Brett Laursen
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Professor and Graduate Studies Coordinator
Ph.D. (Child Psychology) 1989
University of Minnesota
Honorary Doctorate (2008)
Örebro University, Sweden
Methods and Measures Editor
International Journal of Behavioral Development
Contact Information
Office: Education and Science 270
Telephone: (954) 236-1121
Fax: (954) 236-1242
E-mail: laursen@fau.edu
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Research Interests
Brett Laursen's research concerns parent-child and peer relationships during
childhood and adolescence. A related focus is on quantitative developmental
methodology.
Professor Laursen is currently involved in several longitudinal projects.
The first study concerns children, initially identified by their peers as
aggressive or withdrawn during elementary school, who have been followed
through middle school and into high school. This inquiry focuses on the role
parent-child and friend relationships play in shaping adjustment and
developmental trajectories. Professor Ken Rubin of the University of Maryland
directs this project. The second study concerns a diverse sample of South
Florida youth, their parents, and their friends. This inquiry focuses on
normative changes in family and friend relationships across the adolescent
years, and will help us to better understand how relationships shape adolescent
social and academic competence. A third study involves the nature and course of
romantic relationships across adolescence and early adulthood in a sample of
Colorado youth. Professor Wyndol
Furman of the University of Denver directs this project. A fourth study
involves peer influence processes and problem behaviors in a large community
sample of Swedish youth. Professor Margaret Kerr and Håkan Stattin direct this
projects. A fifth study involves a California program designed to foster the
acquisition of computer literacy skills among middle school students. Students who receive solo instruction
will be contrasted with those who learn programming skills with a peer. Dr.
Jill Denner and Professor Emily Werner direct this project.
Professor Laursen is Docent Professor of Social Developmental Psychology at
the University of Jyväskylä, Finland, and is a member of the Finnish Center of
Excellence in Learning and Motivation Research, where he collaborates on
several longitudinal studies on peer relations and academic achievement under
the direction of Professor Jari-Erik Nurmi.
Brett Laursen has received research support from the US National Institute
of Child Health and Human Development, the US National Institute of Mental
Health, the US National Science Foundation, and the Jacobs Foundation.
Professor Laursen is a Fellow in the American Psychological Association
(Division 7, Developmental), and a Fellow and Charter Member of the Association
for Psychological Science.
Teaching and research assistant positions are available for new graduate
students for the next academic year. Interested students should contact
Professor Laursen for details. Current and former graduate students are also
available to answer questions about the program.
Select Recent Publications
Burk, W. J., & Laursen,
B. (in press). Separating shared variance from individual variance in
associations between indices of adolescent adjustment and characteristics of
mother-child relationships. Journal
of Abnormal Child Psychology.
Laursen, B., & Hafen, C. A.
(in press). Future directions in the study of close relationships: Conflict is
bad (except when it’s not). Social
Development.
Laursen, B., Hafen, C. A.,
Rubin, K. H., Booth-LaForce, C., & Rose-Krasnor, L. (in press). The distinctive difficulties of
disagreeable youth. Merrill-Palmer
Quarterly.
Hafen, C. A., & Laursen, B.
(2009). More problems and less
support: Early adolescent
adjustment forecasts changes in perceived support from parents. Journal of Family Psychology, 23, 193-202.
Popp, D., Laursen, B., Burk, W.
J., Kerr, M., & Stattin, M. (2008). Modeling homophily over time with an
actor-partner interdependence model. Developmental Psychology, 44,
1028-1039.
Pursell, G. R., Laursen, B.,
Rubin, K. H., Booth-LaForce, C., & Rose-Krasnor, L. (2008). Gender
differences in patterns of association between prosocial behavior, personality,
and externalizing problems. Journal of Research in Personality, 42, 472-481.
Adams, R.E., & Laursen, B.
(2007). The correlates of conflict: Disagreement is not always detrimental. Journal
of Family Psychology, 21, 445-458.
Laursen, B., Bukowski, W.M.,
Aunola, K., & Nurmi, J.-E. (2007). Friendship moderates prospective
associations between social isolation and adjustment problems in young
children. Child Development, 78, 1395-1404.
Laursen, B., Furman, W., &
Mooney, K.S. (2006). Predicting interpersonal competence and self-worth from
adolescent relationships and relationship networks: Person-centered and
variable-centered perspectives. Merril-Palmer Quarterly, 52, 572-600.
Burk, W. J., & Laursen, B.
(2005). Adolescent perceptions of
friendship and their associations with individual adjustment. International Journal of Behavioral
Development, 29, 156-164.
Books and Monographs
Rubin, K. H.,
Bukowski, W. M., & Laursen, B. (Eds.) (2009). Handbook of peer
interactions, relationships, and groups. New York: Guilford.
Bukowski, W.
M., Laursen, B., & Rubin, K. H. (Series Eds.) (2009). Social and emotional
development: Critical concepts of developmental psychology. New York:
Psychology Press.
Laursen, B.,
& Žukauskienė, R. (Eds.) (2007). Interpersonal development. Hampshire,
UK: Ashgate. New York: Psychology Press.
Laursen, B.,
& Graziano, W. G. (Eds.) (2002). Social exchange in development. New
Directions for Child and Adolescent Development (No. 95). San Francisco:
Jossey-Bass.
Collins, W. A.,
& Laursen, B. (Eds.) (1999). The Minnesota Symposia on Child Psychology:
Vol. 30. Relationships as developmental contexts. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
Laursen, B.
(Ed.) (1993). Close friendships in adolescence. New Directions for Child Development (No. 60). San
Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
