Professor of Family Studies,
Director, Center for Families,
Director, Military Family Research Institute
(PhD, MS, and MBA, The Pennsylvania State University)

Research Interests

Work and family, military families, family stress, job flexibility, and marital quality

Contact Information

Child Development & Family Studies Building, Room 105
Purdue University
101 Gates Road
West Lafayette, Indiana 47907-2020

Phone: (765) 494-6026
Fax: (765) 496-1144

E-mail: shelley@purdue.edu

Biography
Recent Publications
Education
Courses Recently Taught
Honors
External Grants
Professional Service

Biography

I began my career at Purdue two days after defending my dissertation at Penn State, where I earned an M.S. and Ph.D. in Human Development and Family Studies, and an MBA. The Purdue community has offered me tremendous opportunities for personal and professional growth, and today I am proud to be able to say that Purdue has been my academic home for almost two decades.

My primary research interest is in the relationships between work conditions and family life. Over the past 20 years, I have studied differences between small and large workplaces, how adults grow and develop as a result of their work experiences, and how different kinds of organizational policies make it easier or more difficult for workers to be successful at work and at home. In 1996 I became the Director of the Center for Families (www.cfs.purdue.edu/cff), and in that role have the opportunity to conduct research and engagement activities focused on helping individuals and organizations who serve families to do their work more effectively. In 2000, my work added a new direction when I began to conduct research about and for military families via the Military Family Research Institute (www.cfs.purdue.edu/mfri).

My research has been supported by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, the Henry A. Murray Center, the Department of Defense, and the state of Indiana; and has earned awards from the Groves Conference and Gamma Sigma Delta. I am a 2006 winner of the Work Life Legacy Award from the Families and Work Institute and serve as a faculty fellow to the Boston College Work-Family Roundtable. In 2005, I was named a fellow of the National Council on Family Relations. I serve on the editorial boards of the Journal of Family Issues, Family Relations, and the Journal of Family and Economic Issues.

Since my first day as an undergraduate, I have spent my educational career at universities with a land grant mission, meaning that they were created with the goal of bringing campus and community together as they carry out their discovery, learning and engagement activities. This mission both exhilarates and challenges me. It is indescribably exciting to have the opportunity to participate in changing lives - the lives of students who are the first in their families to attend college or go to graduate school, or the lives of front-line practitioners who find useful help from the research world. I believe that 'doing' and 'teaching' are great ways to learn, so I try to involve student colleagues in every facet of my work, including design, budgeting, instrumentation, data collection, analyses and publication. Everyone on our team is expected to share their expertise with other team members. Most of my projects also involve collaborations with partners inside and outside of the university, which presents great opportunities to learn about collaboration and life in the "real world."

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Recent Publications

Refereed Journal Articles (*=co-author, underscore=student author):
Behnke, A.O.*, MacDermid, S.M.*, Anderson, J.C., & Weiss, H.M.
   (accepted). Ethnic variations in the connection between work-
   induced family separation and turnover intent. In press, Journal
   of Family Issues.

Hall, S.S., & MacDermid, S.M. (accepted). A quantitative typology
   of dual-earner couples: Unanswered questions about circumstance,
   motivations, and outcomes. In press, Journal of Family and
   Economic Issues.

Lehto, X.Y., Choi, S.J., Lin, Y.C., & MacDermid, S.M. (accepted).
   Exploring the impact of leisure travel on family functioning.
   Annals of Tourism Research.

Erbes, C.R., Polusny, M.A., MacDermid, S.M., & Compton, J.S.
   (2008). Couple therapy with combat veterans and their partners.
   Journal of Clinical Psychology, 64, 972-983.

Behnke, A.O., MacDermid, S.M., Coltrane, S.L., Parke, R.D., Duffy,
   S.A., & Widaman, K. (2008). Family cohesion in the lives of Mexican
   American and European American parents. Journal of Marriage
   and Family, 70, 1045-1059.

Friede, A., Kossek, E.E., Lee, M.D., & MacDermid, S.M. (2008).
   Human resource manager insights on creating and sustaining
   successful reduced-load work arrangements. Human Resource
   Management, 47, 707-728.

