Written by Emma Thompson
Kristen Eggler, a senior Psychological Science major, is the 2019 recipient of the Minnesota Psychological Association Donald G. Paterson Undergraduate Award in Psychology. An outstanding student, Collegiate Fellow, Sigma Sigma Sigma member, and Chapel Choir singer, Kristen was nominated for the award by the Gustavus Psychological Science Department. Based on several factors, including her writing sample, GRE scores, and resume, she was determined an excellent candidate for the award.
At Gustavus, Kristen joined Psi Chi her sophomore year, Phi Beta Kappa her junior year, was nominated for the 2018-2020 Patricia Lindell Research Paper, and is striving toward receiving Honors in Psychological Science. Furthermore, she’s worked on three research projects at Gustavus. As part of her Honors project, she’s currently using an experimental design to see how changes in psychological functions influence performance on creativity tasks.
Kristen intends to pursue a doctoral degree in Industrial Organizational Psychology, a field that will allow her to study organizational culture, diversity, and women in leadership as they relate to overall employee wellbeing. She began to consider a degree in Industrial Organizational Psychology as a sophomore at Gustavus, when she realized that she had an interest in the connection between psychology and the workplace. “I knew I wanted to help make people have better experiences at work,” Kristen says, “because many of the people in my life at that time were going through stressful times at work.” To increase her knowledge of the field, she chose to study abroad in Denmark spring semester of 2018. There, she completed a variety of psychology courses on wellbeing and organizational psychology, and even had the opportunity to work with Danish consultants in the Industrial Organizational Psychology field, which solidified her decision to pursue an education in the field.
Receiving the Donald G. Paterson Undergraduate Award in Psychology is a true testament to Kristen’s hard work and character. She will attend the Minnesota Psychological Association’s Annual Conference in April to receive a plaque and to be recognized for her accomplishments.