Past years

Research & Action Report, Fall/Winter 2014

by Sumru Erkut, Ph.D.

Sumru Erkut, Ph.D., is a senior research scientist at the Wellesley Centers for Women; she served as an Associate Director from 1995 to 2014. Her research has encompassed variations in the course of child and adult development, women and leadership, and educational program evaluation both in the U.S. and abroad.

Research & Action Report Spring/Summer 2014

by Layli Maparyan, Ph.D.

The 58th United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (UN CSW) was held this past winter, but the work continues. After two weeks devoted to the assessment of whether the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are working for women and girls and trying to figure out what the post-2015 development agenda is going to look like, one thing is clear: We aren’t going to make real progress without good data.

by Nova Biro, M.B.A. and Nancy MacKay, B.A.
September 19, 2013

To fully realize such benefits of social-emotional learning...schools should invest in evidence-based programming and engage every staff member who interacts with children--from teachers to principals to recess monitors--with training on how to model and reinforce effective prosocial approaches.

Research & Action Report, Spring/Summer 2013
by Nancy Marshall, Ed.D.
May 25, 2013

When we think about employment and health, we often think about high risk jobs and occupational safety. The recent deaths of first responders in Massachusetts and Texas highlight these serious concerns. However, many workers are exposed to unhealthy conditions that, while not lethal, seriously affect their health.

by Sumru Erkut, Ph.D.
July 18, 2012

Crisis can spell opportunity for women. Marissa Mayer’s appointment to head Yahoo can be seen as one more example of a talented woman brought in to save a company in danger of failing, a so-called “glass cliff” phenomenon-in-action where a women is hired when a company is on the verge of disastrous financial plunge. But Mayer’s appointment can also be seen as the Yahoo board being jolted into recognizing the solid business case for hiring a woman to lead their company. Our research (with my colleagues Vicki Kramer and Alison Konrad) on the advantages that a critical mass of three or more women directors can bring to a corporate board suggests that, attuned to the perspectives of multiple stakeholders, women tend to have a collaborative leadership style that increases listening, social support, and asking tough questions and demanding direct and detailed answers, all leading to win-win problem-solving. Yahoo needs all of that.

Research & Action Report, Spring/Summer 2012
by Ellen Gannett, M.Ed.
June 11, 2012

The current debate on the virtues, definition, and efficacy of expanded learning opportunities (ELO) is familiar and welcome. With over 30 years in the field, I have watched the landscape of the out-of-school time field twist and turn by the decade and I am seeing earlier ideas presented in new terminology. Back in 1982, when the first director of the National Institute on Out-of-School Time (NIOST), Michelle Seligson and co-author, James Levine wrote the inaugural School Age Child Care: An Action Manual, their guiding premise was that “solutions are really to be found at the community level, and that they can best be developed by mobilizing people with similar interests to help one another.” The book emphasized a model of service delivery called “the partnership” between schools and other community groups and agencies. While it has taken decades to get here, there is promise in ELO if we can overcome previous barriers.

by Sari Kerr, Ph.D.
The Wall Street Journal
May 6, 2012

Ms. Hymowitz concludes that no family policies exist that have created gender equality at the workplace. As evidence, she cites gender income gap figures from Sweden and Iceland. The article, however, confuses multiple related issues in its arguments: labor force participation, part-time work, occupational segregation and gender wage gap. 

by Erika Kates, Ph.D.
The Boston Globe
April 10, 2012

Yvonne Abraham's column provides a succinct summary of the key arguments for reducing our prison population: saving money, reducing recidivism, and diverting people to appropriate mental health and substance abuse treatment programs (“Correcting corrections,’’ Metro, April 5).

These arguments are especially compelling when it comes to incarcerated women. Almost two-thirds of the women sentenced to our state prison are diagnosed with mental illness (compared to a just over a quarter of male inmates) and many also have substance abuse diagnoses. The data show 85 percent of women’s offenses are non-violent and are predominantly related to their mental illnesses and addictions.

by Judith V. Jordan, Ph.D.
February 14, 2012

Today is February 14. Today we celebrate love. We utter the word love more today than at any other time. We represent it with bright red hearts and endearing words. Be mine. I love you. Pink and red and frills predominate. Of course we make money on it … chocolates, flowers, cards. It wouldn’t be an American holiday if we didn’t generate income from it. But also very American, we try to equalize it (if you’re going to send Valentine’s day cards in school these days, please send one to everyone in your homeroom … no need to create pain for the “unloved” on this day of generosity.) And I do remember well, sneaking looks at the piles of valentines on other kids’ desks. Did they get more cards? Who doesn’t like me? Ouch. That side of love.

by Ellen Gannett, M.Ed.

December 13, 2011

The current debate on the virtues, definition, and efficacy of expanded learning opportunities (ELO) is familiar and welcome. With over 30 years in the field, I have watched the landscape of the out-of-school-time field twist and turn by the decade and I am seeing earlier ideas presented in new terminology. Back in 1982, when the inaugural director of the National Institute on Out-of-School Time (NIOST), Michelle Seligson, and her co-author, James Levine, wrote the first School Age Child Care: An Action Manual, their guiding premise was that “solutions are really to be found at the community level, and that they can best be developed by mobilizing people with similar interests to help one another.” The book emphasized a model of service delivery called “the partnership” between schools and other community groups and agencies. While it has taken decades to get here, there is promise in ELO if we can overcome previous barriers.