Melanie Killen

Melanie Killen received her Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology from the University of California, Berkeley. She is Professor of Human Development and Quantitative Methodology, Professor of Psychology (Affiliate), and the Associate Director for the Center for Children, Relationships, and Culture at the University of Maryland. She has received funding from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), and the National Science Foundation (NSF) for her research on children’s and adolescents’ development. She was awarded the Distinguished Scholar-Teacher Award by the Provost from the University of Maryland for 2008-2009, and the Graduate Mentor of the Year Award as well as the Undergraduate Mentor of the Year Award from the Graduate School at the University of Maryland.

Killen’s research areas of expertise include children’s and adolescents’ social and moral reasoning, peer relationships, social inclusion and exclusion, intergroup relationships and attitudes, and the emergence of prejudice and bias in childhood.