Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Berks · Courses
HDFS
140 courses with the subject HDFS, each shown exactly as we captured it from the college's catalog, with every element we hold. Where the wording looks broken, that is our reading of the catalog, not the college's text.
HDFS 101NHelping People: Introduction to Understanding Social Problems & How to Help3
This inquiry-based course introduces students to the dynamic world of helping through the exploration of "hot topics"/pressing social issues. Exploration will highlight core themes of lifespan human development, lives in context, and the ethics of care as well as integrate how to use concept maps to understand complex social issues and identify policies and interventions to help. While discussion and exploration of hot topics may extend to address international contexts and applications, exploration will primarily grounded in exploring issues within the U.S. By the end of the semester, students should develop the skills and knowledge needed to independently learn about and find ways to help address the pressing social issues that interest them.
This course offers students the opportunity to explore human flourishing - defined as a life of deep meaning, fulfillment and service to others. Students will be taught about flourishing through the lens of science, philosophy, and their own experience. Through exposure to diverse scientific theories and research on the skills associated with flourishing, to philosophical and religious writings on human happiness and wellbeing, and to various reflective exercises and contemplative practices (e.g., mindfulness and compassion meditation), students will develop conceptual knowledge, experiential insight, and practical skills related to flourishing. The course begins by introducing a conceptual framework that defines flourishing in terms of foundations, domains and dimensions. First, students will learn about the foundations of flourishing in terms of the unique human capacities for reflection, resilience and transformation. Second, students will learn about four major domains and related dimensions that characterize flourishing, including the domains of awareness (e.g., focus, emotion, mindfulness), connection to others (e.g., interdependence, compassion, diversity), wisdom (identity, aesthetics, values) and integration of one's values and intentions in everyday living (e.g., courage, performance).Together, in a supportive and highly experiential learning environment, students will be encouraged to envision, articulate and pursue their own unique path to flourishing during their time in college and beyond based on their intellectual and experiential learning in the course. By the end of this course, students are able to: (I) Demonstrate foundational knowledge, including the ability to analyze and describe the relevant concepts and theories in multiple intellectual fields on the nature and cultivation of human flourishing, and the ability to recognize the possibilities, value, and relevance of cultivating personal flourishing in their own lives in relation to flourishing in social relationships, communities, and institutions; (II) Experience deep engagement in terms of being familiar with the basic personal experiences relating to individual qualities of human flourishing in order to make personal sense of them, and master individual practices for assessing and developing them; and (III) Understand real-world applications in terms of acquiring skills, sensibilities, and perspectives relating to individual qualities of human flourishing, which they are able to apply in the diverse contexts of their lives
HDFS 109Community, Connection, and Contemplation1.5
Supportive relationships and communities are critical to health and well-being. However, creating meaningful relationships is challenging, and often requires a continuous exploration of the self and others. In this course, human development and contemplative science research sets the foundation to explore and understand connections between wellness, self-care, and community. Students will examine qualities of healthy relationships, social connection in their lives, and contemplative practices as they build skills for to promote collective resilience and solidarity. Additionally, they will be guided to examine challenges of self-care and caring for others by exploring systemic, social, and psychological barriers perpetuated by culture. Primary goals of this course are for students to develop greater awareness of self and a skill set to build and support a culture that values belonging, acceptance, and authenticity.
HDFS 129Introduction to Human Development and Family Studies3
Introduction to psychosocial and family development at all stages of the individual and family life cycle. Students may take only one course for General Education credit from SOC 30 or HDFS 129. HDFS 129 Introduction to Human Development and Family Studies (3) (GS)(BA) This course meets the Bachelor of Arts degree requirements. This course provides a basic introduction to the concepts, theories, and research on human development as it occurs over the life span and in context. Students will be introduced to developmental tasks and challenges unique to each stage of human development from the womb through infancy, early and middle childhood, adolescence, emerging adulthood, middle age and old age. Beginning with the prenatal state and infancy, students will be introduced to the biological, emotional, cognitive, psychosocial, as well as the social, cultural and historical factors that influence growth and development across infancy, childhood, adolescence, adulthood, and advanced adulthood. Students will be introduced to basic concepts, theoretical orientations, and key empirical studies that inform human growth and development. Furthermore, attention is given to the central role of families and family life as a context for development. The formation of intimate relationships, marriage, marital processes, motherhood and fatherhood will be reviewed, as well as problems and challenges that families face such as financial stress, separation and divorce, abuse, and caregiving. Finally how families and family behavior are influenced by their communities, the larger culture, and other social and economic forces will be discussed.
HDFS 175NIntroduction to Youth Development and Arts-based Social Justice3
Youth Development and Arts-based Social Justice is an inter-domain course (GA/GS) intended to help students develop a critical understanding of the ways that sociopolitical factors influence youth development. The course will examine youth development as an indicator of broader community development and explore the inter-dependencies between the two by drawing both from the interdisciplinary fields of youth development and arts-based social justice. This course will assess the proposition that goals of social equity at the community, metropolitan, or regional scale cannot be achieved unless disparities in youth development are also addressed. Students will learn to read, interpret, discuss, and integrate information from the arts and social sciences. We will primarily, but not exclusively, focus on youth-led organizing and social justice movements as sites of youth development wherein young people have utilized the arts to mobilize and transform public policy, determine the destiny of their communities and challenge injustice (e.g., mass incarceration, educational inequality, and forced relocation). We will explore key concepts, theories, models, and examples of youth development and youth organizing from the perspectives of youth and adults who are actively engaged in building progressive movements for social justice through the arts. Throughout this exploration, we will pay close attention to issues of identity, culture, community, and politics. Students in this course will be introduced to key ideas and dispositions for working with diverse youth populations through a social justice lens. Students will engage in critical thinking based on their own identities, values, experiences and perspectives while also practicing deliberate and strategic open-mindedness rooted in the awareness of the personal and political limitations. Students will reflect upon their own developmental experiences and the contexts in which these played out in their weekly sketchbook entries and the two papers. The course will consider the mutual impact that arts and social movements have on each other. This will be assessed through classroom dialogue, students' sketchbooks and the integrative creative action project. The historical and theoretical materials will be contextualized by guest lectures, discussions, and performances involving visiting scholars, artists and activists.
Formal course given on a topical or special interest subject offered infrequently; several different topics may be taught in one year or semester. This Special Topics is an Inter-Domain GenEd course.
This course introduces students to the quantitative methods used in human service careers emphasizing the implementation and interpretation of quantitative procedures in human service program settings. Students will obtain an understanding of programming basic Microsoft Excel calculations used to manage and analyze data; budgeting required in human service settings; interpreting descriptive and foundational inferential statistics; using quantitative statistics for program evaluations, producing charts and graphs for presenting information to community shareholders and funding agencies, and using output from statistical software to guide conclusions about human service program effectiveness.
The study of health and aging among persons from diverse race populations is not only the study of how people of different racial groups age, but also the contexts in which these populations function physically, psychologically, and socially. This course will allow students to develop a better understanding of the aging process across racial/ethnic populations and how differences in adult and aging development can be affected by social structures. Furthermore, the course is designed to encourage students to transfer learned material into modifying existing or developing new practical solutions to reduce aging and health disparities. This course will cover multiple areas, such as: (1) Overview of the concepts regarding race, ethnicity, and culture; (2) Aging demographics; (3) Research methods in aging and racially diverse populations; (4) Health Disparities (e.g., physical and mental health); (5) Family, work, and retirement; (6) Aging in neighborhoods; (7) Policy.
