Introducing Dr. Patricia Gorman, Psychologist, LMFT
Dr. Gorman: Clinician, supervisor, educator, trainer, researcher.
Attend a marriage retreat in Amherst, Massachusetts
Credentials
Licenses
Licensed Psychologist & Health Service Provider
Massachusetts Licensed Psychologist (#6304)
Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist
Massachusetts Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist (#766)
EDUCATION
Ed.D. University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA (Counseling Psychology) 1989.
M.A. Lesley University, Cambridge, MA (Counseling Psychology) 1981
B.A. University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI (Psychology) 1976
- Review 1
- Review 3
"We tried therapy before and it was not successful.
Dr. Gorman was incredible, gentle, intelligent and was able to help us right away and picked up on our problems almost immediately.
We now have improved communication, better listening and the ability to talk again..."
What would you say to couples that are considering working with Couples Therapy Inc.?
"Please do it!"
Personally Speaking
I have practiced as a family therapist and psychologist for 25 years – and I’m still learning.
Every person I’ve had the honor of working with has taught me something about how to be more human, more authentic, and more compassionate. And I'm very grateful.
We all struggle to bring our best selves to our relationships. So although I am steeped in evidence-based practices such including Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy and the Gottman Method, my work is more than science-based.
Couples therapy is sacred work for me.
I am being entrusted with a couple’s hopes to love and be loved as best they can, and I carry that responsibility with deep respect.
I love to dance, and my favorite is the Argentine Tango. Learning to dance the tango has provided some of my best training as a therapist.
In order to dance skillfully partners need to attune to each other, negotiate, balance and connect. They need to be flexible and responsive as they move together, as they easily lead or follow the other's lead. When they are overly focused on their own steps, or concentrating too hard to please their partner, the dance feels forced and awkward.
I bring the essence of tango into my work with couples. Life impact couples, and brings distress and instability into their relationship. My job is to observe where their dance is not working, and how they've become disconnected, as they work in front of me.
I look forward to the opportunity to provide a secure and safe place where couples learn how to become responsive, attuned and deeply connected with each other.
Clinical Experience
Private Practice, Amherst, MA (ongoing).
Clinician, ServiceNet Outpatient Behavioral Health Center, Amherst, MA (2010-2016)
Director, Family Therapy Team, Psychological Services Center, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA (1990-1993).
Psychology Department, University of Massachusetts- Amherst, MA (1989-1993).
Co-Director, Psychological Services Center - Family Therapy Training Team.
Evidence-based Treatment Models
Level One - Emotionally Focused Individual Therapy
Advanced Training: Core Skills & Externship training & Supervision
Gottman Method Couples Therapy Levels I, II, & III
Professional Associations
Clinical Fellow & Approved Supervisor, former Executive Board Member - State Level
Academic Experience
PROGRAM DIRECTOR, Marriage and Family Therapy Program, Psychology Department, Springfield College, Springfield, MA (2012-2016).
PROGRAM DIRECTOR, Marriage and Family Therapy Program, University of Saint Joseph, West Hartford, CT (2007- 2012).
FACULTY, Department of Counseling and Family Therapy, University of Saint Joseph, West Hartford, CT (1991-2012).
Department of Applied Psychology, Marriage and Family Therapy Program & Counseling Psychology Program, Antioch/New England Graduate School, Keene, New Hampshire (1991 - 1992, & 1995).
Certifications
Board of Directors - Massachusetts Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (1994-2000 & 2012 - current, Executive Board Member).
Clinical Fellow & Approved Supervisor, American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy.
Educator's Summit: A Consensus Conference for Competence Training for Marriage and Family Therapists (July, 2004).
PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR, Healy Public Service Endowment Grant. “Providing Therapy to Cambodian Refugee Families in Hampshire County” University of Massachusetts, Amherst, 1990-1991.
Presentations (selected)
Supervision Mentoring: Becoming an Effective Supervisor. Massachusetts Association for Marriage and Family Therapy Conference, Wellesley College, Wellesley MA, March 2015
Teaching “Not-Knowing.” Association for Contemplative Mind in Higher Education Meeting, Amherst College, Amherst, MA, April 2009.
Comparing American and Chinese Child Rearing Practices. Visiting Scholar Speech, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei, Anhui, PRC, November, 1999.
International Adoption: Family-making in a Multicultural Context. American Family Therapy Academy Meeting, Minneapolis, June 21, 1997.
An Approach to Teaching the DSM. American Family Therapy Academy Meeting, Minneapolis, June, 1997.
Using the Reflecting Team Model in Supervision. Saint Joseph College Marriage and Family Therapy Supervisors’ Workshop, West Hartford, CT, Nov. 30, 1995.
Including the Family's Voice in Supervision of In-home Family Therapy. New England Regional Family-based Services Conference, Falmouth, Massachusetts, October 1995.
Pragmatics of Narrative Supervision. American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy Annual Meeting, Chicago, November 1994.
Evoking Voice: The Use of Stories in Treatment. American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy Annual Meeting, Miami, October 1992.
Think Globally, Act Systemically: Helping Refugee Families Heal. American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy Annual Meeting, Miami, October 1992.
Clinical Office in Amherst, Massachusetts.
Welcome to my contemporary comfortable office
Teaching Experience
∙ Current Trends in Evidence-Based Practices
∙ Treating Addiction in the Family
∙ Assessment in Family Therapy
∙ Interventions in Family Therapy
∙ Couples Therapy
∙ Multisystem Collaboration and Family Counseling
∙ Family Therapy Practicum
∙ Psychopathology
∙ Postmodern Family Therapy
∙ Introduction to Family Therapy
∙ Gender and Diversity in Family Therapy
∙ Fundamentals of Supervision
Grants & Fellowships
FACULTY FELLOWSHIP, Workforce Development in In-Home Services- Faculty Fellowship, contracted through the Yale Center for Workforce Development, 2009-2011.
Publications (selected)
Resisting the Deficit View of Adoption. The Family Therapy Magazine, 3 (3), 2004.
Teaching Diagnosis from a Postmodern Perspective. Journal of Systemic Therapies. 20 (1), 3-11, 2001.
Perspectives on Systemic Family Therapy in America. Journal of Anhui Agricultural University, 8(4), 47-51, 1999 (in Mandarin).
The Korean Adoption Experience: A Look into Our Future? In A. Klatzkin (Ed.), Passage to the Heart: Writings from Families with Children from China. St. Paul, MN: Yeong & Yeong Book Co., 1998.
Conversations Outside the Clinic: Video Reflecting Teams for In-home Therapy and Supervision. Journal of Systemic Therapies. 14 (4), 1-15, 1995.
Successful Adoptive Families: A Longitudinal Study of Special Needs Adoptions (with R.Tessler). Contemporary Sociology: A Journal of Reviews 26 (3), 358-359, 1997.
