Dr. Chris Dabbs

Dr. Chris Dabbs sincerely acknowledges that he is an immigrant settler on traditional Siksikaitsitapii territory. He earned his Ph.D. in Counselling Psychology from Oklahoma State University in 2022. Before beginning with the Faculty of Education at ULethbridge in 2025, he served on faculties of psychology at both Knox College and Valparaiso University, both in the midwestern United States. Dr. Chris is trained as a clinical mental health counsellor and health service psychologist and holds licenses to practice in both the U.S. and Canada. His teaching, research, and clinical work revolve around one primary goal: helping combat stigma against people pushed to the margins of society. 

Teaching Interests

Dr. Chris’ philosophy of teaching is informed by his education in classic liberal arts environments. He is interested in facilitating learning through discussion-based, hands-on modalities in which complex ideas are shared and debated. Dr. Dabbs has taught in-person and online courses in both undergraduate and graduate (master’s) programs, including: counselling skills and theories, psychopathology, personality theories, career counselling, addiction treatment and theories, psychological assessment, and others. Two of his favourite courses to teach include Pow, Bam, Snikt: Comic Books and Mental Health and Psychology of Religion and Spirituality, which was developed through a grant from the American Psychological Association.  

Research Interests

Dr. Chris’ research primarily focuses on ways in which social bias and stigma impact mental wellness, employment, educational attainment, and life satisfaction in two populations: religious minorities and autistic adults. His research has been published in academic journals and collected volumes, including Journal of College Student Mental Health, Autism in Adulthood, and the Encyclopedia of Religious Psychology and Behavior. Dr. Chris operates a formal research lab, the Clinical Research in Identity and Belief Lab (CRIB), and loves nothing more than working alongside students in research settings. Good research does not happen in a vacuum, and the majority of his publications are co-authored with students in his research lab. 

Outside of his regular research and teaching work, Dr. Chris engages in clinical training and presentations to national and local audiences, often regarding assessment, therapy, and well-being considerations for autistic clients and college students. He also contracts with mental health organizations to provide neurodiversity-affirming autism assessments. He is open about his autistic identity to explicitly combat the myth that autistics can't succeed in the mental health fields.