Behind the Scenes of Our Postgraduate Conference

Saying “Yes” to the Committee

Joining the conference planning committee was an easy decision. After attending the 2024 PGR Conference in the 1st year of my PhD I saw firsthand what a valuable and well-run event it could be. Joining the committee presented a sincere opportunity to contribute to the postgraduate community, showcase the excellent research within the School of Psychology, and gain some practical experience along the way.

Our first meeting as a committee was during the summer. In this meeting our shared goal became clear, to create a welcoming platform for postgraduate students to present their research, exchange ideas, and connect with others in the School of Psychology.

The Run-Up

While we knew the planning process would be long and involve a lot of work, the scale of the task really became clear once we began. It was only after divvying up the roles and starting to think about possible keynote speakers and sources of funding that we realised how much organisation this conference would require.

From arranging catering, creating the agenda, and designing the programme, everything was up to us and there was a great deal to manage. Over the months before the conference, we worked closely with Carolyn Largey (Research Administrator) who’s advice and expertise were invaluable.

Fortunately, the 2025 committee was brilliant! Everyone contributed their time and effort to ensure the event came together successfully. My own role involved coordinating PG speakers and attendees, which proved a lot more work than expected. Managing sign-ups, special requests, and presentation queries kept me on my toes, but it was a valuable learning experience in organisation and communication.

The Conference Day

The day of the conferenced arrived quickly and on Friday 24th October, after months of preparation, the 2025 PGR Conference took place. My role for the day was Chair, meaning I had to keep presentations and the day running to schedule (a task that was more challenging than it sounds, as the talks were so engaging it was easy to become absorbed in them).

Over 100 attendees joined us on the day, creating a friendly and enthusiastic atmosphere to discuss research. It was inspiring to see such strong engagement and genuine interest in the diverse research being conducted across the School of Psychology.

Celebrating Our Presenters and Winners

The conference would not have been possible without our presenters. We were delighted to welcome two outstanding keynote speakers: Professor Teresa McCormack (Queen’s University Belfast) and Professor Shelley McKeown Jones (University of Oxford), who shared valuable insights from their respective fields.

Our postgraduate presenters delivered an exceptional range of talks, including:

Conor Loughran (PGR) – Walking with Parkinson’s: Facilitators and barriers in real-world environments
Samantha Darrah (PGR) – People are less likely to discount the advice of an algorithm than another human
Anna Hollis (PGR) – Chatbot companionship, autism and loneliness
Beth McKeague (PGR) – Behavioural change techniques for improving animal welfare in Europe: A scoping review
LJ Rogers (PGR) – Task order effects on arithmetic performance and state anxiety in the penultimate years of primary school
Dr Alaina Macri – From connecting to animals to connecting to AI – Applying PhD skills in a new field
Ben Cairns (PGT) – Exploring the mental health status of farmers in Northern Ireland: A mixed methods approach
Olivia Crawford (PGR) – Parents have smaller but higher-quality support networks than childfree and other non-parent adults
Molly Adams (PGR) – Understanding integration in Northern Ireland’s primary schools: Perspectives of children, parents, and educators

We were also fortunate to have an excellent range of poster presentations, including:

Zhuofei Bian (PGR) – The impact of AI on second language learners (SLL) in university: Examining language anxiety, motivation, and classroom participation
Paul Gordon (PGR) – The risk and resilience factors associated with Secondary Traumatic Stress (STS) in school personnel: A scoping review
Ellen O’Hara (PGT) – Clinician implicit and explicit attitudes regarding Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD): Exploring the relationship between “blame” and clinician decision-making
Maria Pollakova (PGR) – Frontline professionals’ responses to male survivors of domestic abuse: A global systematic review of experiences, attitudes, understanding and service processes
Lynn Walsh (PGT) – Exploring the relationship between experiences, perceptions of public attitudes, and levels of wellbeing, anxiety, and depression among migrants living in the UK and Ireland
Prize Winners: Congratulations to Ben Cairns (Best Oral Presentation) and Paul Gordon (Best Poster Presentation), as judged by our panel led by Dr Donnacha Hanna, PGR Director.

While the preparation and planning were certainly demanding, the success of the day made every moment worthwhile! The conference was a celebration of the quality and diversity of research being undertaken by postgraduate students in the School of Psychology.

A sincere thank-you to everyone involved, our speakers, and all attendees for contributing to such a positive and inspiring event. Special thanks also to Carolyn Largey and Dr Donnacha Hanna for their guidance, support, and encouragement throughout the planning process and on the day itself. 

Molly Adams (on behalf of the 2025 PGR Committee)

Holly Adams, Molly Adams, Zhuofei Bian, Xiaoying Li, Conor Loughran, Mollie McAlister, Caoimhe McCarney, Maria Pollakova, and Tara Pouryahya