Division of Counseling Psychology

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Alex Pieterse
Assistant Professor

Bio  -  Research Interests  -  Representative Publications  


ALEX L. PIETERSE. (PhD, 2005, Columbia University, New York) Dr. Pieterse joined the Counseling Psychology faculty in September 2008. His area of research examines psychosocial aspects of racism including outcome variables such as health and mental health status, and process variables such as racial identity. An additional area of inquiry focuses on racial and cultural variables in counselor training and the development of self-awareness among counselor trainees. Dr. Pieterse currently serves on the Editorial Boards of Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology and the Journal of Multicultural Counseling and Development and has active membership in the American Psychological Association.


Research Interests


Representative Publications

Pieterse, A. L., & Carter, R. T (In press). An Exploratory Investigation of the Relationship between Racism, Racial Identity, Perceptions of Health, and Health Locus of Control among American Woman of African Descent. Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved

Pieterse, A. L., Howitt, D., & Naidoo, A. V. (In press) Racial Oppression, Colonization and Self- Efficacy: Towards an Empowerment Model for individuals of African Heritage. In E. Mpofu, Ed. Counseling People of African Ancestry, Cambridge Publications.

Pieterse, A. L (2009). Teaching Anti-racism in Counselor Training: Reflections on a course. Journal of Multicultural Counseling and Development, 37, 141-152.

Pieterse, A. L., & Carter, R. T. (In press). The Role of Racial Identity in Perceived Racism and Psychological Stress Among Black American Adults: Exploring Traditional and Alternative Approaches Journal of Applied Social Psychology

Pieterse, A. L., Evans, S A., Collins, N. M., A., Risner-Butner, & Mason, L. B. (2009). Multicultural and Social Justice Training in Counseling Psychology and Counselor Education: A Review and Analysis of a sample of Course Syllabi. The Counseling Psychologist, 37, 93-115.

Pieterse, A. L., Miller, M. J (2009) Advances in Multicultural Assessment and Counseling in Adults. In J. Ponterotto., L. A. Suzuki., C. Alexander., & J. M. Cases (Eds.), Handbook of Multicultural Counseling, 3rd Edition, (pp. 649-666). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications

Neville, H. A., & Pieterse, A. L. (2009). Racism, White Supremacy, and Resistance: Contextualizing Black American Experiences. In H. A. Neville.., B. N. Tynes., & S. O. Utsey, (Eds.). Handbook of African American Psychology, (pp. 159-174). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications

Carter, R.T., Pieterse, A. L., & Smith, S (2008). An Exploratory Analysis of Racial Identity Profile Statuses and Expressions of Anger in Black Americans. Journal of Multicultural Counseling and Development, 36, 101-112.

Pieterse, A. L., & Carter, R. T. (2007). An examination of the relationship between general life stress, racism-related stress and psychological health among Black Men. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 54, 102-109.

Collins N, M. & Pieterse, A. L. (2007). Critical Incident Analysis Based Learning: An Approach to Training for Active Racial and Cultural Awareness, Journal of Counseling and Development, 85, 14-23. – Shared Authorship

Baluch, S., Pieterse, A. L, & Bolden, M. (2004) Counseling Psychology and Social Justice: Houston… we have a problem. The Counseling Psychologist, 32, 89-98.