In accord with the scientist-practitioner model of training in professional psychology, my scholarly work integrates theory, research and practice in a concentrated effort to increase our understanding of the interpersonal processes underlying mental health and illness and to improve counselor training and practice. Grounded in attachment theory, my program of research incorporates three primary components. Foremost among these is the investigation of family mechanisms and risk factors that contribute to ongoing psychological development throughout the life cycle. A second related theme involves the detrimental effects of relational trauma and loss (i.e., violence, abuse, bereavement, divorce). A third innovative line of research, directly relevant to my own educational practices, applies attachment theory to the supervisory and therapeutic relationships. Results of my research extend theory in the developmental psychopathology, family systems, and counseling literatures; generate new lines of interdisciplinary research to investigate; and inform training, treatment planning and psychotherapeutic intervention.

A major goal of my research is to extend the literature by integrating attachment, family systems, trauma and counseling theories in empirical studies with diverse samples. My preferred research is time- and labor-intensive, demanding a wide range of resources, such as transcription, coding training or services, videotaping facilities, multi-media technology, large numbers of research assistants and substantial financial support for longitudinal studies. Building toward my long-term goal of developing a Family Attachment Lab funded by state and national agencies, I have actively pursued advanced assessment training that will allow me to investigate attachment processes in the whole family. I am trained to administer and code the Strange Situation, the most widely used procedure to assess parent-child attachment, and I am certified for reliability in the coding of the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI), considered the “gold standard” in adult attachment measurement. My consulting work for grant investigators, who have sought my AAI expertise, has partially funded my own AAI research.

Over the past year, my lab facility was equipped with the necessary technology for interviewing and videotaping families in a natural environment. Currently, we are collecting data for a study entitled, Family System and Subsystem Predictors of Behavior Problems in Middle Childhood. Funded by UNT ROP grant and a larger external grant from the Timberlawn Psychiatric Research Foundation, the purpose of this study is to investigate the psychological well-being of 8-11 year-old children in relation to multiple systemic levels of the family unit (i.e., individual parent mental health, parent-child attachment, marital quality, coparenting, whole family system). Results will have implications for therapeutic intervention and future research on attachment processes in middle-childhood. In addition, the study will provide supporting data for a large grant proposal targeting at-risk families and children, which will be submitted within the next year. Data collection began in November of 2007 with a target completion date of summer 2009. Currently, the Family Attachment Lab research team consists of 10 graduate students and 8 undergraduate students.

My research program has focused on attachment relationships across the lifespan in relation to:

• Family processes (Hobdy, Hayslip, Kaminski, Crowley, Riggs & York, 2007; Jacobvitz, Riggs, & Johnson, 1999; Riggs & Jacobvitz, 2002)

• Psychopathology (Kaminski, Klinger, Riggs, & Hoffman, 2004; Riggs, Paulson, Tunnell, Sahl, Atkison & Ross, 2007; Riggs, Sahl, Greenwald, Atkison, Paulson & Ross, 2007;Riggs & Jacobvitz, 1999, 2001, 2002; Riggs, Vosvick, & Stallings, 2007; Weschler,Riggs, Stabb, & Marshall, 2006)

• Trauma (Jacobvitz, Hazen, & Riggs, 1997; Jacobvitz & Riggs, 1999; Riggs, Sahl, Greenwald, Atkison, Paulson & Ross, 2007; Riggs & Jacobvitz, 1998; Wood & Riggs, 2008; Adams & Riggs, 2008)

• Clinical processes (Adams & Riggs, 2008; Ramos, Goodwin, Riggs, Touster, Wright, Ratanasiripong & Rodolfa, 2002; Riggs, 2002; Riggs, Jacobvitz, & Hazen, 2002; Riggs & Bretz, 2006)

• Applications of attachment theory to judicial decisions regarding custody and visitation issues in the aftermath of divorce (Amato & Riggs, 2004; Riggs, 2002, 2003, 2005)

Interested parties may request a personal copy of cited articles or chapters. To have a copy mailed to you, contact the Family Attachment Lab at familyattachmentlab@yahoo.com.

For current projects, check out our Family Attachment Lab homepage!