Psychology

C. Richard Spates

Professor

3538 Wood Hall
(269) 387-4329

C. Richard Spates, Ph.D. is Professor of Psychology and Director of the Anxiety Disorders Laboratory at Western Michigan University. His clinical and research interests include the study and treatment of anxiety and mood disorders, and the identification of essential features of efficacious interventions. He has conducted empirical and conceptual work on Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) and Exposure Therapy for anxiety disorders, and Behavioral Activation Therapy for Depression. At present he is developing an Interactive Multimedia assisted treatment for depression and co-morbid conditions, and evaluating the comparative effectiveness of three evidence-based treatments for depression.

Education

1976 Ph.D. Clinical Psychology University of Illinois
1975 MA Clinical Psychology University of Illinois
1972 MA Psychology - Behavior Analysis Western Michigan University
1970 BS Psychology Western Michigan University

Master's Thesis: M.A. WMU - Imitation: Some Theoretical Issues| M.A. U of I - The differential effects of training in the components of a multistage self-regulation model
Dissertation: Self-monitoring reactivity and its relationship to self-regulation

Research Interests

The study and treatment of anxiety disorders with a special emphasis on Posttraumatic Stress Disorder; terror victimization; mental health program evaluation; clinical and experimental hypnosis; cross-cultural psychology. Current Projects: Investigation of the Comparative Efficacy of Three Evidence-Based Practices in the Treatment of Major Depressive Disorder [Grant Funded] (With Alyssa Kalata & Nishani Samaraweera) Investigation of the Implications of the Backward Masking Paradigm for Exposure Treatment of Posttraumatic Stress and Anxiety Disorders (With Nishani Samaraweera) Investigation of the Effects of Dosed-Exposure in the Treatment of Specific Animal Phobias (With Richard Seim) The Comparative Efficacy of Dosed, Enhanced Dosed, and Prolonged Exposure in the Treatment of Social Anxiety. (With Sophie Rubin) Evaluation of a Targeted Intervention for PTSD comorbid with Substance Abuse Disorder (With Theresa Souza) Development of an Interactive Multimedia-Assisted Treatment of Major Depressive Disorder (With Amy Naugle, Sarah Verlee, & Mike Mort)

Licensures and Certifications

Licensed Psychologist, Board Certified Expert in Traumatic Stress, Diplomate American Academy of Experts in Traumatic Stress

Honors and Awards

Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society
Japan Studies Institute Fellow - 2000 - San Diego State University
WMU Research Ethics Fellow - 2002
Psychologist of the Year 1992: West Michigan Psychological Association

Honorary Positions

Visiting Professor of Psychology - Deakin University, Melbourne Australia (1996-7)
Visting Research Fellow - Morita Therapy Institute, Jikei University School of Medicine, Tokyo Japan (2003)
Visiting Professor of Psychology - University of New Mexico - Neuroimaging Center, Albuquerque (2004)
6th International Morita Therapy Conference - International Advisory Board Consultant (2007)
Michigan Governor's Commendation - Public Mental Health Leadership, 1987
Michigan Department of Mental Health Commendation for Distinguished Service 1987

Recent Publications

Seim, R. W., & Spates, C. R. (2009). The prevalence and comorbidity of specific phobias in college students and their interest in receiving treatment. Journal of College Student Psychotherapy, 24(1)
Rubin, S., Spates, C.R., Johnson, D., & Jouppi, L. (2009) Dosed versus Prolonged Exposure in the Treatment of Fear: An Experimental Evaluation and Review of Behavioral Mechanisms. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 23, (6) 806-812
Pagoto, S., Bodenlos, J.S., Schneider, K.L., Olendzki, B.C., Spates, C.R., & Ma, Y. (2008). Initial Investigation of Behavioral Activation Therapy for Co-morbid Major Depressive Disorder and Obesity. Psychotherapy, 45, (3), 410-415
Seim, R., Willerick, M., Gaynor, G., Spates, C.R. (2008). Circumventing the vasovagal fainting response: A novel method of in vivo exposure for injection phobia. Clinical Case Studies, Vol. 7, No. 5, 409-422)
Souza, T. & Spates, C. (2008). Treatment of PTSD and Substance Abuse comorbidity. Behavior Analyst Today, 9 (1) 11-26.
Kozak, A., Spates, C.R., McChargue, D., Bailey, K., Schneider, K. & Liepman, M. (2007). Naltrexone renders one-session exposure therapy less effective: A control pilot study. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 21, 142-152.
Spates, Samaraweera, N., Plaisier, B., Souza, T. & Otsui, K. (2007). Psychological Impact of Trauma on Developing Children and Youth. Primary Care Clinics of North America 34(2), 387-405
Spates, C.R., Waller, S., Koch, E., Rubin, S., Porter, K., Edmonds, K., Frye, L., & Ritter, J. (2007). Dosed versus prolonged exposure in treating fear: Emerging evidence of a less aversive treatment alternative. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 41 (Supplement 2), p. A352
Spates, C.R., Pagoto, S., & Nakamura, K. (2007). Effects of initial symptom trends on outcomes of active and non-active treatments for Major Depressive Disorder. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 41 (Supplement 2), p. A418

