The largest component of my current research trajectory focuses on the interdisciplinary study of character. In this research, I examine a variety of often overlooked character traits using perspectives from Philosophy, Theology, and Psychology. While my research is interdisciplinary in this way, I only have formal training in Philosophy and Theology; the quality and influence of my research would be significantly enhanced if I had more advanced research skills in Psychology and a more mature research network including active psychologists whose interests overlap with my own. I am applying for an academic cross-training fellowship precisely to pursue these opportunities.
Together with prospective mentor Peter Hill, I have designed a suite of cross-training activities that will advance these aims. The activities will include taking graduate classes; completing independent reading; collaborating with a research team of psychologists holding bi-weekly meetings; observing and contributing to a large, interdisciplinary research project; attending and presenting my research at academic psychology meetings; and completing three of my own interdisciplinary research projects with one-to-one supervision from a mentor in Psychology. By virtue of completing these activities by the end of the fellowship period, I should be able to produce individual and collaborative research in Philosophy, Theology, and Psychology that is more thoroughly informed by psychological methods and findings, and I should be a sought-after contributor to ongoing interdisciplinary research projects in Psychology.
