Research Projects, Labs & Outreach
About our research
Family social science faculty are renowned researchers who use the knowledge and methods of the social sciences to conduct research and outreach in partnership with families, communities, and organizations to address psychological, cultural, social, and economic issues affecting families locally, nationally, and globally.
Faculty mentor undergraduate and graduate students and collaborate with them to examine families and their interactions with – and within – diverse environments and systems.
Research areas
- Child adjustment in family context
- Families and culture
- Families and financial decisions
- Family formation and intergenerational studies
- Families, loss, and trauma
- Intimate family relationships
Dworkin TECH Lab
Faculty: Jodi Dworkin
This project is interested in gaining a better understanding of the ways in which—and the reasons why—parents use technology. Ongoing studies of technology use and parent story-gathering are featured.
Topics:
- Technology and family development
- Promoting positive family development
- Strengthening families
- Family education
- Parenting adolescents and college students
Knowledge for Parents
Faculty: Chris Mehus
The mission of this research is to ensure all parents and caregivers have the resources they need to accomplish their goals in raising their children.
Topics:
- Prevention science
- Strengthening families
- Mental Health
- Intergenerational relationships
Immigrant and Refugee Families
Faculty: Catherine Solheim
The goal of the Immigrant and Refugee Families lab is to advance interdisciplinary, social justice scholarship with immigrant and refugee families.
Topics:
- Families and culture
- Refugee family resettlement and adjustment
- Families & conflict
- Family economics
- Transnational family systems
- International education
- Globalization
- Ambiguous Loss
- Human ecology
- Social Justice theories
- Qualitative research methods
Minnesota Couples on the Brink Project
Faculty: Steven Harris
Develops, disseminates, and evaluates best practices to help couples at high risk for divorce and who are uncertain decide whether to divorce or to try to rebuild their marriage.
Topics:
Marriage and Couple Therapy
Relational decision-making
Prevention of unnecessary divorce
Couples and intimacy
Family therapy ethics and professional development
Parenting College Students
Faculty: Jodi Dworkin
This website provides comprehensive resources to parents of college students to support and empower successful transitions to college, increasing responsibility, and good decision-making skills.
Topics:
- Technology and family development
- Promoting positive family development
- Strengthening families
- Parenting adolescents and college students
- Health and wellness
- Alcohol use
- Financial skills
Piehler Lab
Faculty: Tim Piehler
The Piehler Lab conducts research focused on developing and evaluating preventive and clinical interventions in the areas of youth mental health and substance use with the goal to develop better targeted and tailored programming that addresses the unique needs of diverse youth and families.
Topics:
- Prevention Science
- Child and adolescent mental health
- Adolescent substance use
- Family-focused prevention programming
The Weiler Lab
Faculty: Lindsey Weiler
We develop, test, and optimize preventive interventions for youth and families. The goal is to identify effective strategies for fostering healthy development.
Topics:
- Children/adolescent mental health
- Adverse Childhood Experiences
- Prevention Science
- Development and testing of preventive interventions
- Community psychology
- Community services & supports
- Family systems
- Family violence
- Psychological stress