Associate Professor Vanessa Lobue, of Rutgers University–Newark’s Department of Psychology, was recently named a Fellow of the Association for Psychological Science (APS).
LoBue, a developmental psychologist whose research focuses on how emotion affects learning in young children and infants, was one of 35 scholars named APS Fellow for 2021.
Fellow status is awarded to APS members who have made sustained outstanding contributions to the science of psychology in the areas of research, teaching, service, and/or application. Researchers who have an outstanding record of mentoring students and working with research participants from diverse backgrounds, and making outstanding contributions to diversity and inclusion within the field of psychological science, qualify for consideration and may be selected after 10 years of postdoctoral contribution.
“It feels amazing to be recognized by my peers as a leader in my field, said LoBue. “Being named an APS fellow means that my colleagues have recognized that I have made a lasting contribution to the field of Psychology.”
LoBue is director of RU-N’s Child Study Center and author of Psychology Today’s “The Baby Scientist” column, as well as 9 Months In, 9 Months Out: A Scientist’s Tale of Pregnancy and Parenthood (Oxford University Press), which she wrote while she was pregnant with her first child, and in the nine months after giving birth. It’s an incisive 288-page look at pregnancy, childbirth and child-rearing from a personal and scientific perspective, combining real-time accounts with pictures, graphs, charts and diagrams to lend depth to, and illuminate, the process for readers. In 2017 LoBue was a recipient of the Rutgers University Board of Trustees Research Fellowship for Scholarly Excellence.
RU-N Psychology Department Chair Mauricio Delgado, who has been a colleague of LoBue’s for many years, had nothing but praise for her in light of this latest honor.
"Vanessa is an outstanding scientist, teacher and colleague who makes an impact in our department every day and embodies the spirit of this award,” said Delgado. “From being a student mentor to serving as the Graduate Director, Vanessa is an essential contributor to our department and the University at large. She has an active and exciting research program that focuses on important questions regarding the development of emotion, such as how children perceive threat and what factors can influence it, which is timely, significant and recognized by her various papers, grants and awards such as the APS.”
Vanessa is an outstanding scientist, teacher and colleague who makes an impact in our department every day and embodies the spirit of this award.
In addition, Delgado said, “Vanessa is an absolutely fantastic colleague who you can always count on to help the Department when needed, and her current and previous students all rave about her.”
LoBue was nominated for the APS honor by Professor Koraly Pérez-Edgar, the McCourtney Professor of Child Studies and Associate Director of the Social Science Research Institute at Penn State University. The two met in 2007 when Pérez-Edgar was a new assistant professor at George Mason University and LoBue was a post-doctoral fellow at the University of Virginia.
“Vanessa is an incredible force in the field. She is intellectually sharp and has been able to systematically examine how infants and children develop fears over time,” said Perez-Edgar. “She has gone beyond observation to look at mechanism. She can step back and have an understanding of what will help the field as a whole—for example, she spearheaded the Handbook of Emotional Development and is currently writing a textbook on infant development. She also reaches out beyond the academic community with her column and books, and is an officer in the International Congress of Infant Studies.”
Perez-Edgar continued: “APS Fellow designation acknowledges Vanessa’s role as a leader in the field of psychology, generating new knowledge, helping mentor a new generation of scientists and helping guide the direction of science.”
APS is the leading international organization dedicated to advancing scientific psychology across disciplinary and geographic borders, sharing cutting-edge research across all areas of the field through our journals and conventions; promoting the integration of scientific perspectives within psychological science and with related disciplines; fostering global connections among members; engaging the public with our research to promote broader understanding and awareness of psychological science; and advocating for increased support for psychological science in the public-policy arena.
As such, the organization plays an important role in the field globally. For LoBue, that brings added significance to receiving this designation.
“I am absolutely honored to be named an APS fellow,” she said.