Psychology Professor Vinai Norasakkunkit discusses research findings with students in his cultural psychology lab.
Dr. Vinai Norasakkunkit understands the value of mentoring relationships for students who have aspirations of earning the doctoral degree. Doctoral programs expect collaborative relationships between their faculty and students, so the opportunity for undergraduates to work with faculty on research projects is an important introduction to the expectations—and the culture—of doctoral education.
He also understands the value of such relationships for faculty. Chief among these is the opportunity to work with undergraduate students who are passionate about research and highly engaged in the educational experience. "I don't think there is anything more rewarding for a university faculty member than to work with highly motivated students like those in the McNair Achievement Program," says Norasakkunkit. And he should know: He's mentored two McNair Scholars in his four years at Minnesota State University, Mankato.
Federally funded by the Department of Education, the McNair Achievement Program (MAP) has been in existence at Minnesota State Mankato since 2003. In its first four years, under the leadership of former director Michelle Carter and current interim director Laura Bartolo, the program has served nearly 50 low–income, first–generation, and under–represented students who aspire to doctoral degrees.
The program's many benefits include assistance with the graduate school application process, GRE preparation, research stipends, and opportunities to present at national and regional conferences. However, one of the greatest benefits to participants is the opportunity to conduct research under the direction and guidance of Minnesota State Mankato faculty mentors like Dr. Norasakkunkit.
An Assistant Professor of Psychology, Dr. Norasakkunkit researches the ways in which culture influences mental processes, including cognition, attention, emotion, motivation, and well–being. His research is based on the assumption that many existing psychological theories do not adequately describe, predict, or explain the behavior of individuals from non–Western cultures.
It was in his research lab, where he guides student projects related to cultural psychology, that Dr. Norasakkunkit was first introduced to the McNair Achievement Program. A student who was interested in working in the lab also happened to be a McNair Scholar. Together, they decided she would conduct her McNair research project in the lab under the direction of Dr. Norasakkunkit.
The success of that first mentoring relationship has fueled Dr. Norasakkunkit's ongoing interest in the program. He is currently mentoring Dan Ellis and Khou Yang, and anticipates mentoring a third scholar, Julie Poyzer, when she begins the program in fall 2007.
Norasakkunkit appreciates the benefits and resources the McNair Achievement Program offers to first–generation college students. He also appreciates the ways in which the program has benefited his own research. "I have the McNair Achievement Program to thank for providing the support and resources that make the work I do with students go smoothly and help speed up the research that comes out of my lab."
