Psychologist, Researcher, Mentor: Dr. Richard Keen
Scholarly Interests
“My interests include memory, learning, and the perception of time and numbers.”
Creativity in the Classroom
“A scientist without creativity is like a painter without a brush. A scientist must be able to come up with novel ideas or see relationships that nobody else has seen. Combining creativity with technical knowledge is really what makes a great scientist. My teaching philosophy is simple: try to inspire your students to be excited about learning. You can usually see it in the students’ posture and face when they truly understand a new concept.”
Making an Impact in Students’ Lives
“I work hard with students to help them achieve their goals, or even to clarify what their goals are. Several of the students I have worked closely with have been admitted to excellent Ph.D. programs. A student who was working at a zoo called me to say that due to a class she had with me, her supervisors waived a required course to become an animal trainer because she was already very knowledgeable on that subject.”
“A scientist without creativity is like a painter without a brush.”
Making an Impact in the Community
“Being an avid researcher, I am very familiar with the rules and regulations governing research. Due to this I serve on the Institutional Review Boards (IRB) at Converse College, Wofford College and Mary Black Hospital Systems. The IRB oversees all experiments being done with human subjects and approves or rejects studies based on ethical guidelines.”
Current Research
“I’m collaborating with a Converse biology professor and students to study the effects of caffeine on time perception. In a previous study, we found that small doses of 
caffeine speed up one’s perception of time (e.g., 10 seconds of real time may feel like 20 seconds), but high doses actually slows down time perception. To follow-up with this we are trying to find the ‘optimal’ low dose that will have the largest effect on time perception. Another follow-up study tests the differences in how caffeine is administered. Because most people take caffeine orally, yet most research involves injecting caffeine, it is important to know if there is a difference between the two types of administration.”
Recent Publications, Awards, Presentations
“I co-authored a chapter on choice behavior in a 2008 book honoring John Staddon, one of the most eminent psychologists alive today. Our psychology lab students have presented multiple times throughout 2008-2010 and we won the Outstanding Paper Presentation twice (2008 and 2010) at the Georgia Undergraduate Research in Psychology Conference (GURP), the Outstanding Poster Presentation (2010) at GURP, and the best paper presentation at the Upstate Research Symposium (2010). In the last couple of years, I have won the Kathryn Amelia Brown award for teaching excellence, The O’Herron award for faculty excellence, and the SCICU Excellence in teaching award.”
