Student at Medicine Bow Peak

Department of Psychology

Faculty and grads white water rafting

Education for a Lifetime

The University of Wyoming's Department of Psychology is your first stop to creating a life-long career in social and behavioral sciences.  We strive to provide students with training in psychological theory and methods in an atmosphere of intellectual rigor and technical competence. To this end, we promote an understanding of behavior, emotion, and cognition through our strong commitment to excellence in research, teaching, and service. 

Psychology in the News

April, 2022 -- Matt Gray is the winner of the inaugural "Laramigo" Award for Community Engagement. The award recognized Dr. Gray's exceptional service work across the state, on campus, and in Laramie itself. 

April, 2022 -- Dora Montez, Accountant Associate Senior for the Psychology Department, received the True Grit Award. The award recognizes UW staff members who are noted for their flexibility, consistency, vision, grit, and/or problem-solving skills. 

April, 2022 -- Samuel Choi received the Ellbogen Outstanding Graduate Teaching Award. 

April, 2022 -- Basia Dabrowski received the Stewart Family Serviceship Award for her project entitled Developing Interventions to Address Social Isolation among Older Wyoming Residents at Risk for Nursing Placement

February, 2022 -- Wyoming Center on Aging is offering free online workshops for people with chronic health conditions and their caregivers. "HealthyU" is a workshop with the goal of helping people better manage their health conditions and deal with the frustration, fatigue and pain that can accompany many different health conditions.

February, 2022 -- Dr. Kasey Stanton received funding for a graduate research assistant from the Wyoming INBRE program.  

February, 2022 -- Dr. Kayla Burd was named as a Humanities Research Group Fellow from the Wyoming Institute for Humanities for 2022-2023. 

May, 2021 -- Layla Elmi published her thesis entitled "Interpersonal Functioning and Trauma: The Role of Empathy in Moderating the Association of PTSD and Interpersonal Functioning" in the journal Behavior Therapy.

April, 2021 -- Beverly Teeter and Laura Perez-Garcia were named as A&S Outstanding Graduates. 

April, 2021 -- Zach Williamson received the Ellbogen Outstanding Graduate Teaching Award. 

April, 2021 -- Cynthia Hartung received the A&S Extraordinary Merit in Research Award and Scott Freng received the A&S Extraordinary Merit in Teaching Award. Josh Clapp and Matt Gray received PIE awards for excellence in teaching first-year students.

March, 2021 -- Members of the Psychology Dept. and the Wyoming Center on Aging have been working the phones to help get Albany County vaccinated

Dec. 9, 2020 -- Graduate student Alicia Bachtel received the new James E and Jill S Anderson Veteran Student Scholarship.  

Sept. 2020 -- We are sad to announce that the department lost two dear friends this summer. Elmer Kingsholm “Kim” Nelson passed away August 30, and Sue Rardin passed away July 21. Kim was a good friend to the department and participated in many events that celebrated his beloved aunt, June Downey. Kim came to visit whenever he could, and introduced us to so many members of the Downey family. Sue was the wife of our former colleague and Chair, Max Rardin. She, along with Max’s friends, started the Max Rardin Scholarship Fund, upon Max’s death.

August 30, 2020 -- Lexi Bammel had a paper that was awarded FIRST place in the annual American Psychology-Law Society’s best undergraduate paper award competition. Her poster is automatically accepted to the annual APLS conference.

June 29, 2020 -- Maria Kuznetsova Receives Hollon Family Award. When students and colleagues describe University of Wyoming instructor Maria Kuznetsova, they use adjectives such as “excellent,” “innovative,” “dedicated” and “caring.” Read More

May 14,2020 -- UW Clinical Psychology alums, Dr. John Moring and Dr. Christina Hassija Keeting, have published a very timely paper on trauma treatment in the COVID-19 movement via telehealth.
Cognitive Processing Therapy for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder via Telehealth: Practical Considerations During the COVID‐19 Pandemic.

April 9, 2020 -- Morgan Longstreth is the recipient of the Marvin Millgate Student Engagement Award. The award recognizes one outstanding UW student or recognized student organization that is engaged in service-learning or other service opportunities that have made a tangible difference in the community.

Feb. 24, 2020 -- Cynthia Hartung, a professor in the University of Wyoming’s Department of Psychology, has received a Fulbright Scholarship to conduct research next spring semester at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology.