Expectations and Norms
All conference participants are required to attend all conference activities during the entirety of the conference period.
In addition, conference participants are expected to help create a more dynamic and productive discussion environment by:
- Viewing the conference as an opportunity to learn from others
- Being open-minded and respectful of diverse viewpoints
- Remaining fully engaged during presentations and poster sessions
- Asking questions to clarify points or seek more information
- Keeping comments relevant to the discussion
- Sharing notes and constructive observations with presenters
Presentation Proposals
The conference offers two formats for students to present their research—paper presentation and poster presentation. Both formats will provide students with the opportunity to present their research to and receive feedback from the entire conference. Students who wish to present their research will choose whether they prefer to present a paper or a poster. Every effort will be made to accommodate the preferences of the presenters. However, since the conference can only accommodate a finite number of paper presentations, some people who submit a paper abstract may be asked to present a poster in order to allow for the most students to participate. The sessions are structured as follows:
- Paper session format: Within a single 1-hour paper session, two presenters each will have 15 minutes to present, followed by a 30-minute breakout discussion/feedback period with session attendees. Students are encouraged to submit completed projects for paper sessions, but research in progress or developed research proposals will also be considered.
- Poster session format: Each 1-hour poster session will consist of 8-10 posters. The sessions will be interactive, with poster presenters actively discussing their research, answering questions, and addressing comments from attendees. Students are encouraged to submit works in progress for poster sessions in order to benefit from the feedback of other conference attendees. All attendees will attend the poster session so that each poster will receive a great deal of attention and feedback.
Conference Abstracts (For Papers and Posters)
Since each accepted abstract will be included with the conference materials, each presenter should critically review his/her submission to ensure that it includes an adequate description of the research project. We suggest that participants consult the publication manual of the American Psychological Association (APA) to inform the construction of the abstract. Abstracts must be no longer than 2000 characters and the title must be no longer than 100 characters.
Paper Presentation Guidelines
A. PAPER SESSION FORMAT
Paper sessions will last 60 minutes. Within each 60-minute session, there will be two presenters and a moderator. Each presenter will have 15 minutes to present their paper. The moderator will help to ensure that each presentation does not go over their 15-minute time limit. At the end of the two presentations, there will be a 30-minute breakout session where the audience will split into 2 different rooms to engage with each speaker separately about their paper. Audience members will be able to move from one room to another during the 30-minute discussion.
B. AUDIO/VISUAL EQUIPMENT
The following audio/visual equipment will be available in the meeting rooms used for paper presentations:
- Microphone
- LCD projector (for PowerPoint presentations)
- Screen
C. SUBMISSION OF PRESENTATION SLIDES
All FINAL slides (in Power point format) must be emailed to gro.etisbewpcgb@ofni by 8pm (Eastern) on July 9, 2024. This will allow the program committee to organize and preload the presentations on to the appropriate computers before the conference starts. Include your first initial and full last name in the name of your file (e.g., ” MJohnson”). We will not accept updated slides after the July 9 deadline.
D. SUGGESTIONS WHEN PREPARING YOUR PAPER PRESENTATION
1. In designing your paper presentation, consider the following tips:
- Use font size large enough to be seen from the back of the room where the presentation will be held. A font size of 20-point or larger is recommended
- Use contrasting colors for the text and the background so the text will be easy to read.
- Avoid cluttering the slides with too much text, text effects or graphics. Your audience should hear what you have to say and not be distracted by a busy screen. We suggest using bulleted short phrases and sentences to convey your message on slides instead of lengthy sentences.
2. Consider adhering to the general “traditional” order of presentation of a study, adapted for works-in-progress. An example of such format and timing is below:
- Brief introduction (statement of problem, relevant background literature, research questions and hypotheses) (4-5 minutes)
- Concise description of intended or expected procedures and methods (2 minutes)
- Presentation of key or expected results (5-6 minutes)
- Discussion of Conclusions and/or Implications/Future Directions (1-2 minutes)
3. Focus on a few main themes and avoid unnecessary details and the presentation of too many ideas and conclusions. Your audience can lose your most important findings in the large volume of information presented to them during each complete session.
