Laurie McCubbin

Dr. Laurie “Lali” McCubbin is a Professor and Chair at the University of Kentucky’s Department of Educational, School and Counseling Psychology. She is also the Executive Director of the Resilience, Adaptation and Well-Being Project and an Indigenous/multiracial scholar (Native Hawaiian Kanaka ‘Oiwi/Japanese/European American). Her research focuses on resilience among BIPOC communities, cultural identity development, decolonization in psychology training, and historical trauma’s impact on well-being. She previously served as Chair for the APA’s Children, Youth, and Families committee and President of the Council of Counseling Psychology Training Programs (CCPTP).

Education: Master’s from Boston College, PhD from University of Wisconsin-Madison. She oversees the Kauai Longitudinal Study (since 1955), examining resilience across generations in multiracial populations, and co-leads projects on acculturative stress, trauma, and family dynamics. Editorial roles include Associate Editor for Training and Education in Professional Psychology and editorial board member for several psychology journals.

Her lab includes doctoral students researching resilience in immigrant communities, Indigenous veterans, and international students. Collaborations involve projects on racial identity, historical trauma, and mental health accessibility. She maintains ties to Hawaii through her heritage and research, particularly in Native Hawaiian resilience frameworks.