Associate Professor
Clinical - Child
jcontrer@kent.edu
328 Kent Hall
T: (330) 672-3106
F: (330) 672-3786
Department of Psychology
Kent State University
Kent, Ohio 44242-0001
Department of psychology 
Josefina M. Grau , Ph.D.
Education: Ph.D., University of Illinois at Chicago (1992)
Research Interests
My research interests lie in the examination of parent-child relationships and the development of social/emotional competence in children. I am particularly interested in the role culture and context play on these processes, and have examined parenting and developmental processes both among Latino and European-American families. My Latino parenting work examines factors related to parenting competence among adolescent mothers and successful outcomes among their children, with emphasis on the moderating role of acculturation and enculturation. My normative work on family-based predictors of peer competence focuses on the middle-childhood years in low-risk families, with an emphasis on parent-child relationship influences on children's emotion regulation styles.
Courses Frequently Taught
- Child Psychology (undergraduate)
- Child Psychopathology (undergraduate)
- Child Psychopathology (graduate)
- Ethnic Minority Issues in Clinical Practice (graduate)
Recent Publications
Quintana, S., Aboud, F., Chao, R., Contreras-Grau, J., Cross, W., Hudley, C., Hughes, D., Liben, L., Nelson-Le Gall, S. & Vietze, D. (2006). Race, Ethnicity, and Culture in Child Development: Contemporary Research and Future Directions. Child Development, 77, 1129-1141.
Teichman, J. & Contreras-Grau, J. (2006). Acculturation and teaching styles among young Mainland Puerto Rican Mothers. Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences, 28, 84-101.
López, I., & Contreras, J. (2005). The best of both worlds? Biculturality, acculturation and adjustment among young mainland Puerto Rican mothers. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 36,192-208.
Contreras, J. (2004). Parenting behaviors among mainland Puerto Rican adolescent mothers: The role of grandmother and partner involvement. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 14, 341-368.
Lugo Steidel, A. G., & Contreras, J. M. (2003). A new familism scale for use with Latino populations. Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences, 25, 312-330.
Contreras, J., Narang, D., Ikhlas, M., & Teichman, J. (2002). A conceptual model of the determinants of parenting among Latina adolescent mothers. In J. Contreras, K. Kerns & A. Neal-Barnett (Eds.). Latino Children and Families in the United States: Current Research and Future Directions. Westport, CT: Praeger Publishers.
Contreras, J., Kerns, K., Weimer, B., & Gentzer, A., Tomich, P. (2000). Emotion regulation as a mediator of associations between parent-child attachment and peer relationships in middle childhood. Journal of Family Psychology, 14, 111-124.
Contreras, J., & Kerns, K. (2000). Emotion regulation processes: Explaining links between parent-child attachment and peer relationships. In K. Kerns, J. Contreras, A. Neal-Barnett (Eds.), Family and peers: Linking two social worlds. Westport, CT: Praeger Publisher.
Contreras, J., Mangelsdorf, S., Rhodes, J., Diener, M., & Brunson, L. (1999). Parent-child interaction among Latina adolescent mothers: The role of family and social support. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 9, 417-439.
Contreras, J., López, I., Rivera, E., Raymond-Smith, L., & Rothstein, K. (1999). Social support among Puerto Rican adolescent mothers: The moderating effect of acculturation. Journal of Family Psychology, 13, 228-243.