Biography
Christopher Whipple is an Assistant Professor of Psychology at Penn State Harrisburg. Trained as a community psychologist, he received his Ph.D. in community psychology from DePaul University. His current research interests utilize basic and applied research to develop, implement, and evaluate community-based interventions and to inform intervention development and targets. Broadly, his research aims to support marginalized populations. Specifically, his interests are 1) community violence exposure and suicidal ideation in Black or African American adolescents, 2) reducing the impact of substance use disorder and related constructs on individuals and communities, and 3) developing, implementing, and evaluating culturally and contextually relevant interventions for marginalized populations. Dr. Whipple currently is a co-investigator on an NIH-funded grant to test the effectiveness of a culturally-relevant suicide prevention program for African American high school students, and a state-funded grant designed to reduce substance use disorder stigma in Pennsylvania.
Research Interests
- Community Violence Exposure
- Substance Use Disorder
- Community-based intervention development, implementation, and evaluation
Publications
Kruis, N. E., Kaynak, O., Whipple, C. R., & Kensinger, W. S. (Accepted). Addiction frameworks, social stigma, and NIMBY syndrome: Examining barriers to responding to the opioid crisis. Contemporary Drug Problems.
Robinson, W. L., Whipple, C. R., Keenan, K., Flack, C. E.*, Lemke, S., & Jason, L. A. (2023). Reducing suicidal ideation in African American adolescents: A randomized controlled clinical trial. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 92(2), 61-74. https://doi.org/10.1037/ccp0000849
Whipple, C. R., Kaynak, O., Kruis, N., Saylor, E., Bonnevie, E., & Kensinger, W. (2023). Opioid use disorder stigma and support for harm reduction in rural communities. Substance Use & Misuse, 58(14), 1818-1828. https://doi.org/10.1080/10826084.2023.2250434
Whipple, C. R., Robinson, W. L., Flack, C. E.*, Jason, L. A., & Keenan, K.(2023). Longitudinal patterns and predictors of suicidal ideation in African American adolescents. American Journal of Community Psychology, 71(3-4), 453-464. https://doi.org/10.1002/ajcp.12663
Robinson, W. L, Whipple, C. R., Jason, L. A., Cafaro, C.*, & Keenan, K. (2023). Social support coping for urban African American adolescents: A culturally-grounded randomized controlled trial intervention. Prevention Science, 24, 715-727. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-022-01484-z[
Kaynak, O., Whipple, C. R., Grossman, J. A.*, Saylor, E. M., & Kensinger, W.S. (2022). The opioid epidemic and the state of stigma: A Pennsylvania statewide survey. Substance Use and Misuse, 57(7), 1120-1130. https://doi.org/10.1080/10826084.2022.2064506
Robinson, W. L., Whipple, C. R., Wingate, L., Flack, C. E.*, & Keenan, K.(2022). Suicide in African American adolescents: Understanding risk by studying resilience. Annual Review of Clinical Psychology, 18, 359-385. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-clinpsy-072220-021819
Bonnevie, E., Kaynak, O., Whipple, C. R., Kensinger, W. S., Stefanko, M., McKeon, C., Mendel, G., & Smyser, J. (2022). The Life Unites Us campaign: A novel approach to addressing stigma against opioid use disorder. Health Education Journal, 81(3), 312-324. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/00178969221077409
Whipple, C. R., Robinson, W. L., Jason, L. A., Kaynak, O., Harris, C., Grisamore, S. P., & Troyka, M. (2021). Patterns of community violence exposure among African American adolescents living in low-resourced urban neighborhoods. American Journal of Community Psychology, 68, 414-426. https://doi-org.ezaccess.libraries.psu.edu/10.1002/ajcp.12522
Whipple, C. R., Robinson, W. L., & Jason, L. A. (2021). Expanding collective efficacy theory to reduce violence among African American adolescents. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 36(15-16), NP8615-NP8642. https://doi-org.ezaccess.libraries.psu.edu/10.1177/0886260519844281
Robinson, W. L., Whipple, C. R., Jason, L. A., & Flack, C.* (2021). African American adolescent suicidal ideation and behavior: The role of racism and prevention. Journal of Community Psychology, 49(5), 1282-1295. https://doi.org/10.1002/jcop.22543
Kaynak, O., Whipple, C. R., Lepore, S. J., & Kliewer, W. (2021). Peer victimization exposure and subsequent substance use in adolescents: The role of sleep problems. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 50(6), 1254-1267. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-021-01410-6
Robinson, W. L., Case, M. H., Whipple, C. R., Gooden, A. S., Lopez-Tamayo, R., Lambert, S. F., & Jason, L. A. (2016). Culturally-grounded stress reduction and suicide prevention for African American adolescents. Practice Innovations, 1(2), 117-128. https://dx.doi.org/10.1037/pri0000020
Ram, D., Whipple, C. R., & Jason, L. A. (2016). Family dynamics may influence an individual’s substance use abstinence self-efficacy. Journal of Addiction and Preventive Medicine, 1(2), 106-111. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28868520/
Whipple, C. R., Jason, L. A., & Robinson, W. L. (2016). Housing and abstinence self-efficacy in formerly-incarcerated individuals. Journal of Offender Rehabilitation, 55, 548-563. https://doi.org/10.1080/10509674.2016.1229713
Collins, K., Keys, C. B., Mihelicova, M., Ma, K., Colon Quintana, N., Reed, J., Sunnquist, M., Turek, C., & Whipple, C. R. (2016). Addressing the community psychology competency dialectic through participatory pedagogy. Global Journal of Community Psychology Practice, 7(4), 1-68.
Education
Ph.D. Community Psychology, DePaul University
M.A. Community Psychology, DePaul University
B.S. Psychology, Brigham Young University