Faculty & Staff
Current faculty and staff are listed here. To walk down memory lane, view our retired faculty.
Kent Bodily, Ph.D.
Auburn University, 2008Assistant Professor
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Kent Bodily earned a bachelor's degree in Psychology from Utah State University, and received his Ph.D. in Experimental Psychology from Auburn University in 2008. His teaching interests include Research Methods, Sensation & Perception, Animal Learning, Behavior Modification, Physiological Psychology, and History & Systems. His research focuses on developing and employing desktop-computer virtual environments (VE) in which human participants can be tested on procedures that are analogous to those used for testing non-humans. The VE methodology has allowed him to make direct, systematic replications of non-human research, and test the generality of research findings across species. His primary areas of research include Problem Solving, Homing (a.k.a. Dead Reckoning or Path Integration), and Spatial Learning.
Research and Scholarly Interests
- Virtual environments
- Problem solving
- Spatial learning
Courses
- Research Methods
- Sensation & Perception
- Animal Learning
- Behavior Modification
- Physiological Psychology
- History & Systems
Amy A. Hackney, Ph.D.
St. Louis University, 2003Assistant Professor
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Amy Hackney received her Ph.D. in Social Psychology from Saint Louis University in the summer of 2003 and began her career at Georgia Southern University that Fall. Her dissertation investigated the effects of suppressing stereotypes on jury decision-making and explored the cognitive and motivational factors underlying the inadmissible testimony backfire effect. She is continuing to research the intersection of stereotypes and jury decision-making as well as investigating the experience of being a victim of prejudice. Dr. Hackney also conducts research on sexual harassment in the workplace. She is particularly interested in the relationship between power, gender stereotypes, and harassment. She teaches both undergraduate and graduate students in courses such as research methods, research for applied psychology, and psychology and law. Other teaching interests include social psychology, and the psychology of prejudice.
Research and Scholarly Interests
- Social psychology: prejudice and stereotyping
- Psychology and Law
- Research Methodology
Courses
- Research Methods
- Applied Psychology (graduate)
- Social Psychology
- Psychology of Gender
- Psychology and Law
Janice H. Kennedy, Ph.D.
Georgia State University, 1980Professor
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Jan Kennedy started her teaching career at Bluefield College and has taught at Georgia Southern for the past 20 years. She teaches the developmental courses in the Department of Psychology (Child Psychology, Lifespan Developmental Psychology, Psychology of Aging, and Advanced Developmental Psychology) as well as Research Methods, Senior Research in Psychology, and Careers in Psychology. Her research interests center around the social development of children, particularly the mother-infant attachment relationship. Dr. Kennedy is currently working on a study that examines maternal factors related to attachment classification in infants. She also conducts research on the social competence of children and factors related to attachment relations in adulthood. Dr. Kennedy has taught psychology through a study abroad program in London during the past two summers. In this program she taught Introductory Psychology and the Historical Context of Childhood.
Research and Scholarly Interests
- Developmental psychology
- Parent-child attachment
- Child social development
Courses
- Research Methods
- Research Experience
- Lifespan Developmental Psychology
- Directed Research
- Directed Study
- Experimental Developmental Psychology
- Advanced Directed Study
- Advanced Developmental Psychology
- Graduate Research Seminar
Larry Locker, Ph.D.
University of Kansas, 2005Assistant Professor
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Lawrence Locker, Jr. earned a bachelor's degree in psychology from Fort Hays State University and a doctoral degree in cognitive psychology from the University of Kansas. He joined the faculty at Georgia Southern University in the Fall of 2005. His teaching interests include introductory psychology and undergraduate and graduate courses in cognitive psychology and statistical methods. His research interest is in cognitive psychology with a focus on how people perceive written language. His current research is aimed at an investigation of how semantic and phonological properties of words influence language processing. He enjoys writing music and studying music history in his spare time.
Research and Scholarly Interests
- Cognitive psychology
- Language Processing
- Written Word Perception
Courses
- Introduction to Psychology
- Cognitive Psychology
- Statistics in Psychology
- Directed Research
- Directed Study
William D. McIntosh, Ph.D.
University of Georgia, 1990Professor
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Will McIntosh received his Ph.D. in social psychology from the University of Georgia in 1990. Since then he has been at Georgia Southern. He teaches classes in Social Psychology, Senior Research, Careers in Psychology, Environmental Psychology, Research Design, and team-teaches Humanistic/Transpersonal Psychology as well as large sections of Introductory Psychology. In 2002 he received the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences Award of Distinction in Teaching. His current research focuses on internet dating and romantic relationships; in the past he has published research on happiness and goals, collecting behavior, psychological aspects of film and television, and the relationship between psychology and Zen Buddhism. In his spare time he writes science fiction.
