Biography
Dawn M. Hughes, Ph.D., ABPP, is a clinical and forensic psychologist who specializes in the assessment and treatment of interpersonal violence and traumatic stress. Dr. Hughes maintains an independent practice in clinical and forensic psychology in New York City and is a Clinical Assistant Professor of Psychology serving on the voluntary faculty in the Department of Psychiatry at Weill Cornell Medical Center - New York Presbyterian Hospital where she participates in the psychology faculty and conducts training for interns. Most recently, she was part of the collaborative psychological response to COVID at Cornell Med, conducting training, educational support groups, and treating all hospital workers from front-line physicians and nurses to the nutrition staff, transport workers, administration, and support staff. Dr. Hughes is Board Certified in Forensic Psychology from the American Board of Professional Psychology.
Dr. Hughes has over 25 years of experience within the field of traumatic stress and interpersonal violence, including intimate partner violence, rape, sexual assault, adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse, sexual harassment, and other non-interpersonal traumatic experiences. Dr. Hughes has treated or evaluated hundreds of individuals who have experienced psychological trauma or victimization in their lives. She is the President-elect of the Trauma Psychology Division of the American Psychological Association and is the past-President of the NYC-based Women’s Mental Health Consortium. Dr. Hughes has conducted trainings for the Courts, Judges, and attorneys; has taught members of the National Guard on how to live violence-free in relationships; and has conducted trainings for mental health professionals, in both clinical and forensic settings, to work within the area of intimate partner violence, rape, sexual assault, childhood sexual abuse, posttraumatic stress disorder, and complex PTSD.
Her forensic work comprises comprehensive psychological evaluations, attorney consultations, and expert witness testimony in the area of forensic psychology, interpersonal violence, and traumatic stress. She has been admitted as an expert witness in the States of New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania and the United States District Court for the Southern, Eastern, and Northern Districts of New York. She has served as an expert witness and consulted on hundreds of criminal and civil cases involving the multiple and varied psychological and traumatic effects of intimate partner violence, coercive control, rape, sexual assault, childhood sexual abuse, clergy abuse, Boy Scout abuse, sexual harassment, and other non-interpersonal traumatic experiences.