Gabriel N. Ezema
Assistant Professor, Counseling Psychology
901.492.1350Ball Hall 303Dgnezema@memphis.eduAbout Dr. Ezema
Gabriel N. Ezema, PhD, is an Assistant Professor of Counseling Psychology in the Department of Counseling, Educational Psychology, and Research at the University of Memphis. He earned his PhD in Counseling Psychology from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee.
Dr. Ezema’s research examines work as a social determinant of health, focusing on how economic inequality, labor market barriers, and structural marginalization shape vocational development, psychological wellbeing, and access to dignified work. Grounded in the Psychology of Working Theory (PWT), his work investigates how social and labor systems influence opportunity, engagement, and long-term health across diverse communities.
His scholarship also examines how institutional environments communicate signals about human worth and how individuals interpret these signals through processes of dignity appraisal. This line of work informs his emerging Dignity-Regulation Theory (DRT), which seeks to explain how institutional signals of worth shape experiences of dignity, belonging, identity threat, and psychological wellbeing across institutional contexts.
Dr. Ezema directs the Work, Dignity, and Health Lab, which investigates how structural inequality and institutional environments shape dignity, opportunity, and health across the lifespan. His research develops community-based and cross-cultural approaches that integrate mental health and vocational support to foster resilience, empowerment, and access to decent work.
With a background in philosophy, theology, and psychology, Dr. Ezema brings an interdisciplinary perspective to his teaching, research, and practice. He has spent more than two decades serving marginalized communities as a Catholic priest, an experience that continues to shape his commitment to culturally responsive mental health care and community engagement.
His therapeutic style is relational and collaborative, centering clients’ values, beliefs, and lived experiences. He is particularly interested in supporting college and international students, as well as other underserved populations, as they navigate cultural stressors and strengthen their sense of self.
As a faculty mentor and advisor, Dr. Ezema views mentorship as a partnership grounded in trust, intellectual curiosity, and professional growth. He supports students through academic, clinical, and professional challenges while fostering a collaborative environment in which trainees develop competence, confidence, and scholarly independence.
Dr. Ezema serves on the editorial boards of the Journal of Vocational Behavior, The Counseling Psychologist, and the Journal of Career Assessment, and is an active member of the American Psychological Association.
Education
Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology, University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee
M.A. Mental Health Counseling, Boston College
M.A. Theology and Ministry, Boston College
Bachelor of Theology, Pontifical Urbania University, Rome, Italy
Bachelor of Philosophy, Pontifical Urbania University, Rome, Italy
Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy, University of Ibadan, Nigeria