Dr. Alissa Dark-Freudeman, Associate Professor
University of North Carolina Wilmington
Department of Psychology
Teaching Laboratory Building, Room 3032
(910) 962-7378 | freudemana@uncw.edu
Dr. Dark-Freudeman holds a PhD in developmental psychology from the University of Florida. Her specialization is adult development and aging. To expand her focus and explore development from an interdisciplinary perspective, she also earned an Interdisciplinary Graduate Certificate in Gerontology.
She teaches undergraduate and graduate courses on adult development and aging, and undergraduate courses in statistics and the Psychology of Death and Dying.
Dr. Dark-Freudeman maintains an active program of research broadly focusing on possible selves (the hopes and fears we each have regarding our future) and psychological well-being. Specifically, she is interested in the hopes and fears we have related to health, aging, loss, and end-of-life. Her research takes a mixed methods approach utilizing both qualitative data on possible selves, and quantitative data and analyses.
She is the founding Chair and current Co-Chair of the American Psychological Association’s (APA) Division 20 End-of-Life Special Interest Group (EOL-SIG). She currently serves on the editorial board of OMEGA: Journal of Death and Dying and is Editor-in-Chief of Mortality. She is an active member of APA Division 20 and The Association of Death Education and Counseling (ADEC).
Select Publications
Dark-Freudeman A, & Bensadon BA (2022). Advance Care Planning: End-of-Life Hopes and Fears Among Community Dwelling Adults. Journal of Health Psychology.
*Terry CR, Penland M, *Garland D, *Wang W, *Burton T, & Dark-Freudman A. (2021). Adapting Mindfulness-Based Interventions for Residents of Long-Term Care Facilities. Gerontology and Geriatric Medicine, 7, 1-10.
Dark-Freudeman A, Jones CM*, Terry CR*. (2021). Mindfulness, anxiety, and perceived stress in university students: Comparing a mindfulness-based intervention (MBI) against active and traditional control conditions. Journal of American College Health: doi: 10.1080/07448481.2020.1845180.
Dark-Freudeman, A., *Terry, C., Fleming, J. T., *Hollander, J. M., & Bensadon, B. (2020). Planning in Advance: Exploring End-of-Life Hopes and Fears Among Healthy Young People. Mortality 26:3, 316-325, DOI: 10.1080/13576275.2020.1796612
Dark-Freudeman, A., Pond, R. S., *Paschall, R. E., & *Greskovich, L. (2020). Attachment style in adulthood: Attachment style moderates the impact of social support on depressive symptoms. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 37, 2871-2889.
Note: * indicate student co-authors.