Joseph Angarella '06 Presidential Scholarship Recipient M.S. in Psychology > Ph.D. in Psychology

The Southern California father and technology entrepreneur began participating in interventions, group therapy at treatment centers, and family support groups such as Al-Anon and Nar-Anon. In 2003, he put his undergraduate education in social psychology into practice and started working in rehab settings, eventually as a substance-abuse counselor.

As he learned more about treatment practices through his own family’s recovery and as a counselor, Angarella recognized a pattern between a 1972 study of heroin addicted veterans of the Vietnam War by Dr. Lee Robins and his own observations as an addiction counselor: In 90 percent of the substance abuse cases Robins studied, there was no relapse once the patient detoxified. The remaining 10 percent experienced repeated cycles of relapse and recovery long after having completed an initial detoxification regimen, including intervention therapy such as a 12-step program.

“This remaining 10 percent are the ones who are recycled through the revolving door of treatment, yet they are the ones who receive the least attention,” says Angarella. “They are the broken—the ones who line the back streets of many inner cities. These are the ones who drive my dedication to advancing our understanding of addictive disorders.”

This drive led Angarella to enroll in Walden’s M.S. in Psychology program, where he thrived on Walden’s rigorous master’s curriculum, environment of peer support, and the fact that his professors were working professionals in the field of psychology. But when he enrolled at age 49, Angarella admits he didn’t know if he had the wherewithal to make it through the program. “I didn’t know if I could compete with people who had a lot more energy, or who were a lot closer to their last year of college than I was,” he says. But he did finish, and by the final quarter of his master’s program, Angarella was convinced of two things: He could add value to the process of understanding some parts of human behavior that are traditionally neglected, and he could earn a Ph.D.

Immediately after earning an M.S. in Psychology in 2006, Angarella entered Walden’s Ph.D. in Psychology program, where he is pursuing a specialization in General Psychology—Educational Psychology track. Angarella says he has been encouraged in every class and by every professor to challenge not only his thinking, but also his own ability. “My professors have assisted me in gaining a new respect for psychological science,” he says. “These professors challenged my initial assumptions that I might not be good at psychological testing, statistics, and research. Through valuable student-teacher interaction, I was encouraged to explore my strengths and to work on those areas that presented academic and intellectual challenges.”

This year, Angarella will begin his dissertation, and he hopes to receive his degree by 2009. In his quest to better understand the science of addiction, he plans to include a qualitative study component in his dissertation.

Of his later-in-life Ph.D. pursuit, he says, “I’m not looking at the next 40 years of a career; I’m looking at self development. I’m looking at increasing my understanding of human behavior so that I can add some value.” Angarella sees that value manifesting in a teaching environment, whether it’s working with clinicians in a substance-abuse program or university setting. “The easiest way to inform the greatest number of people is to teach,” he says. “If I can find a position where future clinicians and practitioners are being trained, I think I can effect the greatest amount of change.”

The Presidential Scholarship offers $5,000 to alumni of a Walden master’s program who are pursuing a doctorate at Walden.

View details

NextFaith in Practice