Current Projects
Preventing child maltreatment in families with a history of IPV
Empowerment 4 my Kids. In collaboration with Dr. Kristin Valentino and Dr. Kathryn Howell, we are currently conducting a randomized clinical trial with families previously enrolled in our NIH-funded Pregnant Moms’ Empowerment Program study (R01HD098092, Miller-Graff & Howell). This study, also funded by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (R01HD114596, Miller-Graff, Howell & Valentino) will re-randomize women and their preschool-aged children to receive either the Reminiscing and Emotion Training (RET) program, or an active control condition. This study will evaluate the long term effects of PMEP on child maltreatment prevention in addition to examining the unique and combined effects of PMEP and RET on a range of maternal and child outcomes, dyadic relationship outcomes, and child maltreatment prevention.
IPV, housing instability, and parent-child relational functioning. With generous support from the Notre Dame Poverty Initiative, we have added an intensive longitudinal data collection to our NIH-funded study (R01HD114596, Miller-Graff, Howell & Valentino) focused on better understanding the dynamic interplay between housing instability, poverty, IPV/child maltreatment, and mother-child relational functioning. This three year study will collect monthly survey data as well as a 30-day daily diary study focused on these themes. In partnership with the Shaw Center for Children and Families and the Veldman Family Psychology Clinic, we will also be hosting a range of workshops and community-engaged events focused on enhancing our assessment of poverty and housing across studies and clinical services.
Resilience and parenting among mothers exposed to intimate partner violence (IPV). Led by graduate student Janie Park, this dissertation project investigates how different forms of IPV affect maternal resilience and parenting confidence during pregnancy and early motherhood. Using a mixed-methods approach that combines qualitative thematic analysis of PMEP group intervention transcripts with longitudinal quantitative modeling, the project seeks to clarify resilience processes as pathways that support parenting in the context of adversity. This project is supported by the Franco Family Institute for Liberal Arts and the Public Good.
Supporting Palestinian Adolescents and Families
Promoting Positive Family Futures: A randomized clinical trial. Supported by the National Institute of Mental Health (Cummings & Miller-Graff, R01MH128929), we are in the midst of a randomized clinical trial of the Promoting Positive Families Futures (PPFF) program. This trial will evaluate the effectiveness the PPFF program - a family-based program engaging mothers, fathers and adolescents - compared to an individual program for adolescents. Given federal funding disruptions that have created funding gaps, this project has received additional generous funding support from Notre Dame Research, the Notre Dame Keough School of Global Affairs, the Notre Dame College of Arts and Letters, the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, and the Franco Family Institute for Liberal Arts and the Public Good.
Exploring adolescent perspectives on neighborhood and structural violence in Palestine. Led by graduate student Catherine Maloney, this project examines adolescent experiences of structural violence across social-ecological systems. With funding support from the American Psychological Association Division 48, the University of Notre Dame Institute for Scholarship in the Liberal Arts, and the Philanthropic Educational Organization Scholar Award, this mixed-method project integrates adolescent interviews on neighborhood characteristics, survey measures, and administrative data to elucidate the relationship between adolescent and family-level exposure to diverse forms of violence (i.e., direct, structural) and mental health outcomes.
Developing cross-cultural understandings of risk for suicide
Led by graduate student Miguel Blacutt, this project examines cross-national and cultural risk factors for suicide. The study investigates what leads to differences in suicide rates between countries by examining how sociopolitical factors, cultural values, interpersonal dynamics, and psychological vulnerabilities interact uniquely within each country to shape suicide risk. This multi-national investigation is being conducted in collaboration with research partners in Canada, Finland, Japan, Kenya, South Africa, and the United States. By studying these diverse populations, the research aims to identify the cultural contexts that moderate how suicide risk mechanisms manifest differently across societies, providing crucial insights for developing culturally-informed prevention strategies.