This course examines global health from a family dynamics approach. The emphasis throughout the course is on the integration of family and health. Social science theories are introduced to understand how family kinship patterns and family dynamics influence health issues globally, as well as how family patterns are impacted by global health issues. This course also emphasizes how the family is used as a basis for intervention and prevention, and the social science theories that inform these strategies. Although global health itself is of great importance, the connections between global health and family dynamics will provide students a micro-macro connection and the skills to examine global issues from multiple levels of analysis.
Theory, research, and methods of social/behavioral/biological sciences related to developmental processes and intervention during infancy and childhood. HD FS 229 Infant and Child Development (3) (GS)(BA) This course meets the Bachelor of Arts degree requirements. This course introduces students to the study of children from the prenatal period to (not including) adolescence. Students will become familiar with the most prominent theoretical ideas about child development. The latest research on prenatal development, infancy, early and middle childhood will inform the discussions, and students will become familiar with key studies. The major domains of children's functioning covered include social interactions and emotional development, cognitive changes and acquisition of language, physiological growth in infancy and biological changes that underlie the transition out of childhood into adolescence. A key feature of this course is how processes in these different domains interact to influence children's overall adaptation. Finally, informed by a life course developmental framework, this course will place these developmental processes in context. Students will become familiar with the theoretical and empirical literature that locates children's growth and development in the context of families and family change, peer groups, neighborhoods and communities, and the larger cultural context within which they are embedded.
HDFS 230Overview of Curricular Practices in Early Childhood Care and Education3
Curricular practices in programs for infants, toddlers and preschoolers. Focus on developmentally appropriate practice, emergent curriculum and home/child care links. HD FS 230 Overview of Curricular Practices in Early Childhood Care and Education (3) This course, intended for current or future providers of early childhood care and education, examines curricular practices in programs for young children. It is required for the proposed Early Childhood Care and Education option to the associate degree in Human Development and Family Studies.The course addresses current practices in early childhood care and education programs for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers. After a brief examination of the history of early childhood care and education, this course focuses on the use of developmentally appropriate activities and strategies to maximize children's positive growth and development. Each of the traditional early childhood curricular areas (involving physical, social, emotional, cognitive development) is considered, as is the importance of the connection between families and early care and education settings. Reading and discussion in each curricular area stresses diversity issues and inclusion of children with special needs in groups with normally developing children. There is an emphasis on applications of the project approach and emergent curriculum as appropriate for use with infants, toddlers and preschoolers.Students show mastery of the course material through tests over each topic of discussion, reports on outside reading related to current issues in early childhood care and education, individual and small group presentations about a specific curricular issues, and use of a reflective journal.The course will be offered once each academic year, with an enrollment of 15-25 students.
HDFS 231Guidance in Early Childhood Care and Education3
Positive guidance methods for infants, toddlers and preschoolers, leading to self-control and social capability. Includes focus on home/childcare links. HD FS 231 Guidance in Early Childhood Care and Education (3) This course, intended for current or future providers of early childhood care and education, examines guidance methods for use with young children. It is required for the proposed Early Childhood Care and Education option to the associate degree in Human Development and Family Studies.The course emphasizes the use of guidance techniques that help children grow in independence, responsibility, self-control, and ability to function as group members. It addresses organization and guidance methods that foster the child's responsibility, independence, positive social interactions and emotional self-control. While the course covers various types of guidance, it emphasizes responding to children with respect and acceptance, using positive discipline. Since guidance is an area in which families and teachers frequently must confer, this course also deals with the use of effective parent-teacher communication skills. It requires weekly experience with young children.Each student will produce a portfolio demonstrating understanding of guidance techniques and their theoretical backgrounds. In addition, portfolios will demonstrate evidence of competence in analyzing the early childhood care and education environment in terms of its effect on young children's behavior, as well as competence in solving environmental problems that contribute to guidance issues. Portfolios will also demonstrate evidence of competence in communicating with parents and families about guidance issues. Students will reflect, in writing, on their own use of developmentally appropriate guidance techniques in their work with young children.The course will be offered once each academic year, with an enrollment of 15-25 students.
HDFS 232Creativity and Play in Early Childhood Care and Education3
Planning for play, creativity and exploration in programs for infants, toddlers and preschoolers. Includes focus on home/childcare links. HD FS 232 Creativity and Play in Early Childhood Care and Education (3) This course, intended for current or future providers of early childhood care and education, examines the development of play and creativity in young children. It is required for the proposed Early Childhood Care and Education option to the associate degree in Human Development and Family Studies.The course addresses the potential of play, creativity, and exploration in the optimal development of a child. Content includes the development of play, creativity, and aesthetics. The course emphasizes adult-child interaction styles and activities that encourage, enhance and expand play, exploration and creativity in infants, toddlers, and preschoolers throughout the daily care and education routine. There is an emphasis on effective communication with families regarding the benefits of play and open-ended activities. It requires weekly experience with young children.Each student will develop a portfolio that demonstrates understanding of the development of play, exploration and creativity in the early years, as well as competence in planning for and enhancing that development. The portfolio will also show evidence of competence in communicating with parents and families.In addition to the portfolio, the student will develop an activity card file containing ideas for developmentally appropriate play and creative activities for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers. Each student will participate in individual and group presentations related to course topics, and will take tests covering reading and other class material.The course will be offered once each academic year, with an enrollment of 15-25 students.
HDFS 233Emergent Language and Literacy: Development and Practice in Early Childhood Care and Educat3
Fostering development of language and literacy in infants, toddlers and preschoolers. Includes children's literature and focus on home/childcare links. HD FS 233 Emergent Language and Literacy: Development and Practice in Early Childhood Care and Education (3) This course, intended for current or future providers of early childhood care and education, examines the emergence of language and literacy. It is required for the proposed Early Childhood Care and Education option to the associate degree in Human Development and Family Studies.The course emphasizes why and how to foster continuous development from first sound through recognizable speech; from initial symbol recognition through reading; from making the first mark through writing. Content also includes choosing literature appropriate for use with infants and young children and methods of integrating literature throughout the daily child care and education routine. There is a focus on developing activities centered on language and literature, and an emphasis on effective communication with parents and families. This course requires weekly experience with young children.Students will produce a portfolio demonstrating understanding of language and literacy development, competence in planning developmentally appropriate language and literacy activities for infants and young children, and competence in evaluating child care settings in terms of support for emergent language and literacy. Portfolios will also demonstrate evidence of competence in choosing and using good literature with young children, and in communicating to parents and families the importance of facilitating early language and literacy.In addition to the portfolio, students will develop files of language and literacy activities appropriate for use with infants and young children. They will also take tests related to reading and material covered in class.The course will be offered once each academic year, with an enrollment of 15-25 students.
