2022 Distinguished Career Award: Michael Roberts, PhD, ABPP

2022 Distinguished Career Award: Michael Roberts, PhD, ABPP

SCCAP is thrilled to announce that Michael Roberts, Ph.D., ABPP has received the 2022 Distinguished Career Award. Dr. Roberts is a pioneer and true leader in the field of clinical child and adolescent psychology. Indeed, he was instrumental in the establishment of SCCAP as a division of APA. Dr. Roberts has championed the specialty training of clinical child psychologists in evidence-based practices, and his work has shaped the progression of our field in a myriad of ways.

Dr. Roberts has advanced multiple areas of research throughout his career, which, taken together, have uniquely informed our field. His research interests include the examination of children’s and parents’ perceptions of pediatric and psychological conditions and interventions, injury prevention, psychotherapy outcomes and program evaluation, the training and education of psychologists, diagnostic classification, and the study of professional issues relevant to psychologists. He has authored or co-authored over 200 journal articles and book chapters and has authored or co-edited over 20 books. These include the Handbook of Pediatric Psychology and the Handbook of Clinical Child Psychology, texts that continue to be used to train future clinical child psychologists today.

Dr. Roberts has also influenced the field of clinical child psychology through his service. He served as president of APA, Division 12, Section 1 (the organization that later became Division 53) and, as mentioned before, advocated for the development of an APA division dedicated to clinical child and adolescent psychology. Dr. Roberts originated the Kansas Conference on Child Psychology, one of the first conferences dedicated to clinical child and adolescent psychology. Besides his service to SCCAP, Dr. Roberts has served as President of the Society of Pediatric Psychology, chair of the APA Board of Educational Affairs, chair of the APA Committee on Children, Youth and Families, and chair of the APA Board of Professional Affairs. He has served as editor or associate editor on multiple academic journals and edits the book series, Issues in Clinical Child Psychology.

Dr. Roberts has received many well-deserved accolades throughout his career across all professional domains: research, teaching, advocacy, mentorship, service, and advancement of the field of clinical child and pediatric psychology. Most recently, he was awarded the “Distinguished Service to the Profession” Award from the American Board of Professional Psychology. He also received the APA Award for Distinguished Contributions to Education and Training in 2014.

Please join us in congratulating Dr. Roberts for receiving SCCAP’s Distinguished Career Award. Dr. Roberts will present on his illustrious career, and particularly on strategies to improve children’s psychological and physical health, in an Invited Address at this year’s APA Convention.