Amelia Talley, Ph.D.Associate Dean for Research and Engaged Scholarship

Dr. Amelia E. Talley, associate professor of experimental-social psychology in the Department of Psychological Sciences, earned a bachelor's degree in Psychology at Texas A&M University in 2001. In her words, the native Texan then headed “up North” to earn a Ph.D. in Social-Personality Psychology in 2009 at the University of Missouri, Columbia, where she also conducted post-doctoral research in Addiction Studies before becoming a Research Assistant Professor in 2011. Talley joined the faculty at Texas Tech University in 2013. 

In fact, Talley’s research lab investigates the psychological and behavioral consequences of inequality. As director of the Stigma, Health, and Applied Research Center (SHARC), Talley manages the research and training activities of four graduate students and several undergraduate research assistants. For her dedication and skills as a mentor and teacher, Talley received the 2015 New Faculty Award from the Texas Tech Alumni Association.

Broadly speaking, Talley studies members of marginalized groups to learn how various forms of stigma can affect psychological well-being, social functioning, and physiological systems, ultimately influencing health-related decisions and outcomes. The goal of this research, as in the article at this link, is to identify individual and structural factors that contribute to health disparities between marginalized and privileged populations; by identifying significant factors that contribute to poorer health and well-being, Talley aims to eliminate or reduce these disparities. This important work has been funded by agencies such as the National Science Foundation; the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism; and the National Institute on Mental Health.

This self-described “Texas Tornado” is proud to call Lubbock home and values spending time with her partner, Andrew; son, Miles; and pets, Zorro and Oscar. Dr. Talley also enjoys jogging, dancing, listening to vinyl, and discovering new culinary delights. 

Field

Psychological Sciences, Experimental-Social

Selected Research

• Talley, A. E., Hughes, M. L., Wilsnack, S. C., & Hughes, T. L. (2018). Women's self-perceived similarity to their mother and associations with patterns of alcohol misuse over 20 years. Alcohol And Alcoholism, 53(6), 707–715. doi: 10.1093/alcalc/agy059
• Talley, A. E. (2018). Close ranks: Understanding the relevance of ethnicity- and race-based alcohol disparities for other marginalized subpopulations—A commentary on Zemore et al. (2018). Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, 79(1), 22–23. doi: 10.15288/jsad.2018.79.22
• Talley A. E., & Hancock, D. W. (2019). Sexual self-concept ambiguity scale. In R. R. Milhausen and J. K. Sakaluk (Eds.), Handbook of sexuality-related measures (4th Ed.).
• Talley, A. E., Turner, B. C., Foster, A. M., Phillips, G. L. (2019). Sexual minority youth at risk of early and persistent alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana use. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 1-14. doi: 10.1007/s10508-018-1275-7
• Malisch, J. L., Harris, B. N., Sherrer, S. M., Lewis, K. A., Shepherd, S. L., McCarthy, P. C., Spott, J. L., Karam, E. P., Noustaid-Moussa, N., McCorcy Calarco, J., Ramalingam, L., Talley, A. E., Canas-Carrell, J. E., Ardon-Dryer, K., Weiser, D. A., Bernal, X., & Deitloff, J. (2020). Old Problem, New Solutions: Ensuring gender equity in academia in the wake of COVID-19. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 117, 15378-15381. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2010636117

Education

• Ph.D. Psychological Sciences, Emphasis - Social/Personality Psychology: University of Missouri, Columbia (2009)
• M.A. Psychological Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia (2004)
• B.A. Psychology, Summa Cum Laude, Texas A&M University (2001)