Alison Miller, Ph.D.
Lab Director

A developmental perspective can help us address public health concerns that disproportionately affect children living with adversity. Dr. Miller’s work examines how individual child factors, family relationships, and social-contextual processes change over time and shape child development and well-being. The Child Health and Development lab conducts research on early-life stress and self-regulation in relation to child mental health, eating behavior and obesity, sleep, media use, and physical activity, and on the influence of parenting and social determinants of health in these areas. A goal of Dr. Miller’s work is to apply developmental science perspectives and use findings to inform community-, school- and/or family-based interventions seeking to promote child healthy development and well-being. To that end, she collaborates with colleagues across disciplines and with community partners to translate research findings into approaches that reduce health inequities and foster positive health and well-being outcomes for children and families.
Relevant websites:
- School of Public Health
- Zero to Thrive
- U-M Pediatric Diabetes C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital
- U-M Elizabeth Weiser Caswell Diabetes Institute
- Momentum Center
- Children’s Environmental Health and Disease Prevention Center
- Healthy Homes Coalition of West Michigan
- Science of Behavior Change
- Prevention Research Collaborative
- Sustainable Food Systems Initiative
