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Keegan Whitacre

The Ohio State University · Lab Manager & Research Associate

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Education

University of Florida

B.S., Psychology · Minors in Anthropology & Business Administration

GPA: 3.86 · Dean's List 2021–2025

Current Position

Lab Manager & Research Associate

Affective Science Lab · The Ohio State University

Advisor: Dr. Kristen Lindquist

See active research projects on my Projects page →

Past Positions

Research Assistant

Life Story Lab · University of Florida

Advisor: Dr. Susan Bluck

See related work on my Projects page →

Research Assistant

Cognition and Decision Modeling Lab · University of Florida

Advisor: Dr. Peter Kvam

Crisis & Clinical Experience

Alachua County Crisis Center

Hotline Operator & Care Team Associate

Volunteered on 24-hour emergency crisis and suicide hotline, including crisis intervention, de-escalation, and safety planning. As a Care Team Associate (100+ hours), provided on-site mental health support in collaboration with local law enforcement and inpatient facilities.

American Foundation for Suicide Prevention

Education Committee Member · Trained in Talk Saves Lives presentation program

Publications & Book Chapters

Cogdill-Richardson, K., Whitacre, K., & Bluck, S. Looking Back at the Life Lived: Shaping the Final Story for Family. Applied Cognitive Psychology. [Accepted]
Lindquist, K. A., Whitacre, K., & Shablack, H. The Intersection of Language and Emotion Across Early Development. In V. LoBue, K. Perez-Edgar, & K. Buss (Eds.), Handbook of Emotion Development: Advances in Theory, Research, and Practice. Springer. [Under Review]

Posters & Presentations

*Whitacre, K., Feldman, M., Bonar, A., Ma, R., Lindquist, K. (2026). Examining Emotion Malleability Beliefs as a Moderator on Associations between Early Life Maltreatment and Poor Sleep. Society for Affective Science Annual Meeting, Pittsburgh, PA.
*Cogdill-Richardson, K., Whitacre, K., Bluck, S (2026). Shaping a Final Life Story for Family. Institute for Learning in Retirement, Gainesville, FL
*Whitacre, K., Cogdill-Richardson, K., & Bluck, S. (2025). Dignity Therapy for Older Cancer Patients: The Role of Early Life Stressors. UF Cancer Center Research Showcase, Gainesville, FL.
*Whitacre, K., Cogdill-Richardson, K., & Bluck, S. (2025). Dignity Therapy for Older Adults: Revisiting Early Life Stressors. Institute for Learning in Retirement / UF Aging Science Awards, Gainesville, FL. Outstanding Undergraduate Student Poster Award
*Whitacre, K., Cogdill-Richardson, K., & Bluck, S. (2025). Dignity Therapy for Older Adults: Revisiting Early Life Stressors. PGSO Undergraduate Poster Forum, Gainesville, FL.

Invited Talks

*Whitacre, K. (June 2026). Mechanisms of Dignity Therapy. Lunch and Learn invited speaker (CME Accredited), Palliative Care, UF Health.
*Whitacre, K. (June 2025). Dignity Therapy. Invited speaker, Medical/Health Psychology Seminar, University of Florida Clinical and Health Psychology Department.

* denotes presenting author

Professional Memberships

Society for Affective Science

Software & Open Source

EMA Forge

Primary Developer

An open-source framework designed to streamline the creation, deployment, and management of Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) protocols. Currently in internal testing phase.

Research & Technical Skills

Narrative Research Methods Content Analysis Research Design Qualitative Transcript Analysis R Python SPSS Data Visualization

Certifications

988 Crisis Intervention & Suicide Prevention HIPAA Privacy & Research Training IRB Training FERPA Basics Cultural Competency Training Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) Human Subjects Protection (HSP)

Honors & Awards

National Merit Scholarship
Benacquisto Scholarship
Dean's List
Outstanding Undergraduate Student Poster Award

Institute for Learning in Retirement / UF Aging Science Awards