PEOPLE IN THE LAB

Kenneth H. Rubin (B.A., McGill, 1968; Ph.D., Pennsylvania State, 1971), is a Professor of Human Development and Quantitative Methodology and Distinguished Scholar-Teacher at the University of Maryland – College Park. In 1995, upon arrival at the University of Maryland, he founded, and served as Director of the Center for Children, Relationships, and Culture. Previously, he was a Professor of the Department of Psychology at the University of Waterloo, and has held visiting appointments at Stanford University, University of Washington, University of Melbourne (Australia), and the Max-Planck-Institut fur Psychologische Forschung (Munich). His research interests include the study of child and adolescent social development, especially peer and parent-child relationships; social and emotional adjustment and maladjustment in childhood and adolescence; the origins and developmental course of social competence, social withdrawal, and aggression; and “all of the above” from a cross-cultural perspective. Many of his over 350 peer-reviewed publications have been co-authored by colleagues on five continents. Among his recent books are the Handbook of Peer Interactions, Relationships, and Groups (with Bill Bukowski and Brett Laursen, 2018); the Handbook of Child and Adolescent Aggression (with Tina Malti, 2018); The Development of Shyness and Social Withdrawal (with Rob Coplan, 2010); Social Anxiety in Childhood: Bridging Developmental and Clinical Perspectives (with Heidi Gazelle, 2010); and Socioemotional Development in Cultural Context (with Xinyin Chen, 2011). His book, The Friendship Factor (2002) received the National Parenting Publications Gold Award.

Rubin was the President of the International Society for the Study of Behavioral Development (1998-2002), an elected member of the Society for Research in Child Development Governing Council (2009-2015), and an elected member of the APA Division 7 Executive Board (1987-1990). He has served as Associate Editor of Child Development (1981-1984; 1998-2001) and as a review panelist for NIH (USA) and SSHRCC (Canada). He is a Fellow of the American and Canadian Psychological Associations, the Association of Psychological Science, and the International Society for the Study of Behavioral Development. Among his honors are the Society for Research in Child Development Distinguished Contributions to Understanding International, Cultural, and Contextual Diversity in Child Development Award; the International Society for the Study of Behavioral Development Award for Distinguished Contributions to the International Advancement of Research and Theory in Behavioral Development; the Developmental Psychology Mentor Award of the American Psychological Association; and the Pickering Award for Outstanding Contribution to Developmental Psychology in Canada. In 1987, Rubin was awarded the Killam Research Fellowship by the Canada Council; this is one of Canada’s most distinguished research awards given annually to approximately 5-to-7 scholars in the humanities, social sciences, natural sciences, health sciences and engineering. He was the first Developmental Scientist to receive the Killam Fellowship. At the University of
Maryland, Rubin has received the Undergraduate Research Mentor of the Year Award, (2006) and the Exceptional Scholarship Award, (College of Education, 2013). In 2015, he was named a Distinguished Scholar-Teacher by the University of Maryland.

Research Gate Profile
Curriculum Vitae (CV)
Phone: (301) 405-5194
Email: krubin@umd.edu

Lab Manager

Lindsay Druskin is the LSCFR's lab manager and the project coordinator for the Preschool Play Study and Preschool Shyness Study. She recently graduated from the University of Maryland, College Park with her B.A. in Psychology with a minor in Human Development. Broadly, her research interests include child psychopathology, parenting, and the influence of early experiences on later mental health outcomes. As an undergraduate, Lindsay completed a thesis on the impact that adolescent friendship quality has on the relationship between mother- and father-child attachment and internalizing symptoms. Lindsay hopes to attend graduate school in the future.

Curriculum Vitae (CV)
Email: ldruskin@umd.edu

Post Doc

Matthew Barstead is a post doc in the Laboratory for the Study of Child and Family Relationships. A primary interest of his is the development of open-source tools to aid researchers in their efforts to effectively extract features from peripheral physiological measures that can be used to improve mental health diagnoses and/or monitor treatment response.

Dr. Barstead's Research Website
Email: barstead@umd.edu

Graduate Students

Kelly Smith

Kelly Smith is a fifth year doctoral student. She received a B.A. in psychology from Georgetown University. Her research interests include the development of prosocial and socially competent behavior, the influence of parenting on children's social development, and interventions to improve the quality of children's relationships.

Curriculum Vitae (CV)
Email: ksmith56@umd.edu

Hailey Fleece

Hailey Fleece is a first year master's student in the Human Development program. She received a B.A. from the University of Maryland in 2018. Her research interests include the impact of parent-child relationships on the development of anxiety disorders in children. Hailey hopes to go on to obtain a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology to become a child psychologist.

Graduate Student Collaborators

Kelly Dombek

Kelly Dombek is a master's student enrolled in UMD's MPS in Clinical Psychological Science program. She completed her undergraduate degree at Haverford College in 2017 with a B.A. in Philosophy and a minor in Psychology. Her main research interests are attachment, anxiety disorders, and moral psychology. After graduating with her master's, she plans to apply to doctorate programs in Clinical or Counseling Psychology.