This course provides a basic introduction to concepts, theoretical perspectives, and key empirical studies on adolescent development. Students will become familiar with key developmental trends and challenges that must be addressed to achieve healthy growth and development from the beginning of adolescence (puberty) up to the transition to adulthood. The course addresses biological changes (hormones, brain development), cognitive changes (abstract thinking, information processing) and social changes (families, peers, school, work); and the implications of these changes for issues such as identity development, autonomy, intimacy, sexuality and achievement. For each topic, students will become familiar with major theoretical frameworks, approaches to empirical research, and findings from empirical studies. Key features of this course are its attention to: how biological, cognitive and social changes combine to influence adolescents' overall adaptation; the ways in which adolescent development occurs in the context of families, peer groups, neighborhoods and communities, and the larger cultural context; and how theories and empirical findings can be applied to promote healthy adolescent development. Students pursuing the HDFS major must complete HDFS 129N plus two of the three 200-level developmental courses (HDFS 229, HDFS 239, HDFS 249N). This course may count toward the minor in HDFS. Students who are not pursuing a major in Human Development and Family Studies can apply credits from this course towards the General Education Social and Behavioral Sciences (GS) knowledge domain.
HDFS 245NHealth, humanity, and longevity: Conversations with elders3
How can a person grow to become more truly themselves? How do our habits inform our future? This course examines current research on happiness, aging, and well-being alongside the lived experience of older adults. Together students and older adult community members discuss research as well as compare perceptions and perspectives of the aging experience. We will use humanities orientation to explore what it means to grow as a human being, how to become the person we would like to be, and how to help others do the same. Students partner with older adults for conversations and a collaborative project.
This course provides a basic introduction to concepts, theoretical perspectives, and key empirical studies on adult development and aging. Students will become familiar with key developmental trends and challenges that must be addressed to achieve healthy growth and development throughout adulthood and late life. The course addresses changes in physical health, cognition, and psychosocial functioning (including mental health, social roles and relationships, and transitions in work and retirement); and the implications of these changes for issues such as risk of disability, dementia, caregiving, and end-of-life decisions. For each topic, students will become familiar with major theoretical frameworks, approaches to empirical research, and findings from empirical studies. Key features of this course are its attention to: how biological, cognitive and social changes combine to influence overall adaptation and throughout the aging process; the ways in which adult development and aging occurs in the context of families, social relationships, neighborhoods and communities, and the larger cultural context; and how theories and empirical findings can be applied to promote healthy adult development and aging. Students pursuing the HDFS major option must complete HDFS 129 plus two of the three 200-level developmental courses (HDFS 229, HDFS 239, HDFS 249N). This course may count toward the minor in HDFS. Students who are not pursuing a major in Human Development and Family Studies can apply credits from this course towards the General Education Integrative Studies requirement: as an Inter-domain Course, the course puts approximately equal emphasis on learning objectives for Social and Behavioral Sciences (GS) and for Health & Wellness (GHW) knowledge domains.
Concepts of affectional and sexual orientation over life span, with emphasis on lesbian and gay male personal, family, and community adaptation. HD FS (WMNST) 250 Sexual Identity over the Life Span (3) (US) This course reviews concepts of sexual identity as informed by a human development perspective. Concepts of sexual orientation are discussed in the context of a review of lesbian, gay male, and bisexual lives. Developmental processes of lesbian and gay life are detailed: personal change from the teenage years through adulthood, changes in family and relationship patterns, and impact of communities, laws, and culture. These processes are contrasted to the developmental processes of women and men who identify themselves as heterosexual. The complex effect of gender, race, ethnicity, class status, and historical time on sexual orientation and its expression has generated ongoing controversies in scholarship as well as in public discourse. The course will be an introduction to these controversies as informed by human development research.
HDFS 254NReading Our Lives: Understanding Diversity and Human Development through Memoirs3
Students will explore the way people and their environments interact to influence human development through the integration of memoirs and other personal narratives, humanist themes and methods of inquiry, and social science theory and research. The personal narratives will expose students to the diversity of human experience including differences in gender, race, socioeconomic status, cultural and historical contexts. To frame and inform discussions of each memoir, students will examine relevant social science theories and research. The social science material will include key developmental frameworks such as lifespan development and ecological systems theory, and micro- and maco-level contextual factors influencing development, such as interpersonal relationships, cultural norms, and structural constraints. Students will also examine core humanist themes relevant to each memoir, such as values, cultural relativism vs. universalism, narratives and objective facts, structure and agency. Students will learn to read, interpret, and integrate information from the humanities and social sciences. They will learn to critically reflect on their own experiences, perceptions, and values, while developing an understanding of other people's experiences, perceptions, and values. Students will also learn to engage in compassionate, informed, and knowledge-generating discussions to understand the complexity of human experiences.
HDFS 258NIntroduction to Child Maltreatment and Advocacy Studies3
Introduction to the multidisciplinary field of child maltreatment. CMAS (HD FS) 258 Introduction to Child Maltreatment and Advocacy Studies (3) This course will focus on the identification, investigation, service, advocacy, prosecution, and prevention of child maltreatment as well as the treatment of adverse health outcomes for children who have been maltreated. Specific topics include the causes, correlates, and consequences of child maltreatment, best practices for reporting and investigating an allegation of child maltreatment, evidence-based prevention and intervention programs, the Child Welfare System, and relevant legal issues (e.g., termination of parental rights, children's testimony in court, etc.). By definition, this course will detail issues related to the abuse and neglect of children. This material can be difficult to hear, view, and discuss. This course is a required course, and a prerequisite for all advanced courses, for a Minor in Child Maltreatment and Advocacy Studies.
An experiential introduction to negotiating differences in small groups, families, institutions, and communities. HD FS 287Y Intercultural Community -Building (3) (GS;US) This course provides students an experiential introduction to how individuals and families both affect and are affected by the various cultural/community contexts in which they develop, including schools, places of work, and youth and community programs. Students will identify and explore their own unique and shared assumptions, and the relationships between those assumptions and life histories and experiences. They will become aware of the dynamics of how communities are formed and function by forming a community themselves, and through involvement in a local community group or agency. Group discussions and written reflections will link their personal experiences to theory and research presented in class and readings on such topics as developing systems theories, cultural communication theories, and decision-making. The goals of the course are to increase students' understanding of the relations between values, power relations, and the various processes of social change, and encourage the development of communication skills and citizenship. Special emphasis will be placed on developing relationships within culturally and ethnically diverse groups. Because it is designated as a writing intensive course, particular attention will be given to the development of written communication skills. Students will be evaluated on the basis on their performance in several areas, which may include examinations and quizzes, several writing assignments, and participation in class discussions and simulations. The course may be delivered at certain Commonwealth College campuses and Altoona College. Depending on location, the course may be offered during the fall, spring and/or summer sessions, with anticipated class enrollments of 12-20 students.
HDFS 302ALeadership and Technology Skills for Human Services Professionals A3
Development of skills essential for contemporary human services professionals, including critical thinking, problem solving, electronic communications, and information handling.
Overview of research and methods issues tailored around development of honors thesis proposals. HDFS 310 Seminar in Honors--Research Methods is designed to cover all of the elements in designing a research project. Through a series of written projects, students study the scientific method, research question development, and tools and techniques for data gathering and analysis. The course covers how to take a theory about human development and family studies and develop testable hypotheses/research questions. Students learn the basic skills needed for managing and understanding data; analyzing data; and presenting data. Then, students use real data to practice data management, data analysis, and reporting on data in both oral and written forms.
