Dept. of Counseling & Clinical Psychology

1

STUDENT HANDBOOK (2004-2005):

CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY PROGRAM

DEPT. OF COUNSELING & CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY

TEACHERS COLLEGE, COLUMBIAUNIVERSITY

The facultywelcomes you to a new academic year and hope that it will be a productive, enjoyable, and enriching one.

There have been many exciting changes in the program over the past few years. New faculty have been hired (and we will be recruiting another new faculty member this current year); new courses have been added; and new forms of clinical interventions have been added to our curriculum, taking their place alongside those traditional psychodynamic forms that have served as the primary basis for our program for decades. Moreover, research, publications, and external funding have increased greatly among faculty and students. During this coming academic year, we welcome Professor Suniya Luthar into a program as a full-time faculty member.

We continue to be dedicated to training students to generate new knowledge in clinical psychology and to perform clinical work that is constantly informed by traditional and emerging scholarship in the field. We fully expect our students to learn to expertly analyze, discuss, and produce scholarly material, whether in the form of empirical research or theoretical exposition. We also expect our students to become proficient at providing clinical services to a diverse population. Most importantly, we expect our students to learn to integrate these two goals. As our new mission statement in the TC catalog notes, “The driving goal of our Clinical Psychology Program is to provide rigorous training in both contemporary clinical science and clinical assessment and intervention.”

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Becoming familiar with this Handbook and referring to it whenever you have questions about requirements and procedures will make life easier for you and for the faculty. Similarly, it is important that you keep the Handbook of the year that you enter the Program because, for the most part, those are the regulations under which you will go through the Program. The Handbook is modified each year in an attempt to be clearer and more helpful, as well as to incorporate any changes necessitated by decisions of the University, the College, APA, New YorkState, the Department, the Program, or our own Student-Faculty Liaison Committee.

Barry A. Farber, Director of Clinical Training

George Bonanno

Leah Lapidus (Emeritus)

Suniya Luthar (Joint appointment with Developmental Psychology)

Elizabeth Midlarsky, Coordinator of Masters Degree programs

Lisa Miller

Dinelia Rosa, Clinic Director

RoniBethTower

Rosalea A. Schonbar (Emeritus)

Table of Contents

Introduction 3

Faculty & Staff 5

Program Philosophy, Models, and Objectives 6

Evaluation of Student Competence 9

Sources of Regulation11

Helpful Hints13

Frequently Asked Questions15

Writing Papers17

Course and Grade Information20

Procedures for resolving conflicts; Policy re Ph.D. candidacy22

First Year Requirements24

Second Year Requirements27

Second Year Project30

Third Year Requirements33

Externship Guidelines35

Externship Eligibility Letter37

Tips on Preparing for the Research Exam39

Case Conference Requirements40

Fourth Year Requirements43

Fifth Year Requirements44

Dissertation Checklist45

Criteria for applying for Internship48

Program Options (Child Track; Neuropsych Track); Electives49

Useful Web Sites50

NY State Licensing Requirements (Courses)51

NY State Licensing Requirements (Clinical Experience)52

Determining Authorship Credit55

Documenting Clinical Work56

Ethical Principles of Psychologists65

On Violating Ethical Standards80

Guidelines on Multiculturalism for Psychologists83

Protection against Sexual Harassment 109

On writing papers good: Sum gidelinez 110

Introduction: An Overview to the College & the Program

We would like to provide you with an overview of the historical and structural context within which our program operates. Teachers College (TC) is ColumbiaUniversity’s Graduate School of Education. According to the TC Catalog, about one third of students here are in teacher preparation programs. The balance are planning careers in administration, policy, research, and teaching in fields ranging across education, health, and psychology. The College is accredited by the Middle States Association. It offers programs leading to masters and doctoral degrees in the areas of education, health, and psychology. There are no undergraduates at TC, a fact that affects greatly the nature of faculty responsibilities; that is, faculty at the College are dedicated exclusively to teaching graduate students. Teachers College has its own Board of Trustees, administrative officers, faculty, and budget. Whereas masters degrees are awarded by TC, the Ph.D. is technically awarded under the auspices of Columbia’s Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS). Only those Teachers College faculty members who are members of the GSAS faculty are eligible to sponsor dissertations and serve as readers at orals (Ph.D. defenses). All of ColumbiaUniversity’s facilities are open to TC students.

