Hunter Stanfield
Master of Marriage & Family Therapy
Associate Professor
Biography
Hunter was born and raised in Florence, Alabama. Before arriving at Lipscomb in August 2019, he spent time in Los Angeles, California; Tuscaloosa, Alabama; Birmingham, Alabama; Manhattan, Kansas; and Tuxedo, North Carolina. At Lipscomb, Hunter teaches in the graduate Marriage and Family Therapy and undergraduate Psychology programs, and volunteers with the Lipscomb LIFE program, which educates women and men experiencing incarceration who are pursuing a college degree. He was previously a fellow in relational ethics with the Doherty Foundation for Social and Civic Well-Being (2022-2023) and a fellow for the Cal Turner Program for Moral Leadership in the Professions at the Vanderbilt Divinity School (2025-2026). In addition to his role at Lipscomb, Hunter is a licensed marriage and family therapist (LMFT) in Tennessee, an AAMFT-approved supervisor, and a certified family life educator (CFLE) through the National Council on Family Relations. For the NCFR, Hunter serves on the CFLE academic program review committee. He enjoys spending time with his family, attending concerts around Nashville, being active outdoors, and sitting on the front porch reading a good book.
Academic Degrees
B.S. Business Administration, Seaver College, Pepperdine University (2009)
M.A. Psychology, Graduate School of Education and Psychology, Pepperdine University (2012)
M.D.R. Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution, Pepperdine University School of Law (2013)
M.S. Human Development and Family Studies, emphasis in Marriage and Family Therapy, University of Alabama (2016)
M.T.S. Theological Studies, Vanderbilt Divinity School (2025-Present)
Ph.D. Human Ecology, emphasis in Couple and Family Therapy, Kansas State University (2019)
Academic Department
Department of Psychology, Counseling, and Family Science
Human Sexuality
Introduction to Marriage and Family Therapy Skills
Practicum
Supervised Clinical Practice
Research Methods and Statistics
Diverse Families and Systems II
- Men’s Mental Health and Relationships
- Men’s Mental Health Help-Seeking
- Educating and Training Helping Professionals
- Intersections of Mental Health, Religion, and Spirituality
- Astle, S., McAllister, P., Stanfield, M. H., Yelland, E., Gimarc, C. (2022). Assessing public opinions of sexual advance directives among older adults with dementia. Journal of Applied Gerontology
- Morgan, P. C., Stanfield, M. H., & Durtschi, J. (2021). “There may be a problem, but I’m not going because…”: Examining classes of men and their rationales for not seeking mental health treatment. Journal of Mental Health.
- Morgan, P. C., Washburn-Busk, M., Stanfield, M.H., & Durtschi, J. (2021). The role of leisure activities on partnered men’s and women’s depressive symptoms over time. Marriage & Family Review.
- Morgan, P. C., Dell’Isola, R., Stanfield, M. H., & Durtschi, J. (2020). Gender differences in classes of married men’s and women’s depression. Journal of Couple and Relationship Therapy, 20(2), 188-209.
- Stanfield, M. H. & Yelland, E. L. (2020). When Allie forgot Noah: Perspectives of healthy partner considerations in cases of dementia. American Journal of Family Therapy, 48(4), 369-384.
- Yelland, E.L., & Stanfield, M.H. (2020). Public perspectives toward long-term care staff intervention in the sexual relationships of residents with dementia. Dementia, 19(2), 285-300.
- Yelland, E. L., Benson, J. J., Litzelman, K., Gerstenecker, C. B., Bartholomae, S., & Stanfield, M. H. (2019). An analysis of aging-related needs and programming across the North Central Extension Region. Journal of Extension, 57, 6FEA2.
- Stanfield, M.H. & Baptist, J. (2019). Compassion satisfaction among camp counselors: A pilot study. Journal of Experiential Education, 42, 121-139.
- Bates, J., Taylor, A., & Stanfield, M.H. (2018). Variations in grandfathering: Characteristics of involved, passive, and disengaged grandfathers. Contemporary Social Science, 13, 187-202.
- Casper, D. M., & Witte, T., Stanfield, M.H. (2018). “A person I cared about was involved”: Exploring bystander involvement and associations with well-being among college students. Journal of Interpersonal Violence.
- Scroggs, B., Miller, J., & Stanfield, M.H. (2018). Identity development and reconciliation of religious identities in gender and sexual minority emerging adults. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 57(3), 604-615.
Individual, Couple, and Family Therapist - The Briggs Institute, Nashville, Tennessee, 2020-2024
- Outstanding Teacher Award, Lipscomb University, Nashville, Tennessee, 2022-2023
- Dean’s Award, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Lipscomb University, Nashville, Tennessee. 2020-2021.
- Outstanding Engagement/Outreach Award, Couple and Family Therapy, School of Family Studies and Human Services, Kansas State University, Manhattan, Kansas. 2018-2019.
- Student Best Poster Award, Winner, Family Therapy Section, National Council on Family Relations annual conference, San Diego, California. [Stanfield, M.H. & Morgan, P. ['There may be a problem, but I’m not going because…': Examining classes of men and their rationales for not seeking mental health treatment]. Fall 2018.
- Student/New Professional Best Paper Award, Runner-up, Issues in Aging Focus Group, National Council on Family Relations annual conference, San Diego, California. [Stanfield, M.H., Bates, J.S., & Taylor, A.T. Variations in grandfathering: Characteristics of involved, passive, and disengaged grandfathers]. Fall 2018.
