Katja Pollak

EDUCATION

RELEVANT ACADEMIC AND RESEARCH EXPERIENCE

AWARDS AND SCHOLARSHIPS

• Best Poster Award – category SMiP – for the SMiP Summer School 2025. Awarded by Dr. Anke S¨ollner, Coordinator of the Research Training Group SMiP and Prof. Dr. Thorsten Meiser, Spokesperson Research Traininig Group SMiP.
• Best Presentation Award for the 2025 SMiP Spring Summer Retreat. Awarded by Dr. Anke Söllner, Coordinator of the Research Training Group SMiP and Prof. Dr. Thorsten Meiser, Spokesperson Research Traininig Group SMiP.
• Deutschlandstipendium (Oct. 2020 – Sept. 2021). Awarded by Anja Karliczek, Federal Minister of Education and Research and Prof. Dr.-Ing. Michael Weber, President of Ulm University.
• Award for outstanding academic achievement at the Leuphana University Lueneburg (2019). Awarded by Prof. Dr. Spoun, President of Leuphana University Lueneburg.
• Scholarship for a Research Internship in Science and Engineering (RISE) in Nottingham, United Kingdom (2019). Awarded by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD).
• Scholarship for a Research Internship in Science and Engineering (RISE) in Vancouver, Canada (2018). Awarded by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD).

ADVANCED RESEARCH TRAINING

RESEARCH INTERESTS

My research focuses on applying advanced statistical models to better understand the cognitive processes and individual variability involved in weight stigmatization. Although weight stigma has been widely studied, complex modeling approaches are still rarely applied in this area. By addressing this methodological gap, I aim to approach weight stigma from new analytical perspectives and generate insights that go beyond the limits of traditional techniques.

in press

• Pollak, K.M., Lerche, V., Hartmann, R., & Kiesel, A. (in press). Testing the convergent validity of the non-decision time parameter of the diffusion model. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition.

2025

• Richard, M. E., Gerhardt, E., Pollak, K. M., Duan, T., Knutson, J. M., Dmytro, D., et al. (2025). Gender norms and culture in Asian-Canadian adolescent boys’ anticipating dating relationships. Journal of Adolescent Research, 40(3), 799-824. https://doi.org/10.1177/07435584231166296.

2023

• Olderbak, S., Uusberg, A., MacCann, C., Pollak, K. M., & Gross, J. J. (2023). The process model of emotion regulation questionnaire: Assessing individual differences in strategy stage and orientation. Assessment, 30(7), 2090-2114. https://doi.org/10.1177/10731911221134601.

2022

• Frenkel, M. O., Pollak, K. M., Schilling, O., Voigt, L., Fritzsching, B., Wrzus, C., et al. (2022). Stressors faced by healthcare professionals and coping strategies during the early stage of the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany. PloS One, 17(1). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0261502.
• Pollak, K. M., Shao, S., Knutson, J. M., Gill, H., Lee, Y. V., McKay, S. L., & Cameron, C. A. (2022). Adolescent psychological and physiological responses to frustration- and anxiety-provoking stressors. Current Psychology, 41(1), 395-405. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-019-00582-6.
• Pollak, K. M., Olderbak, S. G., Randall, A. K., Lau, K. K. H., & Duran, N. D. (2022). Comparing self-reported emotions and facial expressions of joy in heterosexual romantic couples. Personality and Individual Differences, 184. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2021.111182.
• Pollak, K. M., Boecker, L., Englert, C., & Loschelder, D. D. (2022). How much do severely injured athletes experience
• sport injury-related growth? Contrasting psychological, situational, and demographic predictors. Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 44(4), 295-311. https://doi.org/10.1123/jsep.2021-0282.
• Olderbak, S., Pollak, K., Sanchez, J. F., & Hildebrandt, A. (2022). Assessing individual differences in face recognition: No impact of task design features on the structure of this ability. Psychological Assessment, 34(12), 1172-1179. https://doi.org/10.1037/pas0001173.
• Vohs, K. D., Schmeichel, B. J., Lohmann, S., Gronau, Q. F., Finley, A. J., … , Pollak, K. M., et al. (2021). A multisite preregistered paradigmatic test of the ego-depletion effect. Psychological Science, 32(10), 1566-1581. https://doi.org/10.1177/095679762198973.

• Pollak, K. M. (2025, July 16). Modeling weight bias – Making implicit attitudes measurable [Invited talk]. Sport Psychology Research Group, Institute of Sport and Sport Science, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany.
• Pollak, K. M. (2023, March 2). The diffusion model and its selective influence assumption [Invited talk]. General Psychology Research Group, Department of Psychology, University of Mannheim, Mannheim, Germany.

