Category: Faculty Partner Research

Susan South – Some of the latest relationship science research from Purdue University clinical psychology professor Susan South’s Relationships and Mental Health Lab focuses on “attachment styles,” which are patterns in adult relationships stemming from childhood bonds with caregivers as well as from previous adult romantic relationships.

David Purpura – A study of 124 low-income U.S. preschoolers explored whether social-emotional competence predicts early science knowledge. Results showed no significant associations between teacher-rated social skills and science outcomes over one year, highlighting the need for further research on the factors shaping early science development in diverse, low-income populations. These findings provide a foundation for understanding how social processes may influence science learning in preschool settings.

Breanya Hogue – A qualitative case study highlights how a six-week Freedom School summer program served as a “Third Space” for multilingual literacy development. Focusing on a second-grade Chinese American student, researchers found that multilingual invitations, multimodal activities, culturally affirming texts, and family engagement helped shift the student from linguistic resistance to confident cultural participation. The study demonstrates how informal educational spaces can support identity transformation and translanguaging practices for multilingual learners.

Sarah Eason – A new U.S. study tested a parent-informed family math resource with 70 preschoolers and their parents. Dyads who used the resource engaged in more math talk, explored a wider range of concepts, and asked more questions than those in the control group. Findings suggest that co-developing educational resources with parent input can effectively enhance family math engagement during informal learning activities.

Laura Elenbaas – A study of 379 U.S. children ages 8–12 shows that both direct and indirect contact with immigrants helps kids recognize discrimination and treat immigrants more fairly. Older children and those with more indirect contact were better able to detect inequality, understand immigrant experiences, and distribute resources equitably. Findings suggest that intergroup contact plays a key role in shaping children’s awareness of social inequalities and inclusive attitudes.

Heather Eicher-Miller, Cordelia Running, Amanda Veile – Nine Purdue University Department of Nutrition Science researchers and other colleagues collaborated on a report finding people respond very differently to the same foods, which is why “precision nutrition” — tailoring dietary advice to individuals — is gaining attention.

Heather Sevaty-Seib – This book chapter examines how grief impacts college students, particularly those with intersecting marginalized identities at predominantly White universities. Drawing from research and professional experience, it highlights culturally informed strategies for supporting student bereavement, including faculty training and system-wide bereavement leave policies. The chapter emphasizes a social justice approach to fostering academic engagement and inclusive support for grieving students.

Sooyeon Jeong – CFF Faculty Partner studies nonverbal communication to teach robots how to offer support

Sharon Christ, Arielle Borovsky – Children recognize semantic relations between words early in development, yet it is unclear how this ability is affected by children’s vocabulary size.

David Purpura – This study investigated the synergistic relationships between teacher burnout and parent burnout on preschoolers’ social-emotional competence (SEC) and behavioral self-regulation (BSR). We hypothesized that higher teacher burnout would be associated with lower social skills and BSR and higher problem behaviors in the spring.