The HDFS Report Methodology 2014

This website details the methodology of the Human Development and Family Science Report inaugural ranking. The survey was loosely modeled off of The Philosophical Gourmet Report, Brian Leiter’s highly regarded ranking of graduate programs in Philosophy in the English-speaking world. Below I describe the content of the survey as well as the statistics behind the ranking.

Programs and Faculty

There does not exist a ranking of HDFS doctoral programs, at least not a publicly available ranking. Part of the problem, well summarized by Dr. Jason Hans of the University of Kentucky in Family Relations, is that there are 103 different names for 217 HDFS-type academic units he considered.

To identify programs to rank, I first used the degree program guide, managed by Dr. Hans, of the National Council on Family Relations, to generate a list of doctoral degree programs. I dropped programs that only had a clinical focus (i.e. couple and family therapy programs) as well as some programs that were determined to not have HDFS doctoral degrees, resulting in a list of 47 departments. Some programs with a more human development focus are not on this list, so these departments were added to the list, resulting in a final of 53 departments. I received assistance from Jason Sullivan, who is in institutional research at The Ohio State University, in creating a complete list of HDFS-type programs, as well as several colleagues with whom I shared my initial list. I learned after I distributed the survey that one program did not have a Ph.D., thus one program was dropped, resulting in 52 departments for the final ranking.

Here is the program list:

Arizona State University, School of Social & Family Dynamics (1)
Auburn University, Department of Human Development & Family Studies (2)
Brandeis University, Heller School for Social Policy & Management (Institute for Child, Youth & Family Policy) (3)
Brigham Young University, School of Family Life Program (4)
Colorado State University, Department of Human Development & Family Studies (5)
Cornell University, Department of Human Development (6)
East Carolina University, Department of Child Development & Family Relations (7)
Florida State University, Department of Family & Child Sciences (8)
Iowa State University, Department of Human Development & Family Studies (9)
Kansas State University, School of Family Studies & Human Services (10)
Loma Linda University, Department of Counseling & Family Sciences (11)
Louisiana State University, School of Social Work, Concentration in Child & Family Studies (12)
Michigan State University, Department of Human Development & Family Studies (13)
Mississippi State University, School of Human Sciences (14)
Montclair State University, Department of Family & Child Studies (15)
North Dakota State University, Department of Child Development and Family Science (16)
Northwestern University, Program in Human Development and Social Policy (17)
Ohio State University, Program in Human Development and Family Science (18)
Oklahoma State University, Department of Human Development & Family Science (19)
Oregon State University, Human Development & Family Sciences (20)
Pennsylvania State University, Department of Human Development & Family Studies (21)
Purdue University, Department of Human Development & Family Studies (22)
Syracuse University, Department of Child & Family Studies (23)
Texas Tech University, Department of Human Development & Family Studies (24)
Texas Woman’s University, Department of Family Sciences (25)
Tufts University, Department of Child Study and Human Development (26)
University of Alabama, Department of Human Development & Family Studies (27)
University of Alberta, Program in Human Development and Family Studies (28)
University of Arizona, Division of Family Studies & Human Development (29)
University of California – Davis, Program in Human Development and Family Studies (30)
University of Connecticut, Department of Human Development & Family Studies (31)
University of Delaware, Department of Human Development & Family Studies (32)
University of Florida, Department of Family, Youth and Community Sciences (33) (data dropped for lack of PhD degree)
University of Georgia, Department of Human Development and Family Science (34)
University of Guelph, Department of Family Relations & Applied Nutrition (35)
University of Illinois, Department of Human & Community Development (36)
University of Kentucky, Department of Family Sciences (37)
University of Manitoba, Department of Family Social Sciences (38)
University of Maryland, Department of Family Science (39)
University of Minnesota, Department of Family Social Science (40)
University of Missouri, Department of Human Development & Family Studies (41)
University of Nebraska – Lincoln, Department of Child, Youth & Family Studies (42)
University of New Mexico, Department of Individual, Family & Community Education (43)
University of North Carolina–Greensboro, Department of Human Development & Family Studies (44)
University of North Texas, Department of Educational Psychology, specialization in Human Development and Family Studies (45)
University of Pennsylvania, Program in Interdisciplinary Studies in Human Development (46)
University of Rochester, Program in Human Development (47)
University of Tennessee, Department of Child & Family Studies (48)
University of Texas, Department of Human Development & Family Sciences (49)
University of Wisconsin, Department of Human Development & Family Studies (50)
Utah State University, Department of Family, Consumer, & Human Development (51)
Virginia Tech University, Department of Human Development (52)
West Virginia University, Program in Education – Emphasis in Human Development and Family Studies (53)

Some survey responders rated the faculty in each program, rather than the program and university, much in the style of the Philosophical Gourmet Report. Here is the list of faculty. Numbers correspond to each university above. Faculty lists were culled from graduate program and department websites, and may include lecturers for some programs.

