Specialties and Interests | Programs and Research Projects | Courses Taught | Selected Publications | Recent Presentations | Recent Dissertations Chaired | Professional Activities | Professional Licenses, Certifications, and Honors | Professional and Honorary Membership | Community Service  | Interests and Hobbies

Specialties and Interests

• Infant Preschooler Mental Health
• Ecosystemic Child Play Therapy
• LGBT Families
• Qualitative Research Methods
• Attachment and At-Risk Children and Families

Programs and Research Projects

• Assessing Parent-Child Relationships: Marschak Interaction  Method Rating System
• Program Evaluation: Infant-Preschooler Mental Health Certificates
• Grants
  • Prop 63 MHSA Infant Preschooler Mental Health Training Grant - Fresno County
  • Prop 10 First Five Infant Preschooler Mental Health Training Grant – San Diego

Courses Taught

• Parent-Child Relationship Assessment
• Biopsychosocial Factors in Infant-Preschooler Mental Health (web-based)
• Lifespan Developmental Psychology (web-based)
  
• PsyD Dissertation (four semester seminar – hybrid class)
  
• Teaching with Distance Learning Methods (team taught)

Selected Publications

• Limberg, B. & Ammen, S.  (2008). Ecosystemic play therapy with infants and toddlers and their families.  In C. Schaefer, P Kelly-Zion, J. McCormick, & A. Ohnogi (Eds.), Play therapy for very young children (pp. 103-124).  New York: Jason Aronson.
• Knapp, P. K., Ammen, S., Arstein-Kerslake, C, Poulsen, M. K., & Mastergeorge, A.  (2007).  Feasibility of expanding services for very young children in the public mental health setting.  Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 46(2), 152-161.
• Hitchcock, D., Ammen, S., O’Connor, K., & Backman, T. (2008). Validating the Marschak Interaction Method Rating System with adolescent mother-child dyads.  International Journal of Play Therapy¸ 17(1), 24-38.
  
• Ammen, S. & Limberg, B. (2005). Play Therapy with Preschoolers using the Ecosystemic Model. In K. Finello (Ed.), Handbook of Training & Practice in Infant & Preschool Mental Health(pp. 207-232). New York. Jossey Bass.
  
• Ammen, S. (2000). A play-based parenting program to facilitate parent- childattachment. In H. Kaduson & C. Schaefer (Eds.), "Short-term play therapy approaches with children" (pp. 345-369). New York: Guilford Press.
• Ammen, S. (1994). The good feeling-bad feeling game: A technique to facilitate attachment and communication. In K. O'Connor & C. Schaefer (eds). Handbook of play therapy, vol. 2, Advances and innovations (pp. 283-294). New York: John Wiley.
• Ammen, S., Semrad, J., Soria, S., Limberg, E., Peterson, C., Moore, M., O'Neill, K., Picard, S., Boley, S. (1996). The development of tools to research the Color-Your-Life technique. International Journal of Play Therapy, 5(2), 21-39.
• Boley, S., Ammen, S., O'Connor, K., & Miller, l. (1996). The use of the Color-Your-Life technique with pediatric cancer patients and their siblings. International Journal of Play Therapy. 5(2), 57-78.
• Knapp, P. K., Ammen, S., Arstein-Kerslake, C, Poulsen, M. K., & Mastergeorge, A.  (2007).  Feasibility of expanding services for very young children in the public mental health setting.  Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 46(2), 152-161.
• Limberg, B. & Ammen, S.  (In Press). Ecosystemic play therapy with infants and toddlers.  In C. Schaefer, P Kelly-Zion, J. McCormick, & A. Ohnogi (Eds.), Play therapy for very young children.  Rowman & Littlefield..
• O"Connor, K. & Ammen, S. (1997). Play Therapy Treatment Planning and Interventions: The Ecosystemic Model and Workbook. San Diego: Academic Press.

Recent Presentations

• Ammen, S. & Limberg, B. (2006, November). The Ecosystemic Approach to Infant-Preschooler Mental Health: A Training Model.  Poster presentation at the Zero To Three 21st National Training Institute in Albuquerque, NM.
• Ammen, S. (March 22, 2007).  The Ecosystemic approach to infant-preschooler mental health training.  Presented at a symposium on Infant/Early Childhood Mental Health Training: Models and Future Directions in California as part of the IDA Conference in San Jose, CA.
• Ammen, S. (Feb 27, 2009). The Ecosystemic Approach to Infant Preschooler Mental Health: Concepts, Interventions, & Training   One day workshop for Los Angeles County Birth to Three, Los Angeles.
• Arstein-Carslake, C., & Ammen, S. (May 8, 2009). Training Guidelines and Personal Competencies for Infant Family & Early Childhood Mental Health.  Half-day presentation to professionals in San Diego county, San Diego, CA.
• Kuba, S. & Ammen, S. (May 29, 2009). Pedagogy and Technology for Online Education. All-day training for faculty in Sacramento, CA.
  

Recent Dissertations Chaired

• (2006). Kathleen Munsell. A screening battery for identifying at-risk infants : prediction of outcome on Bayley Scales of Infant/Toddler Development-III
  
• (2006). Kao Yang. A comparative study of parenting attitudes between three groups of Hmong using the Adult-Adolescent Parenting Inventory-2 Hmong version
  
• (2007). Patricia Owens. Fostering preschooler attachment and development through a relationship-based group parent-training program.
• (2008). Dante Alexander. A comparison of suicide predictors between African Americans and Caucasians.
• (2009). Michelle Detsch. The relationships between posttraumatic stress symptoms and expressive and receptive language in Mexican immigrant youth.

Professional Activities

• Member, California Infant-Family and Early Childhood Mental Health (CIF&ECMH) Training Guidelines Workgroup – Revised the California Training Gidelines and Personnel Competencies for Infant-Family and Early Childhood Mental Health, 2009  [published at www.wested.org/cpei/forms/training-guidelines.pdf]
• Early Childhood Mental Health Consultant and Trainer, Early Childhood and Family Center, Aurora Mental Health, Colorado
• Editorial Board, International Journal of Play Therapy
• Teaching Faculty, Harris Infant Mental Health post-graduate Training Program, University of Colorado, Denver.

Degrees, Professional Licenses, Certifications, and Honors

• 1989. PhD Clinical Psychology. California School of Professional Psychology, Fresno, California
• Licensed Clinical Psychologist – California (inactive) and Colorado (active)
• Registered Play Therapist Supervisor (Association for Play Therapy)
  
• Registered Nurse - California
  

Professional and Honorary Membership

• American Psychological Association
• Association for Play Therapy
• Colorado Association for Play Therapy
• Colorado Association of Infant Mental Health

Community Service

• 2005 - Mental Health Disaster Volunteer after Katrina in Biloxi, MS– American Red Cross
• 2006-2009 – Annual two-day bicycle ride (MS150) in Colorado to raise money to fight Multiple Sclerosis

Interests and Hobbies

• Hiking
• Skiing
• Backpacking
• Camping
• Environmental concerns
• Parenting