SUSAN M. SWEARER, PhD
Associate Professor
Department of Educational Psychology
40 Teachers College Hall
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Lincoln, Nebraska 68588-0345
(402) 472-1741

Biography

Susan M. Swearer is a graduate of Swarthmore College ('87, BA, Psychology), The Pennsylvania State University ('89, MS, Special Education), and The University of Texas at Austin ('97, PhD, School Psychology). She has been a high school special education teacher for students with emotional and behavioral disorders and has worked as a licensed professional counselor with children, adolescents, and families in residential treatment, inpatient, and outpatient settings. She completed her pre-doctoral internship at Girls and Boys Town (APA approved) in Omaha, Nebraska. Dr. Swearer joined the faculty in the School Psychology program at UNL in 1997.

Dr. Swearer's research interests include the comorbidity of psychological disorders in children and adolescents, developmental issues in psychopathology, the relationship between internalizing psychopathology and externalizing behavior, and cognitive-behavioral interventions with youth and their families. Current research projects include a longitudinal investigation of bullying and victimization in school-aged youth; the effectiveness of a cognitive-behavioral intervention for youth who bully others; an international investigation of bullying behaviors across five Pacific rim countries (Australia, Japan, Korea, Canada, and the U.S.); and the comorbidity of depression and conduct disorder in youth. Since coming to UNL, Dr. Swearer has taught the following graduate courses: Developmental Psychopathology, Small N Research Design, Cognitive and Behavioral Interventions with Children and Adolescents, Child and Adolescent Therapy Doctoral Practicum, Advanced Doctoral Practicum in Child and Adolescent Therapy, Doctoral Externship in School Psychology, and Doctoral Research Seminar. Dr. Swearer is a Licensed Psychologist in the state of Nebraska, the Director of the Nebraska Internship Consortium in Professional Psychology, and is a Supervising Psychologist in the Counseling and School Psychology Clinic and the Anxiety Disorders Clinic.

Recent Publications

Journal Articles

Maag, J. W., & Swearer, S. M. (2005). Cognitive-behavioral interventions for depression: Review and implications for school personnel. Behavioral Disorders, 30, 259-276.

Ronning, L. U., McCurdy, M., & Swearer, S. (2004). Using a class lottery system to decrease disruptive behavior of middle school students. Proven Practice, 5, 57-65.

Espelage, D. L., & Swearer, S. M. (2003). Research on bullying and victimization: What have we learned and where do we go from here? School Psychology Review, 32, 365-383.

Reinemann, D. S., Stark, K. D., & Swearer, S. M. (2003). Family factors that differentiate sexually abused and nonabused adolescent psychiatric inpatients. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 18, 471-489.

Swearer, S. M., & Cary, P. T. (2003). Attitudes toward bullying in middle school youth: A developmental examination across the bully/victim continuum. Journal of Applied School Psychology, 19, 63-79.

Swearer, S. M., & Doll, B. (2001). Bullying in schools: An ecological framework. Journal of Emotional Abuse, 2, 7-23.

Swearer, S. M., Song, S. Y., Cary, P. T., Eagle, J. W., & Mickelson, W. T. (2001). Psychosocial correlates in bullying and victimization: The relationship between depression, anxiety, and bully/victim status. Journal of Emotional Abuse, 2, 95-121.

Stark, K. D., Laurent, J., Livingston, R., Boswell, J., & Swearer, S. M. (1999). Implications of research for the treatment of depressive disorders during childhood. Applied & Preventive Psychology, 8, 79-102.

Friman, P. C., Handwerk, M. L., Swearer, S. M., McGinnis, J. C., & Warzak, W. J. (1998). Do children with primary nocturnal enuresis have clinically significant behavior problems? Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, 152, 537-539.

Jones, K. M., Swearer, S. M., & Friman, P. C. (1998). Relax and try this instead: Abbreviated habit reversal for maladaptive oral self-biting. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 30, 697-699.

Book Chapters

Maag, J. W., Swearer, S. M, & Toland, M. D. (in press). Cognitive-behavioral interventions for depression in children and adolescents: Meta-analysis, promising programs, and implications for school personnel. In M. J. Mayer, R. Van Acker, J. E. Lochman, & F. M. Gresham (Eds.), Cognitive behavioral interventions for students with emotional/behavioral disorders. New York: Guilford.

