Presenting “The Associations Between Early Adversity, Recent Life Stress, and Disordered Eating Habits”
Author: Amber Alzufari | Majors: Biology and Psychology | Semester: Spring 2023
My name is Amber Alzufari, and I am a senior majoring in biology and psychology with minors in medical humanities, global studies, and Arabic. I’ve been involved in the ASCAN Lab in the psychology department since my sophomore year, and I recently had the opportunity to present my research at the National Conference on Undergraduate Research. My presented research, the same research I recently defended as my thesis, is entitled “The Associations Between Early Adversity, Recent Life Stress, and Disordered Eating Habits.” As the title suggests, the project looks to examine if and how two different types of stress, early life stress and recent life stress, interact to predict the frequency of several types of disordered eating behaviors.
To apply, I submitted an abstract of my work to the program after hearing about the conference through the Honors College last fall, and I heard back regarding my acceptance to the experience early this spring semester. I was excited to have the opportunity to attend and present my research. Having the opportunity to share my research with other research-oriented individuals was what encouraged me the most to attend the conference. The National Conference on Undergraduate Research (NCUR) was hosted by the University of Wisconsin in Eau Claire- a small college town enveloped by beautiful nature and deep-rooted indigenous history. The theme of the conference was “Research at the Confluence,” which was meant to represent a “bringing together” of artistic fields and other disciplines. NCUR hosted about 3,000 individuals, each with unique perspectives and projects. In addition to research presentations, there were art exhibits, keynote speakers, and a seemingly endless opportunity to network.
Because I had never attended a conference of presented my research through a poster session, the thought of sharing my research with others filled me with anxiety at first. During a poster session, you set up your poster, develop a short spiel to summarize your project, and answer any questions attendees might have. Although I knew my spiel backwards and forwards, I was worried the attendees might ask questions I wouldn’t know the answer to or be unnecessarily critical- neither of these concerns ended up being valid. While presenting, I realized that I was a lot more comfortable talking about the subject matter than I had originally thought. Beyond simply knowing the information, it turned out I enjoyed explaining it to others! Additionally, everyone who approached my poster was genuinely interested in the material despite coming from a variety of backgrounds. I received lots of positive feedback from attendees regarding the applicability and comprehendible nature of my project.
In addition to presenting my research, I had the opportunity to learn about other people’s research as well. Because the conference was so interdisciplinary, I learned about all sorts of niche topics spanning from comparative fashion to Greek mythology to airport runway efficiency. I also attended three major speaker sessions- one about indigenous culture, one about the relationship between healthcare and entrepreneurship, and one about life as a Hmong refugee. These experiences were opportunities to learn from and meet new individuals that I otherwise likely never would have met. I’m excited to apply all the things I learned at this conference to my future endeavors. Hopefully, I will have more opportunities to attend similar events in the future, and I encourage everyone who has an opportunity to attend a research conference to take advantage of it and do so!