Physicians

Department / Division
Psychiatry / Medical Psychology

Address
DUMC 3362
Durham, NC 27710

Appointment Telephone
919-684-4464

Office Telephone
919-684-4464

Fax Telephone
919-681-7504

Training

• PhD, Clinical Psychology, State University of New York at Stony Brook, 1982

Residency

• Clinical Psychology, Beth Israel Medical Center (New York), 1981-1982

Clinical Interests
Behavioral and cognitive psychotherapy, mood disorders, anxiety disorders, borderline personality disorder

Research Interests
Research interests are in the understanding and treatment of mood disorders and borderline personality disorder.

A primary focus in recent years has been on evaluating the roles of personality characteristics as risk factors for depression, and as moderators of its clinical presentation and treatment outcome. An assessment instrument, the Personal Style Inventory, which evaluates the constructs of social dependency and autonomous achievement concerns, has been developed for this purpose and has shown promise in predicting differential symptom profiles and response to pharmacotherapy for depression.

A second research interest is the etiology, psychopathology, and treatment of borderline personality disorder. We recently published a randomized controlled trial of dialectical behavior therapy that found it to be more efficacious than treatment as usual in reducing self-injury, suicidal ideation, hopelessness, depression, anger and dissociation. Other research on borderline personality disorder includes basic research on emotion regulation difficulties and on combined pharmacotherapy and behavior therapy.

Industry Relationships and Collaborations (What's this?)

This faculty member has no reported relationships with industry.

Representative Publications
Robins, CJ; Block, P; Peselow, ED. Relations of sociotropic and autonomous personality characteristics to specific symptoms in depressed patients. Journal of Abnormal Psychology. 1989;98:86-88. (1989) Abstract

Robins, CJ; Block, P. Personal vulnerability, life events, and depressive symptoms: a test of a specific interactional model. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. 1988;54:847-852. (1988) Abstract