PsychFest Event Information
What is PsychFest?
PsychFest is an annual event that takes place at the end of spring quarter to give psychology and behavioral neuroscience students an opportunity to present their scholarly efforts in a supportive, low-pressure environment, which can help students develop public speaking skills necessary to excel in a graduate program or a post-baccalaureate career.
PsychFest 2025: Friday, June 6
Keynote Presentation: Friday, June 6, 4-5pm, AW 210
Title of Presentation: Counseling and Theories Surrounding Black Men's Mental Health
Presenter: Dr. Jordan Shannon, Seattle University
Dr. Jordan Shannon is an Assistant Professor of School Counseling at Seattle University. His research interests center on racial identity development and experiences of racism in counseling, help-seeking behaviors and counseling utilization among diverse populations, mental health stigma and deterrents of counseling, and multicultural training in counselor education. Dr. Shannon’s research has been published in peer reviewed outlets such as the Journal of Counseling & Development (JCD), Journal of Multicultural Counseling & Development, and Race, Ethnicity and Education. Alongside his scholarship he engages in multiple professional service roles. He currently sits on the editorial board for the Journal of Counselor Leadership and Advocacy and JCD, and he served as chapter faculty advisor for his local chapter of Chi Sigma Iota – International Counseling Honors Society.
About the Keynote Presentation:
Dr. Shannon’s keynote address will focus on the context of Black men’s mental health, as well as the findings from a study examining Black men's continuation in counseling experiences as clients. Black men face particular challenges, such as having the lowest life expectancy of any racial/ethnic group in the US (Wippold et al., 2025). They also are four times more likely to die by suicide than African American women and 20% more likely to develop a serious mental health disorder than White men (CDC, 2022). Present crises demonstrate a need to explore how mental health services can support Black men. Prior research on Black men and counseling has concluded that members of this population underutilize counseling services (e.g., individual, couples, family, etc.). Additionally, there exists little evidence on what helps Black men to stay in counseling when they engage in such services. Dr. Shannon will discuss his research on this topic and implications for improving services to support Black men.
For more information about PsychFest, please consult with your faculty research mentor. You may also contact a member of the Events Committee:
- Jennifer Devenport
- Michael Warren
- Ruth Hackler
- Angela Bell
- Rachel Henesy
- Bri Delker
We are grateful to our annual PsychFest Sponsors!
- Dean's Office, College of Humanities and Social Sciences
- Western Associated Students Bookstore
- Center for Cross-Cultural Research
Past PsychFest Keynote Speakers
2024 - Dr. J. Kiley Hamlin (she/her), University of British Columbia. Title: The infantile origins of human morality: Studies with preverbal infants and toddlers.
2023 - Dr. Maddy Jalbert, University of Washington. Title: Exploring Why We Fall for Misinformation and What We Can Do About it
2022 - Dr. Chantel Prat, University of Washington. Title: Peer Interactions in the Digital World
2021 - Dr. Kristina Olson, Princeton University. Title: Gender Diversity in Childhood
2020 - Dr. Brian Nosek, University of Virginia. Title: Shifting Incentives from Getting it Published to Getting it Right
2019 - Dr. Amori Mikami, University of British Columbia. Title: Peer Interactions in the Digital World
2018 - Dr. Melissa Tehee, Utah State University. Title: Understanding and Addressing Trauma in a Cultural Framework
2017 – Dr. Jessica Tracy, University of British Columbia. Area: Social/Personality. Title: The Nature of Pride: The Emotional Origins of Social Rank
2016 – Dr. Ryan Reese, Oregon State University, Cascades. Area: Counseling. Title: From Western to Faculty Member: Key Learnings on Becoming a Researcher-Practitioner
2015 – Dr. Andrea Stocco, University of Washington. Area: Cognitive/Neuropsychology. Title: Manipulation and Representation of Symbolic Knowledge in the Human Brain
2014 – Dr. Kevin Haggerty, University of Washington. Area: Developmental/Clinical. Title: Power of Family to Promote Well Being: Results from the Family Connection Studies
2013 – Dr. Izabella Schultz, University of British Columbia. Area: Clinical. Title: Mental Disorders and Work
2012 – Dr. Eric Eich, University of British Columbia. Area: Cognitive/Neuropsychology. Title: Remembering the Personal Past from Field and Observer Perspectives
2011 – Dr. Edith Chen, University of British Columbia. Area: Health/Developmental/Neuropsychology. Title: Psychobiological Pathways linking SES to Childhood Asthma
2010 – Dr. Cheryl Kaiser, University of Washington. Area: Social/Cross-cultural. Title: Group Identity and Experiencing Discrimination
2009 – Dr. Ross Thompson, University of California, Davis. Area: Developmental. Title: Parent-Child Conversation and Psychological Understanding
