College of Education and Human Development

Family Social Science

Kay Simon

  • Pronouns: they/them/theirs

  • Assistant Professor

Kay Simon

Areas of interest

LGBTQ+ families and future parenthood
LGBTQ+ youth
Identity and identity development

Degrees

PhD, Experimental Psychology, University of Kentucky
MS, Psychology, University of Kentucky
BA, Psychology and Zoology, Ohio Wesleyan University

Biography

Kay A. Simon joins the University of Minnesota following a postdoctoral research fellow appointment at the University of Connecticut (UCONN) working with Drs. Ryan Watson and Lisa Eaton. Their research interests focus on narratives, identity development, future parenthood, and family experiences among marginalized groups such as LGBTQ+ or BIPOC individuals. Dr. Simon received their doctoral degree at the University of Kentucky under their advisor, Dr. Rachel Farr, where their research focused on the experiences of LGBTQ+ youth and families, with an emphasis on intersectional identities (e.g., LGBTQ+ multiracial youth with LGBTQ+ parents). Dr. Simon's research is informed by intersectionality, bioecological systems, and queer theories as well as ambiguous loss theory and relies on multiple methodological and data analytic approaches to uplift and represent the narratives of LGBTQ+ and BIPOC individuals. For additional information on their research please see their Google Scholar page or contact Simon directly.

Publications
  1. Bruun, S. T., Simon, K. A., & Farr, R. H. (2022). Retrospective accounts of first exposure to minoritized sexual and gender identities. Social Development. Advance online publication. Read the full article.
  2. ^Caba, A. E., Mallory, A. B., Simon, K. A., ^Rathus, T., & Watson, R. J. (2022). Complex outness patterns among sexual minority youth: A latent class analysis. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 51, 746-765. Read the full article.
  3. ^Renley, B. M., Burson, E., Simon, K. A., ^Caba, A. E., & Watson, R. J. (2022). Youth-specific sexual and gender minority state-level policies: Implications for pronoun, name, and bathroom/locker room use among gender minority youth. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 51, 780-791. Read the full article.
  4. Simon, K. A., *Hawthorne, H. M., ^Clark, A. N., ^Renley, B. M., Farr, R. H., Eaton, L. A., & Watson, R. J. (2022). Contextualizing the experiences of asexual youth: Demographic characteristics and health, family, and school outcomes. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 51, 128-140. Read the full article.
  5. Simon, K. A., & Farr, R. H. (2022). Identity-based socialization and adopted children’s outcomes in lesbian, gay, and heterosexual parent families. Applied Developmental Science, 26(1), 155-175. Read the full article.
  6. Simon, K. A., & Farr, R. H. (2021). Adoption and racial-cultural socialization in diverse adoptive families: Associations with demographic characteristics, academic outcomes, and parent-child relationships. Research in Human Development, 18(4), 295-310. Read the full article.
  7. Simon, K. A., & Farr, R. H. (2021). Development of the Conceptual Future Parent Grief (CFPG) scale for LGBTQ+ people. Journal of Family Psychology, 35(3), 299-310. Read the full article.
  8. Simon, K. A., *Vázquez, C. P., Bruun, S. T., & Farr, R. H. (2020). Retrospective narratives: Feelings of difference based on gender and sexuality in emerging adults. Psychology of Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity, 7(1), 26-39. Read the full article.
  9. Simon, K. A., Tornello, S. L., & Bos, H. M. W. (2019). Sexual minority women and parenthood: Perceptions of friendship among childfree and new parents. (In R. H. Farr & E. D. Rothblum, Eds., special section on lesbian family lives). Journal of Lesbian Studies, 23(4), 476-489. Read the full article.
  10. Farr, R. H., Bruun, S. T., & Simon, K. A. (2019). Family conflict observations and outcomes among adopted school-age children with lesbian, gay, and heterosexual parents. Journal of Family Psychology, 33(8), 965-974. Read the full article.

*Undergraduate (or high school) student co-author
^Graduate student co-author