Susan M. Knell
Pioneer of Cognitive Behavioral Play Therapy · scientific director of the CBPT Research Center.
The first to bring cognitive-behavioral therapy to young children
Susan M. Knell holds a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from Case Western Reserve University and an MA in Developmental Psychology from Ohio State University. She was the first to study and write about the application of cognitive-behavioral therapy in young children — the foundation of the method we know today.
Her book Cognitive-Behavioral Play Therapy (Jason Aronson, 1993) is used internationally and was published in Italian in 1998. She has authored chapters in edited volumes on play therapy, including a recent one on treating anxiety disorders in young children, and has lectured throughout the United States on Cognitive-Behavioral Play Therapy with preschool and early school-age children.
A career devoted to children and to the professionals who help them
As a clinical psychologist, Susan M. Knell has provided assessment and therapeutic services to children, adolescents and adults for over 25 years. Alongside her clinical work, she brings vast experience in research and in training other mental health professionals.
She is currently an Adjunct Assistant Professor at Case Western Reserve University, overseeing and instructing graduate students in the Department of Psychological Sciences. As scientific director of the CBPT Research Center, she guides the method, the research and the training delivered to professionals worldwide. Discover the full faculty on the instructors page.
- Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology, Case Western Reserve University
- Author of Cognitive-Behavioral Play Therapy (1993), used internationally
- Adjunct Assistant Professor, Department of Psychological Sciences
Train with the pioneer of CBPT
Study Cognitive Behavioral Play Therapy under the scientific direction of Maria A. Geraci and Susan M. Knell.
Train with the pioneer of CBPT