Background 

I'm an Assistant Professor in the Psychology Department at the University of South Carolina, specifically within the Quantitative Psychology program. Before coming to South Carolina, I was an Assistant Professor in the Psychology Department at Utah State University. I received my Ph.D. in (quantitative) psychology from the University of Southern California, where I worked with Jack McArdle and Rand Wilcox. Prior to that, I did my undergraduate work at the University of California, Davis, where I majored in psychology and statistics. 

Research 

My research program involves developing and evaluating statistical methods for use in the social sciences. My methodological interests include structural equation modeling, longitudinal modeling, statistical learning (data mining/machine learning), and combinations of the three. I collaborate with researchers from a wide range of disciplines to answer all kinds of interesting research questions. For example, I've studied family dynamics in substance use, cognitive ability and how it changes over time, as well as suicide risk and nonsuicidal self-injury, just to name a few.