PhD Faculty
Research Areas
Troy Andersen, PhD
Associate Professor/Lecturer
(801) 587-9648 SW 206
troy.andersen@hsc.utah.edu
Research Interests:
Alzheimer’s disease, progressive neurologic disease, aging, health, rural health care.
![Tiffany Baffour](/_resources/images/faculty/baffour-tiffany.jpg)
Tiffany Baffour, PhD
Associate Professor & MSW Program Director
(801) 581-7585 SW 333
tiffany.baffour@utah.edu
Research Interests:
Community-based Participatory Research, Health Care Delivery, Violence Prevention,
Evidence-based Mental Health, Professional Development in Social Work
![Tiffany Baffour](/_resources/images/faculty/joanna-bettmann-schaefer.jpg)
Joanna Bettmann Schaefer, PhD
Professor, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs
(801) 587 -7600 SW 108
joanna.schaefer@socwk.utah.edu
Research Interests:
Attachment, Treatment Outcomes, Wilderness Therapy, Residential Treatment
![Chris Cambron](/_resources/images/faculty/cambron-chris.jpg)
Christopher Cambron, PhD
Assistant Professor
(801) 581-8691 SW 330A
chris.cambron@utah.edu
Research Interests:
Health disparities, substance abuse/addiction, cancer prevention, quantitative research,
ecological momentary assessment
![Sarah Canham](/_resources/images/faculty/canham-sarah.jpg)
Sarah Canham, PhD
Associate Professor (Social Work & Architecture + Planning)
(801) 581-8738 SW 330B
sarah.canham@utah.edu
Research Interests:
Social determinants of health; Health and social services; Environments and aging;
Homelessness; Substance use and dependence; Mental health; Qualitative research methods;
Community-based participatory research; Life course perspective; Social construction
of knowledge; Culture of medicine; Knowledge translation
![Jason Castillo](/_resources/images/faculty/jason-castillo.jpg)
Jason Castillo, PhD
Associate Professor, BSW Program Director
(801) 585-9592 SW 335
jason.castillo@socwk.utah.edu
Research Interests:
Disadvantaged Children and Families with an Emphasis on Fathers, Social Work Education,
Substance Use Disorder Counselor Education and Training, Social Welfare Policy, Macro
Social Work Practice
![](/_resources/images/faculty/caren-frost.jpg)
Caren J. Frost, PhD
Research Professor, Director CRMRI
(801) 581-5287 SW 208
caren.frost@socwk.utah.edu
Research Interests:
Maternal and child health; Social/behavior aspects of breast cancer;
Qualitative research methods; Ethics in international research;
Refugee women’s health.
![](/_resources/images/faculty/eric-garland.jpg)
Eric Garland, PhD, LCSW
Professor, Associate Dean for Research, Director C-MIIND
(801) 581-3826 SW 275
eric.garland@socwk.utah.edu
Research Interests:
Mindfulness-based interventions; Mindfulness-Oriented Recovery Enhancement; Clinical
Research and Treatment of Addiction, Chronic Pain, Affective Disorders, PTSD; Integrative
Medicine and Behavioral Medicine; Translational Research using Cognitive Neuroscience
Methods; Resilience; Positive Psychology.
Data Sets Available:
1) Data from NIDA-funded grant on Mindfulness-Oriented Recovery Enhancement as a treatment
for prescription opioid misuse among chronic pain patients.
2) Data from a SAMHSA-funded trial of Mindfulness-Oriented Recovery Enhancement as
a treatment for comorbid psychiatric and substance use disorders.
Variables, Frameworks, Research Questions of Interest:
Pain; opioid misuse; addictive behavior; psychiatric diagnosis; psychophysiological
variables (heart rate variability, facial EMG, GSR, EEG); attentional bias to pain
and drug cues; dispositional mindfulness; emotion regulation; coping.
![](/_resources/images/faculty/christina-gringeri.jpg)
Christina Gringeri, PhD
Professor
(801) 581-4864 SW 315
christina.gringeri@socwk.utah.edu
Research Interests:
Social networks, violence, and low income women; Social capital and human development;
International service learning; Feminist research strategies; Qualitative and critical
methodologies; Women creating social change in patriarchal structures; Bridging macro
and curriculum in field practicum.
![](/_resources/images/icons/noun_profile_.png)
Emma R. Gross, PhD (emeritus)
Research Interests:
Community development theory; Institutions and the distribution of power in communities;
Organization development theory; Policy studies: Agenda setting through evaluation;
Human development theory in relation to poverty environments and impacts (ACES).
Variables, Frameworks, Research Questions of Interest:
Factors influencing social development processes and outcomes—How and why societies
make the decisions they do about public welfare. Application of policy knowledge and political process to the development and implementation
![](/_resources/images/faculty/jeremiah-jaggers.jpg)
Jeremiah Jaggers, PhD
PhD Director; Assistant Professor
(801) 581-7644 SW 307
jeremiah.jaggers@utah.edu
Research Interests:
Familial influence on juvenile delinquency; Dual-status (a.k.a. multi-system, dually-involved)
youth; factors contributing to delinquent behavior in abused and neglected youth;
Mental health services to prevent justice system involvement among maltreated youth.
