Adelphi’s Derner Institute Appoints Two New Faculty Members

By Bonnie Eissner

Laura E. Brumariu, Ph.D., and M. Joy McClure, Ph.D., have been appointed to the faculty of Adelphi’s Gordon F. Derner Institute of Advanced Psychological Studies.

“The entire Derner faculty and all the students are delighted that Drs. Brumariu and McClure have joined us this year,” said Derner Institute Dean Jacques P. Barber, Ph.D. “They bring substantial scholarly experience and expertise in two important and rapidly expanding areas of psychology—child clinical and social psychology—and they will teach and mentor students at the undergraduate and graduate levels.”

Dr. Brumariu holds a Ph.D. from Kent State University and was a research fellow in the clinical research training program at Harvard Medical School. “My research explores how and why children’s relationships with attachment figures influence their social and emotional development,” she explains in her online faculty profile. One focus, in particular, is creating and testing models that can elucidate how attachment, combined with factors such as temperament, peer relationships and emotion regulation, may foretell the development or maintenance of childhood anxiety. She writes, “I am also interested in questions regarding the best approaches to assessing attachment, particularly in middle childhood.” Additional details about her research are available from Dr. Brumariu’s online profile.

Dr. McClure earned her Ph.D. at McGill University, supported by fellowships from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC). She then pursued postdoctoral work at Columbia University with a postdoctoral fellowship from the Fonds Québécois de la Recherche sur la Société et la Culture (FQRSC). Dr. McClure sums up the theme of her research as examining our fundamental psychological need to belong. She writes: “I am particularly interested in two interconnected questions: First, how do we reconcile our desire to connect with others with the similarly deep-seated desire to protect the self from social pain (e.g., rejection, ostracism, etc.)? Second, how do acute or chronic experiences of social pain affect our feelings and motivations, and so our thoughts and behavior?” Her field work includes collecting data from speed dating situations and daily diaries. She also conducts laboratory experiments, such as social dilemma games and videotaped interactions. Further information about her research is accessible on Dr. McClure’s online profile.

Both Dr. Brumariu and Dr. McClure have collaborated with colleagues to publish papers in prominent refereed journals, and they have published book chapters.