Truth in Labeling: Leah Warner
The next time you call someone 'angry,' be aware that you're not just being descriptive. In fact, according to Leah Warner, who is writing her dissertation on the subject, labeling someone's emotion often imparts a much more potent-and often negative-psychological impact. "When someone labels our emotions, it works to discount our argument and point of view," says Warner, a graduate student in social psychology and women's studies. "If I'm arguing with someone, I feel strongly about my topic; I state the points to justify what I'm saying. But then someone comes along and says, 'Why do you have to be so emotional?' That simply 
ignores my argument and discounts what I've said, reducing it to 'just emotion.'"
A fifth-year doctoral student, Warner works with Professor Stephanie Shields, and studies the relations between emotion and power, and how this relationship serves to maintain gender and racial inequities. Recently, her research won a Florence Geis Memorial Award from the Society for the Psychology of Women, a division of the American Psychological Association, and an organizational base for all who are interested in teaching, research, or practice in the psychology of women. The group promotes feminist scholarship and practice, and advocates action toward policies that advance equality and social justice. Warner had a lot of competition for the annual award, which is the only one the group makes for dissertation research.
A native of Chicago, Warner earned her bachelor's degree in psychology and Hispanic studies at Vassar. She wanted to stay near an urban area but her advisor told her about Penn State's social psychology program, which focuses on the issues of prejudice, racism, and sexism, topics Warner was particularly interested in pursuing.
"Issues of justice and psychology have always been compelling to me," says Warner. "For example, how do stereotypes come about? What are the processes that go into creating stereotypes and how does that feed into discrimination? And, once we've learned them, can we unlearn them?"
One of the factors that contributed to Warner's selection of her topic was its multidisciplinary aspect.
"Women's studies is mainly concerned with women's experiences at the societal level," she explains. "I'm coming from a psychology viewpoint which is all about the individual, so the intersection is really fascinating."
Her work as a doctoral student encompasses many responsibilities. Besides learning how to run an experiment (to provide the necessary research for her dissertation), Warner is teaching, which she finds quite challenging but rewarding.
"I've always identified with being a student, so it's a little strange," she says. "You need almost conflicting traits to be in academia. You need the ability to withstand many hours alone to do research and writing but then you need to be an extroverted, entertaining teacher that students respond to. It's daunting."
In keeping with her area of interest, Warner's goal is to work in the realm of social justice.
"So many African American and Latino students feel academically stigmatized because of preconceived stereotypes they come up against," she asserts. "They leave their own environments and are suddenly judged in different ways, especially if they are few in number. I want to help recruit and retain more people of color on campuses. It's important for everyone. "