Karin M. Best, PhD

Assistant Adjunct Professor
Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences
David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
- 760 Westwood Plaza 58-249C, Los Angeles, CA 90024
- Email: kbest@mednet.ucla.edu
- Website
- Pubmed
Biography
Dr. Karin Best directs the UCLA Infant and Preschool Assessment Program and is an Assistant Adjunct Professor in the UCLA Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences. She specializes in child clinical psychology. Dr. Best has been a licensed psychologist since 1994 and is licensed in both California and Massachusetts. Dr. Best’s clinical work is focused on assessment and brief treatment, with specializations in the assessment and differential diagnosis of young children and treatment with children and families. She has extensive experience in assessment and treatment planning for individuals with developmental challenges and individuals treated in partial day hospital and inpatient settings. Dr. Best received a B.A. in art history from Williams College and a B.A. in psychology from the University of California at Santa Barbara. She earned a Ph.D. in psychology from the University of Minnesota. Dr. Best completed her clinical pre-doctoral internship (general child psychology) and clinical post-doctoral training (developmental disabilities) at the UCLA Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior. Her post-doctoral research training was completed at Harvard Medical School (Judge Baker Children’s Center) with the multi-site Family Risk and Resilience Consortium. Dr. Best collaborates with many UCLA researchers.
Education
- Williams College (Art History), B.A.
- UC Santa Barbara (Psychology), B.A.
- University of Minnesota (Psychology, supporting program in Child Development), Ph.D.
Research & clinical interests
- Parenting
- Positive adaptation in stressful circumstance (resilience)
- Long-term adaptation in adults psychiatrically hospitalized as adolescents
- Intervention to improve the functioning and adaptation of families with a disabled child
- Access to care
Roles within the division/Fellowship
- Director, Infant and Preschool Clinic
- Co-Director, School Consultation Rotation
- Lectures on such topics as child development, parenting