Michelle S. Garvin, PhD
- Academic Title: Faculty Member
- Primary Appointment: Psychiatry
- Email: mgarvin@som.umaryland.edu
- Phone (Primary): 410-946-6046
Education and Training
- Princeton University, BA, Psychology, 2007
- George Washington University, PhD, Clinical Psychology, 2014
- University of California, Davis, Pre-Doctoral Internship, Sport Psychology Track
Biosketch
Michelle Garvin, Ph.D. is a licensed clinical psychologist with extensive experience integrating mental health care and performance psychology across professional sports, collegiate athletics, youth athletics, and sports organizations and systems.
Dr. Garvin earned her doctoral degree in Clinical Psychology from The George Washington University following a bachelor's degree in Psychology from Princeton University, graduating summa cum laude. She completed advanced clinical training through the University of Maryland system, the United States Naval Academy Midshipmen Development Center, and an APA-accredited internship at the University of California, Davis, with specialized training in sport psychology.
Dr. Garvin currently serves as Head Team Clinician and Mental Skills Specialist for the Detroit Lions and is the founder and owner of Elite Performance Psychology, a private practice dedicated to helping athletes, performers, teams, coaches, and organizations optimize performance while promoting psychological well-being.
Dr. Garvin previously served as Director of Clinical and Sport Psychology at the University of Maryland, where she developed and led a comprehensive, integrated clinical and sport psychology program for varsity student-athletes. Throughout her career, she has collaborated closely with physicians, athletic trainers, psychiatrists, physical therapists, coaches, and administrators to create multidisciplinary models of care that address both mental health and peak performance.
Her clinical and scholarly interests include athlete mental health, performance enhancement, injury recovery, leadership development, organizational culture, substance misuse prevention, and the integration of behavioral health into sports medicine.
Dr. Garvin has authored peer-reviewed publications and book chapters in sport psychiatry and sports medicine and is an invited speaker on topics including athlete mental health, psychological performance, resilience, leadership, and interdisciplinary models of care. She is licensed in Maryland and Michigan, holds PSYPACT Authority to Practice Interjurisdictional Telepsychology, serves on the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee Mental Health Registry, and is an approved mentor through the Association for Applied Sport Psychology.
Research/Clinical Keywords
athlete mental health, performance enhancement, injury recovery, leadership development
Highlighted Publications
McDuff, D., Garvin, M., Marsalis, R. (2025). Perspectives on Performance Anxiety in Young Athletes and Dancers. Sports Psychiatry, 4(3), 159–166. https://doi.org/10.1024/2674-0052/a000114
Garvin M, & McDuff D. “Sports Psychiatry for Lacrosse” in ISSP Manual for Sport Psychiatry edited by Glick I, Kamis D, & Stuhl T. Taylor & Francis, Oxford, UK (2018)
McDuff, D., Garvin, M., Thompson, D. “Substance Use and Substance Use Disorders” in Mental Health Care for Elite Athletes edited by Reardon, C. Springer Publishing (2022)
McDuff, D., Garvin, M., Chang, J., Thompson, D. (2023). Substance Misuse in Elite Athletes: Early detection, brief intervention and referral to treatment. Clinics in Sports Medicine DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.csm.2023.06.008
McDuff, D. R., Garvin, M. (2016). Working with sports organizations and teams. International Review of Psychiatry, Aug 9, 1-11. DOI: 1080/09540261.2016.1212820.