People Directory

Harold Odden is associate professor of anthropology and the chair of the Department of Anthropology and Sociology. He holds a Ph.D. and M.A. in Anthropology from Emory University, and a B.A. in Anthropology from the University of California, San Diego. His research focuses on cultural learning and the social determinants of health and well-being. His dissertation research focused on how Samoan children and adolescents learn about the complex world of hierarchy and chieftainship. Later research has focused on topics including mental health and substance use problems in Samoan adolescents, suicide prevention in U.S. ethnic minorities, management of chronic insomnia, and factors contributing to recovery from hip fractures in the elderly.

He enjoys collaborating with students on research, and his students have gone on to graduate school in medical anthropology, public health, and Pacific Studies at Emory University, the University of Hawai'i, Purdue University, and the University of Memphis as well as the Peace Corps. His publications have appeared in Current Anthropology, Ethos, and Drug and Alcohol Review, and his work has been supported by grants from the National Science Foundation and Wenner Gren Foundation.