Distinguished Scholars
The title “OIBR Distinguished Scholar” is reserved for faculty with current or past grant projects run through the Institute, who seek to be actively involved, and wish to take full advantage of OIBR’s services. Nomination by an active Distinguished Scholar and approval of the OIBR executive committee is required to be granted Distinguished Scholar status.
Abney, Drew
Assistant Professor, Psychology
Distinguished Scholar, 2020 GDP Graduate, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | drew.abney@uga.edu
Research Interests include Sensorimotor development; Human interaction; Emotion regulation; Time series analysis; Language development
Abraham, Amanda
Associate Professor, Public Administration and Policy
Distinguished Scholar, 2014 GDP Graduate, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | aabraham@uga.edu
Research Interests include Health Policy, Substance Use Disorder Treatment, Accessibility/Quality of SUD Treatment, Organizational Change, Maternal Health
Ahn, Sun Joo (Grace)
Professor, Advertising
Distinguished Scholar, 2012 GDP Graduate, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | sjahn@uga.edu
Research Interests include Virtual reality; Persuasion/Behavior change; Risk communication; Media psychology
Aletraris, Lydia
Associate Research Scientist, Social Work
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | lydia@uga.edu
Research Interests: Substance use treatment; Cannabis legalization; Opioid use disorder; Human trafficking; Hidden populations
Andrews, Tessa
Josiah Meigs Distinguished Teaching Professor, Genetics
Director, Scientists Engaged in Educational Research (SEER) Center
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | tandrews@uga.edu
Research Interests include STEM Education, Organizational change
Ardoin, Scott
Associate Dean of Research & Graduate Education, Early College of Education
Professor, Educational Psychology
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | spardoin@uga.edu
Research Interests include Reading comprehension; Eye tracking; Classroom behavior management; Academic intervention; Applied behavior analysis
Beach, Steven R. H.
Regents Professor, Psychology
Co-Director, Center for Family Research
Co-Director, Center on Biological Embedding of Social Events and Relationships
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | srhbeach@uga.edu
Research Interests include Family, Epigenetics, Inflammation, Obesity, Substance Abuse
Brody, Gene
Co-Director, Center for Family Research
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | gbrody@uga.edu
Research Interests include Social determinants of health
Brosius, J. Peter
Distinguished Research Professor, Anthropology
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | pbrosius@uga.edu
Research Interests include environmental anthropology, cultural politics of conversation, political ecology, hunter-gatherers, transnational environmental movements and institutions and human ecology in SE Asia
Brown, Anita
Associate Director, Center for Family Research
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | anitab@uga.edu
Research Interests include gene-environment interaction and engagement/informed consent issues with regard to collection of genetic material from community samples
Brown, Geoffrey
Associate Professor, Human Development and Family Science
Distinguished Scholar, 2014 GDP Graduate, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | glbrown@uga.edu
Research Interests include fatherhood, parenting, attachment, socio-emotional development, infancy, African American families
Campbell, W. Keith
Professor, Psychology
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | wkc@uga.edu
Research Interests include Personality; Psychedelics; Self
Caughy, Margaret O.
Georgia Athletic Association Professor, Human Development and Family Science
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | margaret.caughy@uga.edu
Research Interests include Parenting; Latinx families; Racism; Academic achievement; Mental Health
Clay-Warner, Jody
Director, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
Meigs Professor, Sociology
website | jclayw@uga.edu
Research Interests include Justice, Violence, Victimization, Experimental Methods, and Gender
Clementz, Brett
Distinguished Research Professor, Psychology
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | clementz@uga.edu
Research Interests include Psychosis, Classification, Neuroimaging, and Genetics
Dolan, Erin
Professor, Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | eldolan@uga.edu
Research Interests include Research training; Career decision-making; Career development; Mentorship; STEM workforce
Eby, Lillian
Distinguished Professor, Psychology
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | leby@uga.edu
Research Interests include Occupational Health, Mentoring, Careers
Ehrlich, Katherine
Associate Professor, Psychology
Distinguished Scholar, 2016 GDP Graduate, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | kehrlich@uga.edu
Research Interests include stress, inflammation, resilience, social determinants of health
Fiorella, Logan
Associate Professor, Educational Psychology
Distinguished Scholar, 2016 GDP Graduate, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | lfiorella@uga.edu
Research Interests include: Instructional design; Learning strategies; Metacognition; Learning from visualizations
Goodie, Adam
Professor and Department Head, Psychology
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | goodie@uga.edu
Research Interests include gambling, decision making, psychology, recognition and addictive behaviors
Holmes, Philip
Professor, Psychology
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | pvholmes@uga.edu
Research Interests include psychopharmacology, neurobiological mechanisms responsible for stress resilience, brain noradrenergic systems and neurobiological basis of motivation and emotion
Kogan, Steve
Athletic Association Professor, Human Development and Family Science
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | smkogan@uga.edu
Research Interests include family centered substance abuse prevention, alcohol and drug abuse, adolescent risk behavior, and African American men
Lavner, Justin
Associate Professor, Psychology
Co-Director, Center for Family Research
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
2015-17 GDP Participant
website | lavner@uga.edu
Research Interests includes Couples and family relationships; Prevention/Intervention; Therapy; Health inequities; Minority and contextual stress; LGBTQ issues
Lemons, Paula
Associate Dean, Franklin College
Professor, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Director, Scientists Engaged in Educational Research Center
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | plemons@uga.edu
Research Interests includes Learning; Instruction; Problem solving; Institutional change
Luft, Julie
Athletic Association Professor, Science Education
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | jaluft@uga.edu
Research Interests include Science Teacher Education; Science Teacher Learning; Newly hired science teachers
McDowell, Jennifer
Associate Director, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
Professor, Psychology
website | jemcd@uga.edu
Research Interests include Psychotic disorders; Neuroimaging; Eye movements; Cognition
Miller, Joshua
Distinguished Research Professor, Psychology
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | jdmiller@uga.edu
Research Interests include personality assessment and disorders, and antisocial behavior
Nesbit, Rebecca
Professor, Public Administration & Policy
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | nesbit7@uga.edu
Research Interests include Management of volunteers and how organizations can sustain volunteer commitment over time.
