Stephanie is currently a doctoral candidate at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in the Department of Counseling Psychology. At present, she is a pre-doctoral intern at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities counseling center (UCCS). In April, she successfully defended her dissertation regarding mental health outcomes for transsexual individuals throughout their transitioning process. As the recipient of the Charles Gelso Psychotherapy Research Grant, she will be conducing three separate meta-analyses regarding the efficacy of research trials for personality disorders. The first meta-analysis will be conducted regarding trials that compared evidence-based treatments to treatment-as-usual for personality disorders. The second meta-analysis will determine differences in efficacy for bona-fide treatments for personality disorders. Last, a cost-effectiveness analysis will be conducted on those trials that have compared treatments for personality disorders.

Please see the awards section of the Division 29 website for more information on the grant program and watch for upcoming details of the call for applications for the coming year’s grant awards. Eligibility for the Charles J. Gelso Psychotherapy Research Grant rotates biannually between graduate students/predoctoral interns and doctoral level psychologists/postdoctoral fellows. In 2011, doctoral level psychologists and postdoctoral fellows will be eligible.

Charles J. Gelso, Ph.D. Grant

Description

This program awards grants for research projects in the area of psychotherapy process and/or outcome. In alternating years the grant is awarded to graduate students or doctoral level psychologists.

Program Goals

• Advance understanding of psychotherapy process and psychotherapy outcome through support of empirical research in these areas
• Encourage talented graduate students towards careers in psychotherapy research
• Support psychologists engaged in psychotherapy research

Funding Specifics

• One annual grant of $2,000

Eligibility Requirements

• In alternating years, graduate students/pre-doctoral interns (even-numbered years) or psychologists/postdoctoral fellows (odd-numbered years) will be eligible
• In 2010, graduate students in psychology and pre-doctoral interns who are in good standing at an accredited university will be eligible
• In 2011, doctoral level psychologists and postdoctoral fellows will be eligible
• Demonstrated or burgeoning competence in the area of proposed work
• IRB approval must be received from the principal investigator’s institution before funding can be awarded if human participants are involved
• The same project/lab may not receive funding two years in a row

Evaluation Criteria

• Conformance with goals listed above under “Program Goals”
• Magnitude of incremental contribution in topic area
• Quality of proposed work
• Applicant’s competence to execute the project
• Appropriate plan for data collection and completion of the project

Proposal Requirements for All Proposals

• Description of the proposed project to include goals, relevant background, target population, methods, anticipated outcomes, and dissemination plans
• CV of the principal investigator
• Format: not to exceed 3 pages (1 inch margins, no smaller than 11-point font)
• Timeline for execution (priority given to projects that can be completed within 2 years)
• Full budget and justification (indirect costs not permitted). The budget should clearly indicate how the grant funds would be spent.
• Funds may be used to initiate a new project or to supplement additional funding. The research may be at any stage. In any case, justification must be provided for the request of the current grant funds. If the funds will supplement other funding or if the research is already in progress please explain why the additional funds are needed (e.g., in order to add a new component to the study, add additional participants, etc.)
• No additional materials are required for doctoral level psychologists who are not postdoctoral fellows
• Graduate students, predoctoral interns, and postdoctoral fellows should refer the section immediately below for additional materials that are required.

Additional Proposal Requirements for Graduate Students, Predoctoral Interns, and Postdoctoral Fellows:

• Graduate students, pre-doctoral interns, and postdoctoral fellows should also submit the CV of the mentor who will supervise the work
• Graduate students and pre-doctoral interns must also submit 2 letters of recommendation, one from the mentor who will be providing guidance during the completion of the project and this letter must indicate the nature of the mentoring relationship
• Postdoctoral fellows must submit 1 letter of recommendation from the mentor who will be providing guidance during the completion of the project and this letter should indicate the nature of the mentoring relationship

Additional Information

• After the project is complete, a report on how the money was spent must be submitted
• Grant funds that are not spent on the project within two years must be returned
• When the resulting research is published, the grant should be acknowledged

Submission Process and Deadline

• Submit a CV and all required materials for proposal (see above for proposal requirements) to: Tracey A. Martin in the Division 29 Central Office, assnmgmt1@cox.net
• If the grant is to be used to support a thesis or dissertation, the thesis/dissertation proposal must be approved by the thesis/dissertation committee (this should be noted in the letter of recommendation from the mentor)
• Deadline April:  15, 2010

Questions about this program should be directed to the Division of Psychotherapy Research Committee Chair (Dr. Susan Woodhouse at ssw10@psu.edu), or the Division of Psychotherapy Science and Scholarship Domain Representative (Dr. Norman Abeles at abeles@msu.edu), or Tracey A. Martin in the Division 29 Central Office, assnmgmt1@cox.netCall

CHARLES J. GELSO, PH.D., PSYCHOTHERAPY RESEARCH GRANT

Division 29 created the annual Charles J. Gelso, Ph.D., Psychotherapy Research Grant to provide annual grants (up to $2000) supporting the advancement of research on psychotherapy process or psychotherapy outcome. Grant eligibility rotates biannually between graduate students/predoctoral interns and doctoral level psychologists/postdoctoral fellows.

The grant program was established in honor of Charles J. Gelso, Ph.D., who has made major contributions to theory and empirical research related to the psychotherapy relationship, including the working alliance, transference, countertransference, and the real relationship. In addition, his research has brought about important advances in our understanding of the research training environment in graduate education, as well as in the application of psychoanalytic concepts to short-term and long-term psychotherapy. He received his M.S. from Florida State University in 1964 and his Ph.D. from Ohio State University in 1970, and is a professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Maryland, College Park. He has mentored many new investigators in the area of psychotherapy research.