Dexter Chia, Psy.D.

Postdoctoral Fellow

Dr. Dexter Chia earned his doctoral degree in clinical psychology from Loma Linda University. His clinical training involved enacting multiculturally informed Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) while working with the diverse population of Southern California. Prior to working at CBT/DBT California, he has worked in community-based healthcare providing outpatient CBT to children and adolescents, inpatient hospital settings to provide support and skills for patients receiving palliative care, and intensive-outpatient programs to teach DBT to adolescents with self-harm behavior.  

Dr. Chia completed his APA-accredited pre-doctoral internship at the Southwest Behavioral Health outpatient/opioid recovery clinic in Arizona where he worked with clients on comorbid substance use and psychological disorders. He utilized his lengthy experience working with multidisciplinary clinical teams to provide psychotherapeutic approaches including CBT, emotion-focused therapy, and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) in combination with traditional healthcare and methadone services. He utilizes this blend of psychotherapy techniques at CBT/DBT California.

Dr. Chia’s clinical research has examined the health disparities faced by ethnic minorities as well as studying the degrees of workforce burnout faced by medical professionals. This research has served to better inform interventions for at-risk populations and Dr. Chia collaborated with a research team to teach mindfulness-based resiliency skills to both patients and professionals as an intervention to decrease distress in acute healthcare settings. His clinical interests and specializations include using and teaching CBT and related evidence-based therapies to help individuals effectively cope with anxiety, depression, trauma, and grief.

Dr. Chia provides CBT and DBT treatment for adults and adolescents at the Newport Beach and Torrance Offices. Services are provided via telehealth and in-person per request.