VITA
Peter Desberg, Ph.D.
Academic Rank: Professor Emeritus
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University Awards
Lyle E. Gibson Distinguished Teaching Award, 1995
President's Outstanding Professor Award, 2009
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Academic Degrees
• B.A. USC
• M.A. CSU Northridge
• Ph.D. USC
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Certifications
• Clinical Psychology License 1981 - State of California
• Black Belt 1982 - World Tae Kwon Do Federation
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Grants, Awards & Funded Projects
• 1986 MMMP award for meritorious performance ($2,500)
• 1988 Lottery grant for HyperCard ($8,000)
• 1989 TRW Grant for Project SEED: HyperCard Science Software ($85,000)
• 1989 API grant ($29,000)
• 1989 Lottery grant for Computer-Based TV show ($12,000)
• 1989 CHRP Grant for Computer Equipment ($9,000)
• 1989 Lottery Dissemination Grant for Multimedia Workshop ($15,000)
• 1989 MMMP award for meritorious performance ($2,500)
• 1989 Chancellor’s Office Grant for Faculty Development ($8,500)
• 1990 Christopher Columbus Consortium Grant from Apple Computer, Inc.
($55,000)
• 1990 Lottery Grant for Developing Interactive Campus Tour ($12,850)
• 1992 Macromedia Authorware Development Award ($20,000)
• 1993 RSCAAP Award ($3,600)
• 1993 Academic Program Improvement ($5,000)
• 1994 Dean’s Research Grant ($500)
• 1995 RSCAAP Award ($3,000)
• 1995-2005 Codie Award Judge
• 1995 Lyle E. Gibson Distinguished Teaching Award
• 1996 RSCAAP Travel Award ($400)
• 1996 Pac Bell Development Grant ($500)
• 1997 Vice President’s Advanced Technology Grant ($6,500)
• 1997 University Travel Award ($500)
• 1999 PT3 (Preparing Teachers to Teach with Technology – Capacity Building Grant ($147,000)
• 2000 CSU Chancellors Office for K-12 Teacher Training ($100,000)
• 2000 PT3 (Preparing Teachers to Teach with Technology - Implementation Grant
($602,000)
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Publications \ Presentations
Books
• Desberg, P. and Miklowitz, G. Riddles for a Scary Night. New York: Reader's Digest, 1977.
• Miklowitz, G. and Desberg, P. Ghastly Ghostly Riddles. New York: Scholastic Book Services, 1977.
• Miklowitz, G. and Desberg, P. Good Sport Jokes. New York: Reader's Digest, 1977.
• Desberg, P. and Miklowitz, G. Win, Lose or Wear a Tie. New York: Random House, 1980.
• Desberg, P. No Good Dogs. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1982.
• Desberg, P. and Taylor, J. Essentials of Task Analysis. Lanham: University Press of
America, 1986.
• Desberg, P. Hyper Interactive CAI. Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 1994.
• Murdock, E. and Desberg, P. (eds.) Computers in the Curriculum. Brown and
Benchmark, 1995.
• Desberg, P. and Fisher, F. Teaching With Technology, Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 1995.
• Desberg, P., Colbert, J. and Trimble, K. Interactive Case Studies: Classroom
Management, Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 1995.
• Colbert, J. Desberg, P. and Trimble, K. (eds.) The Case for Education: Contemporary
Approaches to Case Methods, Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 1996.
• Desberg, P. and Fisher, F. Teaching With Technology, 2nd Edition, Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 1998.
• Desberg, P. and Fisher, F. Teaching With Technology, 3rd Edition, Boston: Allyn
and Bacon, 2001.
• Desberg, P. and Marsh, G. Presenting Yourself: Controlling Stage fright With
Audiences From 1 to 1,000. San Francisco: Harbinger Press, 1988.
• Desberg, P. No More Butterflies: Overcoming Stage fright, Shyness Interview
Anxiety and Fear of Public Speaking , San Francisco: New Harbinger Press, 1996.
• Indian Edition - Conquering Shyness and Fear. Mumbai: Jaico Publishing House, 1998
• French Edition - Pour en finir avec le trac, Paris: Les Édiions de L’Homme, 1998.
• Barnes and Noble Edition - Mastering the Art of Public Speaking. New Your: Barnes
and Noble, 1999.
