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Bridgette Martin Hard

Professor of the Practice of Psychology and Neuroscience
Psychology & Neuroscience
2200 West Main St. Suite 800, Box 90086, Department of Psychology & Neuroscience, Durham, NC 27705

Overview


To learn more about Bridgette Hard, visit the BriteLab website.

Dr. Bridgette Hard is a Professor of the Practice in the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience at Duke University as well as the Director of Undergraduate Studies for Psychology. Her first professional passion is teaching. She specializes in curriculum development for introductory psychology, the first (and often only) course that students take within the discipline. She has also devoted herself to helping PhD students and advanced undergraduates to develop their teaching skills and discover creative ways to integrate research and teaching. Dr. Hard also co-organizes two conferences for psychology teachers, the Psychology One Conference and the National Institute on the Teaching of Psychology (NITOP).

Dr. Hard’s second professional passion is exploring the intersection of psychology and pedagogy: She uses data from the classroom to extend psychological theories and uses insights from psychology to inform new classroom practices. Her research is conducted in collaboration with psychologists from diverse institutions around the U.S.

Current Appointments & Affiliations


Professor of the Practice of Psychology and Neuroscience · 2022 - Present Psychology & Neuroscience, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences
Director of Undergraduate Studies of Psychology and Neuroscience · 2019 - Present Psychology & Neuroscience, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences

In the News


Published October 1, 2024
Judith Deckers Prize Finalists Announced
Published September 20, 2021
Arts & Sciences Teaching Awards Celebrate Excellence Across the College
Published September 23, 2019
Is Stress Always Bad?

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Recent Publications


The Gardener and the Coach: How Metaphor Use Shapes Impression Formation

Journal Article Journal of Language and Social Psychology · October 1, 2025 Using the classroom context as a case study, we investigated whether a novel linguistic cue—the use of self-referential metaphors—shapes person perception in metaphor-congruent ways. Across three experiments, current and former college students (N = 1,630) ... Full text Cite

Connecting Introductory Psychology to Climate Change Can Empower Students

Journal Article Teaching of Psychology · January 1, 2025 Background: Introductory psychology courses provide a unique opportunity to educate students in ways that can inform how they will address major issues of the day. Objective: We tested whether an integrative, last-day-of-class activity in which students ap ... Full text Cite

What Does “Success” Mean to Students at a Selective University? Individual Differences and Implications for Well-Being

Journal Article Journal of Postsecondary Student Success · July 10, 2023 This study investigated how college students (N = 376) at a private, selective university (a) define success in college in their own words, and how conceptions of success (b) relate to differences in motivation and other individual differences, and (c) pre ... Full text Cite
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Recent Grants


An experimental study of the impact of smartphones on classroom enjoyment, attention, and learning

ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by Association for Psychological Science · 2020 - 2022

Causal impact of smartphones on attention, enjoyment, and learning in the classroom

ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by Society for Personality and Social Psychology · 2019 - 2021

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Education, Training & Certifications


Stanford University · 2006 Ph.D.
Furman University · 2001 B.S.