Timothy Piehler

Timothy Piehler is an Associate Professor and Distinguished University Teaching Professor at the University of Minnesota's Department of Family Social Science (College of Education and Human Development). His research focuses on developing and evaluating preventive interventions for youth mental health and substance use, emphasizing tailored programming for diverse families. He holds a PhD in Clinical Psychology from the University of Oregon, an MS in Psychology from the same institution, and an AB in Psychology from Bowdoin College.

His research interests include prevention science, child and adolescent mental health, family-focused interventions, and the application of advanced quantitative methods. He leads the Piehler Lab, exploring topics like mHealth tools for mental health prevention and mechanisms underlying intervention efficacy. Notable projects include evaluating telehealth delivery of parenting programs and assessing parent-child risk profiles in conduct problem interventions.

Dr. Piehler has received multiple teaching and advising awards, including the 2025 University of Minnesota Award for Outstanding Contributions to Graduate Education and the 2020 COGS Outstanding Advisor Award. He has secured grants such as a National Institutes of Health (NIH) award for mHealth-based prevention research and a Grant-in-Aid for measuring peer contagion in youth interventions.

His lab engages students in all research phases, from project design to publication. Teaching responsibilities include courses like Prevention Science Methodology, Quantitative Research Methods, and Family Psychology. He emphasizes mentorship, supporting graduate students in developing professional skills and contributing to impactful research.

Labs/Teams: Piehler Lab focuses on preventive interventions, leveraging technology and family systems approaches. Collaborations with community partners and interdisciplinary teams drive applied research addressing real-world challenges in youth mental health and substance use.