Research
I am interested in research that improves the development, implementation, and evaluation of evidence-based therapies for families affected by adversity (e.g., poverty, child maltreatment, neglect, intimate partner violence, community violence, housing instability). I conceptualize adversity dimensionally, appreciating that different forms of adversity have both shared and distinct implications for cognitive, emotional, psychological, and physical development. I aim to better understand how dimensions of adversity are associated with both broad and specific forms of psychopathology. By merging dimensional conceptualizations of adversity with hierarchical models of psychopathology (which acknowledge shared and distinct components of psychological syndromes and symptoms), I hope to improve our understanding of how developmental processes unfold after childhood adversity so that we can better serve families in the future. To this end, my program of research comprises three primary arms: 1) Examining risk and resilience in families affected by adversity; 2) Evaluation of interventions for families experiencing adversity; and 3) Understanding the implications of adversity for cognitive development.
Risk and resilience processes
Aimed at understanding both individual and systemic factors that influence the occurrence of adverse experiences and their associated outcomes, I have published work highlighting disparities in IPV exposure and treatment access, as well as research that identifies malleable targets for intervention to promote resilience following IPV exposure.
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Representative publications:
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Clark, H. M., Galano, M. M., Grogan-Kaylor, A. C., Montalvo-Liendo, N., & Graham-Bermann, S. A. (2016). Ethnoracial variation in women’s exposure to intimate partner violence. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 31, 531-552. https://doi.org/10.1177/0886260514555871
Adams, E. N., Clark, H. M., Galano, M. M., Stein, S. F., Grogan-Kaylor, A. C., & Graham-Bermann, S. A. (2018). Predictors of housing instability in women who have experienced intimate partner violence. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 36(7-8), 3459-3481. https://doi.org/10.1177/0886260518777001
Clark, H. M., Hankin, B. L., Narayan, A. J., & Davis, E. P. (2023). Risk and resilience factors for psychopathology during pregnancy: An application of the Hierarchical Taxonomy of Psychopathology (HiTOP). Development and Psychopathology. Published online ahead of print. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0954579422001390
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Intervention
I have contributed to several long-term, randomized controlled trials (RCTs) to evaluate treatments for families experiencing adversity. These projects include the adaptation, implementation, and evaluation of an evidence-based intervention for Spanish-speaking Latinx families affected by intimate partner violence (IPV) as well as an eight-year evaluation of an intervention for preschool-aged children and their mothers who had experienced IPV.
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Representative publications:
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Clark, H. M., Grogan-Kaylor, A. C., Galano, M. M., Stein, S. F., Montalvo-Liendo, N., & Graham-Bermann, S. A. (2018). Reducing intimate partner violence among Latinas through the Moms’ Empowerment Program: An efficacy trial. Journal of Family Violence, 33, 257-268. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10896-018-9957
Clark, H. M., Grogan-Kaylor, A. C., Galano, M. M., Stein, S. F., & Graham-Bermann, S. A. (2018). Moms’ Empowerment Program participation associated with improved physical health among Latinas experiencing intimate partner violence. Pan American Journal of Public Health, 42, e39. https://doi.org/10.26633/RPSP.2018.39
Clark, H. M., Galano, M. M., Grogan-Kaylor, A. C., Stein, S. F., & Graham-Bermann, S. A. (2021). Treating attention problems in children exposed to intimate partner violence: Evaluating the Preschool Kids' Club. Children and Youth Services Review, 128, 106138. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2021.106138
Cognitive development
In an extension of my undergraduate training in cognitive science, my dissertation work examined the longitudinal impact of IPV experiences on women and children’s executive functioning. I have also contributed as co-author on several studies examining perceptions of threat and controllability in IPV-exposed youth. These findings point to both structural and individual targets for prevention and intervention efforts to reduce adversity and its sequelae.
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Representative publications:
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Clark, H. M., Grogan-Kaylor, A. C., Galano, M. M., Stein, S. F., & Graham-Bermann, S. A. (2021). Preschoolers’ intimate partner violence exposure and their speeded control abilities 8 years later: A longitudinal mediation analysis. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 37(19-20), NP18496-NP18523. https://doi.org/10.1177/08862605211035883
Grogan-Kaylor, A. C., Stein, S. F., Clark, H. M., Galano, M. M., & Graham-Bermann, S. A. (2017). Profiles of children’s thinking about violence in families exposed to intimate partner violence. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 26, 2824-2833. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-017-0787-4
Clark, H. M., & Hankin, B. L. (2023). Exposure to intimate partner violence alters longitudinal associations between caregiver depressive symptoms and youth effortful control. Development and Psychopathology. Published online ahead of print. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0954579423000615