Team Members Kate Van Kessel

Kate Van Kessel

Practicum Student; Clinical Psychology

Kate Van Kessel is a practicum student in her second year of study in the Clinical Psychology PhD program at the University of Ottawa. At OICBT, Kate is supervised by Dr. Kiran Vadaga, C. Psych. Kate provides evidence-based psychological services to individuals experiencing a variety of mental health challenges. She is committed to fostering a supportive, collaborative, and non-judgmental space where clients can better understand their experiences and work toward meaningful change. Her approach to therapy emphasizes compassion, curiosity, and respect for each client’s unique goals and strengths. Kate provides individual therapy and currently offers in-person sessions on Mondays and virtual sessions on Tuesdays in English.

About Kate

Kate works primarily with adult populations (18+) and provides support in areas such as:

  • Mood Disorders (Depression, Bipolar)
  • Anxiety (Social Anxiety, Generalized Anxiety, Panic, Agoraphobia, Specific Phobias)
  • Attention-related disorders (ADHD)
  • Obsessive-Compulsive and related disorders
  • Trauma and PTSD
  • Borderline Personality Disorder
  • Interpersonal and relational concerns
  • Life transitions
  • Grief and loss

  • Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
  • Behavioural Activation
  • Dialectical Behavioural Therapy (DBT)
  • Interpersonal Therapy (IPT)
  • Mindfulness- and compassion-based approaches

Publications

  • Van Kessel, K., McDiarmid, S., Browne, D., Children and Youth Planning Table of Waterloo Region., Henderson, H. (2026). Validation of a community belonging measure for youth and adults. Journal of Community Psychology. http://doi.org/10.1002/jcop.70089
  • Besner, D., McCann, R. S., Young, T. P., Van Kessel, K., & MacLeod, C. (2026). EXPRESS: Judgments of direction about words and arrows: The neglected influence of task set. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 0(ja). https://doi.org/10.1177/17470218261423867
  • Aitken, C., Van Kessel, K., & Nilsen, L. (2025). Adolescent Social Functioning: The Role of Parental Reflective Functioning and Adolescent Mentalizing in Predicting Adolescent Prosocial Behaviour and Peer Problems. Journal of Adolescence. http://doi.org/10.1002/jad.70066
  • Van Kessel, K., Aitken, C., & Nilsen, L. (2024). Parental factors moderate the association between COVID19 disruption and adolescent emotional and behavioural difficulties. The Journal of Early Adolescence. https://doi.org/10.1177/02724316241311131  
  • Van Kessel, K., Ashburner, M., & Risko, E. F. (2023). Dissociations between data-driven and goal-driven effort reports: Performance, metacognition, and affect. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 77(5), 983-993. https://doi.org/10.1177/17470218231186609 

 

Conference Presentations

  • Van Kessel, K., Brugnera, A., Compare, A., Poletti, B., Pievani, L., & Tasca, G. (2025, June). Exploring How Reflective Functioning and Coping Strategies Influence Depression. Poster presented at the Society of Psychotherapy Research
  • Van Kessel, K., & Risko, E. F. (2024, June). Data-Driven and Goal-Driven Effort: Understanding Variability Across Tasks and Individuals. Talk presented at the Canadian Society for Brain, Behaviour and Cognitive Science 
  • McDiarmid, S., Van Kessel, K., & Henderson, H (2024, June). Belonging Among Canadian Young Adults: Validation of the novel Where I Belong survey. Talk presented at Canadian Psychological Association 2024 Convention
  • Aitken, C., Van Kessel, K., & Nilsen, E. (2024, April). Associations between Mentalizing Skills and the Consistency between Adolescent and Parent Report of Youth Social Functioning. Poster presented at Society for Research on Adolescence 2024 Meeting
  • McDiarmid, S. & Van Kessel, K. (2023, November). CEL During the “Measurement for Change” Project. Talk presented at the Community Engaged Learning & Well-Being Workshop
  • Van Kessel, K. & Risko, E. F. (2023, July). The Effect of Interpolated Testing within Different Evaluation Contexts. Poster presented at the Canadian Society for Brain, Behaviour and Cognitive Science 
  • Van Kessel, K., Ashburner, M., & Risko, E. F. (2022, July). Dissociations between Data-Driven and GoalDriven Effort Reports: Performance, Metacognition, and Affect. Talk presented at the Canadian Society for Brain, Behaviour and Cognitive Science 
  • Van Kessel, K., Aitken, C., & Nilsen, L. (2022, June). The role of parental reflective functioning in the association between COVID-19 disruption and adolescent emotional functioning. Poster presented at the Canadian Psychological Association Annual Conference
  • Van Kessel, K., Aitken, C., & Nilsen, L. (2022, April). The role of parental reflective functioning in the association between COVID-19 disruption and adolescent emotional functioning. Poster presented online at the Psychology Discovery Conference 

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