Cori Bussolari

Professor Bussolari is a full professor in the counseling psychology department, who teaches in a clinically focused program with students who are earning graduate degrees in marriage and family therapy and professional clinical counseling. She has published in numerous journals and edited books on the topics of grief — specifically pet loss, chronic illness, and positive coping.

A licensed practicing psychologist in California since 2006, Professor Bussolari has worked as a school/educational psychologist, family therapist, and was also trained as a pediatric psychologist, working with chronic and terminally ill children and their families. Her underlying belief, which informs all of her work, is that we all possess the innate power to heal and grow.

• Bereavement
• Trauma
• Human Animal Bond
• Life Transitions

• Disenfranchised grief
• Human animal bond
• Positive coping
• Health Psychology

• Chair, Counseling Psychology Department

• University of San Francisco, Psy.D. in Counseling Psychology
• University of Massachusetts at Boston, M.Ed. in Counseling Psychology
• University of Massachusetts at Amherst, M.A. in Psychology

• Bussolari, C.; Currin-McCulloch, J.; Packman, W.; Kogan, L.; Erdman, P. “I Couldn’t Have Asked for a Better Quarantine Partner!”: Experiences with Companion Dogs during Covid-19. Animals 2021, 11, x. 

• Kogan, L., Erdman, P., Bussolari, C., Currin-McCulloch, J., & Packman, W. (2021). The initial months of COVID-19: Dog owners’ veterinary-related concerns. Frontiers.

• Bussolari, C., Habarth, J., Phillips, S., Katz, R., & Packman, W. (2018). Self-compassion and psychosocial outcomes in a recently bereaved pet loss sample. OMEGA: Journal of Death and Dying.

• Bussolari, C., Habarth, J., Phillips, S., Katz, R., Carmack, B. J., & Packman, W. (2018). The euthanasia decision-making process: A qualitative exploration of bereaved companion animal owners, Bereavement Care.

• Bussolari, C., Habarth, J., Kimpara, S., Katz, R., Carlos, F., Chow, A., Osada, H., Osada. Y., Carmack, B., Field, N., & Packman, W. (2017). Post traumatic growth following the loss of a pet: A cross-cultural comparison. OMEGA: Journal of Death and Dying, 1 - 21.