Jing Zhang

Dr. Jing Zhang is an Assistant Professor of Human Development and Family Studies at Kent State University. She received her B.S. in Economics from Zhongnan University of Economics and Law in China, an M.S. in Family, Youth, and Community Sciences from The University of Florida, and a Ph.D. in Human Development and Family Science from Virginia Tech. Dr. Zhang’s scholarly emphasis is on interdisciplinary research across the domains of family science and public health. Grounded in the ecological and life course perspectives, her work contributes to the understanding of crucial targets for preventive interventions that benefit socially and economically disadvantaged individuals and families. Her specific lines of inquiry include (1) exploring mechanisms linking contextual factors and health and behavioral outcomes of marginalized youth and families, and (2) developing, testing, and disseminating preventive interventions that mitigate the negative influence of contextual risk and foster positive family relationships and resilience. Across both lines of inquiry, she utilizes both primary and secondary data, and combines different methodological approaches, to better understand the health and behavioral outcomes of disadvantaged youth and families and the related preventions and interventions. She is a member of the National Council on Family Relations (NCFR).

Expertise

• Health and behavioral outcomes of marginalized youth and families
• Contextual risk factors
• Family processes, parenting, parent-child relationships
• Preventions/interventions
• Advanced research methods (e.g., latent growth modeling, multilevel modeling, structural equation modeling, and group-based modeling for longitudinal clinical randomized trials)