UNB continues lecture series by examining adolescents sexual behaviour and relationships
Author: Communications
Posted on Apr 5, 2011
Category: UNB Saint John , UNB Fredericton
An exciting new speaker series presented by the faculty of arts at the University of New Brunswick in Fredericton continues this week with a discussion on the effects of Internet-based technologies on the sexuality and relationships of young people.
Lucia O’Sullivan, a Canada Research Chair in Adolescents’ Sexual Health Behaviours and UNB psychology professor, will give the lecture, Tweeting, Texting, Teens and Chat: The Internet and Sex in the Lives of Youth on Wednesday, April 6 at 7 p.m. in the Tom Morrison Theatre at Fredericton High School. This is the third lecture in the Ideas that Matter series.
“Concerns about the impact of the Internet on young people are fuelled by near daily media coverage, and their sexual lives are being transformed in ways we never imagined,” Dr. O’Sullivan said. “Parents are concerned, but should they be? This talk addresses both positive and negative changes in privacy and intimacy, as well as new phenomena such as sexting, cyber-bullying, and easy access to porn.”
The Ideas that Matter speaker series is designed to engage people in topics that are meaningful to New Brunswickers. It features some of UNB’s leading researchers in discussions about issues and challenges that live at the heart of the province’s social values, cultural perceptions and political motivations.
All of the Ideas that Matter lectures are free and open to the public thanks to the support of New Brunswick businesses and the UNB Associated Alumni. A complete schedule is available at www.unb.ca/ideas.
Patrons for Ideas that Matter include: Atlantic Hydrogen Inc., AutismPro, BioAtlantech, BMO Bank of Montreal, Bulletproof Solutions Inc., C-Therm Technologies, Fabinex Heritage Restoration, Fredericton Chamber of Commerce, Fredericton International Airport Authority, Goose Lane Editions, Innovatia Inc., King Construction Ltd., Knightsbridge Robertson Surrette, LearnSphere, Mais Reynolds Financial Group, NB Power, New Brunswick Innovation Foundation, Populus Global Solutions, Remsoft, Stantec, Stewart McKelvey, Sunny Corner Enterprises Inc., The Daily Gleaner, and Valley Graphics. The series presenting sponsor is the UNB Associated Alumni.
The speaker series is being held in conjunction with the university’s 225th anniversary celebrations. In addition, UNB is co-hosting the 2011 Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences with St. Thomas University from May 28 to June 4. Congress 2011 and the Ideas that Matter series will together shine a spotlight on the social sciences and humanities, highlighting their impact on the world.
For more information, contact:
Jennifer Gavin
Communications officer
jgavin@unb.ca
506-453-4990
About Dr. O’Sullivan:
Lucia O’Sullivan holds a Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Adolescents’ Sexual Health Behaviours and is a psychology professor at the University of New Brunswick in Fredericton. Dr. O’Sullivan studies sexual and dating behaviour, intimate relationships, and communication in the heterosexual interactions of young adults and adolescents. While much of her research is carried out in Eastern Canada, she also works collaboratively on many international studies.
Dr. Sullivan has a bachelor of arts and a master of arts in clinical psychology from the University of New Brunswick, a Ph.D in experimental psychology from Bowling Green State University and Postdoctoral Research Training from Columbia University.
She has won a number of awards for her work, including UNB’s Allan P. Stuart Memorial Award for Excellence in Teaching.