Researchers

My research focuses on children’s emotional, social, and psychological functioning, as well as physical wellbeing. Current research work includes studies of behavioral teratology, and studies of the long-term effects of drugs and toxic exposures during pregnancy. It includes identifying factors affecting behavioral and physiological reactions to stress and the capacity to cope with stress. I also investigate the impact of deviant caregiving and traumatic events in childhood, and how these experiences affect emotional and cognitive development. I study the development of the mental representation that a child comes to have about itself and the ability to utilize that knowledge in forming social relationships. My studies involve both normal and deviant cognitive, social, and emotional development; and studies with children with known disabilities such as Autism.