{"id":1488,"date":"2020-10-26T12:31:50","date_gmt":"2020-10-26T16:31:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rivier.edu\/academics\/?page_id=1488"},"modified":"2025-06-10T13:40:17","modified_gmt":"2025-06-10T17:40:17","slug":"faculty-emeriti-paul-cunningham","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.rivier.edu\/academics\/department\/faculty-emeriti\/faculty-emeriti-paul-cunningham\/","title":{"rendered":"Faculty Emeriti | Dr. Paul F. Cunningham"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>Background<\/h2>\n<p>Paul F. Cunningham, Ph.D. is Emeritus Professor of Psychology at Rivier University in Nashua, NH. He received a bachelor\u2019s degree in Philosophy from Our Lady of Providence Roman Catholic Seminary (Warwick, RI) in 1972, a Master of Science degree in Educational Psychology from Purdue University (W. Lafayette, IN) in 1976, and a doctorate in General\/Experimental Psychology from the University of Tennessee (Knoxville, TN) in 1986. In addition to teaching a wide range of psychology courses over his 32-year tenure at Rivier University, he held a variety of administrative positions including Chair of the Behavioral Sciences\/Psychology Department, Chair of the Division of Sciences, and Dean of Arts and Sciences. He was elected 44th President of the New England Psychological Association (2003-2004). Dr. Cunningham has devoted much of his professional life to student outcomes assessment and institutional effectiveness in the New England area (Cunningham, 2005a) and has worked on behalf of animal rights and welfare having served as treasurer of Psychologists for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (1994-1996). He has published articles on the use of animals in research (Cunningham, 1995, 1996, 2005b) and on student choice policies in the psychology classroom (Cunningham, 2000, 2003; Cunningham &amp; Randour, 1998). His academic interests extend into the areas of transpersonal studies (Cunningham, 2007a, 2009, 2011a, 2011b, 2015, 2019a, 2019b), transpersonal education and spirituality in higher education (Cunningham, 2006, 2007b, 2014), paranormal (psi) phenomena (Cunningham, 2012b, 2013, 2019c) and the experimental psychology of the unconscious (Cunningham, 1986; Cunningham &amp; Ramos, 2012).<\/p>\n<h3>Degrees<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li data-gc-list-depth=\"1\" data-gc-list-style=\"bullet\">Ph.D., University of Tennessee<\/li>\n<li data-gc-list-depth=\"1\" data-gc-list-style=\"bullet\">M.S., Purdue University<\/li>\n<li data-gc-list-depth=\"1\" data-gc-list-style=\"bullet\">B.A., Our Lady of Providence Roman Catholic College Seminary<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Specialties<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li data-gc-list-depth=\"1\" data-gc-list-style=\"bullet\">Student Outcomes Assessment and Institutional Effectiveness<\/li>\n<li data-gc-list-depth=\"1\" data-gc-list-style=\"bullet\">Animal Rights and Welfare<\/li>\n<li data-gc-list-depth=\"1\" data-gc-list-style=\"bullet\">Student Choice Policies in the Biology and Psychology Classroom<\/li>\n<li data-gc-list-depth=\"1\" data-gc-list-style=\"bullet\">Transpersonal Psychology<\/li>\n<li data-gc-list-depth=\"1\" data-gc-list-style=\"bullet\">Spirituality in Higher Education<\/li>\n<li data-gc-list-depth=\"1\" data-gc-list-style=\"bullet\">Paranormal (Psi) Phenomena (Trance Channeling)<\/li>\n<li data-gc-list-depth=\"1\" data-gc-list-style=\"bullet\">Experimental Psychology of the Unconscious (Hypnotism)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Courses Taught<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PSY 101 General Psychology<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PSY 204 Biostatistics<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PSY 205 Statistics for the Behavioral Sciences with SPSS Statistics lab<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PSY 206 Experimental Psychology<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PSY 214 Internship I\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PSY 304 Cognitive Psychology<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PSY 307 Personality Theory<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PSY 309 Health Psychology<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PSY 341 JYS: CrossCultural Psychology<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PSY 400 History and Systems of Psychology<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PSY 401 Psychological Testing and Assessment<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PSY 404 Sensation and Perception<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PSY 405 Transpersonal Psychology<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PSY 406 Applied Behavior Analysis<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PSY 407 Neuroscience<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PSY 408 Coordinating Seminar<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PSY 425 Directed Study<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PSY 495 Internship II<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PSY 507 Neuroscience<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PSY 541 Master\u2019s Thesis I<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PSY 542 Master\u2019s Thesis II<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PSY 604 Statistics II: Advanced Behavioral Statistics (Directed Study)<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PSY 701 Master\u2019s Thesis III<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PSY 702 Master\u2019s Thesis IV<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">ED 420 Internship in Secondary Education<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">ED 501 Fundamentals of Research<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">ED 752 Analysis and Design of Research<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">ED 755 CAGS: Capstone Project<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">HD 207 Psychology of Education<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Recent Publications and Proceedings<\/h3>\n<ol>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Cunningham, P. F. (2019a). Science and unity in transpersonal psychology. The Journal of Transpersonal Psychology, 51(2), 176-197.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Cunningham, P. F. (2019b). Scientism and empiricism in transpersonal psychology. The Journal of Transpersonal Psychology, 51(1), 6-27.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Cunningham, P. F. (2019c). A contribution to the study of the possession trance mediumship of Jane Roberts. Journal of Parapsychology, 83(2), 248-267.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Cunningham, P. F. (2015). Empirical rationalism and transpersonal empiricism: Bridging the two epistemic cultures of transpersonal psychology. The Journal of Transpersonal Psychology, 47(1), 83-120.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Cunningham, P. F. (2014). \u201cTransforming hearts and minds to serve the world\u201d: What does it mean? InSight: Rivier Academic Journal, 10(1), 1-14.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Cunningham, P. F. (2013). Explaining consciousness: A (very) different approach to the \u201cHard Problem.\u201d The Journal of Mind and Behavior, 34(1), 41-62.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Cunningham, P. F. (2012a). The content-source problem in modern mediumship research. Journal of Parapsychology, 76(2), 295-319.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Cunningham, P. F., &amp; Ramos, P. (2012b). Involuntary experiencing and the performance of hypnotic test suggestions. The International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 60(4), 416-431.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Cunningham, P. F. (2011a). Are religious experiences really localized within the brain? The promise, challenges, and prospects of neurotheology. The Journal of Mind and Behavior, 32(3), 223-250.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Cunningham, P. F. (2011b). The apparition at Medjugorje: A transpersonal perspective (Pts 1-2). The Journal of Transpersonal Psychology, 43(1), 50-103.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Background Paul F. Cunningham, Ph.D. is Emeritus Professor of Psychology at Rivier University in Nashua, NH. He received a bachelor\u2019s degree in Philosophy from Our Lady of Providence Roman Catholic [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":0,"parent":1491,"menu_order":1,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-1488","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Faculty Emeriti | Dr. Paul F. Cunningham - Rivier Academics<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Paul F. 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