College of Education and Human Development

Institute of Child Development

Sarah Gillespie

  • Pronouns: she, her, hers

  • Doctoral Student

  • Institute of Child Development
    Carmen D. and James R. Campbell Hall
    51 East River Parkway
    Minneapolis, MN 55455

  • gille597@umn.edu
Sarah Gillespie

Areas of interest

Adolescents and youth, Culture and cross-culture, Prevention/intervention; Resilience

Degrees

BA Cognitive Neuroscience and Evolutionary Psychology, Harvard University, 2017
MA Developmental Psychology, University of Minnesota, 2021

Biography

I am a fifth-year doctoral candidate in the Developmental Psychopathology and Clinical Science track. My research focuses on child development in the context of globalization, systemic racism, and migration. I am interested in understanding factors across layers of the social ecology that impact cultural identity development and well-being among youth and families living in multicultural societies, as well as designing and disseminating culturally responsive interventions to promote resilience.

Developmental psychopathology and clinical science community/clinical work

My clinical interests include using evidence-based, cognitive-behavioral therapies to treat trauma and anxiety disorders among children and adolescents. I have supervised experience with neuropsychological assessment (Fraser) and outpatient therapy (Behavioral Health Clinic for Families, Masonic Institute for the Developing Brain, and Anxiety Treatment Resources) for a diverse range of clients and presenting conditions. 

Publications

Gillespie, S., Winer, J. P., Issa, O., & Ellis, B. H. (2023). The role of discrimination, assimilation, and gender in the mental health of resettled Somali young adults: A longitudinal, moderated mediation analysis. Transcultural Psychiatry.

Gillespie, S., Banegas, J., Maxwell, J., Chan, A. C. Y., Ali-Saleh Darawshy, N., Wasil, A. R., Marsalis, S., & Gewirtz, A. (2022). Parenting interventions for forcibly displaced families: A systematic review. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review. 

Ferguson, G. M., Eales, L., Gillespie, S., Leneman, K. B. (2022). The Whiteness pandemic behind the racism pandemic: Familial Whiteness socialization in Minneapolis following #GeorgeFloyd’s Murder. American Psychologist.

Gillespie, S., Eales, L., Simpson, D., & Ferguson, G. M. (2022). Remote acculturation and physical activity among adolescent-mother dyads in Jamaica: A developmental dyadic moderation. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology.

Gillespie, S., Cardeli, E., Sideridis, G., Issa, O., & Ellis, B. H. (2021). Residential mobility, mental health, and community violence exposure among Somali refugees and immigrants in North America. Health & Place.

Davis, S., Winer, J., Gillespie, S., & Mulder, L. (2021). The Refugee & Immigrant Core Stressors Toolkit (RICST): Understanding the multifaceted needs of refugee and immigrant youth and families through a Four Core Stressors Framework. Journal of Technology in Behavioral Science.

Eales, L., Gillespie, S., Eckerstorfer, S., Eltag, E., Global Educators Group, & Ferguson, G. M. (2020). Remote acculturation 101: Research, implications, and illustrations from classrooms around the world. Online Readings in Psychology and Culture.

Wasil, A. R., Park, S. J., Gillespie, S., Shingleton, R., Shinde, S., Natu, S., ... & DeRubeis, R. (2020). Developing, adapting, and testing computerized single-session interventions to improve adolescent mental health and well-being: Protocol for a school-based, effectiveness-implementation randomized controlled trial in Indian secondary schools. Asian Journal of Psychiatry.