Who We Are

Principal Investigator

Dr. Brandilynn Villarreal (she/her)

Dr. Villarreal is a lifespan developmental psychologist with research interests in motivation and educational goal pursuit. She studies adolescents and young adults as they navigate the transition into adulthood, particularly through higher education. She has a special interest in motivational and self-regulatory strategies used by first-generation, low-income, and traditionally underrepresented students in academia.

Graduate Student and Lab Co-Manager

Rebecca Barish

Rebecca is completing her M.A. in Academic Research in Psychology with a specialization in Developmental Psychology. Rebecca is interested in the student-athlete population and is researching the relationship between academic performance, motivation, identity foreclosure, and athletic identity. During her undergrad, Rebecca used to tutor student-athletes as well as mentor them. She currently works as a Graduate Research Assistant as well as a Lab Assistant for the AMR Lab. She is also on the officers board of Scholars of Academic Research. Outside of academia, Rebecca loves to go golfing and spend time with her loved ones.

Graduate Student

Kailey Hall

Kay is a blended student completing her undergrad in Psychology with a minor in Early Childhood Development and her M.A. in Academic Research in Psychology. She transferred to Cal Poly Humboldt three years ago. Kay is interested in relationships with food, parenting and family relationships, and different types of education. Kay has experience working with children and currently works in childcare.

Graduate Student and Lab Co-Manager

Gabriella Nakamaru

Gabriella is completing her M.A. in Academic Research in Psychology. She is from the Big Island of Hāwai’i, and her interest is in I/O Psychology and AI Research. Her thesis is on the Intentional use of AI in the Workplace where she will study the impact of AI use on motivation and performance-based variables. Specifically, if AI were to be used intentionally (AI-as-partner) or as replacement (AI-as-replacement), would that have an impact on motivational and performance-based outcomes? Gabriella works at Cal Poly Humboldt’s Office of Institutional Research, Analytics, and Reporting (IRAR) as an intern where she is responsible for cleaning and extracting data, and creating dashboards by building interesting and intuitive visuals to analyze trends and present data. At IRAR, Gabriella is able to apply skills from psychology and data analysis to make a change and support her future career in research and data analysis.

Graduate Student

Skye Honor

Skye is completing her M.A. in Academic Research in Psychology with a specialization in Cognitive Psychology. She is currently researching the combined effects of humor on mindfulness, math anxiety, and performance. Her research interests include anxiety, academic performance, and cognitive reappraisal.

Graduate Student

Dakota Huey (he/him)

Dakota is a Blended student in the Academic Research program. His academic interests involve narrative development theory, early childhood trauma, and attachment along with life span development. He transferred to Cal Poly Humboldt with an associate's degree in social sciences and Philosophy. Dakota currently works at the OhSNAP department at Cal Poly Humboldt, and as an in-home healthcare service provider for elderly and disabled adults.

Graduate Student

Stefanie Lukomski

Stefanie is completing her M.A. in Academic Research with a focus on adolescent development. Stefanie completed her undergraduate degree at the University of Arizona which included a fellowship as an AWARDSS Scholar with a research manuscript that focused on adverse childhood experiences, emotional synchrony, and romantic partner interactions. Her current research interests entail locus of control, future-oriented possibility beliefs, and the effect of misinformation on development during adolescents. In her free time, she likes to hike with her three sons, play pinball, and add to her vinyl record collection.

Alice Zhang 

Situated in Third Space: Ethnic Identity Development in Dual Language Programs

Hayley Weatherill

First-year College Transition: The Role of Psychosocial Resources in Student Motivation

Ashli Schick

Retention and Performance During COVID-19: Prosociality, Perception, Social Isolation, and Online Engagement

Madelynne Avila

College Students’ Autonomy, Self-Regulation, and Academic Self-Efficacy During COVID-19

Kevin (Doug) Cherry 

The Role of Hardiness and Autonomy Support in College Student Engagement

Karen Villa

Relationships with Parents, Motivation Factors, and Resilience in Latinx College Students