Lab Research

Published and In-Press Articles and chapters

• Silovsky, J., Niec, L., Bard, D., & Hecht, D.  (2007).  Treatment for Preschool Children with Interpersonal Sexual Behavior Problems: A Pilot Study.  Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 36, 378-391.Silovsky, J., Niec, L. N., Bard, D., & Hecht, D.  (in press) Treatment for preschool children with sexual behavior problems: A pilot study.  Manuscript in press at Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology.





• Ellis, D. A., Yopp, J., Templin, T., Naar-King, S., Frey, M.A., Cunningham, P. B., Idalski, A., Niec, L. N.  (2007).  Family Mediators and Moderators of Treatment Outcomes Among Adolescents with Chronically Poorly Controlled Type 1 Diabetes: Results From A Randomized Controlled Trial.  Journal of Pediatric Psychology, 32(2), 194-205.
   

• Jent, J., & Niec, L. N.  (2006).  Mentoring youth with psychiatric disorders: The impact on child and parent functioning.  Child and Family Behavior Therapy, 28, 43-58.
   

• Niec, L. N., Brestan, E. V., & Valle, L. A. (in press). Violence on the Screen: Psychological Perspectives on Child Abuse in American Popular Film. In T. Levin & P Turissi (Eds.), Cultures of Violence: Inter-Disciplinary Press: Oxfordshire, UK.
   

• Brestan, E. V., Loper, M., & Niec, L. (2005). Contingency management for children. In M. Hersen (Ed.), The Encyclopedia of Behavior Modification and Therapy: Vol. 2. Child Clinical Applications. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
   

• Butcher, J., & Niec, L. N.  (2005).  Disruptive behaviors and creativity: The importance of affect regulation.  Creativity Research Journal, 17, 181-194.
   

• Niec, L. N., Hemme, J., Yopp, J., & Brestan, E.  (2005).  Parent-child interaction therapy: The rewards and challenges of a group format.  Cognitive and Behavioral Practice, 12, 113-125.
   

• Niec, L. N., & Russ, S. W.  (2002).  Children's internal representations, empathy, and fantasy play: A validity study of the SCORS-Q.  Psychological Assessment, 14, 331-338.
   

• Silovsky, J., & Niec, L. N. (2002).  Characteristics of young children with sexual behavior problems: A pilot study.  Child Maltreatment, 7, 187-197. 
   

• Bonner, B., Kaufman, K., Logue, M, & Niec, L. N.  (2001).  Child maltreatment.  In C. E. Walker & M. C. Roberts (Eds.), Handbook of Clinical Child Psychology (3^rd ed.).  New York: John Wiley & Sons.
   

• Russ, S., Niec, L. N., & Kaugars, A.  (2000).  Play Assessment of Affect: The Affect in Play Scale.  In K. Gitlin-Weiner, A. Sandgrund, & C. Schaefer, (Eds.), Play diagnosis and assessment (2^nd ed.).  New York: John Wiley & Sons (pp 722-749).
   

• Niec, L., & Russ, S.  (1996).  Relationships among affect in play, interpersonal themes in fantasy, and children’s interpersonal behavior.  Journal of Personality Assessment, 66, 645-649.

Books and manuscripts in preparation or under review

• Baker, S. E., & Niec, L. N. (in preparation).  Development and preliminary validation of an interactive measure to assess children’s affective representations of self and relationships.  Manuscript in preparation.
   

• Brestan, E. V., Valle, L., & Niec, L. N. (in preparation).  Art imitating life? The incidence of child maltreatment in film.  Manuscript in preparation.
   

• Butcher, J., & Niec, L. N.  (in revision).  Measuring the “fix my child” attitude: Validity of the READI, a measure of parents’ motivation for change.  Manuscript in revision.
   

• Butcher, J., & Niec, L. N.  (in preparation).  The malleability of mothers’ situational attributions for their children’s behaviors.  Manuscript in preparation.
   

• Harke, M., & Niec, L. N.  (in preparation).  Spanking worked for me: Factors predicting college students’ choice of child discipline Strategies.  Manuscript in preparation.
   

• Jent, J., & Niec, L. N. (under review).  Jent, J., & Niec, L. N.  (in revision).  Cognitive Behavioral Group Mentoring for Children with Emotional and Behavioral Disorders: A Randomized-Controlled Trial.  Manuscript under review.
   

