Faculty Research, Teaching and Professional Interests

Cheryl A. Armstead, Ph.D., University of Tennessee, 1991; Associate Professor

Emotion and psysiological response, particularly cardiovascular functioning; racism and hypertension; health psychology.

Shauna M. Cooper, Ph.D., University of Michigan, 2005, Assistant Professor

African American family processes; Positive development among African American youth; race-related experiences (e.g., racial socialization; racial discrimination) and youth well-being; African American adolescent female health and development; Developmental transitions and school/psychological adjustment; Family-, school- and community-level risk and protective factors; the interplay between education and health.

Amanda Fairchild, Ph.D., Arizona State University, 2008, Assistant Professor

Intersection of mediation and moderation models and how the integration of these models aids in program evaluation; effect size measures for mediation; measurement and evaluation of programs and outcomes; and statistical pedagogy.

Kate Flory, Ph.D., University of Kentucky, 2004, Assistant Professor

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and risk for cigarette smoking in adolescence, smoking prevention.

Tawanda M. Greer, Ph.D., Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, 2003, Assistant Professor

Perceived racism in health care, the contribution of racism and chronic oppression to existing health disparities, the impact of racism on African American college students, and racial and ethnic concerns in mental health counseling.

Benjamin L. Hankin, Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-Madison, 2001, Assistant Professor

Development of depression in children, adolescents, and young adults; cognitive vulnerability-stress models of depression; developmental psychopathology; gender differences in depression; comorbidity of depression and other psychiatric disorders.

Peter R. Kilmann, Ph.D., Brigham Young University, 1972; Professor

Psychotherapy; sex and marital therapy; group therapy.

Bret Kloos, Ph.D., University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1999; Assistant Professor


Community psychology; recovery from serious mental illness; mutual support and self-help; meaning-making after major life disruptions; transactional models of risk and protection; qualitative methods.

Patrick S. Malone, Ph.D., University of Texas, 1993; Associate Professor


Statistical methods, particularly for longitudinal data; Etiology and prevention of youth substance use and abuse; Ethnic factors in youth substance use.

Ron Prinz, Ph.D., State University of New York, Stony Brook, 1977; Carolina Research Professor

Child clinical psychology; prevention and treatment of conduct disorders; family intervention; clinical research methodology.

Jeffrey C. Schatz, Ph.D., Washington University in St. Louis, 1997; Associate Professor, Clinical-Community Program Director

Pediatric neuropsychology, cognitive development in children with chronic health conditions (especially sickle cell disease), functional impact of neuropsychological deficits in children.

Bradley H. Smith, Ph.D., University of Arizona, 1996; Associate Professor

Prevention of problems related to heavy alcohol use among college students; diagnosis and treatment of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, especially in adolescents/young adults.

Suzanne Swan, Ph.D., University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1997; Assistant Professor

Intimate partner violence, with a current emphasis on women's use of violence against male intimate partners; the role of race/class/culture in intimate partner violence; predictors of men's violence against women; women's use of resources to deal with domestic violence.

Lee Van Horn, Ph.D., University of Alabama at Birmingham, 2001; Assistant Professor

School environment and academic, behavioral, and social outcomes in children; community-level risk and protective factors for children and adolescents.

Abraham H. Wandersman, Ph.D., Cornell University, 1976; Professor

Community psycholoogy; environmental and ecological psychology; citizen participation; community coalitions; program evaluation.

Rhonda L. White, Ph.D., University of Michigan, 2008; Research Assistant Professor

Positive functioning among African Americans; African American civic engagement and social responsibility endorsement; Racial socialization transactions in African American families; Risk-and resiliency factors among African American adolescents.

Dawn Wilson, Ph.D., Vanderbilt University, 1988; Professor

Research on understanding family dynamics/interactions in promoting healthy diet and physical activity in underserved adolescents; ecological and social cognitive theoretical models for understanding family connectedness, social support and role modeling in promoting health behavior change in youth; family-based interventions for promoting healthy diet and physical activity among underserved adolescents.

Nicole Zarrett, Ph.D., University of Michigan, 2006; Assistant Professor

Developmental Systems models and pattern-centered approaches to the study of youth in context; Processes within the individual and between the individual and their multiple environments (family, school, peer, and neighborhood); The relation between youth participation in constructive (e.g., sports, school clubs) and unconstructive (e.g., television) extracurricular activities and healthy developmental pathways; Promoting healthy diet and physical activity in underserved adolescence; Motivational development in adolescents.

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Affiliated Faculty

Robert V. Heckel, Ph.D., Pennsylvania State University, 1955; ABPP in Clinical Psychology, Distinguished Professor Emeritus

Psychotherapy research; development of social behavior; group behavior; sport psychology

Thomas P. Cafferty, Ph.D., Purdue University, 1972; Associate Professor

Personality-social; group processes, including family and marital relationships; organizational psychology; interpersonal attraction; social aspects of aging.

Keith E. Davis, Ph.D., Duke University, 1963; Professor

Social psychology; friendship and intimate relationships; community and organizational psychology; health promotion; social gerontology.

Robert E. Deysach, Ph.D., Syracuse University, 1970; Professor Emeritus

Neuropsychology; child-clinical; child victimization; intervention in family and social systems, espicially residential settings of children.

Herman C. Salzberg, Ph.D., University of Tennessee, 1960; ABPP in Clinical Psychology, Distinguished Professor Emeritus

Alcoholism; hypnosis; psychopathology; psychotherapy; training models.

Emilie Smith, Ph.D., Adjunct Associate Professor

Associate Professor, Human Development & Family Studies, Penn State University

Sara Wilcox, Ph.D., Adjunct Associate Professor

Associate Professor, Department of Exercise Science, University of South Carolina

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