RYAN MAREK

Marek

Ryan Marek

rxm147@shsu.edu

(936) 294-3614

Department of Psychology & Philosophy, Sam Houston State University, Campus Box 2447, Huntsville, Texas 77341-2447

Department: Psychology

Associate Professor of Clinical Psychology

See lab website (https://marekpamslab.weebly.com/) for more information on whether Dr. Marek is taking doctoral students in his lab this year.

Dr. Marek joined the faculty in Department of Psychology and Philosophy at Sam Houston State University in 2023. He previously was faculty at Sam Houston State University’s College of Osteopathic Medicine and University of Houston-Clear Lake before joining the department. His main focus of research centers around health psychology and assessment psychology, with a particular focus in presurgical psychological assessment and how psychopathology predicts various medical outcomes.

Dr. Marek received his Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology with a minor in Quantitative Methodology from Kent State University in 2017. He completed numerous practicum placements during his training, including at the Cleveland Clinic and at a rural outpatient mental health facility. He completed his APA-accredited internship at the Medical University of South Carolina where he completed numerous rotations under supervision including weight management, behavioral medicine (including pre-surgical psychological evaluations of patients seeking bariatric, spinal cord stimulator, and solid organ transplant, treatment of chronic pain, and generally helping patients adjust to/manage their medical diagnoses), and conducted neuropsychological evaluations. Dr. Marek also trained numerous master and doctoral level therapists through supervision, teaching, research, and mentorship at his former university, University of Houston-Clear Lake.

Dr. Marek’s program of research is focused on understanding how psychological factors contribute to medical outcomes. He currently has over 60 peer-reviewed publications mostly focused on pre-surgical psychological evaluations and how they predict various outcomes. Dr. Marek uses his research to help patients manage risk factors prior to and after surgery to help them achieve good outcomes. He also has interests in psychological assessment and notably uses and studies the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) in his research and practice. He has been recognized by a few national organizations who have awarded him early-career research awards for his work in pre-surgical psychological evaluations. He also is lead author on the book “Presurgical Psychological Assessment: Evidence Based Practices and Procedures”.

Areas of Expertise

  • Adults
  • Assessment of Personality and Psychopathology
  • Bariatric Surgery
  • Chronic Pain
  • Eating Disorders
  • Health Psychology
  • Obesity
  • Spine Surgery

Funded Studies

  • Source: SHSU’s Provost Innovation Fund: Building Research, Innovation, Discovery, and Growing Engagement (BRIDGE)
    Title: : Effectiveness of a Community-Based Intervention of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for Type 2 Diabetes Management in a Rural and Underserved Community
    Role: Principal Investigator
    Award Amount: $174,295.54
    Date: September 1, 2023 – August 31, 2025
  • Source: University of Minnesota Press
    Title: MMPI-3 Presurgical Psychological Evaluation Report: Metabolic Bariatric Surgery (PPER: MBS)
    Role: Principal Investigator
    Award Amount: $26,165.00
    Date: July 1, 2024 – June 30, 2025
  • Source: University of Minnesota Press
    Title: MMPI-3 Assessment of Contemporary Models of Psychopathology Among Sexual Minority Populations
    Role: Co-Investigator
    Award Amount: $31,700
    Date: July 1, 2024 – June 30, 2025
  • Source: University of Minnesota Press
    Title: Empirical Correlates and Clinical Utility of the MMPI-3 Among Bariatric Surgery Patients
    Role: Principal Investigator
    Award Amount: $67,480.10
    Date: July 1, 2021 – June 30, 2023
  • Source: University of Minnesota Press
    Title: Validation of Psychosocial Risk Factor Dimensions Assessed by the MMPI-2-RF Spine Surgery Candidate Interpretive Report (Spine- CIR) and Spinal Cord Stimulator Candidate Interpretive Report (Stim- CIR)
    Role: Co-Investigator
    Award Amount: $71,000
    Date: July 1, 2018 – June 30, 2021
  • Source: University of Minnesota Press
    Title: Using Presurgical Psychological Assessments to Predict Psychopathology and Weight Loss Outcomes Five Years after Bariatric Surgery
    Role: Principal Investigator
    Award Amount: $32,000
    Date: July 1, 2018 – June 30, 2020
  • Source: University of Minnesota Press
    Title: The Spine Surgery Candidate Interpretive Report (Spine-CIR) and Spinal Cord Stimulator Candidate Interpretive Report (Stim-CIR): Replication and Validation with the MMPI-3
    Role: Co-Investigator
    Award Amount: $20,000
    Date: July 1, 2017 – June 30, 2018

Selected and Recent Publications

*denotes that author was a student, intern, post-doc, or resident at the time of publication

  • Marek, R.J., Ben-Porath, Y.S., & Heinberg, L.J. (2024). Six-Year Postoperative Associations Between the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory – 3 (MMPI-3) and Weight Recurrence, Eating Behaviors, Adherence, Alcohol, Misuse, and Quality of Life. Surgery for Obesity and Related Diseases, 20(4), 391-398 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soard.2023.12.008

  • Marek, R.J., Le, J.*, Hapenciuc, G.,* Philip, M., Block, A.R., & Ben-Porath, Y.S. (2024). Incremental validity of the MMPI-3 to Predicting One-Year Postoperative Outcomes in Patients Who Received Spine Surgery. Journal of Clinical Psychology in Medical Settings, 31(1), 77-90. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10880-023-09971-3

  • Sutphin, T.,* Hicks, A.D.*, Marek, R.J., Gorman, K., & McCord, D. (2024). Additional Validation of the MMPI-3 Eating Concerns Scale. Assessment, 31(5), 1114-1123. https://doi.org/10.1177/10731911231207111

  • Rabinowitz, E.P.,* Whitman, M.R.,* Marek, R.J., Block, A.R., & Ben-Porath, Y.S. (2024). Differences in Presurgical MMPI-3 Scores Across Trajectories of Recovery from Spine Surgery. Psychological Assessment, 36 (4), 262-274. https://doi.org/10.1037/pas0001299

  • Marek, R.J., Ben-Porath, Y.S., Panigrahi, E., & Pona, A.A. (2024). Further Evidence Regarding the Convergent and Discriminant Validity of Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-3 (MMPI-3) Scores in the Presurgical Psychological Evaluation of Patients Seeking Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery. Surgery for Obesity and Related Diseases, 20(6), 577-586. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soard.2024.01.006

  • Marek, R.J., & Block, A.R. (2023). Presurgical Psychological Assessment of Surgical Candidates: Evidence-Based Procedures and Practices. American Psychological Association.

