Society for Personality Assessment

Aidan G.C. Wright
President

At the time of this writing I am just ending my fourth year of doctoral training in clinical psychology at the Pennsylvania State University. I plan on making my application to internships in the fall of this year.

In my research, I broadly apply Interpersonal Theory to the study of personality, psychopathology, and the assessment of each. I believe that interpersonal functioning offers an integrative nexus for the study of all levels of personality and psychopathology. More specifically, my research has focused on applying quantitative techniques to the study of the relationship between personality and psychopathology, articulating methods for the comparison of groups using circumplex measures, and advancing the assessment of pathological narcissism.

Clinically I have been trained as a generalist, and would describe my theoretical alignment as interpersonal. I thoroughly enjoy the assessment enterprise, and hope to continue broadening my experience in that arena.

Justin D. Smith
President-Elect 
I am a fourth-year student in the clinical psychology doctoral program at the University of Tennessee Knoxville. I will begin my predoctoral internship at the University of Colorado School of Medicine in Denver this summer.

My research interests involve treatment efficacy and process using the time-series methodology, Therapeutic Assessment, and performance based personality assessment. For my dissertation I was able to marry a treatment efficacy study of Therapeutic Assessment for children with the time-series design. I believe time-series can unlock the processes and mechanisms of change, as well as providing evidence for efficacious intervention. In general, I am interested in applying time-series methodology to inform treatment development and inform evidence-based practices. I also hope to develop techniques and recommendations for using Therapeutic Assessment in various settings, such as forensic and pediatric, across the lifespan.

My clinical interests are somewhat broad, but I specifically enjoy Therapeutic Assessment, with preadolescent children, their families, and adolescents. My career aspiration is to become a researcher, but since my work is grounded in clinical practice, I can’t see a time where I will ever be devoid of conducting clinical work. I believe that research and practice should be reciprocally informed.

In my free time I love to be outdoors: I mountain bike, trail run, rock climb, hike, backpack, bowhunt, and fish. I also enjoy movies, hanging out with friends, and relaxing with my girlfriend, Julianne.

Chris Hopwood, Ph.D.
Past President

I am an assistant professor of clinical psychology at Michigan State University. My doctoral training occurred at Texas A&M University, and my clinical internship was at the Massachusetts General Hospital.

My main research interest involves understanding relationships between personality and psychopathology. In particular, I am interested in testing diathetic (which propose that personality ‘causes’ psychopathology) and pathoplastic (which propose that personality is meaningfully independent of psychopathology) models, and the implications of these distinctions for etiology, longitudinal change, interpersonal and affective manifestations of disordered behavior, assessment, and clinical outcomes.

I am also interested in applied clinical assessment. My research focuses primarily on self-report instruments that were explicitly developed to measure clinical and personality constructs: such instruments include the PAI, the IIP, and the NEO-PI-R. I am also interested in the assessment process, and in particular the potential for clinical change through therapeutic assessment. These interests also guide my clinical work.

I spend as much free time as possible with my son Sullivan (pictured) and partner Emily, and watching our basketball team dominate the Big Ten.

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Joyce Williams
Secretary

Dissertation writing consumes my time now as graduation is just a few words ahead.  The journey to this has involved many experiences.  I have been a Licensed Professional Counselor in North Carolina since 1998 and in Virginia since 2001.  I maintain both licenses and look forward to when I can frame my Clinical Psychologist license.  The therapeutic population I have worked with most has been children and adolescents, particularly those who have been abused and in foster care or residential treatment.  My motivation for re-entering graduate school to earn the Ph.D. was assessment and I have made it my focus.  Practica, internship and present work have included assessment with a variety of clients as well as therapy with child, adolescents and adults.  I have also been able to teach at the undergraduate level and been a teaching assistant at the graduate level.  These have been both inside the classroom and in the virtual environment. Since I was in the computer industry prior to returning to graduate school for my MA, the online opportunities are intriguing.

I live on the Eastern coast of North Carolina an area of seashores, farms, tourists and military.  It is a place of opportunities in the areas of academics, research, assessment and clinical work.  It is my hope that after graduation I will be able to pursue research and clinical work with a focus on the usefulness of assessment as a therapeutic intervention.

Danielle Burchett
Member-at-Large

I am a third-year Clinical Psychology graduate student at Kent State University, where I specialize in Assessment and Quantitative Methods. I am currently a Teaching Fellow, and am in charge of training our first-year students in their Assessment Practicum course. I also work for Coleman Professional Services as a testing intern, and am working on my Master’s Thesis.

My research interests are still forming, but I am most interested in studying inaccurate responding in self-report personality instruments. Improving quantitative methodology in assessment research is also a strong interest that I hope to pursue further.

I hope to one day be a professor, and to eventually conduct forensic assessments.

Although I currently live in Ohio, I look forward to moving home to California to be with my family and boyfriend, Joey. In the meantime, I spend my free time making lattes, learning to play golf, and improving my intramural volleyball skills.

 
Jacob Finn
Member-at-Large

I am currently a fourth-year Clinical Psychology doctoral student at the University of Tulsa. My research focuses on two broad areas: the conceptualization and measurement of pathological personality traits, particularly schizotypy, and the utilization of personality assessment data for treatment planning purposes. I am also a research assistant for the University of Tulsa’s Institute for the Biochemical and Psychological Study of Individual Differences (IBPID), where I coordinate a grant examining the relationship between genetic and biological variables and personality traits. Additionally, I work as a psychological assessment intern at the L.E. Rader Center, an Oklahoma Office of Juvenile Affairs facility, and conduct pre- and post-intervention assessments for Dr. Joanne Davis’s third RCT for Exposure, Relaxation, and Rescripting Therapy (ERRT).

My professional goals are to work in a setting where I can focus on conducting clinical research but have the opportunity to teach at the undergraduate and graduate levels as well.

In my spare time, I enjoy watching movies and going to the theater, trying new types of cuisine, attempting amateur photography, and improving my bowling skills.

 
Pilar Sumalpong
Member-at-Large

I am a first-year student at the University of Santa Barbara’s Combined Degree Program in Clinical, Counseling and School Psychology.  I am pursuing my Ph. D. with an emphasis in Clinical Psychology and an interdisciplinary emphasis in Cognitive Neuroscience.  I received my M.A. in Clinical Psychology with an emphasis in Marriage and Family Therapy from Pepperdine University.  I am employed as an adjunct lecturer at California Lutheran University where I teach courses in substance abuse and treatment.

My research interests are in therapeutic Neuropsychological and Personality assessment.  I have a growing interest in Affective Neuroscience, in which I hope to pursue research in the area of neuroimaging in respect to mood disorders and personality pathology.

In addition, I have a lifelong dedication to working with high-risk and incarcerated adolescents in the Los Angeles area and hope to continue to reside in California where I can serve the community in which my sister, my two brothers and my daughter will grow and flourish.

My leisure activities include camping, creative writing and various art projects.  I also participate in maintaining my family’s organic flower and produce farm in Ventura, CA.