- Timothy R. Donoghue Graduate Scholarship, Kansas State University Graduate School. 2016-2018.
- Kansas State University Global Campus Program Development: Introduction to Conflict Resolution – CNRES 300. A grant to create an interdisciplinary introduction to conflict resolution course for Kansas State University undergraduate students. Funded budget: $1,800. Co-Principal Investigator, 50% participation [Terrie McCants, Principal Investigator; Jessica Cless, Co-Principal Investigator], 2016-2017.
Masculinity in Crisis: A Moral Inquiry Project, The Cal Turner Program for Moral Leadership in the Professions, Vanderbilt University.
Mental Health and Wellness in Healthcare Practice (2023), College of Pharmacy, Lipscomb University, Nashville, Tennessee.
Healthcare Provider Wellness: Provider and Clinician Perspectives (2022), Lipscomb Initiative for Behavioral Health Integration Conference, Lipscomb University, Nashville, Tennessee.
The burnout blinders: Getting some perspective about professional burnout (2020), Nashville Entrepreneur Center, Webinar.
Living with someone with opposing COVID-19 views is hard: Here are tips to make it easier (2020), News Channel 5, Nashville, Tennessee.
Compassion fatigue: What is it and how to prevent it? (2020). K-State College Advising Corps Training, Online.
Yelland, E. L., & Stanfield, M. H. (2020). Love in later life: Examining relational and emotional fidelity to a partner with dementia. Paper accepted for the annual conference of the National Council on Family Relations, Virtual.
- Washburn-Busk, M., Anderson, J. A., Hubbard, A., Stanfield, M. H., & Langin, K. (2020). Higher levels of differentiation help to keep the sexual spark alive. Poster accepted for the annual conference of the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy, Virtual.
- Yelland, E. L., Stanfield, M. H., Goss, K., & Campfield, M. (2019, November). Public perspectives of sexual advance directives for aging adults experiencing cognitive decline. Poster presented at the annual conference of the National Council on Family Relations, Fort Worth, Texas.
- Stanfield, M.H., Morgan, P., Goodcase, E. & Markham, M.S. (2019, August). What men want: Men’s preferences for mental health professionals. Poster presented at the annual conference of the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy, Austin, Texas.
- Stanfield, M. H. (2019, March). When things get tough: Handling difficult situations, people, and ourselves in conflict. Online webinar for North Central Region Aging Network.
- Morgan, P. & Stanfield, M.H. (2018, November). Gender differences in men’s and women’s depression classes. Poster presentation at the annual conference of the National Council on Family Relations, San Diego, California.
- Stanfield, M.H., Bates, J.S., & Taylor, A.C. (2018, November). Variations in grandfathering: Characteristics of involved, passive, and disengaged grandfathers. Paper presentation at the annual conference of the National Council on Family Relations, San Diego, California.
- Stanfield, M.H. & Yelland, E.L. (2018, November). When Harry forgot Sally: Opinions toward caregivers seeking new relationships. Poster presentation at the annual conference of the National Council on Family Relations, San Diego, California.
- Stanfield, M.H. & Morgan, P. (2018, November). “There may be a problem, but I’m not going because…”: Examining classes of men and their rationales for not seeking mental health treatment. Poster presentation at the annual conference of the National Council on Family Relations, San Diego, California.
- Peng, P. & Stanfield, M.H. (2018, November). Depression and Happiness in Chinese Marriages. Poster presentation at the annual conference of the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy, Louisville, Kentucky.
- Stanfield, M.H. & Love, H. (2018, November). Characteristics of Emerging Adult Depression and Anxiety. Poster presentation at the annual conference of the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy, Louisville, Kentucky.
- Yelland, E.L., Stanfield, M.H., & Cherry, R. (2018, April). Tips for a Healthy Transition into Retirement. Online webinar for Epsilon Sigma Phi Professional Development.
- Yelland, E.L., Benson, J., Bates, J., Litzelman, K., & Stanfield, M.H. (2017, November). Aging-related priorities in the North Central region: A needs assessment. Paper presentation at the annual conference of National Council on Family Relations, Orlando, Florida.
- Stanfield, M.H., Yelland, E.L., & Seyferth, K. (2017, November). Sex, dementia, and long-term care: Public opinion and importance of policy. Paper presentation at the annual conference of National Council on Family Relations, Orlando, Florida.
- Stanfield, M.H., Hubbard, A., Iglesias, J., Dharnidharka, P., Hardy, N., & Anderson, J.A. (2017, October). Sexual dysfunction to sexual satisfaction: Role of differentiation. Poster presentation at the annual conference of the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy, Atlanta, Georgia.
- Scroggs, B., Miller, J., & Stanfield, M.H. (2017, October). Identity development and reconciliation of religious identities in gender and sexual minority emerging adults. Poster presentation at The Society for the Study of Human Development Biennial Meeting, Providence, Rhode Island.
- Berryhill, M.B., Stanfield, M.H., & Smith, J.A. (2016, September). College student family functioning and psychological flexibility: The indirect effect of cognitive fusion. Poster presentation at the annual conference of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, Indianapolis, Indiana.
- Casper, D. M., Witte, T., & Stanfield, M.H. (2016, March). “A person I cared about was involved”: Exploring Bystander Involvement in Sexual Assault and Dating Violence. Poster presentation at the biennial meeting of the Society for Research on Adolescence, Baltimore, Maryland.