Research and Scholarly Interests
- Social psychology
- Happiness
- Film/Television
- Social cognition
Courses
- Introduction to Psychology
- Careers in Psychology
- Research Experience
- Social Psychology
- Humanistic & Transpersonal Psychology
- Directed Research
- Directed Study
- Experimental Social Psychology
- Advanced Social Psychology
- Development of Original Research
- Advanced Directed Study
John D. Murray, Ph.D.
University of California, 1989Professor, Chair of Psychology
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John Murray earned a BA in psychology from Purdue University in 1984 and completed a Ph.D. in cognitive psychology at the University of California, Santa Barbara in 1989. He then spent two years as a postdoctoral research associate at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, where he began a program of research in issues related to reading comprehension. He spent the next two years as a visiting assistant professor at the University of Florida, Gainesville, where he taught courses in Introductory Psychology and Cognitive Psychology. Dr. Murray came to Georgia Southern in 1993. He teaches courses in Introductory Psychology, Cognitive Psychology, Research Methods, and Senior Research. He maintains an active research laboratory where he focuses on topics related to reading comprehension, metacognition in reading, social cognition, and applications of cognitive psychology to business settings (e.g. data mining). Dr. Murray works with both graduate and undergraduate students and welcomes the participation of undergraduates in his laboratory. Usually two or three students work in his lab every semester, including summers.
Research and Scholarly Interests
- Cognitive psychology
- Psychology of language
- Text processing
Courses
- Research Methods
- Research Experience
- Cognitive Psychology
- Directed Research
- Directed Study
- Experimental Cognitive Psychology
- Advanced Cognitive Psychology
- Development of Original Research
- Advanced Directed Study
Karen Naufel, Ph.D.
University of Arkansas, 2007Assistant Professor
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Karen Naufel received her Ph.D. from the University of Arkansas in May 2007 in Experimental Psychology. Her research interests span across health, social, motivational, and cognitive psychology. Mainly, she investigates motivational strategies to help people engage in healthy behaviors or follow healthcare providers' advice. She also investigates how expectations for unpleasant events influence coping. She has additional interests in how people cope with and adapt to unpleasant events, medical decision making processes, goal-setting processes, emotional adaptation, and positive psychology. She teaches undergraduate and graduate research methods courses. She also has teaching interests in health psychology, motivation and emotion, and social psychology.
Research and Scholarly Interests
- Health psychology
- Motivation & emotion
- Emotional Adaptation
- Coping with Unpleasant Events
Courses
- Research Methods
- Health Psychology
- Motivation & Emotion
- Social Psychology
- Research Experience
- Directed Research
- Directed Study
- Development of Original Research
- Advanced Directed Study
Michael E. Nielsen, Ph.D.
Northern Illinois University, 1993Professor
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Michael Nielsen has taught at Georgia Southern University since 1993. He received a B.A. in music and psychology from Southern Utah University in 1986 and a Ph.D. in social-organizational psychology from Northern Illinois University in 1992. Most of Dr. Nielsen's studies concern religious conflicts, but he has also studied altered states of consciousness, philosophical aspects of psychology, and peace psychology. He regularly offers courses in Psychology of Religion, Social Psychology, History of Psychology, Statistics, and Research Methods. Dr. Nielsen serves on the editorial board of Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought, and has been a contributing columnist to Sunstone magazine. He is author of an award-winning website on the Psychology of Religion, has delivered an invited lecture on that subject in Ukraine, and has received awards for service from the American Psychological Association and Georgia Southern University. When not at his desk, he is usually at home with his family, reading, flying kites, or enjoying volleyball.
Research and Scholarly Interests
- Social psychology
- Psychology of religion
- Self-complexity
Courses
- Statistics for Psychology
- Research Methods
- Psychology of Religion
- History and Systems
- Research Experience
- Social Psychology
- Personality Psychology
- Directed Research
- Directed Study
- Development of Original Research
- Research Design
- Advanced Personality
- Advanced Directed Study
Dr. Nielsen's Psychology of Religion Webpage
James L. Pugh, Ph.D.