Curriculum Vitae (CV)
Email: kdombek1@terpmail.umd.edu

Paige Whittenburg

Paige Whittenburg is a master's student enrolled in UMD's MPS in Clinical Psychological Science program. She received a B.A. in psychology from the University of Tennessee in 2018. Her research interests include child-adolescent psychopathology, specifically how adverse childhoods affect mental health and development.

Research Assistants

Emily Delinski

Emily Delinski is the Head Undergraduate RA. She is a senior working towards a B.S. in Psychology. Her research interests are parent and child interactions, childhood anxiety, and parental impact on pediatric mental disorders. Emily plans on attending graduate school for developmental psychology after she graduates.

Hannah Brockstein

Hannah Brockstein is a senior working towards a B.S. in Psychology and Family Science. Her research interests include parent-child relationships, child psychopathology, and child and adolescent mental health. After graduation, Hannah plans to obtain her Ph.D. in clinical psychology.

Jennifer Frost

Jennifer Frost is a senior pursuing her B.S. in Psychology. Her main research interests are child and adult psychopathology, health equity, and childhood development. After graduation, Jennifer plans to attend medical school in order to become a pediatrician.

Rebecca Martins

Rebecca Martins is a senior working towards a B.A. in psychology. Her research interests are child psychology and adolescent psychology. Rebecca plans to attend graduate school in order to obtain a Ph.D. in clinical psychology.

Fatima Quintana

Fatima Quintana is a senior pursuing a B.S. in Psychology and a minor in Human Development. Her research interests include child development, behavior issues, learning disabilities and parent-child relationships. Fatima plans on attending graduate school in order to receive her Ph.D. in School Psychology.

Bess Bloomer

Bess Bloomer is a junior working towards a B.A. in Psychology. Her research interests include neurodevelopmental disorders, early intervention, the development of child/adolescent psychopathology, and peer and family-based relationships. Bess plans to obtain a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology after graduating.

Abby DiGate

Abby DiGate is a junior working towards a B.S. in Kinesiology. Her research interests include child psychopathology and developmental psychology. After graduation, she hopes to attend graduate school to earn a Master's in Occupational Therapy with a focus in children with disabilities.

Sarah Elbaum

Sarah Elbaum is a junior working towards a B.S. in Hearing and Speech Sciences. Her research interests include child psychopathology and how speech and language disorders affect children's social interactions. Sarah plans to attend graduate school to obtain her Master's degree in speech pathology.

Claire Hunt

Claire Hunt is a junior working towards a B.S. in Psychology. Her research interests include child development and adult psychopathology, specifically the interaction between mental health and abnormal or deviant behavior. After graduation, Claire is considering pursuing either law school or a graduate program in clinical or forensic psychology.

Kendall Hurwitz

Kendall Hurwitz is a junior working towards a B.A. in Psychology. Her interests include child development with a focus on child psychopathology, spectrum disorders such as autism, and how parent-child relationships affect a child's growth and development. In the future, she hopes to attend graduate school to obtain a PsyD in Clinical or Counseling Psychology.

Hannah Levinson

Hannah Levinson is a junior pursuing a B.A. in Psychology with a minor in Human Development. Her research interests include parent-child relationships, adult and child psychopathology, and child development. Hannah plans on attending graduate school.

Alexa Noppenberger

Alexa Noppenberger is a junior pursuing her B.S. in Psychology with a minor in Neuroscience. Her research interests include cognitive development of children, relationships between brain development and behavior, and ADHD and related behavioral disorders. She hopes to attend graduate school in the future in order to receive a Ph.D. in Pediatric Psychology.

Alex Ostrander

Alex Ostrander is a junior psychology major with a human development minor. Her interests include child psychopathology and clinical research. After graduating, Alex would love to pursue a Ph.D. in clinical psychology to gain deeper knowledge into helping children.

Grace Tanaya

Grace Tanaya is a junior pursuing a B.S. in Psychology. Her research interests include developmental psychology, child and adult psychopathology, and mental health perceptions in Asian culture. Grace plans to go to graduate school for her PsyD or Ph.D. in clinical psychology.

Olivia Kline

Olivia Kline is a sophomore pursuing a B.S. in Psychology with a minor in Spanish. Olivia's research interests include child psychopathology, developmental psychology, and healthy and pediatric psychology. After graduation, she plans to attend medical school to become a child psychiatrist.

Stephanie Pham

Stephanie Pham is a sophomore pursuing a B.S. in Psychology and is interested in Hearing and Speech sciences minor or double major. Her research interests include child psychopathology, anxiety, stress and coping, and mental health intervention. Stephanie ultimately wants to attend graduate school to pursue a Ph.D. in clinical psychology and become a practicing psychotherapist or another variant of mental health professional.

People in the Lab

Lab Director

Kenneth H. Rubin (B.A., McGill University; Ph.D. Pennsylvania State University)