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Wendy R. Smith, PsyD

Director of the Marriage and Family Therapy Clinic at Wheaton College, Assistant Professor of Marriage and Family Therapy

Biography

There is a joy in the journey, there’s a light we can love on the way.   
There is a wonder and wildness to life, and freedom for those who obey.   
All those who seek it shall find it, a pardon for all who believe.   
Hope for the hopeless and sight for the blind.  
-Michael Card 

Come over
and we shall overcome
that which has
overcome us
-Dr. JoAnn Nishimoto

Life’s journey is sacred, and it was not meant to be traveled alone.  Therapy is a space where providers can reflect the characteristics of God as a “wonderful counselor” and “God with us” in the vastness of life’s experiences: The good, the growing pains, and the bad.  As a Clinical Psychologist specializing in trauma, couples, and families; Dr. Smith attunes to the journey of familial relationships, where they thrive and what tears them apart.  All parts of our personal and family story are welcome in the therapy room because each part has an important contribution to the process of healing, belonging, and thriving. Dr. Smith is the Director of the Marriage and Family Therapy (MFT) Clinic at Wheaton College, that has two locations: Wheaton (adjacent to the college) and in Roseland’s neighborhood in Chicago. She is also an Assistant Faculty member of the Marriage and Family Therapy graduate program at the college. With her husband, they have been building relationships within the Roseland community and the Good News Daycare and Coffee House for over 10 years and have laid a foundation of trust and support whereby therapy-interns from around the world are able to experience a community-based therapy clinic.  

Education

Wheaton College
PsyD, Clinical Psychology
MA, Clinical Psychology Cairn University
MS, Christian Counseling The Ohio State University
BS, Psychology

Areas of Expertise

  • Marriage and family therapy
  • Clinical supervision
  • The intersection of trauma, families, faith, and mental health
  • Market research consulting

Professional Affiliations

  • American Psychological Association
  • Society for Couple and Family Psychology (APA Division 43)
  • American Association for Marriage and Family Therapists

Licensures and Certifications

Licensed Clinical Psychologist (IL and PsyPact provider)

AAMFT Approved Supervisor and Clinical Fellow

Prepare/Enrich Facilitator

Externship and Core Skills training in Emotion Focused Therapy

Courses Taught

  • Systemic Assessment and Intervention
  • Practicum & Supervision
  • Personal and Professional Development
  • Psychology 101: Introduction to Psychology Lab

Research

Dr. Smith’s research experience spans across academic and business arenas. After receiving a strong academic foundation in questionnaire design as an undergraduate, she became a market research consultant, focusing on customer satisfaction and brand loyalty across industries including banking, entertainment and information technology. She then spent over a decade consulting in the pharmaceutical industry worldwide, providing market research insights that informed strategies for new medication development, clinical trial design, marketing strategies and forecasting.  At Wheaton College, her focus has turned to exploring the role of faith in mental health and family relationships in the midst of trauma. She is also investigating the link between systemic therapy and patient outcomes, bridging the gap between mental health and managed care.

Publications

Mental health clinicians’ reflections on working with child welfare cases: Challenges and suggestions. Social Work in Mental Health.
Yoo, H., Racorean, S., & Smith, W. 2023 

Cultural considerations in the COVID-19 Crucible: Understanding the effects of COVID-19 across cultural lines. Christianity Today blog by Ed Stetzer. 
Smith, W.R. 2020

4 tips for frontline responders to stay grounded: Practical tools to help frontline responders care for themselves. Psychology Today blog. 
Smith, W.R., & Andrews, B. 2020.

The psychological study of religion and spirituality in a disaster context: A systemic review. Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy. 
Aten, J.D., Smith, W.R., Davis, E., Van Tongeren, D., Hook, J., Davis, D., Shannonhouse, L., DeBlaere, C., Ranter, J., O'Grady, K., & Hill, P. 2019.

Collaboration between clergy and mental health professionals in post-disaster contexts: Lessons from the Upper Big Branch Mine disaster. Spirituality in Clinical Practice
Curtis, J. B., Aten, J. D., Smith, W., Davis, E. B., Hook, J. N., Davis, D. E., Van Tongeren, D., Shannonhouse, L., DeBlaere, C., Ranter, J., & Cuthbert, A. 2017.

The impact of 'no opinion' response options on data quality: Non-attitude reduction or an invitation to satisfice? Public Opinion Quarterly.
Krosnick, J. A., Holbrook, A. L., Berent, M. K., Carson, R. T., Hanemann, W. M., Kopp, R. J., Mitchell, R. C., Presser, S., Ruud, P. A., Smith, V. K., (Moody) Smith, W. R., Green, M. C., & Conaway, M. 2002.

