Jessica Stern

Assistant Professor of Psychological Science
With Pomona Since: 2024
  • Expertise

    Expertise

    Jessie Stern is a developmental scientist with expertise in attachment theory, close relationships, and child development. Her research examines the role of relationships (with parents, peers, and other social supports) in predicting developmental outcomes in childhood and adolescence—including neurobiological, social, and mental health outcomes. Current projects examine intergenerational processes of risk and resilience, with attention to the role of children's racial-ethnic identity, gender, culture, and socioeconomic context.

    Beyond the lab, Dr. Stern participates in science communication and policy advocacy efforts. Her work has received coverage by Scientific American, CNN, Psychology Today, and The Conversation. She also provides trainings to youth- and family-serving organizations in the community.

    Research Interests

    • Parenting and family relationships
    • Early childhood brain development
    • Social-emotional development over the life course
    • Psychology of empathy and prosocial behavior

    Areas of Expertise

    PSYCHOLOGY

    • Developmental Psychology
    • Family Processes
    • Child and Adolescent Development
    • Developmental Psychopathology

    NEUROSCIENCE

    • Developmental Neuroscience
  • Work

    Work

    Selected Publications

    Stern, J. A., Kelsey, C. M., Yancey, H., & Grossmann, T. (2024). Love on the developing brain: Maternal sensitivity and infants’ neural responses to emotion in the dlPFC. Developmental Science, e13497.

    Stern, J. A., Bailey, N. A., Costello, M. A., Hellwig, A. F., Mitchell, J., & Allen, J. P. (2024). Empathy across three generations: From maternal and peer support in adolescence to adult parenting and child outcomes. Child Development.

    Stern, J. A., Coard, S. I., Barbarin, O. A., & Cassidy, J. (2024). What attachment researchers can learn from research on Black family resilience. Child Development Perspectives, 18, 10–18.

    Stern, J. A., Bailey, N. B., Costello, M. A., Hazelwood, O. A., & Allen, J. P. (2024). Fathers’ contributions to attachment in adolescence and adulthood: The moderating role of race, gender, income, and residential status. Attachment & Human Development, 26, 325–349.

    Stern, J. A., & Grossmann, T. (2024). The neuroscience of social relationships in early development. In M. A. Bell (Ed.), Child development at the intersection of emotion and cognition (2nd ed., pp. 11–30). American Psychological Association.

    Stern, J. A., Kelsey, C. M., Krol, K. M., & Grossmann, T. (2023). Maternal recognition of positive emotion predicts sensitive parenting in infancy. Emotion, 23, 1506–1512.

    Whittenburg,* P., Stern,* J. A., Brett, B. E., Straske, M. D., & Cassidy, J. (2023). Maternal depressive symptoms and child behavior problems: Attachment security as a protective factor. Development and Psychopathology, 35, 678–688.
    * = Shared first author with student mentee

    Stern, J. A., Barbarin, O. A., & Cassidy, J. (2022). Working toward anti-racist perspectives in attachment theory, research, and practice. Attachment & Human Development, 24, 392–422.

    Stern, J. A., Botdorf, M., Cassidy, J., & Riggins, T. (2019). Empathy and hippocampal volume in young children. Developmental Psychology, 55, 1908-1920.

    Stern, J. A., & Cassidy, J. (2018). Empathy from infancy to adolescence: An attachment perspective on the development of individual differences. Developmental Review, 47, 1–22.

  • Education

    Education

    Ph.D.
    University of Maryland, College Park

    Master of Science
    University of Maryland, College Park

    Bachelor of Arts
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  • Awards & Honors

    Awards & Honors

    Mind & Life Institute, PEACE Grant, Samuel B. Hanser Visionary Grant, 2023–2025

    University of Virginia Brain Institute and Baby Brain Initiative, Transformative Neurodevelopment Pilot Grant, 2021–2022

    National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Research Service Award/ F32 Postdoctoral Fellowship, 2020–2023

    Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Climate Impact Small Research Grant, 2020–2021

    Society for Research on Child Development, Dissertation Funding Award, 2018–2019

    Milton Dean Havron Social Sciences Award for Excellence in Graduate Study, 2018

    University of Maryland Dean’s Research Initiative, Dissertation Research Grant, 2018–2019

    National Science Foundation, Graduate Research Fellowship Program, 2015–2018

    University of Maryland, Dean’s Fellowship, 2014, 2018

    University of Maryland, Flagship Fellowship, 2014–2019