ROBERT JOHN BISCHOFF, PH.D., MFT 

Psychotherapy & Consulting 

Primary Location

21580 Stevens Creek Boulevard, Suite 112 
Cupertino, California 95014 
Phone (408) 482-5150  FAX (408) 446-1226

Additional Location

8371 Church Street 
Gilroy, California 95020-4450 
Phone (408) 482-5150  FAX (408) 446-1226

Educational Background 

A.A. Hartnell College, Salinas, California 1967 Associates of Art - General Education 
B.A. San Francisco State, San Francisco, California 1970 Psychology Major 
M.S. San Jose State University, San Jose, California 1976 Clinical Psychology 
Ph.D. International College, Los Angeles, California 1985 Clinical Psychology 

Primary Clinical Interests 

My primary clinical interests are noted in the following areas and are applied in a private practice setting and as a consultant, teacher and researcher to hospitals, health care and industrial organizations. 

Individual Psychotherapy - with primary focus on treatment of chemical dependency, anxiety, depression, identity issues, and disorders of personality. I have been in private practice since 1976 and have been independently licensed to practice psychotherapy and psychological assessment since 1979. 

Alcoholism and Drug Addiction Assessment, Treatment and Research since 1979; I have specialized in the assessment and treatment of the chemically dependent individual and their families. A complete assessment typically includes a clinical interview, a mental status examination, application of objective and projective psychometric instruments, differential diagnosis, and the development of individualized treatment plans. Further, while working with Starting Point's outpatient program, I co-facilitated recovery based treatment groups and conjoint family groups for several years.


Psychological Testing and Evaluation - I am trained and qualified to administer, score and interpret both objective and projective testing instruments, including, but not limited to the Rorschach, Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI), TAT, CAT, DAP, The Wechsler Intelligence Test series, Bender-Gestalt, Edwards, HK-MBD, and a host of other testing instruments. A testing focus is often used to establish the presence and level of cognitive dysfunction and also to assess for personality dynamics as well as how both may impact the patient's treatment.
Further, I have on several occasions been established as an expert witness in Santa Clara County Superior Court in clinical applications of psychometrics, particularly the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (see note below). 

Industrial Injury Evaluation and Treatment - Most of this work has been for major electronics and aerospace industries in Silicon Valley. I do both assessment and treatment of individuals who have suffered an industrial injury. I have been established as an expert witness in California Superior Court on three separate occasions; all of which involved the use of clinical assessment skills and the extensive use of psychometric devices in the assessment process.  

Computer Applications in Mental Health - I am a self trained computer programmer and currently hold two copyrights for major program applications I have written. I program primarily in object oriented Turbo Pascal and specialize in the development of knowledge based systems for psychological applications, research and computerized testing. I have also conducted a twenty-four hour communications service (BBS), since 1985, for other health care professionals from all over the United States and in recent years conducted a monthly online discussion forum regarding the use of computers in the mental health field. I decided in 1997 to bring this BBS content to the Net! 

Current Professional Pursuits & Affiliations 

Individual Private Practice - Full Time: 1976 to present. 

I.S.D. - Psychological Software Development - Computer Applications in 
Clinical Psychology (C.A.C.P.) & Computers in Mental Health consulting services. 
Clinical Member - California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists 
Clinical Member - Local Chapter of California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists

Past Professional Affiliations 

O'Connor Hospital, San Jose, California 
(Inpatient, Outpatient and Relapse prevention treatment 
programs - psychological assessment & referral - research) Consultant. 

Good Samaritan Hospital, San Jose, California 
Allied Health Professional status. 

El Camino Hospital, Mountain View, California 
(Daycare and Outpatient treatment programs - psychological 
assessment & treatment outcome research studies) Allied Health Professional status. 

Vice-President, Bischoff & Stoker, Inc., A Professional Corp. 

