Dr. Swan received her Doctorate in Applied Social Psychology from Claremont Graduate School. Her areas of research include sexual risk-taking, disease prevention, and more recently, ethics in the informed consent process. Her most recent article looked at how signing an informed consent form actually increases participant obligation to a research study rather than empowering them to withdraw from studies should they so desire.

Professor Swan, is also very involved in California politics. She is currently an elected Delegate to the California Democratic Party for the 42nd Assembly District. She also serves on the Party’s Legislative Action and Equal Opportunity Committee and is a Co-Founder of the Progressive Caucus of the California Democratic Party.

When not teaching or politicing, Swan is involved in sports, playing on a women’s tennis team and a co-ed softball team and spends plenty of time hanging out at baseball games watching her sons play.

Primary Interests:

Applied Social Psychology
Close Relationships
Ethics and Morality
Gender Psychology
Health Psychology
Intergroup Relations
Sexuality, Sexual Orientation

Applied Social Psychology
Close Relationships
Ethics and Morality
Gender Psychology

Health Psychology
Intergroup Relations
Sexuality, Sexual Orientation

Journal Articles:

Aberson, C., Swan, D. J., & Emerson, E. (1999). Aversive discrimination: Covert negative attitudes towards homosexuals in a college sample. Journal of Social Psychology.
Swan, D. J., Anderson, K., & Thompson, S. C. (under revision). Redefining monogamy: Sexual vs. emotional exclusivity- Implications for sexual health risk.
Swan, D. J., & Collins, M. A. (2008). Sign on the dotted line: The Informed consent process as a mechanism of induced compliance. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 38(11), 2637-2647.
Thompson, S. C., Anderson, K., Freedman, D., & Swan, D. J. (1996). Illusions of safety in a risky world: College students and condom use. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 26, 189-210.
Thompson, S. C., Galbraith, M., Thomas, C., Swan, J., & Vrungos, S. (2002). Caregivers of stroke patient family members: Behavioral and attitudinal indicators of overprotective care. Psychology & Health, 17, 297-312.
Thompson, S. C., Swan, D. J., Kyle, D., Thomas, C., & Vrungus, S. (2002). Increasing condom use by undermining perceived invulnerability to HIV. AIDS Education and Prevention, 14(6), 505-514.

Other Publications:

Thompson, S. C., & Swan, D. J. (1996). Preventing AIDS: Theories and methods of behavioral interventions. R. J. DiClemente & J. L. Peterson (Eds.), Archives of Sex Research. (Book review).

Courses Taught:

Human Sexuality
Influence and Persuasion
Introduction to Psychology
Introductory Statistics
Psychology of Fear
Psychology of Gender
Research Methods
Senior Seminar in Psychology
Social Psychology

Human Sexuality
Influence and Persuasion
Introduction to Psychology
Introductory Statistics
Psychology of Fear

Psychology of Gender
Research Methods
Senior Seminar in Psychology
Social Psychology

D. Joye Swan
Department of Psychology
Woodbury University
7500 Glenoaks Boulevard
Burbank, CA 91510
United States

Phone: (818) 767-0888
Fax: (818) 504-9320