O Lullaby

Baru-baru ini aku sedang menyusun sebuah draft opinion paper yang bersumber dari esai ujian komprehensifku yang mana proses penyusunannya dilakukan berbulan-bulan. Paper ini mendapat respons positif dari pembimbing dan komite doktoralku, sehingga mereka menyarankan agar segera aku submit ke jurnal ilmiah. Ketika diskusi soal pengiriman paper ini berlangsung, advisorku bertanya: “Apakah semua anggota komite mau dicantumkan sebagai co-author ? Tanyakan dulu, karena tidak semua merasa nyaman namanya muncul jika merasa kontribusinya tidak signifikan.” Kemudian beliau menjelaskan bahwa menurut APA Publishing Policies , konsep authorship mengikuti prinsip contributorship . Ini artinya, authorship bukan hanya untuk mereka yang menulis, tetapi juga bagi siapa pun yang memberi kontribusi ilmiah substansial, seperti: Konseptualisasi ide dan tujuan penelitian, Mendesain metodologi atau pendekatan penelitian, Melakukan analisis formal yang signifikan, Berpartisipasi aktif dalam pen...

Tidak terasa (eh, kadang terasa juga ding 😅) perjalananku sebagai mahasiswa PhD kini resmi genap tiga tahun. Aku menutup tahun ini dengan menyelesaikan doctoral exam tahap dua (dari total tiga tahap di programku). Ujian ini tidak main-main. Untuk bisa menyusun jawabannya, aku harus membaca minimal 100 artikel ilmiah, baik jurnal maupun buku, yang menjadi dasar teoritis dan metodologis topik disertasiku. Bukan karena apa, tapi itu syaratnya. Kalau tahap pertama namanya Qualifying Exam/Exam Candidacy untuk menilai apakah kita layak menjadi PhD Candidate atau tidak. Tapi ini akan berbeda ya ntah penamaan ujiannya dan juga proses ada berapa tahapan yang harus dilalui (jadi wajib hukumnya kamu baca handbook program yang mau dipilih). Sedikit gambaran, program PhD di Amerika Serikat itu cukup berbeda dari banyak negara lain seperti Indonesia, Jepang, Belanda, atau Inggris. Di sini, mahasiswa PhD wajib menjalani kuliah di kelas ( coursework ) selama dua tahun pertama, bukan langsung ris...

Dulu, ketika aku pertama kali belajar statistik dan analisis data, pendekatan yang kupahami masih sangat tradisional. Misalnya, jika aku ingin mengetahui apakah stres berkaitan dengan fungsi kognitif, maka aku cukup menghitung rata-rata (mean) skor stres dan kognisi setiap orang, lalu yaudah, ambil dua variabel, cari korelasinya. Kalau ada grup berbeda? Pake ANOVA. Mau prediksi? Linear regression. Simple. Logis. Rasanya cukup buat "menjelaskan hubungan antar variabel". Tapi ternyata, makin banyak belajar, makin kerasa: dunia ini lebih kompleks daripada sekadar rata-rata. Dan hasil penelitian bisa misleading kalau kita cuma ngandelin between-person analysis atau data yang dirata-ratain aja. Apalagi kalau kita bicara soal perasaan , kognisi , dan perilaku sehari-hari —nggak sesederhana itu. Makin aku mendalami metode kuantitatif, makin sadar bahwa mean-level analysis atau between-person comparisons itu nggak cukup buat memahami bagaimana proses psikologis bekerja " da...

Do you ever have that moment when you think, “I really need to start taking my health seriously”?   Or maybe you’ve promised yourself, “This time, I’m going to exercise regularly”? I’ve had those thoughts so many times, but for years, they stayed just that~~~thoughts. That all changed for me about two years ago. I’d lived in the U.S. for six months that time, and something clicked. I started to become more aware of my health. Part of it was because I’d read journal articles about how exercise benefits brain health. I already knew exercise was good for me, but it hit differently when I saw the research laid out so clearly. It made me wonder  Why do I know this but still not make it a priority? At the same time, I realized my BMI wasn’t in the ideal range. That was a wake-up call.  Living in the U.S. also pushed me to make healthier choices without even realizing it. For example, I found myself walking more. The roads are safe, well-paved, and comfortable for pedestrians ...

During the second year of my PhD, I found myself pausing to ask: Is all screen time really the same? This question came to me while reflecting on my own digital habits and reading more deeply into how screen time is often portrayed—typically as something negative. But the more I thought about it, the more I began to ask: What if the real issue isn’t how much time we spend on screens, but what we’re doing with that time? That idea sparked the direction of my research—and eventually led to my first published article with The Conversation U.S. Here is the link :  Rethinking screen time: A better understanding of what people do on their devices is key to digital well-being ( Published November 19, 2024 ) Writing this piece was both exciting and meaningful. It’s a reflection of how my thinking has evolved, and I’m so grateful to share it with a broader audience. Thanks for reading and being part of this journey 🤍

(my personal catch of the winter at State College) I've been in the USA for almost two years now, and it's been a rollercoaster ride. There have been good days, bad days, and times when I laughed so hard I cried. It's all part of this messy yet beautiful chapter in my life. A canvas of ups and downs that I've come to appreciate. In the beginning, I questioned my life choices almost daily. I'd ask myself, "Why did I sign up for a Ph.D. here, of all places?" Adjusting to a new environment felt like trying to dance salsa when all I knew was the two-step. Everything was unfamiliar, and it was overwhelming. Slowly, I realized that this journey wasn't just about earning a degree. I'm here because I love learning and genuinely diving into things that matter to me. It's not just about formal education but about growing as a person. Learning has changed the way I think and how I see the world. It's made me pause before I speak, consider the impact...