Rebecca Townsend, PhD, was born and raised in Raleigh, NC. She received her BA in psychology from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and her PhD in school psychology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Dr. Townsend has expertise in the provision of psychotherapy, play therapy, and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) to children, adolescents, and adults. Dr. Townsend specializes in the treatment of individuals with anxiety, conduct issues, depression, and personality disorders. She has specific interest in working with adolescents and adult women with low self-esteem and a pattern of unhealthy relationships.
Dr. Townsend’s experience includes an array of both research and clinical work. She completed her doctoral internship with 3-C Family Services and 3-C Institute with foci on individual therapy, group therapy, personality and psychoeducational assessment, and research on child and adolescent social skill interventions. She has worked at the Dorothea Dix Child Psychiatric Outpatient Clinic in Raleigh and at the Child and Adolescent Unit at Central Regional Hospital in Butner, NC. In these intensive clinical settings, she gained experience in psychological assessment and treatment of children and teens with serious disorders. She also gained clinical experience at the Wake Pediatric Behavior Clinic at Wake Medical Center in Raleigh, conducting diagnostic interviews with children, adolescents, and families to aid in behavior and medication management. Dr. Townsend has experience working with troubled youth in elementary, middle, and high schools in both the Alamance-Burlington and the Guilford County School Systems. She has also gained expertise in the fields of bully prevention and childhood social skills development through her work as a facilitator of social skill groups for children ages 4 to 16. Dr. Townsend has also had specific training and experience helping children with high functioning autism spectrum disorders develop social skills in a group setting.
Dr. Townsend was employed by 3-C Family Services’ sister company, 3-C Institute, for more than four years, helping to develop and evaluate evidence-based psychoeducational interventions for children, adolescents, and families. These interventions are now being used in public schools and mental health facilities throughout the United States. In addition to her research focus on child and adolescent social skill development, she has extensive knowledge in the area of stress levels among parents of children with high functioning autism or Asperger’s Disorder.
Dr. Townsend has completed intensive training in DBT through Behavioral Tech, LLC . She is an active member of the DBT consultation team at 3-C Family Services.
