About me

I am a developmental psychologist studying friendships and friendship quality in preschool through young adulthood.  I am an assistant professor of psychology at Dickinson College. Prior to coming to Dickinson, I was a visiting assistant professor in the Department of Psychology at Grinnell College. 

At Dickinson, I teach a variety of developmental courses as well as work with undergraduate research students.

I completed my Ph.D in 2021 in the Department of Psychology & Neuroscience at Duke University, working primarily with Dr. Steven Asher. While at Duke, I was a Carolina Consortium on Human Development Pre-Doctoral Fellow.  During my undergraduate work at Wellesley College, I worked with Dr. Tracy Gleason and we continue to collaborate.

I have a strong commitment to teaching and mentoring undergraduate students and was part of the Preparing Future Faculty and Certificate in College Teaching programs at Duke. I was the instructor of record for Research Methods and Introductory Psychology and mentored many undergraduate research students at Duke.

yustp@dickinson.edu