The primary focus of the program is on understanding the process of normative development, as well as the relevance of these normative processes for the development of mood and behavior problems. We characterize development as an emergent property reflecting transactions occurring across levels of an active, developing organism embedded in its environment. We emphasize conceptualizing and measuring mechanisms across levels of analysis from genes to cultural contexts. Historically, personal characteristics and social environments have received most of the research attention, but advances at the genetic, biological, and cultural levels of analysis now permit closer study of both the biological underpinnings of development and the cultural context. .

The graduate curriculum in developmental psychology places equal emphasis on course work and research experience. It provides training in the core areas of emotional, social and social-cognitive development; developmental theory; and fundamental methodological, statistical, and design skills. Advanced seminars are available on specialized topics of research interest, which currently include infancy, childcare influences, home environment, theory of mind, moral development, emotional development, peer relationships, and aging. Students complement their developmental courses with related courses either within or outside the psychology department. Many other relevant courses are available in the department (e.g., developmental psychopathology, child assessment, prevention programs for children of divorce, growth modeling) and in ASU’s interdisciplinary School of Social and Family Dynamics (e.g., child development courses on research methods, risk and resilience in children and adolescents, cultural competence in infants, prevention and child development, adolescent identity development, and family studies courses such as social networks).

In the course of their graduate training, students develop and pursue their own programs of research in conjunction with an appropriate faculty member or members. The major milestones of the program include a written and oral presentation of the first year research project, a master's degree, a comprehensive examination, and the student's doctoral dissertation.Opportunities to develop teaching and communication skills are offered both through formal coursework and through participation in departmental teaching and seminar activities. An ongoing, informal seminar of developmental students and faculty provides a forum for the discussion of a wide range of theoretical, methodological and substantive research issues in developmental psychology.

Students typically develop strong interests in quantitative methods and take advantage of the advanced coursework provided by the Department’s outstanding Quantitative Psychology doctoral program. Quantitative faculty have ongoing research in the development of statistical methodologies for mediational analysis, multi-level modeling, the evaluation of the performance of structural equation models under violations of assumptions, research design strategies under conditions of self-selection and attrition, cross-group measurement equivalence, measurement bias in psychological tests, testing and interpreting statistical interactions and the longitudinal growth modeling of psychological constructs. These topics have direct application to longitudinal research, research on theoretical models, and the evaluation of interventions.

The graduate program encourages close faculty-student relationships. Each student begins research training during the first year, developing a research project in the context of a one-to-one relationship with a faculty mentor. After the first year, the coursework and research products become more specialized and tailored to each student's individual interests and expertise. Advanced seminars are available on topics of current interest in developmental psychology. Students may complement their developmental courses with related courses either within or outside the psychology department.

For additional information, go to http://psychology.clas.asu.edu/graduate/resources and download the graduate handbook.

A Sample of Current Research Experiences