Robert-Jay Green, PhD

Specialties and Interests

• Gay and Lesbian Couple/Family Relationships
• Male Gender Roles
• Multicultural Couple and Family Therapy
• Family Relations and Positive Psychology (emotional intelligence, high achievement, resilience)

Programs and Research Projects

• Executive Director, Rockway Institute (for LGBT Research & Public Policy).  Founded in 2006 at Alliant International University, the Rockway Institute is a voice for social science and mental health research in the national controversies surrounding lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) issues. To fulfill its mission, the Institute conducts original research, public policy studies, media outreach, professional education, and program/policy consultation. For more information about current research activities at the Rockway Institute and LGBT educational opportunities at Alliant, click here http://rockway.alliant.edu
• California Inventory for Family Assessment (CIFA). Professor Paul Werner and I developed this questionnaire in 1989 to measure 3 major aspects of couple and family functioning: Closeness, Intrusiveness, & Openness of Communication.  The CIFA has been translated into Chinese, Spanish, French, Russian, Polish, and Lithuanian. Japanese and Korean translations are in progress. CIFA has been used extensively for research in the U.S. and in several international studies. Click here  to visit the CIFA website for more information.
• Masculinity Attitudes, Stress, and Conformity Questionnaire (MASC).  Reza Nabavi, PhD, and I developed this questionnaire in 2002 to assess males’ attitudes about traditional male norms, behavioral conformity to those norms, and the amount of stress males experience when there are discrepancies between their masculinity behavior and attitudes. Please contact me for more information about the MASC questionnaire.

Courses Taught

• PhD Research Seminar: Couples, Families, & Gender Studies
• Lesbian and Gay Couple/Family Relationships
• Lifespan Human Development and the Family
• Couple Therapy

Selected Publications

• Click Here for a copy of Dr. Green's complete CV and list of publications
• Green, R.-J., & Framo, J.L. (Eds.) (1981). Family Therapy: Major Contributions. New York: International Universities Press.
• Ditton, P., Green, R.-J., & Singer, M.T. (1987).  Communication deviances: A comparison between parents of learning disabled and normally achieving students.  Family Process, 26, 75-87.
• Zacks, E., Green, R.-J., & Marrow, J. (1988).  Comparing lesbian and heterosexual couples on the circumplex model:  An initial investigation.  Family Process, 27, 471-484.
• Green, R.-J., & Herget, M. (1991). Outcomes of systemic/strategic team consultation: III. The importance of therapist warmth and active structuring. Family Process, 30, 321-336.
• Green, R.-J. (1995). High achievement, underachievement, and learning disabilities: A family systems model. In B.A. Ryan, G.R. Adams, T.P. Gullotta, R.P. Weissberg, & R.L. Hampton (Eds.), The family-school connection: Theory, research, and practice (pp. 207-249). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
• Green, R.-J., & Werner, P.D. (1996). Intrusiveness and closeness-caregiving: Rethinking the concept of family "enmeshment." Family Process, 35, 115-136.
• Laird, J., & Green, R.-J. (Eds.) (1996). Lesbians and Gays in Couples and Families: A Handbook for Therapists. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, Inc.
• Green, R.-J. (1996). Why ask, why tell?  Teaching and learning about lesbians and gays in family therapy.  Family Process, 35, 389-400.
• Green, R.-J. (1998). Traditional norms of masculinity. Journal of Feminist Family Therapy, 10, 81-83.
• Green, R.-J. (1998). Race and the field of family therapy. In M. McGoldrick (Ed.), Revisioning family therapy: Race, culture, and gender in clinical practice (pp. 93-110). New York: Guilford Press.
• Green, R.-J. (2000). Guest editor's Introduction to the five-article special section “Lesbian, gay, and bisexual issues in family therapy.”  Journal of Marital & Family Therapy, 26, 407-408.
• Green, R.-J. (2000). Lesbians, gay men, and their parents: A critique of LaSala and the prevailing clinical "wisdom."  Family Process, 39, 257-266.
• Werner, P.D., Green, R.-J., Greenberg, J., Browne, T.L., & McKenna, T.E. (2001). Beyond "enmeshment": Evidence for the independence of intrusiveness and closeness-caregiving in married couples. Journal of Marital & Family Therapy, 27, 459-471.
• Green, R.-J., & Mitchell, V. (2002). Gay and lesbian couples in therapy: Homophobia, relational ambiguity, and social support. In A.S. Gurman & N.S. Jacobson (Eds.), Handbook of couple therapy (3rd edition) (pp. 546-568). New York: Guilford Press.
• Browning, S., & Green, R.-J. (2003). Constructing therapy: From strategic to systemic to narrative models. In G. P. Sholevar & L.D. Schwoeri (Eds.), Textbook of family and couples therapy: Clinical applications (pp. 55-77). New York: American Psychiatric Publishing, Inc.
• Green, R.-J. (2003). When therapists do not want their clients to be homosexual: A response to Rosik’s article.  Journal of Marital & Family Therapy, 29, 29-38.
• Green, R.-J. (2004). Risk and resilience in the lives of same-sex couples:  A commentary on Solomon, Rothblum, and Balsam. Journal of Family Psychology, 18, 290-292.
• Green, R.-J. (October, 2004).  Therapeutic alliance, focus, and formulation: Thinking beyond the traditional therapy orientations. Psychotherapy.net (Electronic Journal). Website Address: www.psychotherapy.net/articles/articlesframe.html
• Green, R-.J. (in press). Gay and lesbian couples in therapy: A social justice perspective. In E. Aldarondo (Ed.), Promoting social justice through mental health practice. Mahwah, NJ:  Lawrence Erlbaum Publications.