Robert Bradley    Sarah Brem    Scott Christopher    Larry Dumka    Steve Elliott    Richard Fabes    Samuel Green    William Griffin    Laura Hanish    Eric Hedberg    Jenefer Husman    Masumi Iida    Justin Jager    Olga Kornienko    Alexander Kurz    Becky Ladd    Gary Ladd    Roy Levy    Sabina Low    Carol Martin    Cindy Miller    Eleanor Seaton    Sandra Simpkins    Tracy Spinrad    Marilyn Thompson    Monica Tsethlikai    Adriana Umaña-Taylor    Kimberly Updegraff    Carlos Valiente    Rebecca White    Natalie Wilkens    Brandon Yoo (1)

Ellen Abell    Francesca Adler-Baeder    Kristen Bub    Robert R. Bubb    Adrienne Duke    Mona El-Sheikh    Stephen A. Erath    Thomas Fuller-Rowell    Megan Haselschwerdt    Margaret K. Keiley    Jennifer L. Kerpelman    Scott A. Ketring    Leanne K. Lamke    Jacquelyn Mize    Gregory S. Pettit    Joe Pittman    Amy Rauer    Carol Lee Roberson    Jamie Sailors    Diana Samek    Emily M. Skuban    Thomas A. Smith    Donna Lynn Sollie    Brian E. Vaughn (2)

Dolores Acevedo-Garcia Unda Ioana Crisan Lisa Dodson Alison Earle Kimberly Geronimo Erin Hardy Pamela Joshi Laurie Nsiah-Jefferson Bethany Romano Lindsay Rosenfeld (3)

Dawna Baugh    Roy Bean    Ivan Beutler    Angela Bradford    Dean Busby    Mark Butler    Jason Carroll    Sarah Coyne    Russ Crane    Randal Day    David Dollahite    Tom Draper    Steve Duncan    Justin Dyer    Leslie Feinauer    Dick Galbraith    Jim Harper    Craig Hart    Alan Hawkins    Jeffrey Hill    Tom Holman    Erin Holmes    Spencer James    Lee Johnson    Nate Lambert    Chien-Ti Lee    Richard Miller    Chris Moore    David Nelson    Larry Nelson    Chris Porter    Clyde Robinson    Susanne Olsen Roper    Jonathan Sandberg    Laura Walker    Brian Willoughby    Jeremy Yorgason (4)

Jennifer Aberle    Karen Caplovitz Barrett    Allison Bielak    Zeynep Biringen    J. Douglas Coatsworth    Lisa A. Daunhauer    Manfred Diehl    Deborah Fidler    Christine A. Fruhauf (Bubien)    William J. Gavin    Shelley A. Haddock    Ashley Harvey    Jen Krafchick    Rachel Lucas-Thompson    Erika Lunkenheimer    David MacPhee    Karen Rattenborg    Nathaniel Riggs    Lauren Shomaker    Lise M. Youngblade    Toni Zimmerman (5)

Adam Anderson    Charles Brainerd    Anthony Burrow    Marianella Casasola    Stephen Ceci    Richard Depue    Eve De Rosa    John Eckenrode    Gary Evans    Stephen Hamilton    Cynthia Hazan    Barbara Koslowski    Tamar Kushnir    Corinna Loeckenhoff    Barbara Lust    Jane Mendle    Anthony Ong    Karl Pillemer    Valerie Reyna    Steven Robertson    Ritch Savin-Williams    Nathan Spreng    Robert Sternberg    Felix Thoemmes    Qi Wang    Elaine Wethington    Wendy Williams (6)

Sharon Ballard    Eboni Baugh    Susannah Berry    Sheresa Blanchard    Barbara Brehm    Andrew Brimhall    Elizabeth Carroll    Priti Desai    Katherine (Kit) W. Didericksen    Bernice Dodor    David Dosser    Kate Harcourt    Archana Hegde    Jennifer L. Hodgson    Jakob Jensen    Bryce Jorgensen    Cheryl Johnson    Angela Lamson    Sandra Lookabaugh    Linda Mitchell    Damon Rappleyea    Natalia Sira    Alan Taylor    Lisa Tyndall    Chia Jung Yeh  (7)

Ming Cui    Wayne Denton    Frank Fincham    Melinda Gonzales-Backen    Kendal Holtrop    Murray Krantz    Mallory Lucier-Greer    Lenore McWey    Penny Ralston    Marsha Rehm (8)

