Chacko, Anil, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor

Education: Ph.D., State University of New York at Buffalo (Clinical Psychology)
Email: anil.chacko@mssm.edu

Office: SB A344
Telephone: (718) 997-3237

Lab: SB A319

Undergraduate Courses:

PhD Courses:

Selected Publications:
Chacko, A., Wymbs, B.T., Flammer-Rivera, L., Pelham, W.E., Walker, K.S., Arnold, F., Visweswaraiah, H., Swanger-Gagne, M., Girio, E., Pirvics, l., & Herbst, L., (in press). A pilot study of the feasibility and efficacy of the Strategies to Enhance Positive Parenting program for single mothers of children with ADHD. Journal of Attention Disorders

Chacko, A., Wymbs, B.T., Arnold, F.W., Pelham, W.E., Swanger-Gagne, M., Girio, E.L., Pirvics, L., Herbst, L., Guzzo, J.L., Phillips, C., & O’Connor, B. (in press). Enhancing traditional behavioral parent training for single-mothers of children with ADHD. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology.

Fabiano, G.A., Chacko, A., Pelham, W.E., Robb, J., Walker, K.S., Arnold, F., Sastry, A., Flammer, L.,
Keenan, J.K., Visweswaraiah, H., Shulman, S., Herbst, L., Pirvics, L. (in press). A Comparison of
Behavioral Parent Training Programs for Fathers of Children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, Behavior Therapy

Franco, L., Chacko, A., Dean-Assael, K.M., Gopalan, G., Beharie, N., Sarmiento, M., Hibbert, R., McKay,
M.M. & Mejia, N. (in press). Collaborative partnerships in the development and delivery of a multiple family group service delivery model for youth with disruptive behavior problems. Journal of Prevention and Intervention in the Community.

Chacko, A., Pelham, W.E., Gnagy, E.M., Greiner, A., Vallano, G., Bukstein, O., & Rancurello, M . (2005) Stimulant medication effects in a summer treatment program among young children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 44, 249-257.

Chronis, A.M., Chacko, A., Fabiano, G.A., Wymbs, B.T., & Pelham, W.E. (2004). Enhancements to the behavioral parent training paradigm for families of children with ADHD: Review and future directions. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, 7, 1-27.

Chacko, A., Fabiano, G.A., Williams, A., & Pelham, W.E. (2001). Comprehensive treatments for children with ADHD. In B. T. Rogers, T. R. Montgomery, T. M. Locke, and P. J. Accardo (Eds.). Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: The Clinical Spectrum (Volume 5, pp. 147-174). Timonium, MD: York Press

Research Summary:
The goal of research conducted in this lab is focused on understanding the presentation and variable course of disruptive behavior problems in children and, through these efforts, developing and/or enhancing intervention models for these children. More specifically, we focus on identifying family-, parent-, and child-level factors that may explain the heterogeneous trajectories that are characteristic of children with disruptive behavior problems, including those with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, Oppositional-Defiant Disorder, and/or Conduct Disorder. In addition, we focus on integrating the knowledge gathered from this area of research to assist in the development of effective, engaging, and efficient preventive and treatment models for these children. A particularly important focus is on children that are considered at heightened risk for poor outcomes owing to the presence of multiple contextual, familial, and inter/intrapersonal risk factors. We have several projects that are currently being conducted:
1) The refinement and evaluation of the SUCCESS Model, a multi-component psychosocial intervention for preschool children with disruptive behavior problems, within the context of Head Start.
2) The further development of the Strategies to Enhance Positive Parenting (STEPP) program, an enhanced behavioral parent training program for families of school-age children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, Oppositional-Defiant Disorder, and Conduct Disorder.
3) In collaboration with Dr. Mary McKay from the Department of Psychiatry at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, the evaluation of a Multi-Family Group service delivery model for school-age youth with disruptive behavior disorders.
4) In collaboration with Dr. Jeffrey Halperin at Queens College, the development and refinement of the Training Executive, Attention and Motor Skills (TEAMS) intervention, a neurocognitive enrichment program for preschool children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder.
5) In collaboration with the Department of Psychiatry at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, we are developing quality assurance methodology in order to better understand service-use patterns, needs and outcomes for youth who are provided services for emotional, behavioral, and development difficulties.