Richard R. J. Lewine
PLEASE NOTE: DR. LEWINE IS NOT ACCEPTING GRADUATE SCHOOL APPLICANTS FOR THE 2012-2013 ACADEMIC YEAR 
Professor and Psychology Honors Coordinator
Office: Room 343, Life Sciences Building
Phone: (502) 852-3243
Email: rich.lewine@louisville.edu
Lab location: Davidson 317B
Lab phone: (502) 852-8395
Lab website:
Education
- NIMH Post-Doctoral Fellowship, 1975-1978
- Ph.D. Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, 1975
- A.B. Psychology, Harvard, 1969
Current Students-Graduate
- Rachel Waford- 4th year and lab coordinator
- Catherine Robertson- 3rd year
- Mara Hart- 1st year
- Karen Eisenmenger- 6th year [on internship]
Current Students-Undergraduate
- Anna Roeder- Honors
- Joe Reed- Honors
- Ariel Briggs- Independent study
Research Interests
"Sometimes my feelings are so hot that I have to take a pen and put them on paper to keep them from setting me afire inside; then all that ink and labor are wasted because I can't print the results" ~ Mark Twain
"I'm against sloppy, emotional thinking" ~ Harman Kahn
Emotions have often been viewed as the obstacles to effective thinking. Conversely, both clinicians and critical thinkers have viewed core negative beliefs as causing "irrational" thinking. As reflected in serious mental and emotional disorders, the interplay between affect and cognition is complex. Further, that some of us have serious thinking problems and others of us do not, grossly simplifies the reality. We are all subject to "impaired cognition" and to moments of lucid and critical thinking, the former occurring far more than than we like to believe and the latter far less frequently.
Our group's interests lie at the interface of affect and cognition. Serious mental and emotional disorders affect one's ability to meet life expectations and requirements, in part by subverting the cognitive tools needed to assess self and others accurately and, as a consequence, adjust expectations and behaviors. We are currently addressing how affect influences thought disorder in schizophrenia, thereby potentially opening novel paths for cognitive improvement via affect intervention. Such an approach is not, however, limited to psychiatric patients.
Critical thinking, a focus of major pedagogical efforts across colleges and universities in the United States, represents in many respects the opposite end of the thought disorder continuum and is subject to the same questions about the influence of affect.
Whether in the clinic or in the classroom, we seek to understand the phenomenon of thought, its positive and negative effects in carrying out life's tasks, and how affect might be used to improve our thinking.
Current Activities
- The role of affect intensity and valence in thought disorder in schizophrenia- R. Waford
- Sex as a potential moderator of the effects of cognitive perseveration on academic performance- C. Robertson
- Communication deviance in schizophrenia- M. Hart
- Reduced affect and quality of critical thinking- J. Reed
Representative Publications of Current Research
- Lewine, R., Sommers, A., Waford,R., Bustanoby, H., Robertson,C., Hall, R., & Eisenmenger, K. (2011). Sex, affect and academic performance: It's not what you think. International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, July Volume 5, Number 2.
- Waford, R., & Lewine, R. (2010). Is perseveration uniquely characteristic of schizophrenia? Schizophrenia Research, available online, doi: 10.1016/j.schres.2010.01.031; print available June, 2010.
- Thurston-Snoha, B. & Lewine, R. (2010). Sex, affect, and cognitive perseveration in schizophrenia. The Internet Journal of Mental Health, Volume 6 Number 2.
- Thurston-Snoha, B. & Lewine, R. (2007). Intact Wisconsin Card Sorting Test performance: Implications for the role of executive function in schizophrenia. British Journal of Clinical Psychology, 46, 361-369.
- PSYC 201: Introductory Psychology
- PSYC 375: Personality
- PSYC 400: Coordinator of Psychology Honors Program and Honors Seminar
- PSYC 689: Clinical Psychopathology