The current president of Teachers College is Arthur Levine, Ph.D., and the Dean is Darlyne Bailey, Ph.D. Dr. Erwin Flaxmanis currently serving as Ombudsperson. The president of ColumbiaUniversity is Lee Bollinger, Ph.D.

The Clinical Psychology Program was founded in 1947-1948. It was APA-accredited in the first group of programs that were reviewed for accreditation in 1948 and that status has been uninterrupted. In 1947-1948, TC had a functioning child guidance clinic (The Guidance Laboratory), focusing mainly on children with school and educational problems, under the directorship of Esther Lloyd-Jones. The appointment to the faculty of Laurance F. Shaffer marked the beginning of the specialty area “Clinical Psychology” within a department called “Psychological Services.” Professor Shaffer was the author of Psychology of Adjustment (1936) a seminal presentation of theory, research, and practice in clinical psychology as it then existed; this book was revised and updated many times by him and Professor E.J. Shoben Jr., who succeeded Professor Shaffer as clinical director. Shaffer also became President of APA. Carl Rogers and Albert Ellis were graduates of the early program in Psychological Services, and Virginia Axline, Chaim Ginott, Perry London, Rollo May, and Donald Spence were among the early graduates of the new Clinical Psychology program, as was Gordon Derner, who became one of its faculty members, later moving on to become Dean of the Gordon E. Derner Institute of Advanced Psychological Studies at Adelphi University. Another illustrious graduate was M. Powell Lawton, one of the originators of the field of geropsychology, who was also a founding editor of the APA journal, Psychology and Aging. In the early 1950’s the research for the NIMH-supported creation of a Code of Ethics was conducted at TC under the directorship of Nicholas Hobbs, a member of our program faculty, and also a later APA president. Sol Garfield (one of the co-editors of the many editions of the Handbook of Psychotherapy and Behavior Change) was Director of Clinical Training (DCT) of the program during much of the 1960s, succeeded in the late 1960s by Joel Davitz. Rosalea A. Schonbar was DCT of our program from 1970-1990; she also served a term during the 1970s (1976-1977) as president of the New York State Psychological Association (NYSPA). Since 1990, Barry Farber has been DCT.

Until 1996, Clinical Psychology was one department within a larger structure, the Division of Psychology and Education. When Dr. Arthur Levine was appointed president of the College in 1994, one of his goals was to simplify the structure of the College; toward this end, he abolished all Divisions and significantly reduced the number of departments in the College (from 17 to 9). Thus, the psychology programs in the College, all of which were part of the Division of Psychology and Education, were dispersed among several different new departments.

The Clinical Psychology Program and the Counseling Psychology Program are now part of a single organizational unit, the Department of Counseling and Clinical Psychology. Both Clinical and Counseling still retain their programmatic status and there are clearly identified faculty within each unit. The current Chair of this Department (as of 9/03) is Professor Madonna Constantine. The Director of Training in Counseling Psychology (as of 9/03) is Professor Marie Miville. Professor Barry A. Farber continues to serve as Director of Clinical Training.
Faculty and Staff

Core faculty in Clinical Psychology:

Professor Barry A. Farber, Director of Training

Professor George Bonanno

Professor Suniya Luthar (Joint Appt: Developmental Psychology)

Professor Elizabeth Midlarsky, Coordinator MA Program

Professor Lisa Miller

Professor Emeritus Rosalea A. Schonbar

Dr. Roni Beth Tower

Adjunct Teaching Faculty (Doctoral Program):

Dr. Jill Backfield (Clinical Assessment Sequence)

Dr. Ghislaine Boulanger (Dynamic Psychotherapy)

Dr. Clarissa Bullitt (Ethical & Professional Issues; Women & Mental Health)

Dr. Jesse Geller (Third Year Practicum)

Dr. Scott Kellogg (Assessment & Treatment of Alcohol & Chemical

Dependency)

Dr. Lisa Kentgen (Short-term Dynamic Psychotherapy; Child Practicum)

Dr. Jerome Kosseff (Introduction to Contemporary Psychoanalytic Thought)

Dr. Elizabeth Owen (Introduction to Forensic Psychology)

