Volume I

FieldNotes

by Yueying Rose Shen

Observations on people,
places, and becoming.

Collected quietly
over the years.

☾

To the moon and flowers.

Dear Reader,

These pages were never meant
to be a résumé.

They’re a collection
of things I’ve noticed.

About people.
About places.
About becoming.

— Yueying

Field notes are never finished.
They are only continued.

Volume I

The Way Here

Four places. Four ways of learning to look at the world.

Hangzhou

Where noticing began.

Lotus, West Lake, Lingyin Temple, and a childhood photograph. Select a place name on the map to open its photographs.

Chapter II · Understanding

Learning to Observe

Understanding people has always been my way of understanding the world.

Applied Psychology did not give me a single answer. It taught me to stay curious, question easy conclusions, and look for the context behind behavior.

Psychology became the lens I carry into research, marketing, and community work.

Hidden observations 0 / 6 Move the lens.

What Psychology Left Me

Curiosity

People are rarely
as simple as they seem.

Empathy

Everyone behaves
for a reason.

Observation

Small details often
tell bigger stories.

Perspective

Different environments
shape different decisions.

Growth

People are always
changing.

Connection

Understanding comes
before communication.

Observation notebook · NYU Applied Psychology

Six notes I carried forward

Lift each note to see how a course shaped the way I think.

Tap a note to lift it.

From classroom to research · Social Roles & Belief Lab

Virtual Identity & Social Roles

Could a virtual identity change how a person approaches and performs a task?

Participant enters VR

Choose an avatar “skin”

identity cue → task → observed performance

EinsteinHigh-status male role

Marie CurieHigh-status female role

Young manEveryday male role

Young womanEveryday female role

RESEARCH SUMMARY

Research Question

Can virtual identity influence
how people approach and perform
the same task in VR?

Hypothesis

High-status avatars may influence
confidence and task performance.

Method

VR identity embodiment experiment

Identical tasks completed
using four virtual avatars

Behavioral responses
observed and recorded

Participants

Ages 18–30

Male and female participants

Primarily NYU Abu Dhabi students,
with a small number of community
participants from Abu Dhabi

Variables

Independent: Virtual avatar identity

Dependent: Task performance and
behavioral responses

Study conducted at the
NYU Abu Dhabi Social Roles & Belief Lab.

FIELD NOTES

Participant communication VR experiment facilitation Guided participants
through VR setup Behavioral observation Behavioral data collection Literature review Weekly lab discussions

Working in the lab taught me
that meaningful research begins
long before the data appears.

It begins with
careful observation.

Chapter III · Field Notes from Practice