HDFS 314Understanding Human Development and Family Research1
Students who complete HDFS 314 will have a broad understanding of the methodological principles and the techniques used to measure human and family behavior. Students will also acquire an understanding of how statistics, reading, and writing research are integrated together for a complete learning experience. By the end of the semester, students will have gained a supplementary understanding of the research process. Students who successfully complete HDFS 314 will have become proficient (1) in the use of standard methodological terminology related to HDFS research. (2) in the use reference managing software (such as Zotero or Mandalay). (3) using software for family data collection (such as Qualtrics, SPSS, or Excel). (4) recording and reporting family data collected from "participants." (5) analyzing family data sets through the use of standard statistical analysis.
Family functions over the life course; family from a multidisciplinary perspective, emphasizing adaptation and change. HDFS 315 Family Development (3) (US) This course offers an overview of families focusing primarily on contemporary American families. The primary thrust of this course is to step beyond our personal experiences with families and place them within a broader social, historical, cultural and economic context. This class will be multi-disciplinary in its approach to the study of American families. However, we will begin with the historical, demographic and social changes that American families have undergone and try to understand some of the causes and consequences of these changes for the developmental life course of adults and children in families today. Throughout this course we will be particularly concerned with the diversity of American families stressing differences based on gender, race and ethnicity, and socioeconomic status.
Family functions over the life course; family from a multidisciplinary perspective, emphasizing adaptation and change. HDFS 315Y Family Development (3) (US) This course offers an overview of families focusing primarily on contemporary American families. The primary thrust of this course is to step beyond our personal experiences with families and place them within a broader social, historical, cultural and economic context. This class will be multi-disciplinary in its approach to the study of American families. However, we will begin with the historical, demographic and social changes that American families have undergone and try to understand some of the causes and consequences of these changes for the developmental life courses of adults and children in families today. Throughout this course we will be particularly concerned with the diversity of American families stressing differences based on gender, race and ethnicity, and socioeconomic status.
HDFS 345CONTEMPORARY URBAN ISSUES AND SOCIAL JUSTICE FRAMEWORKS3
The discipline of Human Development and Family Studies has a tradition of culturally sensitive engagement within communities, helping to improve quality of life by applying and disseminating knowledge about development across the lifespan, all in their larger social contexts. Issues of social justice and equity play an integral role in defining the questions that Human Development and Family Studies students ask and the solutions that they pursue, as students must account for diverse needs and values based on age, gender, ethnicity and cultural background. Students preparing to work in the field of Human Development and Family Studies must possess the content, pedagogical and professional knowledge, skills, and dispositions necessary to work in diverse communities. HDFS 345 is an opportunity for students to explore the relationship between contemporary urban issues and family development. Participants will evaluate urban development from a Human Development perspective and with a critical eye to how urban development has accounted for the distinctive needs of different segments of the public. Therefore, HDFS 345 incorporates the knowledge of different Human Development and Family Studies theories and social justice paradigms to help students examine urban themes and build their understanding of social justice and family development as related to these themes. Students will learn how urban planning accounts for differences in society, identify different segments of the urban population differentiated by a few diversity constructs (culture, race, SES, gender, etc) and gain awareness of the varying and distinctive needs and concerns of these groups with respect to living in the urban environment. Students will also explore contemporary issues, like modern policing practices, and find resources to develop solutions to social issues or problems. Discussions of policy and moral philosophy will contribute to students' aptitude to plan an appropriate solution with tangible results. Ultimately, students are expected to leave the course with geographically-informed conceptualizations of social justice and insight into how individuals, families and organizations can work within urban communities as collaborators and partners.
HDFS 400Youth Development and Social Justice Capstone Seminar4
This course will immerse students in theories, historical contexts, and practices of structural oppressions that influence youth development, and responses to them through youth empowerment, democratic action, and popular education in communities through study, reflection and, most importantly, on-site partnership field placement with an urban youth worker or agency, such as in a school or community organization. Specifically, you will work with various community-based organizations in partnerships set up by the Penn State Faculty that are local exemplars of democratic action with and for youth development, working closely with professionals affiliated with those programs to support their work and learn from them. HDFS 400 is a community engaged and culture of support course. Community engagement, also called service learning, is a form of reciprocal experiential education wherein students learn through the collaborative process of meeting authentic community needs. High quality community engagement also attempts to affect real, material social conditions; to authentically integrate the work done to meet community needs with the curriculum/course through continuous, critical reflexive and reflective inquiry; and to be a system of praxis (theory - practice) where the inquiry then informs the work participants do, participants' self-concepts, and the practices of the community. The field, reading, in class and written work will reflect these principles
HDFS 401Project Planning, Implementation, and Evaluation in the Human Services3
Exercises and activities related to the design, planning, implementation and management, and evaluation of projects and programs in the human services. HD FS 401 Project Planning, Implementation, and Evaluation in the Human Services (3) HD FS 401 is part of a sequence of courses that develop skills and competencies of the human services student. The course emphasizes the further development of communication skills, diversity skills, team-building skills, critical thinking skills, and technology and leadership skills. Intended to be completed prior to the internship experience, the course will initially focus students' efforts on the identification of a field-based human services project or program, and a setting within which it could be carried out. Subsequently, students will design and plan the project or program, examine and propose effective implementation and management procedures, and incorporate state-of-the art evaluation procedures into the design.
Theories, research, and application of adult behavior for maximizing adult- child relationships and optimizing child socialization and self-development.
HDFS 416Racial and Ethnic Diversity and the American Family3
This course will explore the nature and determinants of racial and ethnic variation in family processes in the United States. HD FS 416 (SOC 411) Racial and Ethnic Diversity and the American Family (3) During the last several decades, the racial and ethnic composition of the U.S. population has changed dramatically. At end of the 20th century, non-Hispanic whites accounted for less than 75 percent of the U.S. population. While blacks remained the largest minority group, there were nearly as many Hispanics as blacks, and the number of Asians was increasing. Population projections indicate that by the middle of the 21st century, Hispanics will make up nearly one-fourth of the U.S. population. Blacks, Asians, and American Indians together will comprise an additional fourth of the population. The last several decades have also brought significant changes in family life in the United States, including declining rates of marriage, a rising age-at-marriage, an increase in cohabitation, and a dramatic rise in the proportion of births outside of marriage. While these trends in family life have been experienced by all racial and ethnic groups, there is substantial variation in family patterns by race and ethnicity. The course will build on other courses in social inequality and the family. The course does not overlap with any existing courses in the Department of Sociology or with courses offered in other relevant departments.This course will explore the nature and determinants of racial and ethnic variation in family processes in the United States. The student will read articles from major sociological journals and learn to extract major points and issues. He/she will learn to synthesize and critique various arguments on major issues in the field. The student will acquire skills in summarizing and evaluating arguments in essay form. He/she will also develop oral presentation skills. Final grades for the course will be based on class participation, a brief (approximately 5 pages) paper, a group presentation, a midterm examination (essay format) and a final examination (essay format). The course is not required for the Sociology minor or major. However, the course can count as one of the 400-level elective courses in Sociology for the Sociology minor, B.A. or B.S.
