News

Aprile Benner, associate professor in the Department of Human Development and Family Sciences, has received the Mid-Career Award for Research Excellence from the Society for Research on Adolescence.

Benner's research focuses on low-income youth and young people from racial and ethnic minority groups, investigating how social contexts influence experiences of marginalization and discrimination, school transitions, and developmental outcomes during adolescence.

Elizabeth Gershoff, professor of human development and family sciences in the School of Human Ecology at the University of Texas at Austin, has been named the winner of a national award recognizing the outstanding work of psychologists in the field of child advocacy and policy.

A long-time researcher of the impact of spanking and corporal punishment on children, Gershoff received the 2019 Nicholas Hobbs Award from the American Psychological Association's Society for Child and Family Policy and Practice. The award, given at the APA's conference in Chicago this month, recognizes psychologists who are dedicated to advocacy and policy that affect the lives of children.

Scientists have uncovered new evidence that heated political discourse over proposed laws involving marginalized groups, such as debates about the rights of LGBT people, can contribute to an increase in bullying linked to students' identity in schools. It is the largest study to date to examine the link.

In a new study in the journal Pediatrics, scientists at The University of Texas at Austin, Columbia University and Texas State University found that in the run-up to a statewide voter referendum to ban gay marriage in California, young people reported significantly more homophobic bullying. In fact, homophobic bullying peaked that school year and declined after the public debate about the initiative in question, Proposition 8, subsided.

The University of Texas at Austin's Graduate School has announced the 2019 winners of its professional and student awards, which include a recent graduate student and faculty member from Human Development and Family Sciences. Generously underwritten by the University Co-op, the awards recognize excellence in graduate academics, teaching and professional services.

Researchers at The University of Texas at Austin have found that African-American parents who have had only limited first-hand experience with racial discrimination become less engaged as their sons encounter more racism. These parents are the most involved parents when their sons experience little discrimination. Yet, as their sons' racial discrimination experiences increase, they become less involved than parents of girls and other parents of boys.

Much media coverage has focused on some millennials' "failure to launch," the term for when young adults live at home and get a great deal of support from their parents. Human Development and Family Sciences Professor Karen Fingerman wondered about another phenomenon—let's call it failure to latch. She wanted to know: What about the young adults who don't have parental support?

The University of Texas at Austin expects its graduates to change the world. But, in an ever-changing world, that means preparing students in ways that are mindful of where educational approaches may need to change to remain relevant and aligned with modern needs of communities, industries and families.

Graduate student in Human Development and Family Sciences Allen Mallory was recently the featured student profiled in the 2019 edition of the College of Natural Sciences' award-winning magazine, The Texas Scientist.

It's been said that variety is the spice of life, and now scientists say variety in your social circle may help you live longer. Researchers at The University of Texas at Austin have found that older adults who spend more time interacting with a wide range of people were more likely to be physically active and had greater emotional well-being.

In a paper out Feb. 20 in the Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, researchers found that study participants who interacted more with family members and close friends, as well as acquaintances, casual friends, service providers and strangers were more likely to have higher levels of physical activity, less time spent sitting or lying around, greater positive moods and fewer negative feelings. It is the first study to link social engagement with physical activity throughout the day.

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ) youths are more likely to end up in foster care or unstable housing and suffer negative outcomes, such as substance abuse or mental health issues, while living in the child welfare system, according to new research from The University of Texas at Austin.

In a Feb. 11 paper in the journal Pediatrics, researchers looked at 593,241 youths living in California in grades 6-12. Less than 1 percent of the sample was living in foster care or unstable housing. But researchers found that more than 30 percent of the youths surveyed who were living in foster care identified as LGBTQ. More than 25 percent of those surveyed who were living in unstable housing, defined as living at a friend's house, motel, shelter or other transitional housing, identified as LGBTQ.