Faber, A., Willerton, E., Clymer, S.R., MacDermid, S.M., & Weiss,
   H.M. (2008). Ambiguous absence, ambiguous presence: A
   longitudinal study of military families in war time. Journal of
   Family Psychology, 22, 222-230.

MacDermid, S.M., & Wittenborn, A. (2007). Lessons from work-life
   research for developing human resources. Advancing Developments
   in Human Resources, 9, 556-568.

Pitt-Catsouphes, M., Matz, C., & MacDermid, S.M. (2007). HRD
   responses to work-family stressors. Advancing Developments
   in Human Resources, 9, 527-543.

Trougakos, J.P., Bull, R.A., Green, S.G., MacDermid, S.M., & Weiss,
   H.M. (2007). Influences on job search self-efficacy of spouses of
   enlisted military personnel. Human Performance, 20, 391-413.

Perrucci, R., MacDermid, S.M., King, E., Tang, C., & Brimeyer, T.,
   Ramadoss, K., Kiser, S.J., & Swanberg, J. (2007). The significance
   of shift work: Current status and future directions. Journal of Family
   and Economic Issues, 28, 600-617.

Pitt-Catsouphes, M., MacDermid, S.M., Schwarz, R., & Matz, C.
   (2006). Community contexts: The perspectives and adaptations
   of working parents. American Behavioral Scientist, 49, 1-22.

Zody, Z., Sprenkle, D., MacDermid, S.M., & Schrank, H. (2006).
   Drawing the line: How are boundaries between family and business
   systems related to their strengths and performance? Journal of
   Family and Economic Issues, 27, 185-206.

Beal, D.J., Weiss, H.M., Barros, E., & MacDermid, S.M. (2005). An
   episodic process model of affective influences on performance.
   Journal of Applied Psychology, 90, 1054-1068.

Karakas, F., Lee, M.D., & MacDermid, S.M. (2004). A qualitative
   investigation into the meaning of family well-being from the
   perspective of part-time professionals. Equal Opportunities
   International, 23, 57-77.

Guest Editor of Journal Special Issues:
MacDermid, S.M., Galinsky, E., & Bond, J.T. (2006). Journal of Family Issues.

MacDermid, S.M., Galinsky, E., & Bond, J.T. (2002). Journal of Family and Economic Issues.

Book Chapters:
MacDermid, S.M., & Tang, C. (in press). Flexibility and control:
   Does one necessarily bring the other? Chapter submitted for
   Handbook of Families and Work.

MacDermid, S.M., Remnet, M., & Pagnan, C. (2009). The tensions,
   puzzles and dilemmas of engaged work-family scholarship. In
   A.C. Crouter & A. Booth (Eds.), Work-life policies (pp. 133-140).
   Urban Institute Press.

Roy, K., & MacDermid, S.M. (2008). Families and society. In D.J.
   Bredehoft & M. Walcheski (Eds.), Family life education: Integrating
   theory and practice (2nd ed.). Minneapolis, MN: National Council
   on Family Relations.

Perrucci, R., & MacDermid, S.M. (2007). Time and control in a
   24/7 environment: Clock time, work time and family time. In
   B. Rubin (Ed.)., Workplace temporalities: Research in the
   sociology of work, Volume 17. (pp. 353-378). Bangalore: Elsevier.

Lee, M.D., Lirio, P., Karakas, F., MacDermid, S.M., Buck, M.L., &
   Kossek, E.E. (2006). Exploring the meaning of career success
   among part-time professionals in organizations. In R. J. Burke
   (Ed.), Research companion to work hours and work addiction
   (pp. 284-309). Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar.

MacDermid, S.M., & Harvey, A. (2005). Work and family: What
   are the connections? In M. Pitt-Catsouphes, E.E. Kossek, & S.
   Sweet (Eds.), Handbook of work and family: Multidisciplinary
   perspectives and approaches (pp. 567-586). Mahway, NJ:
   Erlbaum.

MacDermid, S.M., Schwarz, R., Faber, A., Adkins, J., Mishkind., M.,
   & Weiss, H. (2005). Military fathers on the front lines. In W.
   Marsiglio, K. Roy, & G.L. Fox (Eds.), Situated fathering: A
   focus on physical and social spaces (pp. 209-239). Boulder, CO:
   Rowman & Littlefield.

