Victoria

Ward

Undergraduate School: University of Alabama

Graduate School: University of Alabama

Doctoral Program: University of Alabama, Clinical Psychology Doctoral Program

Interests & Career Goals: My clinical interests center on providing evidence-based care to children, adolescents, emerging adults, and their families. I especially enjoy conducting developmentally informed psychological evaluations and providing psychotherapy that helps individuals and families better understand and support themselves. My training background includes CBT, DBT, and behavior management approaches, as well as comprehensive psychological evaluations focused on neurodevelopmental functioning. In all my work, I emphasize an individualized method that adapts assessment and treatment to fit the needs of each patient and family. I am working toward a career that integrates intervention and assessment within a multidisciplinary, group-practice setting, with a particular passion for serving communities with limited access to quality care.

Favorite Pastimes: Outside of clinical work, I enjoy exploring the outdoors, practicing yoga, cooking, and listening to live music, along with spending time with my family, friends, and dogs. As someone who grew up in a small beach town, my happy place is anywhere that involves being on the water.

Why Duke? I chose Duke’s Clinical Child, Adolescent, and Emerging Adult track for the opportunity to deepen my clinical training in evidence-based interventions and assessment within a strong academic medical setting, while continuing to grow my knowledge in other domains of psychology, such as research and supervision. The breadth of clinical training opportunities here aligns well with my goal of building skills to provide services to a wider range of ages and clinical presentations. The decision to round out my training at Duke has also allowed me the opportunity to learn from many amazing supervisors and to gain skills and experiences that will serve me well into my future endeavors.

Research Interests: My research interests broadly surround the impacts of childhood experiences on lifelong wellbeing, particularly the roles of adversity, protective factors, and parental support in development and mental health. My dissertation taps into this interest by examining how callous-unemotional (CU) traits, anxiety, and trauma affect facial emotion recognition in children ages 6 – 11 years, with a focus on the underlying neurocognitive mechanisms measured through ERP components. Looking ahead, I hope to continue building the field’s understanding of the influence of early developmental experiences on life trajectories.