Strohschein, Lisa
Associate Professor Social Structure and Policy
PhD (Sociology) McMaster University
6-13 HM Tory Building
780.492.0475 phone
780.492.7196 fax
lisa.strohschein@ualberta.ca
Research Interests
In my research, I strive to produce innovative, high quality research and to develop my reputation as an expert on issues relating to the effects of family dynamics on health and wellbeing. I draw on a life course approach and stress process for theoretical direction and typically employ advanced longitudinal techniques (growth curve models, competing risks analysis) on large secondary datasets to conduct my research. My current research interests fall broadly under the three following areas.
1. The consequences of the loss of intimate relationships
I am actively engaged in research that investigates how the loss of intimate relationships (separation, divorce and death) affects the lives of children and adults. Supported by a SSHRC research grant, I have been documenting the diverse family structure histories of a contemporary cohort of Canadian children and investigating why patterns of stability and change in family structure are linked to child outcomes. This involves teasing out what makes families vulnerable to family instability (poverty, quality of the marital relationship) as well as tracking how marital instability alters family dynamics and creates new stressors in the lives of children.
2. Socioeconomic status and child health and development
A substantial body of evidence has documented the relationship between low income and health, making it clear that those who occupy relatively disadvantaged positions are, on average, in worse health than those located further up the income ladder. Yet the bulk of this literature is based on cross-sectional research, hindering efforts to understand how socioeconomic differences in health form and change over time. Some of my past research involved investigating the extent to which socioeconomic conditions early in life influence health outcomes later in life. More recently, I have begun to evaluate the relative influence of poverty histories and parenting practices for child health and am also interested in exploring the effects of poverty on child health in other countries.
3. Caring as a form of social capital
As individuals move through life, they build lasting relationships with others around them, where reciprocal exchanges of caring and support create a stock of social capital that can be drawn upon to weather life’s storms. I am interested in understanding how caring, as it takes place both within families and in extra-familial social networks, operates as a form of social capital that serves to enhance the well-being of families and family members.
Research Grants
Demands and resources in work and family life and their implications for stress and health among Canadians. PI: Scott Schieman, University of Toronto, funded through CIHR-OG (2010-2014).
Family structure histories and child outcomes: How do patterns of stability and change in family structure influence the lives of Canadian children? PI: Lisa Strohschein, funded through SSHRC-SRG (2009-12).
Life Course as a Policy Lens, PI: Paul Bernard and Susan McDaniel, funded through Human Resources and Social Development Canada (2007 – 2009).
Successful Transitions, PI: Doug Willms, funded through Human Resources and Social Development Canada (2007 – 2009).
Divorce Histories, Residential Mobility and Educational Outcomes, RBC Financial Group Child Health Fund (RBC Visiting Scholar), Manitoba Center for Health Policy, University of Manitoba (2006-2008).
Raising and Levelling the Learning Bar, PI: Doug Willms, funded through SSHRC-INE, (2003-2008).
Professional Activities
Statistics Canada Longitudinal Platform Advisory Committee (LISA – Longitudinal and International Study of Adults)
Vice-Chair, Conference Organizing Committee for the 2012 Biennial meeting of the International Society for the Study of Behavioural Development, to be held in Edmonton, Canada, July 8-12, 2012 (Nancy Galambos, Chair and Jeff Bisanz, Vice-Chair).
Editorial Board, Journal of Marriage and Family, since 2005
Occasional reviewer: American Sociological Review, Journal of Health and Social Behavior, Family Relations, Social Forces, Social Psychiatry and Epidemiology, Canadian Studies in Population, Research on Aging, Canadian Journal of Aging, Development and Psychopathology, Canadian Journal of Public Health, Social Science and Medicine, Canadian Medical Association Journal, BMC Public Health
Professional Recognition
2010 Research Award, Assistant Professor level, Faculty of Arts, University of Alberta
Honourable mention for best publication in mental health in 2007, presented by the mental health section of the American Sociological Association, August 11, 2007.
Recognition of exceptional service, Journal of Marriage and Family, 2007.
Ranked in the top ten media experts at the University of Alberta in 2007.
Research Publications
Strohschein, Lisa. (in press). I want to move, but cannot: Characteristics of involuntary stayers and associations with health among Canadian seniors. Journal of Aging and Health.
Freistadt, Josh and Strohschein, Lisa. (in press). Family structure differences in family functioning: Interactive effects of social capital and family structure. Journal of Family Issues.
