Mission
The mission of the Child and Adolescent Psychology Postdoctoral Program is to train compassionate, skilled, and knowledgeable psychologists who will positively impact the mental health and well-being of youth and their families. Our program emphasizes excellence in evidence-based clinical care, community consultation, and service delivery in diverse and underserved settings. We are committed to fostering a respectful, inclusive, and supportive training environment where all individuals are treated with dignity and courtesy.
Through intensive clinical training, individualized mentorship, and engagement in clinically grounded research, postdoctoral fellows are prepared to practice independently across a variety of settings. The program also prioritizes the professional development of each trainee, equipping them to become leaders in the field and aligning with the broader mission of the University of Florida College of Medicine – Jacksonville to serve the community and advance healthcare through education, service, and innovation.
Aims
Our program aims to provide specialized, supervised training in clinical child psychology, cultivating the development of psychologists who are skilled in delivering evidence-based interventions, conducting scholarly research, and advancing psychological practices across diverse populations, all while fostering the growth of ethical and compassionate professionals.
Expected Competencies and Learning Elements
In keeping with our program’s overarching aims, the specific expected competencies are designed to facilitate the development of psychologists who attain advanced competence and demonstrate capability in alignment with the APPIC guidelines and the American Psychological Association (APA) Standards of Accreditation (SoA) for health service psychology, specifically within the clinical child psychology competency and learning elements.
Learning elements are behaviorally-anchored measures of a postdoc’s progress toward outcomes during the training year. Fellows must demonstrate these learning elements to develop competencies (which comprise the evaluation of the postdoc) for successful completion of the training program.
The expected competencies for this clinical child psychology fellowship program, along with specific behavioral learning elements, are listed below. By the completion of this fellowship, a postdoctoral fellow:
Expected Competency 1: Integration of Science
Learning Element 1: demonstrates the ability to critically evaluate foundational and current research that is consistent with the program’s focus area(s) or representative of the program’s recognized specialty practice area.
Learning Element2: integrates knowledge of foundational and current research consistent with the program’s focus area(s) or recognized specialty practice area in the conduct of professional roles (e.g., research, service, and other professional activities).
Learning Element 3: demonstrates knowledge of common research methodologies used in the study of the program’s focus area(s) or recognized specialty practice area and the implications of the use of the methodologies for practice.
Learning Element 4: demonstrates the ability to formulate and test empirical questions informed by clinical problems encountered, clinical services provided, and the clinic setting within which the fellow works.
Expected Competency 2: Practice of Ethical and Legal Standards
Learning Element 1: demonstrates knowledge of and acts in accordance with the APA Ethical Principles and Code of Conduct.
Learning Element 2: demonstrates knowledge of and acts in accordance with all organizational, local, state, and federal laws, regulation, rules and policies relevant to health service psychologists.
Learning Element 3: demonstrates knowledge of and acts in accordance with relevant professional standards and guidelines.
Learning Element 4: recognizes ethical dilemmas as they arise and apply ethical decision-making processes in order to resolve the dilemmas as they pertain to the accredited area.
Learning Element 5: conducts self in an ethical manner in all professional activities.
Expected Competency 3: Individual and Cultural Diversity
Learning Element 1: demonstrates an understanding of how their own personal/cultural history, attitudes, and biases may affect how they understand and interact with people different from themselves.
Learning Element 2: demonstrates knowledge of the current theoretical and empirical knowledge base as it relates to addressing diversity in all professional activities related to the accredited area including research, training, supervision/consultation, and service.
Learning Element 3: demonstrates the ability to integrate awareness and knowledge of individual and cultural differences in the conduct of professional roles (e.g., research, services, and other professional activities). This includes the ability to apply a framework for working effectively with areas of individual and cultural diversity not previously encountered over the course of their careers. Also included is the ability to work effectively with individuals whose group membership, demographic characteristics, or worldviews create conflict with their own.
Learning Element 4: demonstrates the ability to independently apply their knowledge and demonstrate effectiveness in working with the range of diverse individuals and groups encountered during residency, tailored to the learning needs and opportunities consistent with the program’s aim(s).
