NEWS
NORMAN, OKLA. – Keane Hauck found his calling in Robert Terry’s psychology class during the first semester of his junior year at the University of Oklahoma. Now, as he approaches graduation this month, he reflects on past experiences and next steps in his academic journey.
As a boy growing up on the outskirts of Wichita, Kansas, Hauck discovered an interest in coding after receiving a computer for his birthday.
“I was really into video games, especially the ones where you could directly interface with the code to modify it in different ways,” he said. “Then, in middle school, I used Khan Academy to walk through different coding modules, learning JavaScript and teaching myself to think in an object-oriented mind frame. Once I got to high school, I took AP Computer Science and participated in my high school’s coding team.”
High school was also the time in his life when psychology became interesting. He realized that a career in computer science wouldn’t satisfy his desire to work with people. As a National Merit Finalist, Hauck eagerly accepted a full scholarship from OU, joined the Honors College and began his academic journey with plans to become a therapist.
“I really enjoyed psychology, but after a couple of years I really started to miss coding. That’s when I began folding it back into my education and stumbled upon quantitative psychology,” he said. “I love computer science, I love psychology, and I love the study of the human mind and cognition. Quantitative psychology is the perfect intersection of those things.”
Quantitative psychology is a field that combines statistics and mathematical modeling with the psychology process to design and analyze research data. It’s the side of psychology concerned with the methodology behind the procedures researchers use. Hauck used his experience with quantitative psychology to complete his honors thesis.
“My honors thesis looked at how students in college interact with AI technologies like ChatGPT and Microsoft’s Copilot that are becoming more and more prevalent in academia. Is it cheating? Is it accepted behavior? Is it ethical behavior? Interestingly, there wasn’t much research on this at the time,” he said.
Working with advisor Janel Cavazos from the OU psychology department, he tackled most of the literature review, writing, statistics and analysis for this research project. Their findings were published in the journal, Society for the Teaching of Psychology in August 2024.
“Dr. Cavazos was very gracious to allow me to take the reins on a lot of the research activities,” he said. “It was a great experience because it was the first time I really got to spearhead the development of a whole manuscript, which helped me grow as a researcher.”
Hauck has several other research projects under his belt, including his favorite – one that looked at the solvability of multicolor peg solitaire. Working with Lauren Grimley from the David and Judi Proctor Department of Mathematics, he helped examine the classic board game.
“Dr. Grimley’s class was on discrete mathematics. We looked at the solvability of peg solitaire, which is the classic board where a player jumps pegs until only one remains. Most people have likely seen the Cracker Barrel triangle version,” he said. “This project was really fun because it’s unlike any other research I’ve experienced.”
Now, with graduation days away, Hauck is deciding what new adventures await. One thing he knows is that he wants to teach at the collegiate level and impact the lives of future students like Terry, Cavazos and Grimley did for him.
“I’m really drawn to academia for a number of reasons: I love the collaborative environment, researching topics I’m deeply interested in, and the freedom of professorship without the economic constraints of industry,” he said.
When not pursuing academic excellence, Hauck is an avid gamer and coffee drinker, reads the classics and makes custom keyboards from scratch. He has also been involved in several campus activities, which helped fuel his success.
“In retrospect, I’m super grateful to have been involved in campus activities like Campus Activities Council, Camp Crimson, and the Office of Advocacy and Education,” he said. “Being involved with a community of motivated people helped me find success in my own journey. It helped me learn how to be a good friend and a good person and be respectful of people around you. I didn’t have that perspective on involvement in my first few years at OU, but looking back now, I can see it helped shape me into the person I am today.”
About the University of Oklahoma
Founded in 1890, the University of Oklahoma is a public research university located in Norman, Oklahoma. As the state’s flagship university, OU serves the educational, cultural, economic and health care needs of the state, region and nation. For more information about the university, visit www.ou.edu.
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Keane Hauck found his calling in Robert Terry’s psychology class during the first semester of his junior year at the University of Oklahoma. Now, as he approaches graduation this month, he reflects on past experiences and next steps in his academic journey.
