As I’ve said on several occasions and am stating here on the web—overseeing the New Paltz Evolutionary Psychology lab is (to my mind…) the best part of my job! Members of the lab tend to be simply awesome and this fact helps us thrive. In recent years, our lab is averaging well over 5 publications a year—with most students in the lab acquiring multiple co-authored academic articles and giving multiple conference presentations during their time here.

Our publications include books with Oxford University Press and Cambridge University Press along with some major academic journals such as Nature’s Science Research, Public Library of Science One, Personality and Individual Differences, Proceedings of the National Academy of Science—and more. Way more.

And alumni of our lab succeed—getting into PhD programs at places like UC Davis, the University of Chicago, the University of Alabama, Binghamton University, Kansas State University, the University of Florida—and more.

While the two main themes of my own current research focus (generally) on positive evolutionary psychology as well as the nature of evolutionary psychology within the landscape of higher education, I strongly encourage students who are established in the lab to follow their own interests—leading to projects on such varied issues as the evolutionary psychology of body piercing (published in Review of General Psychology), the evolutionary psychology of sport (published in PLOS ONE), the evolutionary psychology of emotions, the evolutionary psychology of clinical disorders, the evolutionary psychology of music, the evolutionary psychology of fitness, the evolutionary psychology of politics, and more. Most recently, we’ve been focusing on different facets of Positive Evolutionary Psychology. We’re a productive and diverse team with interests that span the issue of what it means to be human. See our lab publications found here for more information.

This page is designed for people who are in the lab or who are interested in joining the team.

Lab Application

Each year, our lab has supervisors who work closely with Glenn to set the agenda for meetings, organize our work, etc. As a team, we look over applications to join the lab in determining membership (based on things like GPA, extant coursework, etc.). The application is found here. If you are interested in joining the lab, please complete that application and email in pdf format to Glenn (geherg@newpaltz.edu).

WHO is in the lab?

The lab has myself (Glenn) as director—and we usually have an advanced graduate (or undergraduate) student (or multiple such students) as the “lab supervisor(s)” who takes care of much in the way of logistics and organization. We often also have a communication liaison to help with getting information where it needs to go.

Typically, our lab will have between about 8-15 members. We shoot for about 10-12 as optimal. We have no shortage of ideas or projects and welcome highly motivated and team-oriented folks to join us!

The full list of lab members (found here) includes current grad students, current undergraduates, alumni of the program, affiliated faculty from New Paltz, and affiliated faculty from other institutions.

When does the lab meet?

Generally, the lab meets on Fridays at 4 (or sometimes 4:15 or 4:30) during the semester (with special meetings called as needed). Students in the lab often meet with me during my office hours too (or meet with one another on specialized project teams) as needed. Note that our weekly meetings usually go about 2.5 hours. And attendance at these meetings is pretty much required.

Before NEEPS each year, we gear up to give presentations (we are usually in competition with labs at Albany and Binghamton for the strongest numbers and presence at the conference–and we usually show pretty darn well!). The conference is usually in late Spring. And we present at other conferences as well (such as the on-campus Student Research Symposium and the annual meeting of the Human Behavior and Evolution Society, for example).

How do I get “credit” for my work in the lab?

Students in the lab have the option to either simply work on a volunteer status or, in some cases, students  get “independent study” credit (either PSY or EVO 495 (if undergraduate) or PSY or EVO 595 (if graduate-level)). And if a student is working on their thesis, they will typically get credit for that during their time (sometimes instead of independent study—sometimes in addition to it—driven by what’s best for the student’s situation). If it’s best for a student (given his or her situation) to not receive credit for a semester and to “volunteer,” that’s typically fine too.

As you can see by the web pages of our students (linked from the page found here), “credit” often comes in the form of scholarly presentations at conferences (usually partly funded by the university) and co-authorship on articles or even scholarly books. In fact, it’s fair and accurate to say that some of the members of our lab—at the MA level—have as many scholarly publications as would be needed for a professor to get tenure at many universities across the country. Yeah, we’re that productive!

What about the World-Renowned EvoS Seminar Series in Spring?

The SUNY New Paltz Evolutionary Studies (EvoS) Seminar Series is, to my mind, the best thing related to evolution that we have on campus—and while it’s not directly related to our lab, I strongly encourage all members of our lab to attend all the talks in the series (typically given by the top scholars in the world on topics related to evolution). This series is traditionally co-sponsored by the EvoS Club (which includes students from across campus) and we encourage students in the lab to participate in the Club (it’s fun!).

Further, often, students in our lab will sometimes work as a “course assistant” for the undergraduate EVO 301 course tied to the seminar series—working with me (when I teach it) or with other instructors of the course. This is typically given as EVO 495 or 595 credit. And it’s something that I strongly recommend doing as a member of the lab. The Seminar Series has connected so many of our lab members to important figures in the field and has led to many collaborative projects with our students’ work showcased in presentations and publications.

