Pauline Thompson

Pauline Thompson
Professor, Psychology
[email protected]
610-892-1377
Commons/Athletic Center, 221
25 Yearsley Mill Road
Media, PA 19063

Dr. Pauline B. Thompson was born in Idaho and spent much of her childhood in Pennsylvania. She served in the United States Navy as a nuclear valve technician aboard the USS Samuel Gompers before pursuing her academic studies in psychology. She earned her BSc from DeSales University and her PhD from Temple University, both in Pennsylvania.

Her academic career has spanned multiple countries and institutions. From 1996 to 2005, Dr. Thompson worked in New Zealand at the University of Waikato and the Waikato Institute of Technology. She then relocated to South Australia, where she taught Health Psychology and Indigenous Health at the University of South Australia and Flinders University.

Returning to Pennsylvania in 2012, Dr. Thompson served as Psychology Program Coordinator at Penn State Brandywine until 2015. In the 2025-2026 academic year, Dr. Thompson served as an Administrative Fellow under the mentorship of Senior Vice Provost of Faculty Affairs and Interim Dean of Undergraduate Education, Dr. Kathleen Bieschke. Dr. Thompson has been involved with community-based research and education, with a focus on cultural safety, anti-racism, and mental health and wellbeing. Dr. Thompson has been deeply involved in environmental stewardship and sustainability initiatives. She has served for several years on the Sustainability Commission at Penn State Brandywine and is a member of the Middletown Township Environmental Advisory Committee, where she contributes to local ecological restoration, tree planting, and community engagement projects. Her work integrates trauma-informed practice, ecological stewardship, and inclusive pedagogy.

Qualifications

BSc (Psychology) DeSales University

PhD (Psychology) Temple University

Teaching

Teaching provides Dr. Thompson with the opportunity to share not only her academic research but also the lived experiences that have shaped her understanding of psychology, health, and human resilience. Over the course of her career, she has taught a wide range of subjects—including health psychology, Indigenous health, physiological psychology, developmental psychology, learning theory, sociology, communication, and program evaluation in the human services—to diverse student populations across the United States, New Zealand, and Australia.

Her students have come from disciplines as varied as psychology, nursing, medicine, paramedicine, public health, occupational therapy, sport and exercise science, social work, and the broader health and social sciences. She values the opportunity to engage with learners from different backgrounds and professional trajectories, and strives to create inclusive, trauma-informed spaces where curiosity, compassion, and critical thinking can thrive.

Research and consultancy

Dr. Thompson’s research interests span a wide range of interdisciplinary and community-centered topics, with a strong focus on Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR). She has worked primarily with populations often described as vulnerable or marginalized, including Indigenous Australians, refugees, Muslim women, women veterans, formerly incarcerated people, and individuals living with dementia. Her research has explored themes such as women’s health, female circumcision, parenting, mental health and social and emotional wellbeing, residential mobility, youth identity, addictions, physical activity as a therapeutic intervention, body composition, refugee resettlement and housing, employment, and experiences of racism.

Additionally, she is deeply engaged in environmental stewardship and sustainability initiatives. She serves on the Sustainability Commission at Penn State Brandywine and is an active member of the Middletown Township Environmental Advisory Council, where she contributes to ecological restoration, tree planting, and community education projects. Her consultancy work often bridges mental health and environmental wellbeing, emphasizing the interconnectedness of place, healing, and social justice.

 

Publications since 2012:
 

Books

  1. Taylor, K. & Thompson, P., Davis, C. (Eds, 4th Edition, 2026: Forthcoming). Health Care and Indigenous Australians: Cultural safety in practice. Bloomsbury Academic.
  2. Thompson, P. & Taylor, K. (2021). A Cultural Safety Approach to Health Psychology. Sustainable Development Goals Series: Palgrave-USA/ Springer. https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-030-76849-2 
  3. Thompson, P. B. & Mohatt, N. V. (Guest Editors, 2019). Community Psychology and Indigenous Peoples. Special Issue of the American Journal of Community Psychology.
  4. Taylor, K. & Thompson-Guerin, P. (2010/ 2014 2nd ed./ 3rd ed. 2019). Health Care and Indigenous Australians: Cultural safety in practice.  Palgrave-MacMillan: Australia. ISBN-13: 9781420256338.

