Psychology major Riley Circello wants to improve people's work experience

Written byAshley McClure-French

"This major has helped me in many ways. And it's helped me help others. I鈥檓 forever grateful for that. It made me realize some things about how I acted and how other people acted, and to be respectful of everyone鈥檚 behaviors. We鈥檙e all human and everyone works differently. It鈥檚 a good program to understand how to work with other people.鈥

青青草视频 Psychology major Riley Circello.
Riley Circello
Major
Psychology
Hometown
Livonia, La.

Where I'm From

I鈥檓 from Lavonia, La., where I took my first psychology course in high school.

Where I Am

I am graduating with a major in psychology and interning in a human resources department.

Where I'm Going

I鈥檓 going to graduate school for industrial organizational psychology.

UL Lafayette was the right place for Riley to call home while she earned her degree in psychology.

鈥淚t鈥檚 sort of a tradition in my family,鈥 she said. 鈥淢y mom came here, my uncle came here, and my grandparents live here. I鈥檝e been around here my whole life.

鈥淯L Lafayette is small and intimate, and I like the connections here 鈥 I didn鈥檛 feel that anywhere else,鈥 she said. 鈥淚 like the small size of classes and campus. It鈥檚 nice to come here. I love going to the library and being outside.鈥

It isn鈥檛 just the University鈥檚 welcoming atmosphere that Riley enjoys, but her department鈥檚 as well.

鈥淭he psychology program makes me feel like I can be successful in the future,鈥 she said. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e really uplifting and everything I鈥檝e learned I鈥檒l take with me for the rest of my life.鈥

Studying Industrial Organizational Psychology

Riley will be attending grad school for industrial organizational psychology, a branch of psychology that she started studying here at UL Lafayette.

鈥淚 talked to an industrial organizational psychology professor and I got this HR internship. I found out that I think this is something I can succeed in and would enjoy, which is what I long for: enjoying my job,鈥 she said.

鈥淚ndividuals work more than they do any other thing in their life,鈥 she explained. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e at work more than they鈥檙e at home. So, I want to take what I learn from psychology and help them enjoy that and just aid them in any way I can.

鈥淚 want to help organizations to be successful and help their efficiency and find the best people for organizations that fit their roles,鈥 she said. 鈥淧sychology really helps with that because you learn about human behavior and you will learn how those behaviors can be brought into the work field and where they would be most successful in that company.

鈥淲hen times change, companies need to change with that time,鈥 she said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 important to re-evaluate and do job analysis throughout your time there to make sure that everyone is capable of what鈥檚 required of that position.鈥

Riley's Research

Riley takes part in an industrial organization-focused research lab, which looks into discrimination against pregnant women in the workplace.

鈥淲e鈥檙e seeing how that discrimination affects their stress, if they feel comfortable with the company, and how long they would stay there,鈥 she said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e looking at anticipated discrimination versus experienced discrimination and how that plays a role.

鈥淭he results of the first study came back significant,鈥 she said, 鈥渁nd we鈥檙e looking at demographics specifically in this study to see if, for example, you鈥檙e African American versus white, or married versus single, and we鈥檙e looking at the intersectionality of the data.

鈥淚 was interested in it because I am a female and, as a female, we get pregnant and we have to work,鈥 she said. 鈥淪o, I want to see if that information could be passed to employers to show that there is still discrimination, even though there are laws in place. Just to make them knowledgeable that this is still happening and that shouldn鈥檛 be done.

鈥淵ou learn so much about yourself and others,鈥 she said. 鈥淭his major has helped me and helped me help others. I鈥檓 forever grateful for that. It made me realize some things about how I acted and how other people acted and to be respectful of everyone鈥檚 behaviors. We鈥檙e all human and everyone works differently. It鈥檚 a good program to understand how to work with other people.鈥