Biography

 
  Dr. Brad Fawver holds a BSc in Psychology from Clemson University and a PhD in Health and Human Performance from the University of Florida. Dr. Fawver’s interdisciplinary expertise forms a bridge between the domains of sport and performance psychology, neuroscience, biomechanics, and rehabilitation science. His undergraduate and graduate research focused primarily on how stress and fatigue influence human performance, as well as the role of emotion and self-regulation in modulating motor planning and control processes.

Following his doctoral work, Dr. Fawver completed a postdoctoral fellowship in Cognitive and Motor Neuroscience at the University of Utah where he further studied perceptual-cognitive mechanisms underlying skilled behavior. In addition to his research focusing on the interplay between psychological and movement science, Dr. Fawver expanded his foci to include the development of expertise broadly speaking within sport, medicine, ageing, and military contexts. He has also contributed to several past and current efforts focused on psychosocial factors associated with musculoskeletal injury risk, rehabilitation, and return to duty/play outcomes.

Dr. Fawver is currently a Research Psychologist with the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research- West (WRAIR-West), which is a WRAIR forward directorate located at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington state. His work at WRAIR-West encompasses research aimed at enhancing Service members’ resilience, neurocognitive function, and operational performance under stress. This includes projects that integrate psychological, cognitive, and physical training modalities to bolster performance potential and resilience to stress and fatigue. To date, Dr. Fawver has helped manage over $14M in research funding and authored over 100 scholarly works, including peer-reviewed manuscripts, book chapters, and conference proceedings. He also serves as an ad hoc reviewer for scientific journals, mentors students, and maintains active collaborations with other Department of Defense stakeholders and academic partners both nationally and internationally.

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Current Research Projects

      

        

 
Selected Research:
  1. Trachik, B., Merill, J.C., Pardue-Bourgeois, S., Ganulin, M.L., Crouch, C.L., Fawver, B., Kearns, N.T., Reddy, M.K., Novosel-Lingat, J.E., Osgood, J.M., Dretsch, M.N., & Knust, S.K. (in press). The Ask, Care, Escort Suite of Trainings: Initial Evaluation of the Army’s Primary Suicide Prevention Strategy. Psychological Services.
  2. Fawver, B., Larson, J.M., Kim, J., Parameswaran, U.D., & Kosbab, E. (2024). An analysis of mental health service usage and injury prevalence among NCAA Division 1 athletes. Journal for the Study of Sports and Athletes in Education. https://doi.org/10.1080/19357397.2024.2321822
  3. Raffegeau, T., Brinkerhoff, S.A., Clark, M., McBride, A.D., Williams, A.M., Fino, P.C., & Fawver, B. (2024). Walking (and talking) the plank: Dual-task performance costs in a virtual balance-threatening environment. Experimental Brain Research. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00221-024-06807-w
  4. DeCouto, B.S., Fawver, B., Thomas, J.L., Williams, A.M., & Vater, C. (2024). Peripheral vision demands influence decision making during dynamic basketball sequences. Journal of Sport Sciences, 41(20), 1852–1867. https://doi.org/10.1080/02640414.2023.2301143
  5. Kearns, N.T., Trachik, B., Fawver, B., Osgood, J.M., & Dretsch, M.N. (2024). Associations between alcohol use motivations and alcohol use frequency, binge drinking frequency, and problematic alcohol use among active-duty junior enlisted Soldiers and Non-Commissioned Officers. Alcohol, 115, 23-31. https://doi:10.1016/j.alcohol.2023.09.001
  6. Fawver, B., DeCouto, B.S., Trachik, B., Dretsch, M.N., & Williams, A.M. (2023). Cross-disciplinary innovation within the intelligence community: Evidence from research on sport and military expertise. In Gruber C. & Trachik B. (Eds.), Annals of Theoretical Psychology. New York City, NY: Springer. https://link.springer.com/book/9783031298066
  7. Brager, A.J., Belling, P., Sada, J., Osgood, J.M., Fawver, B., & Dretsch, M.N. (2023). Pilot testing of a non-gaming cognitive battery in expert esports athletes. NeuroSports, 2(1), 1-10. https://nsuworks.nova.edu/neurosports/vol1/iss2/11
  8. Trachik, B., Fawver, B., Trapp, S., Goldberg, S.B., Ganulin, M. L., Kearns, N. T., McKeon, A. B., Dretsch, M. N., & Sowden, W. J. (2023). Measurement validity of the six-factor model of psychological well-being in a military sample: Implications for measuring wellbeing in service members. Psychological Assessment, 35(9), 729–739. https://doi.org/10.1037/pas0001239
  9. Podlog, L., Caron, J.G., Fawver, B., Fraser, J.J., Johnsson, Q., Beauchamp, M.H., & Nault, M-L. (2023). Psychological readiness to return to the slopes following serious injury among competitive skiers and snowboarders. Journal of Cartilage and Joint Preservation, 100118, 1-7. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcjp.2023.100118
  10. Fawver, B., Janelle, C.M., Beatty, G.B., & Mann, D.T.Y. (2020). Staying cool under pressure: Developing and maintaining emotional expertise in sport. In. N.J. Hodges and A.M. Williams (Eds.), Skill Acquisition in Sport: Research, Theory, and Practice (3rd Edition), London, UK: Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781351189750