Dr. Billie Pivnick (Psychotherapy with Children)

Dr. Dinelia Rosa (Clinical Interviewing; Clinical Work with Diverse Populations, Fourth

Year Practicum)

Dr. Steven Reisner (The Evolution of Freud's Psychological Theories)

Dr. Helena Verdeli (Clinical Assessment with Children & Adolescents, Advanced CBT)

Dr. David Yourman (History & Systems)

Support Staff:

Ms. Jessica Berlin, Director of Academic Administration ("Office Manager")

Ms. Enrika Davis, Department Secretary

Ms. Ami Kantawala-Worah, Program Secretary, Counseling Psychology

Ms. Rebecca Shulevitz, Program Secretary, Clinical Psychology

Ms. Wendy Garay- Colon, Assistant Director, CEPS

Ms. Dahlia Warman, Clinical Fieldwork Coordinator

Program Philosophy, Model, and Objectives

The Clinical Psychology Program at Teachers College espouses a scholar-practitioner model of training. Our notion of a scholar-practitioner model of training is embedded in the statement on the cover of this document: We are "dedicated to training students to generate new knowledge in clinical psychology and to perform clinical work that is constantly informed by traditional and emerging scholarship in the field. We fully expect our students to learn to expertly analyze, discuss, and produce scholarly material, whether in the form of empirical research or theoretical exposition. We also expect our students to become proficient at providing clinical services to a diverse population. And most importantly, we expect our students to learn to integrate these two goals." Aspects of this model are also reflected in the statement in our Admissions brochure, "Information for Prospective Students": "We are committed to the belief that training as a Clinical Psychologist involves firm embeddedness in psychology itself with its body of knowledge and methods; exposure to the theories, knowledge, and ethical principles which form the basis and context of clinical practice; and finally, training in the methods of research and scholarship that advance the field of psychology" (p. 2).

We see the scholar-practitioner model of clinical training as consistent with the roles and functions that are articulated (for psychologists in general) in the preamble to the Ethical Principles of Psychologists (2002)--psychologist as “researcher, educator, diagnostician, therapist, supervisor, consultant, administrator, social interventionist, and expert witness.” This designation is also consistent with the traditional strengths of the program: equal weight placed on scholarship and practice; focus on a wide range of scholarship, including empirical studies, community projects, theory, and case reports; and significant faculty involvement in community and professional activities.

The primary objective of our program is to train clinical psychologists who are prepared for research and practice with a diverse population in a variety of settings and who are able to integrate the theoretical, research, and clinical aspects of their training.

More specifically, our objectives and aims include the following:

1. That students acquire and demonstrate a broad knowledge of psychology.

Students are required to take a series of courses that reflect core or foundational knowledge in psychology. Included in these requirements is at least one course in each of the following areas: Biological Basis of Behavior; Cognitive-Affective Basis of Behavior; Social Basis of Behavior; Individual Differences; Psychometrics; History and Systems; and Research Design, Methodology, and Statistics.

2. That students attain at least entry-level proficiency in clinical theory and practice.

This objective--which involves developing an understanding of dynamics and behavior, skill in listening, and having a rationale for when, if, and how to respond to clients--is implemented virtually constantly in the program, through coursework, supervision, practica, and case conferences. Our program emphasizes psychodynamic theory but also offers training (including supervision) in other modalities including CBT, IPT, and family therapy.

3. That students become proficient at research methods, able to think critically, evaluate research systematically, design and analyze empirical studies, and write up empirical reports in APA Style.

This objective is realized primarily through course work, research teams, and

one-on-one mentoring with faculty members on second-year projects and dissertations. Students are strongly encouraged to present their research at professional meetings as well as to publish their research in professional journals. Students are required, in their third year, to present their research at one of our in-house colloquia.

4. That students' clinical work be informed by traditional and developing scholarship--that is, that they are able to effectively integrate theory, research, and practice.

Virtually all our clinical courses include both theoretical and research-focused readings and many require papers that focus on the integration of theory, practice, and current research. Student presentations at case conference and colloquium (each required in the third year)explicitly require the integration of theory, practice, and research.

5. That students learn to apply their skills as scholar-practitioners with economically and ethnically diverse populations.

