About the Department of Psychology
The Psychology department is a community of dedicated students, staff members, teachers, researchers, and mentors.
Department of Psychology
What We Do
Psychology is a field that studies behavior, mental activities, and the biological processes that underlie them. Psychologists apply the scientific method to understand many different topics, such as, the brain, development, social interactions, personality, psychopathology, and cognition.
Who We Are
The Psychology faculty is made up of award-winning researchers committed to understanding human cognition, development and behavior through teaching and research. As educators at a top-ranked research university, faculty in the Psychology Department offer students the opportunity to work alongside groundbreaking scientists.
Faculty members have a wide range of expertise including Child Development, Clinical Disorders and Treatment, Health Psychology, Cognition, Social Psychology, and Learning. Faculty encourage student engagement in research topics including Memory, Anxiety Disorders, Parent-Child Interactions, Development of Executive Function, Discrimination, Ethnic and Cultural Similarities and Differences, Personality, Romantic Relationships, Diabetes and Chronic Pain Management.
Welcome from the Chair
The Department of Psychology offers a supportive environment where faculty and students can thrive academically and professionally. With research opportunities in areas such as clinical psychology, developmental psychology, cognitive psychology, behavioral psychology, and social psychology, the department fosters innovation and discovery. Undergraduate students have the opportunity to engage in research, internships, and benefit from a flexible curriculum that supports a wide range of interests.
Rebekah Elizabeth Smith
Chair and Professor of Psychology
Our Values and Beliefs
The study of psychology centers around understanding behavior and cognition—and how we develop and interact with one another across a wide range of contexts and experiences. As a community of scholars, we support excellence and integrity in teaching, mentorship, and research. We work to support all members of our community by fostering more engaging and enlightening learning experiences, encouraging more rigorous and impactful research, and promoting more harmonious and collegial relationships.
Our Vision
We strive to advance the discipline through significant contributions to research and scholarship, excellence in teaching and mentoring within our undergraduate and graduate programs, dissemination and application of psychological science, and a commitment to supporting access and opportunity.
Our Mission
We aspire to be a leading contributor to the field of psychology and to enhance the human experience through a commitment to excellence in research, teaching, and mentoring in a learning environment grounded in mutual respect, intellectual honesty, and constructive dialogue.
Department Leadership and Support
Rebekah Smith
- Chair and Professor of Psychology
Kate Kellum
- Instructional Professor of Psychology, Director of Undergraduate Studies, Assistant Chair
Todd Smitherman
- Professor of Psychology and Director of Clinical Training
Joseph Wellman
- Associate Professor of Psychology and Director of Experimental Training
Megan Craven
- Operations Coordinator II
Kim Dunnavant
- Operations Coordinator
Matt Ward
- Operations Manager
Clinical Faculty
Kristin Austin
- Clinical Assistant Professor and Director of the Psychological Services Center
Sarah Bilsky
- Assistant Professor of Clinical Psychology
Lee Cohen
- Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Professor of Psychology
Laura J Dixon
- Associate Professor of Psychology
Laura Drislane
- Assistant Professor of Psychology
Laura Johnson
- Professor of Psychology
Aaron Lee
- Assistant Professor of Clinical Psychology
Vanessa Oliphant
- Visiting Assistant Professor of Psychology
Taylor Rodriguez
- Visiting Assistant Professor of Psychology
Stefan Schulenberg
- Professor of Psychology, Director of Interdisciplinary Minor in Disaster Sciences and Director of the Clinical- Disaster Research Center
Todd Smitherman
- Professor of Psychology and Director of Clinical Training
John Young
- Professor of Psychology
Experimental Faculty
Jeff Bednark
- Instructional Assistant Professor of Psychology
Anna Kate Edgemon
- Assistant Professor of Psychology
Andrew Hales
- Assistant Professor of Psychology
Robert Hunt Jr
- Adjunct Research Professor
Kate Kellum
- Instructional Professor of Psychology, Director of Undergraduate Studies, Assistant Chair
Mervin Matthew
- Instructional Associate Professor of Psychology
Stephanie Miller
- Associate Professor of Psychology and Provost Faculty Research Scholar for Institutional Transformation
Rebekah Smith
- Chair and Professor of Psychology
Erica O'Brien
- Assistant Professor of Psychology
Nicolaas Prins
- Associate Professor of Psychology
Matthew Reysen
- Associate Professor of Psychology
Grace Rivera
- Assistant Professor of Psychology
Don Skinner
- Instructional Assistant Professor of Psychology
Carrie Smith
- Associate Professor of Psychology
Kenneth Sufka
- Distinguished Professor of Psychology and Pharmacology, Research Professor in the Research Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Director of the Stamps Impact Prize
Kurt Streeter
- Instructional Associate Professor of Cognitive Psychology
Joseph Wellman
- Associate Professor of Psychology and Director of Experimental Training
Affiliated Faculty
Paul Loprinzi
- Associate Professor of Health, Exercise Science & Recreation Management
Supplemental Faculty & Instructors
Anne Vogel
- Adjunct Instructor in Psychology
Darlene Greenlee
- Adjunct Instructor in Psychology
Kimberly Sallis
- Adjunct Assistant Professor of Psychology
Rebecca Pekich Allen
- Adjunct Instructor in School of Applied Sciences
Karen Sabol
- Associate Professor Emeritus of Psychology
Karrye Tynes
- Director of Center for Inclusion and Cross Cultural Engagement
Sarah Marie Sharp
- Assistant Director Athletics Academic Support
Department Centers
Psychological Services Center
Psychological services provides affordable and accessible services to the Mississippi community. We also engage in research that improves treatment across the nation, and provide in-depth training to our skilled staff of clinical graduate students.
Clinical-Disaster Research Center
The Clinical Disaster Research Center is a diverse team of researchers from the University of Mississippi Department of Psychology. The UM-CDRC works within the areas of clinical disaster research, positive psychology, consultation, program evaluation, and disaster response training.
Our Community
A Place That Ever Calls
Located 70 miles from Memphis and surrounded by the natural beauty of Northern Mississippi, Oxford boasts thriving music, art, and literary scenes along with great restaurants. UM's athletics provide many opportunities to watch and participate in sports—and one of the world's best tailgating parties.
With everything Oxford has to offer, it's no wonder USA Today named Oxford as one of the Top Six College Towns in the Nation.
Come see why.