I am an Associate Professor of Psychology and former Director of Environmental Studies at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, MN, where I have taught since 1996.  I received my B.S. in psychology from the University of Iowa in 1990 and my Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota in 1997. 

I enthusiastically advocate curricular integration of psychology and environmental education and have published a web site to encourage it: www.teachgreenpsych.com.  As a social psychologist, my current scholarly focus is on the ecologically connected self as a potential antidote to the negative consequences of women's bodily objectification in consumer culture.  Presently, I serve as Secretary of Division 34: Population and Environmental Psychology of the American Psychological Association. I live in Minneapolis, MN with my husband and two daughters.

Britain A. Scott, Ph.D.

bascott@stthomas.edu

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Recent Publications

Selected Conference Presentations & Talks

Original Courses I've Designed

 

 

Recent Publications

Scott, B. A. (2008). Women and pornography: What we don’t know can hurt us (updated version). In  J.C. Chrisler, C. Golden,  and

P.D. Rozee (Eds.) Lectures on the Psychology of Women (4th ed.).  New York: McGraw-Hill.

Koger, S. & Scott, B. A. (2007).  Psychology and environmental sustainability: A call for integration.  Teaching of Psychology, 34(1),

10-18.

Scott, B. A. & Koger, S.M. (2006). Teaching psychology for sustainability: A manual of resources. Office of Teaching Resources in

Psychology.  Electronic publication at www.teachgreenpsych.com.

Scott, B. A. & Scott, S. W. (2006). Dirty business: Women managing objectification in the workplace.  In M. F. Karsten (Ed.),  

Gender, Race, and Ethnicity in the Workplace: Issues and Challenges for Today’s Organizations (Vol. 3, pp. 43-68)

Westport, CT: Praeger.

Scott, B. A. (2006).  In a woman’s body.  In M. Crawford, Transformations: Women, Gender, and Psychology (pp. 199-236)New

York: McGraw-Hill.

Scott, B. A. (2006).  Psychological disorders, therapy, and women’s well-being.  In M. Crawford, Transformations: Women, Gender,

and Psychology (pp. 432-468)New York: McGraw-Hill.

Scott, B. A., & Derry, J. A. (2005).  Women IN their bodies: Challenging objectification through experiential learning.  Women’s

Studies Quarterly, 33, 188-209.

Scott, B. A. & Hoffman, S. M. (2003).  Woodswomen and “super studs”: Gender issues in a Northwoods environmental studies

program.  In H. Crimmel (Ed.)  Teaching in the Field: Working with Students in the Outdoor Classroom.  University of Utah Press.

 

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Selected Conference Presentations & Talks

Scott, B. A., Amel, E., & Manning, C. (accepted for 2008). Man vs. wild: Measuring ecological connectedness as Participation in

Nature.  Presentation in session on “Methodological Challenges in Ecopsychological Research” at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association, Boston, August.

Scott, B. A. , (invited for 2008). “Babes and the woods: Women’s objectification and the feminine ideal as ecological hazards.” 

Brownbag talk for women’s history month (theme: Women’s Views of the Environment), Bemidji State University, March 25.

Scott, B. A. & Koger, S. (2005). Psychology in the conservation curriculum.  Presentation in session on “Conservation Psychology:

Issues, Applications, and Possiblities” at the 20th anniversary meeting of the Society for Human Ecology, October 14.

Scott, B. A. (2005)  Educational Expeditions: Using Field Experiences in an Ecopsychology Course.  Presentation in symposium on

“Teaching the Psychology of Environmental Problems: Context, Curriculum, and Courses” at the annual meeting of the

American Psychological Association, August 21, Washington D.C.

Scott, B. A. & Derry, J. A. (2005).  Learn how to empower women to live IN their bodies. Workshop at the National Association for

Girls and Women in Health program at the American Alliance for Health, Recreation, Physical Education, and Dance (AAHPERD) National Convention, April 14, Chicago, IL.

Scott, B. A. (2004).  Integrating psychology into the environmental education curricula. Presentation in symposium on

“Environmental, Eco-, and Conservation Psychology: Exploring the Intersections” at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association meeting in Honolulu, Hawaii, July 28.

