Interests

My teaching, research, and writing reflect my understanding of how richly people’s lives and their choices are influenced by others near (like family, friends) and far (like the media, culture, politics), and by their own personal histories. I appreciate that as professionals, we need to respect these many influences and offer our guidance within that personal context. My interests are clearly motivated by systems theorists and by Bronfenbrenner’s perspective of human ecology. Those I feel most deserving of my research and, by extension, our support are those vulnerable in our toxic society, such as families with limited resources, young children, adolescent girls and of course, parents.

My specific interests include the intersections between parenting and education settings that support children's development. For example,

• how standard early education settings support the needs of parents, and serve as sites for parenting education
• factors that influence parents choice of early care for their children, including aspects of culture, economics, and family structure
• parents’ use of informal child care, and support to family, friend and neighbor caregivers
• community based models of support for children’s school readiness
• professional/personal sources of parent education (my dissertation research).

I am also exploring the use of technology in parent and family education for professionals and for the general public. Some avenues of my work include:

• the development and evaluation of an online, interactive parenting education delivery program (Just in Time Parenting), and comparing the effectiveness of online versus hard copy methods of learning by new parents
• delivery of formal graduate coursework for parent educators via online courses
• use of media in popular culture, specifically television and film, to teach about family life. My online project, Families Illustrated, provides a database of ideas for teaching parent and family concepts with film and television.

I very much welcome you to join me in these pursuits and to share your passions with me.

Selected publications

Reschke, K. and Walker, S. (2006) Mothers’ Child Caregiving and Employment Commitments and Choices in the Context of Rural Poverty. Affilia: Journal of Women and Social Work.

Walker, S. (2005, December) Family caregiving: Theoretical and research considerations to guide investigations and program support for relative child care. Annual meeting of the National Association for the Education of Young Children. Research symposium on family, friend and neighbor care, Washington, DC.

Cochran, M., & Walker, S. (2005). Parenting and personal social networks. In T. Luster & L. Okagaki (Eds.), Parenting: An ecological perspective (2nd Ed). Erlbaum.

Walker, S. (2005). Use of a parenting newsletter series and other childrearing sources by mothers of infants. Family and Consumer Sciences Research Journal. 34(2), 153-172.

Walker, S., & Reschke, K. (2004). Child care use by low income families in rural areas: A contemporary look at the influence of women’s work and partner availability. Journal of Children and Poverty, 10(2), 149-167.

Walker, S., & Riley, D. (2001). Involvement of the personal social network as a factor in parent education effectiveness. Family Relations, 50, 186-194.

Revised September 2007