Beverly Greene (psychologist) facts for kids

Beverly Greene (born 1950) is a well-known professor and clinical psychologist. She teaches at St. John's University.

Dr. Greene is famous for her work on how different parts of a person's identity, like their race and gender, connect and affect their lives. She studies topics like sexism (unfair treatment based on gender) and racism (unfair treatment based on race).

She is an expert in women's psychology and how racial issues affect therapy. Dr. Greene has also created ways to understand mental health for people from groups who are often treated unfairly. She has written nearly 100 articles and books about psychology.

Dr. Greene is involved with important groups like the Association for Women in Psychology and the Society for the Psychology of Women. In 2008, she received a special award called the Distinguished Publication Award from the Association for Women in Psychology.

About Beverly Greene

Her Early Life

Beverly Greene was born in 1950 in East Orange, New Jersey. She is the oldest of four children. Her parents, Samuel and Thelma Greene, grew up in the Southern United States.

Her father worked as a carpenter. Her mother finished high school and later worked with children who had disabilities. Beverly's grandmother, aunts, and uncles also lived with her family. Dr. Greene says her parents taught her to be aware of racism from a young age.

Her College Years

Dr. Greene earned her first college degree from New York University in 1973. Later, she started a program at Marquette University. However, she had to leave her classes because she was diagnosed with a brain tumor. She had surgery to remove it.

She then went on to earn her master's degree in 1977 and her doctorate (Ph.D.) in clinical psychology in 1983. She studied at the Derner Institute of Advanced Psychological Studies at Adelphi University. When she graduated, she was one of only five students of color in her program.

During her doctoral studies, Dr. Greene worked at Kings County Municipal Hospital in Brooklyn. Her mentor there, Dorothy Gartner, encouraged her to teach courses to other students.

Her Career in Psychology

Working as a Psychologist

Dr. Greene's first job was as a psychologist for the New York City Board of Education. In 1982, she began working at Kings County Municipal Hospital in Brooklyn, New York. Most of the staff there were white, and many of her patients were poor African American children.

Since 1984, Dr. Greene has also had her own therapy practice. As of 2019, she continues to help patients at her clinic. She also teaches at St. John's University.

She credits her supervisor, William Johnson, for much of her success in therapy. He taught her how important it is to understand a person's culture when helping them. She also learned from him about using certain therapy methods.

Teaching Others

While working at Kings County Hospital in 1991, Dr. Greene's mentor, Dorothy Gartner, encouraged her to teach. Dr. Gartner wanted her to create courses for her coworkers. These courses taught them how to treat and serve minority patients. This is where Dr. Greene first became interested in teaching and writing about therapy and cultural diversity.

She continued her teaching career at St. John's University in Queens. She was the first African American professor to earn tenure (a permanent teaching position) at the university in 1995.

Research and Writing

Dr. Greene started writing about her courses when she worked at Kings County Hospital. She wrote about her seminars on psychotherapy for diverse groups. Her colleagues encouraged her to write about therapy for African American and LGBTQIA+ communities. She also developed ways to include everyone in feminist psychology.

Today, Dr. Greene has written almost 100 publications, given hundreds of presentations, and published 11 books. She has also received over 27 national awards for her work.

Helping Non-Profits

While working at Kings County Hospital, Dr. Greene also became involved with the American Psychological Association (APA). She joined APA’s Division 35 and the Association for Women. She was also a founding member of APA's Division 44.

Her Important Research

Dr. Greene's research often focuses on the psychology of lesbian, gay, and bisexual people, as well as feminism. She believes that a person's identity is complex and should not be limited by strict ideas about gender.

Her work shows that people should not be treated unfairly because of their race, gender, or sexual orientation. Dr. Greene's main focus is on how therapy can help. She often looks at how sexism and racism affect people.

Understanding Sexism

Dr. Greene studies how sexism and the history of racism affect women of color. She explains that different types of unfair treatment can feel different for people. She believes that women's lives are shaped by unfair treatment based on gender. This can cause emotional problems and make them feel bad because of their unequal place in society.

She argues that when gender, race, and sexual orientation come together, it shapes the unfair treatment women of color face every day. Dr. Greene suggests that therapists working with people of color, especially African-American women, should be careful. They should not quickly dismiss complaints about racist and sexist discrimination. Doing so can make the person feel worse and cause more problems.

Understanding Racism

A big part of Dr. Greene's work is about how to include race awareness in therapy. She says that racism is a type of trauma. However, it cannot be understood using only the PTSD model. Instead, she believes that therapists need to understand racism through each person's unique experience.

Dr. Greene does not think there is one perfect plan for dealing with racism in therapy. She believes that understanding a person's identity, history, and family helps the therapist find the best treatment methods. She often talks about how important it is for therapists to learn about different cultures. They should also be willing to admit what they don't know.

Dr. Greene's work mainly focuses on the beginning of therapy. This is when the therapist starts to understand the person's experiences with racism and their relationship with their own race. In one of her articles, "African American Lesbian and Bisexual Women," Dr. Greene gives four ways to improve this process:

• First, understand the person's relationship with the main culture.
• Second, understand their relationship with their own culture.
• Third, understand their relationships with individuals and larger groups.
• Lastly, it is important to understand how the person sees their own identity.

Awards and Honors

Dr. Greene has received many awards for her important work:

• In 1995 and 2010, she won the Women of Color Psychologies Publication Award from the Association for Women in Psychology.
• In 2008, she received the Distinguished Publication Award (DPA) from the Association for Women in Psychology.
• The American Psychological Association gave her the Outstanding Achievement Award in 1995.
• In 2000, she was honored with the Heritage Award from the American Psychological Association.
• The National Multicultural Conference and Summit awarded her the Dalmas Taylor Award in 2007.
• In 2011 and 2013, Dr. Greene received the American Psychological Association Presidential Citation Award.