Neuharth-Pritchett, Stacey
Senior Associate Dean for Academic Programs, College of Education
Professor, Educational Psychology
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | sneuhart@uga.edu
Research Interests include head start, pre-kindergarten, poverty, early childhood, teacher-child relationships, and asthma
Okech, David
Endowed Professor, Social Work
Distinguished Scholar, 2014 GDP Graduate, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | dokech@uga.edu
Research Interests include Human Trafficking, Evidence informed policies and programs, Asset development, Community development, Social welfare policy
O’Neal, Catherine Walker
Assistant Professor, Human Development and Family Science
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | cwalker1@uga.edu
Research Interests include military families; risk and resilience; couples; health
Orpinas, Pamela
Professor, Health Promotion and Behavior
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | porpinas@uga.edu
Research Interests include preventing family violence, dating aggression, and bullying; improving the lives of immigrant and underserved populations; identifying developmental trajectories of children and youth.
Oshri, Assaf
Associate Professor & Graduate Coordinator, Human Development and Family Science
Distinguished Scholar, 2014 GDP Graduate, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | oshri@uga.edu
Research Interests include Child Maltreatment, Resilience, Neuroscience, Risk Behaviors
Phillips, Bradley
Professor, Clinical and Administrative Pharmacy
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | bgp@uga.edu
Research Interests include Translational Sciences, Sleep Apnea, Cardiovascular, Obesity
Robinson, Dawn
Director of Faculty Development, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
Professor, Sociology
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | sodawn@uga.edu
Research Interests include Group processes; Social networks
Roman, Paul
Emeritus Professor, Sociology
Director, Center for Research on Behavioral Health and Human Services Delivery
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | proman@uga.edu
Research Interests include Alcohol; Addiction; Treatment; Workplace; Health services
Shaffer, Anne
Associate Dean of the Graduate School
Professor, Psychology
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | ashaffer@uga.edu
Research Interests include Emotion communication & socialization; childhood maltreatment; predictors of parenting
Simons, Leslie Gordon
Professor, Sociology
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | lgsimons@uga.edu
Research Interests include family, life course, aging, crime and law
Simons, Ron
Regents Professor, Sociology
Co-Director, Center on Biological Embedding of Social Events and Relationships
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | rsimons@uga.edu
Research Interests include social determinants of aging, social context and inflammation, social support and health, and health disparities
Stanton, Julie
Associate Professor, Cellular Biology
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | stantonj@uga.edu
Research Interests include Metacognition; Reasoning; Community cultural wealth; Social change; Qualitative methods
Strauss, Gregory P.
Associate Professor, Psychology
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | gstrauss@uga.edu
Research Interests include Schizophrenia, Psychosis, Neuroscience, Emotion, Reward, EEG, Eye-tracking, and Social Cognition
Suveg, Cynthia
Professor, Psychology
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | csuveg@uga.edu
Research Interests include Family processes; Child anxiety; Developmental Psychopathology
Sweet, Lawrence
Gary R. Sperduto Professor, Psychology
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | sweet@uga.edu
Research Interests include Neuropsychological Assessment, Neuroimaging, Addiction and Disorders of Aging (Cognitive)
vanDellen, Michelle
Professor, Psychology
Distinguished Scholar, 2013 GDP Graduate, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | mvd@uga.edu
Research Interests include Motivation; Health behavior change
Wickrama, Kandauda A.
Emeritus Professor, Human Development and Family Science
Distinguished Scholar, Owens Institute for Behavioral Research
website | wickrama@uga.edu
Research Interests include life course, health outcomes, marriage and work