Professor John Wu: Master of Marriage and Family Psychology and Yo-yo

Known for his engaging teaching style and genuine connections with students, Point Loma Nazarene University Professor of psychology John Wu has authored books on parenting, served on multiple academic committees and as a counseling psychologist. His talent with the yo-yo binds these passions and accomplishments.

Wu double-majored in psychology and information and computer science at University of California, Irvine, and earned his degrees in 1987. The following year, he went on to do his master’s in psychology from Harvard University.

He was interested in the possibility of pursuing either psychology and computer science, but decided to continue with only psychology.

Wu chose to study psychology because he felt that’s where he could serve God the most. 

He said, “My counselor wasn’t a Christian but knew I was, so he asked me, ‘What career path do you feel you would serve God most in?’ That really stuck with me.” 

In 1992, he earned his doctorate degree in counseling and consulting psychology from Harvard,  with a focus on the relationship between ethnic identity and achievement motivation in Chinese and Filipino Americans. 

He became a licensed psychologist in both Massachusetts and California by 1996. 

A tenured professor of psychology at PLNU since 2001, Wu has held several leadership roles including assessment coordinator and department chair of the Psychology Department, while also teaching courses in developmental psychology and family therapy. 

He has contributed to 12 different academic committees, earned teaching awards and provided counseling services in his own private practice for couples until 2020. 

Wu was awarded the PLNU Excellence in Teaching Award for the years 2018-19. He also worked as a counseling psychologist at Northeastern University from 1991-1994 and University of California, San Diego from 1994 to 2001.

When Wu got accepted into graduate school for both computer science and psychology, he had to choose which he expressed was a hard decision but chose psychology.

Aside from his duties of teaching, the professor has a unique talent: yo-yoing.

This passion began when Wu’s sons picked up the hobby in elementary school. According to Elena Bunney, a fourth-year psychology major, Wu often has a yo-yo in hand, doing tricks during his classes. 

The yo-yo master emphasized how passionate and driven he is to stay involved with the things he loves.  

“The reason I love yo-yo so much is because it was initially something that bonded my son and I,” he said. “We both had fun looking at different yo-yos and learning new things. Now I still play with it.” 

Bunney said Wu’s yo-yoing keeps his classes interesting. 

“Dr. Wu’s passion for yo-yo keeps class fun [and] engaged; getting to see his newest trick is always exciting for the whole class,” Bunney said via text message.

Maddy Nafarrate, a third-year psychology major and another of Wu’s students, said she wishes she had the passion he has for the yo-yo in general. 

“His passion for yo-yo is something that I strive to have,” she said via text message. “He is extremely committed to what he loves and I think that is such a valuable possession within oneself.” 

Grace DiLorenzo, a fourth-year psychology major, said she gets excited hearing about Wu’s love for the yo-yo.

“I love when Dr. Wu becomes so excited about the new yo-yos and moments he has shared with his son and when he describes this to our class,” DiLorenzo said. 

Wu has published work named after his passion for the yo-yo that highlights his experience parenting and gives psychologically backed advice from his studies on how to succeed in a relationship. In his first book, “The Yoyo Dad’s Journal: Raising Emotionally Healthy Kids in an Up and Down World,” and his second, “Yoyo Dad 2: Dating Well in an Up and Down World,” he gives advice based off his own knowledge and experiments on how to succeed in parenting and dating. 

His website, Yoyo Dad, has links to his books and videos of his and his sons’ yo-yo talent. 

He said that his books on dating and parenting were written so that he could advise his kids and others with his knowledge. He also co-wrote “Yoyo Dad 2” with a past student, Natasha E. Wright, who he holds close to his heart and she is now a clinical psychologist with a private practice as well. 

Bunney said Wu’s teaching style reflects the care and passion he has for psychology and his students. 

“Wu teaches with intentionality and passion, which instills deeper meaning behind the study of psychology as a whole,” Bunney said. “It is evident he instructs from a place of passion and care for his students and a desire to see them succeed. His storytelling and humor helps students really comprehend the material and stay engaged.” 

Nafarrate said Wu inspires her to take her passions and capitalize on what pursuing them could do for her future career. 

“Wu inspires me because he is so knowledgeable, patient and relatable,” she said. “His passion for psychology really drives his teaching methods because he really integrates himself with what he has learned.”

 DiLorenzo said she admires how Wu cares deeply about what he is teaching and the people he is teaching it to. 

“He creates an environment in which students are inspired, encouraged and given the skills to learn how to live a flourishing lives,” she said. “He keeps the entire class engaged. Dr. Wu is approachable, extremely intelligent, purposeful, and he teaches from a place of humility. I am so thankful to have [him] as a professor.”