معرفی
Astrida Kaugars, Ph.D., is a Professor in the Department of Psychology at Marquette University's College of Arts and Sciences. She directs the Child and Family Health Lab and serves as a clinical child and pediatric psychologist with expertise in chronic illness adaptation and socioemotional development. Her academic journey includes doctoral training at Case Western Reserve University, a predoctoral internship at The Children's Hospital in Denver, and postdoctoral training at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center and National Jewish Health.
- Education: Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology, Case Western Reserve University
- Certification: Predoctoral Internship, The Children's Hospital (Denver)
- Postdoctoral Training: University of Colorado Health Sciences Center & National Jewish Health
Dr. Kaugars' research integrates child development, pediatric psychology, and developmental psychopathology to examine child/family adaptation to chronic illness (particularly Type 1 diabetes) and socioemotional processes. Her work employs observational methods, self-report measures, and interviews to study pretend play, parent-child interactions, and diabetes management. Current projects include pandemic-related family stress and caregiver experiences in pediatric integrated care.
Her 15 most recent publications reveal strong focus on pediatric chronic illness management (60% of articles), with growing emphasis on pandemic impacts (2022-2025) and diversity in clinical training (2025). Diabetes research dominates her clinical work, while socioemotional development studies inform her theoretical framework.
- Clinical and Translational Science Institute grant (2014) for diabetes management study
- Extensive NIH-funded collaborations in pediatric psychology
Dr. Kaugars supervises clinical psychology doctoral students at Marquette's Center for Psychological Services and teaches undergraduate courses (Psychology of the Exceptional Child, Health Psychology) and graduate courses (Advanced Research Methods, Psychological Assessment). Her Child and Family Health Lab conducts NIH-supported research on diabetes adherence, family interactions, and pretend play assessment using multimodal methodologies including the Affect in Play Scale.
