Clinical Science Concentration

The clinical science program in the Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences at the University of Delaware was established in 1968, has been continuously accredited by the American Psychological Association since 1975, and was accredited by the Psychological Clinical Science Accreditation System in 2011.

Our overall goal is to train clinical researchers who produce, apply, and disseminate scientific knowledge. We train clinical scientists who keep abreast of current theory and research and contribute to the knowledge base in clinical psychology.

Nature and goals of the program

We believe that research is an essential career commitment for those who seek and obtain the Ph.D., and students accepted into our program are expected to share that commitment. Students also learn evidence-based assessment and interventions for adults and children with psychological disorders, but students whose primary career goal is the direct practice of psychology would be more satisfied in a different training program.

The aim of the clinical science program is to provide a structured set of research and clinical experiences that will prepare students for a career in clinical science. Therefore, graduates of our program will be competent in designing, conducting, and evaluating psychological research, as well as in delivering empirically-supported psychological services.

Consistent with this orientation, our program is a member of the Academy of Psychological Clinical Science - a prestigious group of 68 university-based clinical training programs and 12 internship sites that share similar goals for their programs and for the training of future clinical psychologists.

An integrative approach to training

The program integrates science and practice, which is reflected in collaborative, translational research. Our faculty and students apply basic psychological theories and empirical findings to real-world clinical problems such as depression, anxiety, child maltreatment and trauma, aggression, and couples’ distress in cancer patients.

Our program’s training model is consistent with the vision of the Delaware Project. Specifically, we train students to emphasize continuity across a spectrum of research activities concerned with (a) basic mechanisms of psychopathology and behavior change, (b) intervention generation and refinement, (c) intervention efficacy and effectiveness, and (d) implementation and dissemination. 

Research with faculty mentors

Faculty members maintain visible and well-funded research programs. Much of this work is interdisciplinary, including collaborative projects with scholars in medical schools, universities, educational systems, and community agencies in the surrounding area. Members of the clinical faculty have been active in national, state, and local organizations concerned with advancing psychological knowledge; have played leadership roles in national organizations (e.g., the Academy for Clinical Psychological Science, the Delaware Project); and serve on many journal editorial boards, grant review study sections at the National Institute of Mental Health, and national task forces.

Funding

Funding is robust and drawn from multiple sources, including a Centers of Biomedical Research Excellence (COBRE) grant from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences, National Institutes of Health, plus individual investigator grants from the National Institute of Mental Health, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse & Alcoholism, National Institute of Child Health & Human Development, among numerous other federal and private sources.

Mentor-based training

Students work closely with faculty advisors who mentor them throughout their graduate career. Students often work with more than one faculty member. Faculty mentors provide training in research techniques, scholarly knowledge, and written and oral communication skills that enable students to become successful independent researchers. Students publish research findings in prominent journals; present them at national meetings; develop teaching skills; and write grant applications. These experiences, and others, have helped our graduate students win numerous awards and prepared them for successful research in academia, government, or industry.

Collaborations

All provide training in evidence-based practice. Our faculty members also have research collaborations with the University of Pennsylvania Center for the Treatment and Study of Anxiety, the Helen F. Graham Cancer Center, the State of Delaware Department of Children, Youth, and Families, Head Start Centers, A. I. duPont Hospital for Children, a network of social service agencies in Philadelphia, and area schools.