Geoffrey L. Brown

Education

Research

I study social and emotional development in infancy and early childhood from both attachment and family systems perspectives. I have a particular interest in fathering, and much of my research has explored the development of the early father-child relationship and paternal contributions to early development. Past work has examined the correlates of father involvement, paternal sensitivity, and father-child attachment security. Much of my present research is focused on elucidating the developmental course of fathering, family relationships, and infant development in diverse populations, with a particular focus on African American families in resource-poor communities. We are currently funded by NIH to examine contextual factors affecting the transition to parenthood, and fathers' contributions to infant development among unmarried, African American men in rural Georgia. My research aims to contribute to a greater understanding of parenting and early development in socio-cultural context, as well as to the development of strengths-based programs designed to meet the needs of fathers, mothers, and young children facing challenging contextual circumstances.

Teaching

Undergraduate

HDFS 5110: Research Methods in Human Development and Family Science

HDFS 4860: Parenting and Child Guidance

HDFS 2950: Introduction to Child Development

HDFS 2300: The Science of Studying Human Development and Families

Graduate

HDFS 6800/8800: Quantitative Research Methods

HDFS 8950: Seminar in Fatherhood

Awards

Publications

Selected Publications

Dagan, O., Schuengel, C., Verhage, M., Madigan, S., Roisman, G.I., Bernard, K., Duschinsky, R., Bakermans-Kranenburg, M., Bureau, J-F., Sagi-Schwartz, A., Eiden, R.D., Wong, M. S., Brown, G. L., Soares, I., Oosterman, I., Fearon, P.,  Steele, H., Martins, C., Aviezer, O. (in press). Configurations of Mother-Child and Father-Child Attachment Relationships as Predictors of Child Language Competence: An Individual Participant Data Meta-Analysis. Child Development.

Thomas, C., Collins, C., Aytuglu, A., & Brown, G. L. (in press). Life stress and unmarried, Black fathers’ attitudes toward attachment: The moderating role of shift-and-persist. Psychology of Men and Masculinities.

Aytuglu, A., Dost, A., & Brown, G. (2023). Narrative Identity and Positive Youth Development in Turkish Emerging Adults: The Moderating Role of Cultural Self-Construals. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 10, 3220-3243.

Stanford, Futris, T., Richardson, E. W., Koss, K., & Brown, G. L. (2022) Social Integration Buffers the Impact of Financial Distress on Coparenting. Journal of Family Psychology, 36, 919-931.

Brown, G. L., Mangelsdorf, S. C., Neff, C. N., Shigeto, A. S., Aytuglu, A., & Thomas, C. R. (2022). Infant Attachment Configurations with Mothers and Fathers: Implications for Triadic Interaction Quality and Children’s Parental Preferences. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 58, 155-164.

Aytuglu, A., & Brown, G. L. (2022). Pleasure in Parenting as a Mediator between Fathers’ Attachment Representations and Paternal Sensitivity. Journal of Family Psychology, 36, 427-437.

Brown, G. L., Kogan, S. M., & Cho, J. (2020). Pathways linking childhood trauma to rural, unmarried, African American father involvement through oxytocin receptor gene methylation. Developmental Psychology, 56, 1496-1508.

Mallette, J. K., Futris, T. G., Oshri, A., Brown, G. L., (2020). Paternal support and involvement in unmarried fragile families: Impacts on long-term maternal functioning. Family Process, 59, 789-806.

Brown, G. L. & Cox, M. J. (2020). Fathers’ pleasure in parenting and infant-father attachment. Attachment and Human Development, 22, 51-65.

Brown, G. L., Mangelsdorf, S. C., Shigeto, A., & Wong, M. S. (2018). Associations between father involvement and father-child attachment security: Variations based on timing and type of involvement. Journal of Family Psychology, 32, 1015-1024.

Brown, G. L., Kogan, S. M., & Kim, J. (2018). From fathers to sons: The intergenerational transmission of parenting behavior among African American young men. Family Process, 57, 165-180.

Brown, G. L., Gustafsson, H. C., Mills-Koonce, W. R., & Cox, M. J. (2017). Associations between early caregiving and rural, low-SES, African American children’s representations of attachment relationships. Attachment and Human Development, 19, 340-363.

Gustafsson, H. C., Brown, G. L., Mills-Koonce, W. R., Cox, M. J., & The Family Life Project Key Investigators (2017). Intimate partner violence and children's attachment representations during middle childhood. Journal of Marriage and Family, 79, 865-878.

Kogan, S. M., Yu, T., & Brown, G. L. (2016). Romantic relationship commitment behavior among emerging adult African American men. Journal of Marriage and Family, 78, 996-1012.

Brown, G. L., Craig, A. B., & Halberstadt, A. G. (2015).  Gender differences in parents’ emotion socialization vary by ethnicity and child gender.  Parenting: Science and Practice, 15, 135-137.

Barton, A.W., Kogan, S. M., Cho, J., & Brown, G. L. (2015). Father involvement and young, rural African American men's engagement in substance misuse and multiple sexual partnerships. American Journal of Community Psychology, 56, 241-251.

Shigeto, A., Mangelsdorf, S. C., & Brown, G. L. (2014).  Roles of family cohesiveness, marital adjustment, and child temperament in predicting child behavior with mothers and fathers.  Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 31, 200-220.

Brown, G. L., Mangelsdorf, S. C., & Neff, C. (2012).  Father involvement, paternal sensitivity, and father-child attachment security in the first three years.  Journal of Family Psychology, 26, 421-430.

Brown, G. L., McBride, B. A., Bost, K. K., & Shin, N. (2011). Parental involvement, child temperament, and parents' work hours: Differential relations for mothers and fathers. Journal Of Applied Developmental Psychology, 32, 313-322.

Brown, G. L., Schoppe-Sullivan, S. J., Mangelsdorf, S. C., & Neff, C. (2010).  Observed and reported supportive coparenting as predictors of infant-mother and infant-father attachment security.  Early Child Development and Care, 180, 121-137.

Wong, M. S., Mangelsdorf, S. C., Brown, G. L., Neff, C., Schoppe-Sullivan, S. J., & Sokolowski, M. S. (2009).  Antecedents of mother- and father-infant attachment: Infant temperament, beliefs about paternal roles, and marital quality.  Journal of Family Psychology, 23, 828-838. 

Brown, G. L., Mangelsdorf, S. C., Neff, C., Schoppe-Sullivan, S. J., & Frosch, C. A. (2009). Young children’s self-concepts: Associations with child temperament, mothers’ and fathers’ parenting, and triadic family interaction. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 55, 184-216.

Schoppe-Sullivan, S. J., Brown, G. L., Cannon, E. A., Mangelsdorf, S. C., & Sokolowski, M. (2008). Maternal gatekeeping, coparenting quality, and fathering behavior in families with infants. Journal Of Family Psychology, 22, 389-398.

Brown, G. L., Mangelsdorf, S. C., Agathen, J. M., & Ho, R. M. (2008).  Young children’s psychological selves: Convergence with maternal reports of child personality.  Social Development, 17, 161-182.

Brown, G. L., McBride, B. A., Shin, N., & Bost, K. K. (2007).  Parenting predictors of father-child attachment security: Interactive effects of father involvement and fathering quality.  Fathering, 5, 197-219.