EvoS Club

The EvoS Club is a campus-wide club dedicated to supporting activities related to evolutionary studies at New Paltz. Often (almost always?) the members of the EP Lab play a major role in leading this club. The club has access to some of the the $1,000,000+ generated for the Student Association each year—and these monies can be used for all kinds of activities (supporting student travel to conferences, inviting speakers from afar, field trips, parties, etc.). As a member of the EP lab, definitely consider joining the EvoS Club!

Communication

While we communicate via email, primarily use a “secret” Facebook group, which seems to provide for efficient and thorough communication among the group. Make sure to join the FB group if you’re in the lab (even if just for the purposes of lab communication).

Funding

For research projects and student travel to present at conferences, funding may be available. The Graduate School offers money—as does SA and the Psychology Department. And even other possible sources exist. Information on funding opportunities is often posted on the FB group site.

And if you’re a scholar at another school interested in collaborating with our lab for a semester with our lab (such as during a sabbatical), note that we are able to house a visiting scholar—and our visits with David Widman of Juniata and Sethu Karthikeyan in this capacity were both hugely successful–leading to lots of projects being both started and, in several cases, completed! In a short amount of time. Something to think about. Our space could be expanded and improved, and parking on campus is not a walk in the park, but our lab is really awesome and we often can benefit from the help of “another evolutionary psychologist” being around!

What do I do once I’m in the lab?

Below is typical summary of “what you’d do,” semester by semester, if you’re a member of our lab for two years (a typical stint):

First Semester

Attend all lab meetings, give a presentation on something you might be interested in studying, maybe sign up for “independent study” credits. Jump on an existing project or two being done by “advanced” students in the lab. Start thinking about a project or project that you’d like to oversee. Think about playing a role in the EvoS Seminar Series, EvoS Club, and attending/presenting at NEEPS. Take whatever classes you need and do very well in them!

Second Semester

Continue to attend all lab meetings—and possibly get independent study credit. If you’re a graduate student, think about starting a thesis proposal. Continue work on any projects you’re working on. Plan for NEEPS or whatever other events the lab is working toward at the time. Take whatever classes you need and do very well in them!

Third Semester

Continue to attend all lab meetings—and, again, possibly get independent study credit. If you’re an MA student, defend your thesis proposal and start/complete your HREB materials for your thesis. Make progress on whatever additional projects you’re working on. Take whatever classes you need and do very well in them! If you’re planning to head to a PhD program after this, you probably want to apply to programs now—and talk with me about different possibilities and the process.

Fourth Semester

Continue to attend all lab meetings—and, again, possibly get independent study credit. If you’re an MA student, you’ll need to do “thesis credits” and complete your thesis—and meet with me a bunch of times to go over it (including data analysis and write-up and scheduling the defense with the committee). Defend your thesis. Prepare for NEEPS, HBES, or whatever the lab is working on at the time. Play a major role in the EvoS Seminar Series—always. Make progress on whatever additional projects you’re working on. Take whatever classes you need and do very well in them (if you still have classes to take)! If you’re planning on this being your last semester, work with the lab to make sure that projects you’re working on have some kind of plan for completion or handoff.

Teamwork

Teamwork is what allows our lab to be so successful. Any given project typically has a team of between 2-8 people from the lab on board. We divide up the tasks, work together, work often with collaborators at other institutions, and we never fail! The EP lab is always comprised of students who are intrinsically motivated—and who are task-oriented. In other words, people in our group genuinely believe (a) “I want very much to do this work” and (b) “I’m going to do the work not until 5pm, but until the task is complete.”

We work together, we help each other, and we have fun. And we try to win the campuswide kickball tournament each Spring!

Questions? Concerns? Feeling like you need guidance?

See me! At the end of the day, the EP lab is absolutely essential to my work, and making sure that all members of the lab feel like they have purpose and know what to do to succeed is foundational for me. Meeting with me is usually best during my office hours (posted at glenngeher.com). Your success is my success is the lab’s success!

Your Future

I hope that each graduate of our lab learns the following:

– An awful lot about evolutionary psychology!

– The fact that work is fun.

– The fact that there are huge benefits to working as a team.

– The fact that mutual respect, hard work, and a positive attitude go a longer way than you can imagine.

– Doing great scholarship related to evolutionary psychology is within your reach.

– Note that I graduated college with a 3.22 and I doubt I would have gotten into SUNY New Paltz based on my high school grades–if I can succeed in this field, so can you!

– What you put in is what you get out.

– The stars are 100% within your grasp.

We like to keep our alumni close—by featuring them on our lab page, continuing collaborative projects, getting together at conferences, inviting them to campus for special events, etc. Membership in the lab doesn’t have to end with graduation!

Thanks NP EP Lab for being the best team I could ever hope to work with! Looking forward to being able to continue to make this claim for decades to come!