 McCarty stepped down from the position of provost on June 30, 2014; he joined the Vanderbilt Psychology Department faculty after a yearlong leave.Much of McCarty's research has centered on behavioral and physiological adaptations to stress, and he has written more than 30 chapters and 150 articles for various publications.In addition, McCarty served as the editor of "American Psychologist" and was the founding editor-in-chief of "Stress".