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Eric Schade indoor headshot.

Eric Schade

Biography

Eric Schade is an Assistant Professor of Clinical Practice in the Department of Social Work and a licensed clinical social worker. At UWF, he teaches across the undergraduate program and focuses on clinical skills in the MSW program.

Dr. Schade’s research explores the role of the self in mental health among adolescents and young adults. Centrally, he examines whether self-related mechanisms shape experiences of isolation versus connection. His research on a gratitude and compassion intervention for social anxiety was presented in Kerala, India.

Dr. Schade combines neuroimaging, electrophysiological, and self-report methodologies to examine self-relevant signatures and the effects of gratitude and compassion interventions. Recent work was published in Biological Psychology. His research actively involves students, including UWF students who have helped collect EEG data while participants completed a self-reference task.

Dr. Schade has extensive clinical psychotherapy experience with adolescent and adult clients, working in college counseling, private practice, and substance use recovery settings. While a staff clinician for UWF Counseling and Psychological Services, he facilitated a weekly meditation outreach program, leading guided meditations for students, staff, and faculty on topics including concentration, relaxation, and visualization.

He has a Ph.D. in Social Work from Simmons University and a Master of Social Work from Florida State University. Before entering social work, Dr. Schade was a registered landscape architect.