Robert T. Ammerman, PhD, ABPP
- Pediatric Psychologist, Research, Behavioral Medicine & Clinical Psychology
- Scientific Director, Every Child Succeeds
- Professor, UC Department of Pediatrics
- robert.ammerman@cchmc.org
- Board Certified
About
Biography
As a pediatric psychologist, I’m committed to using psychological science to ensure that all children reach their full potential. My goal is to foster healthy behavioral and emotional development for children. I believe this can only be done by also engaging parents and caregivers.
My research is focused on early childhood abuse prevention programs, as well as the impact of parental mental health and traumatic experiences on parenting and child development. We seek to develop effective interventions that will support parents so that they can foster healthy behavioral and emotional development in their children.
My colleagues and I have developed an in-home psychological treatment for postpartum depression. This highly effective and accessible approach supports mothers with their recovery from depression, ultimately helping both mothers and their children. Our research has demonstrated that even when mothers are at their lowest point, they have tremendous potential to thrive and provide a nurturing environment for their children. We are all capable of change and growth.
For my contributions to the field, I was named a fellow of both the American Psychological Association and the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies. I’m also a Diplomate in Behavioral and Cognitive Psychology with the American Board of Professional Psychology.
Internship: Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine; Pittsburgh, PA, 1986.
Certification: American Board of Professional Psychology, Diplomate in Cognitive and Behavioral Psychology, 1995; Ohio State Board of Psychology, 1999.
Interests
Maternal depression; anxiety disorders.
Interests
Early childhood prevention programs and interventions to optimize the development of young children; enhancements of home visiting programs that improve outcomes for mothers and children; development of in-home treatment for postpartum depression; use of motivational interviewing to improve retention in home visiting; strategies to help new mothers and fathers co-parent to foster healthy child development.
Research Areas
Clinical Psychology
Publications
Potential paths to suicidal ideation and suicide attempts among high-risk women. Journal of Psychiatric Research. 2022; 155:493-500.
Treatment efficacy and effectiveness in adults with major depressive disorder and childhood trauma history: a systematic review and meta-analysis. The Lancet Psychiatry. 2022; 9:860-873.
Careful: An administrative child welfare and electronic health records linked dataset. Data in Brief. 2022; 44.
Enrollment and outcomes of home visiting for mothers with and without a history of out-of-home care. Infant Mental Health Journal. 2022; 43:797-807.
The Role of Open Science Practices in Scaling Evidence-Based Prevention Programs. Prevention Science. 2022; 23:799-808.
Patterns of healthcare utilization with placement changes for youth in foster care. Child Abuse and Neglect. 2022; 128.
Effects of Child Protective Custody Status and Health Risk Behaviors on Health Care Use Among Adolescents. Ambulatory Pediatrics. 2022; 22:387-395.
Integrated Behavioral Health Increases Well-Child Visits and Immunizations in the First Year. Journal of Pediatric Psychology. 2022; 47:360-369.
Association Between Maternal Adverse Childhood Experiences and Neonatal SCG5 DNA Methylation-Effect Modification by Prenatal Home Visiting. American Journal of Epidemiology. 2022; 191:636-645.
Promoting parenting in home visiting: A CACE analysis of Family Foundations. Journal of Family Psychology. 2022; 36:225-235.
From the Blog
Trauma-Informed Home Visits Support Mothers and Children
Robert T. Ammerman, PhD, ABPP, Alonzo T. Folger, PhD, MS4/27/2022
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