Meet Giyahna Richmond!
Major: Psychology, Neuroscience
Hometown: Wessington, South Dakota
Giyahna, a junior studying neuroscience at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, has two dogs named Bane and Diesel, and her favorite color is pink.
Originally a nutrition and exercise science major, she switched areas of study after taking PSYC 273 Brain & Behavior during her first year of college.
"I didn't know that neuroscience specifically was what I wanted to study until I took that class. It really piqued my interest, and I found that I really liked learning about the field," says Giyahna.
She is an undergraduate research assistant in the Women's Integrative Sexual Health Lab, and her research project was titled "Therapy-Seeking Barriers and the Effects of Healthcare Discrimination in Marginalized Groups."
"I wanted to do this research project for a couple of reasons. I hadn't done a research project before and wanted to make sure I got to experience what it was like," says Giyahna. "I chose this specific topic though because I wanted to highlight the many barriers there are with mental healthcare, whether that be financial or social."
Giyahna will graduate in August of this year and is interested in working in the mental health field and providing services to specific populations in the study. She is excited to have gained new knowledge and skills that will be instrumental in informing that process.
"This project helped me learn how research projects like this are actually conducted and what goes into a project like this. I had to take lots of time to find reliable sources, and I had to learn how to actually interpret the data," says Giyahna. "It is one thing to just look at numbers, but to actually see and describe the relationship between them, explain it to others, and decide why it matters was a lot more in-depth."
She appreciates that Maddi Ellis, WISH Lab manager, and Tierney Lorenz, assistant professor and supervisor, contributed to the project’s success and helped to guide her through the process.
"They both encourage me to do things that will further my research knowledge and experience. This was the first lab I had ever worked with, so they were very encouraging and patient in training me and helping me learn when I had no research experience at all," says Giyahna.
An impactful moment was when she realized just how many people have experienced discrimination from a healthcare professional and how big a barrier affordability was for all groups wishing to access mental healthcare.
"This data was taken from surveys of UNL students, [which] shows that these things have an impact right here on our own campus," says Giyahna.
