This story was originally published in the 2024 edition of Discovery magazine, the College of Science's publication. This edition of Discovery celebrated the 20th anniversary of the College of Science.
In January 2024, a new director for the Psychological Services Center (PSC) arrived on campus. David Bridgett, who came from Northern Illinois University (NIU), previously served as the director of clinical training at NIU.
"I really wanted to continue to focus on advancing my research career, and I thought that the Â鶹ӳ» was a perfect place to take some next steps and move forward my research in several areas," Bridgett said.
Bridgett’s research interests lie in understanding children’s early emotional regulation, which is known as a transdiagnostic risk factor because difficulties in emotional regulation span different psychological diagnoses, including anxiety and depression.
"So many of the psychological and psychiatric difficulties that people experience have emotional regulation difficulties as one of the underlying components," Bridgett said. "Early emotion regulation difficulty is a notable risk factor for later psychiatric difficulties."
In addition to research that he will be starting at the University, Bridgett is part of a team of researchers at the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston that explores how screen time impacts children. There currently isn’t a great understanding of how much screen time children are soaking in, and the team is trying to better identify how time spent on screens shapes health outcomes in children, including self and emotional regulation and weight.
Intensive training
As the new director of the Psychological Services Center, Bridgett, along with other faculty, helps develop training for students in the clinical psychology doctoral program, which is accredited by the American Psychological Association and was recently ranked 70th in the nation by U.S. News and World Report.
Clinical psychology programs are extremely competitive. From start to finish, it takes about 10 to 12 years for students to become licensed clinical psychologists. Students typically get a four-year undergraduate degree in psychology or a related field, take part in a six-year Ph.D. program that culminates in a one-year intensive clinical internship, then obtain one or two years of postdoctoral experience.
For the incoming class of 2024, "We had in the ballpark of 200 applicants to the doctoral program and our incoming class is seven," Bridgett said. "Percentage-wise, fewer people get admitted to clinical psychology programs than get into medical school."
The Â鶹ӳ»’s admittance committee focuses on applicants with quality research experience, as there are very limited options for clinical work during students’ undergraduate educations.
Once students have been admitted to the clinical psychology program, they become involved in the PSC. Students start by sitting in on clinical teams with special focuses, then may begin observing individual sessions with clients.
In their second year, students start working directly with clients on a regular basis. Typically, the sessions are recorded and reviewed by faculty members who are licensed clinical psychologists. The PSC typically only accepts clients who have more moderate difficulties, but sometimes situations arise that contribute to patients’ increased distress. In those cases, a faculty member may sit in on the session.
After working with patients in the PSC for a year, students receive advanced training with community partners that host them as student clinicians. They also conduct research throughout their time in the program.
"Then, there's a one-year, full-time clinical internship that uses a match process similar to the residency match for physicians. Many states, although not all, require at least one additional year of postdoctoral clinical training," Bridgett said. "And then you have to pass the tests and become certified in the various states."
Bridgett himself is currently working on becoming certified in the state of Â鶹ӳ».
Who does the PSC serve?
The PSC is one of three mental health resources on campus, the other two being the Downing Clinic and the Counseling Center.
"In addition to serving students, we serve members of the community that are seeking services for difficulties they may be experiencing," Bridgett said.
Graduate student clinicians work within various clinical teams. One of the teams is the Victims of Crime Treatment Center run by Professor William O’Donohue and Associate Professor Lorraine Benuto, both in the Department of Psychology.
"The various specialties that are housed within the Psychological Services Center are usually due to specific faculty members’ clinical and research interests," Bridgett said. "Some have grants or contracts to provide services to specific populations."
For example, the Victims of Crime Treatment Center is the result of a grant to Â鶹ӳ»’s Division of Child and Family Services from the Federal Justice Department. The grant established a program managed by the Office of the Â鶹ӳ» Attorney General and all services are free for victims and offered in both English and Spanish.
"We help to fill gaps in the local community by being a resource for people who either don't have insurance or who are underinsured," Bridgett said. "Because we're a training clinic, we don't take insurance. If people come in and they can demonstrate a financial need, then we usually reduce our costs."
Bridgett said there has been an increase in the number of people seeking mental health support. The COVID-19 pandemic was isolating and left people feeling a lot of uncertainty, and many decided to go to a therapist for support. Bridgett said that led to even more people seeking support for issues that may have existed prior to the pandemic, who might not have sought out help previously because of stigma.
"People are more comfortable talking about mental health now," Bridgett said. "It's more acceptable now to say, 'Hey, I'm not doing okay,' and to also seek services for it."
There are still gaps in mental health services in the community, though. One gap Bridgett hopes to close is services offered to children and adolescents. Bridgett is currently the only clinical child psychologist in the faculty, and his work doesn’t cover all children’s needs. The field is generally moving toward a more specialized approach to psychology.
"We would encourage students to have at least a couple of different experiences during their time training in the Psychological Services Center because we want them to get a broad foundation of skills working with different populations before they become more specialized," he said.
"Treatments might be very specific to very specific populations. I do think that some initial broad-based training is very important, because you never know who’s going to walk through your door."
