Dr. Atlis received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Minnesota. She has an extensive background in psychological assessment, including personality assessment with the MMPI-2 and MMPI-A. Her clinical experiences in Minnesota included the Post-Traumatic Stress and Substance Abuse Recovery services at the Minneapolis VA, Walk-in Crisis Counseling Center, Child Neuropsychology unit at the Mayo Clinic, and the Center for Victims of Torture.

As part of her full internship at the University of Chicago Hospital, Dr. Atlis provided individual and group psychotherapy at the Center for Cognitive Therapy (specializing in cognitive-behavioral therapy for depression) and the Emotion Management Program (specializing in Dialectical Behavioral Therapy). In recent years, she has been a clinician at several agencies throughout the San Francisco Bay area such as the Stimulant Treatment Outpatient Program at UCSF, the Substance Abuse Recovery Program at Oakland Kaiser, and Bayside Marin, a substance abuse residential treatment facility located in San Rafael, California.

Outside of her clinical practice, Dr. Atlis has been involved in research and teaching. She is currently a Professor and an Assistant Director of Clinical Training at the Clinical Psychology Doctoral Program, California Institute for Integral Studies. One of her primary lines of research is aimed to evaluate the impact of culture on assessment and treatment of psychopathology. In her studies she has been particularly interested in generalizability issues as applied to various assessment instruments and procedures. She has also been involved in analog studies for space missions. In particular, she is interested in how group composition impacts people's ability to cope with stressful environmental conditions and if we can find ways to facilitate most advantageous group dynamics with the ultimate goal of improving long-term space exploration.

Publications

• Atlis, Mera M., Hahn, J., & Butcher, J. N. (2005). Computer-based assessment with the MMPI-2. In J. N. Butcher (Ed.) MMPI-2: A practitioner's guide. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
• Atlis, Mera M., Leon, G. R., Sandal, G. M., & Infante, M. (2004). Decision Processes and Interactions During a Two-Woman Traverse of Antarctica. Environment and Behavior, 36(3), 402-423.
• Butcher, J. N., Arbisi, P., Atlis, Mera M., & McNulty, J. (2003). The Construct Validity of the Lees-Haley FB Scale: Does the FBS Measure Somatic Malingering and Feigned Emotional Distress? Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology, 18(5), 473-485.
• Butcher, J. N., Atlis, Mera M., & Hahn, J. (2003). The Miinnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory - 2 (MMPI-2). In Mark J. Hilsenroth, Daniel L. Segal, & Michel Hersen (Eds.), Comprehensive Handbook of Psychological Assessment, Volume 2: Personality Assessment. New York: Wiley & Sons.
• Leon, G. R., Atlis, Mera, M., Ones, D., & Magor, G. (2002). A one-year three couple expedition as a crew analog for a Mars mission. Environment and Behavior, 34(5), 672-700.
• Maximova, N. N. & Atlils Mera M. (2000). Nekotoriye prakticheskiye aspecti realizatzii meshdunarodnogo sotrudnichestva [Some practical aspects of implementing international collaboration]. Kolimskiye Vesti, 7, 31-32.
• Butcher, J. N., Atlis, Mera. M., & Fang L. (2000). The effect of altered instructions on the MMPI-2 profiles of college students. Journal of Personality Assessment, 75(3), 492-501.
• Butcher, J. N., Perry, J., & Atlis, Mera M. (2000). Validity of computerized assessment and interpretation. Psychological Assessment, 12(1), 6-18.
• Dinges, N. G., Atlis, Mera M., & Ragan, S. L. (2000). Assessment of depression among American Indians and Alaska Natives. In R. Dana (Ed.) et al., Handbook of Cross-Cultural and Multicultural Personality Assessment, Personality and clinical psychology series, p. 623-646. New Jersey: Erlbaum Associates.
• Dinges. N. G., Atlis, Mera M., & Vincent, G. M. (1997). Cross-cultural perspectives on antisocial behavior. In D. Stoff, J. Breiling, & J. D. Maser (Eds.). Handbook of Antisocial Behavior, p. 463-473. New York: John Wiley & Sons.