Deborah J. Johnson, Ph.D., Professor
Family & Child Ecology
College of Social Sciences
103 Human Ecology
Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI 48824
Phone: 517.432.9115
Fax: 517.353.8751
john1442@msu.edu

Biosketch: Johnson studies status-based, racial, and culturally-related development, parental socialization, and parent/child relations in early and middle childhood. She primarily focuses on racial/ethnic identity development and racial socialization in varying contexts. This includes child care among African-American and other ethnic children and families, as well as among international populations - principally in Africa and Australia.

Educational Background
Ph.D. 1988 –Human Development and Social Policy, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois
MA 1983 – Human Development and Family, Cornell University
AB 1980 – Behavioral Sciences, University of Chicago

Professional Appointments
2006 - present - Acting Chair - Family & Child Ecology
1999 - present - Professor - Family & Child Ecology, MSU
2000- present - Joint appointment - Professor, Psychology, MSU

Teaching:
Undergraduate
FCE 448 Child and Family Policy
FCE 225 Ecology of Lifespan Human Development in the Family

Graduate
Child Development and Social Policy
Cross Cultural Child Development
Child Development in Diverse Cultures
Professional Development Seminar

International Teaching
2004-present. Established Study Abroad
Program: “Cultural and Community Contexts of Indigenous peoples in Western Australia.” Faculty-led 4-week summer program for
family community services major.

Indigenous Communities (course taught)
Research/Applied internship (oversight)

Publications
Selected Articles
Hughes, D., Rodriguez, J., Smith, E., Johnson, D. & Stevenson, H.(accepted). Parental preparation for success: Racial socialization strategies. Developmental Psychology.

Bates, L., Baird, D., Johnson, D.J., Lee, R., Luster, T. & Rehagen, C. (in press). Sudanese Refugee Youth in Foster Care: The “Lost Boys” in America Sudanese Refugee Youth in Foster Care: The “Lost Boys” in America. Child Welfare League of America.

Johnson, D. J., Jaeger, E., Randolph, Cauce, A., S., Ward, J. and The NICHD Early Child Care Research Network (2003). Studying the effects of early child-care experiences on the development of children of color in the US: Towards a more inclusive agenda. Child Development, 74(5), 1558-1576.

Hughes, D. & Johnson, D.J.(2001). Correlates in children's experiences of parents' racial socialization behaviors. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 63 (4), 981-995.

NICHD Early Child Care Research Network (2001). Before Head Start: Income and ethnicity, family characteristics, childcare experiences, and child development. Early Education and Development, 12, 545-576.

Johnson, D. J. (2000). “Disentangling poverty and race.” In Zeldin, Camino, Wheeler (Eds.) Special issue: Promoting adolescent development in community context: Challenges to scholars, nonprofit managers and higher education. Applied Developmental Science, Vol 4, supp 1, 55-67.

Chapters
Hunter, A. & Johnson, D.J. (in press). A certain kind of vision: Revealing Structure, Process, and Meaning in African American Families. In Jackson, Caldwell, & Sellers (Eds.). Research Methodology in African American communities.

Johnson, D. J., Slaughter-Defoe, D., Pallock, L. & Kim, E. (in press). Longitudinal analysis of the effect of the Comer intervention on children’s race related social and prosocial problem solving. In Slaughter-Defoe (Ed.). Comer intervention in middle school.

Johnson, D.J. (2005). The ecology of children’s racial coping: Family, school and community influences. In Tom Weisner (Ed.)., Discovering Successful Pathways through middle childhood: Mixed Methods (pp 87-110). MacArthur Network. University of Chicago Press.

Johnson, D. J. (2001). “Parental characteristics, racial stress and racial socialization processes as predictors of racial coping in middle childhood”. In Neal-Barnett (Ed.). Forging Links: Clinical/Developmental Perspective of African American Children (pp.57-74). Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.

Grants (Selected)
2004-2005 Excavating Culture in Parenting and Socialization Processes Among Diverse Families: An Innovative Working Conference. National Science Foundation.

1999-2004 National Institute of Child Health and Development. NICHD Study of Early Child Care: Phase III (5-year). Principal Investigator.

Awards
2006 Raine Visiting Scholar Fellowship, University of Western Australia and Telethon Child Health Research Institute

2004-07 Honorary Fellow, Telethon Children’s Health Institute of Western Australia

2002 Award for Unselfish Service to Refugees, Lansing Michigan (Church of Christ).

1998 University of Wisconsin, TRIO Program, Teaching/Mentoring Award.

1997 APA, 9th Annual MFP Achievement Award for Research.

1997 Visiting Scholar. National Center on Fathers and Families. University of Pennsylvania. April-May, 1997.

1996 Innovative Program Award. Child and Family Advocacy Institute (July, 1995).