Recent Professional Presentation

Spates, C. R. (2009). Morita Therapy in the treatment of anxiety disorders: Workshop for the Psychology Interns at WMU Counseling and Testing Center (March)
Seim, R. W., Sohn, K. M., Connor, D. R., & Spates, C. R. (2009, November). The prevalence and comorbidity of "typical" and "atypical" phobias in adults. Poster session to be presented at the annual convention of the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies, New York, New York.
Seim, R. W. (2009, June). The new enlightenment: The age of consilience in the sciences. Paper presented at the annual convention of the International Society of the Comparative Study of Civilizations (ISCSC), Kalamazoo, Michigan.
Seim, R. W., Sohn, K. M., & Spates, C. R. (2009, February). Re-conceptualizing emetophobia and other somatic anxieties. Poster session presented at the annual convention of the Behavior Analysis Association of Michigan (BAAM), Ypsilanti, Michigan.
Seim, R. W., & Spates, C. R. (2008, May). The efficacy of brief exposure durations in the treatment of animal phobias. Poster session presented at the annual convention of the Association for Psychological Science (APS), Chicago, Illinois.
Spates, C. R. (2008). Treating PTSD in a University Counseling Center: Workshop for the Western Michigan University Counseling and Testing Center Staff (October)
Spates, C. R. (2008). PTSD: Variations of Cognitive and Behavior Therapies. Workshop Presentation to the North Dakota Psychological Association (May, Fargo ND)
Seim, R. W., & Spates, C. R. (2008, May). The efficacy of brief exposure durations in the treatment of animal phobias. Poster session presented at the annual convention of the Association for Psychological Science (APS), Chicago, Illinois.
Seim, R. W., Spates, C. R., & Naugle, A. E. (2008, March). Treatment of spasmodic vomiting and lower GI distress related to travel anxiety. Poster presented at the annual conference of the Anxiety Disorders Association of America (ADAA), Savannah, Georgia.
Katherine E. Porter, Ellen I. Koch, Ph.D. , David C.S. Richard, Ph.D., Dean Lauterbach, Ph.D. , & C. Richard Spates, Ph.D. (2007). Symptom Reduction with Prolonged vs. "Dosed" Exposure for PTSD: An Exploratory Study. Poster presentation at the annual meeting of the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapy, Philadelphia PA.
Spates, C. R. (2007). Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing: Current Appraisal of the Evidence. Invited Colloquium, University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee (October).
Spates, C. R., Pagoto, S., Nakamura, K. (2007). Initial trends predict outcomes in depression treatments. Paper presentation at the 6th International Congress of Morita Therapy, Vancouver British Columbia.
Seim, R. W., Willerick, M. S., Gaynor, S. T., & Spates, C. R. (2007, April). The use of exposure therapy in the treatment of injection phobia. Paper presented at the annual conference of the Kalamazoo Center for Medical Studies (KCMS), Kalamazoo, Michigan.
Seim, R. W., Frye, L. A., Humy, S. L., & Spates, C. R. (2007, March). The prevalence and comorbidity of specific fears in college students. Poster session presented at the annual meeting of the Behavior Analysis Association of Michigan, Ypsilanti, Michigan.
Rubin, S., Seim, R. W., Frye, L. A., Ritter, J. D., Edmonds, K. R., & Spates, C. R. (2007, March). The comparative efficacy of dosed, enhanced dosed, and prolonged exposure in the treatment of social anxiety. Poster session presented at the annual meeting of the Behavior Analysis Association of Michigan, Ypsilanti, Michigan.
Spates, C. & Rubin, S. (2007). Dosed versus Prolonged Exposure in the Treatment of Fear: Emerging Evidence of a Less Aversive Treatment Alternative. Paper presentation at the World Psychiatric Association, Melbourne Australia
Samaraweera, N.D., Spates, C.R., Seim, R.W. (2006). Smaller hippocampal volume in post-traumatic stress disorder: An hypothesis regarding co-morbid depression. Poster session presented at the annual meeting of the Association for Psychological Science, (May) New York, NY.

Professional Presentations - Workshops

Spates, C. R. (2009). Morita Therapy in the treatment of anxiety disorders: Workshop for the Psychology Interns at WMU Counseling and Testing Center (March)
Spates, C. R. (2008). Treating PTSD in a University Counseling Center: Workshop for the Western Michigan University Counseling and Testing Center Staff (October)

Book Chapters

Spates, C., Koch, E., Pagoto, S., Cusack K., & Waller, S. (2008). Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. In Foa, E., Keane, T., Friedman, M. & Cohen, J. Effective Treatments for PTSD: Second Edition, Guilford Press.

Ph.D. Graduates

Sophie Rubin (2008)
Stacey Waller (2003)
Andrea Kozak (2003)
Jenifer Lewis (2003)
Ellen Koch, (2002)
Ted Wright (2002)
Jenifer Cullen (2002)
Lynn Hall (2001)
Dwayne Munneke (2000)
Melissa Stevenson (2000)
Jeff Porter (2000)
Karen Cusack (1999)
Anne McGrath (1999)
Terri Bellville-Robertson (1999)
Terry Foley (1998)
Kimberly Wisdorf-Houtkooper (1997)
Lisa Largo (1996)
Lisa Clemenson (1996)
Betty Fisher (1996)
Marlin Trulsen (1994)
George Renfrey (1993)
Asiah Mayang (1992)

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