Jordan LaBouff

Associate Professor of Psychology and Honors
Williams Hall 352

Education: Ph.D. in Experimental Psychology

Biography: I grew up in Oklahoma and Texas. I studied and taught at Baylor University, where I began to study the Psychology of Religion and Spirituality. My work tries to understand the social power of religion – how it seems to catalyze the best and worst of humanity. I joined the UMaine Honors College in 2011 and love life in Maine as a Black Bear. My teaching outside the College focuses on empirical research methods and social psychology. 

Publications: I am one of the leaders of the Open Science of Religion project – https://www.openscienceofreligion.com/ – I have published several studies on humility, religion, prejudice, and prosocial behavior. Google Scholar page – https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=Qx_2ZDgAAAAJ&hl=en

Honors Courses: I have taught all of the courses in the Honors Civilization sequence regularly, as well as tutorials (a podcast on the science of religion and a tutorial on board games)

Why do you teach in Honors? It’s the best! Honors is an intellectual playground for students and faculty. It gives us permission – no – dares us to entertain new ideas, alternative perspectives, and to make mistakes and to learn from them as we do so. Teaching and learning in Honors allows me to continue to grow not just as a scientist or as a scholar but as a human. It allows me to work closely with students who are brilliant and eager to change the world around them for better. It’s the most inspiring and exciting place!