Empowering clinical psychology graduate students

As a graduate student at Carolina, Thomas Wadden ‘81 (Ph.D.) studied under both Grant Dahlstrom, Kenan Professor of Psychology, and David Galinsky, professor and clinical supervisor of psychology. Wadden has followed in his mentors’ footsteps in not just becoming a distinguished professor of psychology, but giving back to Carolina.

Wadden established the Thomas A. Wadden Award for Training in Behavioral Medicine and Health Psychology, which will provide partial support for a clinical psychology graduate student working in these fields while completing graduate studies. The award may also be presented to a faculty member to advance their knowledge in this area.

As part of the same gift, a second award, for distinguished research in behavioral medicine and health psychology, will be presented biennially to a clinical psychology graduate student for recognition of research achievement in the field.

“Starting research in graduate school is really a high-wire act,” Wadden said. “First, you’ve got to get a good idea, then you’ve got to turn it into an operational, testable hypothesis, and you need a mentor to help you do that. You need funding to conduct your research and hope that you’ll find results consistent with your hypothesis. I want to recognize these young investigators and encourage them to stick with it.”

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