Clinical Child Psychology Program
ERIC M. VERNBERG
EmailProfessor
Clinical Child Psychology Program,
Director, KU Child and Family Services Clinic
University of Kansas
Ph.D. from University of Virginia
Predoctoral Internship in Clinical Psychology at Children's Hospital National Medical Center, Washington, D.C. Board Certified in Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology (ABPP)
Research Interests
My research program involves applying and advancing psychological science to solve real world problems faced by children, adolescents, and their families. I am committed to generating knowledge that can be used to guide treatment and preventive interventions, and have become increasingly involved in developing, implementing, and evaluating research-guided interventions delivered in community settings. My research activities focus on three areas:
- Psychological impact of terrorism, disasters, and violence on children and adolescents
- Peer relationships, including friendship development and bully-victim-bystander problems
- Development and dissemination of evidence-based clinical interventions for children and adolescents.
Within all of these areas, I work from an evidence-based developmentally oriented framework known as developmental psychopathology. This framework requires an understanding of multiple forces that shape children’s adaptation and development, ranging from molecular, biological processes to cultural and societal factors. Knowledge derived from more basic lines of inquiry must be integrated into a more comprehensive view of normal and abnormal child development, which is one of the reasons I appreciate and value collaboration with colleagues from developmental, cognitive, and quantitative psychology. For example, one of the major challenges facing developmental psychopathology is to understand more fully the linkages between social context factors, which are external to the individual, and internal features such as patterns of information processing and physiological responses. These internal features are proposed to be important “mechanisms” in the emergence and progression of psychopathology. Social context factors, such as exposure to trauma or quality of caregiver-child relationships, are believed to influence the emergence of these internal mechanisms. Conversely, internal mechanisms are thought to shape the developing child’s social context by influencing the child’s responses to environmental events, which in turn affect social interactions and experiences. In keeping with this conceptual framework, my research includes several core themes and objectives: (1) mechanisms causing or maintaining dysfunction are specified and measured (e.g., knowledge structures such as attitudes towards violence), (2) interventions target these mechanisms. (3) outcomes are measured robustly, (4) social context and co-morbidity are important considerations in implementation and outcome, and must be measured carefully.
Second, data collection in these complex projects is often time-consuming, labor intensive, and expensive, often taking years to complete. My overall program of research is geared towards prospective, or mixed retrospective-longitudinal, designs to study specific processes that contribute to dysfunction and well-being during childhood, adolescence, and later life. These longitudinal research projects involve participants in community settings, such as the home, neighborhood, and school, which necessarily introduces less control and more complexity. I risk this research approach because the continued development of clinical child psychology as a science-based endeavor depends both on empirically-supported conceptual models of factors that influence psychopathology or dysfunction and evidence for the effectiveness of interventions based on these models.
Publications, Organized by Research Topic
Psychological Impact of Terrorism, Disasters, and Violence on Children and Adolescents
Allen, B., Brymer, M. J, Steinberg, A. M., Vernberg, E. M., Jacobs, A. K., Speier, A. H., & Pynoos, R. S. (2010). Perceptions of Psychological First Aid among providers responding to Hurricanes Gustav and Ike. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 23, 509-513.
Felix, E., Vernberg, E. M., Pfefferbaum, R., Gill, D. C., Schorr, J., Boudreaux, A., Gurwitch, R. H., Galea, S., & Pfefferbaum, B. (2010). Schools in the shadow of terrorism: Psychosocial adjustment and interest in interventions following terror attacks. Psychology in the Schools, 47, 592-605.
Varela, R. E., Hensley, L.S., &Vernberg, E. M. (2010). Social and community responses: Assessing relationships among environmental supports in child and caregiver adjustment following a hurricane. In R. P. Kilmer, V. Gil-Rivas, R. G. Tedeschi, &L. G. Calhoun (Eds.), Meeting the needs of children, families, and communities post-disaster: Lessons learned from Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath (pp. 193-213) Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association.
