Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior

Kristine Durkin, Ph.D. (Rhode Island Hospital, 8/1/22-8/31/25) graduated from Denison University with a B.A. in psychology and English literature in 2014. In 2016, she began her doctoral studies at West Virginia University under the mentorship of Dr. Christina Duncan. During her time as a graduate student, Kristine received a NHLBI F31 award, as well as dissertation awards from the American Psychological Association and the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation for her research on adherence to nutritional recommendations in adolescents with Cystic Fibrosis. Kristine expanded her research focus to include Youth Participatory Action Research and established a strong community partnership with Young Voices, a youth organization in Providence while on her clinical psychology pre-doctoral internship at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. She continued her postdoctoral fellowship training at Brown within the Research Fellowship Program, completing one year in the Child Mental Health T32 before transitioning to her F32 award under the mentorship of Dr. Elizabeth McQuaid. Her F32 grant, funded by NHLBI, focuses on incorporating youth voices into community-based interventions aimed at improving diet quality and physical activity. Kristine will join Rhode Island Hospital as a research scientist, where she will continue her work in research and clinical services focused on community engagement with youth and promoting psychosocial adjustment in youth with chronic illnesses. She is deeply thankful for the guidance of her mentors, Dr. McQuaid and others, and expresses her gratitude to her husband, family, friends, and youth research partners and staff at Young Voices for their support and dedication.