John L. Cooley, Ph.D., ABPP
Irving and Rose Fien Endowed Assistant Professor, School Psychology
Phone
352-273-4275
Address
Office 1801
PO Box 117050
Gainesville, FL 32611
Website
About
Dr. Cooley is a board-certified clinical child and adolescent psychologist and an Assistant Professor in the School Psychology Program at the University of Florida. His research is guided by two overarching questions: (1) “How can we meet the mental health needs of youth negatively impacted by bullying and peer victimization?” and (2) “How can we expand families’ access to evidence-based mental health services and resources?” To address these questions, his research lab is currently developing and evaluating novel approaches to mental health screening, prevention, and intervention online and within schools and other community-based settings. The central goal of Dr. Cooley’s work is to learn how we can decrease risk and foster protective factors among children and adolescents in order to promote positive peer relations and healthy patterns of development over time.
For additional information, please visit www.positiveyouthdevelopmentlab.com.
For additional information, please visit www.positiveyouthdevelopmentlab.com.
Affiliations
- School of Special Education School Psychology and Early Childhood Studies
- Prevention and Intervention Network Center
Research Interests
Clinical Interventions, Conflict / Aggression, Emotion, Family-centered Services, Individual Mental Health, Prevention Science, Stress / Coping, Trauma
Education
- Ph.D. in Clinical Child Psychology, University of Kansas (2018)
- M.A. in Clinical Child Psychology, University of Kansas (2014)
- B.A. in Psychology & Global Studies, College of William & Mary (2010)
- Board-Certified Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychologist, American Board of Professional Psychology
Professional Appointments
- Assistant Professor, University of Florida, School Psychology Program (2025–present)
- Assistant Professor, Texas Tech University, Clinical Psychology Program (2020–2024)
- NIMH T32 Postdoctoral Research Fellow, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Department of Psychiatry (2018–2020)
Activities and Honors
- Irving and Rose Fien Endowed Professorship, College of Education, University of Florida (2025–2028)
- Students' Choice Top Faculty Member, College of Arts & Sciences, Texas Tech University (2022)
- President’s Emerging Engaged Scholarship Award, Texas Tech University (2022)
- Mortar Board Apple Polishing Award, Texas Tech University (2021)
- Future Directions Launch Award in Adversity, Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology Future Directions Forum (2019)
- Doctoral Dissertation Passed with Honors, University of Kansas (2018)
- Award for Outstanding Achievement in Graduate School in Clinical Child Psychology, University of Kansas (2016)
- Albert Bandura Graduate Research Award, Psi Chi & Association for Psychological Science (2016)
Selected Grants
Investigating a Brief Positive Parenting Seminar Series as a Universal Intervention
Role
- Faculty Sponsor
Funding Agency
- Elizabeth Munsterberg Koppitz Child Psychology Graduate Student Fellowship, American Psychological Foundation
Project Period
- 2024–2025
Award Amount
- $20,000
Suicide Prevention in Primary Care
Role
- Co-Principal Investigator
Funding Agency
- American Rescue Plan Act, U.S. Department of Treasury & Texas Child Mental Health Care Consortium
Project Period
- 2022–2025
Award Amount
- $1,487,165
Initial Evaluation of a Brief Preventive Intervention for Aggressive-Victims
Role
- Principal Investigator
Funding Agency
- John and Polly Sparks Early Career Grant for Psychologists Investigating Serious Emotional Disturbance, American Psychological Foundation
Project Period
- 2022–2024
Award Amount
- $22,000
Selected Publications
Articles
- Cooley, J. L., *Sims, J. G., Mitchell, T. B., *Sanchez, C. R., *Ricker, B. T., & *Pollina, M. M. (2026). Peer victimization and bullying are potentially traumatic stressors among children. Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology. Advance online publication.https://doi.org/10.1080/15374416.2026.2637092
- *Streicher, B. E., Cooley, J. L., *Sims, J. G., Marvin, C., *Rojas, D., Wakefield, S. M., & Mitchell, S. M. (2026). Rural and non-rural pediatric health care providers’ youth suicide prevention beliefs, attitudes, training, and practices. Evidence-Based Practice in Child & Adolescent Mental Health. Advance online publication.https://doi.org/10.1080/23794925.2026.2718212
- *Sims, J. G., & Cooley, J. L. (2025). Understanding what characteristics of peer victimization and bullying predict posttraumatic stress symptoms among children. Journal of Interpersonal Violence. Advance online publication.https://doi.org/10.1177/08862605251390543
- *Ricker, B. T., Cooley, J. L., *Dennis, V. E., *Streicher, B. E., Mitchell, T. B., Cummings, C., & Singer, J. (2026). Evaluating a brief telehealth positive parenting intervention: A randomized controlled trial. Prevention Science, 27(4), 390-405.https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-026-01894-3
- Cooley, J. L., Barnett, J. E., *Ricker, B. T., *Sanchez, C. R., Lelakowska, G., & Pagán, A. F. (2025). Meeting the mental health needs of youth negatively impacted by bullying: A case report. Clinical Case Studies, 24(6), 459-476.https://doi.org/10.1177/15346501251374623
Books / Book Chapters
- Fite, P. J., & Cooley, J. L. (2024). Bullying and peer victimization. In G. P. Koocher, A. M. La Greca, O. Moorehead-Slaughter, & N. N. Lopez (Eds.), The parents’ guide to Psychological First Aid: Helping children and adolescents cope with predictable life crises (Revised ed., pp. 150-155). Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780197678794.003.0018
- Fite, P. J., Cooley, J. L., & Williford, A. (2020). Components of evidence-based interventions for bullying and peer victimization. In R. G. Steele & M. C. Roberts (Eds.), Handbook of evidence-based therapies for children and adolescents (2nd ed., pp. 219-234). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-44226-2_15
Presentations
- Cooley, J. L., *Sanchez, C. R., *Ricker, B. T., Barnett, J. E., Lelakowska, G., *Hefner, T., *Pollina, M. M., Pagán, A. F., *Dennis, V. E., *Sparks, S., *Streicher, B. E., & *Rojas, D. (2026, August). School-based CBT skills groups for children experiencing peer victimization. In J. L. Cooley (Chair), Novel prevention & intervention approaches for bullying/peer victimization [Symposium presentation]. American Psychological Association Convention, Washington, DC, United States.
- Barnett, J. E., Cooley, J. L., *Ricker, B. T., *Sanchez, C. R., Lelakowska, G., Pagán, A., *Pollina, M. M., *Gunder, E. M., & *Sims, J. G. (2026, August). Modular CBT for bullying victimization & traumatic stress symptoms. In J. L. Cooley (Chair), Novel prevention & intervention approaches for bullying/peer victimization [Symposium presentation]. American Psychological Association Convention, Washington, DC, United States.
- Gregus, S. J., Cooley, J. L., Hernandez Rodriguez, J., & *Ricker, B. T. (2026, August). Parent perspectives on bullying and the need for an online workshop. In J. L. Cooley (Chair), Novel prevention & intervention approaches for bullying/peer victimization [Symposium presentation]. American Psychological Association Convention, Washington, DC, United States.
- *Ricker, B. T., Cooley, J. L., *Dennis, V. E., *Streicher, B. E., Mitchell, T. B., Cummings, C., & Singer, J. (2025, June). Investigation of a brief positive parenting seminar series delivered through telehealth [Talk]. International Congress on Evidence-Based Parenting Support, Virtual Conference.