Dr. Thomas Pyszczynski is an internationally recognized scholar and leader in Social Psychology, specifically known for his role in developing Terror Management Theory. The theory has been highly influential within the field, and has provided a framework for Dr. Pyszczynski’s expertise in a range of topics, such as Existential Psychology, Political Psychology (including issues related to war and peace), and various issues related to mental health (e.g., reducing defensiveness, promoting growth, and understanding motivation, anxiety, and trauma). 

He has been a tremendously productive researcher throughout his career, as reflected by his promotion to Distinguished Professor at UCCS in 2008. Dr. Pyszczynski has published hundreds of research articles and chapters, and currently has an h-index of 110 with more than 62,000 citations of his papers. He has a strong history of grant and foundation funding, has co-authored 4 books, and is frequently invited to give presentations at conferences and other institutions. His international reputation is outstanding, as evidenced by his August-Willheim Scherer Fellowship (in Munich), the Alexander von Humboldt Fellowship (at various locations in Germany), and the Netherlands Science Foundation funding to conduct projects (in Nijmegen). He has won 4 awards acknowledging his lifetime achievements and contributions to the field, including the prestigious Lifetime Career Achievement Award from the Society for Personality and Social Psychology in 2021. These career accomplishments are unparalleled in the Psychology Department. 

Dr. Pyszczynski’s mentorship of student researchers has also been a particular strength. In 2020, he won the UCCS Outstanding Research Mentor Award. Current and former students are co-authors on a large proportion of his publications and professional presentations, and many have gone on to have successful academic careers. He has shown true dedication to fostering the development of his students and postdocs as scientists and critical thinkers. His service to the profession is also excellent. He served on the editorial board of two premiere journals in Social Psychology and provides ad hoc reviews for many others. Within the Psychology Department, he has served as a committee member for a large number undergraduate and graduate thesis projects. At UCCS, Dr. Pyszczynski also provided valuable service on the campus research committee and the Institutional Review Board.

• Ph.D. Social Psychology,University of Kansas, 1980
• M.A. Social Psychology, University of Kansas
• B.A. Psychology, University of Wisconsin Milwaukee

Social psychology, clinical applications, and terror management theory

• PSY 3400 - Social Psychology
• PSY 3480 - Selected Topics  in Psychology
• PSY 4400 - Seminar in Social Psychology
• PSY 5820 - Research Statistics and Methodology II
• PSY 6130 - Social Psychology
• PSY 6430 - Contemporary Issues

• Pyszczynski, T., Greenberg, J., Solomon, S., Arndt, J., & Schimel, J. (in press). Why do people need self-esteem? A theoretical and empirical review. Psychological Bulletin.
• Greenberg, J., Koole, S., & Pyszczynski, T. (in press). Handbook of experimental existential psychology. New York: Guilford Press.
• Pyszczynski, T., Solomon, S., & Greenberg, J. (2003; available August 2002). In the wake of September 11: The Psychology of Terror. Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association
• Pyszczynski, T., Greenberg, J., & Goldenberg, J. (2003). Freedom vs. fear: On the defense, growth, and expansion of the self. In. M. Leary & J. Tangney (Eds.), Handbook of self and identity.
• Goldenberg, J. L., Pyszczynski, T., Greenberg, J., & Solomon, S. (2000). Fleeing the body: A terror management perspective on the problem of human corporeality. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 4, 200-218.
• McCoy, S., Pyszczynski, T., Solomon, S., & Greenberg, J. (2000). Transcending the self: A terror management perspective on successful aging. In A. Tomer (Ed.), The Problem of Death among Older Adults (pp. 37-61). Taylor & Francis.
• Pyszczynski, T., Greenberg, J., & Solomon, S. (1999). A dual process model of defense against conscious and unconscious death-related thought: An extension of terror management theory. Psychological Review, 106, 835-845.
• Pyszczynski, T., & Greenberg, J. (1987). A biased hypothesis testing model of motivated attributional distortion. In L. Berkowitz (Ed.), Advances in experimental social psychology. New York: Academic Press.
• Pyszczynski, T. & Greenberg, J. (1987). Self-regulatory preservation and the depressive self-focusing style: A self-awareness theory of reactive depression. Psychological Bulletin, 102, 122-138.

• Outstanding Research Mentor Award for the UCCS Campus, 2020
• University of Colorado Distinguished Professor, 2008
• UCCS Million Dollar Club (Research Funding)
• Outstanding Research Award for the UCCS Campus, 1998
• Outstanding Research Award for the College of Letters, Arts, and Sciences, 2001