Past Emerging Scholar Representatives
Samantha Dockray, Executive Council (2006-2010)
Samantha received a Ph.D. in Biobehavioral Health from The Pennsylvania State University in 2006. Samantha received a B. Science in Psychology and Physiology from Victoria University, Australia and was also awarded an Honors degree in Biomedical Science for her research on the associations between individual psychological attributes of the person and physiological states. Samantha’s research focuses on how the experiences and attributes of the adolescent can influence health through changes in behaviors and physiological function. Samantha was fortunate to have received a Kligman dissertation grant, and a Hintz Grant to support her studies. Currently Samantha is a Post-Doctoral Fellow at University College London, in the Psychobiology Group, in the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health. Samantha may be contacted at s.dockray@ucl.ac.uk.
Melinda Leidy, Ph.D., Awards Committee (2006 -2010)
SRCD Congressional Fellow
Melinda is currently a SRCD Congressional Fellow in Washington DC. Prior to this fellowship, Melinda worked as a postdoctoral research fellow at the Southern California Academic Center of Excellence on Youth Violence Prevention at the University of California at Riverside for two years. As a postdoctoral fellow, she worked on evaluating the effectiveness of an intervention aimed at reducing youth violence among immigrant Latino families. She also continued her re! search on how marital conflict and marital satisfaction influence child social and behavioral outcomes in both Euro-American and Latino families. Prior to her postdoctoral position, Melinda obtained a M.A. in Educational Psychology and a Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology from the University of California at Riverside. Her research focused on how marital and family processes impact child adjustment in different ethnic groups (Mexican American) and in different family structures (step versus intact families). A central aspect of her work has been the examination of how acculturation and acculturative stress impact parents and children in Mexican American immigrant families. She is also interested in how families can promote positive youth development. Melinda can be contacted at melindaleidy@earthlink.net.
SRCD Congressional Fellow
Melinda is currently a SRCD Congressional Fellow in Washington DC. Prior to this fellowship, Melinda worked as a postdoctoral research fellow at the Southern California Academic Center of Excellence on Youth Violence Prevention at the University of California at Riverside for two years. As a postdoctoral fellow, she worked on evaluating the effectiveness of an intervention aimed at reducing youth violence among immigrant Latino families. She also continued her re! search on how marital conflict and marital satisfaction influence child social and behavioral outcomes in both Euro-American and Latino families. Prior to her postdoctoral position, Melinda obtained a M.A. in Educational Psychology and a Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology from the University of California at Riverside. Her research focused on how marital and family processes impact child adjustment in different ethnic groups (Mexican American) and in different family structures (step versus intact families). A central aspect of her work has been the examination of how acculturation and acculturative stress impact parents and children in Mexican American immigrant families. She is also interested in how families can promote positive youth development. Melinda can be contacted at melindaleidy@earthlink.net.
Kathryn Monahan, Study Group Committee (2006 – 2010)
Kathryn received her Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology from Temple University in 2008. She completed her undergraduate work at the University of Portland. Her research focuses on adolescent risk-taking behaviors and psychopathology and the role of family, peers, and social institutions in altering trajectories of youth development. Kathryn is also interested in longitudinal methodology, particularly analytic strategies that approximate causal effects in survey research and analytic strategies that combine variable-centered and person-centered methodologies. Her dissertation examined the stability of social competence from early childhood to adolescence and tested how pubertal timing and school transition in early adolescence accentuate individual differences in social competence over time. Kathryn can be reached at monahank@u.washington.edu.
Kathryn received her Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology from Temple University in 2008. She completed her undergraduate work at the University of Portland. Her research focuses on adolescent risk-taking behaviors and psychopathology and the role of family, peers, and social institutions in altering trajectories of youth development. Kathryn is also interested in longitudinal methodology, particularly analytic strategies that approximate causal effects in survey research and analytic strategies that combine variable-centered and person-centered methodologies. Her dissertation examined the stability of social competence from early childhood to adolescence and tested how pubertal timing and school transition in early adolescence accentuate individual differences in social competence over time. Kathryn can be reached at monahank@u.washington.edu.Jacqueline Nguyen, Finance Committee (2006 – 2010)
Jacqueline Nguyen completed her doctorate in the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Department of Educational Psychology (Human Development area). She graduated with a B.A. in Psychology from University of Minnesota in 2000. Her research focuses on parent-adolescent-peer linkages in immigrant families and the ways universal developmental processes (such as identity formation and autonomy development) are negotiated when parents and adolescents have divergent conceptualizations of these processes and when these processes play out in culturally-embedded contexts. Jacqueline can be contacted at jnguyen2@wisc.edu.
Jacqueline Nguyen completed her doctorate in the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Department of Educational Psychology (Human Development area). She graduated with a B.A. in Psychology from University of Minnesota in 2000. Her research focuses on parent-adolescent-peer linkages in immigrant families and the ways universal developmental processes (such as identity formation and autonomy development) are negotiated when parents and adolescents have divergent conceptualizations of these processes and when these processes play out in culturally-embedded contexts. Jacqueline can be contacted at jnguyen2@wisc.edu.
Dana Wood, Membership Committee (2006-2010)
Dana is a sixth-year doctoral student in developmental psychology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She earned her B.A. in psychology at the University of Texas at Austin in 1997. Dana’s research focuses on the development achievement motivation in African American children and adolescents. She is particularly interested in understanding how contextual factors, including teachers, parents, and peers, shape achievement and achievement-related outcomes for African American boys. For her dissertation, Dana is examining motivational processes that precede the college enrollment for African American adolescents, with a special focus on gender differences in these processes. She can be contacted at danawood@email.unc.edu.
Dana is a sixth-year doctoral student in developmental psychology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She earned her B.A. in psychology at the University of Texas at Austin in 1997. Dana’s research focuses on the development achievement motivation in African American children and adolescents. She is particularly interested in understanding how contextual factors, including teachers, parents, and peers, shape achievement and achievement-related outcomes for African American boys. For her dissertation, Dana is examining motivational processes that precede the college enrollment for African American adolescents, with a special focus on gender differences in these processes. She can be contacted at danawood@email.unc.edu.
Zena Mello, Executive Council (2004-2008)
Assistant Professor, University of Colorado at Colorado Springs
Assistant Professor, University of Colorado at Colorado Springs
