Clinical Specialties and Approaches in CMHC Research Area

Dr. Stephanie Bell’s research focuses on the effects of sexual assault on college students, more specifically post-traumatic stress disorder. Her other interests include: trauma-informed counseling and supervision, using humor as a teaching tool, and engaging students outside the classroom with a book club. In 2022, she published two articles in peer-reviewed journals, one relating to college student coping and COVID-19, and the other on female victims of acquaintance rape in college. Dr. Bell received the “Research Professional of the Year” award from the Mississippi Counseling Association in 2021 and 2022. Additionally, Dr. Bell has co-authored several book chapters on college counseling and career counseling.

Dr. Jennifer T. Ha’s research interests focuses on counselor competency and training. This includes projects exploring how counselors work with complex developmental and romantic relationship issues in diverse client populations. She is currently working on two projects: (a) counselor training and competency in sexuality issues, as well as (b) factors of counseling training resistance in experiential learning approaches. Dr. Ha has previously participated in research projects and presentations on trauma with other counseling professionals with the aim of contributing to advancements in ethical diagnostic procedures in the mental health field.