Therapy and assessment services in the UCLA Psychology Clinic are provided by graduate students in the Clinical Psychology Ph.D. program. Each student is supervised closely by a supervisor who has expertise related to a client’s most important concerns or questions.
Below are some of the UCLA faculty who supervise in our Clinic:
Denise Chavira, Ph.D.
Dr. Chavira’s research and practice interests focus on children with anxiety, Latino mental health and improving access to empirically supported treatments for diverse populations. She has published extensively on cultural factors in Latino mental health, cognitive-behavioral treatments for anxiety, and increasing the accessibility of mental health care. Dr. Chavira supervises child and adolescent therapy at the UCLA Psychology Clinic.
Bruce Chorpita, Ph.D.
Dr. Chorpita is an internationally recognized advocate and researcher for effective mental health treatments for children and adolescents. He has led large-scale training and system improvement initiatives in hundreds of health care systems and public school systems across the US and around the world. His work in improving the effectiveness of mental health care in the Hawaii state system earned him awards from the Hawaii Psychological Association, the Hawaii Board of Regents, and Governor Linda Lingle. More recently, for his work in developing effective practice models throughout California, he was awarded the Distinguished Scientific Achievement in Psychology Award by the California Psychological Association. Dr. Chorpita has published nearly 200 research articles related to effective mental health care for children and adolescents, and along with Dr. John Weisz from Harvard University, he co-developed of one of the most effective treatment programs for children with anxiety, depression, or disruptive behavior problems. He has provided clinical training to child psychologists and social workers all over the world, including thousands of providers working in Los Angeles, and he regularly presents to parent groups, health care providers, health system administrators, and other research scientists. He trains the graduate students of the UCLA psychology program in state-of-the-art practices for children and adolescents, and he supervises child and adolescent therapy at the UCLA Psychology Clinic.
Andrew Christensen, Ph.D.
Dr. Christensen is the co-developer of Integrative Behavioral Couple Therapy, an empirically supported intervention for couples, and has authored two influential books about couple therapy for the public and for treatment providers. He is a leading researcher in the field of couple conflict and couple therapy. Currently he is heading a major effort to train therapists in the US Department of Veteran’s Affairs in his approach to couple therapy. Dr. Christensen supervises many of the couple therapy cases at the UCLA Psychology Clinic.
Danielle Keenan-Miller, Ph.D.
Dr. Keenan-Miller is the Director of the UCLA Psychology Clinic. Her area of clinical expertise is evidence-based treatments for mood disorders in children, adolescents, and adults. She is also actively involved in research on best practices in training and supervision. Dr. Keenan-Miller supervises adult individual and group therapy at the UCLA Psychology Clinic.
Anna Lau, Ph.D.
Dr. Lau is an expert in the field of cultural issues in mental health and therapy, particularly in the area of mental health care for immigrant families. She has published extensively on the ways in which culture and parent-child relationship problems impact children’s mental health needs and their response to therapy. She also studies the ways in which evidence-based treatments for youth and families can be most effectively implemented in culturally diverse communities. Dr. Lau supervises child and adolescent therapy at the UCLA Psychology Clinic.
Lara Ray, Ph.D.
Dr. Ray’s area of expertise is in the causes and treatment of substance use disorders, particularly alcohol abuse and dependence. Her extensive program of research has investigated both pharmacological and psychotherapeutic interventions for addiction. She also serves as the co-director of the Addiction and Behavioral Medicine Clinic at the UCLA Les Kelley Family Health Center. Dr. Ray supervises individual adult therapy at the UCLA Psychology Clinic.
Philip Sayegh, Ph.D., MPH
Dr. Sayegh is a neuropsychologist and the Associate Director of the UCLA Psychology Clinic who coordinates the Clinic’s neuropsychological, psychoeducational, and psychological assessments. His primary area of clinical expertise is in assessment, with a specialization in both neuropsychology and geropsychology. In addition to assessment, he is also trained to provide and supervise empirically-supported treatments, such as Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy, for mood disorders in adults and older adults. He continues to engage in research broadly focused on the intersection of culture, neuromedical illnesses, neurocognition, and care-seeking and other health behaviors, with a particular interest in health disparities. Dr. Sayegh currently supervises assessments at the UCLA Psychology Clinic.
Jill Waterman, Ph.D.
Dr. Waterman is an expert on adoption and is the Director of Infant Mental Health at TIES For Families, a program to promote the successful adoption and development of children with special needs in foster care. She was involved in the development of ADAPT, an adoption-specific empirically supported treatment for children and families. She has also published three books and many articles on child sexual abuse and child trauma. Dr. Waterman supervises individual child and adult cases at the UCLA Psychology Clinic.