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Faculty

 Sydney Hans, Ph.D.

- Biography
- Publications

Biography

Sydney Hans is Samuel Deutsch Professor at the School of Social Service Administration at the University of Chicago. Her research seeks to understand how biological and social factors interact in contributing to risk and resilience in human development. She studies how experiences in early life, particularly the relationship between mother and infant, influence development at later ages. She has conducted studies focusing on the development of young children whose parents use illicit substances, suffer from major mental disorders, have experienced traumatic events, and/or live in conditions of extreme poverty. She is particularly interested in using research to develop interventions and public policy that will benefit infants, young children, and their families. She currently is engaged in implementing and evaluating intervention programs in which paraprofessional "doulas" provide childbirth education and support to adolescent mothers. Professor Hans' research has been supported by a variety of private foundations and public agencies, including the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), and the Maternal and Child Health Bureau. She is currently serves as an associate editor of Developmental Psychology and on the editorial board of Psychology of Addictive Behaviors.

Professor Hans teaches Human Behavior in the Social Environment, the introductory course in the family support program, and doctoral courses in life course development theory and research. She is chair of the doctoral program at SSA and the director of the Irving B. Harris Infant Mental Health Training Program at the University of Chicago.

Professor Hans graduated with a B.S. in Human Development and Family Studies from Cornell University and received her Ph.D. in Psychology and Social Relations from Harvard University. Prior to coming to SSA, she was on the faculty in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Chicago.

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Publications
  • Melnick, S., Finger, B., Hans, S., Patrick, M. & Lyons-Ruth, K. In press. "Pervasively unintegrated/hostile-helpless states of mind on the Adult Attachment Interview": Implications for the intergenerational transmission of disorganized attachment. In Clinical applications of the Adult Attachment Interview, eds. H. Steele & M. Steele. New York: Guilford.
  • Hans, S.L. & Thullen, M.J. In press. The relational context of adolescent motherhood. In Handbook of infant mental health, 3rd edition, ed. C. Zeanah. New York: Guilford Press.
  • Auerbach, J.G., Erlenmeyer-Kimling, L., Fish, B., Hans, S.L., Ingraham, L.J., Marcus, J., McNeil, T.F. & Schubert, E. In press. "Genetic risk for schizophrenia": Findings from prospective longitudinal high risk studies. In Handbook of behavioral genetics, ed.Y.-K. Kim. New York: Springer.
  • Melnick, S., Finger, B., Hans, S., Hobson, R. P., Patrick, M., & Lyons-Ruth, K. In press. "Pervasively Unintegrated/Hostile-helpless States of Mind on the Adult Attachment Interview": Implications for the Intergenerational Transmission of Disorganized Attachment. In H. Steele & M. Steele (eds.), Clinical Uses of the Adult Attachment Interview.
  • Sokolowski, M.S., Hans, S.L., Bernstein,V.J. & Cox, S. In press. Mothers' representations of their infants and parenting behavior: Associations with personal and social-contextual variables in a high-risk sample. Infant Mental Health Journal 28: 344-365.
  • Hans, S.L. 2007. Review of "Developmental origins of aggression," eds. R.E. Tremblay, W.W. Hartup & J. Archer. Social Service Review 81(1): 178-180.
  • Dukic, V.M., Niessner,M., Benowitz, N., Hans, S. & Wakschlag, L. 2007. Modeling the relationship of cotinine and self-reported measures of maternal smoking during pregnancy: A deterministic approach. Nicotine and Tobacco Research 9: 453-465.
  • Hans, S.L. 2006. "Mothering and depression." In Women's mental health, eds. S.E. Romans & M.V. Seeman, 311-320. Philadelphia: Lippincott, Williams &Wilkins.
  • Hans, S.L. 2005. Review of "Adult attachment: Theory, research, and clinical implications," eds. W.S. Rholes & J.A. Simpson. Social Service Review 79(3): 566-568.
  • Erlenmeyer-Kimling, L., Hans, S., Ingraham, L., Marcus, J.,Wynne, L., Rehman, A., Roberts, S.A. & Auerbach, J. 2005. Handedness in children of schizophrenic parents: Data from three high-risk studies. Behavior Genetics 35(3): 351-385.
  • Bernstein,V., Harris, E.J., Long, C.W., Iida, E. & Hans, S.L. 2005. Issues in the multicultural assessment of parent-child interaction: An exploratory study from the starting early, starting smart collaboration. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology 26: 241-275.
  • Hans, S.L., Auerbach, J.G., Auerbach, A.G. & Marcus, J. 2005. Development from birth to adolescence of children at risk for schizophrenia. Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychopharmacology 15: 384-394.
  • Goodman, G., Hans, S.L. & Bernstein,V.J. 2005. Mother expectation of bother and infant attachment behaviors as predictors of mother and child communication at 24 months in children of methadone-maintained women. Infant Mental Health Journal 26: 549-569.
  • Hans, S.L., Auerbach, J.G., Styr, B. & Marcus, J. 2004. Offspring of schizophrenic parents: Mental disorders during childhood and adolescence. Schizophrenia Bulletin 30: 303-315.
  • Wakschlag, L.S., & Hans, S.L. 2002. "Maternal Smoking during Pregnancy and Conduct Problems in High-Risk Youth: A Developmental Framework." Development and Psychopathology 14: 351-369.
  • Hans, S.L. 2002. "Studies of Prenatal Exposure to Drugs: Focusing on Parental Care of Children." Neurotoxicology and Teratology 24: 329-337.
  • Behnke, E.F., & Hans, S.L. 2002. "Becoming a Doula." Zero to Three 23: 9-13.
  • Hans, S.L., & Korfmacher, J. 2002. "The Professional Development of Paraprofessionals." Zero to Three 23: 4‑8.
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