Society for the Advancement of Psychotherapy Diversity Research Grant for Pre-Doctoral Candidates

Brief Statement about the Grant Program

The Diversity Research Grant for pre-doctoral candidates was established to foster the promotion of diversity within the Society for the Advancement of Psychotherapy (APA Division 29) and within the profession of psychotherapy.

Description

The Diversity Research Grant for pre-doctoral candidates was established to foster the promotion of diversity within the Society for the Advancement of Psychotherapy (APA Division 29) and within the profession of psychotherapy. The Society may award annually two $2,000 Diversity Research Grants to pre-doctoral candidates (enrolled in a clinical or counseling psychology doctoral program) who are currently conducting dissertation research that promotes diversity, as outlined by the American Psychological Association (APA).  According to the APA, diversity is defined as individual and role differences, including those based on age, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, race, ethnicity, culture, national origin, religion, disability, language, and socioeconomic status. The Diversity Research Grant is expected to be used to support the completion of a pre- doctoral candidate’s dissertation work. The grant may be used to fund:
– supplies used to conduct the research;
– training needed for completion of the research; and/or
– travel to present the research (such as at a professional conference).

The applicant must be a member of the Society for the Advancement of Psychotherapy.  The recipient of the grant will be expected to present his or her research results in a scholarly forum (e.g., presentation at an APA Annual Convention, the Society’s journal, Psychotherapy, or other refereed professional journal) or Psychotherapy Bulletin. The annual grant of $2,000 will be paid in one lump sum to the researcher, to the researcher’s university’s grants and contracts office, or to an incorporated company. Individuals who receive the funds could incur tax liabilities. All grant recipients will be required to complete an IRS form W-9 before funds are issued.

Application Items to be Included​

• A 1-2 page cover letter describing how the applicant’s work embodies the Division’s interest in promoting diversity in the profession of psychotherapy and how the funding will be used to support the applicant’s dissertation work;
• A 1-page document outlining a detailed budget;
• A 5-10 page research proposal (alternatively, a Dissertation Proposal may be submitted, regardless of length);
• 1 letter of recommendation from the applicant’s current direct supervisor or advisor; and
• 1 letter from the applicant’s dissertation advisor or director of clinical training
certifying that the applicant is currently in the process of completing research for the dissertation.

Selections Criteria

•  Consistency with the Diversity Research Grant’s stated purposes;
• Clarity of the written proposal;
• Scientific quality and feasibility of the proposed research project;
• Budgetary needs for data collection and completion and presentation of the project;
• Potential for new and valuable contributions to the field of psychotherapy; and
• Potential for final publication or likelihood of furthering successful research in topic area.
• Awardee must be a member of the Society for the Advancement of Psychotherapy (APA Division 29)

Questions

Questions about this program should be directed to the Society for the Advancement of
Psychotherapy Diversity Domain: Changming Duan PhD (duanc@ku.edu).

Additional information

• All materials must be submitted electronically at the same time
• All applicants must complete the grant application form, in MSWord or other
  text format
• CV(s) may be submitted in text or PDF format. If submitting more than 1 CV, then all CVs must be included in 1 electronic document/file
• Proposal and budget must be submitted in 1 file, with a cover sheet to include the name of the principal investigator and complete contact information (address, phone, fax, email)
• Submit all required materials for proposal to: Tracey A. Martin in the Society for the Advancement of Psychotherapy (Division 29 of APA) Central Office, assnmgmt1@cox.net
• You will receive an electronic confirmation of your submission within 24 hours. If you do not receive confirmation, your proposal was not received; please resubmit.
•  Deadline: March 1, 2026. Incomplete or late application packets will not be considered.
• After the project is complete, a full accounting of the project’s income and expenses must be submitted within six months of completion.
• Grant funds that are not spent on the project within two years must be returned.
• When the resulting research is published, the grant must be acknowledged.
• All individuals who directly receive funds from the division will be required to complete an IRS w-9 form prior to the release of funds, and will be sent a 1099 after the end of the fiscal year (December 31st).

2025 Recipients

Cameron Andrews

My name is Cameron Andrews, and I am currently a PhD Counseling Psychology candidate at the University of Denver. I hail from the beautiful coasts of California, where I attended Cal Poly SLO for my undergraduate degree. There, I ran track and field and studied Psychology with a minor in Ethnic Studies. Afterwards, I spent a year volunteering in South Carolina through AmeriCorps, in which I worked in environmental conservation and education. I then moved back to California, where I helped conduct research with my advisors, worked in the wine industry, and supported families with kiddos on the spectrum. After a year, I moved to Valencia, Spain, where I taught English and used my fluency in Spanish to work with the local School Psychologist in supporting underserved students, most notably Romani Spanish students. I then moved to Denver to start the PhD Counseling Psychology program, in which I serve roles as an adjunct faculty professor, an Academic Counselor through the Learning Effectiveness Program, in which I support neurodiverse collegiate students, and finally, collaborating primarily with Dr. Jesse Owen and Dr. Maria Riva in researching ways to support marginalized communities.

 

My hopes and goals for this grant are to explore the therapeutic experience for Biracial clients, who are the fastest-growing population in the United States as of 2010. There are currently no known studies that solely look at Biracial clients and their experiences in therapy, and it is possible that due to the complexity of Biracial identity, therapists may face challenges in providing effective support. This grant will help to provide the funding necessary to reach my recruitment goals in order to find meaningful results and gain some insight into an overlooked and understudied population.

Yu Tian

My name is Yu Tian, and I am currently a PhD candidate in the Department of
Educational Psychology at The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK), supervised
by Dr. Harold Chui. I earned my Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Communication
Sciences and Disorders from the University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point, and dual
Master’s degrees in Psychological Counseling from Teachers College, Columbia
University. I am also a New York State certified school counselor, with professional
experience providing academic, social-emotional, and college counseling to middle and
high school students in New York City.
My research interests focus on psychotherapy processes and outcomes, multicultural
counseling, and therapist self-disclosure. With the support of the Society for the
Advancement of Psychotherapy Diversity Research Grant, my current study
investigates how Chinese and American clients perceive the helpfulness of different
types of therapist self-disclosure, and explores how cultural values, such as
individualism vs. collectivism and power distance, shape these perceptions. The goal of
this project is to provide empirical evidence that can inform culturally responsive
counseling practices, enhance therapist training, and ultimately strengthen therapeutic
relationships in multicultural contexts.

Previous recipients

2024 – Ruiqi Lu & Ailun Li
2019 – Brian Taehyuk
2018 – Shondolyn Sanders & Joey Sergi
2017 – No award given
2016 – Nour Mahmoud Abdelghani
2015 – Jay Bettergarcia
2014 – No award given
2013 – J. Alexis Ortiz