Tim Lawson, PhD, of Mount St. Joseph University in Cincinnati, received the Society for the Teaching of Psychology’s 2019 Robert S. Daniel Award. The following interview was compiled by Joe Swope, PhD.
What is your favorite part about teaching psychology?
There are many things I love about teaching psychology. I enjoy helping students understand puzzling human behaviors (e.g., hazing, lack of bystander intervention, destructive obedience). I love helping students improve their critical thinking and statistical reasoning skills, and teaching them the differences between science and pseudoscience. I also enjoy watching them grow as professionals throughout their time at our university. A side benefit of teaching psychology is that I get to be a perpetual student, who is continually learning about the fascinating field of psychology.
What do you wish your students to know about you or psychology?
I would hope that my students learn that psychology is a science that is just as much of a science as any other scientific field (e.g., biology, chemistry). In addition, I hope they learn that they can apply psychology in a very wide variety of careers in settings such as education, business, sports and many other areas. They can also use what they learn about psychology to improve their own lives and relationships with others.
What advice do you have for newer psychology instructors?
I think one of the most rewarding things a new instructor can do is to work on improving their teaching. I recommend going to teaching-related conferences and reading teaching-related journals. I also recommend conducting research on your own teaching techniques to determine whether they actually help students learn. Keep developing new teaching demonstrations, exercises and techniques to keep things interesting. If you and your students enjoy your classes, it makes your job so much more rewarding.
