{"id":66,"date":"2020-07-16T18:10:15","date_gmt":"2020-07-16T18:10:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sas.wdev.rochester.edu\/psy\/research\/rcf\/?page_id=66"},"modified":"2026-10-06T13:54:03","modified_gmt":"2026-10-06T13:54:03","slug":"home","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/sites.rochester.edu\/rcf\/","title":{"rendered":"Home"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

The Rochester Center for Research on Children and Families (RCRCF) is directed by
\nDr. Patrick Davies, Dr. Melissa Sturge-Apple, and Dr. Zhi Li. We are affiliated with
\nthe department of Psychology at the University of Rochester and are also based at the
\nMount Hope Family Center<\/a>.
\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Rochester Center for Research on Children and Families seeks to better understand
\nchildren’s adaptation and maladaptation within the context of family relationships and
\nprocesses. Informed by the developmental psychopathology emphasis on risk and resilience, our work is focused on elucidating the costs and benefits of children’s specific patterns of responding to family processes. The center currently houses several projects, including several large scale, multi-method, multi-level longitudinal research studies funded by the National Institutes of Health.<\/p>\n

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\nRCRCF takes on
\nSRCD ’25 in
\nMinneapolis!
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As a more specific guide to characterizing how children adjust to family challenges,
\nour theoretical models and research studies are framed by ethological and evolutionary
\nconceptualizations. Using these conceptualizations affords an opportunity to carefully:<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    \n
  1. Distinguish between different patterns of children’s adaptation to specific family
    \n(e.g., interparental, parent-child, sibling) and interpersonal
    \n(e.g., peers, friendships) contexts.<\/li>\n
  2. Understand the developmental advantages and disadvantages of adopting each of these
    \nresponse patterns for long-term mental and physical health.<\/li>\n
  3. Identify the earlier child attributes (e.g., temperament) that serve as precursors
    \nto these different patterns of coping in family and interpersonal relationships.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/div>\n

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    We utilize this approach to address a variety of questions of high public health
    \nsignificance, including understanding the nature, origins, and health sequelae of
    \nchildren’s individual differences in their reactivity to different forms of family
    \nconflict (e.g., interparental, sibling), parent-child attachment quality, and stressful
    \npeer relationships. A guiding theme across the areas is an emphasis on understanding
    \nhow differences in children’s success of achieving security and safety in these
    \ndifferent interpersonal contexts may inform pathways between earlier family experiences and children’s psychological and physical functioning from infancy through adolescence.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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    “`<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    The Rochester Center for Research on Children and Families (RCRCF) is directed by Dr. Patrick Davies, Dr. Melissa Sturge-Apple, and Dr. Zhi Li. 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