Faculty & Staff
Faculty
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Anna Abella, PhDAssistant Research ProfessorPhone: 813-974-3739
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Research Interests:
Mental health services; child welfare systems; parent education; prevention and early intervention services; jail diversion programs.
Dr. Abella is an applied anthropologist and Assistant Research Professor in the Department of Child & Family Studies in the College of Behavioral Community Sciences at USF. Dr. Abella has conducted numerous studies involving mental health services, child welfare systems, and early childhood education programs, investigating both family/consumer and professional experiences in implementing interventions or systems change initiatives.
Dr. Abella is currently Principal Investigator of an evaluation of a statewide initiative to improve pediatric primary care providers’ ability and capacity to identify and treat children with behavioral health care needs throughout Florida. She is also working on an evaluation of school-based mental health and trauma informed services in schools, a qualitative study to understand multiple involuntary mental health examinations (Baker Act exams) among minors, and a mixed-methods evaluation of a guaranteed income program for young adults transitioning out of foster care. She has led several studies that examine collaborative initiatives between law enforcement and mental health, as well as studies to evaluate the implementation of child welfare interventions.
Dr. Abella teaches and advises for the MS in Child and Adolescent Behavioral Health program and the PhD program in Behavioral and Community Sciences. She also serves as an adjunct instructor for the MSW program. Dr. Abella has practical experience working with youth and adults in schools, community centers, and group homes to promote social and emotional learning and positive youth development.
Dr. Abella is a member of the Society for Applied Anthropology and the American Evaluation Association and currently serves as Chair of the American Evaluation Association’s Behavioral Health Topical Interest Group.
Recent Publications
Abella, A.D., Landers, M., Ismajli, F. et al. (2022). Stakeholder Perspectives on Implementing a Police-Mental Health Collaborative to Improve Pathways to Treatment. J Behav Health Serv Res. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11414-021-09782-0
Callejas, L.M., Jayaram, L., & Abella, A.D. (2021). I Would Never Want to Live That Again:’ Exploring Mothers’ Experiences with Child Welfare Prevention Services to Better Understand their Acquired Knowledge. Child Welfare: A Special Issue on Poverty and Child Welfare Services.
Abella, A.D., Vargo, A., Johnson, M., Cruz, A. Massey, O., Von der Embse, N. (January, 2022). Cross-Site Analysis and Case Study of STOP Program Grantee Perspectives on Violence Prevention and Mental Health Training Program Implementation. Research Performance Project Report, Annual Year 1. Submitted to the National Institute of Justice. GAN: 2020-RF-CX-0001.
Abella, A.D., Hordge-Freeman, E., Connor, K., Wilson, R., Landers, M., Armstrong, L. Understanding Challenges to Engagement with Parent Education and Early Childhood Programming in a Historically Black Neighborhood. (2021, September). Submitted to the Task Force for Understanding Blackness and Addressing Anti-Black Racism in Our Local, National, and International Communities.
Cruz, A., Abella, A.D., Johnson, M., Ismajli, F., Shockley, C. (July, 2021). Florida Pediatric Behavioral Health Collaborative Quarterly Report, Quarter 1, Year 1. Submitted to the Florida Department of Health.
Davidson Abella, A., Landers, M., and Ismajli, F. (March, 2021). Pinellas Integrated Care Alliance (PICA) Evaluation Final Report. Submitted to the Central Florida Behavioral Health Network. University of South Florida.
Davidson Abella, A., Ismajli, F., and Callejas, L. M. (2021). . In R. Adams (Ed.), Child Welfare League of America Essay Collection, COVID-19 and Child Welfare: Challenges and Responses. Washington, DC: CWLA Press.
Callejas, L., Abella, A.D., Ismajli, F. (2020)(in press). . Human Organization, 79 (4).
Abella, A., Landers, M., and Carmona, Y. (2020). Evaluation of the Pinellas Integrated Care Alliance (PICA) Implementation, Annual Report Year 2. Submitted to the Central Florida Behavioral Health Network. University of South Florida.
Abella, A., Landers, M., Carmona, Y. and Ismajli, F. (2020). Evaluation of the Pinellas Integrated Care Alliance (PICA) Implementation, Annual Report Year 3. Submitted to the Central Florida Behavioral Health Network. University of South Florida.