HDFS 427Developmental Sport & Exercise Psychology3
Developmental changes in the antecedents and consequences of physical activity across the lifespan. HD FS (KINES) 427 Developmental Sport & Exercise Psychology (3)Change is constant with physical activity - our reasons for being active change across the lifespan an dour experiences with physical activity change how we view ourselves and those around us. Developmental Sport & Exercise Psychology focuses on developmental changes in the psychosocial antecedents and consequences of physical activity across the lifespan. Specific course objectives include (1) describing theoretical frameworks and methods used to study physical activity-related psychosocial development across the lifespan, (2) describing how self-perceptions develop and influence behavior in movement contexts at different points in life, (3) explaining how contextual factors influence developmental processes associated with physical activity, (4) identifying age-related differences in activity-related antecedents and consequences of physical activity, and (5) developing, reviewing, and critiquing theoretically-grounded interventions to address issues related to developmental processes associated with physical activity across the lifespan. Evaluation will be based on written examinations, submission of a series of reflection papers on reading assignments, a group presentation, and the students' engagement in the class. It extends but does not duplicate existing courses in the Department of Innersole, Human Development & Family Studies, and Psychology.
Guided practicum experience in planning and facilitating developmentally appropriate activities for young children. HD FS 430 Experience in Preschool Groups (1-6 per semester/maximum of 6) This course is intended to provide students with guided experience in interacting with young children and in designing and conducting developmentally appropriate activities for children in preschool groups. In addition to working with preschool children in preschool classrooms, students will meet weekly to discuss curriculum and activity planning, guidance techniques and issues relevant to providing quality preschool settings. Time will be set aside in each class period for open discussion of classroom experiences. Visits to campus preschool locations are planned to enhance the selection of appropriate teacher resources for curriculum development.
An in-depth examination of family policy. HD FS (SOC) 440 Family Policy (3)(BA) This course meets the Bachelor of Arts degree requirements. This course is designed to provide an in-depth examination of family policy. Students will identify and critically analyze major issues, controversies, and policies that affect families. Attention will be devoted to recognizing both intended and unintended consequences of family policies and understanding policy challenges and trade-offs. Students will gain an understanding of how policies are shaped by both facts and myths, as well as our values. Students will examine historical and current trends in family patterns (e.g., divorce, women's labor force participation, nonmarital births) to understand the implications they hold for individuals, families and society. Students will gain an awareness of the social, economic, historical, legal, and political contexts within which family policies exist and are proposed. Although the main focus is on U.S. family policy, some time will be devoted to learning about family policies in other countries. We will learn about several specific family policies in-depth (e.g., welfare), but a final goal is to help students develop a general way of looking at family policy that they can then use to understand any issue of family policy that unfolds throughout their lifetime. This course will foster thoughtful reflection and critical thinking, writing skills, research skills, and skills of synthesis, logic, and argument. Course goals will be accomplished through course readings, writing assignments, lectures, class discussions, debates and group projects. Mastery of course material and student evaluation are assessed in several ways. Students will take a midterm and final exam that cover lectures, class discussions, and assigned readings. Two papers are also required. The first paper is based on an analysis of newspaper articles dealing with family policy issues that students will collect and relate to course materials. The second paper is a literature-based analysis of a family policy in a society outside the United States. Class participation is also essential and its evaluation will be based on a combination of class attendance, contributions to class discussions, participation in group debates and projects, and an oral presentation of the final paper on a non-U.S. family policy.
The course takes a social and developmental perspective to illuminate an often hidden, but significant dimension of human development in the context of death-related encounters, attitudes, historical patterns, cultural variations, as well as the complexities of the American death system. In considering death-related patterns in society, it explores notable examples like 'human-induced death' (e.g., suicides, accidents and homicides), 'socially sanctioned death' (e.g., violence from war, genocide, and terrorism), and the characterization of death in daily discourse, the media, and present day death rituals. Key issues and questions from the field are discussed at both individual and societal levels, which include the meaning of death, facing death across the life-course, the sociocultural context of death, bereavement and grief, the death industry, and ethical and legal issues surrounding death. Examining the variegated meanings in different social institutional spheres, such as ethics, politics, mass media, and family from a social-scientific perspective, the course helps students recognize and appreciate that death and bereavement are deeply embedded into social and cultural structures of society, including how we learn about death, the typical ways in which our attitudes and beliefs are shaped, and how death and bereavement affect children, adolescents, adults, and older adults. It also addresses issues specific to death/dying in careers Human Development and Family Studies prepares for in terms of death education and bereavement counseling.
HDFS 451Adoption: Policy, Practice, and Experience3
This course introduces students to the concepts, research, and policies associated with historical and contemporary adoption practice. Topics will include adoption policies, practices, and experiences from the viewpoints of birth parents, adoptees, and adoptive parents. Social, emotional, and developmental issues faced triad members throughout the adoption process and lifespan are also examined. For example, students will be guided to consider implications of various adoption arrangements and policies on identity development (e.g. ethnicity/race and transracial adoption; social class and issues of privilege related to adoption; gender, sexuality, and adoption) as well as how historical and contemporary U.S. adoption policies, laws, and practices intersect with issues of social justice and equity.
HDFS 452Child Maltreatment Prevention, Intervention, and Legal Issues3
Examines causes, correlates, and consequences of child maltreatment, empirically supported prevention/intervention programs, the Child Welfare System and relevant legal issues.
HDFS 455Development and Administration of Human Services Programs3
Fundamentals of program development and administration of human service programs in community settings; emphasis given to program content, strategies, and the overall planning process.
HDFS 465Child Maltreatment: Prevention and Treatment3
Advanced examination in approaches for preventing child maltreatment and treating its consequences. HD FS (CMAS) 465 Child Maltreatment: Prevention and Treatment (3) Child maltreatment, including physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, and neglect, is a highly prevalent condition affecting nearly one million children each year in the United States alone. This course will delineate the long-term health consequences affecting those who have experienced child maltreatment with an emphasis on those outcomes exerting the greatest impact on overall public health throughout the lifespan. Importantly, a focus on the etiology of such health consequences in the child maltreatment population will be made in order to understand the causal pathways leading to these health consequences. This focus on etiology will serve as a segue into the remaining sections of this course, specifically the prevention and treatment of child maltreatment and its consequences. Universal and targeted prevention programs, where the focus is to prevent an initial instance of child maltreatment from occurring, will be detailed, as will tertiary prevention programs, where the focus is on preventing a re-occurrence of child maltreatment. Similarly, prevention of adverse health outcomes for those affected by child maltreatment will also be covered. Finally, evidenced-based interventions applied with children who have been maltreated and are currently experiencing clinical levels of impairment (e.g. post-traumatic stress disorder) will be detailed. Identification and rehearsal of treatment components commonly used in prevention and clinical intervention programs will be emphasized. Students successfully completing this course will have direct knowledge of the consequences of child maltreatment and the established methods used in prevention and intervention programs applied with this population.
HDFS 467Autism: Providing Professional Support for Individuals and Families3
This course emphasizes the professional development for students planning to pursue careers in the field of autism. Topics include the stresses and needs of families and siblings of children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), vocational and social challenges faced as individuals with ASD age into adolescence and adulthood, and techniques to aid parents in becoming effective advocates for their child's academic, social, and behavioral needs. Although the core symptomatology of ASD and empirically validated interventions are covered as foundational knowledge, these topics are not be the focus of this course. Rather, this course identifies the challenges and strengths likely to be encountered in the lives of families and individuals with ASD and provides current best practices to help clients navigate life with ASD.
