Johns Hopkins Children’s Center psychologist Golda Ginsburg, Ph.D., is one of eight scientists nationally to receive a 2007 research award from the Obsessive-Compulsive Foundation Inc.

Ginsburg, who directs the Anxiety Clinic and Research Program in the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, will study the effectiveness of cognitive behavioral therapy with parental participation for the treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) symptoms in 4- to 7-year-olds. Children younger than 7 are typically excluded from research meaning that scientific data is largely lacking for this neglected group.

“We are thrilled that we’ll be able to study a population of children with what can be a devastating psychiatric condition that has been largely overlooked,” Ginsburg said. “Our study will include parents in the therapy sessions because we are hoping to identify and limit the ways in which parents might inadvertently be maintaining OCD behaviors in their children.”