Leilani Goodmon, Ph.D.
Professor of Psychology
Chair of the Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences
Teaching is an essential part of any college or university. I am particularly motivated to get students interested in cognitive psychology, but I will encourage the study of any realm of psychology that will ignite their desire to contribute to the field. I believe that the classroom experience should be active, engaging, and memorable, so I make it a priority to include these characteristics in each and every lecture. One of my goals is to bring the level of learning to where it should be – an optimal maintenance in memory of the information that is disseminated. I do this by using multiple encoding techniques both visual and auditory, using vividness and repetition in different forms, and teaching students to connect newly learned information to something that they already know very well. I believe the best way to learn is to “learn by doing,” so I provide guided notes that require students to fill in the blanks with the important information that I provide during class time.
Biography
I am a cognitive and positive psychology professor, and I have served as a full-time faculty member at FSC since 2010. After earning a B.A. in Psychology from Stetson University, I completed a Ph.D. in Cognitive Science at the University of South Florida. I truly enjoy teaching students at all levels and collaborating with students on research projects in the areas of cognitive, positive, social, and educational psychology. My engaged learning teaching philosophy includes a strong commitment to mentoring students in the research process so that they have the opportunity to not only present their research at conferences but also to publish their research. My FSC students and I have published over 30 research articles in peer-reviewed journals (with more than 50 student co-authors) and have given an average of 20 presentations at conferences per year over the last 12 years. I started the Psychology Club and have served as the club Advisor for since I began employment at FSC in 2010. Finally, I helped established the FSC Equestrian Team and serve as their Faculty Advisor.Education
2005 Ph.D., Cognitive Science, University of South Florida, Tampa, FLDissertation: The Influence of Pre-Existing Memories on Retrieval-Induced Forgetting.
Cognitive Science, Human Memory
2001 M.A., Cognitive Science, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL
Thesis: Strengthening the Activation of Unconscious Memories.
Cognitive Science, Human Memory
1997 B.A., Psychology, Stetson University, Deland Florida
Magna Cum Laude
Interests
My free time is spent swimming, bike riding, building legos, horseback-riding, hiking, gardening, fishing, and watching movies.Awards
- Community Service Project of the Year Award: Psychology Club, 2012-2013
- Advisor of the Year: Psychology Club, 2010-2011
- Certificate of Appreciation: School of Education Site Visit, 2016
- Alberta Johnson / Ruth Hubbard Cousin Building Bonds Award: Psi Chi Honor Society, 2018
- Heather’s Hope Annual Purple Ribbon Run: Psychology Club – Largest Group Participation Winner, 2018
- Mentorship Award: Psychology Department, 2018
- Advisor of the Year: Psychology Club, 2018-2019
- Organization of the Year: Psychology Club, 2018 – 2019
- Psychology Club Service Award: Psychology Department, 2019
- Research featured in the 2021 Vertex
- Research featured in the 2021 Faculty Friday
Publications
Meares, M., & Goodmon, L.B. (2023). Disentangling the rhythm from the melody: What really induces happy moods in Mozart music? The Mozart effect and spatial awareness. Florida Undergraduate Research Journal, 2, 15 – 31.Carter, L., Goodmon, L.B., & Urs, M., Rutledge-Jukes, H. (2022). The effects of victim gender identity, juror gender, and judicial instructions on victim blaming, crime severity ratings, and verdicts in sexual assault trials. Journal of Homosexuality, 1 – 38.
Miles, E., Goodmon, L.B., Del Monte, G.M., & Saunders, T. (2021). The relationship between color shade and emotion association in pre-school aged children. Modern Psychological Studies, 27(1), 1-18.
Goodmon, L.B., Burnett, P.R., & Pack, R., & Powell, R. (2021). The effect of a dog assisted reading program on the reading ability and motivation of children with dyslexia. Human Animal Interaction Bulletin, 9(2), 1-26.
Goodmon, L.B., Gavin, D.J., Urs., M, & Akus, S. (2020). The power of the majority: Social conformity in sexual harassment punishment selection. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 1 – 15. https://doi.org/10.1111/jasp.12672
Goodmon, L.B., Parisi, A., Smith, P., Phillips, E., Cox, T., Dill L., & Miller, A. (2019). The effect of landscape photograph type on aesthetic judgments, attention, and memory in children with dyslexia. Dyslexia, 25(4), 411-428.