Clinical Consultant, Starting Point, Sunnyvale, California 
(The first outpatient chemical dependency treatment program in Silicon Valley) 

CompuCare, Newport Beach, California 
(Outpatient treatment services) 

Dominican Hospital, Santa Cruz, California 
(I assisted in the establishment of this inpatient program) 

Chemical Dependency Institute of Northern California 
Campbell, California 

Clinical Instructor/Faculty, Family Practice Medicine 
San Jose Hospital and Stanford School of Medicine 

Staff Psychologist and Program Coordinator 
Adult Psychiatry, San Jose Hospital 

Instructor in Psychology, Hartnell College and College of Notre Dame 

Legal Experience 

Deposition in Personal Injury and Worker's Compensation Cases. On numerous 
occasions I have been subpoenaed to give testimony regarding an assessment 
or treatment that I have provided in the private practice and consulting settings. 

Testimony in Juvenile Justice Court, San Jose, California 
I have on one occasion given testimony regarding an adolescent that I had 
treated in the private practice setting. 

Expert Witness Testimony Superior Court, San Jose, California. As noted, 
on two separate occasions, I was declared an expert witness in Superior Court. 
I was allowed to testify regarding mental status and personality and cognitive 
impairment. 
Expert Witness Testimony for the Department of Defense (NSA) regarding human 
reliability issues. 

Licensure to Practice 

I have been licensed under the Marriage, Family and Child Counselor code since 
1979; license number MFC-13126.  All of my clinical practice and consulting has been provided under this license as was the expert witness qualification. 

Notable Items 

USAF Officer, CAPT.; Flight training, nuclear and conventional weapons training. Vietnam Veteran (Cam Ranh Bay, MR2 1971-72).  Total service 1970-1974; resigned officer commission to leave service and return to postgraduate work in clinical psychology.

American MENSA, Member 

Listed in Who's Who in California, 14th Edition 

Paper presented at The Second Annual Meeting of Computer Applications in Mental 
Health, 1991 Update, in Indianapolis, 

Indiana on April 19, 1991. Paper titled: "A Knowledge Based System for Assisting 
in Differential Diagnosis of Drug Abusing/Mentally Ill Patients". Paper published 
in July of 1992 by Haworth Press as one of collected papers and also in a special 
issue of Computers in Human Services. 

Article written recently for Addiction & Recovery magazine regarding streamlined 
research processes within the clinical setting. This article is slated to appear 
late in 1993 or early 1994 according to the editor, Richard Peck. 

Paper presented at the Second Annual Clinical Technologies Conference in Cambridge, 
Massachusetts on July 30, 1993. Paper titled: "Streamlining and Integrating Clinical 
Inquiry and Outcome Research". Paper is not yet published. 

Paper presented at the American Psychological Association (APA) Convention in San Francisco on 
August 17, 1998 at the Moscone Center. Computer-assisted psychotherapy: Self-Help as 
and adjunct to treatment. 

Research conducted at the VA Menlo Park PTSD Facility & Santa Clara University with 
regard to treatment facilitation and enhancement using multimedia computer assistance. 

Paper presented at the California Association of Marriage and Family Therapist Convention in San Francisco on May 1, 1999 at the Cathedral Hill Hotel. Computer-assisted psychotherapy: Self-Help as and adjunct to treatment.

Interviewed in Premier issue of Click Magazine regarding "Internet Addiction", February 2000. (See http://www.shrinktank.com/clickweekly.htm )

Presented at SV-CAMFT Luncheon in March, 2000; topic of Computer Use in Clinical Practice. (see http://www.shrinktank.com/camft_luncheon.htm )

Presented the historical aspects of eTherapy at the Cape Cod 2000 Institute with John Grohol, PsyD and Judith Allen, PhD, as a Virtual Faculty. (see http://www.shrinktank.com/capecod2000.htm )

Interviewed for SF Gate (see http://www.sfgate.com/technology/inquire/ ) regarding the growth, development and issues involved in providing eTherapy on the Net.

Presented at SV-CAMFT Mini-Workshop, October 7, 2000 in San Carlos; topic of Computer Use in Clinical practice. (see http://www.shrinktank.com/camft_workshop.htm )

Interviewed for the Silicon Valley Biz Ink, August 30, 2002 in San Jose; topic is "Productivity suffers when tools become addictive".  (see http://www.shrinktank.com/svbizink_story.htm )

Interviewed for the Silicon Valley Biz Ink, January 6, 2004 in Cupertino; topic is "Staying Sane in the Valley" (see http://www.shrinktank.com/svbizink2_story.htm )