In The Halls
New Faculty
Two highly successful researchers have joined the Department of Human Development and Family Science.
Chalandra Bryant (Professor, Human Development and Family Science) joined CFD in fall 2010 after having served on the faculty of Pennsylvania State University from 2003-2010, and on the Iowa State University faculty from 1998-2003.
Bryant is the principal investigator of a longitudinal project, A Study of African-American Marriage and Health, funded by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. Her research focuses on close relationships and the ability to sustain intimate ties. She is particularly interested in how marriage and health are affected by social, familial, economic, occupational and psychosocial factors.
In her longitudinal research, Bryant and her team have interviewed 700 couples at least once and many of them two or three times to determine how marriage and health are affected by social, familial, economic, occupational and psychosocial factors.
Bryant was awarded the New Contribution Award by the International Association for Relationship Research in 2002; the National Council on Family Relations Reuben Hill Research and Theory Award in 2004; and the Outstanding Young Professional Award from the Texas Exes Alumni Association of the University of Texas in 2005.
Kandauda (K.A.S.) Wickrama (Professor, Human Development and Family Science) joined CFD in January 2011 after serving on the faculty of Iowa State University from 1992-2005.
Wickrama's research focuses on four particular areas: the social determinants of health and health inequality across the life course; racial and ethnic inequalities in the mental and physical health of children and adults; international development and health; and the application of advanced statistical methods to social epidemiology.
"What we have found is that an individual who has experienced poverty early in life can continue to experience the effects of that poverty independent of their situation in adulthood," he said. "However, we are also identifying ways of mitigating those early-life effects. For example, education is a good motivating factor for disrupting this trajectory."
Wickrama has also conducted extensive research with the survivors of the December 2004 tsunami that claimed more than 200,000 lives, including 31,000 in Sri Lanka. Wickrama conducted interviews with 325 families. In his research, Wickrama has found that strong community ties and religious participation can moderate the effects of depression and post-traumatic stress disorder, while prolonged displacement from their homes and secondary events, such as a spouse abandoning the family, lost jobs, or children becoming delinquent, can have an intensifying effect.
In addition to his research, Wickrama will be teaching courses on multilevel statistical modeling for social and behavioral sciences.
"The addition of Drs. Wickrama and Bryant dramatically increase our capacity to conduct cutting-edge family science research," according to Jay Mancini, CFD department head. "Dr. Bryant is one of the foremost researchers on African-American marriages, and Dr. Wickrama is a renowned researcher on family health and health disparities. Both of these outstanding scholars will enrich our students' experiences."