• Niec, L. N., Yopp, J., & Russ, S.  (in revision).  Children’s interpersonal themes in play and interpersonal functioning:  Development of the Interpersonal Themes in Play System.  Manuscript in revision.
   

• Niec, L. N., Shanley, J., Baker, J., & Holloway, J.  (in preparation).  Do parents comply with direct commands? The impact of instructional set on the behavioral observation of parent-child interactions.  Manuscript in preparation.
   

• Russ, S. W., & Niec, L. N., Eds. (in preparation).  An evidence-based approach to play in intervention and prevention: Integrating developmental and clinical science.  Book contracted for publication by Guilford Press.

Refereed Conference Presentations 

• Cain-Spannagel, S., Russ, S. W., Niec, L. N. (2008, March). The relationship between interpersonal themes in play and prosocial moral reasoning.  Paper accepted for presentation at the Annual Meeting of the Society for Personality Assessment, New Orleans, LA. 
   

• Harke, M., & Niec, L. N. (2007, September).  Spanking worked for me: Factors predicting college students’ choice of child discipline Strategies.  Poster presented at the Seventh Annual PCIT Conference, Oklahoma City, OK.
   

• Haseley, E., Shanley, J., Niec, L. N., Pant, H., Dolbear, P., & Meloche, S.  (2007, September).  You did that on purpose and now you're in trouble: How parent attributions relate to observed parent and child behaviors.  Poster presented at the Seventh Annual PCIT Conference, Oklahoma City, OK.
   

• Niec, L. N.  (2007, July).  Group Parent-Child Interaction Therapy: A model service delivery format.  Paper presented at the World Congress of Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies, Barcelona, Spain.
   

• Niec, L. N., & Baker, S. E. (2007, November).  Dynamic Constructs in a Behavioral Intervention: The Importance of Group Cohesion.  Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies, Phila., PA.
   

• Niec, L. N., Baker, S. E., & Gering, C. L.  (2007, September).  PCIT goes “on the road!”  A pilot study of the two-day + consultation dissemination model.  Paper presented at the Seventh Annual PCIT Conference, Oklahoma City, OK.
   

• Niec, L. N., Shanley, J., Baker, S., & Star, J.  (2007, July).  Can parents do what they’re told?  Factors impacting behavioral observation of parent-child interactions.  Poster presented at the World Congress of Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies, Barcelona, Spain.
   

• Shanley, J., Dolbear, P., Niec, L. N., Wheeling, R., & Mclaughlan, J.  (2007, September).  Do parents get tired? The validity of DPICS warm-up segments.  Poster presented at the Seventh Annual PCIT Conference, Oklahoma City, OK.

• Shanley, J., Niec, L. N., & Anderson, A.  (2007, March).  Parental Attachment Models and Social Cognitions:  How these Factors Impact Parent-Child Relationships.  Poster presented at the Biennial Meeting of the Society for Research in Child Development, Boston, MA.
   

• Star, J., Niec, L. N., Dolbear, P., & Gering, C. (2007, September). Relationships between parents’ perceptions of child misbehavior and parent-child interactions: An exploration of gender differences. .  Poster presented at the Seventh Annual PCIT Conference, Oklahoma City, OK.
   

• Stayer, C., & Niec, L. N., Nugent, N., Dobbs, T. (2007, September).  If we build it, will they come: Community mental health clinicians’ use of empirically supported treatments for childhood conduct problems. Poster presented at the Seventh Annual PCIT Conference, Oklahoma City, OK.
   

• Baker, S., & Niec, L. N.  (2006, January).  Influence of Sample Type on the ECBI Factor Structure.  Poster presented at the 6th Annual Parent-Child Interaction Therapy Conference, Gainesville, FL.
   

• Butcher, J., & Niec, L. N.  (2006, November).  It’s your fault today but it will be my fault tomorrow: Distinguishing between situational and global attributions when measuring mothers’ thoughts.  Poster presented at the Annual Meeting of the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies, Chicago, IL.
   

• Butcher, J., & Niec, L. N.  (2006, November).  Changing mothers’ minds: The malleability of situational attributions and effects on mothers’ and children’s mood and behavior.  Poster presented at the Annual Meeting of the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies, Chicago, IL.
   

• Haseley, E., Star, J., Triemstra, K., & Niec, L. N.  (2006, November).  Therapist-Parent Interactions in Parent-Child Interaction Therapy.  Poster presented at the Annual Meeting of the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies, Chicago, IL.
   

