker@csus.edu | Yes |
| Paulette Garcia Peraza, Ph.D. (UC Santa Cruz) | Cultural Psychology | Culture of Higher Education, Minority Serving Institutions, Strengths of First-Generation Working-Class Youth of Color, Women of Color in Academia, Intersectional Identities, Identity Development. | garciaperaza@csus.edu | Yes |
| David Giguere, Ph.D. (Florida Atlantic University) | Developmental Psychology | Bilingual Language Development, Reading Comprehension, Heritage Language Acquisition, Executive Functions and the Bilingual Advantage, School Readiness, and Ultimate Dual Language Attainment. | giguere@csus.edu | Yes |
| Lisa Harrison, Ph.D. (University of Nebraska) | Social Psychology | Conscious and Nonconscious Biases, Stigma and Discrimination, Feminist Psychology, Psychology of Gender. | laharrison@csus.edu | Yes |
| Greg Kim-Ju, Ph.D. (Boston College) | Cultural and Community Psychology | School- and Community-based Research and Intervention Programs, Racial and Ethnic Identities, Diversity and Perceptions of Race and Ethnicity, Diaspora and Transnationalism, and Civic Engagement. | kimju@csus.edu | Yes |
| Casey Knifsend, Ph.D. (UCLA) | Developmental and Community Psychology | Schools, After-School Programs, Positive Youth Development, Extracurricular Activities, Sports, Childhood, Adolescence | casey.knifsend@csus.edu | Yes |
| Alexandra Morrison, Ph.D. (Temple University) | Cognitive Psychology - Attention and Working Memory | Working Memory, Cognitive Overload, Memory Enhancement Strategies, Cognitive Offloading | alexandra.morrison@csus.edu | No |
| Jianjian (J.J.) Qin, Ph.D. (UC Davis) | Cognitive Psychology - Eyewitness Memory and Memory Errors | Eyewitness Memory and Suggestibility, False Memory and Memory Errors, Source Monitoring, and Effects of Technology and AI on Learning and Cognitive Functioning. | qinj@csus.edu | Yes |
| Zach Schudson, Ph.D. (University of Michigan) | Social Psychology | Queer and Feminist Psychology, LGBTQ+ Identities and Self-Concepts, Prejudice, Psychological Essentialism, Historical Knowledge. | schudson@csus.edu | Yes |
| Kehan Shen, Ph.D. (University of Kansas) | Counseling Psychology | Counseling and Psychotherapy Process and Outcome, Multicultural Counseling, Cultural Factors in Mental Health, International Psychology, Health Psychology, Psychosocial Factors in Chronic Medical Conditions. | k.shen@csus.edu | Yes |
| Emily Wickelgren, Ph.D. (Indiana University) | Cognitive Psychology - Sensation and Perception | Pedagogy, Visual Event Perception, Affordances, Perception/Action, Human Factors. | wickelgr@csus.edu | No |
| Brittany Young, Ph.D. (UC Santa Cruz) | Developmental and Multicultural Psychology | Emerging Adulthood, Adolescence, Ethnic/Racial Identity Development, Racial Microaggressions, Intergroup and Intragroup attitudes, Resilience, Sense of Belonging. | b.young@csus.edu | No |