Rohrbach, L.A., Grana, R., Vernberg, E., Sussman, S., & Sun, P. (2009).Impact of Hurricane Rita on adolescent substance use.Psychiatry: Interpersonal and Biological Processes, 72, 222-237.
Brymer, M. J.,Steinberg, A. M., Vernberg, E. M.,.Layne, C. M, Watson, P. J., Jacobs, A. K., Ruzek, J. I., & Pynoos,R. S. (2009). Acute interventions for children and adolescents exposed to trauma. In E. Foa, T. Keane, M. Friedman, & J. Cohen (Eds.), Effective treatments for PTSD: Practice guidelines from the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies(2nd Ed, pp. 106-116). New York: Guilford.
Vernberg, E. M., Steinberg, A. M., Jacobs, A. K., Brymer, M. J., Watson, P. J., Osofsky, J. D., Layne, C. M., Pynoos, R. S., & Ruzek, J. I. (2008). Innovations in disaster mental health: Psychological first aid. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 39, 381-388.
Jacobs, A. K., Vernberg, E., & Lee, S. J. (2008). Supporting adolescents exposed to disasters. Prevention Researcher, 15 (3), 7-10.
Vernberg, E. M., & Jacobs, A. K. (2008).Psychological first aid, child and adolescent. In G. Reyes, J. D. Elhai, & J. D. Ford (Eds.), The encyclopedia of psychological trauma (pp.537-539). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.
Ruzek, J. I., Brymer, M. J., Jacobs, A. K., Layne, C. M., Vernberg, E. M., & Watson, P. J. (2007). Psychological first aid. Journal of Mental Health Counseling, 29, 17-49. National Child Traumatic Stress Network and National Center for Posttraumatic Stress (2006). Psychological first aid: Field operations guide (2nd Edition). [Authors in alphabetical order: Melissa Brymer, Chris Layne, Anne Jacobs, Robert Pynoos, Josef Ruzek, Alan Steinberg, Eric Vernberg, & Patricia Watson]. Available at www.NCTSNet.org and www.ncptsd.va.gov
Anthony, J. L., Lonigan, C. J., Vernberg, E., Silverman, W., La Greca, A., & Prinstein, M. (2005). Multisample cross-validation of a model of childhood posttraumatic stress disorder symptomotology. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 18, 667-676.
Varela, R. E., Vernberg, E. M., Sanchez-Sosa, J. J., Riveros, A., Mitchell, M., & Mashunkashey, J. (2004). Parenting practices of Mexican, Mexican American, and European American families: Social context and cultural influences. Journal of Family Psychology, 18, 651-657.
Varela, R. E., Vernberg, E. M., Sanchez-Sosa, J. J., Riveros, A., Mitchell, M., & Mashunkashey, J. (2004). Anxiety reporting and culturally associated interpretation biases and cognitive schemas: A comparison of Mexican, Mexican American, and European American families. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 33, 237-247..
La Greca, A. M., Silverman, W. K., Vernberg, E. M., & Roberts, M. C. (Eds.). (2002). Helping children cope with disasters and terrorism. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. [Book]
Vernberg, E. M. (2002). Intervention approaches following disasters. In A. M. La Greca, W. K. Silverman, E. M. Vernberg, & M. C. Roberts (Eds.), Helping children cope with disasters and terrorism (pp. 55-72). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
La Greca, A. M., Silverman, W. K., Vernberg, E. M., & Roberts, M. C. (2002). Children and disasters: Future directions for research, service delivery, and public policy. In A. M. La Greca, W. K. Silverman, E. M. Vernberg, & M. C. Roberts (Eds.), Helping children cope with disasters: Integrating research and practice. (pp. 405-423). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Vernberg, E.M., & Varela, R.E. (2001). Posttraumatic stress disorder: A developmental perspective. In M.W. Vasey & M.R. Dadds (Eds.), The developmental psychopathology of anxiety (pp. 386-406). New York: Oxford University Press.
