Social and Health Psychology
Our program focuses on training students to become independent scientists in social and health psychology.
The faculty in this area study how characteristics of our personalities and interpersonal relationships influence relationship functioning, psychological well-being, physical health, and self-regulation (e.g., in the context of addictive behaviors and coping with chronic disease). Our approach places a strong emphasis on identifying the biological, psychological, social, intrapersonal and behavioral mechanisms that explain these relations.
These faculty routinely train Social and Health Psychology students:
Chante Cox-Boyd
Associate Professor of Psychology (Teaching), Faculty Advisor: Psi Chi and Study Abroad
I am interested in the judgments that people make of others and how these judgments can further contribute to social inequality. I am especially interested in social stigmas and the processing of stereotyping. My goal is to explore how these factors can contribute to a lack of integration of minority groups on campus and how each can impede the success of minoritized groups in an academic domain.
David Creswell
Professor of Psychology
I study stress and resilience processes. For example, we conduct studies of stress management interventions (e.g., mindfulness) or stress management strategies (e.g., self-affirmation, rewards) to experimentally explore stress and resilience mechanisms in healthy and patient populations.
Kasey Creswell
Associate Professor of Psychology
I am broadly interested in understanding the mechanisms underlying the development and maintenance of addiction, as well as identifying those who may be particularly vulnerable to addiction. My research focuses on uncovering basic affective and cognitive mechanisms of cigarette craving and alcohol
Brooke Feeney
Professor of Psychology
My research addresses the general question of how close relationships, and specific social behaviors and social interactions occurring within those relationships, facilitate or hinder human thriving. This work considers the immediate and long-term impact of specific social behaviors and social interaction patterns (and related biological processes) on important thriving outcomes such as mental and physical health, relationship health and stability, and goal progress and accomplishment.
Vicki Helgeson
Director of Graduate Studies and Professor of Psychology
We study how people adjust to chronic illness, most recently diabetes. With experimental and field research, we focus on the role of interpersonal factors, such as communal coping, on psychological, behavioral, and physical health.
Phoebe Lam
Assistant Professor
I study how stress experienced early in life and across development shapes psychological and biological processes that influence health. My research also identifies when and how protective factors can buffer against the negative effects of stress, with the goal of understanding pathways to resilience and long-term well-being.
Michael Trujillo
Assistant Professor of Psychology
My research is rooted in both the social psychology of stigma and an understanding of the psychobiological pathways linking social stress and health. I have bridged these areas of expertise to create a program of theoretical and empirical work dedicated to understanding and improving the health of stigmatized populations.