Specialty Areas of Training

The Experimental Psychology program emphasizes several major specialty areas: Biological, Cognition, Health, Industrial/Organizational, and Social. The specialty areas provide a broad intellectual context in which specific interests in that area can be pursued. The following describes how each of the specialty areas is conceived of by the faculty.

Biological

Neuropharmacological and behavioral approaches are combined to explore the relationship between the biology of the organism and its behavior. Research in this area incorporates neurochemical, molecular, immunohistochemical, and genetic techniques to determine causation of behavior from numerous perspectives, in collaboration with faculty in the department of Integrative Physiology and Neuroscience (IPN). These collaborations greatly facilitate the quality of training and the post-doctoral and job placement opportunities for our students. Students who select this specialty area are expected to take, in addition to the core course in biopsychology (Psychology 574), graduate courses in Behavioral Pharmacology (Psychology 577) and Neuroscience (various). Supplemental courses for the biopsychology specialty area should be selected through consultation with the major advisor and may include courses in biology and molecular biosciences. Faculty in this area are located on the Pullman and Vancouver campuses.

Faculty associated with this area

• Angela Henricks (Pullman)
• Ryan McLaughlin (Pullman)
• Mike Morgan (Vancouver)

Cognition

The study of mental processes and how they relate to brain function are a major focus of human research in the department. Areas of faculty expertise include attention, perception, memory, executive functioning, affect, decision making and general information processing at both the micro and macro levels. Some faculty collaborate with researchers at the University of Idaho and Wright Patterson Air Force Base who conduct research on attention, perception, memory, and decision making in applied environments. Students entering the program with an emphasis in cognition will follow the general requirements of all experimental students and are expected to take Psych 592 (Cognition and Affective Basis of Behavior) and design an elective program that suits their specific needs and aspirations in consultation with their major advisor. It is expected that students in this specialty area will take supplemental courses in computer science, statistics, neuroscience, and engineering psychology/human factors, in consultation with their major advisor. Faculty in this area are located on the Pullman and Spokane campuses.

Faculty associated with this area

• Carrie Cuttler (Pullman)
• Lisa Fournier (Pullman)
• Devon Hansen (Spokane)
• Kimberly Honn (Spokane)
• Kimberly Meidenbauer (Pullman)
• Paul Whitney (Pullman)

Health

Health psychology in the department focuses on how biological, psychological, environmental, and cultural factors affect health. Research in health psychology examines the causes and development of illness, methods to help individuals develop lifestyles to promote health and prevent illness, interventions to help people cope with and reduce stress and pain, biopsychosocial effects on immune function, and factors in the recovery, rehabilitation, and psychosocial adjustment of individuals with serious health problems, including mental health problems and substance use problems. Faculty research interests include: quality of life in medical populations; mechanisms and clinical treatment of pain; occupational health, well-being, and safety; methodological and statistical approaches to health research; neuropsychological substrates of mental and physical health; substance use and mental health; applying social psychological perspectives to health behavior motivation and change. Students pursuing the Health track are expected to take Psych 523 (Health Psychology) and are encouraged to complete Psych 550 (Social Psychology); additional courses relevant to the student’s research will be selected in consultation with the major advisor. Note that the Health Psychology interest area within the Experimental PhD program does not prepare students to be clinical psychologists. If interested in a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology, please consult the description of the clinical psychology program. Faculty in this area are located on the Vancouver, Pullman, and Spokane campuses.

Faculty associated with this area

• Carrie Cuttler (Pullman)
• Jessica Fales (Vancouver)
• Angela Henricks (Pullman)
• Benjamin Ladd (Vancouver)
• Renee Magnan (Vancouver)
• Kimberly Meidenbauer (Pullman)
• Sarah Tragesser (Tri-Cities)

Industrial/Organizational

Faculty research in this area focuses on occupational health psychology and examination of the impact of a variety of workplace stressors (e.g., job insecurity, work-family conflict, sexual harassment, discrimination) on individual, job-related, and organizational outcomes. Students pursuing this track are expected to take Psych 519 (Industrial/Organizational Psychology) and Psych 529 (Occupational Health Psychology) and are encouraged to complete Psych 550 (Social Psychology); additional courses relevant to the student’s research will be selected in consultation with the major advisor. In general, students are encouraged to seek advanced training in quantitative and statistical methods and to enroll in relevant coursework available through the Management Department in the Carson College of Business. Graduates in this area have successfully gone on to applied and academic positions (both in Business Schools and Psychology Departments). Faculty in this area are located on the Vancouver campus.

Faculty associated with this area

• Tahira Probst (Vancouver)

Social

Laboratory-based studies are utilized to study social psychological processes including cooperation, individual differences in social behavior, the interface between social factors and physical health, and social cognitive processes. Graduates in this area may find employment in academic settings, government agencies, private research firms, and businesses. Students are expected to take Psych 550 (Social Psychology), and design an elective program that suits their specific needs and aspirations in consultation with their major advisor. Training in statistics and methodology beyond the departmental core requirements is encouraged. Faculty in this area are located on the Pullman and Vancouver campuses.

Faculty associated with this area:

• Elizabeth Canning (Pullman)
• Renee Magnan (Vancouver)
• Kimberly Meidenbauer (Pullman)

Advanced Quantitative Methods in Psychology

Although not a specific specialty area within the program, the curriculum in the Department of Psychology provides students the opportunity to acquire skills in advanced quantitative methods. In addition to the two courses that all Experimental Psychology graduate students are required to take [i.e., Psych 511 (Experimental Design, T-Tests, and Analysis of Variance) and Psych 512 (Non-Experimental Designs, Correlation, and Regression)], a number of other quantitative courses are available for elective credits including Psych 514 (Psychometrics), and Psych 516 (Applied Structural Equation Modeling). Additional advanced quantitative courses are also regularly available in the doctoral programs in Educational Psychology and Prevention Science. Students are encouraged to earn a Certificate in Applied Measurement and Quantitative Methods.