Exploration of how family life, quality, and structures in each region of the world are affected by the new global economy. HD FS 469U Family Change in the Global Economy (3) (IL) We know that family life, structure, and practices undergo dramatic change when there are economic and political changes in the society. Economic globalization is unprecedented as a force for social and political change. How is it affecting family life and structures around the world? While we have considerable research on globalization and on family change, there has been little work that connects the two.This is an exploratory seminar that involves locating those linkages and discovering families in each world region are changing as they meet up with global economic forces. As we explore each world region, we will learn about diverse cultures and how they are affected by global forces. In the Americas, Africa, Asia, the Middle East and Europe this course uncovers new forms of inequality that are emerging from the global economy and having direct effects on women and families. Through it all, we explore how human action, in the family, the community and the society, struggles for quality of life in a global economic context.
Interdisciplinary Interpersonal Relationship Studies is an advanced-level course designed to provide students with a comprehensive understanding of the intricate dynamics of interpersonal relationships through an interdisciplinary lens. Integrating key components of communication science, psychology, and family science, this course offers an in-depth exploration of how these domains converge to influence human interactions across the lifespan with a focus on the most current relationship research from both national and international perspectives.
HDFS 480Health Disparities: Context, Causes, and Consequences3
In this course, students will explore the role of social and physical environments on individual and familial health and well-being using a social determinant of health framework. Specifically, students will learn about and evaluate the impact of socio-economic status, racial/ethnic minority status, income inequality, social networks and social support, social capital, and neighborhoods on health outcomes and mortality in the U.S.. Students will learn about medically underserved populations, the processes leading to disparate health outcomes, and policies and practices that can reduce disparities in health outcomes. This course provides important contextual understanding for students interested in health careers or those seeking to advocate for policies and programs that promote health and wellbeing.
HDFS 485Supporting Healthy Development: Understanding Systems, Successes, and Challenges3
In this advanced, project-based course, each student will select a topic to study for an individual, semester-long project. Through interviews with people in their communities and reading academic literature, students will examine their topic in detail and explore the way individuals and contexts interact to influence development. Throughout the semester, students will be instructed on topics such as ecological systems theory, policy analysis, concept mapping, and network theory, as well as be guided to develop skills in interviewing, networking, and project management. Students will learn about each other¿s topics, share resources, and provide each other with support. Assignments will be professional-style products ranging from concise interview and reading summaries to project proposals, weekly logs, and presentations.
HDFS 490Professional Development and Preparation for Internship Experience3
The HDFS internship experience provides students with a structured, guided opportunity to apply what they have learned in their courses to work in their chosen fields, to develop skills necessary to enter and succeed in the labor market, and to reflect on best practices in human services. In this preparation course, students focus on developing their professional skillsets well as on their personal internship search. With regard to professional development, students work to integrate their knowledge and skillsets relative to important professionalism topics (e.g. ethical standards and cultural competence). Through the internship development process, students are guided to explore their career goals, map out key skills and knowledge they wish to develop during their internship experience, identify organizations that might serve as internship sites, and ultimately develop an internship arrangement designed with their needs and professional aspirations in mind. Throughout the course, students are also guided to map their next steps through opportunities to do financial, educational, and career planning.
Palliative care focuses on enhancing the quality of life for persons with life-limiting conditions and their families throughout potentially curative treatment and disease progression, through assessment and intervention methods that prevent and ease suffering ¿ biological, psychosocial, and spiritual. From a biopsychosocial perspective, this course provides students with the conceptual, assessment, intervention, and professional skills to assist individuals and families across the lifespan facing illnesses such as cancer, heart disease, dementia, and Parkinson's Disease from the time of a palliative care diagnosis to day of terminal care diagnosis. Additionally, the course applies a holistic viewpoint to the assessment of ecological, social, and psychological factors influencing individual and family well-being in emphasizing best practices in addressing psychosocial stress and grief. This course will cover multiple areas, such as: (1) Psychosocial and spiritual issues, (2) Optimizing quality of life, (3) Strategies to support individuals and families, (4) Ethical and legal issues, (5) Communication, and (6) Interprofessional practice. Focusing on sociocultural and ecological approaches to relationship building and problem-solving, the course emphasizes best practices in patient/client and family-centered methods. The course is designed to foster clinical skills, thoughtful reflection and critical thinking, research knowledge, and skills of synthesis and logic crucial to assisting persons and their families from the healthcare to counseling setting. Students will be asked to participate in role-play simulations, contribute to weekly in-class discussions, develop and analyze case studies, analyze empirical-based literature, complete written assignments, and create a final project.
Independent study under the direction of the thesis advisor of topics related to the interests of the student, culminating in presentation of a thesis.
HD FS 495A Internship: Advanced Experience (8) HD FS 495A represents a full-time, one-semester internship experience. Its focus is experiential learning accompanied by intensive supervision, provided by one-site personnel, as well as University-based mentoring. Taken within a year of the pre-internship course (HD FS 490), which helps the student with the details of making arrangements for their internship, HD FS 495A, taken during the same semester as HD FS 495B, is considered the capstone of the HD FS undergraduate program. The internship can be taken during the fall, spring, or summer semester. It is one full semester spent working as a human service professional in a setting of your choice. Generally interns will work as a full-time professional (35-40 hours a week) for the semester.
HD FS 495B Internship: Advanced Project (4) HD FS 495B is taken at the same time as HD FS 495A, and within a year of the pre-internship course (HD FS 490), which helps you with the details of making arrangements for the HD FS internship, HD FS 495B focuses on the academic aspects of the internship experience. This course can be taken during the fall, spring, or summer semester. Currently, HD FS 495B consists of writing three papers; The Organizational Analysis, The Policy Analysis, and The Personal Development Paper. The purpose of the organizational analysis paper is to give the intern an opportunity to learn about his or her internship setting or organization in greater depth than might be possible otherwise. This will necessitate the intern taking an active approach to systematically securing information about the internship organization through the review of relevant documents, conducting formal or informal interviews, and observation. This paper will then be saved at the internship office, without identifying information or grade, to be viewed as a source of information about potential internship sites by future students who are seeking internships.
HDFS 506Design and Evaluation of Prevention and Health Promotion Programs Across the Life Span3
Addresses theory and application of program evaluation, emphasizing process and outcome evaluation strategies for programs involving individuals, organizations and populations. HDFS (HPA) 506 Design and Evaluation of Prevention and Health Promotion Programs Across the Life Span (3) This course is designed for graduate students interested in the design and evaluation of programs in a wide range of human services (e.g., health care, social services, education). The course provides a foundation in the theory and application of program evaluation, with focused attention to the details of how such work can be proposed and conducted. The majority of the semester will focus on issues related to developing scientifically sound and viable studies of interventions in line with students' interests. The goals for this course are to help students build the knowledge and confidence to evaluate human service programs and/or policies that are implemented in research settings (academic or government) and communities or community settings (e.g., schools, health care facilities, community agencies).
HDFS 512Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience of Adolescence3
In this course students will evaluate a mix of foundational and cutting-edge research and theory investigating various changes during adolescence principally from a developmental cognitive neuroscience perspective. Particular emphasis will be placed on understanding the application of non-invasive neuroimaging techniques (e.g., functional magnetic resonance imaging, EEG) and the critical role these tools have played in our understanding of adolescent development. Topics to be discussed include (but will not be limited to) structural brain development, maturation in cognitive control functions (e.g., working memory, inhibitory control), as well as affective (e.g., emotion and reward processing), and social information processing. We will also examine factors contributing to adolescent decision-making and risk-taking behaviors.
