About

ABOUT DR. EDRICK DORIAN

Dr. Edrick H. Dorian is a Los Angeles–based licensed psychologist whose professional work has focused on leadership, judgment, and responsibility in high-accountability environments. His career spans clinical psychology, public safety leadership, academic medicine, and applied innovation in mental health, with sustained engagement in institutions where decisions carry significant human, organizational, and public consequence.

This page provides background and context for his independent writing, public-facing work, and ongoing professional orientation.

Education and Clinical Formation

Dr. Dorian received his Doctor of Psychology (Psy.D.) in Clinical Psychology from Pepperdine University, along with bachelor’s (B.A.) and master’s (M.A.) degrees in psychology from California State University, Northridge. In recognition of his professional contributions, he was awarded Pepperdine University’s Distinguished Alumni Award in 2022 and selected as commencement speaker for the psychology division ceremony of the Graduate School of Education and Psychology.

He completed an APA-accredited predoctoral internship at the VA Los Angeles Ambulatory Care Center, where he provided services to military veterans spanning World War II through more recent conflicts. His work there included health psychology, chemical dependency, psychotherapy, and treatment of combat-related PTSD.

Dr. Dorian completed an APA-accredited postdoctoral fellowship in Clinical Psychology at Harbor–UCLA Medical Center. His clinical rotations included the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Twin Towers Correctional Facility, providing psychological services to incarcerated individuals, and Harbor–UCLA’s AMI/ABLE Integrated Psychiatric Services Program, delivering wraparound care for individuals with serious mental illness.

Additional predoctoral clinical training included the Child and Family Guidance Center (treatment services for sexually abused children), Didi Hirsch Community Mental Health Center (a 28-day crisis residential treatment program), Harbor–UCLA Medical Center (psychological assessment and family therapy), and the VA Sepulveda Ambulatory Care Center, where he worked with military veterans in cognitive rehabilitation, chemical dependency, weight management, and psychological and neuropsychological testing. These experiences established a durable foundation in trauma, institutional care, and systems under strain.

Public Safety and Institutional Leadership

In 2004, Dr. Dorian was appointed Program Director of the AMI/ABLE Integrated Psychiatric Services Program at Harbor–UCLA Medical Center and named Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychology at the UCLA School of Medicine. In these roles, he led multidisciplinary clinical teams and provided training and supervision in cognitive behavioral therapy for psychology postdoctoral fellows and psychiatry residents.

In 2006, Dr. Dorian began his service as a Police Psychologist with the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD). Over the ensuing years, his work included providing clinical services and training to law enforcement personnel and their families, responding to critical incidents, consulting with the SWAT Crisis Negotiation Team, and offering managerial consultation to LAPD command staff. During this period, he also co-edited the scholarly volume Police Psychology and Its Growing Impact on Modern Law Enforcement and, in 2018, received the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) Leadership in the Field of Police & Public Safety Psychology Award.

In 2021, Dr. Dorian was appointed Chief Police Psychologist of the LAPD and Commanding Officer of Behavioral Science Services, the department’s in-house wellness division comprising a multidisciplinary team of psychologists, addiction counselors, administrative staff, and a registered dietitian. As a senior staff member, he continues to work alongside executive and command leadership to support organizational well-being and operations through innovation and cross-disciplinary collaboration in areas including leadership, policy development, risk management, morale, discipline and rehabilitation, media relations, technology, and training. In 2024, he was the recipient of the LAPD Command Officers Excellence in Leadership Award.

Innovation, Teaching, and Public Engagement

In addition to his clinical and institutional roles, Dr. Dorian has been involved in applied innovation in mental health. In 2010, he co-founded Thriveport with Pepperdine University Professor Dr. Drew Erhardt. Thriveport developed one of the first comprehensive CBT-based mobile applications, MoodKit®, followed by Moodnotes®, created in collaboration with the London-based design studio ustwo™. In late 2019, Thriveport was acquired by Apalon, a subsidiary of IAC.

Teaching has been a consistent thread throughout Dr. Dorian’s career. He began teaching in 1998 through the Teacher Intern Program of the CSUN Department of Psychology and subsequently served on the adjunct faculties of Moorpark College, California State University, Northridge, Pepperdine University’s Graduate School of Education and Psychology, and the clinical faculty of the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.

Dr. Dorian is committed to ongoing learning and public engagement. He considers himself a lifelong student of psychology and related fields and is dedicated to reducing stigma around mental health care. His work has been cited in numerous major publications, including Discover, The Guardian, WIRED, WIRED UK, Business Insider, Fast Company, TechCrunch, Mashable, and others.

Current Orientation

Today, Dr. Dorian is increasingly focused on independent writing, public scholarship, and governance-level contribution, while remaining grounded in the clinical discipline and institutional experience that have shaped his work. This site reflects that orientation and provides context for his professional background and ongoing areas of focus.