Strohschein, Lisa. (2011). Spousal bereavement as a triggering mechanism for a loss of residential independence among Canadian seniors. Research on Aging, 33(5), 576-97.
Strohschein, Lisa. (2011). A life course approach to studying transitions among Canadian seniors in couple-only households. Canadian Public Policy, 37(1), 57-71.
Strohschein, Lisa. (2010). Generating heat or light? The challenge of social address variables. Journal of Marriage and Family 72(1), 23-28.
Li, Xu, Anne H. Gauthier, and Lisa Strohschein. (2009). Why are some children left out? Factors barring children from participating in extracurricular activities. Canadian Studies in Population36(3-4), 325-345.
Strohschein, Lisa, Noralou Roos, and Marni Brownell. (2009).
Family structure histories and high school completion: Evidence from a population based registry. Canadian Journal of Sociology, 34(1), 83-103.
Strohschein, Lisa A., Anne H. Gauthier, Rachel Campbell and Clayton Kleparchuk. (2008). Parenting as a dynamic process: A test of the resource dilution hypothesis. Journal of Marriage and Family, 70(3), 670-83.
Strohschein, Lisa. (2007). Challenging the presumption of diminished capacity to parent: Does divorce really change parenting practices? Family Relations, 56(3), 358-368.
Strohschein, Lisa. (2007). Prevalence of methylphenidate use among Canadian children following parental divorce. Canadian Medical Association Journal, 176(12), 1711-14.
Strohschein, Lisa A. (2005). Household income histories and child mental health trajectories. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 64(4) 359-375.
Strohschein, Lisa A. (2005). Parental divorce and child mental health trajectories. Journal of Marriage and Family, 67, 1286-1300.
Strohschein, Lisa A., Peggy McDonough, Georges Monette and Qing Shao. (2005). Gender, marital status and mental health: Are there gender differences in the short-term effects of continuity and change in marital status? Social Science and Medicine, 61, 2293-2303.
McDonough, Peggy and Lisa Strohschein (2003). Age and the gender gap in distress. Women and Health, 38(1), 1-20.
Recent Presentations
Strohschein, Lisa. Fragile families in Canada and effects on health in early childhood. Presented at the 73rd annual conference of the National Council on Family Relations, Orlando, Florida, November 16-19, 2011.
Strohschein, Lisa. I want to move, but cannot: Characteristics of involuntary stayers and associations with health among Canadian seniors. Presented at the Canadian Research Data Centre Network National Conference “Coming of Age: The Policy Impact of an Aging Population”, Edmonton, Alberta, October 4-5, 2011.
Strohschein, Lisa. Fragile families and health in early childhood: What accounts for the association? Statistics Canada Socioeconomic conference, Ottawa, Ontario. September 27-28, 2011.
Strohschein, Lisa. Aging in place: A closer look. Seminar at the Institute for Human Development, Life Course and Aging, University of Toronto, September 22, 2011.
Strohschein, Lisa. Keeping time in health and aging research. Keynote address at the Annual Interdisciplinary Research Day, Centre for Population, Health, and Aging, University of Western Ontario, May 27, 2011.
Strohschein, Lisa. Child health in Canada. Presented at the International Institute of Population Sciences, Mumbai, India, January 25, 2011.
Strohschein, Lisa and T.S.S. Rao. Divorce and the stress process: Does divorce increase the risk for childhood mental disorders? Workshop presented at the 63rd Annual National Conference of the Indian Psychiatric Society (ANCIPS), New Delhi, India, January 16 - 19, 2011.
Strohschein, Lisa. Families and mental health: Does marriage still matter? Presented at JSS Medical College Hospital, Mysore, India, January 6, 2011.
Strohschein, Lisa, Lucia Tramonte, & J. Douglas Willms. Family instability and child mental health trajectories. Presented at the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association, Atlanta, August 14 - 17, 2010.
Strohschein, Lisa, Rachel Campbell, & Anne H. Gauthier. Assessing the influence of poverty histories and parenting on child behavioural development in stable two-biological-parent households: Findings from Canada. Presented at the 21st biennial meeting of the International Society for the Study of Behavioral Development, Lusaka, Zambia, July 18 - 22, 2010.
Strohschein, Lisa. Are the kids okay? Towards an understanding of how parental divorce affects child health and well-being. Grand Pediatrics Rounds, University of Alberta Hospital, March 11, 2010.