Cassandra Dorius    Cynthia Fletcher    Jonathan Fox    Megan Gilligan    Kimberly Greder    Clinton Gudmunson    Gong-Soog Hong    Kere Hughes-Belding    Tera Jordan    Amelia Karraker    Brenda Lohman    Gayle Luze    Jennifer Margrett    Peter Martin    Susan Maude    Christine Maynard    Tricia Neppl    Carla Peterson    Daniel Russell    Thomas Schofield    Debra Sellers    Elizabeth Shirtcliff    Amie Zarling (9)

Rick Scheidt    Bronwyn Fees    Mary DeLuccie    Elaine Johannes    Bradford Wiles    Gayle Doll    Kate Behan    Duane Crawford    Mindy Markham    Karen Myers-Bowman    Kimmery Newsom    Charlotte Olsen    Walter Schumm (10)

Ian Chand    Curtis Fox    Douglas Huenergardt    Carmen Knudson-Martin    Michelle Minyard-Widmann    Mary E. Moline    Winetta Oloo    Aylene Popka    Alisha Saavedra    Cheryl Simpson    Randall Walker    Jackie Williams-Reade (11)

Cassandra Chaney    Loren Marks    Pamela Monroe    Sarah Pierce    Katherine Stamps Mitchell       (12)

Barbara Ames    Adrian Blow    Amy E. Bonomi    Ryan Bowles    Holly E. Brophy-Herb    Marsha Carolan    Sarah N. Douglas    Hope K. Gerde    Robert J. Griffore    Deborah J. Johnson    Julia R. Miller    Esther E. Onaga    José Rubén Parra-Cardona    Lillian A. Phenice    Desiree Baolian Qin    Lawrence B. Schiamberg    Le Anne E. Silvey    Lori Skibbe    Claire D. Vallotton    Francisco A. Villarruel    Andrea K. Wittenborn    June Pierce Youatt  (13)

Lori Elmore-Staton    Angel Fason    Charles Freeman Jr.    Rita Green    Julie C. Parker    Tommy Phillips    Paula Threadgill    Joe Wilmoth (14)

Katia Paz Goldfarb    Tiffany L. Brown    Jonathan Caspi    Bradley van Eeden-Moorefield    Constance Gager    Pauline Garcia-Reid    Sara Goldstein    Lyndal Khaw    Chih-Yuan Steven Lee    Soyoung Lee    Miriam R. Linver    Olena Nesteruk    Christine A. Price    Robert J. Reid    Pearl Stewart    Jennifer Brown Urban (15)

James E. Deal    Kristen Benson    Elizabeth Blodgett Salafia    Sean Brotherson    Kim Bushaw    Margaret Fitzgerald    Heather Fuller-Iglesias    Joel Hektner    Nancy Kaler    Christi McGeorge    Melissa Lunsman O'Connor    Debra Pankow    Candace Philbrick    Sharon Query    Brandy A. Randall    Divya Saxena    Lori Scharmer    Tom Stone Carlson    Jane Strommen    Wendy Troop-Gordon    Ann Werlinger    Rebecca Woods    Dena Wyum (16)

Emma Addam    Lindsay Chase-Lansdale    Cynthia Coburn    Jeannette Colyvas    Fay Lomax Cook    Thomas Cook    Mesmin Destin    David Figlio    Jonathan Guryan    Claudia Haase    Larry Hedges    Barton Hirsch    Simone Ispa-Landa    Kirabo Jackson    Dan Lewis    Jelani Mandara    Dan McAdams    Thomas McDade    Penelope Peterson    James Rosenbaum    Terri Sabol    Diane Schanzenbach    Morton Schapiro    Heather Schoenfeld    Bruce Spencer    James Spillane    Linda Teplin    Laurie Wakschlag    Ellen Wartella (17)

Suzanne Bartle-Haring    Michael Betz    Cynthia Buettner    Xin Feng    Claire Kamp Dush    Keeley Pratt    Kelly Purtell    Sarah Schoppe-Sullivan    Natasha Slesnick    Anastasia Snyder    Deanna Wilkinson    Jen D. Wong (18)

Mayra Almodovar    Whitney A. Bailey    Alexander Bishop    Matthew Brosi    Gretchen Cole-Lade    Ronald Cox Jr.    Michael Criss    Kami Gallus    Brandt Gardner    Joseph Grzywacz    Amanda Harrist    Jennifer Hays-Grudo    Tammy L. Henderson    Charles Hendrix    Carolyn S. Henry    Laura Hubbs-Tait    Christine Johnson    Jan H. Johnston    Jennifer Jones    Robert Larzelere    Michael Merten    Amanda Sheffield Morris    Sissy Osteen    Dianna Ross    Karina Shreffler    Amy Tate    Glade Topham    Paula Tripp    Isaac Washburn    Ginger Welch    Stephan M. Wilson  (19)

