Jean Kirnan

Biography

Jean Kirnan, Ph.D. is a Professor of Psychology at the College of New Jersey where she has taught for over 30 years and also served as Chairperson of the Psychology Department. She completed her doctoral degree in Psychometrics at Fordham University in New York and brings a focus of measurement and assessment to her teaching, consulting, and research. In her early career she worked at Prudential Insurance Company’s Marketing Services and Selection Research Department developing tools for the selection of sales agents (cognitive ability measures, biographical inventories, and structured interviews). Since that time, her interests have expanded to include assessment in a wide variety of settings. She has consulted with various companies on the development of assessment tools, served as a reviewer for academic programs, and is recognized as a Distinguished Reviewer for Mental Measurements Yearbook.  Her current research has four distinct initiatives: 1) The impact of dog-assisted literacy programs on elementary school children; 2) Development of non-cognitive measures to predict first year college success; 3) Assessment of learning outcomes in higher education; and 4) Using case studies to enhance an understanding of everyday ethical decision making. Recent teaching responsibilities include Psychological Testing, Methods and Tools in Psychology, Research Seminar in Applied Psychology, Organizational Psychology, Industrial Psychology, Psychology of Ethics, and Senior Capstone. In her community she volunteers with her certified therapy dogs visiting senior assisted living facilities and elementary schools.

Education

BA, Psychology, Immaculata University, Immaculata, PA
MA, Experimental Psychology, Fordham University, Bronx, NY
Ph.D., Psychometrics, Fordham University, Bronx, NY

Areas of Research / Professional Expertise

Psychology of Ethics, Personality Correlates of Ethical Perception, Test Development, Program Evaluation, Animal-Assisted interventions, Biodata, Early College Success, Recruiting, Personnel Selection, Higher Education Assessment, Undergraduate Advising

Personal Interests

Therapy Dog Volunteer

Books