Satisficing in surveys: Initial evidence. In M. T. Braverman & J. K. Slater (Eds.), Advances in Survey Research.
Krosnick, J. A., Narayan, S. S., & Smith, W. R. 1996.

Attitude strength. In V. S. Ramachandran (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Human Behavior.
Krosnick, J. A., & Smith, W. R. 1994.

Academic Presentations

Religion, spirituality, and mental health in disaster contexts: A review of the empirical literature. Symposium at the International Conference of the Christian Association for Psychological Studies.
Smith, W. R., Aten, J. D., Schruba, A., Davis, E. B., Hill, P. C., Davis, D. E., Jr., Van Tongeren, D. R., Hook, J. N., & Cuthbert, A. D. 2016

Psychological and religious/spiritual outcomes following the 2015 South Carolina flood: The roles of perceived social and religious support. Symposium at the annual Convention of the American Psychological Association.
Davis, E. B., Epperson, T. D., Aten, J. D., Ranter, J. M., Hook, J. N., Van Tongeren, D. R., Davis, D. E., Shannonhouse, L. R., DeBlaere, C., Smith, W. R., Boan, D. M., & Cuthbert, A. D. 2016 

Understanding religion, spirituality, and mental health after a disaster: Highlights from a 40-year review of academic research. Poster presented at the Humanitarian Disaster Institute Conference.
Smith, W.R., Aten, J.D., Schruba, A., Davis E.B., Davis, D.E., VanTongeren, D.R., & Hook, J.N. 2105

 Clergy-Psychological collaboration in the aftermath of technical disasters: Lessons learned from the Upper Big Branch Mine explosion.  Poster presented at the Humanitarian Disaster Institute Conference.
Curtis, J.B., Aten, J.D., Smith, W.R., Davis, E.B. 2015

 Sources of non-differentiation and mental coin-flipping in the use of rating scales: Tests of satisficing hypotheses. Paper presented at the American Association for Public Opinion Research Meeting.
Smith, W. R., & Krosnick, J. A.1994

Cognitive and motivational determinants of satisficing in surveys: Additional findings. Paper presented at the American Psychological Society Meeting.
Smith, W. R., & Krosnick, J. A. 1993

 Cognitive and motivational determinants of satisficing in surveys. Paper presented at the American Psychological Association Meeting.
Smith, W. R., & Krosnick, J.A. 1993 

Need for cognition, prior thought, and satisficing in attitude surveys. Paper presented at the Midwestern Psychological Association Meeting.
Smith, W.R., & Krosnick, J.A., 1993

The impact of question order on satisficing in attitude surveys. Paper presented at the Midwestern Psychological Association Meeting.
Culpepper, I., J., Smith, W. R., & Krosnick, J.A.,1992

Additional Speaking Engagements

“Hold Me Tight” marriage enrichment weekends. 
With Torok, S., Nishimoto, J., Paulsen, C. and Clinic interns. 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025

Parenting Workshop.
With Drachenberg, J. 2025

The Marriage and Family Therapy Clinic at Wheaton College: MFT clinic and future opportunities.
With van Dyke,D. 2025

 Parenting College Age Kids: Guiding your child into young adulthood. 2024

 Life as an Early Career Psychologist. 2024

 The Marriage and Family Therapy Program: Global Clinical Training.
With van Dyke,D. 2024

Building Blocks of Healthy Relationships. 2023 

Effective communication and conflict seminar: Building blocks of healthy relationships. 2023, 2022, 2021

The Marriage and Family Therapy Clinic at Wheaton College: Who we are and what we do. 2023

Unshackling the chains that bind us: Redeeming regret. 2023

Unshackling the chains that bind us: Befriending forgiveness. 2023

Unshackling the chains that bind us: Getting along with grief. 2023

Mental wellness in times of adversity, stress, and loss. 2023

Assessing our relationships in our latter years of life:  Are we taking our relationships for granted? 2022.

Assessing our team relational dynamics: Setting students up for success. 2022

Post-traumatic growth: More than simply surviving a pandemic? 2021

Secondary trauma and trauma stewardship. 2021, 2020

Resilience for a Covid Winter. 2020

Trauma: A fact of life, but not the end of the story. The basics to help children cope. 2020

Understanding Covid-19 impact on families from a disaster and religious/spiritual lens. 2020

Ministering to families in trauma during the pandemic. 2020

Ministry and mental health during COVID-19. 2020

Children in Trauma: Ministry and mental health. 2020, 2019