Morton Ann Gernsbacher
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gernsbacherlab.bsky.social
Morton Ann Gernsbacher
@gernsbacherlab.bsky.social
Vilas Research Professor & Sir Frederic Bartlett Professor, University of Wisconsin-Madison, researching cognitive neuroscience, human attention & communication
Not to worry! If you time travel to 17th c, you can constantly check your pocket watch!

Samuel Pepys (1665): "how much of my old folly and childishness hangs upon me still that I cannot forbear carrying my watch in my hand in the coach all this afternoon, and seeing what o'clock it is 100 times"
October 22, 2025 at 10:42 PM
And wasn't that exchange w/ the Brazilian student telling the Chicago senior citizen about his parents not allowing him to go to Lollapalooza -- just as sweet as could be!
August 16, 2025 at 5:09 AM
I think the key might be connecting with senior centers. In my Psychological Effects of the Internet course, for one assignment, students spend an hour teaching an older adult (>60yo) a new Internet-based skill. The senior centers in my community beg for the students to come out and teach there!
August 16, 2025 at 5:06 AM
Even better: Students learning a second language Zooming with older people who use that language and who live in retirement facilities (and are eager to chat!).

I've shown this video in my "Psychological Effects of the Internet" for years, and the students love it! www.youtube.com/watch?v=-S-5...
CNA - Speaking Exchange
YouTube video by FCB Brasil
www.youtube.com
August 15, 2025 at 3:56 AM
Thanks!
July 11, 2025 at 1:52 AM
pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
July 11, 2025 at 1:14 AM
APA PsycNet
psycnet.apa.org
July 11, 2025 at 1:14 AM
Samuel Pepys (1665): "how much of my old folly and childishness hangs upon me still that I cannot forbear carrying my watch in my hand in the coach all this afternoon, and seeing what o'clock it is 100 times"
April 11, 2025 at 12:18 AM
I always assumed (maybe was even taught this) that it was 'foot in the door' technique; demographic items might be the items participants are least inclined to disclose. Put them last after participants have already invested in the study (aka: opened the door and let the researcher in, so to speak!)
March 26, 2025 at 1:34 AM
Here's my contribution!
February 13, 2025 at 2:48 AM
February 8, 2025 at 3:13 AM
February 8, 2025 at 12:09 AM
February 6, 2025 at 1:42 AM
Ah yes, and I just finished my second tour of four-years of duty on a such named committee, chairing it for seven of those eight years! Surprised? :)
December 21, 2024 at 2:58 AM
Totally agree! We even have empirical data that "special needs" evokes more negativity than the term "disabled." pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...
pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
December 9, 2024 at 4:14 AM
Yes! I agree completely! That's why we did this study: "Specificity, contexts, and reference groups matter when assessing autistic traits" journals.plos.org/plosone/arti...
Specificity, contexts, and reference groups matter when assessing autistic traits
Many of the personality and behavioral traits (e.g., social imperviousness, directness in conversation, lack of imagination, affinity for solitude, difficulty displaying emotions) that are known to be...
journals.plos.org
November 28, 2024 at 10:15 PM
Here's what I do with undergraduates (juniors/seniors) in Research Methods. It's Unit 5: Assignment #4 in this Open Access course.

(Unit 5: Assignment #3 is about filenaming, one of my penchants!)

You are welcome to use any or all material in the entire course! online225.psych.wisc.edu
PSY 225: Research Methods -
online225.psych.wisc.edu
November 18, 2024 at 5:04 AM
Hand raised!
November 16, 2024 at 9:46 PM
Yes! So true! And after living nearly 10 years in the state of ORE-uh-gun, then moving to Wisconsin, I learned a new shibboleth -- the town (nearby Madison) pronounced Ore-ee-GONE!
November 9, 2024 at 1:55 AM
You’re welcome wise anything and everything in my open access research methods course. I hope it helps!

online225.psych.wisc.edu
PSY 225: Mobile Homepage - PSY 225: Research Methods
PSY 225: Mobile Homepage
online225.psych.wisc.edu
October 30, 2024 at 4:35 AM
Might I just mention how delighted I am to see Neil, who I know from the open science world, and David, who I know from the disability world, connecting -- and over potatoes! Well done!
July 14, 2024 at 9:00 PM
Thanks so much for this guidance. I'll share it with my university, who also use red tabs with white text (wisc. edu) throughout their webpages, so they might too be unaware.
February 18, 2024 at 9:16 PM
p.p.s. Back to the Research Methods course, there's also material about replication and reproducibility in Unit 4.

Thanks again!
February 18, 2024 at 9:12 PM
p.s. There is a section about research transparency! It's in Unit 10. Also in my open-access Basic Stats course (its theme is purple/white so you again might want to use a grayscale filter), there's a whole unit about reproducilbility and replication. I hope that's helpful! online210.psych.wisc.edu
February 18, 2024 at 9:10 PM
Thanks so much for your support! RE: the red/white theme, have you tried turning on "differentiate without color" or turning on a gray scale filter? That might help not only with my course website but with other sites! I hope so!
February 18, 2024 at 9:08 PM