Olivia (Liv) Duchow, B.A

About me

Hi, nice to (virtually) meet you! I am currently an incoming graduate student in the Human Development and Family Sciences program at Auburn University in the PLiDL Lab under the direction of Dr. Gabrielle Pfund. Prior to Auburn, I graduated from the University of California, Davis with a Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology. Additionally, I received my Associate of Science degree in psychology from North Idaho College (dual enrolled). My research interests include sense of purpose, diversity in aging, racial stereotypes, and neurodegenerative diseases such as dementia.

I am interested in the mechanisms underlying aging and optimal aging in older adulthood. Olivia is interested in investigating long term health outcomes using longitudinal data. I am especially interested in using daily diary and ecological momentary assessment (EMA) data to explore sense of purpose both in the short and long term.

I aspire to contribute to the ongoing research in the aging field. I am committed to diversifying the social sciences through diverse sample sizes, decolonizing research, and amplifying oppressed voices. She is also committed to science communication/ science translation and actively seeks opportunities to benefit the general population. In her free time, I enjoy dancing, reading, and napping.

Presentations

In this presentation, I share my academic & research journey during an Introduction to Research in the Behavioral Sciences lecture at North Idaho College. I also shared two of her current research projects to inspire NIC students for potential research careers. I deeply thank Dr. Victor Duarte for this presentation opportunity.

In this poster presentation, I share my research project with Dr. Ariel Mosley at the Society for Personality and Social Psychology conference in Denver in February, 2025. In two studies we examine White Americans' policy support for minoritized groups. We hypothesized that a high-status minority group focus will increase zero sum thinking (beliefs that one group come at the expense of others) and prototypicality threat (concerns about the changing identity or status of the dominant group), which will reduce support for minority civil rights. The results confirmed the hypotheses, those who viewed the high-status minority group focus had decreased support for minority civil rights. Zero sum thinking but not prototypicality threat mediated the relationship between group focus and support for minority civil rights. In follow-up work we will investigate how minoritized groups respond to the same stimuli.

I was delighted at the opportunity to present my independent study project at the Gerontological Society of America conference in Seattle in November, 2024. In this work, we systematically reviewed the ego integrity literature and identified 17 measures from existing literature that have been used to assess ego integrity. We used artificial intelligence to identify 18 identical or very similar items that were repeatedly administered to participants in the Rush Memory and Aging Project (MAP) and the Minority Aging Research Study (MARS). In follow-up work, we will test the psychometric properties of this scale (exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, internal consistency, test re-test reliability, discriminate validity, convergent validity). In addition, to investigating the association between ego integrity and a range of health outcomes, such as incident dementia, chronic conditions, and mortality risk.

In this poster presentation, I share my independent study project at the 2024 UC Davis Undergraduate Research Conference. In this work, we identified 12 measures from existing literature that have been used to assess generativity and ego integrity. We used artificial intelligence to identify identical or very similar items that were repeatedly administered to participants in the Rush Memory and Aging Project. In follow-up work, we will test the psychometric properties of this scale (test re-test reliability, discriminate validity, convergent validity). In addition, to investigating the association between generativity/ ego integrity and a range of health outcomes, such as incident dementia and mortality risk.

Publications

Duchow, O. & Mosley, A. J., (2024). Racial bias in the sexual objectification of women. https://theacademic.com/racial-bias-in-the-sexual-objectification-of-women/

Science Communication

As part of my commitment to making psychological research more accessible to the public, I created a series of four informational flyers that translated Dr. Ariel Mosley’s past and current research on cultural appropriation and racism into visually engaging, easy-to-understand formats. These flyers were featured at the Whole Earth Festival at UC Davis, an annual community event that brings together people from diverse backgrounds to celebrate sustainability, social justice, and cultural awareness.

Each flyer highlighted key findings and core messages from Dr. Mosley’s work, including how zero-sum thinking shapes policy attitudes, how cultural appropriation reinforces systemic racism, and the importance of understanding these phenomena in everyday contexts. My goal was to bridge the gap between academic research and community understanding , thus making complex psychological theories and findings accessible, actionable, and relevant to festival-goers.

In addition to organizing an education booth where I distributed these flyers, I delivered a public speech at the festival. In it, I emphasized the importance of studying racism and cultural appropriation—not only as academic concepts but as lived experiences that shape real-world outcomes. I also spoke about how this research is vital to advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion across institutions and communities.

This event showcased my passion for science communication, particularly as it relates to justice-oriented research. It also demonstrated my ability to translate academic knowledge into public education tools that inspire dialogue and social change.

Check out this infographic to showcase Dr. Tomiko Yoneda's past work that highlights the importance of older adult couples sharing positive emotions and the promotion of physiological health.

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