• Pollak, K. M., Wachten, H., Fenn, J., Hartmann, R., Meyer-Grant, C., Strahler, J., & Kiesel, A. (2025). Cognitive Processes of Implicit Weight Bias: A Diffusion Model Analysis. Talk scheduled to be presented at the 24th Conference of the European Society for Cognitive Psychology (ESCOP), Sheffield, United Kingdom.
• Pollak, K. M., Wachten, H., Fenn, J., Hartmann, R., Meyer-Grant, C., Strahler, J., & Kiesel, A. (2025). A Replication of Implicit Weight Bias Using the Diffusion Model: No Effects in a Predominantly Overweight Sample. Poster scheduled to be presented at the 2th SMiP Summer School, Mannheim, Germany.
• Pollak, K. M., Wachten, H., Hartmann, R., Meyer-Grant, C., Fenn, J., Strahler, J., & Kiesel, A. (2025). Cognitive Processes of Implicit Weight Bias: A Statistical Modeling Approach. Talk presented at the 57th Annual Conference of the German Association of Sport Psychology (asp), Bochum, Germany.
• Pollak, K. M. (2025). Cognitive Processes of Implicit Weight Bias: A Statistical Modeling Approach. Talk presented at the Early Career Researchers’ Meeting of the German Association of Sport Psychology (asp), Bochum, Germany.
• Pollak, K. M., Wachten, H., Fenn, J., Hartmann, R., Meyer-Grant, J., Strahler, J., & Kiesel, A. (2025). Assessing underlying processes of weight bias: A diffusion model analysis. Talk presented at the SMiP Spring Summer Retreat, Buchenbach, Germany.
• Pollak, K. M., Wachten, H., Hartmann, R., Meyer-Grant, C., Fenn, J., Strahler, J., & Kiesel, A. (2025). Assessing underlying processes of implicit weight bias: A diffusion model analysis. Poster presented at the 67th Conference of Experimental Psychologists (TeaP), Frankfurt, Germany.
• Pollak, K. M., Lerche, V., & Kiesel, A. (2024). Does Difficulty of Encoding Selectively Influence the Non-Decision Time Parameter of Ratcliff’s Diffusion Model? Poster presented at the 65th Annual Meeting of the Psychonomic Society, New York City, USA.
• Pollak, K. M., Lerche, V., & Kiesel, A. (2024). Testing the convergent validity of the nondecision time parameter of the diffusion model. Poster presented at the SMiP IOPS Conference, Mannheim, Germany.
• Pollak, K. M., Lerche, V., & Kiesel, A. (2023). Challenges to Validating Model Parameters in the Diffusion Model: A Study on Convergent and Discriminant Validity. Talk presented at the 23rd Conference of the European Society of Cognitive Psychology, Porto, Portugal (presented by E. Straub).
• Pollak, K. M., Lerche, V., & Kiesel, A. (2023). Non-selective effects of a manipulation of the non-decision time on diffusion model parameters. Poster presented at 1st SMiP Summer School, Mannheim, Germany.
• Pollak, K. M., Lerche, V., & Kiesel, A. (2023). Empirically testing the selective influence assumption of the Diffusion Model. Talk presented at the 65th Conference of Experimental Psychologists (TeaP). Trier, Germany.
• Gerhardt, E., McKay, S., Knutson, J., Gill, H., Lee, Y., Shao, S., Pollak, K. M., & Cameron, A. C. (2019). Adolescent Psychological and Physiological Responses to Frustration and Anxiety-Provoking Stressors. Poster presented at the 80th Convention of the Canadian Psychological Association, Halifax, Canada.
• Gerhardt, E., Ribeiro, A., Shao, S., Pollak, K. M., & Cameron, A. C. (2019). Contextual Influences in Adolescent Considerations Regarding Verbal Deception: Is honesty always the best policy? Poster presented at the 80th Convention of the Canadian Psychological Association, Halifax, Canada.
• Pollak, K. M., Ludwigs, L., Wiese, K., Stein, H., Kolbe, V. (2017). Goal Precision – The Trick To Successful Dieting? An Exploratory Study. Poster presented at the 2nd Leuphana Psychology Congress, Lueneburg, Germany.

• German Psychological Society (DGPS), Section General Psychology

  ---

• European Society for Cognitive Psychology (ESCOP)

  ---

Current Psychology

If you are interested in writing your thesis on one of the mentioned research areas, please do not hesitate to contact me via e-mail.