Department of Psychology

Amy Cota-McKinley, Ph.D.

Office: Sullivan 241L

Phone: (508) 929-8767

Email: acota@worcester.edu

Education

PhD - Social Psychology -Colorado State University

MS - Applied Psychology - Jacksonville State University

BA - Psychology - University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

Area of Specialization

Dr. Cota-McKinley’s research interests include two separate areas: Visitor Studies and Vengeance. Visitor Studies encompasses audience research, exhibit and program evaluation, and visitor services within informal learning environments such as museums and zoos. In addition to Visitor Studies, Dr. Cota-McKinley also is researching the topic of vengeance. This is a relatively new area of study in the field of social psychology. Her goal is to investigate the socio-cultural events and behaviors that precipitate vengeful acts.

Representative Scholarly Activity

Cota-McKinley, A. L. (2005). Grade aid for Kenrick, Neuberg, and Cialdini’s Social Psychology: Unraveling the Mystery (3rd ed.). Needham Heights, MA: Allyn and Bacon.

Cota-McKinley, A. L., Woody, W. D., & Bell, P. A. (2001). Vengeance: Effects of gender, age, and religious background. Aggressive Behavior, 27, 343-350.

Cota, A. L., & Loomis, R. J. (1997). Three experiments about the effects of various formatting techniques on information recall. Visitor Behavior, 12 (3&4), 16-19.

Cota-McKinley, A. (2004, May). What is formative evaluation? Visitor outcomes for Traveling El Camino Real. Talk given at the Scholars meeting for Traveling El Camino Real at the Museum of Natural History, Albuquerque, NM.

Cota-McKinley, A. (2003, April). Museum fatigue: A new approach to an old problem. Paper presented at the Faculty Forum at Worcester State College, Worcester, MA.