Rate My Professor Jesse Steinfeldt

Jesse Steinfeldt is a Professor in the Department of Applied Psychology in Education and Research Methodology in the School of Education at Indiana University Bloomington. He earned a Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology (Urban Education) from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 2007, an M.A. in Sport Psychology (Cultural Studies of Sport) from the University of Iowa in 2001, and a B.A. in Psychology from Yale University in 1996. A former three-sport collegiate athlete at Yale and professional athlete in European leagues from 1997 to 2000, Steinfeldt joined Indiana University in 2007 as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Counseling and Educational Psychology, advancing to Associate Professor in 2013 and full Professor in 2022 when the department was renamed. He created and coordinates the Doctoral Minor in Sport and Performance Psychology for Counseling Psychology graduate students and directs the IU Sport & Performance Psychology Training Practicum, providing supervised clinical experiences with student-athletes at Indiana University Athletics and local high schools. Steinfeldt teaches graduate courses such as Interventions in Sport and Performance Psychology, Counseling Student-Athletes, and Group Counseling, as well as the undergraduate Introduction to Sport Psychology and Student-Athlete Mental Health. He completed a yearlong sabbatical in 2014-2015 as Senior Sport Psychology Fellow at the University of Washington Athletic Department and Senior Fellow in Neurosurgery at Seattle Children’s Hospital.

Steinfeldt’s research centers on the intersection of multicultural psychology, sport psychology, the psychological study of men and masculinities, and social justice, with a focus on psychosocial development of student-athletes including gender role socialization, racial and athletic identity, psychological well-being, mental health stigma, and help-seeking behaviors. His work also examines the psychological effects of Native-themed mascots, nicknames, and logos in sport, for which he has provided expert testimony to the U.S. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs. He co-edited the APA Handbook of Sport and Exercise Psychology (Vols. 1 & 2, 2019) and the APA Handbook of Sport Psychology (Vol. 2, 2019). Select recent publications include “Mental health trajectory throughout high school football career: A four-year prospective cohort study” (Frontiers in Psychiatry, 2025), “Cerebral cortical surface morphology and neural activation among adolescent football players” (JAMA Network Open, 2024), and “Mental health and transition adjustment in the Transfer Portal: Case study examination in NCAA Division 1 football” (in press, Case Studies in Sport and Exercise Psychology). He leads a $2.9 million NIH-funded longitudinal study on subconcussive head impacts in high school football. Steinfeldt is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association Divisions 47 (Sport, Exercise, and Performance Psychology, 2025), 17 (Counseling Psychology, 2019), and 51 (Psychological Study of Men and Masculinities, 2018); received APA Division 51 Researcher of the Year (2013); and the Indiana University School of Education Trustee’s Outstanding Teaching Award (2012). A Certified Mental Performance Consultant, he maintains a private practice and hosts the Unit3d Podcast for Hilinski’s Hope Foundation.