About Us
Personality Expert
Dr. Richard Levak is a licensed clinical psychologist practicing in Del Mar, California, where he has a private practice. In addition to his clinical practice, Dr. Levak consults for companies, works in the media and is an expert consultant in forensic cases. He has appeared on Larry King Live, 20/20, Nightline, the Anderson Cooper Show and has been quoted in the Wall Street Journal.
Introduced to the MMPI personality test in the ‘70’s, Dr. Levak began developing a model of personality based on Alex Caldwell’s work at UCLA. This approach defines psychopathology as an adaptive response to a painful or frightening conditioning event. Rather than applying judgmental jargon, Dr. Levak has developed a therapeutic feedback approach that is positive and empathic, where the therapist is seen as a guide rather than an authority and the approach is collaborative.
Refined over thousands of individual feedbacks, his feedback is remarkably accurate and insightful. Dr. Levak has developed an array of proven relationship tools that are practical, results-oriented, and highly effective.
Dr. Levak has co-authored five books on the MMPI that are standard works used by psychologists. These are Psychological Assessment with the MMPI (1989); Workbook for Psychological Assessment with the MMPI (1989); Therapist Guide to the MMPI and MMPI-2 (1990); Psychological Assessment with the MMPI-2 (2000), Therapeutic Feedback with the MMPI-2: A Positive Psychology Approach (2011), and Psychological Assessment with the MMPI-2/MMPI-2-RF (2014.) He is currently completing a book on the recently released MMPI-3.
He is a member of: American Psychological Association, California & San Diego Psychological Associations and is a charter member and Diplomate of the American Board of Assessment Psychology and a fellow of the Society for Personality Assessment and the San Diego Psychological Association.
Dr. Levak has been married for almost forty years and is the proud father of a UCLA Bruin.