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Cathy Creswell
Born	Catharine Sarah Creswell
Alma mater	University of Oxford, University College London (BA (Ox) Hons, PhD)
Scientific career
Fields	Psychology Mental health Children and young people [1]
Institutions	University of Reading University of Oxford
Thesis	The development of anxious cognitions in children (2004)
Website	www.psy.ox.ac.uk/team/catharine-creswell

Catharine Sarah Creswell is a British psychologist and Professor of Developmental Clinical Psychology at the University of Oxford. ^{[1] [2]} She specialises in anxiety disorders in children and young people. ^{[3] [4]}

Education

Creswell was educated at University of Oxford, where she earned her Bachelor of Arts (BA) ^[5] degree^{[ when?]}. She later qualified as a Clinical Psychologist at University College London followed by a PhD in 2004. ^[6]

Research and career

Creswell joined the University of Reading as a research fellow in 2003, where she was later promoted to a National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Research Professorship. ^[7] At the University of Reading she led the Anxiety and Depression in Children and Young People clinic (AnDY). ^{[8] [9]}

Creswell studies why some children develop anxiety disorders. ^[10] Anxiety disorders often emerge before the age of 12 and develop in preadolescence. ^[11] and although 6.5% of children suffer from anxiety disorders, only 2% of those who meet the diagnostic criteria for anxiety disorder seek any effective treatment. ^{[12] [11]} In fact, only around 40% of families of children with children seek any type of help. ^[11]

She has studied how interactions between children and their parents can maintain or break vicious cycles associated with child anxiety. ^[13] As part of this work, Creswell showed that children of anxious parents are more likely to become anxious, but that this likely reflects a complex interaction of child, parent, and other characteristics ^[11] For example, she showed that anxious children were more aware of signals from their parents; and that non-anxious children were less likely to be influenced by what their parents were doing. ^[11]

As a result of this work, she developed a therapist-guided, parent-led cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for the management of child anxiety disorders, which is a now available on the National Health Service (NHS). ^[11] She demonstrated that only 5 hours of therapist-supported training was enough to support parents in helping their children tackle anxiety. ^[11]

She joined the University of Oxford in 2019. At Oxford, Creswell leads the Emerging Minds Mental Health Network. ^{[12] [14]} Emerging Minds is a network that looks to reduce the number of children who experience mental health challenges. Creswell is a member of the scientific advisory group of Evidence to Impact, a not-for-profit organisation that looks to improve public health. ^[15]

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Creswell co-led the Co-SPACE (COVID-19 Supporting Parents, Adolescents and Children during Epidemics). ^[16] Co-SPACE looks to understand how families cope with coronavirus disease and the impact of the pandemic on children and young people's mental health. ^[16] In May 2020, the first round of results from the Co-SPACE study, showing that work and their children's wellbeing was the most frequent source of stress for parents. ^{[17] [18]} Her study revealed that only 1 in 5 families who had previously received care continued to do so throughout the lockdown. ^[17] In particular, the highest levels of stress were found amongst parents of children with special educational needs (SEN). ^[17]

Selected publications

Creswell's publications ^{[1] [2] [3]} include:

• Evidence from turner's syndrome of an imprinted x-linked locus affecting cognitive function ^[19]
• Murray, Lynne; Cooper, Peter; Creswell, Cathy; Schofield, Elizabeth; Sack, Caroline (2007). "The effects of maternal social phobia on mother–infant interactions and infant social responsiveness" (PDF). Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry. 48 (1): 45–52. doi: 10.1111/j.1469-7610.2006.01657.x. ISSN  1469-7610. PMID  17244269.
• Creswell, Cathy (23 April 2019). Parent-led CBT for child anxiety : helping parents help their kids. ISBN  978-1-4625-4080-8. OCLC  1083715089.
• Creswell, Cathy (11 April 2019). Helping your child with fears and worries : a self-help guide for parents. Willetts, Lucy,, Cooper, Peter J.,, Waite, Polly, 1972- (Second ed.). London. ISBN  978-1-4721-3861-3. OCLC  1101411122.{{ cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher ( link)

References