My research focuses on how transformative experiences unfold and are construed during and after a six week study abroad program in Istanbul, Türkiye. My study has two parts. The first part focuses on how site-level predictors at various historical sacred sites in Istanbul correlate with the study abroad cohort's perceptions of the sites. The second part focuses on how the study abroad trip overall was experienced and remembered by participating cohort members, emphasizing the difference between how experiences were construed while on the abroad trip vs how the same experiences were recalled after returning home. Together these parts aim to form a nuanced picture of what shapes transformation during novel experiences. 

I first conceptualized the project in conversation with Dr. Erol. We settled on our research focus quickly, giving me ample time to plan out our surveys and analysis strategies. As an undergraduate researcher, I utilized validated measures of various constructs such as awe, mystical experience, and personality alongside qualitative measures to construct surveys administered at various sites and timepoints during a study abroad program. I also managed data collection, cleaning, organization, and analysis. Given the a small cohort size, I used Bayesian hierarchical modeling for the first part of the study and descriptive and qualitative analysis for the second.