faculty

Trina Kershaw, PhD

Professor

Psychology

Contact

508-999-8346

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Spruce Hall 0180

Education

2006

University of Illinois at Chicago

PhD

2002

University of Illinois at Chicago

1998

Widener University

Teaching

Cognitive Processes
Research Methods in Cognitive Psychology
Psychology of Individual Differences
Psychology of Learning

Teaching

Programs

Teaching

Courses

PSY 303: Psychology of Learning

A survey of learning principles from simple conditioning to complex creative behavior.

PSY 308: Cognitive Processes

A history of cognitive science as a discipline. Topics such as human learning, memory, perception, language, and attention are reviewed. Theories and research on mental processes underlying these behaviors and biological underpinnings and real-life application of these topics are studied.

PSY 392: Rsh Meth Cognitive Psychology

Fundamentals of research methodology in psychological research including literature review, hypothesis generation, design, measurement, statistical analysis, ethics and APA format writing style. Emphasis on the selected cognate content area of cognitive psychology.

Research

Research interests

Transfer in educational settings
Creativity in engineering design
Insight problem solving
Individual differences
Skill learning and transfer

Select publications

Kershaw, T.C. (2026).
Practice Still Makes Proficient: A Replication of Kershaw et al.(2018, 2023; Kershaw & Gordon, 2024) Using an Alternate Form of the Journal Article Comprehension Assessment
Teaching of Psychology, 53, 12-17.
Kershaw, T.C., & Gordon, L.T. (2024).
Practice assignments improve research comprehension skills and reinforce concept learning
Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Psychology, 10, 536-551.
Kershaw, T.C., Clifford, R.D., Khatib, F., & El-Nasan, A. (2024).
An initial examination of computer programs as creative works
Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 18, 510-522.
Kershaw, T.C., Fugate, J.M.B., & O'Hare, A.J. (2023).
Teaching undergraduates to understand published research through structured practice in identifying key research concepts
Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Psychology, 92, 216-233.
Kershaw, T.C., Bhowmick, S., Seepersad, C.C., & (2019).
A decision tree based methodology for evaluating creativity in engineering design
Frontiers in Psychology, 10, Article 32.