Welcome to the Department of Psychology at Michigan State University!
It is my honor to serve as the chair of such a productive and well-functioning department, one that represents a true center of excellence at MSU. Made up of over 50 faculty members, 60 graduate students, 20 staff, and 2,200 undergraduate students, we are one of the largest and most active departments in the university.
Our mission is to advance psychological science and equip our students with the education and experience they need to be successful in today’s world. Faculty, graduate students, and undergraduates work side by side as they advance knowledge through rigorous scientific inquiry and community engagement.
High-quality research is the core of what we do, and we set our sights on understanding and improving people's lives.
From our behavioral neuroscientists who provide critical insight into the neurobiology controlling motivated behaviors to our ecological-community psychologists who work to improve the lives of people in their communities, each of our six research areas strive to better understand humans and the complex environments we live in.
The Department of Psychology is something special. We have a top 10% ranked Clinical Psychology doctoral program, a top two ranked Organizational Psychology doctoral program, Cognition and Cognitive Neuroscientists doing cutting-edge research, and highly cited Social/Personality researchers who are leaders in social and personality development.
Professors are consistently experts in the news on topics like women’s health, vocation, childfree, narcissism, and LGBTQ+ health and wellbeing, to name a few. They receive mentorship awards, highly sought grants, and early career awards, while our students receive highly competitive awards, internships, and job offers.
Throughout all these activities and awards, we maintain a commitment to two core principles: free inquiry and inclusive participation. Faculty and students must be able to pursue scholarship, wherever it may lead, without political or administrative interference. This process of scientific inquiry is the most inclusive system we have -- everyone is invited to pursue knowledge and scholarship, irrespective of their backgrounds.
I invite you to explore our website to see the exciting work that we’re doing—and make sure to stay in touch by following us on Instagram, Facebook, or LinkedIn.
Joseph Cesario
Department Chair and Professor