Projects @ The Center for Family Research

The following projects are currently underway at the Center for Family Research. Information about methods and specific assessment measures used in these studies can be obtained from the Project Coordinators. Papers describing our results are listed on our publications page.

Adults in the Making (AIM)
Project Coordinator: Yvonne Mensa-Wilmot
We are interested in learning more about how parents, friends and community members can help African American teenagers stay on track after high school and become successful adults. This six-part structured educational program will introduce parents and teenagers to the skills necessary for creating a dynamic future in today’s challenging, and sometimes confusing, world.

Family and Community Health (FACHS)
Project Coordinator: Tracy Anderson
This large, ongoing survey study of rural African American families and their adolescent children is an examination of what makes families and children successful, even in the face of hardship. Two waves of data collection have been completed and two more are scheduled to continue through 2007. Data from this study have been used to develop the Strong African American Families prevention curriculum.

Families In It Together (FIIT)
Project Coordinator: Sandrika Crawford
Families In It Together looks at the dynamic interplay between single African American mothers, their children and the rural communities where they live. This longitudinal research project examines how African American kids grow into successful young adults. Instead of focusing on what causes problems for these families, it emphasizes the factors and processes that facilitate competence at home, at school and with peers. Data from this project have also been used in the development of the Strong African American Families program.

Program for Strong African American Marriages (ProSAAM)
Project Coordinator: Tera Hurt
The current project is designed to offer new insights at the boundary between theology and science using a rigorous, open-minded and empirically focused methodology. We address the benefits of a theologically inspired intervention, intercessory prayer, in the context of documenting the psychological processes and benefits put in motion by intercessory prayer. By examining this intersection between psychology and theology, we are able to ask whether there is a way for the practice of intercessory prayer to become more effective and more generally influential in promoting well-being and changing one's life. We propose that just as physical exercise may benefit an individual more if it is done regularly and with a focus on particular key physical systems, intercessory prayer for one's partner may show enhanced benefits if it is done regularly and in a manner that captures key psychological processes.

Strong African-American Families (SAAF)
Project Coordinator: Zaheerah Biggers
The Strong African American Families project evaluates the effectiveness of a seven-week educational program designed to strengthen family interactions and support positive early adolescent development. The program curriculum is based on a range of research that examines positive aspects of African American rural family life and identifies factors that prevent early onset sexual behavior and drug/alcohol use in adolescents.

Healthy Families Georgia Evaluation and Database
Project Coordinator: Tracey Daniels Hickey
Under contract to the Children’s Trust Fund of Georgia, the Center for Family Research evaluates the ongoing effectiveness of the Healthy Families Georgia child abuse prevention program. This state-funded in-home visitation program aims to reduce the incidence rates of child abuse and neglect in Georgia by helping first-time mothers develop positive parenting attitudes and behaviors. In order to facilitate the evaluation of this program’s effectiveness, the Center launched a web-based database, the Healthy Families Georgia Information System, in August 2003.