Barbara Oswald is the Acting Regional Associate Dean of Academic Affairs. A Professor of Psychological Science with expertise in behavioral neuroscience and neuropharmacology, she spent 10 years as a researcher for the Department of Veterans’ Affairs, where she studied treatments for addiction, PTSD, and traumatic brain injury. She joined Miami University in 2010 as a visiting assistant professor of psychology in Oxford, and moved to the College of Liberal Arts and Applied Science on the tenure-track in 2013. Prior to joining the Dean’s office, she served as Program Coordinator and Lead Departmental Advisor for the Psychological Science degree, where she oversaw curriculum, assessment, and advising for over 350 PSS majors and minors. Dr. Oswald is the proud recipient of awards for teaching, advising, assessment, and service. Her favorite thing about working at Miami is being able to connect with our amazing Regional campus students.
Education
B.A., Psychology, Department of Psychology, Cleveland State University, Cleveland, OH
M.A., Experimental Psychology/Behavioral Pharmacology, Department of Psychology, Cleveland State University, Cleveland, OH
Ph.D., Experimental Psychology/Behavioral Pharmacology, Department of Psychology, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC
NIEHS Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Neurotoxicology, Duke University Medical School, Department of Psychiatry, Durham, NC.
Oswald, B. B. & *Abram, J., (2026). Positive emotion correlates with higher heart rate variability in healthy college students: Implications for improving mental health with heart rate biofeedback training. The Ohio Journal of Science 125(2), 5-11. doi: https://doi.org/10.18061/ojs.6501
Oswald, B. B. & Dietz, B. L. (2022). Developing an online research methods course with laboratory. In J. Cerniak, M. Wong, and L. Rosen (Eds.). Teaching Psychology Online (pp. 1-15). Society for the Teaching of Psychology. https://teachpsych.org/ebooks/index.php.
Oswald, B. B., Ward, R.M., *Glazer, S., *Sternasty, K., *Day, K, & **Speed, S. (2021). Baseline cortisol predicts drunkorexia in female college students. Journal of American College Health, 69(6), 625-632. Doi: 10.1080/07448481.2019.1705834 (5-Year Impact Factor 1.66).
Oswald, B. B. (2019). Authentic Assessments for Biopsychology: Encouraging Learning and Retention by Applying Biopsychological Knowledge in Real-World Contexts. Society for the Teaching of Psychology Office of Teaching Resources in Psychology: https://teachpsych.org/resources/Documents/otrp/resources/oswald19.pdf.
Oswald, B.B., *Beck, K., *Fernandez, G., *Raker, E., & *Sciaccotta, F. (2019). Effects of drug-ethanol combinations on ethanol self-administration, motor coordination, and cognition in C57BL/6J mice. Psychology & Neuroscience, 12(1), 119-139. (Impact Factor 1.25, Acceptance Rate 42%)
Ward, R. M., Oswald, B. B., & **Galante, M. (2016). Prescription stimulant misuse, alcohol use, and disordered eating among college students. Journal of Alcohol and Drug Education, 60(2), 59-80. (Impact factor 4.07, acceptance rate 35%).
Books:
Wallace, B., Oswald, B. B., & Fisher, L. E. (2011). Consciousness and Behavior (5th ed.). Dubuque, IA: Kendall/Hunt Publishing. ISBN: 978-0-7575-9351-2
Representative Awards
2023 Recognition for Outstanding Service, Society for the Teaching of Psychology for service as Chair of STP Membership Committee
2022 CLAAS Faculty Achievement in Service Award, Miami University
2021 University Assessment Excellence Award for the BA in Psychological Science
2020 CLAAS Faculty Achievement in Advising Award, Miami University
2018 CLAAS Faculty Achievement in Teaching Award, Miami University
2013 Psi Chi Professor of the Year, Miami University
Representative Service
Recent Editorial Boards
Associate Editor, Ohio Journal of Science
Recent Ad Hoc Reviews
Behavioral Neuroscience, Teaching of Psychology, PLoS One, Eating Disorders, AURCO
Recent Institutional and Professional Service:
2022-2024 Representative, The Association for University Regional Campuses of Ohio (AURCO) for Miami University Hamilton campus