Urs, M., Goodmon, L.B., & Martin, J. (2019). Too much on my mind: Cognitive load, working memory, and framing effects. North American Journal of Psychology, 21(4), 739-765.
O-Donnell, C., Goodmon, L.B., & Carter, L. (2019). Game on: The relationship between media exposure, demographics, and perceptions of campus safety. The Open Journal of Criminology and Sociology, 2, 00-00.
Goodmon, L.B., Brown, K., Edwards, L., Hurley, K., Hartzell, K., & Powell, T. (2019). Ready, set, rotate: The relationship between working memory capacity and mental rotation speed. Journal of Scientific Psychology, online, 1- 21, http://psyencelab.com.
Seward, H., Goodmon, L.B., & Groth, B. (2019). The relationship between preschoolers' perception of emotion and gender stereotyping. Journal of Scientific Psychology, online, 1-14, http://psyencelab.com.
Smith, P.L., Goodmon, L. B., Howard, J., Hancock, R., Hartzell, K., & Hilbert, S. (2019). Graphic novelization effects on recognition abilities and students with dyslexia. Journal of Graphic Novels and Comics, 1 – 18.
Smith, P., Goodmon, L.B., Hester, S. (2018). The Burtynsky Effect: Aesthetic reactions to blended landscape photography. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 12(1), 34-49.
Goodmon, L.B., Bacharz, K., Parisi, A., & Osborn, M. (2018). The role of mood, arousal, and encoding strategy in verbal memory. Journal of Scientific Psychology, online, 1-17. http://psyencelab.com
Bacharz, K. C. & Goodmon, L.B. (2017). The caregiver’s burden: Psychological distress in the younger adult caregiver. Modern Psychological Studies, 23(1), 1-25.
Goodmon, L.B., Howard, J., Hintz, B.D., Alden, B., & Vedala, M. (2017). Jumping to negative impressions again: The role of pessimism, information valence, and need for cognitive closure in impression formation. North American Journal of Psychology, 19(3), 745-768.
Goodmon, L.B., Middleditch, A.M., Pietrasiuk, S.E., & Childs, B. (2016). Positive Psychology course and its relationship to well-being, depression, and stress. Teaching of Psychology, 43(3), 232-237.
Goodmon, L.B., Kelly, C., & Mauldin, M. (2015). Jumping to negative impressions: The relationship between
pessimism, information valence, and likability. North American Journal of Psychology, 17(3), 485-508.
Goodmon, L.B., Leverett, R., Royer. A, Hilliard, G., Tedder, T., & Rakes, L. (2014). The effect of therapy balls on the classroom behavior and learning of children with Dyslexia. Journal of Research in Education, 24 (2), 124 – 145.
Goodmon, L.B., Smith, P.L., Ivancevich, D., & Lundberg, S. (2014). Actions speak louder than personality: Effects of Facebook content on personality perceptions. North American Journal of Psychology, 16, 105 – 120.
Goodmon, L.B., & Anderson, M.C. (2011). Semantic integration as a boundary condition on inhibitory processes in episodic retrieval. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 37, 416-436.
Sahakyan, L., & Goodmon, L.B. (2010). Theoretical implications of extralist probes for directed forgetting. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 36, 920-937.
Projects
Leadership Style, Job Satisfaction, and Stress during Covid.Hurricane Fatigue: Hurri-Can You Adapt to College?
Cross-Race Effect in Change Blindness Involving a Person Swap Crime Scenario.
The Effect of Memes and Domains on Memory Retention of Leadership Styles.
Perceptions of Bullied Students with Behavioral Differences and Teacher Responses.
The Relationship between Perpetrator and Witness Race and Change Blindness Rates.
Rhythm or the Melody: What Causes the Mozart Effect?
Religiosity and Locus of Control.
The Effect of Perpetrator Clothing and Gender on Change Blindness in a Person Swap Crime Scenario.
Impressions of Parents in the Workplace: Effects of Gender, Personal Office Content, and Office Décor.
The Relationship Between Pre-existing Studio Art Anxiety and Memory.
I Didn't See That: The Relationship between Change Blindness, Perpetrator Clothing and Gender, and Witness Gender in a Person Swap Crime Scenario.