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Dr. Jennifer Lambert-Shute
MA, Marriage and Family Therapy, Appalachian State University
Ph.D., Marriage and Family Therapy, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
jjshute@valdosta.edu
Office: (229) 245-4323
University Center: 1143

Hello. My name is Jennifer Lambert-Shute and I am an assistant professor in the Marriage and Family Therapy program. I came to Valdosta in 2004 from the University of Oregon where I was an MFT instructor and clinical supervisor. Also, while in Oregon I worked as a therapist with Women’s Care: Physicians & Surgeons, of Lane County Mental Health with children and adolescents, and as a therapist and supervisor for the center for family therapy. I received my doctorate from Virginia Tech in MFT, my masters from Appalachian State University in MFT, and my bachelors in Psychology from Western Illinois. I am currently an Associate Member and a Supervisor in Training with the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT).

My primary research interest focuses on issues in training marriage and family therapists. My master’s thesis studied the stressors involved in MFT graduate training. My dissertation focused on successful strategies of non-sexual dual relationships between faculty and students in MFT programs. My research has also focused on gerontology and marriage and family therapists working with older adults, incarceration and its impact on families, and exploring issues of obesity and family therapy. Obesity has reached epidemic status in the United Sates and many scientists are investigating ways to fight this disease. I feel strongly that the field of family therapy can make meaningful contributions to this investigation. Additionally, I believe that if the field of marriage and family therapy is going to continue growing as a profession, therapists need to be involved in conducting effective research that can help move the field into the future. As a researcher I am interested in finding the best methodology to answer our fields many questions. Thusly, I have embraced both qualitative and quantitative methods in my research.

As a therapist I am committed to exploring client’s perspectives and understanding their context and how this connects to the presenting issues. I use a strength basis perspective in working with clients and students. In training students to become therapists my goal is to help supervisees develop and clarify their own ideas of therapeutic change. An important aspect of my job is to help students clarify and form a theoretical framework to work with clients that is congruent with their epistemology. Another area that I emphasize in working with students is the importance of using literature and research in our work as clinicians. As clinicians, I believe it is too easy to predominantly rely on intuition. While intuition and clinical judgment are important elements of our work, I try to encourage my supervisees to incorporate effectiveness research into their work. As a supervisor I focus on self of the therapist issues such as learning self-care and encouraging supervisees to develop strategies for preventing burnout.

As a faculty member in the Marriage and Family Therapy program, I am committed and passionate about working with students and training future therapists. The best part of my job is working and interacting with students. Therefore, I try to convey to our students that my door is always open. If you ever have any questions or would like to know more about our program please do not hesitate to call, email, or simply stop by.