I am a Prevention Scientist with a background in Family Science, Family Therapy, and primary healthcare research. My overarching goal is to improve public health by supporting parents in raising healthy children and by supporting healthcare clinicians in providing effective care. I am pursing this goal through research to foster engagement in and create sustainable access to effective parenting interventions and support, with an emphasis on highly stressed families. This research agenda includes gaining a better understanding of parenting behaviors and the role of parent-child relationships in developmental pathways; understanding the intersection of trauma and parent-child interactions; engaging parents in adolescent health and healthcare; examining the effectiveness of brief communication skills training for primary care clinicians; and evaluating the effectiveness and implementation of parenting programs delivered through primary care settings.
I am a Research Associate Professor in Family Social Science at the University of Minnesota.
My parenting-related research is housed in the Knowledge for Parents Center.