Alan Acock    Carolyn Aldwin    John Geldhof    Karen Hooker    Susan Keys    Shannon Lipscomb    Katherine MacTavish    Megan McClelland    Carolyn Mendez-Luck    Patricia Moran    Leslie Richards    Richard Settersten Jr.    Robert Stawski    Samuel Vuchinich (20)

David M. Almeida    Mayra Bamaca-Colbert    Timothy Brick    Sy-Miin Chow    H. Harrington (Bo) Cleveland    Linda M. Collins    Shannon Corkery    Sherry Corneal    Molly Countermine    Jennifer L. Crissman Ishler    Ann C. Crouter    Anthony R. D'Augelli    David J. Eggebeen    Gregory M. Fosco    Steffany J. Fredman    Lisa Gatzke-Kopp    Charles F. Geier    Scott D. Gest    Mark T. Greenberg    Rukmalie Jayakody    Sarah Kollat    Eva S. Lefkowitz    Eric Loken    Jennifer L. Maggs    Lynn M. Martire    Susan M. McHale    Peter Molenaar    Jennie Noll    Zita Oravecz    Nilam Ram    Lesley Ross    Michael J. Rovine    Chad E. Shenk    Martin J. Sliwinski    Edward A. Smith    Cynthia A. Stifter    Dawn Taylor    Douglas M. Teti    Steven H. Zarit       (21)

Sharon Christ    Jennifer Dobbs-Oates    Aryn M. Dotterer    Cézanne Elias    James G. Elicker    Melissa M. Franks    Doran French    Elliot Friedman    Blake Jones    Shelley M. MacDermid Wadsworth    Germán Posada    Douglas R. Powell    Megan Purcell    David Purpura    Sara Schmitt    A. J. Schwichtenberg    Cleveland Shields    Zoe Taylor    Natasha Watkins    Shawn Whiteman (22)

Robert P. Moreno    Colleen Baish Cameron    Bruce Carter    Gail Ensher    Joseph Fanelli    Mine Göl-Güven    Alice Sterling Honig    Eunjoo Jung    Renie Kehres    Ambika Krishnakumar    Teresa MacDonald    Matthew K. Mulvaney    Kamala Ramados    Rachel Razza    Jaipaul Roopnarine    Corinne Roth Smith    Margaret L. Usdansky  (23)

Jean Pearson Scott    Alan Reifman    Nancy Bell    Yvonne Caldera    Yoojin Chae    Malinda Colwell    Zhen Cong    Jacki Fitzpatrick    Sybil L. Hart    Michael E. McCarty    Miriam Mulsow    Sylvia Niehuis    Michael O’Boyle    Elizabeth Sharp    Elizabeth Trejos-Castillo    Dana Weiser (24)

Karen Petty    Melissa McInnis Brown    Elizabeth McCarroll    Lin Moore    Sharla Snider    Erron Huey    Holly Carrell Moore    Katherine Rose    Brigitte Vittrup    Pedro J. Blanco    Joel Muro    Ryan Holliman    Lamar Muro    Joyce Armstrong    Catherine Dutton    Shann Hwa (Abraham) Hwang    Rhonda Buckley    Nerissa Gillum    Sandra McClintic    Linda Brock    Linda Ladd    Sarah Woods (25)

Cynthia Ballenger    Marina Bers    Kathleen Camara    Julie Dobrow    M. Ann Easterbrooks    David Henry Feldman    Sasha Fleary    Calvin Gidney III    Jessica Goldberg    Francine Jacobs    Bruce Johnson    Tama Leventhal    Richard M. Lerner    Christine M. McWayne    Jayanthi Mistry    Kerri Modry-Mandell    Ellen E. Pinderhughes    Martha Pott    W. George Scarlett    Maryanne Wolf    Jonathan Zaff (26)

Laura Bloom    Sherwood Burns-Nader    Deborah Casper    Martha J. Cook    Mary E. Curtner-Smith    Maria Hernandez-Reif    B. Cecile Komara    Mrs. Victoria D. Peeples    Jason Scofield    Carroll M. Tingle    Casey Totenhagen    Tricia Witte (27)

Jane Batcheller    Anne Bissonnette    Vladislava Blinova    Rhonda Breitkreuz    Kathryn Chandler    Pushpanjali Dashora    Janet Fast    Matthew Johnson    Norah Keating    Rachel McQueen    Lori Moran    Arlene Oak    Berna Skrypnek    Megan Strickfaden    Deanna Williamson (28)

Melissa A. Barnett    Tommy K. Begay    Emily A. Butler    Noel A. Card    Melissa Curran    Bruce J. Ellis    Allison Ewing    Dianne D. Horgan    James Edward Hunt    Maureen E. Kelly    Ann Mastergeorge    Charles Raison    Andrea Romero    Stephen T. Russell    Angela R. Taylor (29)

