People - [ Faculty Bios - Cliff McKinney ]

Research Interests

• Disruptive Behavior Disorders in children and adolescents
• Parent-child/adolescent relationships
• Family functioning and child/adolescent adjustment
• Parenting

Representative Publications

• McKinney, C., & Renk, K. (2008). Multivariate models of parent-late adolescent gender dyads: The importance of underlying processes in predicting adjustment. Child Psychiatry and Human Development, 39, 147-170.
• McKinney, C., Donnelly, R., & Renk, K. (2008). Perceived parenting, positive and negative perceptions of parents, and late adolescent emotional adjustment. Child and Adolescent Mental Health, 13, 66-73.
• McKinney, C., & Renk, K. (2008). Differential parenting between mothers and fathers: Implications for late adolescents. Journal of Family Issues, 29, 806-827.
• McKinney, C., & Renk, K. (2007). Emerging research and theory in the etiology of oppositional defiant disorder: Current concerns and future directions. International Journal of Behavioral Consultation and Therapy, 3, 349-371.
• McKinney, C., & Renk, K. (2006). Similar presentations of disparate etiologies: A new perspective on Oppositional Defiant Disorder. Child and Family Behavior Therapy, 28, 37-49.

Making Sense of Us: A Child and Family Research Clinic

The Making Sense of Us Research Clinic at Mississippi State University has two primary goals. The first goal is to provide behavioral health services to parents and children of the Starkville community and abroad. The second goal is to conduct research on child, adolescent, and family functioning as well as parenting and disruptive behaviors.

The primary clinical service provided by this research clinic is conducting assessments with families and their children who may be experiencing emotional, behavioral, or academic difficulties. Although the clinic specializes in disruptive behavior disorders (e.g., oppositional defiant disorder, conduct disorder, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder), assessments and therapeutic services are offered for a wide range of concerns.

Individuals who may be interested in this research clinic include parents of children up to the age of 21. Listed below are services that may be offered through this research clinic.

• Comprehensive Assessment including history, conceptualization, diagnosis, and recommendations
• Parent Management Training in individual or group format
• Child Groups promoting prosocial behaviors and compliance
• Individual Therapy for children

Parents are asked to volunteer their data to be used anonymously for research purposes. The research conducted through this clinic focuses specifically on disruptive behavior disorders and broadly on parenting, parent-child/adolescent relationships, and child/adolescent functioning. Listed below is a sampling of potential research topics that may be conducted through the research clinic. Other topics are welcomed to be discussed.

• Etiology of Disruptive Behavior Disorders
• Assessment of Disruptive Behavior Disorders
• Dispositional characteristics of children with Disruptive Behavior Disorders
• Parenting characteristics related to the development of Disruptive Behavior Disorders
• Parent-child/adolescent relationship characteristics and their relationship to child/adolescent functioning
• Styles of parenting and their relationship to child/adolescent adjustment
• Perceptions of parenting