Dr. Natalie Bennett is an Assistant Professor and the Director of Clinical Training of the clinical PsyD program on the Sacramento campus. She earned her PhD in clinical psychology from the University of Nevada- Reno, where her research focused on forensic concepts related to child sexual abuse. She completed internship and postdoctoral fellowship at the CAARE Center at UC Davis Children’s Hospital, providing assessment and intervention for children and families with histories of abuse, neglect, or involvement in the child welfare system. She is a certified provider and trainer in Parent-Child Care, a program designed to promote children’s socioemotional development through play with caregivers.
Dr. Bennett’s professional interests remain centered around child maltreatment, forensics, and trauma therapy. A proud Latina, she has additional interest in supporting health equity for underserved populations. Given her love for math and science, Dr. Bennett teaches the Research Methods & Statistics sequence and holds weekly dissertation office hours available to all students in the program. Her theoretical orientation draws primarily from radical behaviorism and contextual science, as well as existentialism. She leads the Sexual Trauma and Health Equity research lab, where students can participate in all aspects of the research process from project development to publication.
In addition to her experience in academia, Dr. Bennett has worked as a pediatric psychologist within a primary care clinic in Oregon, providing integrated behavioral health care to children from birth to 18. Although her passion lies in working with youth and families, she also has extensive clinical and teaching experience in adult assessment and intervention, particularly in exposure therapies for trauma.
In her free time, Dr. Bennett is usually outside in the Sierras— hiking, trail running, backpacking, rock climbing— with her partner and two pitties.
- Child maltreatment; sexual abuse and assault
- Trauma therapy across the lifespan
- Parent-child dyadic therapies and infant mental health
- Health equity for underserved groups, especially the Latine population
- PhD Clinical Psychology, University of Nevada- Reno
- BS Psychology, minor in Neuroscience, with Honors Research Distinction, The Ohio State University
- Certified Provider and Trainer, Parent-Child Care
- Research Methods & Statistics
- Cognitive and Behavioral Approaches to Intervention
- Evidence-Based Treatment for Trauma
- First-Year Practicum Consultation
- Proposal Development & Dissertation
- Denning, D. M., Newlands, R. T., Bennett N., & Benuto, L. (2022). Sexual education experiences and curriculum recommendations from survivors of sexual violence: A mixed methods study. Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment, & Trauma, 32(1).
- Bennett, N. M. & Blankenship, A. P. (2020). Behavioral problems in children. In L. T. Benuto, F. Gonzalez, & J. Singer (Eds.) Handbook for Cultural Factors in Behavioral Health: A Guide for the Helping Professional. Springer.
- Benuto, L. T., Yang, Y., Bennett, N., & Lancaster, C. (2020). Distress tolerance and emotion regulation as potential mediators between secondary traumatic stress and maladaptive coping mechanisms. Journal of Interpersonal Violence (37), 13-14.
- Benuto, L., Casas, J., Bennett, N., & Leany, B. (2020). The MMPI-2-RF: A pilot study of Latinx vs. non-Latinx Whites Profiles. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 51(5), 496-506.
- Benuto, L., Bennett, N., & Casas, J. (2020). Minority participation in randomized controlled trials on Prolonged Exposure. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 33(4), 420-431.
- Bennett, N., & O’Donohue, W. (2020). Identifying grooming of children for sexual abuse: Gender effects and increased false positives from internet information. International Journal of Psychology and Psychological Therapy, 20(2), 133-145.
- Benuto, L.T., Bennett, N., Newlands, R., & Casas, J. (October 2019). Using Spanish-language interpreters to deliver treatment to trauma-exposed Latinxs: Results from a pilot study. In L. Benuto (Chair), Culturally Responsive Intervention Efforts for Trauma-Exposed Latinxs. Symposium presented at meeting of the National Latinx Psychological Association, Miami, FL.
- Bennett, N., Reinosa-Segovia, F. & Benuto, L. T. (October 2019). The acceptability of a brief parenting program among Latina mothers. Poster presented at the meeting of the National Latinx Psychological Association, Miami, FL.
- Benuto, L., O’Donohue, W., Bennett, N., & Casas, J. (2019). Treatment outcomes for Latinos and Non-Hispanic White victims of crime: An effectiveness study. Hispanic Journal of the Behavioral Sciences, 41(3), 378-391.
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Benuto, L. & Bennett, N. (2019). Written exposure therapy: The case for Latinos. Clinical Case Studies, 18(3), 175-184.
- Bennett, N., Newlands, R., & O’Donohue, W.T. (2018). Juvenile Sexual Offense Risk and Recidivism Assessment Tool (JSORRAT). In R.D. Morgan (Ed.), The SAGE Encyclopedia of Criminal Psychology. Sage.
- Bennett, N., & O’Donohue, W.T. (2018). Pedophilia. In R.D. Morgan (Ed.), The SAGE Encyclopedia of Criminal Psychology. Sage.
- O’Donohue, W.T., Kahler, J., Bennett, N., Cirlugea, O., & Benuto, L. (2017). Paraphilias: An overview of the current state of the field. In D. McKay, J. Abramowitz, & E. Storch (Eds.), Mechanisms of Syndromes and Treatment for Psychological Problems. Wiley.
- O’Donohue, W.T., Cirlugea, O., Bennett, N., & Benuto, L. (2016). Psychological and investigative pathways to untrue allegations of sexual abuse. In W.T. O’Donohue & M. Fanetti (Eds.), Forensic Interviews Regarding Child Sexual Abuse: A Guide to Evidence-Based Practice. Springer.
- Bennett, N. & O’Donohue, W.T. (2016). Child abusers’ threats and grooming techniques. In W.T. O’Donohue & M. Fanetti (Eds.), Forensic Interviews Regarding Child Sexual Abuse: A Guide to Evidence-Based Practice. Springer.
- O’Donohue, W., Benuto, L.T., & Bennett, N. (2016). Commentary: Examining the utilization of Parental Alienation Syndrome. Journal of Child Custody, 13(2-3), 113-125.
- Benuto, L. & Bennett, N. (2015). Using Prolonged Exposure Therapy to treat a Latina female with a complex trauma history. International Journal of Psychology and Psychological Therapy, 15(1), 143-153.
- Bennett, N.M., Benuto, L.T., & Leany, B.D. (2015). Assessing risk and recidivism in African Americans. In L.T. Benuto & B.D. Leany (Eds.) Guide to Psychological Assessment with African Americans. Springer.
- Bennett, N. M. & O’Donohue, W. T. (2014). The construct of grooming in child sexual abuse: Conceptual and measurement issues. Journal of Child Sexual Abuse, 3(8), 957-76.
- O’Donohue, W. T., Carlson, G., Benuto, L., & Bennett, N. M. (2014). Examining the scientific validity of Rape Trauma Syndrome. Journal of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Law, 21(6), 858-876.
- Medjuck, J., Cirlugea, O., & Bennett, N. (2014). Developing healthy sexuality. In D.S. Bromberg & W.T. O’Donohue (Eds.), Toolkit for Working with Juvenile Sexual Offenders. Elsevier.