• Niec, L. N., Curnalia, K., Shanley, J., Robinson, E., Star, J., Baker, S., Pilarski, C.  (2006, January).  Do parents comply to direct commands? Factors impacting behavior observations.  Poster presented at the 6th Annual Parent-Child Interaction Therapy Conference, Gainesville, FL.
   

• Shanley, J., & Niec, L. N.  (2006, January).  Assessing Parents’ Stages of Change:  Factor Analysis of the Parent Readiness For Change Scale (PRFCS).  Paper presented at the 6^th Annual Parent-Child Interaction Therapy Conference, Gainesville, FL.
   

• Shanley, J., & Niec, L. N. (2006, November).  Relationships between parents’ social cognitions: Impact of parenting self-efficacy on use of attributions for children’s behaviors.  Poster presented at the Annual Meeting of the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies, Chicago, IL.
   

• Young, K., Shanley, J., & Niec, L. N.  (2006, January).  Factor Analysis of an Intake Assessment Battery for PCIT.  Poster presented at the 6th Annual Parent-Child Interaction Therapy Conference, Gainesville, FL.
   

• Jent, J., & Niec, L.  (2004, November).  The Impact of Mentoring on Family Functioning: A Mental Health Sample.  Poster presented at the Annual Meeting of the Association for the Advancement of Behavior Therapy, New Orleans, LA.
   

• Jent, J., Young, K., & Niec, L.  (2004, November).  Assessing the relationship between parents' motivation to change and measured rate of change in Parent-Child Interaction Therapy.  Poster presented at the Annual Meeting of the Association for the Advancement of Behavior Therapy, New Orleans, LA.
   

• Niec, L., Butcher, J.  (2004, November). The Impact of the "Fix my child" Attitude:Assessing Parents’ Readiness for Change in Parent-Child Interaction Therapy.  Poster presented at the Annual Meeting of the Association for the Advancement of Behavior Therapy, New Orleans, LA.
   

• Niec, L., Cochran, H., & Hernandez, H.  (2004, November).  Can they do what they say?  The DPICS-II as an Observation Measure of Parents' Behavior Change in Group Parent-Child Interaction Therapy.  Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Association for the Advancement of Behavior Therapy, New Orleans, LA.
   

• Pilarski, C., Hemme, J., Niec, L., & Skeel, R. (2004, February). Performance of Children with ADHD on Commercially Available Continuous Performance Tests: A Meta-Analytic Review. Poster presented at the annual meeting of the International Neurological Society, Baltimore, MD.
   

• Butcher, J., & Niec, L.  (2003, May).  Behavior problems and creativity: The role of affect regulation and fantasy play.  Poster presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Society, Atlanta, GA.
   

• Hernandez, H., & Niec, L.  (2003, April).  Marital conflict and preschoolers' peer relationships: The role of emotional understanding.  Poster presented at the biennial meeting of the Society for Research in Child Development, Tampa, FL.
   

• Niec, L. N., Brestan, E., Valle, L.  (2003, September).  Violence on the screen: Psychological perspectives on child maltreatment in American popular film 1992-2001.  Paper presented at the Global Conference on Cultures of Violence, Oxford University, Oxford, England.
   

• Niec, L. N., Cochran, H., & Stayer, C.  (2003, July).  Social Support and Parental Functioning in Parents with Behavior-Disordered Children Poster presented at the annual Parent-Child Interaction Therapy Conference, Sacramento, CA.
   

• Brestan, E., Heath, J., Valle, L., Niec, L., Gattis, S., Dillon, M., Hill, B., & Blumberg, H.  (2002, March).  Portrayal of child maltreatment in films: Victim characteristics. Poster presented at the South Eastern Psychological Association Annual Meeting, Orlando, FL.
   

• Butcher, J., Niec, L., Cochran, H., Hernandez, H., Hunter, K., Hemme, J., Brestan, E., Ondersma, S., & Simpson, S.  (2002, June).  Child-focused attributions and parents' readiness to change.  Paper presented at the Third Annual Parent-Child Interaction Therapy Conference, Sacramento, CA.
   

• Hemme, J., & Niec, L. (2002, March).  Socioemotional functioning and fantasy play in a sample of behavior disordered children.  Paper presented at the Society for Personality Assessment Midwinter Meeting, San Antonio, TX.
   

