Lisa Newland

Lisa Newland is a Professor in the Department of Counseling and Psychology in Education at the University of South Dakota's School of Education. Her academic work focuses on child development, family relationships, and educational contexts, with particular attention to culturally and socio-economically diverse families. Dr. Newland has established herself as a leading researcher in children's well-being and parenting dynamics through extensive publications and grant-funded research projects.

Her educational background includes:

• Ph D in Family and Human Development from Utah State University (2001)
• MS in Family and Human Development from Utah State University (1997)
• BA in Scandinavian Studies from Concordia College (1994)

Dr. Newland's research agenda centers on the intersection between family mental health and well-being, parenting, and child well-being in diverse families. She investigates mother and father involvement, parental efficacy, co-parenting practices, couple satisfaction, parental stress, and social support. Her work particularly emphasizes children's social-emotional and cognitive well-being, examining factors that support optimal development in childhood. She employs both quantitative and qualitative methods to address research questions with local and global implications, including cross-cultural studies comparing the U.S. and Taiwan.

Her recent publications demonstrate a strong focus on children's well-being in various contexts, particularly examining the impact of digital technology, pandemic disruptions, and rural educational settings. There's a clear trajectory in her work toward understanding how technology integration affects children's learning and emotional states, while maintaining her foundational interest in family dynamics and child development across multiple cultural contexts.

Dr. Newland has received notable recognition for her scholarly contributions:

• School of Education Faculty Excellence Award in Research (2014)
• Nominee for Belbas-Larson Award for Excellence in Teaching (2014, 2013)
• Key Research Article designations in Psychology Progress (2013)
• List of most frequently cited papers, Early Child Development and Care (2011)
• Routledge's "Class List 2011"
• Nominee for President's Award for Research Excellence (2009)

Dr. Newland has secured multiple research grants totaling over a decade of continuous funding, including current NSF support for "DDMD-Pathways" (2025-Present) and previous projects examining diabetic literacy among American Indians, children's health in rural areas, and the impact of digital versus print media on children's learning. Her grant portfolio demonstrates sustained external funding support for her research agenda spanning from 2007 to present.

She is actively involved in the Children's Worlds: International Survey of Children's Well-Being research initiative (2012-Present), contributing to global understandings of child well-being across diverse cultural contexts through collaborations with international researchers.