PERSONAL LIFE
My story…
I grew up in Tazewell, a small farming town nestled in the central ridges of the Appalachian Mountains in Southwest Virginia. As a child, I explored the outdoors, played games on my Game Boy, and rode anything with wheels. My father (Dallas Thomas White) was a coal miner who worked countless hours to provide a better life for his family. My mother (Cathy Lynn White) was a homemaker who raised four children, served as the pillar within the family, and contributed extensively to her community. Because of my parents’ sacrifices and the support of close family and friends, I had a wonderful childhood.
While attending high school, two major factors changed my life forever. First, I was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. After this diagnosis, I quickly became aware of how precious life is and that I should not take things for granted. Although there are no breaks from being a Type 1 Diabetic, advances in technology and medicine have made the disorder much easier to manage and have improved my overall health. Secondly, from early on in high school, I was determined to go to college. In fact, I would hang up college recruitment letters on my bedroom wall as inspiration. Being a first-generation student and struggling with college entrance exams made college admission difficult. Nonetheless, I was able to gain admission to a few colleges and universities, allowing me to take the first step toward the future I had set out to achieve.
After graduating from Tazewell High School in 2013, I decided to attend Old Dominion University (ODU) in Norfolk, Virginia, a mid-size coastal city. Attending ODU was a risk, as it was located far from family and had a very different culture from a small mountain town. However, I believe attending ODU was the best decision I have ever made. At ODU, I interacted with people from very different cultures, studied religions from around the world, and learned key concepts in the social sciences. These were things I never would have been exposed to growing up in my hometown, but they were key to shaping my view of people, society, and the world. I also discovered my love for research and psychology at ODU. Like many psychology students, I thought I wanted to be a counselor. However, in my freshman year, I joined Dr. Michelle Kelley’s Youth and Family Development Lab. Not long after joining the lab, I learned that I was more passionate about psychological research than counseling. Conducting psychological research felt like exploration, uncovering concepts and mechanisms that shape human experience rather than charting new land. The idea of discovering something previously unknown was exciting and set me on the path to pursue my passion for psychological research.
I graduated from ODU in 2017 and decided to pursue a graduate degree in experimental psychology. Although I enjoyed conducting research on human development and mental health at ODU, I was eager to pursue research in social and evolutionary psychology. I specifically wanted to focus on how people choose romantic partners and the processes that may influence the formation of romantic relationships. This area of research was very compelling to me, since romantic relationships have substantial impacts on a person’s life, yet we often have limited information about potential partners or the dating market when making these decisions. That interest led me to Dr. Shanhong Luo, an expert in processes related to early romantic relationship formation, and to the Psychological Science master’s program at the University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW). During my time in the program, I gained foundational skills in conducting psychological research, managed a research lab, and deepened my understanding of relationship formation. From these experiences, I concluded that I wanted to pursue a career in psychological research and set out to obtain a doctoral degree.
After graduating with my master’s degree, I chose to remain at UNCW to pursue a doctorate in Psychological Science, as I wanted to continue my work with Dr. Luo. I also wanted to work with Dr. Dale Cohen, an expert in cognition, perception, and decision-making. My interest in Dr. Cohen’s work centered on his research into preferential decision-making. Research on romantic relationship formation is often conducted within social and evolutionary disciplines, and little was known about the cognitive mechanism behind romantic partner choices. I believed a collaboration between Drs. Luo and Cohen’s research labs could be productive in better understanding how people choose romantic partners from a perception and cognition perspective. Over the course of four years, we conducted experiments revealing that romantic partner choices are described by a general‐purpose computational cognitive model of value and choice. These experiments are very special to me, as they contribute meaningful insights into the mechanism behind partner selection, which has been studied since the late 1800s.
Although I enjoyed my academic experiences at ODU and UNCW, I decided not to pursue an academic career. While working on my degree, I taught four different psychological courses and engaged with hundreds of students. I liked working with students, but I did not have a passion for teaching. Moreover, I became more interested in data science-related skills such as R programming. So, I decided to stop teaching and apply for a non-academic position while working on my doctorate. I was fortunate to land a full-time job at a large nonprofit practice-research network called the Center for Collegiate Mental Health (CCMH) at Penn State University. Although I had little time outside of work and school, I found my work at CCMH to be very rewarding. This confirmed that I wanted to pursue a career outside of academia.
Both Norfolk and Wilmington were great places to live; however, I missed my family, hometown friends, and the culture I grew up in. As I neared the end of my doctorate, I began to consider moving back to Southwest Virginia. Of course, moving to Southwest Virginia had some limitations. For instance, there are very few job opportunities for an experimental psychologist or in data science in the area. However, because I worked for CCMH remotely, I had the opportunity to move back to the mountains. After finishing my doctorate in 2024, I moved to a mid-sized mountain town called Abingdon, Virginia, about an hour from where I grew up. Abingdon is a gem within Southwest Virginia. Considered the cultural center of the area, the town has a vibrant fine, culinary, and performative arts scene. Moreover, it is a haven for those wanting to explore the outdoors by hiking and camping. Moving back to Southwest Virginia has been great because I can spend more time with my loved ones, explore the outdoors, and enjoy a slower pace of life.
My hobbies/interests…
Hiking is a relatively new hobby I have taken up since moving back to Southwest Virginia. It’s become a favorite for the way it connects me to nature and supports my health goals. I also love the feeling of achievement after completing a long hike and exploring places I have never seen before. Living in Abingdon, I have access to many trails, including the Appalachian Trail. So far, my favorite hike has been from Grayson Highlands State Park to Mount Rogers for the wild ponies and beautiful scenery of high-elevation pastures and moss-covered forest.
I was introduced to metal detecting as a kid by my father, who metal-detected at local parks and schools and at the beach when we went on family vacations. However, I did not get deeply into the hobby until I was a graduate student at UNCW, where I was looking for an activity that would keep me physically fit and foster exploration in my free time. During that time, I searched both very remote and high-trafficked beaches from North Topsail, NC, to North Myrtle, SC. After moving back to the mountains, I primarily search old homesteads, schools, parks, and woodlands. Over the years, I have found gold and silver jewelry, old and modern coins, musket balls, and many other oddities, while also removing all trash from the environment.
I’m an amateur numismatist with an extensive collection spanning thousands of coins. Although I inherited many United States coins from my father, my primary interest is in international coins minted from the early 1700s to the current day. I’m especially interested in coins from China and Cuba, given their rich histories and aesthetic design. Fun fact: from 1915 to 1961, Cuban coins were struck at the Philadelphia Mint. Want to see some of the coins I own? Check out my profile on Numista.
I’m an avid collector of vinyl records. My collection spans many genres, but I primarily own classic country and folk records. My favorite record in my collection is a radio station promo copy of Bringing It All Back Home by Bob Dylan. Want to see what’s in my collection? Check out my profile on Discogs.
I recently developed a passion for mid-century modern design, architecture, and furniture. This newfound interest has led me to collect furniture, art, and décor that blend mid-century modern aesthetics with the natural elements of the Appalachian Mountains. I’m fortunate to own original furniture from the 1960s, including pieces by Broyhill and Kent Coffey. I also buy art and furniture created by local artisans.
As someone with a wide range of interests, I’m always eager to explore intriguing topics. Currently, I’m interested in learning more about trout and bass fishing, cooking, geopolitics, and e-commerce.