• Miller, J. and Desberg, P. I Want To Sign Up Again Next Season: A Guide to Coaching
Youth Sports for Coaches and Parents. Cartesian Coaching Institute Press, 2006.
• Desberg, P. Speaking Scared Sounding Good: Public Speaking For the Private
Person, New York: Square One Publishers, 2007.
• Miller, J. and Desberg, P. Understanding and Engaging Adolescents. Thousand
Oaks: Corwin Press, 2009.
• Booth, D., Shames, D. and Desberg, P. OWN THE ROOM: Business Presentations
that Persuade, Engage and Get Results.t New York: McGraw-Hill, 2009.
• Desberg, P. and Davis, J. Show Me The Funny. New York: Sterling Publications, 2010.
• Desberg, P. and Davis, J. Now That’s Funny! New York: Square One Publishers, 2017.
• Desberg, P. and McLoughlin, T. The Bad Sex Manual. Cardiff By The Sea, Waterside Books, 2016.
• Desberg, P. and Davis, J. Pitch Like Hollywood. New York McGraw-Hill Publishers, 2022.
• Desberg, P. Let’s Send Him to America. Cardiff By The Sea, Waterside Books, 2016
Instructional Software
• Desberg, P. Task Analysis. Santa Barbara: Intellimation, 1991.
• Weiner, S. and Desberg, P. Public Speaking , Santa Barbara: Intellimation, 1991.
• Dean, G. & Desberg, P. Interactive Joke Writing. (In Preparation)
Book Chapters
• Marsh, G., Friedman, M., Welch, V. and Desberg, P. A cognitive-developmental
theory of reading acquisition. In MacKinnon, G. and Waller, T. Reading Research
Advances in Theory and Practice. Academic Press, New York, 1981.
• Marsh, G. Friedman, M., Desberg, P. and Saterdahl, K. Comparison of reading and
spelling strategies in normal and reading disabled children. In Friedman, M. and
OConnor, N. Intelligence and Learning. Plenum Press, 1981.
• Desberg, P., Elliott, D. and Marsh, G. American Black English and spelling. In Firth,
U. Cognitive Processes in Spelling. Academic Press, London, 1982.
• Marsh, G., Friedman, M., Welch, V. and Desberg, P. The development of strategies in
spelling. In Frith, U. Cognitive Processes in Spelling. Academic Press, London, 1982.
• Marsh, G. and Desberg, P. The development of strategies in the acquisition of
symbolic skills. In Rogers D.R. and Sloboda, J. The Acquisition of Symbolic Skills.
Plenum Press, New York, 1983.
• Marsh, G., Desberg, P. and Buhl, J. The relationship between cognitive development
and spelling strategies. In Poulson, M.K. and Lublin, G. Piagetian Theory And Its
Implications For Education. University of Southern California Press, Los Angeles, 1986.
• Marsh, G., Desberg, P. and Bridge, R.E. Relationships between cognitive
development and reading strategies. In Poulson, M.K. and Lublin, G. Piagetian
Theory And Its Implications For Education. University of Southern California Press,
Los Angeles, 1986.
• Desberg, P. Word Processing with a Smile. In Murdock, E. and Desberg, P. (eds.)
Introduction to Computers in Education. W.C. Brown, 1994.
• Desberg, P. and Murdock, E. Setting Up a Classroom Database. in Murdock, E. and
Desberg, P. (eds.) Introduction to Computers in Education. W.C. Brown, 1994.
• Desberg, P. HyperCard Authoring: Creating a Math CAI Lesson. in Murdock, E. and
Desberg, P. (eds.) Introduction to Computers in Education. W.C. Brown, 1994.
• Desberg, P. Using HyperCard Graphics. in Murdock, E. and Desberg, P. (eds.)
Introduction to Computers in Education. W.C. Brown, 1994.
• Desberg, P. Courseware Evaluation. in Murdock, E. and Desberg, P. (eds.)
Introduction to Computers in Education. W.C. Brown, 1994.
• Desberg, P. Win, Lose or MacDraw. in Murdock, E. and Desberg, P. (eds.)
Introduction to Computers in Education. W.C. Brown, 1994.
• Desberg, P. and Fisher, F. Using Technology in Case Methodology. In Colbert, J.
