Alisha Saxena

Alisha Saxena, PsyD (she/her/hers), is a licensed clinical psychologist and adjunct professor in the PsyD program at USF. In addition to teaching, Dr. Saxena works in private practice and partners with community organizations to host workshops, with a focus on inclusive spaces for historically marginalized groups. 

Dr. Saxena earned her PsyD in Clinical Psychology at the PGSP-Stanford PsyD Consortium in 2021. She completed her doctoral internship at the Philadelphia VA and her postdoctoral fellowship at the San Francisco VA, with an emphasis on Women’s Mental Health and Trauma. Dr. Saxena’s clinical interests include the psychological sequelae of trauma and health psychology. Additionally, Dr. Saxena is passionate about providing culturally contextualized therapy for individuals, families, and relationship partners.

• Clinical psychology
• Trauma, risk, and resilience factors
• Health psychology 
• Multicultural identity experiences

• Technological integration in mental health treatment

• Co-Chair, Oakland Community-Based Outreach Clinic's Psychology Diversity Committee

• PGSP-Stanford Psy.D. Consortium, PsyD in Clinical Psychology, 2021 
• Teachers College, Columbia University, MA in Psychology in Education, 2015 
• University of Pennsylvania, BA in Psychology with Honors, 2013

• Pain Psychologist, San Francisco VA Health Care System 
• Women's Mental Health and Trauma Fellow, San Francisco VA Health Care System

• Palo Alto University Award for Excellence in Diversity, 2020

• Zainal, N.H., Chan, W.W., Saxena, A.P., Taylor, C.B., and Newman, M.G. (2021). Pilot randomized trial of self-guided virtual reality exposure therapy for social anxiety disorder. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 147, 1-13. 

• Welner, M., O’Malley, K.Y., Gonidakis, J., Saxena, A., & Burnes, J. (2018). The Depravity Standard II: Developing a measure of the worst of crimes. Journal of Criminal Justice, 55, 25-34.

• Welner, M., O’Malley, K.Y., Gonidakis, J., Saxena, A., & Stewart-Willis, J. (2018). The Depravity Standard III: Validating an evidence-based guide. Journal of Criminal Justice, 55, 12-24.