Vernberg, E.M., & Twemlow, S.W. (2000). Profiling potentially violent youths: Comments and Observations. Children’s Services: Social Policy, Research, and Practice, 3, 171-173.
Vernberg, E.M. (1999). Children's responses to disasters: Family and systems approaches. In R. Gist & B. Lubin (Eds.), Response to disaster: Psychosocial, ecological, and community approaches(pp. 193-209). New York: Taylor and Francis.
Vernberg, E.M., & Varela, R.E. (1998). Impact of disasters. In G.P. Koocher, J.C. Norcross, & S.S. Hill (Eds.), The psychologist's desk reference (pp. 298-302). Oxford, Great Britain: Oxford University Press.
Grimes, T., Vernberg, E.M., & Cathers, T. (1997).Emotionally disturbed children's responses to violent movie sequences.Journal of Health Communication, 2, 157-168.
Vernberg, E.M., La Greca, A.M., Silverman, W.K., & Prinstein, M.J. (1996).Prediction of posttraumatic stress symptoms in children after Hurricane Andrew.Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 105, 237-248.
La Greca, A.M., Silverman, W.K., Vernberg, E.M., & Prinstein, M.J. (1996). Symptoms of posttraumatic stress in children following Hurricane Andrew: A prospective study. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 64, 712-723.
Prinstein, M.J., La Greca, A.M., Vernberg, E.M., & Silverman, W.K. (1996). Children's coping assistance: How parents, teachers, and friends help children cope after a natural disaster. Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 25, 463-475.
La Greca, A. M., Vernberg, E. M., Silverman, W. K., Vogel, A., & Prinstein, M. (1995). [Japanese version of Helping Children Prepare For and Cope with Natural Disasters] Helping children.Tokyo, Japan: Ashi.
La Greca, A. M., Vernberg, E.M., Silverman, W.K., Vogel, A.L., & Prinstein, M.J. (1994). Helping children prepare for and cope with natural disasters: A manual for professionals working with elementary school children. Miami, FL: Author.
Vernberg, E.M. (1994). Evaluating the effectiveness of school-based interventions after large-scale disasters: An achievable goal? Child, Youth, and Family Services Quarterly, 17 (3), 11-13.
Vernberg, E. M., & Vogel, J. (1993).Interventions with children following disasters.Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 22, 485-498.
Vogel, J. M., &Vernberg, E. M. (1993). Children’s responses to disasters. Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 22, 468-484.
Peer Relationships, including Friendship Development and Bully-Victim- Bystander Problems
Vernberg, E. M., & Biggs, B. K. (Eds.) (2010) Preventing and Treating Bullying and Victimization.OxfordUniversity Press.[Book]
Vernberg, E. M., & Biggs, B. K. (2010). Preventing and treating bullying and victimization: An evidence-based approach. In E. M. Vernberg & B. K. Biggs (Eds.), Preventing and treating bullying and victimization (pp. 3-16).New York: OxfordUniversity Press.
Biggs, B. K., &Vernberg, E. M. (2010). Preventing and treating bullying and victimization: Best practices and future directions. In E. M. Vernberg & B. K. Biggs (Eds.), Preventing and treating bullying and victimization.(pp. 337-355). New York: OxfordUniversity Press.
Biggs, B. K., Vernberg, E. M., Fonagy, P., Twemlow, S. W., Little, T. D., & Dill, E. J. (2010). Peer victimization trajectories and their association with children’s affect in late elementary school. International Journal of Behavioral Development., 34, 136-146.
Twemlow, S. W.,Vernberg, E. M., Fonagy, P., Biggs, B. K., Nelson, J. M., Nelson, T. D., &Sacco, F. C. (2010). A school climate intervention that reduces bullying by a focus on the bystander audience rather than the bully and victim: The Peaceful Schools Project of the Menninger Clinic and Baylor College of Medicine. InS. R. Jimerson, S. M. Swearer, D. L. Espelage (Eds),The International Handbook of School Bullying(pp. 365-375). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.