Desberg, P. and Trimble, K. (eds.) The Case for Education: Contemporary
Approaches to Case Methods. Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 1995.
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Journal Articles and Monographs
• Desberg, P. and Berdiansky, B. Word Attack Skills: Review of Literature. Southwest
Regional Laboratory Technical Report No. 3, 1968, ERIC No. 022 653.
• Desberg, P. and Cronnell, B. An Instructional Sequence for Spelling-to-Sound
Correspondences for the One-and Two-Syllable Words in Vocabularies of 6 - 9 Year
Olds. Southwest Regional Laboratory Technical Report No. 16, 1969.
• Marsh, G., Desberg, P. and Cooper, J. Developmental changes in reading. Journal of
Reading Behavior, 1977, 495, 391-394.
• Marsh, G. and Desberg, P. Mnemonics for phonics. Contemporary Educational
Psychology, 1977, 435, 57-61.
• Marsh, G. and Desberg, P. Pattern-component transfer in learning to read. Journal
of Research in Reading, V1, No. 2, 1978, 136-141.
• Desberg, P. Marsh, G., Schneider, L. and Duncan-Rose, C. The effect of social dialect
on auditory sound blending and word identification. Contemporary Educational
Psychology, 1978.
• Wolff, D., Desberg, P. and Marsh, G. Analogy strategies for improving word
recognition in competent and learning disabled readers. The Reading Teacher, 435,
412-417, 1985.
• Jim Cantor, Peter Desberg, Diane Hembacher, and Nada Mach Promoting Social
Science Inquiry with Database Technology. Journal of Social Studies, 2003
• Davis, Jeffrey and Desberg, Peter Using the Process-Based Interview to Investigate
Comedy Writing. Israeli Journal of Humor, 1, 2, 40-51, 2012.
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Invited Addresses
• Marsh, G. and Desberg, P. Cognitive skills in initial reading. Invited Address
presented at the Claremont Reading Conference, 1972.
• Marsh, G. and Desberg, P. Current research in beginning reading. Paper presented
at the American Educational Research Association, New Orleans, 1973.
• Marsh, G. and Desberg, P. Development of visual and grammatical cues in reading.
Invited address at the Reading Association, Anaheim, 1976.
• Desberg, P. Teaching Through Technology, Keynote Address. CSU Fresno, 1994.
• Desberg, P. Technology Applications, Keynote Address. University of Wisconsin,
River Falls, 1994.
• Desberg, P. What is interactive media? American Psychological Association, Los
Angeles, 1994.
• Desberg, P. Psychologists in the interactive world. American Psychological
Association, Los Angeles, 1994.
• Desberg, P. Object Oriented Authoring. Professional Development Workshop
presented at the Computer-Using Educators (CUE) Conf., Palm Springs, 1996.
• Desberg, P. Reducing Performance Anxiety. Piano Pedagogy Conference, Grand
Valley State University, 1999.
• Reducing Anxiety During Recitals, Colburn School of the Performing Arts, 2000.
• Desberg, P. Distance Learning Panel, California State University Dominguez Hills, 2001.
• Reducing Anxiety During Auditions, Laughlin Acting School, 2001.
• Controlling Stage Fright for Musicians, California Association of Professional Music Teachers, 2010.
• Musicians and Stage Fright, Berklee College of Music, 2010.
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Conference Paper Presentations
• Desberg, P. Development and selection of performance objectives. Paper presented
at the California Educational Research Association, San Diego, 1971.
• Desberg, P. and Marsh, G. Effects of P-A presentation methods on childrens
learning of letter sound correspondences. Paper presented at the California
Educational Research Association, San Diego, 1971.
• Desberg, P. Preparation of self-paced programs. Paper presented at the Western
Psychological Association, San Francisco, 1974.
• Desberg, p. Marsh, G. and Schneider, L. The effect of social dialect on sound
blending and word recognition. Paper presented at the American Educational
Research Association, Washington D.C.,1975.
• Marsh, G. and Desberg, P. The psychology of self-control: ethical issues. Paper
presented at the California State Psychologic Association Meeting, San Diego, 1976.
• Desberg, P., Marsh, G. and Wolff, D. The relationship between academic
achievement and non-standard dialect. Paper presented at the American
Educational Research Association, San Francisco, 1976.
