Rate My Professor Kristin Gainey

Kristin Gainey is a Professor in the School of Psychological Science at The University of Western Australia, where she directs the Emotional Wellbeing Lab. A registered clinical psychologist and board-approved supervisor, her research examines affective processes in relation to depression, anxiety, and wellbeing. She employs heart rate variability measures to investigate emotion regulation and mindfulness in daily life, with additional interests in psychological assessment, multivariate statistical analysis, and ecological momentary assessment methodologies. Gainey completed her PhD in clinical psychology at the University of Iowa in 2011, preceded by undergraduate studies in psychology and music at Harvard University, earning a BA in 2003, and a Master of Music in organ performance from Yale University in 2005. Following her doctoral training and a clinical internship at the VA Puget Sound Health Care System, she held a postdoctoral position at Boston University before serving as Assistant Professor and subsequently Associate Professor of Psychology at the University at Buffalo, SUNY, from 2013 to 2020.

Prior to recent accolades including recognition in The Australian's 2025 Research Magazine for Academic and Psychological Testing, Gainey has secured funding from the Australian Research Council, including a Future Fellowship, and the National Institutes of Health. Notable awards encompass the School of Psychological Science Mid-Career Research Award in 2023, the American Psychological Association's Distinguished Scientific Award for an Early Career Contribution to Psychology (Psychopathology) in 2018, and the Association for Psychological Science Rising Star Award in 2016. She holds editorial positions as Associate Editor for American Psychologist, Psychological Assessment, and Emotion, and co-chairs the measurement group of the Hierarchical Taxonomy of Psychopathology consortium. Gainey serves on the board of the Western Australia branch of the Australian Association for Cognitive and Behaviour Therapy. Her influential publications include "The structure of common emotion regulation strategies: A meta-analytic examination" (Psychological Bulletin, 2017), "Meta-analysis of the relations of anxiety sensitivity to the depressive and anxiety disorders" (Psychological Bulletin, 2010), and "Validity and utility of Hierarchical Taxonomy of Psychopathology (HiTOP): III. Emotional dysfunction superspectrum" (World Psychiatry, 2022).