The Department of Psychology and Neuroscience is proud to announce that senior Jeslyn Brouwers has been honored as the recipient of the 2024–2025 Jerome S. Bruner Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Research.
As an international student from Thailand and the Netherlands, Brouwers first discovered her passion for psychology at the International School of Bangkok. She is deeply grateful to her high school psychology teacher, Ms. Ginny Voigt, for introducing her to the field and inspiring her to imagine publishing her own research paper someday. At Duke University, Brouwers began realizing that vision by joining the Tomasello Lab as a research assistant during her freshman year. “Working as a research assistant allowed me to transition from being a student of psychology to actively participating in the research process and contributing to the field’s advancement of knowledge. However, I quickly aspired to move beyond supporting research to leading my own investigations in topics that sparked my curiosity,” Brouwers explains.
Brouwers successfully defended her honors research thesis last spring. She described the experience as “not only the culmination of my academic achievements but also a celebration of the incredible support I’ve received from my friends, family, and the faculty at Duke throughout the process.” She credited Dr. Bridgette Hard as a pivotal mentor in her growth as a psychology researcher. “Dr. Hard has consistently pushed me to grow beyond what I thought was possible, encouraging me to problem-solve with creativity and believe in my potential,” Brouwers shared.
Like most research, inspiration often comes from personal experiences, and for Brouwers, it began with observing the widespread negative sentiment among undergraduates toward group projects. Under the guidance of Drs. Bridgette Hard and Angela Vieth, Brouwers and her co-researcher Alissa Rivero designed and conducted a two-part study. This research, titled Why Students Dislike Group Projects: Understanding and Addressing the Barriers to Collaborative Learning, first aimed to identify factors shaping student attitudes toward group work within a Duke Psychology Research Methods and Statistics course and, second, apply these findings to design and evaluate a pedagogical intervention to improve these collaborative learning experiences. Brouwers and Rivero have since pioneered three additional follow-up studies. These include examining student and professor perceptions of the value of group work, redesigning their intervention for application across an array of undergraduate classrooms, and investigating the challenges Durham Public High School teachers face when implementing group work. Combined with their previous research, these supplementary findings will be synthesized to create and publish a best practices manual for effectively scaffolding group work in high school and undergraduate classrooms.
Receiving the Bruner Award is an incredible personal and academic honor for Brouwers. It reflects both her growth as a psychologist throughout her journey at Duke and her passion for research, which she aims to continue pursuing in graduate school. She hopes her research journey will inspire others to “take leaps of faith and follow your passion with dedication and resilience.”
Sharing similar sentiments with Dr. Jerome Bruner, Brouwers values intellectual curiosity and the exploration of diverse disciplines. Her research journey at Duke University spans multiple disciplines, from educational psychology to global mental health. In addition to her honors thesis research, Brouwers is involved in the Puffer Global Mental Health Lab as a research assistant for the Parenting on the Thailand/Myanmar Border study. Here, she collaborated with researchers from the Global Parenting Initiative to evaluate the effectiveness of a film-based intervention (Being Family) on improving caregiver mental health and parenting outcomes for displaced migrant families along the Thailand-Myanmar border. This experience, with special importance to Brouwers because of her personal connection to Thailand through her heritage, has reinforced her commitment to conducting research that is both culturally relevant and globally impactful.
Brouwers is currently applying to Ph.D. programs in Organizational Behavior, where she hopes to research the topic of intrinsic motivation in settings that define much of modern life – the workplace. Brouwers states, “I seek to pursue a Ph.D. to help spark passion in others’ work as I have found in my own academic journey.” Looking ahead, Brouwers envisions a multifaceted career in academia, integrating innovative research with teaching and mentorship to advance knowledge and drive future-ready workplaces.
