Ph.D., University of Denver, 2000
Social Psychologist
IU South Bend faculty member since 2001
Kevin L. Ladd is Chancellor’s Professor of Psychology at Indiana University South Bend. His PhD is from the University of Denver and he was awarded a degree of Doctor honoris causa from the University of Lausanne for contributions to the psychology of religion. With an MDiv degree from Princeton Theological Seminary, he has served as pastor of both United Methodist and Presbyterian (PCUSA) congregations.
Ladd is a former president of the Society for the Psychology of Religion and Spirituality (Division 36 of the American Psychological Association) and a Fellow in the Society for Personality and Social Psychology. He currently serves as Editor in Chief for the Archive for the Psychology of Religion, the field’s oldest journal.
Active for many years in the leadership of the International Association for the Psychology of Religion, he is a frequent keynote speaker in the US and abroad. The central focus of his research is on the psychology of prayer and other spiritual practices, the advancement of Open Science, and theatrical magic as a performing art. As PI or Co-PI with nearly $6 million in external funding, the bulk of his efforts have been aimed at global field-building efforts and fostering collaborations across disciplines.
Research interests include the interface of science & religion, prayer, wisdom, music, ritual, health, coping, prejudice, psychometrics, physiology, neuroimaging, synesthesia, spiritual transformation, character development, personality, clergy & congregational performance/satisfaction, magic.