The Section on Child Maltreatment supports three awards:

• The Section on Child Maltreatment Dissertation Award (established in 2000)
• The Early Career Award for Outstanding Contributions to Research/Practice in the Field of Child Maltreatment (established in 2001)

• The Section on Child Maltreatment Undergraduate Research Award (established in 2003)

Click here for announcements regarding nominations for the 2008 Dissertation Award and Early Career Award for Outstanding Contributions to Practice.

Beginning in 2000, the Section established a Dissertation Award on Child Maltreatment. Recipients of the award receive $400 to help defray the costs of their dissertation research on child maltreatment.

The 2006 Dissertation Award Winner:

Stephanie Block (Univ. of California Irvine), for her proposal examining different types of false memory in sexually abused and nonabused adolescents and adults and investigating the effects of trauma and memory.

The 2003 Dissertation Award Winner:

David Zielinski (Cornell Univ.), for his proposal entitled, "Child Maltreatment and Adult Socioeconomic Outcomes:  The Mediational Role of Psychopathology."

The 2002 Dissertation Award Winners:

Elizabeth Pontari (Depaul Univ.), for her proposal entitled, "Good enough parenting: An exploratory study of the perceptions of juvenile court officials."

Amanda Schweder (Yale Univ.), for her proposal entitled, "Behavior problems in maltreated children removed from their homes: Risk and protective factors."

The 2001 Dissertation Award Winner:

Nicole E. Marcus (Department of Psychology, University of Miami), for her proposal entitled, "Dimensions of Marital Aggression and Children's Aggressive Schemas in Clinic-Referred Families."

The 2000 Dissertation Award Winners:

Nona E. (Beth) Bryant (Clinical and Health Psychology, University of Florida), for her proposal entitled, "Medical Foster Families: An Assessment of Their Characteristics and Needs."

Rebecca L. Wald (Department of Psychology, University of Iowa) for her proposal entitled, "Child Disability as a Potential Risk Factor for Maltreatment."

Beginning in 2002, the Section instituted a new award to recognize researchers and practitioners who have made substantial contributions to the field within eight years of receiving a terminal degree and who have demonstrated the potential to continue such contributions. The award will be given to an outstanding new practitioner one year and to an outstanding new researcher the next.

The 2005 Early Career Award for Outstanding Contributions to Research:

Kimberly Mitchell, Ph.D., a research assistant professor of psychology and the University of New Hampshire's Crimes Against Children Research Center.

The 2002 Early Career Award for Outstanding Contributions to Practice:

Kristin Kenefick of the Chicago Children's Advocacy Center.

The 2003 Early Career Award for Outstanding Contributions to Research:

Elissa J. Brown, Ph.D., an assistant professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the New York University Child Study Center.