Adjunct Faculty
Adjunct faculty typically have an academic or research appointment at another institution and contribute or collaborate with one or more School of Medicine faculty members or programs.
Adjunct rank detailsFrancesca Penner, PhD
Assistant Professor Adjunct in the Child Study CenterDownloadHi-Res Photo
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Titles
Assistant Professor Adjunct in the Child Study Center
Biography
Francesca is an Adjunct Assistant Professor. Previously, she was a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Yale Child Study Center, working under the mentorship of Dr. Helena Rutherford in the Before and After Baby Lab. Francesca received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology (Clinical Child Psychology emphasis) from the University of Houston in 2021. Francesca's research focuses on parent mental health, parenting, and the role of parents in children's mental health risk and resilience.
Last Updated on September 01, 2025.
Appointments
Child Study Center
Assistant Professor AdjunctPrimary
Other Departments & Organizations
Education & Training
- Clinical Psychology Internship
- University of Mississippi Medical Center (2021)
- PhD
- University of Houston, Clinical Psychology (2021)
- MEd
- Vanderbilt University, Child Studies (2016)
- BA
- The University of Chicago, English Language & Literature (2009)
Research
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Overview
Medical Research Interests
Adverse Childhood Experiences; Child Development; Emotional Regulation; Parent-Child Relations; Parenting; Psychopathology
ORCID
0000-0002-8971-790X
Research at a Glance
Yale Co-Authors
Frequent collaborators of Francesca Penner's published research.
Publications Timeline
A big-picture view of Francesca Penner's research output by year.
Research Interests
Research topics Francesca Penner is interested in exploring.
Amanda Lowell, PhD
Helena Rutherford, PhD
Kathryn M Wall, MS, MA
Linda Mayes, MD
Marc Potenza, PhD, MD
Suchitra Krishnan-Sarin, PhD
17Publications
456Citations
Parenting
Parent-Child Relations
Adverse Childhood Experiences
Publications
2025
Operationalizing Psychological Trauma in Pregnancy: A Systematic Review
Rutherford H, Wall K, Goldman L, Shin J, Novak E, Lowell A, Penner F, Day M, Papa L, Wright D, Givrad S. Operationalizing Psychological Trauma in Pregnancy: A Systematic Review. Psychological Trauma Theory Research Practice And Policy 2025 PMID: 40742688, DOI: 10.1037/tra0001968.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsConceptsSystematic reviewAssessment of psychological traumaImplementation of trauma-informed careWell-being of pregnant womenTranslation of research findingsPsychological traumaWell-beingPreferred Reporting ItemsTrauma-informed careComprehensive assessmentFull-text articlesTime of assessmentWeb of ScienceReporting ItemsClinical careOvid MEDLINEQuestionnaire-based approachPosttraumatic stress disorderOvid EmbasePregnant womenLiterature searchPerinatal individualsCareNarrative insightPrenatal periodA systematic review on the assessment of pregnancy-specific psychological trauma during pregnancy: A call to action
Givrad S, Wall K, Goldman L, Shin J, Novak E, Lowell A, Penner F, Day M, Papa L, Wright D, Rutherford H. A systematic review on the assessment of pregnancy-specific psychological trauma during pregnancy: A call to action. AJOG Global Reports 2025, 5: 100451. PMID: 40093874, PMCID: PMC11909425, DOI: 10.1016/j.xagr.2025.100451.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetricConceptsSystematic reviewPerinatal periodPsychological traumaPreferred Reporting ItemsCare deliveryWeb of ScienceReporting ItemsHealthcare systemIndependent reviewersInfant healthSecondary analysisScreening measuresOvid MEDLINEFull-textOvid EmbaseHistory of traumatic experiencesResearch teamPsychological disordersPerinatal individualsOvidPregnancyTraumatic experiencesTeamTraumaPsycINFOGlobal variation in the assessment of psychological trauma in pregnancy
Wall K, Penner F, Goldman L, Shin J, Novak E, Lowell A, Day M, Papa L, Wright D, Givrad S, Rutherford H. Global variation in the assessment of psychological trauma in pregnancy. Cambridge Prisms Global Mental Health 2025, 12: e10. PMID: 39935728, PMCID: PMC11810758, DOI: 10.1017/gmh.2024.152.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsConceptsSub-Saharan AfricaPregnant peopleSystematic reviewPsychological traumaImpact health outcomesMiddle EastIn-house assessmentPrevalence of traumatic experiencesCulturally appropriate measuresPreferred Reporting ItemsTraumatic experiencesObstetric careWeb of ScienceHealth outcomesCentral AmericaReporting ItemsSecondary analysisOvid MEDLINESub-SaharanOvid EmbaseSystematic literature reviewGeopolitical regionsAssessment of psychological traumaAfricaInterpersonal traumaMaternal Childhood Trauma, Caregiving Behavior, and Child Cognitive Development in the Context of Drug Addiction