HDFS 517Multilevel Methods for Developmental Research3
This course provides an overview of multilevel regression models for students pursuing applied statistical analysis of correlated data. We will consider the primary applications for multilevel models that involve working with data that have hierarchical/nested groupings, repeated measures, and extensions of both (e.g., more involved growth trajectories). This course will cover how best to approach manipulating both fixed and random effects (i.e., in a "mixed model") as well as assessment of model fit. We will work with the type of data that are suitable for multilevel analysis, where estimated parameters can represent both broader and more specific contextual levels. Presentation of theory will cover across-discipline uses of these models (and the various other names they go by such as hierarchical linear models, random coefficient models, etc.) and will aim to set a foundation for those who want to pursue more advanced modeling approaches (e.g., using latent constructs) in future coursework.
HDFS 521Child Maltreatment: Theory, Research, and Impact3
Theory and research pertaining to the causes, bio-psycho-social consequences, and the public health impact of childhood maltreatment. The purpose of this course is for students to learn to think critically about child maltreatment concepts, research, and treatment. Students will be thinking about child maltreatment at multiple levels, including individual, family, and prevention. Therefore, this course will review the breadth of literature on the biological, psychological, and public health impact of child maltreatment including sexual abuse, physical abuse, and neglect. The course will cover the prevalence and history of child maltreatment, long-term outcomes of maltreatment, research methods, and evidence-based treatment and prevention approaches. State-of-the-art research in the areas of prevention, treatment, biological sequelae, developmental consequences, and intergenerational transmission will be covered. Building on existing research, students will learn to apply critical thinking skills in order to recognize, articulate, and apply the concept of scientific impact to the field of child maltreatment.
HDFS 523Strategies for Data Analysis in Developmental Research3
This course provides the skills necessary to confront the data analytic issues presented in the Human Development and Family Studies methodology core curriculum.
Exposure to a wide variety of statistical models as special cases of the General Linear Mixed Model with latent variables. HD FS 530 Longitudinal Structural Equation Modeling (3) This course provides a broad overview of structural equations modeling as a method for studying developmental processes in Human Development and Family Studies. In this course, students gain a thorough hands-on understanding of a wide variety of statistical model types as special cases of the General Linear Mixed Model (GLMM) with latent variables. Specific statistical model types covered include: exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis; linear, nonlinear and multivariate latent growth curve modeling; quasi-simplex modeling; longitudinal factor modeling; multi-group factor analysis, including a concise introduction to behavior genetic modeling; mediation analysis; testing for measurement equivalence; MANCOVA with nonstandard within-subject covariance structures; outlines of statistical selection theory and principal component analysis. The presentation of these diverse model types as special instances of the same GLMM is helpful to understanding their relationships and differences and considerably streamlines applied statistical modeling. Each of these statistical model types are commonly used to analyze data from studies in the field of Human Development and Family Studies and illustrative examples are provided. Each model type is explained at 4 levels: 1) in terms of a set of simultaneous model equations; 2) as a set of matrix equations; 3) as a graphical model; and 4) as a Lisrel input code. All model assumptions are made explicit and the interrelationships between the 4 levels of model representation are emphasized. Then the model is applied to simulated and real data. The obtained model fits are assessed in terms of various statistical criteria and conclusions are explicitly drawn based on standard statistical decision theory. Selected models from studies of Human Development and other social sciences are interpreted in terms of content and possible pitfalls in their interpretation are discussed. For each modeling technique appropriate background publications, lecture notes and advanced reading material on nonstandard topics are provided.
This course addresses how genetic predispositions, behavioral and environmental factors affect children's obesity risk and examines strategies for obesity prevention. HDFS (NUTR) 532 Childhood Obesity (3) This course will examine the epidemic of obesity, particularly childhood obesity, and how various behavioral and environmental factors place children at risk of becoming overweight. Sources of influence that will be examined include: children's nutrition and physical activity behaviors, the family environment, the school environment and community characteristics. Media, social policy and economic factors will also be addressed. In addition, the health and psychosocial consequences of obesity, ethnic and socioeconomic disparities in the prevalence and predictors of obesity among children and adolescents will be addressed. At its conclusion, this course will examine policy initiatives and obesity prevention programs.
Important current and emerging topics in obesity research relevant to government policy and general public education; emphasis on adult obesity. HD FS (NUTR) 533 Adult Obesity (3) This course will examine the epidemic of obesity, particularly adult obesity. Obesity: Causes, Consequences and Treatment will provide a forum to introduce and discuss current and emerging topics in adult obesity research, with emphasis on policy, prevention and treatment. Focus will be given to determinants of adult obesity and translation into government policy and efforts to educate the general public on the most effective strategies for body weight regulation, obesity prevention and treatment. Sources of influence that will be examined include: environment, genetics, neural, peripheral and sensory mechanisms, food properties and food supply, and therapies and treatment of adult obesity.
HDFS 535Integrating Qualitative Methods into Quantitative Research3
Focuses on effective ways to integrate qualitative methods into quantitative approaches to research in human development and family studies. The purpose of this course is to cover how best to combine quantitative and qualitative methods in human development and family studies research. This course begins with the assumption that students have an existing research question to test through quantitative approaches that involve the formulation of research hypotheses before data collection. The course then explores how qualitative data approaches can further enhance their study. This course emphasizes the integration of qualitative and quantitative approaches through 1) designing qualitative projects to test hypotheses, 2) the importance of sampling, and 3) coverage of R for analyzing both qualitative and quantitative data. The course begins with an overview of mixed methods research. The course then addresses qualitative research and the development of qualitative research projects, before describing how to combine quantitative and qualitative data. The course will address best practices for sampling in mixed methods research. The course then will cover specific issues in qualitative research such as ethnographic data, intensive interviewing, and focus groups. The remainder of the course will cover specific issues in mixed methods designs, such as research designs, divergent findings, life history calendars, and statistical programs for mixed methods data.
The implications of knowledge from behavioral endocrinology, behavior genetics, and evolutionary psychology for understanding family relationships and child development. HD FS 537. (SOC 537) Biosocial Perspectives on the Family (3) Breakthroughs in the way biological variables are measured and modeled have generated new findings that greatly increase our understanding of the reciprocal influences between family relationships, child development, and biological factors. Specifically, advances in the study of hormones, genetics, evolution, pharmacology, and immunology have led to important advances in our knowledge of gender, becoming a parent, early child development, middle child, and adolescent development, parent-child relations, courtship and mate selection, quality of intimate relations, separation and divorce, incest, and dominance and family violence.Students are required to keep a journal of researchable ideas during the first five weeks of class. The purpose is to give students practice in identifying research needs and opportunities. The journal should include 4-6 research problems, each developed in 2-3 typed pages. The majority of each entry should be a clear statement of what knowledge gains would be realized by conducting the study and why they are important. The remainder of the statement should include consideration of the data you would use, measures of major variables, and analytic strategies. Think of it as a brief portfolio of thesis, dissertation, or research publication ideas.Entries on research projects in which you are already involved are not eligible for inclusion in the journal. On the last page of the journal, indicate which problem you would like to develop into a more detailed proposal during the remainder of the semester and why. Turn in the journal during week 5. I will evaluate your entries and comment on your selection idea. The rest of the semester will be spent on developing one of the ideas to a full-blown proposal (about 20 pages). You should turn in as many drafts as needed to receive a good grade for this segment of the course. I expect you to turn in three or more before the end of the semester. We will meet about each draft and go over my comments. Proposal drafts should be spaced out over the semester.The last week of the semester will be devoted to presentations of research proposals after which class members will offer comments and suggestions. Your grade will be based on the proposal draft you turn in the last week of the class. Twenty-one percent of the course grade is based on the research proposal.