Journal Articles

  1. Martin, D., Thompson, P., Sigmon, A., Putman, A. (2025). From equity network to equity community: Cultivating faculty relationships in academia, Journal of Diversity in Higher Education Impact Factor: 2.5  https://doi.org/10.1037/dhe0000670
  2. Thompson, P. B. et al. (2020). The anatomy of a reconciliation: MOVE 9 and the MOVE Bombing of Philadelphia. American Journal of Community Psychology, Special Issue on Community Psychology and Criminal Justice. Impact Factor: 2.3
  3. Thompson Guerin, P. B. & Mohatt, N. V. (2019). Community Psychology and Indigenous Peoples. Special Issue of the American Journal of Community Psychology on “Community Psychology and Indigenous Peoples.” 1-6. DOI:10.1002/ajcp.12383 Impact Factor: 2.3
  4. Ryan, J., Thompson Guerin, P., Elmi, F. H., & Guerin, B. (2019). What can Somali community talk about mental health tell us about our own? Contextualizing the symptoms of mental health. International Journal of Migration, Health and Social Care, 15, 133-149. DOI 10.1108/IJMHSC-03-2018-0020 CiteScore 2024: 1.3 Impact factor 0.7
  5. Guerin, P. & Guerin, B. (Accepted August 2018). Mobility and the sustainability of remote Australian Indigenous communities: A review and a call for context-based policies. Australian Community Psychologist
  6. Grant, J. & Guerin, P. (2018). Motherhood as identity: Refugee single mothers working the intersections. Journal of Refugee Studies, Impact Factor 1.143. https://academic.oup.com/jrs/advance-article-abstract/doi/10.1093/jrs/fey049/5104799
  7. Grant, J. & Guerin, P. (2018). Mixed and misunderstandings: An exploration of the meaning of racism with maternal, child and family health nurses in South Australia. Journal of Advanced Nursing. DOI: 10.1111/jan.13789. ISI Journal Citation Reports® Ranking: 2017: 7/118 (Nursing (Science)) Impact Factor: 2.267.
  8. Guerin, B. & Guerin, P. (2014). “Mental Illness” symptoms as extensions of strategic social behaviour: The case of multicultural mental health. Rivista di Psicologia Clinica, 1, (online). Special Issue: Towards a psychology integrating low-power social groups such as migrants, elders, women, children, people with a diagnosis of disability or mental disorder. http://www.rivistadipsicologiaclinica.it/ojs/index.php/rpc/index
  9. Grant, J. & Guerin, P. (2014). Applying ecological modelling to parenting for Australian refugee families. Journal of Transcultural Nursing, February 28. GS citations =15, Impact Factor = 1.11 Doi: 10.1177/1043659614523468
  10. Grant, J., Parry, Y., & Guerin, P. (2013). An Investigation of culturally competent terminology in healthcare policy finds ambiguity and lack of definition. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health, 37(3), 250-256. Impact Factor = 1.897, GS citations =32
  11. Guerin, P. & Guerin, B. (2013). How can you acculturate when neighbors are throwing rocks in your window? Investigating housing issues for Somali refugees in New Zealand. International Journal of Sociology and Anthropology, 5(2), 41-49. h5 index = 8
  12. Guerin, B. & Guerin, P. (2012). Re-thinking mental health in the context of Indigenous Australian communities: A critical look at programs, policy and practices. Community Development Journal, special issue, 47, 555-570. Impact Factor 0.75

Parts of Books

  1. Thompson, P. (2022). Cultural safety and social inclusion. In P. Liamputtong (ed), Handbook of Social Inclusion. Springer. https://link.springer.com/referenceworkentry/10.1007/978-3-030-48277-0_13-1
  2. Guerin, P., & Guerin, B. (2009/ 2013/ 2020 reprinted for a custom edition for Monash University). The Later Years: Adulthood and Ageing. In P. Barkway (Ed), Psychology for Health Professionals.  Elsevier: Chatswood, NSW.
  3. Guerin, B., & Guerin, P. (2009/ 2013/ 2020 reprinted for a custom edition for Monash University). The Early Years: Childhood and Adolescence. In P. Barkway (Ed), Psychology for Health Professionals.  Elsevier: Chatswood, NSW.