Lee, M.D., MacDermid, S.M., Dohring, P. L., & Kossek, E.E. (2005).
   Professionals becoming parents: Socialization, adaptation and
   identity transformation. In E. Kossek & S. Lambert (Eds.), Work
   and life integration in organizations: New directions for theory
   and practice (pp. 287-318). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.

MacDermid, S.M., Roy, K., & Zvonkovic, A.M. (2005). Don't stop
   at the borders: Theorizing beyond 'Work/ Family.' To appear
   in V. Bengtson, D. Klein, A. Acock, K. Allen, & P. Dilworth-
   Anderson (Eds.), Sourcebook of family theory and research,
   (pp. 493-516). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

MacDermid, S.M. (2004). (Re)considering conflict between work
   and family. In E. E. Kossek & S. Lambert (Eds.), Work and life
   integration in organizations: New directions for theory and practice
   (pp. 19-40). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.

Task Force Reports:
Arthur, D.C., MacDermid, S.M., Kiley, K., and members of the
   Department of Defense Task Force on Mental Health. (2007).
   An achievable vision: Report of the Department of Defense
   Task Force on Mental Health. Falls Church, VA: Defense
   Health Board.

Technical Reports:
MacDermid, S.M., Samper, R., Schwarz, R., Nishida, J., & Nyaronga,
   D. (2008). Understanding and promoting resilience in military
   families. West Lafayette, IN: Military Family Research Institute.
   This report was written at the request of the Director of Family
   Policy in the Office of the Secretary of Defense for inclusion in
   a response to Congress.

Schwarz, R., Willerton, E., Richardson, B., Ramadoss, K., Pagnan,
   C., Schultheis, M., Cari, S., Remnet, M., Schelling, M., & MacDermid,
   S.M. (2007). Family adjustment of wounded military members:
   An annotated bibliography. West Lafayette, IN: Military Family
   Research Institute.

MacDermid, S.M., Pagnan, C., Ruprecht, K., & Becerra, J. (2007).
   Best of the best: The 2006 Rosabeth Moss Kanter Award for
   excellence in work-family research. West Lafayette, IN: Center
   for Families at Purdue University.

MacDermid, S.M., & Wittenborn, A. (2006). Best of the Best: The
   2005 Rosabeth Moss Kanter Award for excellence in work-family
  research. Purdue University: Center for Families.

MacDermid, S.M., Strauss, R., Robbins, N., Wenz, H., Chang, Y.,
   Schwarz, R., Weiss, H.M., with Kontos, S. (2005). The financial
   landscape for military families of young children. West Lafayette,
   IN: Military Family Research Institute at Purdue University.

Schwarz, R., Swan, R., & MacDermid, S.M. (2005). The value of
   caregiving: A comparative analysis of compensation in military
   Child Development Centers. West Lafayette, IN: Military Family
   Research Institute at Purdue University.

Trougakos, J.P., Green, S.G., Bull, R.A., MacDermid, S.M., & Weiss,
   H. M. (2004). Influences on job search self-efficiency of spouses
   of enlisted military personnel. West Lafayette, IN: Military Family
   Research Institute at Purdue University.

MacDermid, S.M., Strauss, R., Robbins, N., Wenz, H., Chang, Y.,
   Schwarz, R., & Weiss, H.M., with Kontos, S. (2004). Child care
   use and satisfaction among military families with preschool children.
   West Lafayette, IN: Military Family Research Institute at Purdue
   University.

MacDermid, S.M., with Karakurt, G., Richardson, B., Vaught, K.,
   Christiansen, A.T., Tang, C., Schultheis, M., Kwon, Y., & Schwarz,
   R. (2005). Best of the Best: The 2004 Rosabeth Moss Kanter Award
   for excellence in work-family research. Purdue University: Center
   for Families.

Weiss, H.M., Beal, D.J., Lucy, S. L., & MacDermid, S.M. (2004).
   Constructing EMA studies with PMAT: The Purdue Momentary
   Assessment Tool user's manual. West Lafayette, IN: Military
   Research Institute at Purdue University.

