Marcus Rodriguez – Youth and Family Institute

Marcus A. Rodriguez, PhD

FOUNDER AND DIRECTOR
Licensed Clinical Psychologist, Psy 32571

Clinical Expertise
Dr. Marcus Rodriguez is an internationally recognized expert in Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT).
He delivers intensive evidence-based cognitive-behavioral therapies (CBTs) to help improve the lives of children, young adults and their families struggling with complex and often severe diagnostic presentations.

Education
Pepperdine University, BA
Peking University, MS
Duke University, MA, PhD
McLean Hospital / Harvard Medical School, Internship
Boston Child Study Center, Postdoctoral Fellowship

Training
Dr. Rodriguez was born in California, grew up in Mexico, studied in Germany during college, lived in China for 9 years after college, and has traveled to more than 80 countries. He provides direct patient care, training, consultation, and supervision in English, Spanish and Mandarin.
He earned his master’s in clinical psychology at Peking University in Beijing, China where he first learned to do research and therapy in Mandarin. He then completed his PhD in clinical psychology from Duke University and clinical training in child and adolescent psychology at McLean Hospital/Harvard Medical School.
Dr. Rodriguez has also been intensively trained in DBT Prolonged Exposure for Trauma (Dr. Melanie Harned), DBT for Complex PTSD (Dr. Martin Bohus), DBT for Pre-adolescent Children (Dr. Francheska Perepletchikova), and DBT for parents, couples, and families (Dr. Alan Fruzzetti).

Research
Dr. Rodriguez is the Founder and Director of the Global Mental Health Lab and Assistant Professor of Psychology at Pitzer College. He co-authored the first book on DBT in Mandarin, published dozens of articles in peer-reviewed journals, and made more than 100 clinical and scholarly conference presentations. Dr. Rodriguez is the lead clinical consultant of a 13-site randomized controlled clinical trial (RCT) examining the efficacy of DBT in inpatient hospital settings and co-PI for a multi-site RCT of DBT skills on college campuses in China. He also enjoys making memes and writing children’s books.

Teaching
Dr. Rodriguez is a trainer and consultant for Behavioral Tech, LLC (BTECH) the training company founded by Dr. Marsha Linehan for the dissemination of DBT. He has helped train thousands of mental health professionals in English, Spanish and Mandarin in throughout the United States, South America and China.
Dr. Rodriguez has taught courses at Duke University, Fudan University, Peking University, Pepperdine University and the Claremont College. He also teaches DBT for UCLA's STAR seminar series, as well as mindfulness at the Norco State Prison through the Inside-Out Program. Dr. Rodriguez is a founding member of ISITDBT’s Antiracism Committee, and a former member of the Multicultural Psychology Consultation Team at McLean Hospital.

General Approach
He takes a collaborative, emotion-focused and trauma-informed approach to help his clients make meaningful and values-consistent change in their lives. He is continuously working to be a more culturally humble and competent clinician, trainer, supervisor, and researcher.

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Our team provides comprehensive DBT and other evidence-based treatments to help make positive changes in the lives of children, young adults, and their families.

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Marcus A. Rodriguez, PhD

FOUNDER AND DIRECTORLicensed Clinical Psychologist, Psy 32571

EducationPepperdine University, BAPeking University, MSDuke University, MA, PhDMcLean Hospital / Harvard Medical School, InternshipBoston Child Study Center, Postdoctoral Fellowship

General ApproachHe takes a collaborative, emotion-focused and trauma-informed approach to help his clients make meaningful and values-consistent change in their lives. He is continuously working to be a more culturally humble and competent clinician, trainer, supervisor, and researcher.