Jay Belsky    Zhe Chen    Daniel Ewon Choe    Daniel Choe    Katherine Jewsbury Conger    Rand Conger    Amanda Guyer    Leah Hibel    Siwei Liu    Lisa Soederberg Miller    Adrienne Nishina    Beth Ober    Lenna Ontai    Martin Smith    Janet Thompson    Kali Trzesniewski  (30)

Kari Adamsons    Shayne Anderson    Marysol Asencio    Keith Bellizzi    Anne  Bladen    Thomas Blank    Alaina Brenick    Preston Britner    Edna Brown    Annamaria Csizmadia    Laura Donorfio    Lisa Eaton    Michael Ego    Anne Farrell    Meg Galante-DeAngelis    Jane A. Goldman    Linda Halgunseth    Sara Harkness    Kim Larrabee    Laura Mauldin    Sandra Rigazio-DiGilio    JoAnn Robinson    Beth Russell    Ronald M. Sabatelli    Nancy W. Sheehan    Charles M.  Super    Mary Tabb    Rachel Tambling    Shannon E. Weaver    Steven K. Wisensale       (31)

Martha Buell    Steven M. Eidelman    Michael Ferrari    Ruth E. Fleury-Steiner    Norma Gaines-Hanks    Jennifer Gallo-Fox    Mellissa Gordon    Rena Hallam    Myae Han    Jason Hustedt    Lynn Okagaki    Rob Palkovitz    Cynthia Paris    Staci Perlman    Barbara H. Settles    Bahira Sherif Trask    Donald G. Unger    Jennifer Vu    Julie Mapes Wilgen    Lynn Worden (32)

Tracy Irani    Rosemary Barnett    Linda Bobroff    Randall Cantrell    Gerald Culen    David Diehl    Keith Diem    Kate Fletcher    Kate Fogarty    Larry Forthun    Martie Gillen    Jessica Gouldthorpe    Michael Gutter    Victor Harris    Agata Kowalewska    Muthusami Kumaran    Angela B.    Dale Pracht    Heidi Radunovich    Karla Shelnutt    Amy Simonne    Suzanna Smith    Michael Spranger    Mickie Swisher    Bryan Terry    Jennifer Walsh  (33) (data dropped for lack of PhD degree)

Diane W. Bales    J. Maria Bermudez    Gene Brody    Geoffrey L. Brown    Chalandra Matrice Bryant    Valerie W. Cown    Ted G. Futris    Jerry Gale    Jennifer George    Jennifer Gonyea    Hui-Chin Hsu    Amy M Kay    Steven M Kogan    Melissa Scott Kozak    Melissa Ann Landers-Potts    Denise Clark Lewis    Jay A. Mancini    Assaf Oshri    Desiree M. Seponski    Emilie Phillips Smith    Danny Stevens    Kandauda Wickrama (34)

Andrea Breen    Susan Chuang    Donna Lero    Leon Kuczynski    Tuuli Kukkonen    Susan Lollis    Scott Maitland    Robin Milhausen    Michele Preyde    Tricia van Rhijn    Carla Rice (35)

Kelly Bost    Aaron Ebata    Gail M. Ferguson    Barbara Fiese    Jennifer Hardesty    Robert Hughes Jr.    Robin Jarrett    Susan Silverberg Koerner    Karen Kramer    Laurie Kramer    Soo Ah Kwon    Reed Larson    Christy Lleras    Brent McBride    Nancy McElwain    Brian Ogolsky    Ramona F. Oswald    Marcela Raffaelli    David Rosch    Constance Hoenk Shapiro    Erica Thieman    Gerry Walter    Angela Wiley (36)

Ronald Werner-Wilson    Jason Hans    Donna Smith    Robert H. Flashman    Diana Haleman    Claudia J. Heath    Amy Hosier    Jennifer Hunter    Hyungsoo Kim    Trent Parker    Ann Vail    Alexander T. Vazsonyi    Tracy Werner-Wilson    Nathan Wood (37)

Douglas A. Brownridge    Karen A. Duncan    Joan E. Durrant    Rachel Eni    Javier Mignone    Rosemary S.L. Mills    Caroline Piotrowski    Wilder Robles    Kerstin Stieber Roger    Shahin Shooshtari (38)

Elaine Anderson    Norman B. Epstein    Francis Goldscheider    Stephanie Grutzmacher    Sandra L. Hofferth    Marian Moser Jones    Samuel Kessel    Jinhee Kim    Sally A. Koblinsky    Leigh A. Leslie    Amy Lewin    Mona Mittal    Manouchehr Mokhtari    Sandra C. Quinn    Kevin M. Roy    Edmond Shenassa    Mia Smith-Bynum    Julia Steinberg    Carol A. Werlinich (39)

