Distinguished Faculty Lecture 2021–2022
Austin C. Archer, Ph.D. Professor of Psychology and Education:
Memory and Prophecy: Perspectives on changing minds
Sunday, November 7, 2021, 7 p.m. Walla Walla University Church.
Memory and Prophecy: Perspectives on changing minds
Recent world events have brought into focus the tenacity with which we hold on to our ways of thinking. It is often understood that our beliefs and attitudes are central not only to how we see others but to who we are. So what happens when people are faced with changing information? And why do settled opinions appear impervious to evidence? Can we really change our minds about some of our closest held beliefs?
Austin Archer, WWU professor of psychology and education, has long nurtured an academic curiosity regarding the cognitive processes involved with learning, memory, and decisionmaking. His recent publications reflect a broader interest in the philosophical and theological issues surrounding the nature of knowledge and of belief.
In his lecture, Archer will discuss the nature of mind, memory, and how and why people change their beliefs. A recently published study of people who experienced changes in their worldview highlights the growing academic interest in this area. He will address these questions, their link to apocalyptic prophecy, and their growing significance in our world of divided perspectives.
Previous lecturers
2020-2021
2020-2021 Dave Thomas, Professor of Practical Theology and Apologetics
2019-2020
Debbie Muthersbaugh, Professor of Education
2018-2019
Kari Firestone, Professor of Nursing
2017-2018
Pedrito Maynard-Reid, Professor of Theology
2016-2017
Paul Dybdahl, Professor of Theology
2015-2016
Kellie Bond, Associate Professor of English
2014-2015
Linda Emmerson, Assistant Professor of Philosophy
2013-2014
David Bullock, Professor of Communication
2012-2013
Karen Tetz, Professor of Nursing
2011-2012
Joseph G. Galusha Jr., Professor of Biology
2010-2011
Pamela Keele Cress, Professor of Social Work and Sociology
2009-2010
Thomas M. Thompson, Professor of Mathematics
2008-2009
Gregory D. Dodds, Associate Professor of History
2007-2008
Bruce C. Johanson. Professor of Biblical Studies
2006-2007
Jon A. Cole, Professor of Engineering
2005-2006
Beverly G. Beem, Professor of English
2004-2005
James R. Nestler, Professor of Biology
2003-2004
Alden L. Thompson, Professor of Biblical Studies
2002-2003
Kraig S. M. Scott, Associate Professor of Music
2001-2002
Douglas R. Clark, Professor of OT and Archaeology
2000-2001
Rodney Heisler, Professor of Engineering
1999-2000
C. Loren Dickinson, Professor of Communication
1998-1999
Roland R. Blaich, Professor of History
1997-1998
Verlie Y. F. Ward, Professor of Education
1996-1997
Thomas J. Emmerson, Professor of Art
1995-1996
Claude C. Barnett, Professor of Physics
1994-1995
Terrie Dopp Aamodt, Professor of English and History
1993-1994
Ernie J. Bursey, Professor of Biblical Studies