Education
Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology,
Penn State University, 2011
B.A. in Psychology,
University of Delaware, 2002
Dr. Llera’s dissertation focused on
the emotional sequelae of chronic worry in generalized anxiety disorder (GAD).
She completed her clinical internship at the University of Virginia counseling center,
and a year of post-doctoral teaching as an adjunct faculty at George Mason University.
Areas of Expertise
Clinical Psychology
Anxiety Disorders
Emotion Regulation
Psychophysiology
Research Interests
Dr. Llera’s research focuses on applying basic science to better understand the etiology
and maintenance of anxiety and mood disorders, with an emphasis on models of emotional
dysregulation as a way to explore transdiagnostic pathology. Research is conducted
on multiple levels of observation, including self-report, behavior, and psychophysiology.
Clinical Interests
Dr. Llera specializes in adult psychopathology, with a specific emphasis in anxiety
disorders. Dr. Llera has conducted group and individual therapy, as well as psychological
assessments.
Selected Publications
Llera, S. J., & Newman, M. G. (2023). Incremental validity of the contrast avoidance model: A
comparison with intolerance of uncertainty and negative problem orientation. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 95, 102699.
Llera, S. J., & Newman, M. G. (2020). Worry impairs the problem-solving process: Results from
an experimental study. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 135, 103759.
Llera, S.J., & Newman, M.G. (2017). Development and validation of two measures of emotional contrast
avoidance: The Contrast Avoidance Questionnaires. Journal of Anxiety Disorder. doi: 10.1016/j.anxdis.2017.04.008.
Llera, S. J. (2017, Summer). Don’t worry about it! Anxiety and its impact on emotional wellbeing.
Eye on Psi Chi, 21(4), 34-35.
Llera, S. J., & Newman, M. G. (2014). Rethinking the role of worry in Generalized Anxiety Disorder:
Evidence supporting a model of emotional contrast avoidance. Behavior Therapy, 45(3),
283-299. doi:10.1016/j.beth.2013.12.011.
Newman, M.G., Llera, S. J., Erickson, T. E., Przeworski, A., & Castonguay, L. G. (2013). Worry and Generalized
Anxiety Disorder: A review and synthesis of research on its nature, etiology, and
treatment. Annual Review of Clinical Psychology, 9, 275-297. doi: 10.1146/annurev-clinpsy-050212-185544.
Newman, M. G. & Llera, S. J. (2011). A novel theory of experiential avoidance in generalized anxiety disorder:
A review and synthesis of research supporting an avoidance of a negative emotional
contrast. Clinical Psychology Review, 31, 371-382. doi: 10.1016/j.cpr.2011.01.008.
Llera, S. J., & Newman, M. G. (2010). Worry and emotional avoidance in generalized anxiety disorder:
Effects on physiological and subjective reactivity. Emotion, 10(5), 640-650. doi:10.1037/a0019351.
Courses Taught
- PSYC 361: Psychopathology
- PSYC 631: Advanced Adult Psychopathology
- PSYC 624: Multicultural Issues in Clinical Psychology
- PSYC 261: Intro to Psychopathology
