Psychology for the Common Good

From crafting educational programs on healthy relationship behaviours to addressing mental health concerns among those experiencing food insecurity, students in the senior capstone course “Psychology for the Common Good,” under the guidance of Dr. Marcie Penner, Associate Professor of Psychology, demonstrated their commitment to making a positive difference in the lives of others at a community panel event during King’s Research Week.

The “Psychology for the Common Good” course was inspired by Dr. Penner’s paternal grandmother, Agnes Penner, who firmly believed that knowledge and skills should be used to benefit the community. The guiding framework for the course is George Miller’s call to “give psychology away to the people who can use it.”

To that end, Dr. Penner challenges her students to use the knowledge and skills they’ve gained in psychology to benefit others. “Each team selects a broad, real-world issue they want to address - one they are passionate about - and spends the academic year developing a broad and deep research base, collaborating directly with a community partner or experts to develop a research-based and implementable application.”

This year, two teams, “Breaking the Cycle” and “Brain Food,” went head-to-head vying for the Agnes Penner Prize, presenting their innovative solutions to a panel of community members. This year’s panelists were:

• Mojdeh Cox, associate alumna, community builder and CEO & Principal Consultant at Cox & Co.

• Lori Runciman, Director of Grants, London Community Foundation

• Brandon Vecchiola ’21, Manager of Business Development, CMHA Thames Valley

Breaking the Cycle is an educational program for youth that teaches healthy relationship behaviours and raises awareness about intimate partner violence. The team, composed of students Lucy Fisher, Sofi Kotilehti, and Jessica Mitchell, chose the project because they believe everyone has a right to feel safe and supported, and they saw the need to educate youth on the importance of preventing intimate partner violence.

“Dr. Penner provided invaluable support throughout our project, from offering guidance and resources to encouraging us every step of the way, and her support has played a crucial role in the success of our project,” says Fisher. “We are grateful to have the opportunity to highlight an important topic that resonates with us and share our efforts aimed at breaking the cycle of intimate partner violence in youth.”

Brain Food is an educational resource and service toolbox designed to help address the mental health concerns of people experiencing food insecurity in the London community. Team members were Jeremias Campos, Jack de Jeu, and Emelia White.

The Brain Food team said they were very excited to share the project, a collaboration with the Glen Cairn Community Resource Centre, which addresses mental health issues amongst those experiencing food insecurity. The event allowed the team to highlight the topic’s importance and its potential impact on the Glen Cairn community.

“The encouragement and support we received from the faculty helped us along this journey. We want to thank Dr. Penner for her guidance throughout this year and for going above and beyond in assisting us.”

“These student projects will directly improve the lives of Londoners as one in six households in our community face food insecurity and the city of London recently declared intimate-partner violence an epidemic,” says Dr. Penner.

After careful deliberations, the community panel selected Breaking the Cycle as the 2024 winner of the Agnes Penner Prize.

“It is such a validation of all the hard work and dedication we have put into our project over the past year,” says Fisher, speaking on behalf of the Breaking the Cycle team.

This year marks the ninth year of the Psychology for the Common Good course, and many past projects have been implemented in schools, universities, hospitals, community groups, camps, and corporate settings. Past projects have also gone on to receive external awards, including the Canadian Mental Health Association Champion of Mental Health Award.

Congratulations to this year’s teams on their exceptional projects and to Breaking the Cycle for winning the Agnes Penner Prize.