Shin J, McMahon T, Penner F, Lowell A. Maternal Childhood Trauma, Caregiving Behavior, and Child Cognitive Development in the Context of Drug Addiction. American Journal Of Orthopsychiatry 2025, 95: 483-496. PMID: 39446632, DOI: 10.1037/ort0000802.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchAltmetricConceptsMaternal childhood traumaExposure to childhood traumaChildren's cognitive developmentChildhood traumaMother-child dyadsCaregiving behaviorAssociated with children's cognitive developmentCognitive developmentContext of drug addictionImpact of childhood traumaMaternal caregiving behaviorSubstance use treatment programsSubstance use disordersQuality of caregivingDrug addictionDyadic interactionsTreatment programsBehavioral systemsIntergenerational riskChild developmentMaternal substanceIntergenerational impactChild ageProtective factorsLack of association
2024
Parental Tobacco Smoking and Caregiving in the Perinatal and Early Infancy Periods
Martin R, Sandoval I, Penner F, Mayes L, Potenza M, Krishnan-Sarin S, Rutherford H. Parental Tobacco Smoking and Caregiving in the Perinatal and Early Infancy Periods. Journal Of Child And Family Studies 2024, 33: 2583-2595. DOI: 10.1007/s10826-024-02800-7.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsConceptsParental tobacco smokingTobacco smokePostpartum caregivingRisk of child neglectPostpartum periodImpact of tobacco smokingTobacco-cessation programsIllicit substance useChild neglectTobacco useSmoking tobaccoCaregiversPeriod of child developmentChild developmentSubstance usePostpartumSmokingEarly infancy periodPredominant focusTobaccoReview current literatureFathersPotential impactMothersCurrent literatureThe Paper Chase: A Team Science Training Exercise
Perry K, Mutignani L, Gette J, Kinney K, Gissandaner T, Penner F, Wen A, Regan T, Lim C. The Paper Chase: A Team Science Training Exercise. Training And Education In Professional Psychology 2024, 18: 13-20. PMID: 38487794, PMCID: PMC10936699, DOI: 10.1037/tep0000448.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetricConceptsTraining experienceCultural humilityCurrent articlePsychological researchPsychology internsTeam scienceGroups of traineesPositive experiencesWriting exercisesTraining exercisesAmount of timeScience trainingHumilityTrainingCritical trainingExperiencePsychologyResearchPresent studyConceptualizationSocial justiceTraineesScienceResearch experienceWriting
2023
Maternal psychological risk and the neural correlates of infant face processing: A latent profile analysis
Wall K, Penner F, Dell J, Lowell A, Potenza M, Mayes L, Rutherford H. Maternal psychological risk and the neural correlates of infant face processing: A latent profile analysis. Developmental Psychobiology 2023, 66: e22445. PMID: 38131237, PMCID: PMC10783861, DOI: 10.1002/dev.22445.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsCOVID-19 vaccine hesitancy, vaccination, and mental health: A national study among U.S. parents
Penner F, Contreras H, Elzaki Y, Santos R, Sarver D. COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy, vaccination, and mental health: A national study among U.S. parents. Current Psychology 2023, 43: 6033-6043. PMID: 37359574, PMCID: PMC10230126, DOI: 10.1007/s12144-023-04740-9.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsConceptsCOVID-19 vaccine hesitancyUnderlying medical conditionsCOVID-19 vaccination statusAcute stress symptomsVaccine hesitancyMedical conditionsCOVID-19 riskVaccination statusCOVID-19 vaccination hesitancyPsychological distressNon-Hispanic Black/African AmericanHealth care workersMental health functioningNon-Hispanic whitesCross-sectional surveyStress symptomsMental health concernsBlack/African AmericanVaccination doseVaccination hesitancyCare workersHealth functioningHispanic/LatinxAcute stressHealth concern
2022
Emotion regulation during pregnancy: A call to action for increased research, screening, and intervention
Penner F, Rutherford HJV. Emotion regulation during pregnancy: a call to action for increased research, screening, and intervention. Arch Womens Ment Health. Published online January 11, 2022.Peer-Reviewed Original Research
2021
Observed Maternal Coping Socialization and Child Internalizing Symptoms: The Roles of Maternal Depressive Symptoms and Peer Stress.
Watson KH, Anderson AS, Savin K, Penner F, Williams E, Reising MM, Dunbar JP, Bettis AH, Gruhn M, Compas B. Observed Maternal Coping Socialization and Child Internalizing Symptoms: The Roles of Maternal Depressive Symptoms and Peer Stress. Research On Child And Adolescent Psychopathology 2021 PMID: 33683549, DOI: 10.1007/s10802-021-00796-y.Peer-Reviewed Original Research
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