Summer Research Blooms into Full Project

By Sera Gonzalez
June 1, 2024

Tia Tropea received a Diversity Summer Research Award in 2023 that supported her work in the Neuroeconomics Lab at Temple.

One of her projects was to examine if the interaction between social support and the need to belong affects financial exploitation.

“When I was brainstorming project ideas, I kept coming back to how important close associative bonds are for promoting positive outcomes, or sometimes decreasing them due to the nature of the support,” Tia said.

She considered the possibility that a lack of social support and a strong desire for social interactions and a feeling of belonging may make older adults more vulnerable to scams. As part of her training, Tia filed a pre-registration for her study. Using census-level data, she found certain neighborhood factors – disadvantages, residential instability, and disorder – contributed to a person’s vulnerability to scams. She concluded that cohesive communities with active communication and participation can fulfill a person’s need for social interactions and curb vulnerabilities experienced in the area.

Though her results did not fully support her hypothesis, Tia remains curious about how an individual’s social circle and neighborhood affect their financial and social decision-making.

This past Spring, Tia presented posters of her research at the Eastern Psychological Association (EPA) conference and the American Psychology-Law Society (AP-LS) meeting. EPA was Tia’s first time presenting at a conference, and she enjoyed her experiences at both events where she learned how to summarize and convey her research to a wider audience.

“Communicating research is such an important skill, and I am happy to have had the opportunity to work toward that skill by presenting at two conferences this year,” Tia said.

Tia’s interest in research was sparked after taking a neuroscience class with Dr. David V. Smith.

“He was research-focused in his teaching approach and opened my eyes to all the lingering questions that research can answer,” Tia said.

Dr. Smith also sponsored her in the 4+1 program, an accelerated program at Temple that allows undergrads to take graduate level courses during their final year that satisfy both degree requirements. On May 8, 2024, Tia graduated from Temple with a master’s in psychology research.

Now, Tia is focused on finding a PhD program where she can continue researching environmental and social influences on decision-making and how these may play a role in psychopathologies like depression. She hopes to inform policy regarding housing and city/urban planning to make communal neighborhoods more accessible in an effort to enhance the quality of life.