campus - university row

Developmental psychopathology is concerned with the origins and progression of patterns of adaptive and maladaptive behavior across the lifespan. Training in this concentration at UVM is based on the following principles:

  • Maladaptive functioning or disorder results from a failure to successfully negotiate developmentally-appropriate tasks.
  • The behavioral difficulties resulting from a particular stressor may differ depending on when the stressor happens.
  • Knowledge of normal developmental processes is essential for understanding the emergence of a disorder, associated impairments, and accumulating comorbidities over time.
  • Understanding adaptation over the life course requires the integration of several scientific traditions, including developmental psychology, clinical psychology, and psychiatry.

Distinct from child clinical psychology and developmental psychology, developmental psychopathology requires a knowledge base in both areas and provides a framework for studying typical and atypical developmental processes.

Graduate students in either the Clinical or Developmental Ph.D. programs at UVM are eligible for the Developmental Psychopathology Concentration. Students who elect to complete this concentration are required to complete all of the coursework for their respective programs as well as foundational courses for the concentration. Students will earn a Ph.D. in the area that they entered (clinical psychology or developmental), regardless of the affiliation of their advisor. Students who complete the Developmental Psychopathology Concentration can work with faculty from either the clinical or developmental program, regardless of their program affiliation. Developmental students do not complete practicum or internship.

How do I apply to the Developmental Psychopathology Concentration?

Students interested in completing the developmental psychopathology concentration should apply to either the Clinical Ph.D. program or the developmental Ph.D. program (through the general/experimental program). Students who complete this concentration are eligible to work with any affiliated faculty (listed below), regardless of whether they are in the clinical or developmental Ph.D. program. The developmental psychopathology concentration is elective for incoming developmental and clinical students and is not required for either program. Applicants who would like to be considered for the developmental psychopathology concentration should indicate their interest in the essay portion of their graduate application form. Incoming students who plan to complete this concentration must be approved by the faculty of both programs (clinical and developmental).

Affiliated Faculty

What are the program requirements?

In addition to the requirements for their specific program, all developmental psychopathology students are required to take the following core courses:

Core Clinical Courses

354 - Psychopathology I: Child Psychopathology 

364 - Professional Affairs & Ethics

Core Developmental Courses

361 - Developmental Psychopathology

365 - Developmental Professional Seminar

Two Additional Developmental Courses, choose from: 367 - Social Development 380 - Emotions Across the Lifecourse 380 - Psychology of Gender

200-level developmental psychology courses, in consultation with the instructor

Other Courses

346 - Analysis of Longitudinal Data 

OR 348 - Structural Equation Modeling One additional developmental course

OR 371 - Child & Adolescent Psychological Assessment

For clinical students, these requirements result in an additional semester of coursework.

For a full list of courses, visit the Graduate Catalogue