Schwarz, R.L., Barros, E., Behnke, A., Chang, Y., Christiansen, A.,
   Faber, A., Kwon, Y.,   Jackson-Mehta, A., Beal, D., MacDermid,
   S.M., & Weiss, H.M. (2004). Compendium of quality of life research:
   An annotated bibliography. West Lafayette, IN: Military Family
   Research Institute at Purdue University.

MacDermid, S.M., with Behnke, A., Christiansen, A.T., Faber, A.,
   Kwon, Y., & Brown, S.  (2004). Best of the best: The 2003
   Rosabeth Moss Kanter Award for excellence in work-family
   research. Purdue University: Center for Families.

Legislative Briefing Reports:
Indiana Consortium of Family Organizations. (2006). Financing
   healthcare for Indiana families. West Lafayette, IN: Center
   for Families at Purdue University.

Indiana Consortium of Family Organizations. (2005). Gambling:
   What are the odds for Indiana families? West Lafayette, IN:
   Center for Families at Purdue University.

MacDermid, S.M. , Ruprecht, K., Philipsen, N.M., DeZarn, K.,
   & Clough, L. (2005). Growing Indiana 's human capital:
   Assuring positive futures for youth. West Lafayette, IN: Center
   for Families at Purdue University.

Tomarelli, M., MacDermid, S.M., & Sero Lynn, R. (2003). The
   effect of changes in tax policies on Indiana families. West
   Lafayette, IN: Center for Families at Purdue University.

Invited Congressional Testimony:
MacDermid, S.M. (2007).  Supporting the psychological health of
   military members and their families. Testimony before the
   Personnel Subcommittee of the Armed Services Committee
   of the United States House of Representatives. Washington,
   DC. 

MacDermid, S.M., with Schwarz, R., Behnke, A., Christiansen, A.,
   Faber, A., Trougakos, J., Chang, Y., & Weiss, H.  (2003, June).
   The well-being of military families over time. Testimony before
   a joint hearing of the Personnel Subcommittee of the Armed 
   Services Committee and the Children and Families Subcommittee
   of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee of the
   United States Senate. Washington, DC. 

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Education

• Ph.D., 1990, Human Development & Family Studies, The Pennsylvania State University.
• M.B.A., 1988, Management, The Pennsylvania State University.
• M.S., 1986, Human Development & Family Studies, The Pennsylvania State University.
• B.A. Sc., 1982, Family Studies, Child Studies, University of Guelph, Canada.

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Courses Recently Taught

CDFS 605: Families and the Life Course
CDFS 612: Families in Social Context
CDFS 685D: Data Management for Family Research
CDFS 685S: Work-Family Relationships

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Honors

2008, Apppointed to the Institute of Medicine Committee on Readjustment Needs of Military Personnel, Veterans, and their Families.

2008, Nominee, Frederick L. Hovde Award of Excellence in Educational Service to Rural People of Indiana

2008, Appointed to the Department of Defense External Advisory Committee on Psychological Health of the Defense Health Board. Selected by the Secretary of Defense from over 200 nominees.

2008-2009, Faculty Fellow, CIC Academic Leadership Program. One of six selected from over 40 nominees.

2008, Seed for Success Award, given to faculty members who attract large sponsored research grants ($1,000,000 or greater) to Purdue University.

2006, With approval from the White House, appointed by the Secretary of Defense to the Department of Defense Task Force on Mental Health. Elected co-chair.

2006, Work-Life Legacy Award from the Families and Work Institute, awarded to 'exemplary individuals who have made an indelible mark on the work-life movement.'

2005,  Awarded Fellow status by the National Council on Family Relations.

2003,  Lee, MacDermid, Williams, Buck, & Leiba-O'Sullivan (2002) was rated as one of the 20 best articles published during 2002 by the panel of reviewers for the annual Rosabeth Moss Kanter Award for Excellence in Work-Family Research.

2002, MacDermid, Hertzog, Kensinger, & Zipp (2001) was rated as one of the 20 best articles published during 2001 by the reviewers for the annual Rosabeth Moss Kanter Award for Excellence in Work-Family Research.

2001, Lee, MacDermid, & Buck (2000) was rated as one of the 20 best articles published during 2000 by the panel of reviewers for the annual Rosabeth Moss Kanter Award for Excellence in Work-Family Research.

2000, Certified as a Family Life Educator by the National Council on Family Relations. (Re-certified in 2005).

