CLINICAL EXPERIENCE:

Sherri Tanferani, Ph.D., is a California-licensed clinical and forensic psychologist with more than 15 years of experience in forensic psychological evaluation, psychological assessment, and the evaluation of complex behavioral and mental health presentations. Her professional work spans forensic, public-safety, occupational, disability, and clinical settings.

Since 2010, Dr. Tanferani has served as a forensic psychologist with the California Department of State Hospitals. Her work includes forensic and civil commitment evaluations involving individuals with serious mental illness, personality pathology, substance use disorders, and histories of sexual or violent offending. She has specialized experience assessing violence and sexual recidivism risk, psychopathy, static and dynamic risk factors, protective factors, treatment amenability, and factors relevant to community safety and risk management.

Her forensic assessment experience includes specialized instruments such as the Static-99R, STABLE-2007, PCL-R, VRAG-R, SRA-FV, and LSI. She also has extensive experience with psychological and personality assessment and the interpretation of complex psychometric findings.

Dr. Tanferani has provided expert testimony in mental health court proceedings in Los Angeles, San Diego, and Santa Barbara. She is experienced in translating complex psychological findings into clear, well-supported opinions for courts, attorneys, agencies, and other professional referral sources.

Her approach to forensic evaluation is objective, methodical, and evidence-based. She recognizes the important distinction between therapeutic and forensic roles and approaches each referral with careful attention to the specific psycholegal question. Her evaluations emphasize the integration of clinical interview data, psychological testing, behavioral observations, collateral information, and relevant records, with consideration of response validity, differential diagnosis, functional impairment, and limitations of the available evidence.

Dr. Tanferani also conducts psychological evaluations within the California workers’ compensation system, addressing diagnosis, psychological disability, functional impairment, work capacity, and treatment needs. Her broader assessment and clinical experience encompasses trauma- and stressor-related disorders, mood and anxiety disorders, personality disorders, substance use disorders, neurodevelopmental conditions, and other complex psychiatric presentations.

In addition to her forensic practice, Dr. Tanferani has substantial clinical experience treating adults with complex psychological and psychiatric conditions. This clinical foundation informs her ability to evaluate symptom presentation in context, consider competing diagnostic explanations, and distinguish clinical findings from conclusions that can be supported within a forensic evaluation.

Dr. Tanferani earned her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from California Graduate Institute and her M.A. in Clinical Psychology from Humboldt State University. At Elara Clinical & Forensic Psychology, her work is grounded in objectivity, methodological rigor, careful integration of multiple data sources, and clear communication of opinions responsive to the specific psycholegal question presented.