Faculty

Dr. Mellissa Gordon
Associate Profressor
University of Delaware

Mellissa Gordon and I am an Associate Professor in the Human Development & Family Sciences Department at the University of Delaware. Broadly, my program of research is aimed at uncovering the underlying mechanisms and interactive effects between at-risk families and their communities on adolescent and young adult developmental outcomes. More concretely, my research examines: 1) the association between individual-level factors such as family relationships and the developmental outcomes of at-risk adolescents and young adults; 2) the mitigating and mediating effects of socio-demographic factors on these associations, and 3) the linkages between broader macro-level factors and individual-level outcomes.

My work involving youth development and sports explores the potential of youth sport programs, through its coaches, to foster physical, cognitive, and social development. I focus particularly on the ways in which coaches within their respective programs actively work to assure positive outcomes through developmentally appropriate designs and supportive child-adult (parent/coach) relationships.