Carolina Costa, M.S., LMHC

Professional Biography

Carolina Costa is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor and the clinic coordinator of the MINT Anxiety Clinic within the Center for Children and Families (CCF) at Florida International University. Carolina also coordinates research conducted at the MINT lab such as Kids Face-to-face And Computer-Enhanced Formats Effectiveness study for Anxiety and Related Symptoms (Kids FACE FEARS) and Selective Mutism Intervention Long-term Evaluation (SMILE). 

Carolina graduated from Florida International University in July of 2017 Suma Cum Laude and Phi Beta Kappa with a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology. During this time, she worked as a research assistant for the Sibley Teen Lab at FIU’s Center for Children and Families. Carolina graduated with a Master of Science in Professional Counseling Psychology at Florida International University in August of 2021. She completed her practicum at FIU’s Center for Children and Families where she was trained in providing individual and group treatment for children ages 4 to 18 with ADHD, ODD, and ASD. Her clinical internship was completed at FIU’s Center for Children and Families with the MINT Anxiety program where she was trained in providing individual and group treatment in English and Spanish to children and adolescents with anxiety.

Contact: cabusto@fiu.edu

Publications

Aziz, H., Vidal-Martinez, G., Onyeka, O.C., Anderberg, J.L., Vargas-Medrano, J., Sotelo, D., Kourtesi, D., Frederick, R.M., Muñoz, J.S., Berrones, D., Zavala Cruz, V., Thompson, P., Tonarelli, S., Latin American Trans-Ancestry INitiative for OCD genomics (LATINO), Brazilian Obsessive-Compulsive Spectrum Disorder Working Group (GTTOC), Wiese, A.D., Crowley, J.J., Crowley, J.J., Storch, E.A. (in press). Frequency and Self-Reported Outcomes of Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation for Obsessive Compulsive Disorder in the U.S. and Latin America. Revista Colombiana de Psiquiatría.

Mathai, D.S., Robinson, J.O., Wagner, K., Neitzke-Spruill, L., Berrones, D., Anderberg, J.L., Frederick, R.M., Zavala Cruz, V., Munoz, J.S., Latin American Trans-Ancestry INitiative for OCD genomics (LATINO), Brazilian Obsessive-Compulsive Spectrum Disorder Working Group (GTTOC), Rodriguez, C.I., Averill, L.A., Crowley, J.J., Storch, E.A., & McGuire, A.J. (in press). Real-world use of classic and non-classic psychedelics in Hispanic/Latino adults with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder: International findings from the LATINO Study. Brazilian Journal of Psychiatry.

Wagner, K. M., Cervin, M., Cheng, J. S. C., Arriaga, J., Zavala Cruz, V., Berrones, D., Muñoz, J. S., Frederick, R. M., Anderberg, J. L., Núñez Bracho, B. E., Adorno, V. R., Fontenelle, L. F., Wiese, A. D., Latin American Trans-Ancestry Initiative for OCD genomics (LATINO), Brazilian Obsessive-Compulsive Spectrum Disorder Working Group (GTTOC), Crowley, J. J., & Storch, E. A. (in press). Transdiagnostic links of reward processing in OCD and depression. Journal of Affective Disorders.

Pinciotti, C.M., Avery, J., Zhang, C.C., Munoz, J.S., Berrones, D., Zavala Cruz, V., Wiese, A.D., Anderberg, J.L., Frederick, R.M., Miño, T., Lanzagorta, N., Restrepo Castro, J.C., Ochoa-Panaifo, M.E., Latin American Trans-ancestry INitiative for OCD genomics (LATINO), Brazilian Obsessive-Compulsive Spectrum Work Group (GTTOC), Goodman, W.K., Crowley, J.J., Storch, E.A., & Cervin, M. (in press). Benchmarking empirical severity for the Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale-Second Edition. Journal of Affective Disorders.

Moore, H. C., Li, D., Wagner, K. M., Cheng, J. S., Ahmad, M., Tonarelli, S., Nicolini, H., Moyano, M. B., Zavala Cruz, V., Berrones, D., Muñoz, J. S., Frederick, R. M., Anderberg, J. L., Latin American Trans-ancestry Initiative for OCD genomics (LATINO), Brazilian Obsessive-Compulsive Spectrum Disorder Working Group (GTTOC), Crowley, J. J., Storch, E. A. (2025, July). Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Symptom Profiles and Perceived Effectiveness: A Comparison Between Adults with and without Co-occurring Tics. International OCD Foundation. Chicago, Illinois.

Freitag, G.F., Salem, H., Conroy, K., Busto, C., Adrian, M., Borba, C. P. C., Brandt, A., Chu, P. V., Dantowitz, A., Farley, A. M., Fortuna, L., Furr, J. M., Lejeune, J., Miller, L., Platt, R., Porche, M., Read, K. L., Rivero-Conil, S., Hernandez, R. D. S., Shumway, P., … Comer, J. S. (2023). The Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) pediatric and parent-proxy short forms for anxiety: Psychometric properties in the Kids FACE FEARS sample. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 94, 102677. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.janxdis.2023.102677

Posters & Presentations

Avery, J. E., Pinciotti, C. M., Zhang, C., Muñoz, J. S., Berrones, D., Cruz, V. Z., Wiese, A. D., Anderberg, J. L., Frederick, R. M., Miño, T., Lanzagorta, N., Restrepo Castro, J. C., Ochoa-Panaifo, M. E., Goodman, W. K., Latin American Trans-ancestry INiative for OCD genomics (LATINO), Brazilian Obsessive-Compulsive Spectrum Disorder Working Group (GTTOC), Crowley, J. J., Cervin, M., & Storch, E. A. (2025, November). Benchmarking empirical severity for the Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale-Second Edition. To be presented at the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies Conference, New Orleans, LA. 

Freitag, G. F., Salem, H., Conroy, K., Busto, C., Adrian, M., Borba, C., Brandt, A., Dantowitz, A., Fortuna, L., Furr, J.M., Miller, L., Myers, K., Platt, R., Porche, M., Rivero-Conil, S., Shumway, P., Spencer, A., Syeda, H., McMakin, D., Pincus, D.B., Comer, J.S. (2022, November). The Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) pediatric and parent-proxy short forms for anxiety: Psychometric properties in the Kids FACE FEARS Sample. Presented at the 56th Annual Convention for Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies (ABCT), New York, NY.

Seraikas, A., Farley, A., Dantowitz, A., Salem, H., Busto, C., Adrian, M., Borba, C., Brandt, A., Fortuna, L., Furr, J.M., Miller, L., Platt, R., Porche, M., Rivero-Conil, S., Shumway, P., Spencer, A., Syeda, H., McMakin, D., Pincus, D.B., Comer, J.S. (2022, November). Effects of a Multi-Site Training on CBT for Youth Anxiety for Therapists in Pediatric Healthcare Settings on Their Beliefs About Exposure Therapy. Presented at the 56th Annual Convention for Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies (ABCT), New York, NY.