Dr. Lisa Strohman is a licensed psychologist, attorney, author, and speaker. She is known for her work, advocacy, and education around mental wellness as it relates to our digital lives and is an international expert on the intersection of mental health and technology use. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from the University of California, Davis where she graduated Magna Cum Laude. She later earned a PhD and JD by completing a joint integrated program in Law and Psychology at Villanova and Drexel University. Dr. Strohman is the founder/CEO of the Digital Citizen Academy (DCA) and the president of the DCA Foundation. In this podcast, we review her academic and professional journey, learn more about the DC Academy and its Foundation, and discuss her new book Phone Alone.

Dr. Strohman grew up as a country girl who loved being outside with the animals. She originally wanted to go into medicine but realized that it wasn’t for her after her experience dissecting live animals in a lab. She had a psychology professor that she “absolutely adored” and found that psychology “felt natural” and easy for her so she shifted her focus to the field of psychology as she loved studying how the brain works and how individuals interact with each other and the world around them. In addition to her academic studies in clinical psychology and law, she worked as a visiting scholar with the profiling unit at the FBI, worked with law enforcement internet crimes units, and completed her dissertation in cooperation with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and the FBI.

As a result of these experiences, she became passionate about helping prevent and educate students, parents, and educators on issues related to technology use and overuse. She states “DCA was really created out of a social need for what I saw as a clinical psychologist.” Dr. Strohman also has her own private practice but wanted to do more. She shares “I can only do and help one person at a time in an office. But DCA was really built out of my passion for families and kids that were struggling with self-harm and bullying, and the things that were happening online.” She discusses the DC Academy and the DCA Foundation and its goals.

Dr. Strohman shares her advice with those interested in the field of psychology. She shares “if you have that calling in yourself, clinical psychology is really focusing on ‘I want to deal with individuals and help them through therapeutic measures.’” She also believes that it is important to be very empathetic as a therapist and shares her thoughts on the future of mental health and technology.

Dr. Strohman has authored multiple books including Unplug: Raising Kids In a Technology Addicted World (2015), Digital Distress: Growing Up Online (2021), and Phone Alone (2022). She discusses her most recent book and shares how she stays up to date with the latest research and developments in the field of psychology and technology including following Jean Twenge and setting herself up to receive alerts on social media, addiction technology, and problematic internet use.

Near the end of our discussion, Dr. Strohman states, “To me, it’s such a gift to be in this field and I think it’s an honorable field to be in and understand the magnitude of the power that you have in that and use that wisely and use it for good and with a full heart. Because I think that if you can do that, you will change the world in many ways over in this field.”

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https://vimeo.com/826764156

Interests and Specializations

Dr. Lisa Strohman specializes in developing curriculum to provide education and programs that address challenges children are facing daily through technology. She is known for her education and advocacy around mental health and technology wellness.