Elizabeth McFarlane, PhD
Associate Professor
Academic Degrees
- PhD (Educational Psychology), University of Hawai‘i
- MPH (International Health), University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa
- BA (Kinesiology), University of Colorado
Courses Taught
Elizabeth McFarlane, MPH, PhD is Associate Professor of Public Health at in the Office of Public Health Studies and Associate Scientist in the Department of Population, Family and Reproductive Health at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. She has 20 plus years of experience as an early childhood intervention scientist whose work informs programs and policies focused on children born into families experiencing risk. Her research takes an ecological perspective, considering the influence of disparate home, school, community, and policy contexts on child health and development. In studying the role of the family, she has focused especially on parenting, carrying out longitudinal studies to assess the effectiveness of home visiting to prevent child maltreatment and promote child health, development and school readiness. In her role as Principal Investigator and Co-Investigator across a range of studies, Dr. McFarlane has worked closely with federal and state leadership, community stakeholders, and program participants to design and successfully implement interventions and study protocols. She partners with families and community to inform developmental and implementation science and shape public policy to eliminate maternal and child health disparities.
Awards & Honors
- Pro Humanitate Medal, Herbert A. Raskin Child Welfare Article Award, Center for Child Welfare Policy of the North American Resource Center for Child Welfare, 2005.
Research Interests
- Child Health and Development
- Maltreatment Prevention
- Fidelity
- Health Equity
- Home Visiting
- Implementation Science
- Maternal Health
- Maternal Stress
- Parenting
- Prevention
- Parent Child Interaction
Selected Current Research
Title: Positively Moms: Home Visiting Enhancement to Lower Maternal Stress
Sponsor: O’Neill Foundation
Project Objective: Experimental test of the feasibility and impact of a home visiting service model enhancement to reduce maternal stress and depression.
Title: Maternal and Infant Early Childhood Home Visiting
Sponsor: HRSA, Hawaii Department of Health
Project Objective: Evaluative implementation and outcome research focused on Hawaii’s statewide network of program sites using models categorized by DHHS as evidence-based.
Additional Information
Personal Statement of Research Objectives: My professional goals are to reduce health and developmental disparities and to optimize the health and development of children birth to middle childhood via integrated epidemiologic, clinical, and services research to promote the effectiveness and efficiency of health, educational, and social services for families with young children.
Selected Publications
McFarlane, E., Crowne, S. S., Burrell, L., & Duggan, A. Home visiting service delivery and outcomes for depressed mothers. Zero to Three, 2014; 34 (5), 53–60.
McFarlane E, Burrell L, Crowne S, Cluxton-Keller F, Fuddy L, Leaf P. and Duggan A. Maternal Relationship Security as a Moderator of Home Visiting Impacts on Maternal Psychosocial Functioning. Prevention Science 2012: 10.1007/s11121-012-0297-y.
McFarlane E, Dodge R, Burrell L, Crowne S, Cheng T, and Duggan A. The Importance of Early Parenting in At-Risk Families and Children's Social-Emotional Adaptation to School Academic Pediatrics. 2010: 10(5):330-7.
McFarlane E, Burrell L, Tandon D, Derauf D, Fuddy L, Leaf P, and Duggan A. Association of home visitors and mothers attachment style with family engagement. Journal of Community Psychology. 2010; 38(5):541-556.
Bair-Merritt MH, Jennings JM, Chen R, Burrell L, McFarlane E, Fuddy L, and Duggan A. Reducing maternal intimate partner violence after the birth of a child. Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine. 2010;164(1):16-23.