PROGRAM PHILOSOPHY

Miami’s APA-accredited clinical psychology program is grounded in a pluralistic philosophy and is supported by a faculty with diverse theoretical orientations. A description of the pluralistic model appears in Teaching of Psychology (Pluralistic Education: A modular Curriculum in Clinical Psychology, 19:211-219, 1992). The training is also influenced by the Boulder Model, in which both scholarship and practice are emphasized. The program offers a broad education for the profession, assuming that clinical psychologists must be prepared to engage in a broad range of activities.

Our program has identified three areas of strengths upon which we plan to continue building in our recruitment of graduate students and future hiring of new faculty. These areas and their associated faculty are: a) trauma and resilience (Wright, Raval, Messman-Moore, Kerig); b) psychotherapy and psychotherapy research (Stiles, Leitner, Knudson); c) children, schools, and communities (Schilling, Paternite, Rubin, Raval, Green, Flaspohler, Kerig). In addition, an interest in philosophy, methodology, and epistemology pervades the program.

Our program gives students the skills and knowledge they will need to keep abreast of, and contribute to, developments in the profession. Students are actively involved in research throughout the program. In addition to completing research projects for their master’s thesis and doctoral dissertation, many students participate in a variety of research groups. Given the diverse make-up and interests of the faculty, there are research opportunities in both quantitative and qualitative methods.

Students also develop expertise in psychological intervention. Under our pluralistic philosophy, students have the opportunity to choose from a wide variety of clinical practica, including psychodynamic, cognitive-behavioral, interpersonal, bio-psycho-social, client-centered, personal construct, archetypal, and developmental psychopathology approaches to psychotherapy and assessment. Most practica are taught by clinical faculty and use the department’s in-house training clinic, serving Miami students and the Oxford community.