Career Achievement Award
Dr. Mark Neider will receive the Earl Alluisi Award for Early Career Achievement at this year’s American Psychological Association’s (APA) convention in Washington, DC. This award was presented by Division 21 of the APA. APA Division 21 represents the Applied Experimental and Engineering Psychology areas of psychological research. The award recognizes outstanding achievements made by psychologists within 10 years of receiving their PhD. The award is based on evidence of contributions to the field of applied experimental/engineering psychology by virtue of (1) research and publication, (2) special new contributions (e.g., equipment or techniques) or (3) contributions to theory, etc.
Nominated by Dr. Peter Hancock in the department of Psychology, Dr. Neider was elated to be recognized by his peers in the field for doing good and impactful work. The Earl Alluisi Award represents an individual’s body of work, not a specific project. During his career Dr. Neider’s work has been largely focused on improving human performance over the lifespan. Specifically, he has characterized the cognitive mechanisms often associated with people’s daily tasks, like talking on a cellphone, multitasking, or looking for something hard to find. Dr. Neider has looked at how these tasks become more difficult as we get older. He then tries to lessen the age-related changes through training or intervention.
When asked about how the award has affected his drive to research, Dr. Neider had this to say. “In a sense, the award validates the work that I have been doing over the last 12 years or so . . . it indicates, to me at least, that people I respect think I am doing something right in terms of research and making a contribution to the field. I think that is what most scientists aspire to, so that motivates me to get right back into the lab. ”
Dr. Neider received his Ph.D eight years ago from Stony Brook University.
Mark Neider is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Central Florida. He received his B.A. in Psychology from Hofstra University. He also holds a M.A. in Psychology and a Ph.D. in Cognitive/Experimental Psychology from Stony Brook University. After completing his doctorate, Neider spent five years as a Postdoctoral Fellow at the interdisciplinary Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. His research focuses on understanding human perception and cognition in realistic contexts, and then using that understanding to develop training interventions and technological innovations for improving human performance in real world tasks and environments. NeiderÕs lab studies behavior across the age spectrum, from pre-adolescent children to the elderly. To examine behavior in the most realistic contexts possible, his lab utilizes a number of research methodologies including traditional behavioral paradigms, advanced eye tracking methods, driving simulation, and virtual reality.