Expected Competency 4: Research
Learning Element 1: engages in Clinical Child Psychology scholarly activities which could include but are not limited to research, evaluation, or other form of inquiry
Learning Element 2: applies scientific methods in Clinical Child Psychology activities.
Expected Competency 5: Professional Values, Attitudes, and Behaviors
Learning Element 1: behaves in ways that reflect the values and attitudes of psychology and Clinical Child Psychology, including integrity, deportment, professional identity, accountability, lifelong learning, and concern for the welfare of others.
Learning Element 2: engages in self-reflection regarding one’s personal and professional functioning; engages in activities to maintain and improve performance, well-being, and professional effectiveness.
Learning Element 3: actively seeks and demonstrates openness and responsiveness to feedback and supervision.
Learning Element 4: responds professionally in increasingly complex situations with a greater degree of independence.
Learning Element 5: demonstrates an emerging professional identity consistent with the Clinical Child Psychology specialty.
Expected Competency 6: Communication and Interpersonal Skills
Learning Element 1: develops and maintains effective relationships with a wide range of individuals, including colleagues, communities, organizations, supervisors, supervisees, and those receiving professional services.
Learning Element 2: produces and comprehends oral, nonverbal, and written communications that are informative and well-integrated; demonstrates a thorough grasp of professional language and concepts.
Learning Element 3: demonstrates effective interpersonal skills and the ability to manage difficult communication well.
Learning Element 4: facilitates effective communication between patients, families, and other professionals.
Expected Competency 7: Assessment
Learning Element 1: selects and applies developmentally appropriate assessment methods that draw from the best available empirical literature and that reflect the science of measurement and psychometrics; collects relevant data using multiple sources and methods appropriate to the identified goals and questions of the assessment as well as relevant diversity characteristics of the service recipient.
Learning Element 2: communicates orally and in written documents the findings and implications of the assessment in an accurate and effective manner sensitive to a range of audiences (e.g., parents, caregivers, schools, and medical teams).
Learning Element 3: demonstrates awareness of ethical principles in the assessment of minors and families.
Learning Element 4: demonstrates understanding of human behavior within its context (e.g., family, social, societal, and cultural).
Learning Element 5: interprets assessment results, following current research and professional standards and guidelines to inform case conceptualization, classification, and recommendations, while guarding against decision-making biases.
Expected Competency 8: Intervention
Learning Element 1: establishes and maintains effective relationships with the recipients of psychological services.
Learning Element 2: implements developmentally appropriate interventions informed by the current scientific literature, assessment findings, diversity characteristics, biopsychosocial factors, and contextual variables.
Learning Element 3: evaluates intervention effectiveness and adapts intervention goals and methods consistent with ongoing evaluation.
Learning Element 4: integrates the family as appropriate in treatment planning and intervention.
Learning Element 5: monitors adherence to psychological and/or behavioral interventions and demonstrates skill in addressing issues of compliance, adherence, and motivation within the family context.
Expected Competency 9: Teaching/Supervision/Mentoring
Learning Element 1: demonstrates knowledge of supervision models and practices related to Clinical Child Psychology.
Learning Element 2: teaches, supervises, and mentors others by accurately, effectively, and appropriately presenting information related to Clinical Child Psychology.
Expected Competency 10: Consultation and Interprofessional/Interdisciplinary Skills
Learning Element 1: demonstrates knowledge and respect for the roles and perspectives of other professions.
Learning Element 2: conceptualizes referral questions that incorporate understanding of the roles of patients, parents, extended family, culture, other providers, and/or health system to effectively answer consultation questions.
Learning Element 3: applies knowledge of consultation in direct consultation with individuals and their families, other health care professionals, interprofessional groups, or systems related to health and behavior.
Learning Element 4: engages interprofessional individuals and teams to increase the likelihood of appropriate early referrals to clinical child psychologists.
Expected Competency 11: Leadership
Learning Element 1: demonstrates leadership within an interprofessional team or organization related to the practice of Clinical Child Psychology.
Learning Element 2: demonstrates the ability to develop or enhance a clinical child/pediatric psychology practice, educational program, or program of research.