Joshua D. Foster, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor

Ph.D., University of Georgia, 2005, Social Psychology
M.A., Towson University, 2000, Experimental Psychology
B.S., Old Dominion University, 1996, Psychology

Office: LSCB 368
Phone: 251-460-6548
Fax: 251-460-6320
Email: foster@usouthal.edu

Discipline: Social Psychology
Others: Personality, The Self, Relationships, Psychometrics, Aggression, Decision-Making, Evolutionary Psychology

Curriculum Vitae

Research Interests

I am a social-personality psychologist with general interests in the self and relationships. The majority of my research focuses on the personality trait of narcissism. I am interested in issues such as how to measure narcissism (and what scores on narcissism measures really mean), what kinds of people are more or less narcissistic, and how narcissists think and behave in different contexts. I have also published research on self-esteem, romantic relationships, decision-making, aggression, and evolutionary psychology. Finally, I have an unhealthy obsession with statistical databases that I find on the Internet (e.g., sports statistics, crime statistics, you name it) and have been looking for ways to use them to test social psychological theory. You may find more information about me by going to My Personal Website.

Selected Publications

Foster, J. D., & Trimm, R. F., IV. (2008). On being eager and uninhibited: Narcissism and approach-avoidance motivation. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 34, 1004-1017.

Twenge, J. M., Konrath, S., Foster, J. D., Campbell, W. K., & Bushman, B. J. (2008). Egos inflating over time: A cross-temporal meta-analysis of the Narcissistic Personality Inventory. Journal of Personality, 76, 875-901.

Foster, J.D. (2008). Incorporating personality into the investment model: Probing commitment processes across individual differences in narcissism. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 25, 211-224.

Foster, J.D. & Campbell, W.K. (2007). Are there such things as “narcissists” in social psychology? A taxometric analysis of the Narcissistic Personality Inventory. Personality and Individual Differences, 43, 1321-1332.

Foster, J.D., Kernis, M.H., & Goldman, B.M. (2007). Linking adult attachment to self-esteem stability. Self and Identity, 6, 64-73.

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Classes Taught

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