Department of Psycology

Ken Higbee

Kenneth L. Higbee has been teaching social psychology at Brigham Young University since 1970 after having earned his doctorate from Purdue University. He retires this year after 37 years of excellent service to BYU and its students. Over the course of his career, Higbee has written two books entitled Your Memory: How it Works and How to Improve It, Influence: What it is and how to use it. He has also written over 50 journal articles, 45 of which he was the first author to write about the topics. Our thanks go out to Brother Higbee for his welcome sense of humor, his selfless participation in BYU Education Week from 1971-2005, the many BYU conferences and workshops he has taught, and the many students he has helped through independent study courses since 1977. Higbee is married with four children and three grandchildren. His hobbies include magic, and biking and hiking with his family.

Darhl M. Pedersen

Darhl M. Pederson, a professor of psychology at Brigham Young University since 1962, retires this year after 44 years of service to the school and its students. Pederson earned his doctorate in personality mathematics and measurement psychology from the University of Illinois in 1962, and has written one book and over 100 journal articles and book chapters on the subjects of Psychology and Statistics. His book Learning Statistics has been printed in multiple editions. While at BYU Pederson taught such classes as General and Advanced General Psychology, Experimental Psychology, Psychological Statistics, Instruction and Communication Techniques, and Multivariate Analysis in Psychology. Pederson is married and likes to build model airplanes, play tennis, and participate in scouting and nature observation with his family.

Paul Robinson

Paul W. Robinson retires this year from 37 years of service at Brigham Young University. Robinson earned his doctorate in Psychology from Utah State University in 1970 and has been teaching at BYU as a professor of psychology since 1969. During that time he has written 10 books and 21 journal articles and book chapters. His books include Answers: A parent’s Guidebook for Solving Problems, Fundamentals of Experimental Psychology, and Experimental Psychology: A Small N Approach, among others. Robinson is married with seven children and enjoys fishing and swimming.

Department of Sociology

Bruce Chadwick

Bruce A. Chadwick has taught in the Sociology Department at Brigham Young University since 1972. He has received numerous awards and scholarships and currently occupies the Camilla E. Kimball Family Professorship. Originally from American Fork, Dr. Chadwick studied chemistry at the University of Utah and, after serving in the Central States Mission, earned a Ph.D. in sociology from Washington University in St. Louis in 1967.Chadwick taught at Washington State University for six years, serving as director of the Urban Research Station in Seattle, before coming to BYU. During his time at BYU he has taught at the BYU Center for Near Eastern Studies in Jerusalem, served as director of the Family Studies Program, chairman of the Department of Sociology, and adjunct faculty in the College of Religious Education. Dr. Chadwick’s research interests include delinquency among Latter-day Saint youth, Palestinian families in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, social change in post-industrial societies and premarital sexual activity among Latter-day Saint teenagers. He has been mentoring both undergraduate and graduate students for 41 years. Chadwick lives in Pleasant Grove with his wife Carolyn Young. Their three sons and eight grandchildren also live in the area.

 

Department of History

Ron Walker

Ronald W. Walker is a professor of History and senior research historian at the Joseph Fielding Smith Institute for LDS History. He is the author of several books and is considered by fellow scholars as one of the leading figures in Mormon studies. Walker was recently honored with the T. Edgar Lyon Best Article of the Year Award from the Mormon History Association. Walker's article, "Grant's Watershed: Succession in the LDS Presidency, 1887-1889," was published in BYU Studies in 2004. This was the third time in three years that Walker has received the award.

School of Family Life

Eugene Mead

D. Eugene Mead, Ed.D., is an American Association for Family Therapy Clinical Member,
Fellow, and Approved Supervisor. He has served on the AAMFT Supervision Committee and
Membership Committee. He is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in the State of
Utah. He is a Professor of Marriage and Family Therapy in the accredited Master’s and Doctoral
Programs at Brigham Young University where he teaches and supervises both Master’s and
Doctoral students. He has taught the doctoral level marriage and family therapy supervision
course for many years and has authored several papers and books in the field. Eugene is married to Sherrill Dean Leavitt and they have three children.