Gerald August    Sara Axtell    Lynne Borden    Sharon Danes    William Doherty    Jodi Dworkin    Abigail Gewirtz    William Goodman    Steven Harris    Beth Magistad    Jan McCulloch    Jenifer McGuire    Tai Mendenhall    Cynthia Meyer    Martha Rueter    Joyce Serido    Cathy Solheim    Marlene Stum    Susan Walker    Lindsey Weiler    Liz Wieling    Zha Blong Xiong    Virginia Zuiker (40)

Stephen Jorgensen    Larry Ganong    Jean Ispa    Jacquelyn Benson    Tashel Bordere    Gustavo Carlo    Marilyn Coleman    Chelsea Garneau    Nora Hager    Sarah Killoren    Antoinette Landor    Ashlie Lester    Louis Manfra    Francisco Palermo    Christine Proulx    Russell Ravert    Duane Rudy    David Schramm    Kathy Thornburg    Kelly Warzinik    Katharine Zeiders       (41)

Richard Bischoff    Rochelle Dalla    Maria Rosaria de Guzman    Dipti Dev    Tonia Durden    Carolyn Edwards    Susan Goodrich    Erin Hamel    Cody Hollist    Soo-Young Hong    Jennifer Leeper    Samuel Meisels    Yolanda Mitchell    Victoria Molfese    Sheree Moser    Helen Raikes    Allison Reisbig    Michelle Rupiper    Susan Sarver    Paul Springer    Rebecca Swartz    Julia Torquati    Eric Unrau    Natalie Williams    Ruth Xia (42)

Ziarat Hossian    Virginia Shipman    Ryan Kelly (43)

Arthur Anastopoulos    Kathryn Aldridge    Cheryl Buehler    Joi Bulls    Susan Calkins    Deborah Cassidy    Stephanie Coard    Danielle Crosby    David Demo    Mark Fine    Anne Fletcher    Heather Helms    Linda Hestenes    Andrea Hunter    Karen Laparo    Esther Leerkes    Roger Mills-Koonce    Sharon. Mims    Mary Morgan    Dan Perlman    Catherine Scott-Little    Sudha Shreeniwas    G. Smith    Andrew Supple    Jonathan Tudge (44)

Arminta L. Jacobson    Rebecca J. Glover    Wendy Middlemiss    Angela Nievar    Kelly Roberts (45)

Xinyin Chen    Suzanne Fegley    Douglas A. Frye    Elizabeth Mackenzie    Michael Nakkula    Howard Stevenson    Daniel Wagner (46)

David Donnelly    Kathryn Douthit    Joyce Duckles    Lucia French    Doug Guiffrida    Frederick Jefferson    Howard Kirschenbaum    Daniel Linnenberg    Martin Lynch    Karen Mackie    Andre Marquis    Bonnie Rubenstein    Richard Ryan    Dena Swanson (47)

Mary Jane Moran    Brian Barber    Priscilla Blanton    Kathy Fitzgerald    Hillary Fouts    Elizabeth Johnson    James Malia    Cara Moore    Carin Neitzel    Vey Nordquist    Spencer Olmstead    Delores Smith    Heidi Stolz    Sandra Twardosz (48)

Meena Adhikary    Natalie Ammon    Edward Anderson    Aprile Benner    Amy Bryan    Mary Burson-Polston    Theodore Dix    Paul Eastwick    Karen Fingerman    Elizabeth Gershoff    Marci Gleason    Christine Gray    Sue Greninger    Nancy Hazen-Swann    Amy Imes    Deborah Jacobvitz    Mary Jamsek    Patricia Jolley    Su Kim    Karrol Kitt    Judith Langlois    Timothy Loving    Jerry Manheimer    Rachel Moyer-Trimyer    Lisa Neff    Farya Phillips    Mark Pope    Phyllis Richards    Catherine Robinson    Karen Silcox    Hallie Speranza (49)

Clifton Barber    Karen Bogenschneider    Kristy Burkholder    Janean Dilworth-Bart    Laura Froyen    Sarah Halpern-Meekin    Sigan Hartley    Heather Kirkorian    Lauren Papp    Julie Poehlmann-Tynan    Linda Roberts    Shannon Sparks    Lynet Uttal (50)

Scot Allgood    Ann Berghout Austin    Troy Beckert    Lisa Boyce    Kay Bradford    Lucy Delgadillo    Jeffrey Dew    Travis Dorsch    Elizabeth Fauth    Brian Higginbotham    Randall Jones    David Law    Yoon Lee    Shelley Lindauer    Jean Lown    Brent Miller    Maria Norton    Megan Oka    Kathleen Piercy    Dave Robinson    Lori Roggman    Ryan Seedall    Linda Skogrand    Susan Talley (51)

