Jill Waterman, Ph.D.

Jill Waterman, Ph.D. was one of the initial developers of TIES for Adoption in 1995 (now UCLA TIES for Families) and currently is the Associate Director of Infant Mental Health, as well as a supervisor of psychology externs and postdoctoral fellows. She is Adjunct Professor Emerita in the UCLA Psychology Department and former Coordinator of the UCLA Psychology Clinic, the training clinic for UCLA’s top-ranked Clinical Psychology Ph.D. program. Dr. Waterman’s research involves long-term follow-up of children adopted from foster care and their families (many now adolescents and young adults), as well as evaluation, treatment and follow-up of prenatally exposed infants placed with foster parents who hope to adopt them, and evaluation of Adoption-specific Therapy. Dr. Waterman is author of 3 books on aspects of child trauma and numerous articles, and is the lead author of Adoption-Specific Therapy: A Guide to Helping Adopted Children and their Families Thrive, published by American Psychological Association Books in 2018. In addition, she is a practicing clinician specializing in treatment with parents and young children.