Coaching Parents of Vulnerable Infants

Mary Dozier, PhD, is Unidel Amy E. du Pont Endowed Chair and Professor of Psychological and Brain Sciences at the University of Delaware. She studies the development of young children in foster care and young children living with neglectful birth parents, examining challenges in attachment and regulatory capabilities. Along with her graduate students and research team, she developed the Attachment and Biobehavioral Catch-up (ABC) parenting program for parents of vulnerable infants. Through randomized clinical trials, ABC has been demonstrated to be effective in enhancing parental sensitivity and children’s behavioral and biological functioning. At the University of Delaware, Dr. Dozier has been named the Francis Alison Professor, the university's highest faculty honor. She has also received the Translational Research Award from the International Congress on Infant Studies and the Urie Bronfenbrenner Award for Lifetime Contribution in Developmental Psychology in the Service of Science and Society from the American Psychological Association.

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Kristin Bernard, PhD, is Associate Professor of Psychology and Director of the Developmental Stress and Prevention Lab at Stony Brook University. As a graduate student, Dr. Bernard worked with Mary Dozier on the development and evaluation of Attachment and Biobehavioral Catch-Up (ABC), and delivered the intervention as a parent coach. She continues to collaborate with Dr. Dozier and her team on evaluations of ABC's efficacy and is leading dissemination efforts in New York City in collaboration with Power of Two and the Administration for Children’s Services. Dr. Bernard is a recipient of the Early Career Award for Outstanding Contributions to Benefit Children, Youth, and Families from the American Psychological Association.