Wendi F. Cross, Ph.D., CGP

Academic and Clinical Appointments

Associate Professor of Psychiatry (Psychology) & Pediatrics

Co-Director, The Resilence Project

Contact Information

Education

Ph.D. Clinical Psychology, Ohio University Child and Adolescent Fellow - University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY

Intern - Adult Track; University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY

M.A. Experimental (Social) Psychology, Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada

B.A. (Hons) Carleton University, Ottawa Canada

Professional Overview

Dr. Cross's research focus is in the development and implementation of programs to prevent mental disorders in children. Along with Dr. Peter Wyman, she developed and co-directs Promoting Resilient Children Initiative (“The Resilience Project”), a school-based, indicated, multi-systemic prevention program. An NIMH funded efficacy trial is currently underway. Dr. Cross is particularly interested in developing and evaluating effective training programs as preventive interventions 'go to scale' in communities.  She recently received a career development award (K23) from NIMH to focus on developing and testing models, methods and measures for training individuals charged with carrying forth a variety of evidence-based interventions into ‘real world’ settings.  Her research crosscuts specific interventions with an emphasis on procedures that allow efficacy trials to translate into effectiveness research, and effectiveness research to translate into community-based practice. She also conducts research on community based suicide prevention, particularly for youth-- as an investigator on the first RCT of community gatekeeper training, investigator on the Colleges Implementation Capacity Study (PI: Knox), and principal investigator on a pilot study to engage parents as ‘gatekeepers’ for distressed youth.  She is a member of the Methods Core of the Developing Center on Public Health and Population Interventions for the Prevention of Suicide (PHP), in the Department of Psychiatry.   Her clinical interest is in child and adolescent treatment, group therapy, selective mutism, and school-based mental health. She is accredited by the American Group Psychotherapy Association as a Certified Group Therapist (CGP). Dr. Cross has presented nationally and published articles on group therapy. She is the a core faculty member of the Department's child and adolescent training programs.

Publications

Matthieu, M.M., Cross, W., Batres, A.R., Flora, C.M., Knox, K.L., (in press) Evaluation of Gatekeeper Training for Suicide Prevention in Veterans. Archives of Suicide Research.

Caserta, M.T., O’Conner, T.G., Wyman, P.A., Wang, H., Moynihan, J., Cross, W., Tu, X., & Jin, X. (in press).  The associations between psychosocial stress and the frequency of illness, and innate and adaptive immune function in children.  Brain, Behavior, and Immunity. 

Wyman, P.A., Brown, C. H., Inman, J., Cross, W., Schmeelk-Cone, K., Jing,G. & Pena, J. (2008).  Randomized trial of a gatekeeper program for youth suicide prevention:  Impact on knowledge, attitudes and referral behaviors of school staff.  Journal Counseling and Clinical Psychology, 76, 104-115.

Cross, W., Matthieu, M.M., Cerel, J. & Knox, K.L. (2007). Proximate outcomes of gatekeeper training for suicide prevention in the workplace. Suicide and Life Threatening Behaviors. , 37(6):659-70.

Wyman, P.A., Moynihan, J., Eberly S, Cox, C., Cross, W., Jin, X., & Caserta, M. (2007). Association of family stress with natural liller cell activity and the frequency of illnesses in children. Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine. 161, 228-234.

Cross, W., Talbot, N.L., Giles, D.E., Tu., X., Beckman, A. & Caine, E.D. (2007) Childhood sexual abuse, adult trauma, and psychological distress among mothers of child psychiatric outpatients. Submitted.

Cross, W., & Cerulli, C. (2007). Impact of continuing education training on law guardian knowledge, efficacy, and practice behaviors. Family Court Review, 45, 92-102.

Cross, W., & Wyman, P.A. (2006). Training and motivational factors as predictors of job satisfaction and anticipated job retention among implementers of a school-based prevention program. Journal of Primary Prevention, 27, (2),195-215.

Snyder, J., Reid, J., Stoolmiller, M., Howe, G., Brown, C.H., Dagne, G., & Cross, W. (2006). Measurement systems for randomized intervention trials: The role of behavioral observation in studying treatment mediators. Prevention Science, 7 (1), 43-56.

Cross, W. (2005). On research: A commentary. International Journal of Group Psychotherapy, 55 (3). 455-463.

Wyman, P.A., Cross, W., & Barry, J. (2004). Translating research on resilience into school-based prevention: Program components and preliminary outcomes from the Promoting Resilient Children Initiative (PRCI). In M. Weist & C. Clauss-Ehlers (Eds.), Community Planning to Foster Resilience in Children. New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers.

Markus, H.E., Cross, W., Halewski, P.G., Quallo, H., Smith, S., Sullivan, M., Sullivan, P., & Tantillo, M. (2003). Primary process and peer consultation: An experiential model to work though countertransference. International Journal of Group Psychotherapy, 53, 19-37.

Cross, W. (2001). A personal history of childhood sexual abuse: Parenting patterns and problems. Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 6, 563-574.