February 1, 2005

Sibling gender dynamics expert to speak at Vanderbilt Kennedy Center

How do children‘s relationships with siblings affect their overall social development? Family researcher Susan McHale, professor of human development at Pennsylvania State University, will discuss her research on the impact of sibling relationships on family dynamics at the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center for Research on Human Development Thursday, Feb. 3, at 4 p.m.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — How do children‘s relationships with siblings
affect their overall social development? Family researcher Susan
McHale, professor of human development at Pennsylvania State
University, will discuss her research on the impact of sibling
relationships on family dynamics at the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center for
Research on Human Development Thursday, Feb. 3, at 4 p.m.

McHale studies how family dynamics — such as the different roles
brothers and sisters play, their relationships with their parents and
their access to different resources and opportunities — are linked to
their well-being and development. Her studies on these issues have
produced a rich database of information on the experiences of mothers,
fathers and siblings over time in families from a range of backgrounds
and circumstances.

McHale is the co-director of the Penn State Family Relationships
Project, a study of families funded by the National Institute of Child
Health and Human Development since 1995.

McHale‘s lecture will take place at the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center/MRL Building Room 241. It is free and open to the public.

The Vanderbilt Kennedy Center is a national center for research on
development and developmental disabilities. For more information,
contact Stephanie Comer at 615-322-8240.

Media contacts: Stephanie Comer, (615) 322-8240
Stephanie.comer@vanderbilt.edu

Melanie Catania, (615) 322-NEWS
Melanie.catania@vanderbilt.edu