URBANA, Ill. – The birth of a child is a major life transition, and it can be a stressful time for new parents. Family and relationship education programs are available to help individuals and couples deal with these challenges. But do such programs work as intended?

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Gratitude has been a trendy sentiment in recent years – sparking an industry of journals, knickknacks and T-shirts touting thankfulness as a positive force in individuals’ lives.

New research suggests that gratitude from one’s partner may be a powerful tool for couples as well, increasing relationship satisfaction and commitment while protecting couples from the corrosive effects of ineffective arguing and financial stress.

URBANA, Ill. – Relationship researchers often test their hypotheses on real people. But are their samples actually representative of diverse populations? A new study from the University of Illinois evaluates 20 years of research on relationship maintenance and finds diversity lacking.

URBANA, Ill. – Researchers at the Beckman Institute have developed a tool to measure stress regulation and parent-child bonding in young children. The device enables infants as young as one month to provide useful information from the comfort of their own home.

What’s small and smart and worn all over?

It’s not a riddle, but a list of attributes envisioned by Nancy McElwain, a professor of human development and family studies at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, as she searched for a data collection tool compatible with her youngest research participants.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Black adolescents who lived in poverty and were less optimistic about the future showed accelerated aging in their immune cells and were more likely to have elevated insulin resistance at ages 25-29, researchers found.

Illinois students have been making impacts and connections in South Africa for nearly two decades through study tours led by Jan Brooks, instructor in the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences (ACES) Department of Human Development and Family Studies (HDFS).

Champaign, Ill. – Poor nutrition coupled with living in a chaotic household environment may negatively affect young children’s executive functioning, the higher order cognitive skills that govern memory, attention and emotional control, researchers at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign found.

URBANA, Ill. – Intimate partner violence (IPV) can have significant implications for the wellbeing of mothers and children during separation and divorce. Yet IPV is often not included in custody cases or factored into court decisions, a new University of Illinois study shows.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Outstanding individual and group outreach efforts were recognized with the 2022 Campus Awards for Excellence in Public Engagement. The awards spotlight individuals at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign who have consistently applied their knowledge and expertise to issues for the public good.