Joshua Grubbs

Associate Professor, Department of Psychology
B.S. Liberty University, 2010
M.A. Case Western Reserve University, 2012
Ph.D. Case Western Reserve University, 2016
Pre-doctoral Internship: Louis Stokes Cleveland Veteran’s Affairs Medical Center  

Phone: (419) 372-2045
Email: grubbsj@bgsu.edu
Office: Room 246, Psychology Building
Lab Page: N/A
CV: DOC

Taking Graduate Students? No
Sponsoring Undergraduate Research? Yes

Research Interests:

My research (and the research of the SPARTA lab) is primarily concerned with the scientific study of addiction, personality, and morality (particularly as it relates to addiction and personality).

The largest portion of my current research program is concerned with addiction. I am particularly interested in topics related to behavioral addictions or compulsive behavior patterns. My specific interests in these domains are related to the social construction of addiction. I’m also interested in the social and structural factors that shape self-perceptions of potentially addictive behaviors. Ultimately, I want to understand how self-reported beliefs about addiction influence presentation of symptoms, which, in turn, influence diagnosis, classification, and treatment of addictive behaviors. I have past and ongoing projects related to pornography use, compulsive sexual behavior more broadly, and excessive gambling behaviors.

With regards to personality, I am particularly interested in the role that specific personality traits play in influencing the experience and expression of psychopathology. In this vein, I generally study narcissistic traits such as entitlement, grandiosity, and antagonism, and their domain specific manifestations such as Moral Grandstanding.

In addition to these domains, I am also interested promoting replicability, reproducibility, and transparency in the scientific process.  I strive to conduct my research in accordance with current standards of transparency and openness, and I encourage my students to do the same. You can find more information about my current projects at my Open Science Framework page (https://osf.io/c8hxw/) and a complete list of my publications at my Google Scholar page (https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=gCnmj3kAAAAJ&hl=en).

“More information about my research interests, ongoing projects, and the SPARTA Lab can be found at my website: JoshuaGrubbsPhD.netlify.com.”

Selected Publications (*indicates a graduate student co-author):

*Floyd, C. G., & Grubbs, J. B. (2022). Context Matters: How Religion and Morality Shape Pornography Use Effects. Current Sexual Health Reports. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11930-022-00329-8

*Grant-Weinandy, J. T., & Grubbs, J. B. (2021). Religious and Spiritual Beliefs and Attitudes Towards Addiction and Addiction Treatment: A Scoping Review. Addictive Behaviors Reports, 100393. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.abrep.2021.100393

Grubbs, J. B., *Hoagland, K. C., *Lee, B. N., *Grant, J. T., Davison, P., Reid, R. C., & Kraus, S. W. (2020). Sexual addiction 25 years on: A systematic and methodological review of empirical literature and an agenda for future research. Clinical Psychology Review, 82, 101925. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2020.101925

Grubbs, J. B., & Kraus, S. W. (2021). Pornography Use and Psychological Science: A Call for Consideration. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 096372142097959. https://doi.org/10.1177/0963721420979594

Grubbs, J. B., Kraus, S. W., & Perry, S. L. (2019). Self-reported addiction to pornography in a nationally representative sample: The roles of use habits, religiousness, and moral incongruence. Journal of Behavioral Addictions, 8(1), 88–93. https://doi.org/10.1556/2006.7.2018.134

Grubbs, J. B., Kraus, S. W., Perry, S. L., Lewczuk, K., & Gola, M. (2020). Moral incongruence and compulsive sexual behavior: Results from cross-sectional interactions and parallel growth curve analyses. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 129(3), 266–278. https://doi.org/10.1037/abn0000501

Grubbs, J. B., *Lee, B. N., *Hoagland, K. C., Kraus, S. W., & Perry, S. L. (2020). Addiction or transgression? Moral incongruence and self-reported problematic pornography use in a nationally representative sample. Clinical Psychological Science, 8(5), 936–946.

Grubbs, J. B., & Perry, S. L. (2019). Moral incongruence and pornography use: A critical review and integration. Journal of Sex Research, 56(1), 29–37. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2018.1427204

Grubbs, J. B., Perry, S. L., *Grant- Weinandy, J. T., & Kraus, S. W. (2022). Porndemic? A longitudinal study of pornography use before and during the COVID-19 pandemic in a nationally representative sample of Americans. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 51(1), 123–137.

Grubbs, J. B., Perry, S. L., Wilt, J. A., & Reid, R. C. (2019). Pornography problems due to moral incongruence: An integrative model with a systematic review and meta-analysis. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 48(2), 397–415. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-018-1248-x

Grubbs, J. B., & *Rosansky, J. A. (2020). Problem gambling, coping motivations, and positive expectancies: A longitudinal survey study. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 34(2), 414–419. https://doi.org/10.1037/adb0000529

Grubbs, J. B., Wright, P. J., Braden, A. L., Wilt, J. A., & Kraus, S. W. (2019). Internet pornography use and sexual motivation: A systematic review and integration. Annals of the International Communication Association, 43(2), 117–155. https://doi.org/10.1080/23808985.2019.1584045

*Hoagland, K. C., & Grubbs, J. B. (2021). Pornography Use and Holistic Sexual Functioning: A Systematic Review of Recent Research. Current Addiction Reports, 8(3), 408–421. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40429-021-00378-4

*Moore, L. H., & Grubbs, J. B. (2020). Gambling Disorder and comorbid PTSD: A systematic review of empirical research. Addictive Behaviors, 106713. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2020.106713

Courses Taught:

• PSYC 4050 Abnormal Psychology
• PSYC 4150 Psychology of Religion and Spirituality
• PSYC 7680 Structural Equation Modeling
• PSYC 7800 Seminar: Psychology of Addiction