I’m a Researcher who is interested in Social Cognition.
My Research Objective
I aim to research inward to uncover absolute truths about ourselves. Through this research, I hope to effect real social change.
E.g. I’d like to research cross-cultural differences and how they effect happiness, or cultural stereotypes and how they harm society at large.
Core Skills
Collaboration
Communication
Attention to Detail
Planning and Scheduling
Stimuli Development
IRB Proposal Writing
Data Collection
Time-Management
R
Matlab
Python
SQL
JMP
Microsoft Excel
ELAN
Honors and Awards
2020 - Harvard Lemann Program on Creativity and Entrepreneurship Accelerator Seed Fund Award
Awarded $250 to fund infrastructure development of CovEducation
2020 - Halıcıoğlu Data Science Institute Undergraduate Scholarship
Awarded $2,500 to fund my Senior Honors Thesis
2019 - 2020 - Triton Research & Experiential Learning Scholarship
Awarded $1,000 in both Spring 2019 and Spring 2020 to pursue research experience
Writing Samples
Laughing on Learning (LOL): The Effects of Writing Style and Question Style on Learning
Catherine Eng, Olufisayo Osilaja, Jina Ahn, & Kahyun Kim
He Doesn’t Love Me, But He Doesn’t Love Me Not: Students’ Gendered Language About Professors (2021)
Catherine Eng under the advisement of Dr. Drew Walker, Dr. Brent Wilson, and Dr. Gail Heyman
publication in Journal of Undergraduate Psychology Research at UCSD
A First Look at Telemedicine Use For Pre-screening in Alzheimer’s Disease Clinical Trials During a Global Pandemic
Jennifer Mitolo, Elly Lee, Razyya Abdulmumin, Catherine Eng, Ralph Lee, Brenda Martinez
An Evaluation of the CSET Wipro Science Teacher Fellowship Program
Research Experience
2021 - 2022 Research Assistant, Irvine Clinical Research
Provide clerical, research, and administrative support for doctors and coordinators in our company’s mission to find new medical break-throughs through clinical research.
Analyze clinical data to optimize effective screening strategies
Prepare research posters and presentations for industry conferences
Input patient data and archive closed studies for clinic records
Clerical duties such as check-in patients, schedule patient appointments, coordinate patient transportation, answer incoming calls
Work with vendors, place orders, and oversee receipt/delivery
Manage Social Media accounts and reach out to interested potential participants
2019 - 2020 Honors Thesis Student, UCSD Psychology Department
Accepted into the selective 2019-2020 Honors Cohort. Conducted two quarter-long group research projects as well as one year-long independent honors thesis on Students' Gendered Language about Professors. Presented in two poster presentations.
Took two advanced statistics and research methods classes
Applied for UCSD Human Research Protections Program (HRPP) IRB Approval
Recruited and managed over 2,000 participants
Analyzed Qualitative Data in Python 3 and Microsoft Excel
Wrote 8,000-word, 30-page thesis and presented poster to UCSD community (video here)
Awarded a $2,500 scholarship by the Halicioglu Data Science Institute for my work
2018 - 2020 Research Assistant, Cognition and Inference Lab
Assisted Dr. Drew Walker in her study of The Cheerleader Effect, a social phenomenon in which people are perceived as more attractive when in a group than by themselves.
Conducted Literature Reviews
Created stimuli of morphed faces using photo-editing software
Recruited participants
Co-designed the experiment
Analyzed the data in JMP
Received a $2,000 scholarship by the Triton Research and Experiential Learning Scholars program for my work
2020 Research Assistant, Systems Neuroscience Lab
Assistant to Dr. Douglas Nitz in his study of the hippocampus' role in spatial cognition using the Rattus norvegicus as an animal model and various mazes as testing apparatuses.
Acclimated rats to human presence and handling
Trained rats in performing navigational tasks upon cue
Fed and monitored the weight of rats
Assisted in brain surgeries
Coded wireless electrode experimental data in MATLAB
Assisted in recording rats' neural activity in experiments
2017 Research Assistant, Comparative Cognition Lab
Assistant to Dr. Federico Rossano in his study of the cognition of infant bonobos' gestures, children's gender bias, and people's understanding of politeness.
Performed behavioral coding of non-human primate video data in ELAN
Created illustrative figures for papers in Photoshop
Piloted experiments as a participant
Served as a field data confederate
Presented summaries of research articles for discussion
Drafted research papers
Personal Development
2020 - Chief Operaions Officer, CovEducation (CovEd)
Train and guide CovEd tutors/mentors using evidence-based pedagogical techniques, offering strategies for tutoring in-person, online, or over the phone
Coordinate teams of mentors for the CovEd x Chicago Heights collaboration, a program in which we pair undergraduate mentors with K-12 students in 5 schools in Chicago, Illinois
Collaborate with Research Professors to collect and analyze data on the effects of one-on-one tutoring in recovering learning loss felt by the pandemic
Start and manage ABC Club, an extracurricular online club for K-12 students to develop and encourage hobbies in Art making, Book reading, and Chess playing
Other duties include: making graphics, applying for grants, recruiting undergraduate mentors from universities
2020 - 2021 Chief Operations Officer, The Gender Phluid Collective
Lead volunteer team and hold weekly team meetings
Coordinate fundraisers with small, queer-BIPOC-owned businesses
Manage charity program to donate gender-affirming items to trans and non-binary folx in the San Diego area
Organize online community events
Manage Social Media accounts
Collaborate with other queer- and POC-focused organizations in San Diego
2018 COGS 17 Instructional Assistant, UCSD Cognitive Science Department
Lead interactive group discussions of ~50 students (with use of slides, Kahoot game)
Hold weekly office hours
Proctor exams (class of ~450)
Grade exams in a timely manner (delegated ~150 exams to grade)