4. Assume that your audience is broadly familiar with psychology but assume that your audience is NOT necessarily familiar with the particular area of investigation you are discussing. Therefore, be careful that you are not stating key terms, jargon, or acronyms without explaining them clearly, but concisely.
5. Be sure to rehearse your presentation several times prior to presenting at the conference to assure that you will complete the presentation in the allotted 15-minute presentation time. Adhering to the presentation time limit is essential to allowing sufficient breakout time for in-depth discussion and keeping the conference events on schedule. The moderator will cut you off if you go over your time limit.
E. PRESENTING YOUR PAPER AT THE CONFERENCE
Arrive a few minutes prior to your session to introduce yourself to the session moderator and to become familiar with the audio/visual equipment. (If you are using a PowerPoint presentation, your presentation will be preloaded onto the computer.) Be alert for the signals from the timer. The session timer will give a warning at 12 minutes so that you can begin to wrap up. Your presentation should end promptly by the 15-minute mark.
Poster Presentation Guidelines
A. POSTER SESSION FORMAT
Presenters will have approximately 15 minutes to set up their poster before the poster session begins. Each presenter will be assigned a 4-foot x 6-foot poster board space. Presenters’ poster sizes should not exceed these dimensions. If you plan to print your poster once you arrive, please plan to do so before the conference begins since the conference schedule is very full and everyone is expected to attend all of the events.
B. SUGGESTIONS TO CONSIDER IN PREPARING YOUR POSTER
Just like paper presentations, a well-organized poster can be an effective way of sharing your research and ideas. While the way you present your poster information can vary depending on the content of your work and personal style, here are some general guidelines to make a poster more accessible, attractive, and interesting:
- Consider structuring your poster similar to papers. Possible headings on scientific posters include:
- A Short Abstract
- A Brief Introduction/Background
- Intended Methods and Preliminary or Expected Results
- Discussion/Conclusions and/or Implications
- References, Acknowledgements
(This is a general guide and has been adapted to be suitable for works in progress. Your posters may differ somewhat depending on your specific content and your personal style.)
- One common criticism of posters is that they can be too text-heavy. In this case, too much text can result in the audience spending more time reading and less time interacting with you. The text material included on a poster should be relatively brief. Provide a concise overview of significance of work and examples of relevant background literature for your research questions. Consider including a succinct statement of major conclusions.
- Title lettering should be the largest, about 2-3 inches, with subheadings 1/2 to 1 inch high. For material other than titles and subheadings, capitals and lower-case letters in combination are much easier to read than all capitals. Text materials can be sized as large as 24 points.
- From 10-15 feet away, the viewer should see an easy-to-read title and an uncluttered, neat arrangement of graphic illustrations and text.
- Color is generally a matter of taste. Color contrasts can be very effective, so use color to enhance readability and to highlight or distinguish key points or areas of your poster presentation. For instance, featured parts of your poster can be highlighted by the use of warm colors (reds and yellow) or black if the background colors are soft. White or very light shades can be used if the background colors are bright and deep.
- Packing: If you know you may be flying, make the poster elements small enough to fall within acceptable carry-on dimensions (generally 17×22 inches; call the airline to be sure) to avoid the panic of lost luggage.
C. SUGGESTIONS FOR DISPLAYING AND PRESENTING YOUR POSTER AT THE CONFERENCE
- You may have only a short time to set up your display, so prepare in advance. Have these items in a poster emergency kit: tape measure, 9 inch length of string, box of clear push-pins (get longer than standard ones if mounted illustrations are thicker than 1/8 inch), ordinary thumb tacks, roll of double-stick tape, scissors, and glue.
- It is important to know the message that you want to get across and to be able to deliver it successfully. Simple, clear language is essential to a successful poster presentation. Before the presentation, a brief 3-5 minute verbal script should be prepared for the poster. It also is useful to try to anticipate questions viewers may have about the various elements of your project. Plan to interact with the audience members viewing your poster, not just let the poster content speak for you.