This objective is implemented as a result of students' participation, in their first three years in the program, in practica at our in-house Center for Psychological Services (CEPS). This clinic serves a remarkably diverse population, mostly drawn from the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The most recent demographic data collected indicate that 56.2% of the clients of the clinic are non-Hispanic white, with the remaining 43.8% primarily representing African-American and Hispanic individuals.

6. That students are socialized into the profession (including understanding and practicing the ethical principles of our field) and contribute to clinical psychology as a specialty discipline through scholarship and service.

In their first semester, students take a required course in Ethical and Professional Issues in which the ethical principles are discussed extensively. In this course, students are also exposed to the workings of the APA and local psychology organizations (e.g., New York State Psychological Association) and to the intricacies of the APA Publication Manual. In addition, students are required, during each semester of their first three years in the program, to attend our weekly Colloquium--a combination of research presentations (by faculty and students in our program, and by outside speakers), state-of-the-field presentations (e.g., Internship news; licensing requirements; recent legal issues affecting the field), program meetings (at which all faculty and students attend and address current concerns), student meetings, and student-faculty liaison meetings. Students are strongly encouraged to join APA and NYSPA as student affiliates and also strongly encouraged to join other organizations (e.g., Division 12 or 27; SEPI; SPR) that are consistent with individual interests.

FYI: The current (2004) APA president is Diane F. Halpern, Ph.D.

7. That students gain acceptance into first-quality, APA-approved internships.

Our students have been extremely successful in obtaining their top choices for internships--a reflection, we believe, of the talent of our students and the value of our program.

8. That students' dissertations are recognized by the university as research of the highest quality.

Our students consistently excel in their dissertation research, as reflected in the

extremely high percentage of "line one" (minor revisions) passes and in the high

numbers of our students who present their research at professional conferences and/or co-author journal articles based on their dissertations.
Evaluation of Student Competence

Our program, like all other doctoral programs in professional psychology, has an ethical obligation to determine the extent to which students adequately achieve our stated objectives and aims. We thus abide by the policy statement (below) developed in 2003 by the Student Competence Task Force of the Council of Chairs of Training Councils (CCTC), a consortium that includes representatives from CUDCP (Council of University Directors of Clinical Psychology Programs). This policy was developed in an attempt to be consistent with a range of oversight, professional, ethical, and licensure guidelines and procedures that are relevant to processes of training, practice, and the assessment of competence within professional psychology (e.g., Ethical Guidelines, 2002; Multicultural Competencies, 2002; Competencies Conference 2002; Guidelines and Procedures Committee on Accreditation, 2002: Association of State and Provincial Psychology Boards, 2003):

Professional psychologists are expected to demonstrate competence within and across a number of different but interrelated dimensions. Because programs that educate and train professional psychologists also strive to protect the public and profession, faculty, training staff, and supervisors in such programs have a legitimate and vested interest in the comprehensive evaluation of student competence to include multiple aspects of development and functioning (e.g., cognitive, emotional, psychological, interpersonal, technical, and ethical).

Not all students understand or appreciate that multiple aspects of their professional development and functioning (e.g., cognitive, emotional, psychological, interpersonal, technical, and ethical) will be evaluated throughout the process of education and training in professional psychology programs (e.g., doctoral, internship, postdoctoral). Such comprehensive evaluation is necessary in order for faculty, training staff, and supervisors to appraise the professional development and competence of their students. This policy language attempts to (a) disclose and make these expectations explicit for students at the outset of education and training, and (b) provide an opportunity for students to determine whether they do or do not wish to participate in such processes and experiences.

Students in psychology training programs (at the doctoral, internship, or postdoctoral level) should know--at the outset of training--that their faculty, training staff, and supervisors have a professional, ethical, and potentially legal obligation to: (a) evaluate the interpersonal competence and emotional well being of student trainees who are under their supervision, and who provide services to clients and consumers, and (b) ensure-insofar as possible-that the trainees who complete their programs are competent to manage future relationships (e.g., client, collegial, professional, public, scholarly, supervisory, teaching) in an effective and appropriate manner. Because of this commitment, professional psychology education and training programs, faculty, training staff, and supervisors strive not to "pass along" students with issues or problems (e.g., cognitive, emotional, psychological, interpersonal, technical, and ethical) that may interfere with professional competence to other programs, the profession, employers, or the public at large.