Scott, B. A., Vetter, C., & Root, J. (2004). Picturing women athletes: The effect of femininity cues.  Poster presented at the annual

meeting of the American Psychological Association meeting in Honolulu, Hawaii, July 31.

Scott, B. A. (2002). "Women Living IN Their Bodies.”  Keynote address for Hamline University Women and Wellness Fair.  St. Paul,

MN, May 3.

Scott, B. A. (2001). “Women Sustaining Environment Sustaining Women: A Historical Overview and Introduction to the

Conference.”  Opening talk for the UST-hosted conference, October 19-21.   Conference, which was co-sponsored by the Environmental Studies and the Women’s Studies Programs, attracted faculty, environmental professionals, and students- regionally and nationally.  I was a primary conference co-planner with Steve Hoffman, then UST Director of Environmental Studies, organized and facilitated a panel session on “Wilderness Adventure: What’s In it for Women,” and organized and hosted a field trip to the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge.

 

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Original Courses I Have Designed

Women IN Their Bodies 

In our culture, many women learn to live outside their bodies, not in them.  Traditional feminine socialization impedes the development of bodily skill and physical self-confidence in girls and women because its dominant message is that female bodies are valuable for their form, not their function.  In this seminar we discuss theory and research on the psychological ramifications of women’s bodily objectification, such as chronic body shame and appearance anxiety.  We look at cultural and structural barriers to women developing their physical potential, historically and in the present.   We explore the paradox between femininity and strength through critical thinking about topics such as women’s competitive bodybuilding and the heterosexual objectification of women athletes in popular media.  We address the psychological and physical benefits of women living in their bodies, utilizing a combination of classroom discussion and experiential activities such as rock climbing, skiing, martial arts, and weight lifting.

Ecopsychology

Theodore Roszak (1992) said, "Psychology needs ecology and ecology needs psychology." The field of psychology cannot continue to ignore the ecological context of human life, and environmentalists need psychologists to help them understand human behavior -- the root cause of all environmental problems.  This course explores the emerging discipline of "eco-psychology." Topics include the psychological implications of the human disconnect from nature, therapeutic approaches toward healing that disconnect, and methods and benefits of staying connected in a contemporary urban context. In this course we spent our spring break engaged in experiential activities at Wolf Ridge Environmental Learning Center in Finland, MN.  For a course syllabus, click here.

Psychoanalysis and Feminism: French, British, and American Perspectives

In this team-taught UMAIE study abroad in Paris and London, we explore the intersection and divergence of the Psychoanalytic perspective in psychology and Feminist theory and activism. The extent to which Freudian theory and Feminist theory are compatible or in opposition depends upon the historical and cultural context; in particular, French, British, and American feminists have had strikingly different reactions to psychoanalytic theory.  In this course we adopt a historical perspective to illuminate how social conditions, political events, and cultural developments in the three countries influenced intellectual reaction to Freudian theory, and were also influenced by it.  While in Paris we visit several relevant sites including: the Hospital de la Salpêtrière, where Freud studied with Charcot in 1886; the Salvador Dali museum, to explore connections between psychoanalysis and Surrealist art of the 1920s-30s; and the Sorbonne University and Luxemborg Gardens, to experience the 1940s-50s world of French feminist philosopher, Simone de Beauvoir.  In London we visit sites including: the Museum of London, for an overview of women’s lives and political activism in the 18th, 19th, and early 20th centuries; the Bloomsbury district, home of British feminist Mary Wollstonecraft in the late eighteenth century and feminist author Virginia Woolf in the 1920s; and the last home of Sigmund Freud, to see his collection of artifacts and his famous analysis couch.

Evolutionary Social Psychology

The evolutionary perspective in psychology explores how human behavior and thought processes have been shaped and molded by natural and sexual selection.  Social and personality psychologists recently have shown a renewed interest in this theoretical approach.  This special topics seminar examines current research applying evolutionary theory to social psychological topics such as person perception, interpersonal attraction, and aggression.  As we address these topics, we discuss the special challenges facing evolutionary social psychologists as they generate theory and design studies using this controversial approach. 

Other courses I teach regularly include: General Psychology, Social Psychology, Current Research Issues in Social Psychology Lab, Psychology of Women, and Social Dynamics and the Environment.

 

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