Degrees, Professional Licenses, and Honors

• Degrees:
  o   Postdoctoral Fellow (1975-1977), Family Psychology, Department of Psychiatry, University of Rochester School of Medicine
  o   PhD (1975) Clinical Psychology, Michigan State University
  o   BA (1970) Psychology, Undergraduate Scholars Program, Case Western Reserve University
  
• Professional Licenses:
  o   Licensed Psychologist in California since 1977 (Lic #PSY5046)
  o   Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist in California since 1978 (Lic #MFC13292)
  
• Honors:
  o   2001 Award for Distinguished Contributions to Family Systems Research, American Family Therapy Academy (Click here to read biographical article about Dr. Green, written by Dr. Froma Walsh at University of Chicago, for this award)
  o   1998 Carolyn Attneave Award for Outstanding Contributions to the Study of Family Diversity, Division of Family Psychology, American Psychological Association
  o   Elected to Fellow Status (1995), American Psychological Association
  o   Fellow & Approved Supervisor, American Association for Marriage & Family Therapy
  o   1996 Student Association Award for Teaching Cultural Diversity, California School of Professional Psychology
  o   1986 Excellence in Teaching Award, California School of Professional Psychology

Community Service

• Psychotherapy with Couples, Individuals, and Families (1977-2005) in Berkeley and San Francisco, CA.
• Director (2000-2002), Alternative Family Institute (Counseling and Education Center for LGBT Couples and Families), San Francisco and Oakland
• Family Therapy Consultant 1991-1995, Department of Psychiatry, PTSD Program, Veteran’s Administration Medical Center, San Francisco.
• Consultant 1990-93, AIDS and Families Project, Operation Concern, (now known as New Leaf Counseling Services), San Francisco, CA.
• Co-Founder & Co-Director (1980-1991), Redwood Center Psychology Associates, Inc. (Family Therapy Training Institute and Clinic), Berkeley and Walnut Creek, CA
  

Professional Society & Editorial Board Activities

• Professional Society Activities:
  o   American Psychological Association--APA (Fellow and Former Vice-President of Division 43—Family Psychology; Fellow of Division 44—Society for the Psychological Study of Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Issues
  o   American Family Therapy Academy--AFTA (Charter Member; fourth term on Board of Directors 2001-2004)
  o   American Association for Marriage & Family Therapy--AAMFT (Clinical Member, Fellow, & Approved Supervisor)
  o   Association of Family Therapists of Northern California (AFTNC)--President (2002-2004)
  o   Senior Research Scholar (currently) and Founding Board Member (1997), Council on Contemporary Families
  
• Editorial Board Activities:
  o   Journal of Family Psychology (January 2005-present)
  o   Journal of GLBT Family Studies (June 2003-present)
  o   Journal of Marital & Family Therapy (1990-present)
  o   Family Process (1990-2002)
  o   Journal of Feminist Family Therapy (1996-2000)
  o   Cultural Diversity & Mental Health (1994-1998)