PsyD doctoral students Tori Elliott and Shelby Holmes represented the Department of Psychology at the 4th Annual Nutrition Summit, hosted by App State’s Department of Nutrition and Health Care Management. They presented their lightning oral presentation, “Financial Difficulty as a Predictor of Eating Behaviors During Pregnancy,” a project completed under the mentorship of Dr. Cassidy Sandoval.
Among presentations from across the College of Health Sciences, Tori and Shelby earned 1st place in the Lightning Oral Presentation category, which challenges presenters to communicate complex research in just four minutes using no more than three slides.
Reflecting on the recognition, Tori shared the significance of the award and the impact of their work: “It was truly an honor to receive the Outstanding Oral Presentation award for our project, Financial Difficulty as a Predictor of Eating Behaviors During Pregnancy. Perinatal populations are often underresearched and face unique and complex challenges, particularly when navigating financial stressors that can impact health behaviors. I'm hopeful to continue researching the experiences of underexamined populations and to help bring greater attention to these important, and often overlooked, issues.”
Shelby highlighted the collaborative nature of the event and the value of psychology within nutrition and health research: “The Nutrition Summit was a wonderful opportunity to share our work and connect with researchers across disciplines. Being in a welcoming, collaborative space that recognized psychology as an essential part of nutrition and wellbeing was very affirming. Health and well-being do not develop in isolation, and this experience highlighted the value of coming together to share ideas and learn from one another.”
The department congratulates Tori and Shelby on this achievement and their contribution to interdisciplinary research at App State.