Data Sets Available:
- Pathways to Desistence
- National Data Archive on Child Abuse and Neglect (NDACAN)
- National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health)
- Numerous restricted access data sets from the Indiana Department of Child Services and the Marion County, Indiana Juvenile Court
Variables, Frameworks, Research Questions of Interest:
- Child abuse and neglect
- Psychological trauma and mental illness
- Serious delinuency
- Mental health interventions for maltreated youth
- Integration of social control and differential association theories
- Neurocognitive theory
![](/_resources/images/icons/noun_profile_.png)
Hank Liese, PhD (emeritus)
Research Interests:
Service-learning; Civic engagement; Community-based research; Social justice.
![Alysse Loomis](/_resources/images/faculty/loomis-alysse.jpg)
Alysse Loomis, PhD
Assistant Professor
(801) 581-8679 SW 330C
alysse.loomis@utah.edu
Research Interests:
Early childhood trauma, child maltreatment prevention; early care and education, attachment,
trauma-informed care, social work practice
![](/_resources/images/faculty/brad-lundahl.jpg)
Brad Lundahl, PhD, LCSW
Associate Professor
(801) 581-4570 SW 224
brad.lundahl@socwk.utah.edu
Research Interests:
Motivational Interviewing; Evidence based practice through metaanalytic research;
Child welfare; Counseling.
Data Sets Available:
Some in DWS; some systematic reviews.
Variables, Frameworks, Research Questions of Interest:
Does MI work in systems such as DCFS, DWS? What are best practices of DCFS caseworkers?
![Meeyoung Min](/_resources/images/faculty/meeyoung-min.jpg)
Meeyoung Min, PhD
Belle S. Spafford Endowed Chair, Associate Professor
(801) 581-8796 SW 125
meeyoung.min@utah.edu
Research Interests:
Prenatal Drug Exposure; Trauma; Maternal Mental Health; Child Development; Adolescence Substance Use
![](/_resources/images/faculty/philip-osteen.jpg)
Philip Osteen, PhD
Dean, Professor
(801) 581-6192 SW 130
philip.osteen@utah.edu
Research Interests:
Health and Behavioral promotion, Suicide prevention; Impact of physical and mental
health on quality of life and job performance.
![](/_resources/images/faculty/patrick-panos.jpg)
Patrick Panos, PhD
Associate Professor
(801) 671-5226 SW 313
patrick.panos@socwk.utah.edu
Research Interests:
International social work; Participatory agency outcome evaluation; Research methods;
Distance learning for community development in isolated communities.
![](/_resources/images/faculty/kort-prince.jpg)
Kort Prince, PhD
Research Assistant Professor
(801) 587-9947 SW 232
kort.prince@socwk.utah.edu
Research Interests:
Criminal justice; Research design; Longitudinal/multilevel modeling; Structural equation
modeling.
Data Sets Available:
UCJC conducts research across a wide range of criminal justice topics and programs
as well as in domains that intersect with criminal justice (e.g., homelessness, mental
health, substance abuse, etc.). A full list of research topics/projects can be found here.
![](/_resources/images/faculty/emily-salisbury-2.jpg)
Emily Salisbury, PhD
Associate Professor, Director, Utah Criminal Justice Center
Research Interests:
Criminological Behavior, Correctional Philosophy and Rehabilitation, Justice-Involved
Women and Girls, Correctional Risk/Need/Strength Assessment, Gender- and Trauma-Responsive
Policy and Practice
![](/_resources/images/matters/research-matters-stability-support-sucess-thumbnail.jpg)
Christian Sarver, PhD
Research Assistant Professor, Associate Director, Utah Criminal Justice Center
(801) 587-9437
christian.sarver@utah.edu
Research Interests:
Correctional Rehabilitation and Programming, Reentry, Offender Pathways and Desistance,
Behavioral Health and Criminal Justice, Qualitative Research Methods
![](/_resources/images/faculty/martell-teasley.jpg)
Martell Teasley, PhD
Professor
(801) 581-6194 SW 109
martell.teasley@utah.edu
Research Interests:
African American adolescent development; Many backgrounds in cultural competence;
Black studies; School social work practice.
Variables, Frameworks, Research Questions of Interest:
What social and cultural factors promote successful educational outcomes for African
American children and youth?
![](/_resources/images/faculty/mary-beth-vogel-ferguson.jpg)
Mary Beth Vogel-Ferguson, PhD
Research Associate Professor
(801) 581-3071 SW 126
marybeth.vogel-ferguson@socwk.utah.edu
Research Interests:
Social welfare policy and welfare reform; Poverty issues; University-public social
service agency research partnerships; Program evaluation; Trauma and Resiliency.
Variables, Frameworks, Research Questions of Interest:
Characteristics of public benefit recipients in Utah; experiences of public benefit
users related to the agency providing benefits; Questions of interest: impact of adverse
childhood experiences on adult functioning relative to work, relationships, etc.;
providing community services from a trauma informed approach.