Kathleen Coulborn Faller

Marion Elizabeth Blue Endowed Professor Emerita of Children and Families; Professor Emerita of Social Work

Marion Elizabeth Blue Endowed Professor Emerita of Children and Families in the School of Social Work at the University of Michigan; Director, Family Assessment Clinic

Kathleen Coulborn Faller is involved in research, clinical work, teaching, training, and writing in the area of child welfare. She has written nine books and approximately 90 peer reviewed articles, conducted more than 300 juried international, national, and state conference presentations and presented more than 250 workshop addressing controversies of interviewing children about sexual abuse, the co-morbidity of child maltreatment and parental substance abuse, domestic violence, and substance abuse, cultural competence in child welfare, and child welfare workforce issues.

She is Principal Investigator on the University of Michigan site of National Child Welfare Workforce Institute.

Research Interests

Controversies of interviewing children about sexual abuse, the co-morbidity of child maltreatment and parental substance abuse, domestic violence, substance abuse, cultural competence in child welfare, and the child welfare workforce.

Curriculum Vitae

Contact Information

Education

  • 1981 PhD Social Work and Psychology
    University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
  • 1971 MSW Social Work
    University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
  • 1963 AB Political Science
    Oberlin College, Oberlin, OH

News

Activities

Websites

Publications

Ortega, R. M., Chang, O. D., Ortega, M. B., Teriberry, L., VanSickle, R., & Faller, K. C. (2025). What cultural humility teaches us about protecting children. Child Protection and Practice., 5.
Faller, K. C. (2021). Investigative interviewing of children in sex abuse cases. In N. Deslauriers-Varin & C. Bennell (Eds.), Criminal Investigations of Sexual Offenses: Investigative Techniques and Operational Challenges. Springer.
Faller, K. C. (2020). Forensic interview protocols: An update on the major forensic interview structures. APSAC Advisor, 52(2), 4-10.
Faller, K. C. (2020). Forensic interviewing. In R. Geffner, V. Vieth, V. Vaughan-Eden, A. Rosenbaum. K. Hamberger, &, J. White (Eds.), Handbook of Interpersonal Violence Across the Lifespan. SpringerLInk.
Faller, K. C. (2020). The child sexual abuse disclosure controversy: New perspectives on an abiding problem. Child Abuse & Neglect: The International Journal, 99, 104285.
Faller, K. C. (2020). The cutting edge of forensic interviewing. Journal of Child Sexual Abuse, 29(2), 129-137.
Faller, K. C. (2020). Parental Alienation (PA): A contested concept. APSAC Advisor, 32(1), 17-22.
Faller, K. C. (2017). The witch-hunt narrative: Introduction and overview. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 32(6), 784-804.
Faller, K. C. (2017). Comprehensive family assessments in child welfare. In J. Conte & B. Klika (Eds.), APSAC Handbook on Child Maltreatment (4th ed.). Sage Publications.
Faller, K. C. (2017). Helping children who have been physically and sexually abused. Encyclopedia of Social Work.

Honors and Awards

Year Description
2021 Lifetime Achievement Award, American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children (APSAC).
2018 Sol Gothard Lifetime Achievement Award
2014 Michigan Child Abuse and Neglect Social Work Award. Oct. 27 Michigan Statewide Conference on Child Abuse and Neglect.
2012 Institute on Violence, Abuse and Trauma (IVAT). William Friedrich memorial Child Sexual Abuse Research, Assessment and/or Treatment Award
2012 Michigan Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers' Lifetime Achievement Award
2011 National Children's Advocacy Center's Outstanding Lifetime Achievement Award
2010 University of Michigan School of Social Work Distinguished Faculty Award
2008 American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children's Outstanding Research Achievement Award
2003-present Curriculum for Recruitment and Retention of Child Welfare Employees, Children's Bureau, Department of Health and Human Services, Principal Investigator; $1,000,000
2001-present Hasbro Early Assessment Project, Hasbro Children's Foundation, Principal Investigator; $144,000
2000-2004 Training Program for Public Child Welfare Supervisors, Children's Bureau, Department of Health and Human Services, Principal Investigator; $600,000
2000 Smithsonian Innovation Award for the Website of the Interdisciplinary Child Welfare Training Grant
1998 American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children's Outstanding Service Award
1996 Outstanding Service Award, American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children

Presentations

Year Description
2022 Faller, K. C., Corwin, D., Milchman, M., Mercer, J. (2022) Controversies regarding parental alienation: Authentic Voices, Critique of Current Research, and Practical Applications.
2021 Faller, K. C., Corwin, D., Mercer, J., Myers, J. E. B., J. D., & Jeanette Scheid. Parental Alienation: A Simple but Potentially Harmful and Poorly Supported Explanation for the Complex Problem of Parent Contact Resistance/Refusal. American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Annual Conference. Virtual.
2021 Faller, K. C., Everson, M. D., & Cordisco Steele, L. (2021). Forensic Interviewing: Variations on the single interview model. Institute on Violence, Abuse, & Trauma, 26th Summit. Virtual.
2021 Faller, K. C., Everson, M. D., & Cordisco Steele, L. (2021). Forensic Interviewing: Variations on the single interview model. Colloquium of the American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children. Virtual.
2020 Faller, K. C., Milchman, M., & Mercer, J. (2020). Parental alienation: Expert practice in making a determination about the causes of rejection. 25th International San Diego Summit on Violence, Abuse, & Trauma. Virtual.

Courses

Past Courses

Title Instructor Term Course Section Meeting Start Meeting End
Forensic Interviewing Faller, Kathleen Coulborn Spring / Summer 2022 001 06:00 pm 07:30 pm View Course
Advanced Topics in Interpersonal Practice Faller, Kathleen Coulborn Winter 2019 003 09:00 am 05:00 pm View Course
Advanced Topics in Interpersonal Practice Faller, Kathleen Coulborn Winter 2018 004 09:00 am 05:00 pm View Course
Advanced Topics in Interpersonal Practice Faller, Kathleen Coulborn Winter 2017 004 09:00 am 05:00 pm View Course
Advanced Topics in Interpersonal Practice Faller, Kathleen Coulborn Winter 2016 004 09:00 am 05:00 pm View Course
Advanced Topics in Interpersonal Practice Faller, Kathleen Coulborn Winter 2015 006 09:00 am 05:00 pm View Course
Advanced Topics in Macro Social Work Faller, Kathleen Coulborn Winter 2014 006 05:00 pm 08:00 pm View Course
Advanced Topics in Interpersonal Practice Faller, Kathleen Coulborn Winter 2014 006 09:00 am 05:00 pm View Course
Practice Seminar in Child Maltreatment: Assessment and Treatment Faller, Kathleen Coulborn Fall 2013 001 01:00 pm 04:00 pm View Course
Integrative Seminar: Child Maltreatment Faller, Kathleen Coulborn Fall 2013 001 06:00 pm 09:00 pm View Course