  • Haugh, S., Ramirez, D., Priebe, K., Marek, R. J., & Anderson, J. L. (2024). Evaluating the MMPI-3’s Utility in the Assessment of Pathological Personality Traits. Current Psychology, 43, 20521-20531.https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-024-05859-z

  • Shumaker, N.,* Long, T.,* Mercado, A., Marek, R.J., & Anderson, J.L. (in press). Exploring Potential Ethnic Bias among MMPI-3 Scales in Assessing Personality Psychopathology. Assessment. https://doi.org/10.1177/10731911241254341

  • Jeong, H.,* Hapenciuc, G.,* Meza, E.,* Heinberg, L.J., & Marek, R.J. (in press). Re-Evaluating the Binge Eating Scale Cut-Off Using DSM-5 Criteria: Analysis and Replication in Presurgical Bariatric Surgery Samples. Surgery for Obesity and Related Diseases.

  • Pona, A., Marek, R.J., Panigrahi, E., & Ben-Porath, Y.S. (in press). Examination of the Reliability and Validity of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-3 (MMPI-3) in a Preoperative Bariatric Surgery Sample. Journal of Clinical Psychology in Medical Settings. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10880-022-09908-2

  • Marek, R.J., Ivezaj, V., Parikh, M., Jayade, M.,* Davila-Shiau, E.,* & Grilo, C.M. (2023). Factor Structure and Measurement Invariance of the English- vs Spanish-Language Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire – Brief Form (S-EDE-Q-BF) in Hispanic Persons Seeking Bariatric Surgery. Surgery for Obesity and Related Diseases, 19(6) 576-584. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soard.2022.12.015

  • Marek, R.J., & Anderson, J.L. (2022). Measurement of Eating Pathology using the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory – 3 (MMPI-3). Journal of Personality Assessment, 104(5), 674-679. https://doi.org/10.1080/00223891.2021.1991361

  • Marek, R.J., Block, A.R., & Ben-Porath, Y.S. (2022). Reliability, Validity, and Clinical Utility of the MMPI-3 Among Patients Seeking Spine Surgery. Psychological Assessment, 34(4), 379-389. https://doi.org/10.1037/pas0001096

  • Marek, R.J., Lieberman, I., Derman, P., Nghiem, D.M.,* & Block, A.R. (2021). Validity of a Pre-Surgical Algorithm to Predict Pain, Functional Disability, and Emotional Functioning One Year After Spine Surgery. Psychological Assessment, 33(6) 541-551. https://doi.org/10.1037/pas0001008

  • Marek, R.J., Martin-Fernandez, K.,* Heinberg, L.J. Ben-Porath, Y.S., (2021). An Investigation of the Eating Concerns Scale of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory – 3 (MMPI-3) in a Postoperative Bariatric Surgery Sample. Obesity Surgery, 31, 2335-2338. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11695-020-05113-y

  • Marek, R.J., Martin-Fernandez, K.,* Ben-Porath, Y.S., & Heinberg, L.J. (2021). Psychosocial Functioning of Bariatric Surgery Patients 6-Years Postoperative. Obesity Surgery, 31(2) 712-724. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11695-020-05025-x

  • Marek, R.J., Anderson, J.A., Tarescavage, A.T., Haugh, S.,* Martin-Fernandez, K.,* Heinberg, L.J., Block, A.R., Jimenez, X., & Ben-Porath, Y.S. (2020). Elucidating Somatization in a Dimensional Model of Psychopathology Across Medical Settings. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 129(2), 162-176. https://doi.org/10.1037/abn0000475

Graduate Courses Taught

  • PSYC 5330: Psychopathology
  • PSYC 8382/8383: Advanced Practicum
  • PSYC 7362: Ethics in Clinical Practice
  • PSYC 5389: Multivariate Statistics
  • PSYC 5388: Experimental Design

Undergraduate Courses Taught

  • PSYC 3331: Abnormal Psychology

Previous Courses Taught At Prior Institutions

  • Quantitative Statistical Analysis I/II
  • Personality Assessment
  • Professional Issues in Medical/Health Psychology
  • Diversity and Multicultural Issues
  • Behavioral Medicine
  • Professional Practice, Law, and Ethics

Median Course and Instructor Ratings:

  • Median Course Rating: 4.92/5.00
  • Median Instructor Rating: 4.95/5.00
  • Associate Editor:
    • Surgery for Obesity and Related Diseases
    • Psychological Assessment (Incoming January 2023)
  • Consulting Editor:
    • Obesity Surgery
    • Journal of Personality Assessment
    • Journal of Clinical Psychology in Medical Settings
  • National Committees:
    • Incoming Chair of Masters in Behavioral Health Course for the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (ASMBS)
    • Member: ASMBS Behavioral Health Committee

CV

Curriculum Vitae is available in PDF format.

Education

  • Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from Kent State University
  • M.A. in Clinical Psychology from Kent State University
  • B.S. in Psychology from John Carroll University

Media