Biographical & Educational Background:
I was born and raised in Johannesburg, South Africa. I earned my B.A. (2000) from Weber State University in Utah, majoring in Psychology and minoring in Philosophy. I then earned my M.A. (2004) and Ph.D. (2007) in Clinical Psychology from Northern Illinois University.

Clinical Background:
Clinical Psychology is an area of psychology dealing with chronic and/or severe mental illness. Clinical psychologists provide psychotherapy and conduct intellectual, psychological, and diagnostic assessments. My clinical interests are in the areas of anxiety disorders, mood disorders, drug and alcohol addictions, domestic violence, and forensic assessment.

Teaching:
I teach undergraduate classes such as Introduction to General Psychology, Human Diversity, and internship/practicum. I teach graduate courses such as Introduction to Psychotherapeutic Interventions, Group Therapy, Personality Assessment, and Research Practicum.

Research:
My current research involves the use of fictional narratives (e.g., stories, movies) to reduce symptoms of anxiety in clinical settings, and to generally facilitate the learning process in college settings.
I am involved in a project to develop a more effective way of predicting violent behavior (self-harm and other-harm). In addition, I am investigating collecting behavior (e.g., coins, dolls, stamps, memorabilia).

Please click here and take my 5-minute survey on collecting!