School of Social Work News

Associate Professor Shawna Lee’s study, “Transactional family processes supporting father involvement and child socio-emotional wellbeing” received a grant from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development to examine transactional processes related to father involvement and child wellbeing in low-income families.

Research shows that low father involvement and/ or absence (LFIA) is associated with negative outcomes for children, such as greater antisocial and behavior problems, lower educational attainment, and poorer mental and physical health. Yet, relatively little is known about the family processes that are associated with and predict LFIA especially in racially diverse low-income families. In these studies, Lee and her team will examine transactional processes related to father involvement and child wellbeing in low-income families. Findings from these studies will help to identify mechanisms relevant to preventative interventions to decrease LFIA and improve child socio-emotional wellbeing in vulnerable families.

Associate Professor Shawna Lee received a grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services - Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services for the Healthy Start Engaged Father program to effectively reduce infant mortality by providing men with knowledge and resources to support the health and wellbeing of their partners during pregnancy and the perinatal period.

Associate Professor Shawna Lee's article "Promising intervention strategies to reduce parents’ use of spanking and physical punishment" was published in Child Abuse & Neglect.

Associate Professor Shawna Lee’s study, "Hugs, Not Hits: Warmth and Spanking as Predictors of Child Social Competence" was published in the Journal of Marriage & Family. Her study was also featured in a news article, “Spanking Children Does Not Make Them ‘Nicer’, But Hugging Does” which was posted on the Child and Family Blog.

Assistant Professor Shawna Lee and the Positive Tech Conference are featured in the April issue of Michigan Research. This article is also a headline in The University Record: “Faculty Members Explore the Benefits of Mobile Technology”.

Almost everyone in the USA has a smartphone and Assistant Professor Shawna Lee wants to turn your smartphone into a way to deliver psychosocial interventions to people who are underserved by social service agencies.  Her first step – a conference bringing scholars and tech experts together to innovate and create.

• Read more about Shawna's conference in the University Record »
• Visit the conference website »

Assistant Professor Shawna Lee was awarded a grant for her project, “Building Community Capacity to Implement Multilevel Parenting Support for Fathers", funded by the Michigan Institute for Clinical and Health Research's Community University Research Partnership Award.

This project will investigate ways to support fathers' engagement with service providers in the Cody Rouge neighborhood of Detroit.

Assistant Professor Shawna Lee received an award from the Skillman Foundation via the SSW Technical Assistance Center for her work in engaging fathers in parenting programs.