Assistant Professor

Dr. Julia Felton is a child clinical psychologist whose work focuses on identifying and treating early predictors of the development of depression, substance use, and related risk behaviors.

Her work is guided by socioecological models of developmental psychopathology and considers environmental, interpersonal and intrapersonal risk factors. Recent research has focused on the role of impulsivity, cognitive style and peer influence in the onset and maintenance of psychological disorders. She has served as an investigator on a number of federally-funded grants examining how these vulnerabilities manifest across adolescence and specific interventions to buffer these effects.

Prior to moving to Michigan State University, Dr. Felton was the Director of the Master’s in Clinical Psychological Science program at the University of Maryland and was a practicing psychologist in the Washington, DC area.

Selected Publications:

Felton, J.W., Hailemariam, M., Richie, F., Reddy, M.K., Edukere, S., Zlotnick, C., & Johnson, J.E. (2019). Preliminary efficacy and mediators of interpersonal psychotherapy for reducing posttraumatic stress symptoms in an incarcerated population. Psychotherapy research.

Felton, J.W., Shadur, J.M., Havewala, M., Goncalves, S., & Lejuez, C.W. (2019). Impulsivity moderates the relation between depressive symptoms and substance use across adolescence. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology.

Felton, J.W., Cole, D.A., Havewala, M., Kurdziel, G., & Brown, V. (2018). Talking together, thinking alone: Co-rumination, peer relationships, and the development of rumination. Journal of Youth and Adolescence.

Felton, J.W., Collado, A., Havewala, M., Shadur, J.M., MacPherson, L., & Lejuez, C.W. (2018). Distress tolerance interacts with negative life events to predict depressive symptoms across adolescence. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology.

Felton, J.W., Banducci, A.N., Shadur, J.M., Stadnik, R., MacPherson, L., & Lejuez, C.W. (2017). The developmental trajectory of perceived stress mediates the relations between distress tolerance and internalizing symptoms among youth. Development and Psychopathology.

To request a comprehensive CV summarizing Dr. Felton's achievements email her at feltonj2@msu.edu.