Alissa Huth-Bocks

Alissa Huth-Bocks serves as Director of the Merrill Palmer Skillman Institute and Professor of Psychology at Wayne State University, specializing in infant and early childhood mental health. As a clinical psychologist, she investigates how adversity—including interpersonal violence, parental mental health disorders, and poverty—impacts family relationships and child development through longitudinal studies and translational research.

Her educational background includes:

• Post-Doctoral Training in Child-Adolescent Clinical Psychology (University of Michigan)
• Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology (Michigan State University)
• M.A. in Clinical Psychology (Michigan State University)
• B.A. in Psychology (University of Michigan, Ann Arbor)

Dr. Huth-Bocks' research centers on parent-infant/toddler attachment, early relational health, and intergenerational risk transmission. She examines developmental trajectories using a psychopathology framework while developing practical tools like PediaTrac—a web-based screening instrument for pediatric settings funded by NIH. Her work emphasizes translating science into prevention models for marginalized communities underrepresented in developmental research.

Analysis of her 2023-2025 publications reveals three dominant trends: (1) Validation of PediaTrac across motor, social-communication, and cognition domains for term/preterm infants; (2) Impact of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and intimate partner violence on child outcomes; (3) Efficacy of infant mental health home visiting interventions. These works span developmental psychology, clinical psychology, and public health with strong emphasis on urban, diverse populations.

Dr. Huth-Bocks has received multiple teaching and research awards recognizing her contributions to infant mental health, though specific honors aren't detailed in available materials.

Her grant portfolio features significant NIH funding for PediaTrac development and evaluation of the Michigan Model of Infant Mental Health Home Visiting. She actively translates research through collaborations with healthcare systems, community organizations, and policy boards including the Health Policy Institute of Ohio's ACEs Advisory Board. Current projects address opioid-exposed pregnancies, trauma-informed parenting interventions, and pediatric primary care integration.

As Director of the Merrill Palmer Skillman Institute, she leads interdisciplinary teams conducting community-engaged research at The Freer House in Detroit. She also contributes to the Michigan Collaborative for Infant Mental Health Research and serves on leadership teams for Ohio's Safe Baby Courts, driving evidence-based practices in infant mental health systems.