• Niec, L., Yopp, J., Hemme, J., & Brestan. (2002, November). The Next Step in Parent-Child Interaction Therapy: Group vs. Individual Therapy.  Paper presented as part of the Symposium: Mechanisms of assessment and treatment with parents and families.  Presented at the Association for the Advancement of Behavior Therapy, Reno, NV.
   

• Niec, L., Yopp, J., & Wells, J.  (2002, March).  Interpersonal themes in fantasy play and children's interpersonal functioning.  Paper presented at the Society for Personality Assessment Midwinter Meeting, San Antonio, TX.
   

• Yopp, J., & Niec, L. (2002, March).  Relational aggression in children: Internal representations, empathy, and emotional understanding.  Poster presented at the Society for Personality Assessment Midwinter Meeting, San Antonio, TX.
   

• Dunlap, M., Silovsky, J., Hecht, D., Niec, L.  (2001, November).  Treatment outcome for children with sexual behavior problems: A multiple-baseline design.  Paper presented at the Association for the Advancement of Behavior Therapy Annual Meeting, Philadelphia, PA.
   

• Niec, L., Yopp, J., & Wells, J.  (2001, April).  Children's interpersonal themes in play, internal representations, and empathy.  Poster presented at the Society for Research in Child Development Biennial Meeting, Minneapolis, MN.
   

• Sitzer, D., Niec, L., Yopp, J., Ondersma, S., Brestan, S., & Simpson, S.  (2001, June).  Predicting attrition in Parent-Child Interaction Therapy.  Poster presented at the Second Annual Parent-Child Interaction Therapy Conference, Sacramento, CA.
   

• Silovsky, J., Bonner, B., Walker, E., Berliner, L., Niec, L., & Hecht, D.  (2000, May).  Children with sexual behavior problems: Research on treatment outcome.  Presented at the National Sexual Violence Prevention Conference, Dallas, TX.
   

• Silovsky, J., Niec, L., & Hecht, D.  (2000, January).  Clinical presentation and treatment outcome of preschool children with sexual behavior problems.  Paper presented at the San Diego Conference on Responding to Child Maltreatment, San Diego, CA.
   

• Bonner, B., Niec, L., & Turner, B.  (1999, April).  Child Maltreatment Fatalities: 1987-1997.  Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Southwestern Psychological Association, Albuquerque, NM.
   

• Niec, L., Silovsky, J., Logue, M., & Bonner, B.  (1999, April).  Children with sexual behavior problems: A pilot study on the impact of age and history of trauma.  Poster presented at the Biennial Meeting of the Society for Research in Child Development, Albuquerque, NM.
   

• Silovsky, J., & Niec, L. (1999, January).  Assessment and treatment for preschool children with sexualized behaviors.  Paper presented at the 1999 San Diego Conference on Responding to Child Maltreatment, San Diego, CA.
   

• Turner, B., Niec, L., & Crow, S.  (1999, January).  Understanding Child Neglect Fatalities.  Paper presented at the 1999 San Diego Conference on Responding to Child Maltreatment, San Diego, CA.
   

• Bonner, B., Crow, S., Testa, J., & Niec, L.  (1998, January).  Child maltreatment fatalities in Oklahoma: A 10 year perspective.  Paper presented at the San Diego Conference on Responding to Child Maltreatment, San Diego, CA.
   

• Niec, L., Bonner, B., & Crow, S.  (1998, April).  A longitudinal perspective on child maltreatment fatalities in Oklahoma.  Paper presented at the meeting of the University of Central Oklahoma LPC Honors Society.
   

• Silovsky, J. F., & Niec, L.  (1998, July).  Assessment and treatment of preschool and primary aged children with sexual behavior problems: A pilot study.  Paper presented at Program Evaluation and Family Violence Research: An International Conference, Durham, NH.
   

• Niec, L., & Russ, S.  (1997, April).  Affect and interpersonal representations as predictors of children's empathy and relatedness to others.  Poster presented at the Biennial Meeting of the Society for Research in Child Development, Washington DC.
   

• Niec, L., & Russ, S.  (1994, April).  Relationships among affect in play, interpersonal themes in story-telling, and interpersonal functioning.  Paper presented at the Society for Personality Assessment Conference, Chicago, IL.
   

• Russ, S., & Niec, L. (1993, March).  Affective development and object relations.  Paper presented at the Society for Personality Assessment Conference, San Francisco, CA.

Parent-Child Interaction Therapy Clinic

Central Michigan University