Georgia State University, 1984Assistant Professor
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Dr. Pugh began working in mental health in 1970, and he has been involved in clinical psychology ever since. His first job, during his undergraduate years, was as a psychiatric technician at a state mental hospital. He left that job to obtain a Master's degree in psychology, completed in 1977. After that Dr. Pugh returned briefly to full time clinical work, then he began work toward a doctoral degree in Counseling Psychology which he received in 1984. During the time that he was working on the Ph.D. he continued to work in a psychiatric hospital part time. His post-doctoral internship was completed at a comprehensive pain clinic in Atlanta. He also has worked in a university counseling center, a community mental health center, and an employee assistance program, as well as private practice. He has a total of 15 years of experience with full time teaching of both undergraduate and graduate courses. His primary research interest is stress coping practices.
Research and Scholarly Interests
- Clinical Psychology
- Psychotherapy
- Stress
Courses
- Tests and Measurements
- Abnormal Psychology
- Research Experience
- Development of Original Research
- Psychopathology
- Psychotherapy Skills
- Group Psychotherapy
- Advanced Directed Study
- Practicum
Rebecca Ryan, Ph.D.
West Virginia University, 2006Assistant Professor
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Rebecca Ryan received her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Concord University and her Ph.D. in Life-Span Developmental Psychology from West Virginia University.
Her graduate research investigated forensic interview techniques appropriate for children and interrogative suggestibility in adolescents and young adults. Current research interests also include areas within psychology and law; specifically investigating the jury decision making process. Additional research interests pertain to social development and adjustment. Dr. Ryan also has an interest in the use and examination of Service Learning. She incorporates this teaching method into many of her courses and is currently studying subsequent effects on cognitive and social outcomes. Dr. Ryan’s teaching interests are in the area of developmental psychology, particularly memory and psychology and law.
Research and Scholarly Interests
- Developmental Psychology
- Psychology and Law
- Forensic Interviewing
- Teaching of Psychology
Courses
- Research Methods
- Lifespan Developmental Psychology
- Psychology of Aging
- Social Psychology
- Senior Seminar
George W. Shaver, Psy.D.
George Fox UniversityDirector, Regents Center for Learning Disorders
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George is a licensed clinical psychologist who works for the Regent's Center for Learning Disorders at Georgia Southern University. He received his Doctor of Psychology degree from George Fox University. He completed a predoctoral clinical internship at Eastern Virginia Medical School, and he subsequently completed a postdoctoral fellowship in clinical neuropsychology at the University of Virginia School of Medicine. George also holds a Master of Divinity degree from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics from the University of Tennessee. His research interests include the effects of effort and motivation in cognitive testing. As an adjunct professor, George teaches courses related to clinical neuropsychology and supervises clinical psychology practicum students.
K. Bryant Smalley, Psy.D.
Assistant Professor
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Dr. K. Bryant Smalley received a Bachelor of Science and Master of Science in Psychology from Georgia Southern University before attending Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale, where he earned a Master of Science in Clinical Psychology and a Doctor of Psychology (Psy.D.). Dr. Smalley’s research interests include gender, multicultural psychology, and behavioral health. Specifically, he is interested in eating disordered behavior, objectification, adherence to gender role norms, and influence of gender roles on risk-taking behavior. Dr. Smalley has clinical experience in rural and urban community mental health centers as well as university counseling centers. His approach to therapy is grounded in humanistic principles, while integrating aspects of existential, cognitive-behavioral, and multicultural theories.
Research and Scholarly Interests
- Gender
- Multicultural Psychology
- Behavioral Health
Courses
- Ethics and Professional Issues
- Foundations of Psychotherapy
- Human Sexuality
- Introduction to Psychology
- Psychology of Adjustment
- Psychopathology
- Psychotherapy Skills
Janice N. Steirn, Ph.D.
University of Georgia, 1985Associate Professor
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Janice Steirn received her undergraduate degree in Psychology at West Virginia University, where she discovered the area of Animal Learning. Dr. Steirn pursued her graduate degrees at The University of Georgia, graduating in 1985. In graduate school she became interested in a subfield of Animal Learning: Animal Cognition. For the past 20 years, her research has focused on the study of problem solving, memory, and cognitive coding strategies in non-humans. Her current research is shifting toward the use of psychology in fitness and wellness. Dr. Steirn welcomes students with interests in any of her areas of research.
Research and Scholarly Interests
- Experimental psychology
- Fitness and wellness
- Memory and cognitive processes in non-humans
Courses
- Introduction to Psychology
- Behavior Modification
- Psychological Statistics
- Research Methods
- Research Experience
- Principles of Animal Learning
- History and Systems
- Directed Research
- Directed Study
- Experimental Animal Learning and Cognition
- Research Design
- Development of Original Research
- Advanced Animal Learning and Cognition
- Advanced Directed Study
Daniel G. Webster, Ph.D.
