Department of Educational Psychology

My research can be broadly categorized in the area of African American psychology, with a focus on racial and ethnic identity development and correlates of academic achievement such as academic self-concept. My publications have appeared in professional journals such as the Journal of Black Psychology, the Journal of College Student Development, the Journal of Social Psychology, Measurement and Evaluation in Counseling and Development, the Journal of Multicultural Counseling and Development, the Journal of Counseling Psychology, Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, Educational and Psychological Measurement, and the Harvard Educational Review. A theme of much of my research is understanding the psychological and environmental factors that impact African American student achievement. My research and scholarship have led me to challenge the notion that African American students are anti-intellectual, and to critically re-examine the impact of racial and ethnic identity and gender on academic achievement.

Most recently I have started examining the impact of religiousness and spirituality on mental health. I have also started exploring the impostor phenomenon and its impact on ethnic minority students.

Georgia State University        Ph.D.   1998    Counseling Psychology

U.N.C. Greensboro               M.Ed.  1993    Counselor Education

Wake Forest University         B.A.    1991    Psychology     

Cokley, K., Beasley, S., Bullock, A., Chapman-Hilliard, C., Cody, B., Jones, B., McClain, S., & Taylor, D. (2012). The moderating role of gender in the relgationship between religiosity and mental health among Black American college students. Mental Health, Religion and Culture, DOI:10.1080/13674676.2012.684346. available online.

Cokley, K., Garcia, D., Tran, K., Hall, B., & Rangel, A. (2012). The moderating  role of ethnicity in the relation between religiousness and mental health among ethnically diverse college students.  Journal of Religion and Health, 51(3), pp. 890-907.

Cokley, K., McClain, S., Jones, M., & Johnson, S. (2011). A Preliminary Examination of Academic Disidentification, Racial Identity, and  Academic Achievement among African American Adolescents. The High School Journal, 95, pp. 54-68.

Cokley, K., Hall-Clark, B., & Hicks, D. (2011). Ethnic minority-majority status and mental health: the mediating role of perceived discrimination. Journal of Mental Health Counseling, 33, 243-263. 

Cokley, K., Tran, K., Hall, B., Chapman, C., Finley, A., Bessa, L., & Martinez, M. (2010). Predicting student attitudes about racial diversity and gender equity. Journal of Diversity in Higher Education, 3, 187 - 199.

• 2012    Fellow, Elizabeth Glenadine Gibb Teaching Fellowship in Education
2012    College Research Fellowship, University of Texas at Austin
• 2011    Fellow Status, Division 17 (Society of Counseling Psychology)
• 2011    Fellow Status, Division 45 (Society for the Psychological Study of Ethnic Minority Issues)
• 2010    Charles and Shirley Thomas Award for mentoring, education, and training of ethnic minority students, Division 45 (Society for the Psychological Study of Ethnic Minority Issues), American Psychological Association.
• 2010    Top 20 Contributors to the Journal of Counseling Psychology, 1999-2009

I continue to be interested in the impact of racial and ethnic identity, as well as academic self-concept, on the academic achievement of African American students. I would like to include more studies on African American high school students. I am also interested in continuing to examine the correlates of the impostor phenomenon, especially among ethnic minority students.

Racial and Ethnic Identity Development; Factors that Impact Academic  Achievement of African American Students; Academic Self-Concept; Multicultural Psychology and Issues of Race, Ethnicity, and Culture; Afrocentric/African-centered Psychology; developing interests include examining the impact of religiosity and spirituality on mental health; psychological impact of impostor phenomenon

• Editor-in-Chief, Journal of Black Psychology
• Previous Editorial Boards include the Journal of Counseling Psychology, Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology and Educational Researcher
• Chair of the American Psychological Association’s Committee on Ethnic Minority Affairs (CEMA), January 2010 – December 2010, Member January 2009 - December 2011
• Awards and Recognition Committee, Society of Counseling Psychology of the American Psychological Association, January 2010 – January 2013
• APA External Interface Board, Society of Counseling Psychology of the American Psychological Association, July 2012 - Present