Dr. Meredith Tittler will review applications for the Clinical and Counseling Psychology doctoral program for the 2024-2025 academic year.

Learn more about the graduate program and application process.

Education

B.A., Psychology, Clark University
M.S., Counseling Psychology, Iowa State University
Ph.D., Counseling Psychology, Iowa State University
Internship, Student Counseling Services, Iowa State University
Post-Doctoral Research Fellow, Portland Psychotherapy Clinic, Research, and Training Center

Teaching Philosophy

My teaching is influenced both by my counseling training and by theories of critical consciousness. Similar to the therapeutic process, I take a strengths-based approach and believe that learning and growth happen most effectively when students feel respected and supported. I also draw on theories of motivation and learning, intentionally creating opportunities for students to experience their growing competencies, make autonomous and informed choices, support one-another in the learning community, and connect the course material to their personal values. Additionally, I teach students to be critical thinkers and consumers of knowledge. This includes examining the socio-cultural “waters we swim in”, exploring how our social identities shape our experiences and those of others, and engaging in dialogue and discourse to deepen our understanding of ourselves, each other, and the world around us.

Research

My body of research is guided by the broad question of, “how do we increase connection and understanding across social identity groups?” I do a blend of basic and applied research. I study the individual (e.g., emotions and attitudes) and contextual (e.g., group make-up) factors that impact someone’s willingness or likelihood to engage in cross-group interactions. I also study and test interventions designed to increase engagement and dialogue across identity groups. A future direction of research will be focused on understanding the psychological processes that undergird current patterns of political polarization and developing ways to decrease the rigid ingroup/outgroup dichotomization evident in today’s world.

Recent Representative Publications

Tittler, M.V., Luoma, J.B., Wade, N.G., & Wei, M. (2023). Effects of a White privilege framing and a test of moderators. Current Psychology. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-023-04671-5

Tittler, M.V., & Wade, N.G. (2022). Gender group composition and outcomes of group interventions to promote forgiveness: Replication and extension. Group Dynamics: Theory, Research, and Practice, 26(2), 119-136. DOI: 10.1037/gdn0000154

Tittler, M.V., Lannin, D.G., Han, S., & Wolf, L.J. (2022). Why personal values matter: Values, colorblindness, and social justice action orientation. Current Psychology, 41, 5075-5087. DOI: 10.1007/s12144-020-01006-6

Tittler, M.V., Liu, S., Wei, M., Cheng, D., & Wang, C. (2021). Concerns about counseling racial minority clients: Ethnocultural empathy, insight, and multicultural intervention self-efficacy. Training and Education in Professional Psychology. Advance online publication. DOI: 10.1037/tep0000333

Tittler, M.V. & Wade, N.G. (2019). Engaging White participants in racial dialogues: Group composition and dialogue structure. Group Dynamics, 23(2), 75-90. DOI: 10.1037/gdn0000099

Biography

I grew up outside of Boston, MA and have lived in several cities/states in the U.S., including Iowa, Portland, OR, and Denver, CO. Although, I grew up in the northeast, I made frequent trips ‘down south’ to visit extended family growing up and find Mobile, AL feels surprisingly familiar. Prior to starting graduate school, I served in the Peace Corps for three years in the Dominican Republic. That experience built on a passion of mine to explore the ways we are all different and also the same – and to find creative ways to move through internal and external barriers to create genuine connection across social identities and cultures. In my free time I enjoy running, yoga, gardening, hanging out with my dog and family and friends, and exploring new and old places.

Courses

CCP759 (Group & Systems)
CCP756 (Advanced Practicum - Acceptance and Commitment Therapy)
CCP795 (Social & Multicultural Bases of Behavior)
CED586 (Counseling Skills)
CED572 (Principles and Theories of Counseling)