• Marsh, G., Desberg, P. and Cooper, J. Constructive memory and reading. Paper
presented at the Psychonomic Society, St. Louis, 1976.
• Marsh, G. and Desberg, P. Optimizing procedures for childrens learning of letter-
sounds. Paper presented at the Western Psychological Association, Seattle, 1977.
• Desberg, P., Marsh, G. and Stanley, A., Sentence repetition as a measure of social
dialect. Paper presented at the Western Psychological Association, Seattle, 1977.
• Marsh, G., Friedman, M., Welsh, V. and Desberg, P. Development of strategies for
reading and spelling. Paper presented at the NATO conference on Cognition and
Instruction, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 1977.
• Marsh, G., Desberg, P. and Wolff, D. Predictors of academic achievement in black elementary school children. Paper presented at the Third Conference on
Educational Testing, Leyden, The Netherlands, 1977.
• Marsh, G. and Desberg, P. Component Transfer in learning to read. Paper presented
at the Western Psychological Association, 1977.
• Desberg, P., Mc Ghee, P. Henschel, D. and Barr, J. The Effects of Humor on Retention
and Learning. Paper presented at the Second Humor Conference, Los Angeles, 1978.
• Desberg, P., Marsh, G., Elliott, D. and Carrick, W. The effect of social dialect on
reading comprehension. Paper presented at the Western Psychological Association,
San Diego, 1979.
• Marsh, G., Desberg, P. and Carpentier, P. Developmental changes in strategies in
proofreading. Paper presented at the Psychonomic Society, Phoenix, 1980.
• Desberg, P., Henshcel, D., Mc Ghee, P. and Marshall, C. The effects of related and
unrelated humor on learning and retention. Paper presented at the American
Psychological Association, Los Angeles, 1980.
• Marsh, G., Desberg, P. and Govendo, D. Transfer from blending words and syllables
to blending phonemes. Paper presented at the American Educational Research
Association, Los Angeles, 1981.
• Wolff, D., Marsh, G. and Desberg, P. The effects of instructions and priming on the
use of analogy strategies in reading. Paper presented at the American Educational
Research Association, Los Angeles, 1981.
• Marsh, G. and Desberg, P. Dispositional correlates of audience anxiety. Paper
presented at the Western Psychological Association Meetings, San Francisco, 1983.
• Marsh, G. and Desberg, P. Computer-Based Problem Solving. Paper presented at
the Computer-Using Educators (CUE) Conference, Costa Mesa, 1987.
• Kaufman, P., Marsh, G., Desberg, P. and Fox, S. The relationship between reading
strategies and working memory. Paper presented at the Western Psychological
Association Meetings, San Francisco, 1988.
• Desberg, P. and Marsh, G. HyperCard and CAI . Paper presented at the Computer-
Using Educators (CUE) Conference, Irvine, 1988.
• Desberg, P. and Colbert, J. A HyperCard-Based Science Program. Paper presented
at the Computer-Using Educators (CUE) Conference, Palm Springs, 1989.
• Cooper, J. and Desberg, P. Active Involvement in Learning: Cooperative Learning
and College Instruction. Paper given at The Cooperative Learning Convention,
Baltimore, 1990.
• Colbert, J. and Desberg, P. Hyper Science: Macintosh Courseware to Increase
Critical Thinking Skills in Science. Paper given at The National Science Teachers
Association Area Conference, Long Beach, 1990.
• Desberg, P. and Colbert, J. Hyper Science. Paper presented at the Computer-Using
Educators (CUE) Conference, Palm Springs, 1990.
• Desberg, P. and Colbert, J. Hyper Critical Thinking and Science. Paper presented at
the Computer-Using Educators (CUE) Conference, Santa Clara, 1991
• Desberg, P. and Murdock, E. How Universities can Meet State Computer Guidelines.
Paper presented at the Computer-Using Educators (CUE) Conf., Palm Springs, 1992.
• Desberg, P. and Marsh, G. Integrating Multimedia Technologies into HyperCard:
Sound Resources. Paper presented at the Computer-Using Educators (CUE) Conf.,
Palm Springs, 1992.
