TEAM
Lab Director: Dr. Rachel Baumsteiger
Rachel Baumsteiger is an Assistant Professor of Psychology at Cal Poly Pomona. Before coming to CPP, Dr. Baumsteiger received a BA from the University of South Florida and then an MA and PhD from the Claremont Graduate University with a concentration in positive developmental psychology. She then worked as a postdoctoral associate and then associate research scientist at the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence. Dr. Baumsteiger's research focuses on social, emotional, and moral development with a particular interest in prosocial behavior, especially among adolescents and adults. Dr. Baumsteiger also enjoys teaching courses related to research methods, human development, positive psychology, and social psychology.
Research Assistants
Hallie Alfaro
Hallie Alfaro is a Junior undergraduate student majoring in Psychology at Cal Poly Pomona. Her research interests include how positive psychology impacts well-being, reducing mental health stigmas, developmental psychology, and personality psychology. Hallie’s long-term goals are to earn her PhD in Social/Personality Psychology and continue conducting research focused on underrepresented communities.
Olivia Brown
Olivia Brown is a senior undergraduate student studying psychology at Cal Poly Pomona. As a psychology student, her interests include prosocial behavior with neurodivergent populations and the impact of positive psychology and strength-based therapies in reducing stigma, increasing well-being, and generational prevention of crisis. Her long-term goals is to become a LCSW, with the intention of working in private practice or on-site therapy at schools.
Michelle Grajeda
Michelle Grajeda is a senior undergraduate student at Cal Poly Pomona. As a psychology major, her research interests include mental health stigma, particularly within Latine communities, relationships, and psychological well-being. Her long-term goal is to become a licensed therapist with a private practice serving both English- and Spanish-speaking clients. She hopes to support mental health within her community while helping adolescents, young adults, and couples improve their interpersonal relationships and overall well-being.
Daniel Leon
Daniel Leon is a senior undergraduate student majoring in psychology at Cal Poly Pomona. His research interests include emotional regulation and how positive psychology interventions can impact well-being, reducing stigma against people with mental health concerns, and psychosis risk. His goal is to gain his PhD in clinical psychology and to apply that degree in both research and clinical fields to support those in need.
Ashley Torres
Joseph Baky
Joseph Baky is a senior undergraduate McNair Scholar majoring in psychology at Cal Poly Pomona. His research interests focus on examining how Positive Psychology can be used to critique existing constructs, methodology, and institutions in order to promote equitable practices in research and oppose the pathologization of marginalized identity. He uses these frameworks to explore pedagogical constructs like mentoring relationships and educational self-efficacy. Joseph will obtain his PhD in Social Psychology in order to enter industry in research fields, as well as to become tenured faculty and act as a mentor to future psychologists.
Miriame Fars
Miriame Fars is a senior undergraduate psychology student at Cal Poly Pomona. Her research interests include prosocial behavior, social connection, technology use, and how everyday social experiences can influence emotional and psychological well-being. She is especially interested in working with children and adolescents and understanding how supportive relationships and prosocial experiences can contribute to healthy development and well-being.
Gavin Langhorst
Gavin Langhorst is a senior undergraduate student majoring in psychology with a global humanities minor at Cal Poly Pomona. His research interests center around improving the well-being of transgender and gender non-conforming individuals through incorporating values of strengths, resilience, and social connectedness into therapeutic practice. He aspires to obtain a PhD in Counseling Psychology to enter private practice and conduct research to develop alternative practices and improved therapies tailored towards individuals with intersecting LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC identities.
Emma Nahapetian
Emma Nahapetian is a senior undergraduate student studying psychology at Cal Poly Pomona. Her work as a registered behavior technician with children on the spectrum has broadened her research interests on mental health stigma, youth trauma, and social psychology. As a Middle Eastern woman, she values supporting multicultural individuals facing mental health challenges. In the future, Emma will earn a master's degree to become a licensed therapist with a private practice focused on helping adolescents and young adults improve their sense of well-being.
Sandy Calderon
Ashley Torres is a senior undergraduate student at Cal Poly Pomona. As a psychology major, her interests include utilizing prosociality with maternal postnatal populations, bi-racial populations, and children/adolescents navigating trauma to flourish instead of just reaching baseline. Her long-term goal is to become a licensed therapist with a private practice focused on helping families to cultivate personal flourishing.
Lab Alumni
Juan Alba
Iselle Alvarado
Melissa Armenta
Daysy Bravo
Leslie Cervantes
Jamie Cortez
Jade Cruz
Johanna Flores
Jesus Gomez
Aliyah Iskenderian
Nirali Kantawala
Natalie Khoury
Sydney Lee
Isabella Lopez
Clover Martinez
Michell Navarro
Lola Piñón