Doneila L. McIntosh

Education

Research

My research examines how individuals and families navigate, make meaning of, and adapt to trauma, grief, and loss across the lifespan. Grounded in relational and family systems perspectives, my work moves beyond individual understandings of grief and trauma to examine how these experiences reverberate through relationships, reshape identities and family roles, and influence mental health and well-being across generations.

A central focus of my research is the intersection of traumatic loss, contextual stressors, and family processes, encompassing both death-related and non-death-related losses. I am particularly interested in how grief is experienced, expressed, and embodied across cultural contexts, with special attention to Black individuals and families and communities affected by racialized stress and structural inequities. Equally important is understanding the cultural, relational, and community resources that foster connection, meaning-making, and resilience in the face of adversity.

Ultimately, my research seeks to advance how grief and trauma are conceptualized, studied, and addressed by integrating biological (i.e., neurobiology of giref), psychological, relational, and cultural perspectives. Bridging empirical research, clinical knowledge, and lived experience, I aim to identify gaps in existing models of care and inform culturally responsive, family-centered approaches that recognize both the complexities of loss and the strengths of individuals, families, and communities navigating it.

Teaching

My teaching philosophy is grounded in cultural humility, critical reflection, and the belief that higher education should strengthen students’ capacity to think deeply about themselves, their communities, and the systems that shape human development, health, and well-being. I view students as active contributors to a collective learning environment where lived experience, cultural knowledge, and scholarly evidence inform and challenge one another.

Because I view learning as a collective endeavor, I emphasize preparation and active participation. Preparation is both an individual responsibility and a contribution to the learning community, creating the conditions for meaningful dialogue and deeper engagement. I design learning experiences that move beyond memorization, asking students to apply, question, and integrate knowledge through discussion, case analysis, reflective writing, peer feedback, and experiential activities.

Transparency and intentionality are equally central to my teaching. I provide comprehensive syllabi, detailed assignment instructions, and rubrics that clearly communicate expectations and evaluation criteria. Before major assessments, I dedicate class time to reviewing expectations, answering questions, and discussing how student work will be evaluated. These practices reduce ambiguity, promote accountability, and reflect my belief that assessment should support growth rather than simply measure performance.

Ultimately, I strive to create a learning environment that is intellectually rigorous, reflective, culturally responsive, and transformative. Whether students pursue clinical practice, research, policy, advocacy, or community engagement, I hope they leave my classroom better able to think critically, engage with perspectives beyond their own, recognize the influence of systems and structures, and apply their knowledge in ways that advance equity, healing, and collective well-being.

Awards

Areas of Interest

Family Processes and Family Well-Being

Black Families, Couples, and Communities

Grief, Loss, and Bereavement Across the Lifespan

Traumatic Bereavement and Complicated Grief

Death-Related and Non-Death-Related Loss

Neurobiology of Grief and Trauma

Mental Health and Behavioral Health in Black Populations

Exposure to Violence and Community Violence

Culturally Responsive Grief and Trauma Interventions

Evidence-Based Practices for Grief and Loss

Practice-Based Evidence in Grief, Trauma, and Family Care

Spirituality, Cultural Identity, and Resilience

Community-Based and Family-Centered Approaches to Care

Advising

I am accepting undergraduate research advisees for the Fall 2026 semester.

Current Classes

HDFS 8050 Mechanisms of Change in CFT

HDFS 9070 Practicum

HDFS 3920 Issues in Family Systems

HDFS 3000 Introduction to Behavioral Health

Current Research

1. Clergy, grief, and referral to clinical care (currently interviewing participants with colloborator).
One current project is a qualitative study with clergy focused on grief and loss within faith-based communities. This study examines how clergy understand and respond to grief among parishioners, their perceived preparedness to address bereavement and other forms of loss, their knowledge of prolonged grief disorder and complicated grief, and finally, how clergy determine when grief-related concerns may require referral to clinical care. Given the central role that faith leaders often play in supporting individuals and families after loss, this work seeks to better understand the opportunities and limitations of faith-based grief support, as well as the resources clergy may need to respond effectively and ethically.

