• Faculty and Staff
• Upcoming Events
• 2008 Annual Report of Activity

Center for the Study of Interpersonal Acceptance and Rejection Research and Related Projects

Researchers, clinical practitioners and other professionals are using Parental Acceptance-Rejection Theory (PARTheory) measures in the study and practice of parent-child relationships, intimate adult relationships, peer and sibling relationships, and other areas. Faculty and Staff are also actively engaged in identifying new external funding sources for future research.

David E. Cournoyer, Ph.D., Acting Dean, School of Social Work, University of Connecticut, Associate Director of CSIAR. Dr. Cournoyer is working to create opportunities for faculty from the School of Social Work and the Department of Human Development and Family Studies to collaborate on research pertinent to the mission of the Rohner Center.

Fatoş Erkman, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Bogazici University, Istanbul Turkey. Dr. Erkman is involved in research on teacher acceptance-rejection, physical punishment, and intimate adult relationships in Turkey.

Brent E. Gibson, Ph.D., Dr. Gibson is project director for a National Institute on Aging study of driving transitions among persons 55+ with visual impairment. Other research interests include family caregiving across diverse populations, and relationship quality in the context of lifespan development.

Dwayne Grannum, B.A., Researcher in Barbados, West Indies. Mr. Grannum has conducted research in Barbados on the relationship between corporal punishment, perceived parental acceptance-rejection, and psychological adjustment among youths.

Abdul Khaleque, Ph.D., Senior Scientist, University of Connecticut, CSIAR. Involved in cross-cultural projects on teacher acceptance-rejection, intimate adult relationships in Bangladesh, Canada, and the US, and multi-ethnic comparisons in the U.S. of parental acceptance-rejection and psychological adjustment.

Parminder Parmar, Ph.D. Assistant Professor, Pennsylvania State University, Worthington-Scranton. Dr. Parmar is a Project Coordinator on a cross-cultural project on teacher acceptance-rejection, as well as research on physical punishment and intimate adult relationships in India.

Karen Ripoll-Núñez, Ph.D. Assistant Professor, University of the Andes, Bogotá, Colombia, South America. Dr. Ripoll-Núñez’s research interests include intimate adult relationships and corporal punishment in a cross-cultural perspective.

Sandra Rigazio-DiGilio, Ph.D., Professor of Marriage and Family Therapy and Senior Scientist/ Practitioner, University of Connecticut, CSIAR. Dr. Rigazio-DiGilio is principal investigator in studies dealing with the application of parental-acceptance-rejection theory and measures in relational and systemic therapy.

Ronald P. Rohner, Ph.D., University of Connecticut, Director of CSIAR. Dr. Rohner is author of Parental Acceptance-Rejection Theory (PARTheory) and its associated measures. He is also a collaborator, consultant, or mentor on most research projects using PARTheory measures conducted through the Rohner Center.

Ching-Ching Ruan, M.A., Ms. Ruan is involved in research on intimate adult relationships among Asian Americans Asian immigrants in the U.S.

Jamie M. Donoghue , Ph.D. Candidate, Researcher on the clinical applications of PARTheory measures in relational therapy.

Azmi Varan, Ph.D. Dr. Varan is conducting research on teacher acceptance-rejection and intimate adult relationships in Turkey.

Robert A. Veneziano, Ph.D. Dr. Veneziano’s research focuses on the influence of father love on child development and adult psychological functioning.

Upcoming Events

• July 3-6, 2008. 2nd International Congress on Interpersonal Acceptance and Rejection at University of Crete, Greece. Clinical Application of PARTheory Measures in Relational Therapy. Two 90-minute symposia. Rigazio-DiGilio, S. A., Rohner, R. P., & Donohue, J.