• Desberg, P. and Murdock, E. Meeting State Computer Guidelines. Paper presented
at the Computer-Using Educators (CUE) Conf., Santa Clara, 1992.
• Desberg, P. and Marsh, G.New Technologies into HyperCard: Sound, Graphics and
Animation. Paper presented at the Computer-Using Educators (CUE) Conf. Santa
Clara, 1992.
• Desberg, P. HyperCard Sound, Graphics and Multimedia. Paper presented at the
Computer-Using Educators (CUE) Conf., Palm Springs, 1993
• Desberg, P. Making the Screen Dance and Sing–HyperCard Graphics and Sound.
Paper presented at the Computer-Using Educators (CUE) Conf., Palm Springs, 1994
• Desberg, P. Hyper Interactive Introductions to Technology in Education. Paper
presented at the Computer-Using Educators (CUE) Conf., Palm Springs, 1994
• Colbert, J., Desberg, P. and Trimble, K. Multimedia Case Demo: Interactive Case
Ware. Constructing Cases for Reflective Practice, Tucson, 1994.
• Colbert, J. and Desberg, P. Constructing/Using Cases for with Technology
Enhancements. Constructing Cases for Reflective Practice, Tucson, 1994.
• Fisher, F. and Desberg, P. Using email in Distance Learning. Paper presented at the
American Educational Research Association (AERA), San Francisco, 1995.
• Desberg, P. Innovations in HyperCard. Paper presented at the Computer-Using
Educators (CUE) Conf., Palm Springs, 1995.
• Desberg, P. Innovations in HyperCard: Making the Screen Sing and Dance. Paper
presented at the Computer-Using Educators (CUE) Conf., Palm Springs, 1996
• Desberg, P. Innovations in Object Oriented Authoring. Paper presented at the
Computer-Using Educators (CUE) Conf., Palm Springs, 1997
• Desberg, P. and Colbert, J. the Other Side of the Web: Using the World Wide Web
for Instruction. Paper presented at the Computer-Using Educators (CUE) Conf., Palm
Springs, 1997
• Desberg, P. and Bohart, A. Anger Survey in Los Angeles Schools. Paper presented at
the Western Psychological Association, 1997.
• Desberg, P. Advances in Object Oriented Authoring. Paper presented at the
Computer-Using Educators (CUE) Conf., Palm Springs, 1998
• Desberg, P. and Colbert, J. Using the World Wide Web for Instruction. Paper
presented at the Computer-Using Educators (CUE) Conf., Palm Springs, 1998
• Desberg, P. Trends in Object Oriented Authoring. Paper presented at the
Computer-Using Educators (CUE) Conf., Palm Springs, 1999
• Desberg, P. and Colbert, J. Using the World Wide Web for Research. Paper
presented at the Computer-Using Educators (CUE) Conf., Palm Springs, 1999
• Desberg, P. Innovations in Object Oriented Authoring. Paper presented at the
Computer-Using Educators (CUE) Conf., Palm Springs, 2000
• Desberg, P. and Colbert, J. Using the World Wide Web for Instruction. Paper
presented at the Computer-Using Educators (CUE) Conf., Palm Springs, 2000
• Desberg, P. and Mach, N. Video-Based technology infusion. PT3 Annual Grantees
Meeting, Washington, D.C., 2001
• Mach, N., Desberg. P., Cantor, J. and Hembacher, D. Infusing Technology into
Teacher Education Programs: New Paradigms of Accountability. AACTE Annual
Meeting in New York, 2002
• Desberg, P. and Mach, N. Video-Based Technology Infusion. Poster Session
presented at PT3 Annual Conference, Sachington, D.C. 2002.
• Desberg, P. Innovations in Object-Oriented Authoring. CUE, Anaheim, CA 2002
• Nada Mach, Ph.D.; Peter Desberg, Ph.D.; James Cantor, Ph.D., Diane Hembacher,
Ph.D., Hedy Moscovici, Ph.D. Collaborating to Infuse Technology into Teacher
Education: A Training-of-Trainers Model. NECC, San Antonio, TX, 2002
• Mach, N., Cantor, J., Desberg, P., Hembacher, D., and Moscovici, H. "Teacher
Education Programs Meet the Digital Age: Challenges Faced and Lessons Learned.”
