Andrea Gonzalez

Andrea Gonzalez is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry & Behavioural Neurosciences at McMaster University's Faculty of Health Sciences. She holds a Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Family Health and Preventive Interventions and serves as co-Principal Investigator on multiple research projects focused on parenting interventions and child development. Her work is supported by major funding agencies including the Public Health Agency of Canada, Canadian Institutes for Health Research (CIHR), Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC), and the Behavioral Brain Foundation.

Dr. Gonzalez's research program centers on the developmental consequences of early life adversity, the impact of traumatic experiences on brain development and health outcomes, intergenerational transmission of risk, and developing evidence-based preventive interventions. With specialized training in psychology, neuroscience, and epidemiology, she has expertise in stress physiology, parenting interventions, and advanced statistical modeling including structural equation modeling and hierarchical linear modeling. Her work frequently examines hair cortisol concentration as a biological marker of stress and its relationship to child development and mental health outcomes.

Analysis of her recent publications reveals a strong focus on Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), parenting interventions (particularly the Family Check-Up program and Nurse-Family Partnership), and the biological mechanisms linking early adversity to developmental outcomes. Her research spans multiple disciplines including developmental psychology, psychoneuroendocrinology, public health, and clinical intervention science, with a particular emphasis on translating research findings into practical interventions for strengthening families and communities.

• Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Family Health and Preventive Interventions
• Publications in high-impact journals including Psychoneuroendocrinology, Child Maltreatment, and Prevention Science
• Research featured in media outlets and policy discussions
• Collaborations with international research teams across North America and Brazil

As co-Principal Investigator of the Strong Families research team, Dr. Gonzalez mentors numerous trainees and collaborates with community partners to develop and evaluate evidence-based interventions for at-risk families. Her current projects include longitudinal studies examining the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on parent and child mental health, evaluations of parenting programs across diverse populations, and investigations into the biological mechanisms of stress transmission across generations. Her work with the Healthy Foundations Study collects both behavioral and biological measures from mothers and children (ages 0-6 years) to better understand early developmental pathways.