HDFS 538Dynamical Systems Methods and Applications3
The course will provide an overview of the concepts and theory behind dynamical systems. Practical methods for exploring linear and nonlinear relations in multivariate longitudinal data, as well as methods for fitting dynamical systems models to panel and intensive longitudinal data (e.g., diary / experience sampling / ecological momentary assessments) will be presented. Examples may include difference and differential equation models, structural equation models with regime switching/latent transition, and mixture/random effects extensions of these models. A variety of examples of dynamical systems from developmental research, family studies, and intervention science will be presented to provide some perspectives on when Dynamical Systems techniques might be useful. We will also develop hands-on familiarity with different types of dynamical systems by using software programs to simulate, fit, and assess model-fitting results from different dynamical systems models. Students are encouraged to bring research issues and data pertinent to their own interests to class for discussion and critique. Recommended Preparations: HDFS 523 or other equivalents covering regression and multivariate data analysis techniques. The prerequisite may be waived or replaced with other courses in consultation with the instructor. Prior experience in mixed effects modeling and/or structural equation modeling is helpful, but not required.
HDFS 540Parenting: Theory, Research and Intervention3
Review of current theory, research, and intervention in the study of parenting. HDFS 540 Parenting: Theory, Research and Intervention (3) This course is designed to have students think critically about parenting and parenting competence by reviewing theoretical, ideological, and empirical literature. Competent parenting is a key factor in producing desirable child outcomes. Therefore, in this course, parenting competence reflects the behaviors and practices parents use that contribute to the child's ability to function in society. In particular, the course will examine how parenting behaviors, such as warmth/responsiveness, and forms of discipline promote desired child outcomes in attachment relationships, conscience development, internalization of values, and other socio-emotional outcomes.
HDFS 541Optimization of Behavioral and Biobehavioral Interventions3
Evidence-based behavioral and biobehavioral interventions are used to prevent and treat health problems (e.g. school-based drug abuse prevention; smoking cessation treatment), improve educational attainment (e.g. reading improvement interventions), and promote health and well-being (e.g. parenting skills training). An intervention may be aimed at any age and delivered in any context; may be aimed at individuals, families, organizations, or communities; and may include both behavioral components and medical components such as pharmaceuticals. The purpose of this course is to enable students to understand and apply quantitative, empirical research methods for optimization of evidence-based multicomponent behavioral and biobehavioral interventions. These methods are used for two related purposes. First, they are used to obtain knowledge about what intervention components work and for whom. Second, they are used to build optimized evidence-based interventions that are not only effective, but also efficient, economical, and scalable. The methods can be used to build new interventions, improve existing interventions, or identify good approaches for implementing interventions. The course will cover a comprehensive framework for empirical development, optimization, and evaluation of evidence-based behavioral and biobehavioral interventions. Students will learn how to craft a detailed conceptual model for an intervention under development, based on existing scientific theory and literature, and the student's own ideas. A substantial amount of time in the course will be spent on experimental design for optimization trials, particularly factorial experimental designs and variations such as the fractional factorial. The emphasis will be on making the best use of available resources so as to gather the highest-quality and most relevant scientific information. Students will learn how to identify the most appropriate and efficient experimental design for an optimization trial. Practical matters, such as guarding against implementation errors when conducting an experiment in a field setting, and dealing with errors if they occur, will be reviewed. Appropriate statistical analysis of data gathered during an optimization trial will be discussed. Students will learn how use the empirical results obtained in an optimization trial as a basis for selection of the components and component levels that will make up the optimized intervention. Students will also learn how the approaches covered in this course are applicable across a broad range of intervention types and objectives, and also to determine how these approaches are applicable to optimization of interventions in the students' own individual fields of scientific endeavor.
HDFS 552Child Maltreatment: Developmental Processes and Biological Embedding3
The purpose of this course is to review the breadth of literature on the biological and developmental impact of child maltreatment including sexual abuse, physical abuse, and neglect on youth victims. Students will learn how to integrate child maltreatment research into a relevant, cohesive framework for understanding child maltreatment's wide-reaching effects. The biological focus of the course will be on the health consequences of child maltreatment as well as the neurological, neuroendocrine, and genetic embedding of child maltreatment. The course will also focus on the developmental antecedents and sequelae of child maltreatment through childhood, adolescence, and the transition to adulthood, including addressing how intergenerational transmission, parenting, interpersonal relationships, and attachment are associated with exposure to child maltreatment.
HDFS 553Child Maltreatment: Policy, Administrative Data Systems, Prevention, and Treatment3
The course will provide an overview of the major components of the child welfare system (e.g., child protection, family court, foster care, congregate care) involved in the community response to child maltreatment and promote a critical analysis of key federal policies that guide system activities. Course participants will also become familiar with Federal, state, and community data systems, and with methods to develop integrated data systems and their relevance to evaluating system outcomes and policy effects related to the child welfare system. Next, the course will give an overview of a range of experimental, quasi-experimental, and observational research designs and analytic methods relevant to evaluating the effects of child welfare policies and practices on child and family outcomes related to child maltreatment and system involvement. Finally, class participants will apply course content to develop applied research proposals that leverage administrative data for systems research and examine methods for communicating research findings to impact policy and practice at the community and federal levels. This course will also provide an in-depth examination of the major behavioral interventions, both preventive and treatment, applied with the child maltreatment population. Students will first be given an overview of the philosophy of science and experimental methods used to establish behavioral interventions for child maltreatment. From there, students will review emerging paradigms within national funding agencies that focus on identifying and targeting mechanisms to optimize intervention effects.
Students learn techniques for analysis of intensive longitudinal data in the social sciences. The purpose of this course is to facilitate formulation of research questions, design of studies, measurement devices, and methods of analysis suitable for the types of empirical data obtained in intensive longitudinal studies (e.g., diary / experience sampling / ecological momentary assessment) being used in the social sciences. Students will gain skills useful in the study of developmental or other change-based processes. In particular, students will gain abilities related to research conceptualization, research design, data analysis, results interpretation, and the presentation and critique of longitudinal research. The course will (1) highlight general issues regarding the link between process-oriented research questions and longitudinal study designs, (2) survey a selection of intraindividual change and variability concepts, (3) provide step-by-step instruction on data manipulation, graphing, and the analysis of intensive repeated measures data (univariate and multivariate), and (4) develop students' skill in effectively communicating the features of longitudinal data and results of longitudinal analysis. Specific topics include the use of intraindividual variability metrics, multilevel models, generalized multilevel models, multivariate multilevel models, and P-technique factor analysis for measurement and modeling of dynamic characteristics and dynamic processes; the design and implementation of multiple time-scale studies; and how new technologies are shaping both the collection and analysis of intensive longitudinal data in the social sciences.
Formal courses given on a topical or special interest subject which may be offered infrequently; several different topics may be taught in one year or term.