Swearer, S. M., Buhs, E., Siebecker, A. B., Love, K. B., Miller, C. K., & Stratman, A. (in press). Bullying and peer victimization. In H. L. K. Coleman & C. Yeh (Eds.), Handbook of school counseling. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.

Swearer, S. M., Espelage, D. L., Love, K. B., & Kingsbury, W. (in press). School-wide approaches to intervention with school violence and bullying. In B. J. Doll & J. A. Cummings (Eds.), Population-based services of school psychologists. New York: The Guilford Press.

Swearer, S. M., Love, K. B., & Haye, K. M. (in press).  Play therapy. In R. New & M. Cochran (Eds.), Early childhood education. Westport, CT: Greenwood.

Swearer, S. M. & Cary, P. T. (2007). Perceptions and attitudes toward bullying in middle school youth: A developmental examination across the bully/victim continuum. In J. E. Zins, M. J. Elias, & C. A. Maher (Eds.), Bullying, victimization, and peer harassment: A handbook of prevention and intervention (pp. 67-83). New York: The Haworth Press.

Swearer, S. M., Peugh, J., Espelage, D. L., Siebecker, A. B., Kingsbury, W. L., & Bevins, K. S. (2006). A social-ecological model for bullying prevention and intervention in early adolescents. In M. Furlong & S. Jimerson (Eds.), Handbook of school violence and school safety. (pp. 257-273). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Doll, B., & Swearer, S. M. (2006). Cognitive behavior interventions for participants in bullying and coercion. In R. B. Mennuti, A. Freeman, & R. Christner (Eds.), Cognitive behavioral interventions in educational settings. (pp. 183- 201). New York: Brunner-Routledge.

Reinemann, D. S., & Swearer, S. M. (2005). Depressive disorders. In S. Goldstein & C. R. Reynolds (Eds.), Handbook of neurodevelopmental and genetic disorders in adults (pp. 195-224). New York: The Guilford Press.

Swearer, S. M., & Haye, K. M. (2005). Obsessive-compulsive disorder. In S. W. Lee, A. Carmer, & E. Robinson (Eds.), Macmillan psychology reference series: School psychology (pp. 357-359). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Cowan, R., & Swearer, S. M. (2004). School-community partnerships. In C. Spielberger (Ed.), Encyclopedia of applied psychology. San Diego, CA: Academic Press.

Cowan, R., Swearer, S. M., & Sheridan, S. M. (2004). Home-school collaboration. In C. Spielberger (Ed.), Encyclopedia of applied psychology, Volume 2 (pp. 201-208). San Diego, CA: Academic Press.

Espelage, D. L., Mebane, S., & Swearer, S. M. (2004). Gender differences in bullying: Moving beyond mean level differences. In D. L. Espelage & S. M. Swearer (Eds.), Bullying in American schools: A social-ecological perspective on prevention and intervention (pp. 15-35). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Swearer, S. M., & Espelage, D. L. (2004). A social-ecological framework of bullying among youth. In D. L. Espelage & S. M. Swearer (Eds.), Bullying in American schools: A social-ecological perspective on prevention and intervention (pp. 1-12). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Swearer, S. M., Grills, A. E., Haye, K. M., & Cary, P. T. (2004). Internalizing problems in students involved in bullying and victimization: Implications for intervention. In D. L. Espelage & S. M. Swearer (Eds.), Bullying in American schools: A social-ecological perspective on prevention and intervention (pp. 63-83). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Swearer, S. M. (2003). Problem-solving play therapy. In H. G. Kaduson & C. E. Schaefer (Eds.), 101 Favorite play therapy techniques: Volume III (pp. 171-174). Northvale, NJ: Jason Aronson, Inc.

Sheridan, S. M., Napolitano, S., & Swearer, S. M. (2002). Best practices in school-community partnerships. In A. Thomas & J. Grimes (Eds.), Best practices in school psychology - IV (pp. 321-336). Bethesda, MD: National Association of School Psychologists.

Books

Espelage, D. L., & Swearer, S. M. (Eds.). (2004). Bullying in American schools: A social-ecological perspective on prevention and intervention. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Research Projects

Target the Bully: An Innovative Intervention Program
Woods Foundation
Role: PI	2005

Bullying Research Network: An International Initiative
College of Education and Human Sciences
Role: PI	2005-2007

 

The Target Bullying Intervention: Continuation, Expansion, and Sustainability
Woods Foundation
Role: PI	2006