Fonagy, P., Twemlow, S. W., Vernberg, E. M., Nelson, J. M., Dill, E. J., Little, T. D., & Sargent, J. A. (2009). A cluster randomized controlled trial of child-focused psychiatric consultation and a school systems-focused intervention to reduce aggression. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry.
Champion, K. M., Vernberg, E. M., & Shipman, K. (2003). Non-bullying victims of bullies: aggression, social skills, and friendship characteristics. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 24, 535-551.
Twemlow, S. W., Fonagy, P., Sacco, F. C., & Vernberg, E. M. (2002). Assessing adolescents who threaten homicide in schools. American Journal of Psychoanalysis, 62, 213-235.
Twemlow, S. W., Fonagy, P., Sacco, F. C., O'Toole, M. E., & Vernberg, E. M. (2002). Premeditated mass shootings in schools: Threat assessment. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 41, 475-477.
Prinstein, M.J., Boergers, J., & Vernberg, E.M. (2001). Overt and relational aggression in adolescents: Social-psychological adjustment of aggressors and victims. Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 30, 479-491.
Roberts, J.C., Bernard, M.U., Roberts, M.C., Moore, W.V., Vernberg, E.M., Grunt, J.A., Howard, C.P., & Schwartz, I.D. (2000).Mediators of psychological adjustment in children and adolescents with short stature. In B. Stabler & B.B. Bercu (Eds.), Therapeutic outcomes of endocrine disorders: Efficacy, innovation, and quality of life (pp. 119-130). New York: Springer-Verlag.
Vernberg, E. M., Jacobs, A.K., & Hershberger, S.L. (1999). Peer victimization and attitudes about violence during early adolescence. Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 28, 386-395.
Vernberg, E.M., & Randall, C.J. (1997).Homesickness after relocation during early adolescence. In M. Van Tilburg & A. Vingerhoets (Eds.), Home is where the heart is: The psychological aspects of permanent and temporary geographical moves (pp. 165-180). Tilburg, TheNetherlands: TilburgUniversity Press.
Vernberg, E. M., Ewell, K. K., Beery, S. H., Freeman, C., & Abwender, D. A. (1995). Aversive exchanges with peers and adjustment during early adolescence: Is disclosure helpful? Child Psychiatry and Human Development, 26, 43-59.
Vernberg, E. M., Ewell, K. K., Beery, S. H., & Abwender, D. A. (1994). Sophistication of adolescents' interpersonal negotiation strategies and friendship formation after relocation: A naturally occurring experiment. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 3, 3-14.
Vernberg, E. M., Beery, S. H., Abwender, D. A. & Ewell, K. K. (1993). Parents' use of friendship facilitation strategies and the formation of new friendships in early adolescence: A prospective study. Journal of Family Psychology ,7, 250-263.
Vernberg, E. M., Abwender, D. A., Ewell, K. K., & Beery, S. H. (1992). Social anxiety and peer relationships in early adolescence: A prospective analysis. Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 21, 189-196.
Vernberg, E. M. (1990). Psychological adjustment and experiences with peers during early adolescence: Reciprocal, incidental, or unidirectional relationships. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 11, 187-198.
Vernberg, E. M., & Field, T. (1990). Transitional stress in children and adolescents moving to new environments. In S. Fisher & C. L. Cooper (Eds.), On the move: The psychology of change and transition (pp. 127-151). Chichester, England: John Wiley & Sons.
Vernberg, E. M. (1990). Experiences with peers following relocation during early adolescence. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 60, 466-472.
Wilcox, B. L., &Vernberg, E. M. (1985). Conceptual and theoretical dilemmas facing social support research. In I. Sarason & B. G. Sarason (Eds.), Social support: Theory. research. and applications (pp. 3-20). Dordrecht, TheNetherlands: Martinus Nijhof.
