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- Major in Human Development and Family Studies
- Associate Degree in Human Development and Family Studies
- Minor in Human Development and Family Studies
- Honors Study in Human Development and Family Studies
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Research
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Cross Cutting Themes of Research
- Adolescence and Young Adulthood
- Child Maltreatment
- Cognitive Health
- Computational Methods for Developmental Systems Models
- Determinants and Promotion of Well-Being
- Development and Family Processes in International Contexts
- Developmental Neuroscience
- Family Systems and Processes
- Gender and Development
- Health and Family Processes
- Healthy Aging
- Influences of Stress on Development and Aging
- Longitudinal Methodologies/Designs for Studying Change and Variability
- Parenting, Parent-Child Relations, and Child Outcomes
- Socio-Cultural and Economic Diversity
- Substance Use
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Current Research

Through its innovative and groundbreaking research projects, Penn State’s Department of Human Development and Family Studies (HDFS) brings world-class faculty members and students together to explore key topics like behavioral neuroscience, behavioral endocrinology, psychoneuroimmunology, genetics, behavioral pharmacology, health promotion, health psychology, and epidemiology, among many others.
Recent HDFS research themes include adolescence and young adulthood, child maltreatment, family systems and processes, gender and development, and substance use.
Explore our current active projects.