Department: Human Services
Programs: Clinical Psychology, School Psychology
Instructor Modifier Number: 2784
434-924-0795- pls@virginia.edu
Ruffner Hall 147D, Charlottesville, Virginia
I have been interested in the lives of adolescents and their families for as long as I can remember. Over the many years I have been at UVA I have worked with teenagers as clinical populations, consulted with parents of teens and treated their families, and have conducted research on parenting, couple and family relationships and the impactstress and violence. I have worked in the area of crisis intervention in schools, in families and in communities. It is my belief that reasearch and clinical practice go hand in hand to create a world for children and families where they can feel safe, loved and nurtured. The University of Virginia, the Department of Human Services, and the Curry Programs in Clinical and School Psychology have been the perfect place for me to work and teach and I am honored to have spent much of my career here.
Education
- Ph.D., Princeton University, 1973
- M.A., Princeton University, 1972
- B.A., Yale University, 1970
Research Interests
My current research is focussed in a few projects.
1. YOUTH VIOLENCE
The Virginia Youth Violence Project has provided a place for us to conduct research on bullying, school violence and school climate. In partnership with the state department of juvenile justice and the department of education we have been able to collect data examining factor which influence students erceptions of safety and support.
2. ADOLESCENT PARENTING STRESS
For over ten years I have researched the stresses experienced by parents trying the raise adolescent children. With the development of the Stress Index for Parents of Adolescent (SIPA) we have been able to examine facotrs which create the expereince of stress in parents and how such experiences may be ameliorated.
3. COUPLES FUNCTIONING
We have developed a model for treating couples based on the examination of four major task in healthy relationships. We currently have been developing instrumentation to measure these factors and measurments of effective treatment for people in relationships.