Laura Pittman, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Psychology
Phone: (815)753-2485
Fax: (815)753-8088
lpittman@niu.edu
Office: PM 314
EDUCATION
Ph.D.: University of Connecticut, 1996
RESEARCH INTERESTS
My research interests lie in the field of developmental psychopathology, specifically focusing on how family processes and broader contextual factors influence children’s and adolescents’ socioemotional and cognitive functioning. I take a risk and resilience approach, focusing on protective factors that enhance the likelihood for successful trajectories through childhood and adolescence and into young adulthood in at-risk populations. My current work focuses on the role of grandparents in the development of children and adolescents in a variety of sociocultural contexts.
FREQUENTLY TAUGHT CLASSES
- PSYC 315 Behavior Disturbances in Children
- PSYC 640 Theories and Assessment of Intellectual Functioning
- PSYC 654 Practicum in Psychotherapy
REPRESENTATIVE PUBLICATIONS
- Pittman, L. D., & Boswell, M. K. (2008). Low-income multigenerational households: Variation in family functioning by mothers’ age and race/ethnicity. Journal of Family Issues, 29, 851-881.
- Pittman, L. D., & Richmond, A. (2008). University belonging and friendship quality during the transition to college: Links to self perceptions and psychological symptoms. Journal of Experimental Education, 76, 343-361.
- Pittman, L. D. (2007). Grandmothers’ involvement among young adolescents growing up in poverty. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 17, 89-116.
- Pittman, L. D., & Boswell, M. K. (2007). The role of grandmothers in the lives of preschoolers growing up in urban poverty. Applied Developmental Science, 11, 20-42.
- Chase-Lansdale, P. L., Moffitt, R., Lohman, B. J., Cherlin, A. J., Coley, R. L., Pittman, L. D., Roff, J., & Votruba-Drzal, E. (2003). Mothers’ transitions from welfare to work and the well-being of preschoolers and adolescents. Science, 299, 1548-1552.
- Pittman, L. D., & Chase-Lansdale, P. L. (2001). African-American adolescent girls in impoverished communities: Parenting style and adolescent outcomes. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 11, 199-224.
REPRESENTATIVE GRANTS
- Principal Investigator, Grandmother's involvement among children and
adolescents growing up in poverty, Grant from the Joint Center for
Poverty Research, 9/1/02 - 9/30/03, $30,000.
- Principal Investigator, Parenting and School Readiness Among Low-Income
Children, Grant from National Institute of Child Health and Human
Development (NICHD), 12/1/04 - 11/30/06, $100,000.
