My Mission as a Child Psychologist

Few achievements give me more satisfaction than helping children or teenagers gain skills for leading successful, meaningful and happy lives.

Developing life skills leads to success, measured not just in personal accomplishments but in the impact they have on others.

My mission is to promote the emotional, social and psychological success of the children and teenagers I work with, so they can fulfill their lives to the best of their abilities. To have a hand in promoting that success is my greatest privilege as a child psychologist.

How I Help Children and Adolescents

In my work with children and adolescents, my goal is to help them develop positive, effective life skills. In most cases, doing so involves the following process:

Assessment: In order to solve a problem, we must understand it. First, I meet with parents to learn about their children, the problems they are having and the impact of those problems on the entire family. I then meet with children to explore these questions from their perspectives. Then, I meet again with parents to present the results of my assessment and discuss steps for helping the children and resolving problems within the family.

• Testing: I am qualified to administer various tests that measure children’s cognitive, social and psychological capabilities and performance. This information is invaluable in selecting the right interventions to improve children’s well-being.
• Therapy: My approach to therapy is twofold. I want to help children understand what is causing difficulties in their lives and the steps they can take to ease those difficulties. I also want to engage them in building constructive, effective skills that will enable them to manage, even eliminate, those difficulties.
• School Consultations: Sometimes, difficulties in children’s lives lead to academic problems, and other times, academic difficulties are the source of children’s difficulties. In either case, I consider it an important part of my work to collaborate with teachers in finding the most effective interventions to improve children’s performance in school.
• Parent Education: Parents occasionally need help fine-tuning their parenting skills. That’s not surprising since it’s hard to know how best to handle difficult, challenging children. I meet with parents or consult with them by phone or email to help them improve their skills in meeting the needs of their children.
• Family Therapy: Children are not just individuals; they are part of a family. Whenever it’s necessary, I work with entire families to help everyone strengthen their relationships and improve the overall functioning of the family.

My Pledge

Children should be happy, vibrant individuals. When that isn’t the case, it is our challenge as adults to help children lead the fulfilling and successful lives they deserve.

As a child psychologist, my goal is to provide the professional skills and techniques that maximize this effort. Nothing short of helping children and teenagers who have been entrusted to my care achieve well-being is satisfying to me. That is my promise and my commitment. I am dedicated to fulfilling that promise to all of the children and families I work with.

Dr. Kenneth Roberson is a child psychologist in San Francisco with over 20 years of experience. To schedule a free initial consultation, please call 415-922-1122.