Rosemary Blieszner    Shannon Jarrott    Christine Kaestle    Karen Roberto    Tina Savla    Mark Benson    Vickie Fu    Cindy Smith    Kee Kim    Katherine Allen    Joyce Arditti    April Few-Demo    Peggy Meszaros    Anisa Zvonkovic    Megan Dolbin-MacNab    Erica Grafsky    Scott Johnson    Fred Piercy (52)

Suzanne Hartman    Carol Markstrom    Kristin Moilanen    Amy Root    Nancy Taylor    Jessica Troilo    Barbara Warash    Nancy Wolfe-Dilgard    Melissa Workman (53)

Sampling Frame

The sampling frame for this survey included one faculty member from each of the 53 HDFS doctoral programs identified. For virtually every department, the graduate studies chair was invited. There were a few exceptions: I am the graduate studies chair at Ohio State, so a tenure-track alternative was invited, and at another university, a lecturer was in the position of graduate studies chair, so a tenure-track alternative in that department was invited. Further, some graduate studies chairs asked their department chair to complete the survey, some asked another colleague, and some refused, which resulted in the invitation of the department chair to complete the survey.

Final Sample

The final sample for the study included 33 faculty. No program had more than one faculty member respond. The final response rate was 63%. The sample included 5 department chairs, 24 graduate studies chairs, 5 faculty members (note respondents could choose more than one institutional role).  Fifty-three percent were full professors, 38% were associate professors, and 9% were assistant professors. Seventy percent were female; two did not report their gender identity. Eighty-seven percent were White, 7% were African American, and one respondent was Hispanic and another was other race. Two did not report their race.

Survey

The survey, which was active for 17 days in late October to early November 2014, was created in Qualtrics by Claire Kamp Dush with assistance from Ohio State HDFS graduate student Rachel Brown.

Questionnaire

1. What is your current department, or the graduate program that you are currently affiliated with? 53 departments/graduate programs listed, including university names, along with an “other” option
2. At what university did you receive your Ph.D.? 53 universities housing HDFS-type departments/graduate programs listed, along with an “other” option

After these two questions are answered, one of two blocks of questions is randomly assigned to each survey.

Block 1 – Ranking of Programs

1. Please evaluate the following programs on a scale of 1 Marginal to 5 Outstanding, or Unable to Evaluate. You will not rate your current program or PhD institution. The 53 departments/graduate programs, including university names, are randomly listed to be ranked. Respondents do not see the program they selected in 1, nor the program at the university they selected in 2.
2. What are the top programs in the area of Family Science? (Choose up to 5, hold the ‘ctrl’ (Windows) or Command (Mac) key while clicking to make multiple selections). You will not be able to choose your current program or PhD institution. The 53 departments/graduate programs, including university names, are alphabetically listed.
3. What are the top programs in the area of Child Development? (Choose up to 5, hold the ‘ctrl’ (Windows) or Command (Mac) key while clicking to make multiple selections). You will not be able to choose your current program or PhD institution. The 53 departments/graduate programs, including university names, are alphabetically listed.
4. What are the top programs in the area of Adolescent Development and Emerging Adulthood? (Choose up to 5, hold the ‘ctrl’ (Windows) or Command (Mac) key while clicking to make multiple selections). You will not be able to choose your current program or PhD institution. The 53 departments/graduate programs, including university names, are alphabetically listed.
5. What are the top programs in the area of Adult Development and Aging? (Choose up to 5, hold the ‘ctrl’ (Windows) or Command (Mac) key while clicking to make multiple selections). You will not be able to choose your current program or PhD institution. The 53 departments/graduate programs, including university names, are alphabetically listed.

Block 2 – Ranking of Faculty

1. Please evaluate each group of faculty on a scale of 1 Marginal to 5 Outstanding, or Unable to Evaluate. You will not rate your current program or PhD institution. The faculty in each of the 53 departments/graduate programs are randomly listed as groups to be ranked. Respondents do not see the faculty in the program they selected in 1, nor the faculty in the program at the university they selected in 2.
2. What are the top groups of faculty in the area of Family Science?  (Choose up to 5). You will not be able to choose your current program or PhD institution. The faculty in each of the 53 departments/graduate programs are randomly listed as groups to be chosen, the same random order is retained from question 1 in this block for ease of response. Respondents do not see the faculty in the program they selected in 1, nor the faculty in the program at the university they selected in 2.
3. What are the top groups of faculty in the area of Child Development?  (Choose up to 5). You will not be able to choose your current program or PhD institution. The faculty in each of the 53 departments/graduate programs are randomly listed as groups to be chosen, the same random order is retained from question 1 in this block for ease of response. Respondents do not see the faculty in the program they selected in 1, nor the faculty in the program at the university they selected in 2.
4. What are the top groups of faculty in the area of Adolescent Development and Emerging Adulthood?  (Choose up to 5). You will not be able to choose your current program or PhD institution. The faculty in each of the 53 departments/graduate programs are randomly listed as groups to be chosen, the same random order is retained from question 1 in this block for ease of response. Respondents do not see the faculty in the program they selected in 1, nor the faculty in the program at the university they selected in 2.
5. What are the top groups of faculty in the area of Adult Development and Aging?  (Choose up to 5). You will not be able to choose your current program or PhD institution. The faculty in each of the 53 departments/graduate programs are randomly listed as groups to be chosen, the same random order is retained from question 1 in this block for ease of response. Respondents do not see the faculty in the program they selected in 1, nor the faculty in the program at the university they selected in 2.

