Kat Swerbenski is a Social Psychology PhD student working with Dr. Kristin Shutts in the Social Kids Lab and Dr. Patricia Devine in the Prejudice and Intergroup Relations Lab. She studies children’s and adolescents’ peer relationships, with a focus on youth’s cross-race peer relationships. Learn more about her research and where she’s headed next in this spotlight.
Please describe your research in a way an elementary school student might understand.
I study children’s and adolescents’ close peer relationships, with a focus on cross-race friendships. Some of my work has examined conditions that support the formation of peer relationships, such as encouraging youth to share personal information about themselves with one another. I also have work that has examined parents’ role in supporting children’s cross-race friendships. In particular, I created a podcast video that is designed to encourage parents’ engagement in behaviors that could help their children make cross-race friendships.
What inspired you to pursue that research?
There is research to show that close friendships, and cross-race friendships in particular, are incredibly important for children’s well-being. However, there are children who struggle to make friends generally. Additionally, there are trends such that children generally find cross-race friendships harder to form and maintain than same-race friendships. Given that friendships can be so meaningful for children, I became really interested in understanding how we can support and facilitate friendships generally, but especially cross-race friendships for youth.
What are your hobbies outside of school?
I enjoy reading – mostly fantasy or romance books, baking, and painting. I also love spending time with my dog and getting out into nature.
What are your favorite places or things to do in Madison?
I always love trying out new restaurants, I enjoy going to the farmer’s market, and I like to walk along the lake paths (especially getting out to Picnic Point). I also love going to trivia nights at different bars around town (most often ending up at Blue Moon).
What’s a positive experience from graduate school that will stay with you?
The friendships I formed with my fellow graduate students are what will really stay with me. I have so many fond memories of all the good times, but some of what will stay with me the most is reflecting on the challenging times and how much my friends were there to support me. For example, I can’t imagine getting through my job market experience without them!
Congratulations, you’ve earned your PhD! How will you celebrate and what would you love to do next?
I am hoping to spend some time this summer just relaxing and getting to go to my favorite places in the Great Lakes region (especially before moving out to Baltimore this summer!). In particular, I have a trip planned to go up to Door County, as well as spend time with my family in Michigan on the lake. As for what is next, I have already accepted a tenure-track assistant professorship at Loyola University Maryland. My ultimate goal was to work at a liberal arts college, where I could focus on teaching in addition to my research, so I am incredibly excited to embark on this next chapter out in Baltimore!