American Association of colleges of Teacher Education (AACTE) Annual Conference
in New Orleans, 2003.
• Mach, N., Desberg P., Hembacher, D., and Moscovici, H. “Collaborating to Infuse
Technology into Teacher Education: A Training-of-Trainers Model.” National
Educational Computing Conference (NECC), 2002.
• Desberg, P. Using the full complement of distance learning tools. Paper presented
at the Alliance for Distance Learning in California: Sacramento, CA, 2003
• Mach, N. and Desberg, P. Trickle Down Teaching: Training University Faculty to
Train Teachers to use Technology. Computer Using Educators (CUE), Anaheim, CA 2003
• Mach, N. and Desberg, P. Infusing Technology into Teacher Education using A
Training-of-Trainers Model. EDMEDIA Conference, Honolulu, Hawaii, 2003
Mach, N., Desberg, P., Cantor, J., Hembacher, D., and Moscovici, H. and Davis, J.
Preparing Teachers to Integrate Technology into Multicultural Inner-City
Classrooms. National Educational Computing Conference (NECC) Seattle, 2003.
• P. Desberg, Distance Learning: Effectiveness Research and Tools. Paper presented
at the Alliance for Distance Learning in California: Pasadena, CA, 2004
• American Association of colleges of Teacher Education (AACTE) Annual
Conference in Chicago, February 7-10, 2004. “Preparing Teacher Education Faculty
to Integrate Technology in the Age of ‘No Child Left Behind.’” Co-presenter, with
Cantor, J., Davis, J. Desberg, P., Hembacher, D., and Moscovici, H.
• Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education (SITE) 15th Annual
Conference in Atlanta, GA, March 1-6, 2004. “Preparing Teacher Education Faculty
to Integrate Technology in the Age of “No Child Left Behind,” Results of a PT3 Grant.”
Co-presenter, with Desberg, P. & Tucker, S.
• National Educational Computing Conference (NECC) Annual Conference, June 21-
23, 2004 in New Orleans, LA. “Meeting Federal Guidelines for Technology
Integration in Teacher Education.” Paper co-authored by Cantor, J, Davis, J, Desberg,
P., Hembacher, D. & Moscovici, H.
• Computers and Advanced Technology in Education (CATE), 7th IASTED
Conference on Computers and Advanced Technology in Education, August 16-18,
2004, in Kauai, Hawaii. “Using a Training-of-Trainers Model to Prepare Faculty to
Integrate Technology.” Presented paper by Mach, N. & Desberg, P.
• National Educational Computing Conference (NECC) Annual Conference, June 27-
30, 2005, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. “Integrating Technology in Pre-service
Teacher Education, Part I: Using Problem/Project-based Learning to Integrate
Technology into the Classroom. Presented paper authored by Mach, N., Desberg, P.,
Cantor, J., Davis, J., Hembacher, D., and Moscovici, H.
• Conference of Urban and Metropolitan Universities (CUMU), October 2-4, 2005.
“Preparing Teachers to Integrate Technology into Multicultural Inner-City
Classrooms.” Paper presented and authored by Mach, N., Desberg, P., Cantor, J.,
Davis, J., Hembacher, D., & Moscovici, H.
• Desberg, P. & Mach, N. (2006) Why Workshops Don't Work. Technology in Education. Pasadena, CA.
• Desberg, P. (2007) Visual Learning. Technology in Education. Ontario, CA.
• Desberg, P. Can Cognitive Science and PowerPoint Co-exist? Paper presented at the
Computer-Using Educators (CUE) Conf., Palm Springs, 2008
• Davis, J. & Desberg, P. Process-Based Interviews of Top Hollywood Comedy
Writers. The International Society For Humor Studies Conference, 2009 in Long Beach, CA.
• Desberg, P. Clark, R. & Perttula, K. Humor at the Top: The Impressions Formed By
A Manager's Sense of Humor. The Society For Humor Studies Conference, 2009 in Long Beach, CA.
• Dean, G. & Desberg, P. Interactive Joke Writing...From Theory to Practice. The
Society For Humor Studies Conference, 2009 in Long Beach, CA.
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Professional Associations
• American Psychological Association (APA)
• Society for Technology Education (ISTE)
• Computer Using Educators (CUE)