2. LGBTQ+ and BIPOC adults, grief, identity, and relational functioning (data already collected; data analyses in progress).
A second area of current work uses a dataset with LGBTQ+ and BIPOC adults to examine grief, loss, relational functioning, cultural and racial identity, disenfranchised grief, and related psychosocial outcomes. This project allows me to explore how identity, belonging, marginalization, and relational context shape the ways adults experience, express, and cope with loss. I am particularly interested in how culturally specific and identity-based experiences influence grief outcomes, social support, meaning-making, and relational well-being.

3. Emerging adults, grief, non-death related loss, trauma, and access to care (development of pilot study in progress Spring 2026).
I am also developing a pilot mixed-methods study with emerging adults focused on grief, non-death-related loss, trauma exposure, accessibility of care, and general understandings of grief, trauma, and mental health. This study is designed to examine how emerging adults conceptualize loss and trauma, where they turn for support, what barriers they experience in accessing care, and how their developmental stage shapes grief-related needs.

Journal Articles

Ajayi, A. A., Grier-Reed, T., Wade, B., Oteju, O., Bahr-Fite, A. V., Baker, A. C., & McIntosh, D. L. (2026). Racialized labor among Black women: Implications for counseling, research, training, and advocacy. The Counseling Psychologist, 0(0). https://doi.org/10.1177/00110000261445121.

Asiimwe, R., McIntosh, D. L., Nyambura, R. G., & Kasujja, R. (2026). Cultural Threads: An Afrocentric paradigm for integrating social justice principles in the practice of family therapy in Africa. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 52(1), e70091. https://doi.org/10.1111/jmft.70091.

Hubbard, A., Bryant, C.M., Harris, S., Rineman, R., McIntosh, D.L. (2025). Identifying informal help-seeking patterns in African American couples. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy.

McIntosh, D.L., Tate, A.D., Trofholz, A., Berge, J.M. (2024). Child health and psychosocial wellness in the context of maternal role overload and depression: A latent profile analysis. Family Relations. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1111/fare.13091.

McIntosh, D.L., Pasco, M. (2024). Unpacking the social construction of blame: A qualitative exploration of race, place, and accountability in the aftermath of George Floyd’s death. The Journal Community and Applied Social Psychology, 34 (3), e2885. https://doi.org/10.1002/casp.2885.

Mussa, K., McIntosh, D.L., Tadros, E. (2024). The impact of social support and social strain on older adults with depression. The Family Journal. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1177/10664807241276877.

McIntosh, D.L.*[1], Wang, G.* (2024). Assessments for multi-heritage couple therapy: A scoping review of existing tools. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 50 (3),611- 629. https://doi.org/10.1111/jmft.12708.

Mussa, K., Bryant, C., McIntosh, D. (2023). Passionate love: A study of older African American couples. Journal of African American Studies, 27(1), 103-111. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12111-023-09612-x.

McIntosh, D., Tate, A.D., & Berge, J.M. (2021). Exploration of witnessing community violence and recent death on child behavioral outcomes. Journal of Child and Adolescent Mental Health, 33(1-3), 42-54. https://doi.org/10.2989/17280583.2023.2270724.

Mendenhall, T.J., McIntosh, D., Hottinger, D. (2021). Walking-the-Walk: Attending to the “spiritual” in medical family therapy’s Biopsychosocial/Spiritual Care. Contemporary Family Therapy, 44(1), 44–54. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10591-021-09619-0.

[1] Co-First Authors. See Lapidow, A., & Scudder, P. (2019). Shared first authorship. Journal of the Medical Library Association,107(4), 618-620. https://doi.org/10.5195/jmla.2019.700.

Publications

Book Chapters

McIntosh, D.L. (2026) Spirituality and Ritual in Response to Social Injustice. In D. L. Harris, T. C. Bordere, & L. McLean (Eds.), Handbook of social justice in loss and grief: Exploring diversity, equity, and inclusion (2nd ed.) https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9781003541592-30/spirituality-ritual-response-social-injustice-doneila-mcintosh

Bryant, C.M., McIntosh, D.L., Mussa, K. S. (2026). Examining intimate relationships across Black populations with a focus on context: Socioeconomic status and racial discrimination. In A. L. Vangelisti & D. Perlman (Eds.), The Cambridge handbook of personal relationships (3rd ed.). Cambridge University Press. 
https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009381949