University of Florida, 1983Associate Professor
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Dan Webster completed his undergraduate education at the University of Wisconsin in Madison and obtained his Ph.D. at the University of Florida under Donald Dewsbury. Dan spent a lot of time in graduate school watching various species of rodents mate; one of his publications provides the first description of mating behavior in the round-tailed muskrat. He also watched various species lie on their backs in a state of immobility commonly called "animal hypnosis." His Masters thesis was on immobility in lizards. While in graduate school Dan taught comparative and introductory psychology and supervised undergraduate researchers. He then taught at Delta State University for eight years prior to coming to Georgia Southern. At Georgia Southern Dan continued to work on research with undergraduate and graduate students, training students to modify graphic images (e.g. photos, faces) to produce stimuli, to use the polygraph to monitor autonomic responses (e.g. for biofeedback or to monitor responses to stimuli), and to use event recorders to record behavior (animal or human). Dr. Webster recently developed an interest in human emotions and the assessment of subjective states, although he retains an interest in animal behavior
Research and Scholarly Interests
- Biopsychology
- Brainstem mechanisms of behavior
- Immobility
- Psychophysiology of emotions
Courses
- Introduction to Psychology
- Research Methods
- Research Experience
- Directed Research
- Directed Study
- Sensation and Perception
- Physiological Psychology
- Research for Applied Psychology
- Development of Original Research
- Advanced Directed Study
Janie H. Wilson, Ph.D.
University of South Carolina, 1994Professor
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Janie Wilson received her Ph.D. in Experimental Psychology from the University of South Carolina in 1994. Since that time, she has been teaching and conducting research at Georgia Southern University. Dr. Wilson spent 15 years conducting research with rats, and her primary focus was social buffering offered by another rat during stress. As a comparative psychologist, she is currently transitioning to the study of social buffering with humans. Dr. Wilson’s research on teaching focuses on the importance of building rapport with students. She conducts correlational and experimental studies on student evaluations of rapport as related to students’ attitudes, motivation, and even grades. Recent and current projects include building rapport through touch such as a handshake, electronic communication such as email, and numerous immediacy behaviors as well as examining the importance of the first day of class. Dr. Wilson is always interested in working with undergraduate and graduate students to conduct, present, and publish research.
Research and Scholarly Interests
- Neuropsychology
- Models of stress and relief
- Professor immediacy
Courses
- Introduction to Psychology
- Careers in Psychology
- Substance Abuse
- Statistics for Psychology
- Research Methods
- Research Experience
- Directed Research
- Directed Study
- Physiological Psychology
- Development of Original Research
- Advanced Directed Study
Thresa Yancey, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
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Dr. C. Thresa Yancey received her Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology from the University of Alabama and her Master of Art and Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Nebraska. Dr. Yancey’s research interests include outcomes following sexual abuse (including resiliency), empirically supported treatments, and the effect of labels on perceptions. Her clinical interests include child maltreatment, family therapy, and child psychopathology. Dr. Yancey has worked with clinical populations in rural and urban areas, with families with a history of maltreatment, in medical settings, and in university populations. Her approach is generally cognitive behavioral and employs the use of empirically supported treatments when applicable.
Research and Scholarly Interests
- Child Maltreatment
- Empirically Supported Treatments
- Labeling
Courses
- Introduction to Psychology
- Human Sexuality
- Cognitive Assessment
- Child & Family Therapy
- Psychotherapy Skills
- Abnormal Psychology
Nancy Yanchus, Ph.D.
University of Georgia, 2006Assistant Professor
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Nancy Yanchus received her Ph.D. in Applied Psychology from the University of Georgia in 2006. She taught for one year as a part-time instructor in the Psychology Department at the University of Georgia before coming to Georgia Southern. Nancy's primary area of interest is emotions in the workplace, and she has investigated affect in areas including work-family conflict, decision-making, leadership, teams, and measurement. She also studies personality in relation to leadership and teams. She teaches undergraduates in Introduction to Psychology, Research Methods, and Psychology of the Workplace. Additional teaching interests include Psychological Statistics and Psychological Testing.
Research and Scholarly Interests
- Individual Differences
- Measurement
- Disabilities
Courses
- Introduction to Psychology
- Research Methods
- Industrial-Organizational Psychology
- Statistics for Psychology
- Psychological Testing
Janet Walker, BA
Georgia Southern University
Administrative Secretary
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Department of Psychology Policies and Procedures