Professor Emeritus of Social Work, School of Social Work and Professor Emeritus of Psychology
About
Oscar A. Barbarin III joined the University of Michigan faculty in 1979 as assistant professor of psychology. He was named assistant professor of social work in 1984, associate professor in 1985, and professor in 1991. He was appointed adjunct associate professor of psychology in 1986 and professor of psychology in 1992. He was named professor emeritus in 2001.
Professor Barbarin's research has included studies of the social context of children’s development and mental health; the effects of poverty and life-threatening illness on children and their families; a national longitudinal study of the contributions of family life and early childhood programs to the socio-emotional and academic development of children growing up in poverty; and emotional development of African American boys and young men. From 1996 until January 2000, he was the University's executive director of South African Initiatives, working with students from professional schools interested in research service projects in southern Africa. In South Africa and Uganda, his research on culture and children's mental health was published in “Mandela’s Children”. He chaired the US National Committee for Psychology (National Academies of Science) and served on the executive committee of the International Union of Psychological Science.
A productive researcher and scholar, Professor Barbarin collaborated on several books, including Childhood Cancer and the Family: Meeting the Challenge of Stress and Social Support; Children with Cancer: School Experiences and Views of Parents, Educators, Adolescents, and Physicians; The Handbook of Child Development and Early Education; and Institutional Racism and Community Competence. He is completing work on a book manuscript titled: “Black Boys Unchained: How Social Assets Overcome the Restraints of Racism, Poverty and Adversity.
Oscar Barbarin served as the Wilson H. Elkins Professor at the University of Maryland where he chaired the African American Studies Department. He is professor of African American Studies and Psychology at Maryland and is conducting research that applies clinical science in helping public schools make the empathic shift from punitive to supportive practices in school discipline.
