Power Psychological Consulting
About Us
Valentina Ivezaj, Ph.D.
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Dr. Valentina Ivezaj is an Associate Professor of Psychiatry at Yale School of Medicine, as well as Director of Obesity and Bariatric Research Initiatives and the Associate Director of Assessment Training and Research at the Yale Program for Obesity, Weight, and Eating Research (POWER). She is a licensed clinical psychologist whose research and clinical expertise focus on psychosocial and behavioral factors influencing outcomes after bariatric surgery, including the role of disordered eating such as loss-of-control eating.
Dr. Ivezaj serves as Principal Investigator on a NIH-funded R01 clinical trial testing behavioral and pharmacologic strategies to optimize weight outcomes following metabolic and bariatric surgery. She also leads and collaborates on longitudinal studies examining the trajectory of eating behavior, mental health, and quality of life in bariatric surgery populations.
Her work bridges clinical care and research, aiming to improve evidence-based interventions for individuals with obesity and related eating disorders. Dr. Ivezaj’s expertise has been recognized through invited talks globally, peer-reviewed publications, and service on professional committees dedicated to obesity and eating disorder research.
Janet Lydecker, Ph.D., F.A.E.D.
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Dr. Janet Lydecker is an Associate Professor at Yale and a licensed clinical psychologist with over 15 years of experience treating eating disorders and eating/weight concerns across the lifespan, including binge-eating disorder, bulimia, and weight-related bullying.
She leads Yale Teen POWER and Clinical-Research Training within Yale’s POWER program, engaging in clinical-research training and mentorship. Her research focuses on clinical factors related to patients with eating disorders that can be targets for treatment, including novel constructs such as secretive eating, and parent-child communication about weight. Among her numerous peer-reviewed contributions, Dr. Lydecker has advanced understanding of binge-eating disorder through randomized clinical trials and observational studies, and she investigates how treatment responses vary by patient characteristics.
Marney White, Ph.D., M.S.
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Dr. Marney A. White is a Professor of Social and Behavioral Sciences at the Yale School of Public Health and holds a dual faculty appointment in the Department of Psychiatry at Yale School of Medicine. Trained as both a clinical psychologist and epidemiologist, she integrates clinical expertise with rigorous public health research to address eating disorders, obesity, emotional eating, depression, and anxiety.
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An internationally recognized scholar, Dr. White has authored more than 200 peer-reviewed publications and book chapters. In 2021, Expertscape ranked her the third leading expert in the world in binge-eating disorder. She has conducted numerous randomized controlled trials, psychometric studies, and large-scale epidemiologic investigations. .
Dr. White is a two-time recipient of Yale School of Public Health’s Teacher of the Year Award, and she extends her reach beyond campus through the widely attended online course Health Behavior Change: From Evidence to Action on Coursera. Her commitment to public health is matched by her service to international patient advocacy and medical professional organizations, particularly in the areas of chronic and dermatologic disease.
Through her combined contributions as a researcher, educator, clinician, and advocate, Dr. White has advanced both the science and public understanding of mental and behavioral health.