Finally, all respondents are asked the following questions.

1. What is your current institutional role? Multiple may be chosen.
   1. Dean/Associate Dean (1)
   2. Department Chair (2)
   3. Center Director (3)
   4. Chair of Graduate Studies Committee, Graduate Program Coordinator (4)
   5. Faculty member/Lecturer/Instructor (5)
   6. Graduate Student/Undergraduate Student (6)
   7. Other (7) ____________________
2. What is your rank?
   1. Professor (1)
   2. Associate Professor (2)
   3. Assistant Professor (3)
   4. Non-tenure track Clinical Faculty (4)
   5. Non-tenure track Lecturer/Instructor (5)
   6. Graduate Student (6)
   7. Undergraduate Student (7)
   8. Other (8) ____________________
3. What is your gender identity? (optional)
   1. Female (1)
   2. Female to male transgender (2)
   3. Male (3)
   4. Male to female transgender (4)
   5. Not sure (5)
   6. Other (please specify): (6) ____________________
4. What is your race? (optional)
   1. White/Caucasian (1)
   2. African American (2)
   3. Hispanic (3)
   4. Asian (4)
   5. Native American (5)
   6. Pacific Islander (6)
   7. Other (7)
5. Comments (optional)
6.  Please provide your name, institution, and email address to facilitate the 2015 survey (optional).

First name (1) ____________________
Last name (2) ____________________
Email address (3) ____________________
Institution (4) ____________________

Sliders. All rankings were conducted using “sliders”, which allow responders to drag a bar along a continuum from 1 Marginal to 5 Outstanding. One decimal place was allowed. The “show value” option was used, so that the value chosen appears at the end of the bar. Sliders have less error associated with them as it is not possible to click the wrong “button” accidentally. Further, sliders allow for a more continuous scale.

Ranking

As a demographer, I conducted the ranking a couple of ways, and ran sensitivity analyses to establish how robust the results were. First, I conducted the average program ranking and faculty ranking, as two separate variables, for each university. I then created a trimmed mean for the program ranking and the faculty ranking, much in the style of US News and World Report rankings, whereby I dropped the highest and lowest score for each program (if there were ties, for example, if a program had multiple high scores of the same value, only one high score was dropped). Next, I examined the correlations between each of the two methods. The correlation between the raw program ranking and faculty ranking was (0.8672). The correlation between the trimmed program ranking and faculty ranking was (0.8622). I reported the raw mean rankings because that method had the higher correlation between the program and faculty rankings. Means were reported to six decimal places. I first ordered the schools by the raw means. Then, I rounded the means to one decimal place as does both the Philosophical Gourmet Report and US News and World Report. I had ties after ordering based on rounding, so I then changed schools with the same score to the same rank, but the remainder of the schools retained their rank, in the style of both the Philosophical Gourmet Report and US News and World Report. Schools/programs that were ranked below a peer assessment of 2.0 were not be ranked, but rather, were marked as “Rank Not Published” and listed alphabetically in the style of US News and World Report rankings.

For the specialty programs, I summed the number of nominations from the program and faculty rankings for an overall total number of nominations. The programs with the most nominations were listed in the top 5; ties were allowed.

Qualitative Comments

I thought the following comments might be of interest to my readers.

“I think my contributions are completely subjective and uninformed. I don’t think about Departments as a whole, as a general rule.”
“In all honesty I am not sure what the best programs are with respect to Child development, Adult development etc. I think of it more in terms of people than programs.”
“I am struck as to how difficult it is to answer the ranking questions re substantive area, which may indicate few of our institutions really get the story out re their perceived outstanding areas.”

One respondent also sent me a link to this comic, which I enjoyed:

Dissemination

The report was disseminated on my blog, Adventures in Human Development and Family Science. A link to the report was also sent to 53 individuals who were originally invited to participate.

Next Ranking

US News and World Report ranks social science programs about every four years. Brian Leiter of the Philosophical Gourmet Report does the ranking about every two to three years. I plan to conduct the ranking again in 2017.