Linney, J. A., &Vernberg, E. M. (1983). Changing patterns of parental employment and the family-school relationship. In C. Hayes & S. Kammerman (Eds.), Children of working parents: Experiences and outcomes (pp. 73-99). Washington, D.C.: National Academy Press.
Development and dissemination of evidence-based clinical interventions for children and adolescents.
Powell, J. L., Hunter, H. L., Beasley, L. O., &Vernberg, E. M. (2010).Using fine-grained indices of therapists’ experience and training to predict treatment outcomes in a university-based training clinic for children and families.Training and Education in Professional Psychology, 4, 138-144.
Boles, R. E., Roberts, M. C., & Vernberg, E. M. (in press). Treating non-retentive encopresis with rewarded scheduled toilet visits. Behavior Analysis in Practice.
Randall, C. J., &Vernberg, E. M. (2008). Evidence-based treatment for children with serious emotional disturbance. In R G. Steele, T. D. Elkins, & M. C. Roberts (Eds.), Handbook of evidence based therapies for children and adolescents. Bridging Science and Practice (pp. 389-408). New York: Springer.
Varela, R. E., Vernberg, E. M., Sanchez-Sosa, J. J., Riveros, A., Mitchell, M., & Mashunkashey, J. (2004). Parenting practices of Mexican, Mexican American, and European American families: Social context and cultural influences. Journal of Family Psychology, 18, 651-657.
Varela, R. E., Vernberg, E. M., Sanchez-Sosa, J. J., Riveros, A., Mitchell, M., & Mashunkashey, J. (2004). Anxiety reporting and culturally associated interpretation biases and cognitive schemas: A comparison of Mexican, Mexican American, and European American families. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 33, 237-247.
Vernberg, E. M., & Dill, E. J. (2003) Research methods for developmental psychopathology. In M. C. Roberts & S. S. Ilardi (Eds.), Methods of research in clinical psychology: A handbook. (pp. 213-231). Oxford, U.K.: Blackwell.
Nyre, J., Vernberg, E. M., & Roberts, M. C. (2003).Serving the most severe of serious emotionally disturbed students in school settings.In M. D. Weist, S. Evans, &N. Tashman (Eds.), Handbook of school mental health (pp. 203-222).New York: Kluwer Academic Press.
Vernberg, E. M., Roberts, M. C., & Nyre, J. E. (2002). School-based intensive mental health treatment. In D.T. Marsh & M. Fristad (Eds.), Handbook of serious emotional disturbance in children and adolescents. (pp. 412-427). New York: John Wiley & Sons.
Vernberg, E.M., & Jacobs, A. K. (2001).Methods of research in developmental psychopathology and treatment effectiveness. In C.E. Walker & M.C. Roberts (Eds.), Handbook of clinical child psychology (3rd Edition) (pp. 34-47). New York: John Wiley & Sons.
Vernberg, E.M., & Pavon, A. (2000). Parenting emotionally-disturbed children. In M.J. Fine & S.W. Lee (Eds.), Handbook of diversity in parent education: The changing faces of parenting and parent education (pp. 213-229). New York: Academic Press.
Roberts, M.C., Vernberg, E.M., & Jackson, Y. (2000).Psychotherapy with children and families. In C.R. Synder & R. E. Ingram (Eds.), Handbook of psychological change: Psychotherapy processes and practices for the 21st Century (pp. 500-519). New York: John Wiley & Sons.
Vernberg, E. M. (1998). Developmentally-based psychotherapies: Comments and observations. Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 27, 46-48.
Vernberg, E. M., Routh, D. K., & Koocher, G. (1992). The future of psychotherapy with children: Developmental psychotherapy. Psychotherapy, 29, 82-90.
Vernberg, E. M., & Reppucci, N. D. (1986). Behavioral consultation. In F. Manino, E. Trickett, M. Shore, M. Kidder, & G. Levin (Eds.), Handbook on mental health consultation (pp. 49-80). Washington, D.C.: Department of Health and Human Services.
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