How resilience, curiosity, and happiness guide Dr. Jelena Brcic’s work.
As an expert on teams in extreme environments—from the International Space Station to the Canadian Arctic and BC wilderness—Dr. Jelena Brcic (PhD ’13) studies how people work together under pressure, maintain resilience, and build effective teams. Now an associate professor at the School of Business at the University of the Fraser Valley, Dr. Brcic brings this expertise into the classroom to help students understand what makes teams thrive.
In a Q&A, Dr. Brcic reflects on her time as a graduate student in UBC Psychology, including how an early conversation with her supervisor shaped her lifelong commitment to research integrity. She also shares the importance of finding happiness in one’s career, and how flexibility and curiosity led her to a rewarding path in academia.
Looking back on your time at UBC Psychology, what was one experience that continues to shape your approach to research or teaching today?
When I was a graduate student, the psychology field went through a replication crisis as a result of data hacking, where data were manipulated to produce statistically significant results, often by selectively reporting positive findings and ignoring negative ones.
My supervisor, Peter Suedfeld, and I had a conversation about this and he asked me “Why do we do science”? I said, “Because we have questions and we want to find answers”. And he asked, “What if we find an answer we don’t agree with or if we find nothing—is it still important?”
I said, “Yes, it is”! That moment stuck with me. This is why we ask questions when we don’t have an answer. That answer, no matter what it is, is important. We can have all the theories, hypotheses, and predictions in the world, but the reason we collect data is to find the answer.
This has shaped my ethics and how I approach anything, especially because I work with such small samples. Everything we find is important and interesting, no matter how small or big the sample is, or no matter what the question is.
“We can have all the theories, hypotheses, and predictions in the world, but the reason we collect data is to find the answer. This has shaped my ethics and how I approach anything, especially because I work with such small samples. Everything we find is important and interesting, no matter how small or big the sample is, or no matter what the question is.”
When you were a psychology student, was there anything or anyone who inspired you?
Yes! Beyond the obvious—my supervisor Peter Suedfeld, who provided so much guidance and knowledge—Catherine Rawn and Lesley Duncan. Catherine, Lesley, and I were graduate students at the same time and we shared office. They were four years ahead of me and always provided me with the guidance, resources, and support I needed. There is a certain type of support you get from your cohort, but having support from people who had been in my shoes was vital.
What is one question you wish every student would ask themselves as they plan their career path?
I have so many! But I think, at the end of the day, it comes down to Will this make me happy?
You might ask yourself: Am I excited to get up in the morning? Is this meaningful? Does this make me happy? These seem like easy questions, or questions nobody ever asks, because what job makes us happy? But my job makes me happy, so I say aim for happiness in your career. If you dread going to work, and if you’re stressed and anxious, it might not be worth it.
“You might ask yourself: Are you excited to get up in the morning? Is this meaningful? Does this make me happy? These seem like easy questions, or questions nobody ever asks, because what job makes us happy? But my job makes me happy, so I say aim for happiness in your career. If you dread going to work, and if you’re stressed and anxious, it might not be worth it.”
Drawing from your research on extreme and unusual environments, what strategy do you recommend people use to help them cope with challenges?
In my research, we often talk about problem-focused strategies more than emotion-focused strategies, but what I’ve seen over the years is that having a variety of strategies allows you to pick and choose.
Stop and ask yourself: What environment am I in? Who am I with? What will get me through this? For example, if you’re at the International Space Station and your crew is chewing loudly, there’s no problem-solving strategy you can use to make your crew mates chew less loudly. It’s just what it is, and you have to adapt and take a different stance or approach. Maybe you remove yourself from the room, maybe you wear headphones.
Having a set of strategies you can draw from, based on the environment, the situation, and who you’re with is what we see as being the most important skillset.
How has your specialty influenced the way you approach teaching students today?
In my teaching, I try to pepper in a bunch of extreme environment examples because it’s fun. Students learn about communication in a regular business environment and then I’ll add a paper about the communication during an extreme situation, such as the rescue of 33 Chilean miners who were trapped underground for 69 days. They miraculously survived! There was research done on the massive amount of communication necessary to free these people. We learned what happened in an extreme case of required communication, what good communication looks like, and then we compared it to communications in a business setting.
Since graduating and now with your career in academia, what advice would you offer to current students breaking into that space?
Make sure you really like it. Academia can be tough, it can be challenging, and there’s not that many jobs. Be ready to be flexible. I’m a professor at a business school, not in psychology—but I literally teach psychology with a business title. That was me pivoting and being flexible. Are you willing to move to a different field or even other countries?
Also, start talking to others and have a network of people that you can rely on to talk and work with. The more people you talk to, the more opportunities you hear about.
Lastly, are you working on any research projects you’re excited about?
The Women in Search and Rescue Project is one! We’re exploring the unique challenges faced by women who volunteer with Canadian SAR organizations. This project aims to improve equity, inclusivity, and diversity in the SAR community.
One challenge women face is having to miss a training session because they can’t find childcare. Having childcare on-site makes participation a little more accessible. We’ve collected all the quantitative data and reviewed the qualitative interviews and we’ll share research-informed recommendations to help build and support this vital community.
You can hear more about Dr. Brcic’s research and the Women in Search and Rescue Project in a recent talk she gave at our Coming Home to Psychology event on September 18, 2025.