1999, Award of Merit, for research, from Gamma Sigma Delta (the Honor Society of Agriculture, Consumer and Family Sciences, and Veterinary Medicine).

1998, Faculty Fellow of the Work-Family Roundtable of the Boston College Center on Work and Family. The Work-present Family Roundtable is a small invitation-only organization of national and international employers interested in work and family issues. I am the first family scholar to serve as a faculty fellow of the roundtable.

1996, Invited attendee, Family Re-union V: Family and Work, a conference sponsored and moderated by the Vice.

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External Grants

2009-2011, Co-Investigator. Improving deployment-related primary care provider assessments of PTSD and mental health conditions. Department of Defense. Subcontract to Purdue $150,000, Principal Investigator: Sarah Mustillo. Overall project Principal Investigator: Joyce Adkins. Total award $1,371,933. This grant is affiliated with the Center for Families.

2008-2012, Principal Investigator. Operation Diploma. Lilly Endowment. $5,800,000. This grant is affiliated with the Center for Families.

2008-2009, Investigator. Talk, Listen, Connect II evaluation. Sesame Workshop. Germán Posada, Principal Investigator. $125,000. This contract is affiliated with the Center for Families.

2007-2009, Investigator. Coming Together Around Military Families evaluation. Zero to Three. Karen Diamond, Principal Investigator. $60,000. This contract is affiliated with the Center for Families.

2007-2010, Principal Investigator. Strengthening supports for military families in Indiana and beyond. Lilly Endowment. $8,995,584. This grant is affiliated with the Center for Families and the Military Family Research Institute. 

2007-2008, Principal Investigator. Life history mapping with military populations. Defense Contracting Command. W74V8H-06-P-0557 (amendment). $50,000. This grant is affiliated with the Center for Families and the Military Family Research Institute.

2006-2007, Principal Investigator. Life history mapping with military populations. Defense Contracting Command. W74V8H-06-P-0557. $199,999. This grant is affiliated with the Center for Families and the Military Family Research Institute.

2005-2006, Principal Investigator. Life After War. Department of Defense. $75,000.

2004-2005, Investigator (with Volker Thomas and Dee Love). The ACT Program. Nina Mason Pulliam Trust. $25,000. This grant is affiliated with the Center for Families.

2002-2004, Co-Principal Investigator (with Robert Perrucci, Sociology). A Labor-Management-Research Partnership: Expanding Options for the Time and Timing of Work in a Continuous-Operations Environment. Bemis Corporate Foundation. $30,000. This grant is affiliated with the Center for Families.

2000-2005, Co-Principal Investigator (with Howard Weiss, Psychological Sciences, and Steve Green, Management). Military Family Research Institute. Department of Defense. $8,383,091. A component of this grant is affiliated with the Center for Families.

2000-2004, Co-Principal Investigator (with Marcie Pitt-Catsouphes, Boston College Center for Work and Family). Understanding the "First Job ." Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. $399,993. This grant is affiliated with the Center for Families.

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Professional Service

National Council on Family Relations
Elected Positions
2007-2008, Chair-Elect, Research and Theory Section
2004-2006, Chair, Reuben Hill Award Committee
1999-2001, Chair, Feminism and Family Studies Section
1997-1999, Vice-Chair, Feminism and Family Studies Section
This office carries with it responsibilities of the Awards committee
1995-1997, Secretary-Treasurer, Feminism and Family Studies Section
1992-1993, Co-Chair, Focus Group on Individual Development in the context of the Family Research& Theory Section

Other Service
2000, Member, Research and Theory Section Royalties Task Force
1997-1998, Co-Chair, 1998 Pre-conference planning committee, Appointed by Program Vice-President
1996-1997, Member, Feminism and Family Studies SEction Mentoring Committee
1996-1997, Chair, Feminism and Family Studies Section Awards Funding Review Committee
1995-1996, Chair, Task Force on Technology (appointed by the president)
1993-1997, Member, Reuben Hill Award Committee, National Council on Family Relations
1996-1997, 2006, Member, Feminism and Family Studies Section Awards Committee

Alliance of WORK/LIFE Professionals
2002-2003, Member, National Program Committee
2002-2003, Member, Editorial Board for National Newsletter

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