Associate Professor, Research Associate Professor at the Institute for Social Research and Center for Human Growth and Development
Ph.D. Vanderbilt University
Area: Developmental, Combined Program in Education and Psychology
Contact Information
Email: pdakean@umich.edu
Psychology Office: 2241 East Hall
Psychology Phone: 734-647-3877
Research and Teaching Interests
My research focuses on the influence of parent’s educational attainment on the construction of home environments; the importance of looking at race and culture when understanding families and child development; the role that families, schools, and significant figures play (multi-context) in the development of children; the development of self-esteem across the lifespan; and gender and math achievement. I am also interested in the psychometric properties of questionnaires and large-scale data collection of data on families and children.
Representative Publications
Davis-Kean, P. E., Jager, J. & Collins, W. A. (in press). The Self in Action: An emerging link between self beliefs and behaviors in middle childhood. Child Development Perspectives.
Davis-Kean, P. E. & Sexton, H. R. (2009). Race Differences in Parental Influences on Child Achievement: Multiple Pathways to Success. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 55 (3), 285-318.
Davis-Kean, P. E., Huesmann, L. R., Jager, J., Collins, W. A., Bates, J. E., & Lansford, J. (2008). Changes in the Relation of Beliefs and Behaviors during Middle Childhood. Child Development.
Davis-Kean, P. E. (2008). Self-esteem. In F. T. L. Leong (Ed) Encyclopedia of Counseling. Vol. 2, Personal and Emotional Counseling. pp 416-421. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Davis-Kean, P. E. (2005). The Influence of Parent Education and Family Income on Child Achievement: The Indirect Role of Parental Expectations and the Home Environment. Journal of Family Psychology, 19(2), 294-304.
Davis-Kean, P. E. & Eccles, J. S. (2005). Influences and barriers to better parent-school collaborations. Patrikakou, E. N., Weissberg, R. P., Manning, J., Walberg, H. J., & Redding, S. (Eds.) School-family partnerships: Promoting the social, emotional, and academic growth of children. New York: Teachers College Press.
Goldstein, S. E., Davis-Kean, P. E., & Eccles, J. S. (2005). Parents, peers and problem behavior: A longitudinal investigation of the impact of relationship cognitions and characteristics on the development of problem behavior. Developmental Psychology, 41(2), 401-13.
Davis-Kean, P.E. & Sandler, H. M. (2001). A meta-analysis for preschool self-concept measures: A framework for future measures. Child Development, 72(3), 887-906.
