Kate Guastaferro
Kate Guastaferro
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Assistant Professor of Social and Behavioral Sciences
Associate Director of the Center for the Advancement and Dissemination of Intervention Optimization
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Professional overview
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Kate Guastaferro, PhD is an intervention scientist by training, her work is devoted to the development, optimization, implementation and evaluation of effective, efficient, affordable and scalable interventions with high public health impact. She is an expert in the multiphase optimization (MOST) strategy and her expertise is in parent-focused, multicomponent behavioral interventions to prevent child maltreatment. Dr. Guastaferro co-led a statewide trial focused on the coordinated implementation of three evidence-base child sexual abuse prevention programs; included in this trial was the parent-focused child sexual abuse program that she developed, piloted and evaluated. Her current work is focused on the integration of intervention optimization into the prevention of child maltreatment.
Prior to joining NYU, Dr. Guastaferro was an assistant research professor in human development and family studies at the Pennsylvania State University, and an affiliate of its Prevention Research Center and Child Maltreatment Solutions Network. In 2020, she was awarded the Victoria S. Levin Award for Early Career Success in Young Children’s Mental Health Research from the Society for Research in Child Development. She has been published in Child Maltreatment, Translational Behavioral Medicine, and the American Journal of Public Health.
Dr. Guastaferro received her PhD and MPH from Georgia State University’s School of Public Health, and her BA in anthropology from Boston University. She also completed a year of postdoctoral training at the Pennsylvania State University.
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Education
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Postdoctoral Fellow, Prevention and Methodology Training Program (T32 DA017629), The Pennsylvania State UniversityPhD Public Health, Georgia State UniversityMPH Health Promotion, Georgia State UniversityBA Anthropology, Boston University
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Honors and awards
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Victoria S. Levin Award, Society for Research on Child Development (2020)NIH Loan Repayment Program Award: Toward the Optimization of Behavioral Interventions to Prevent Child Maltreatment (201820192020)Public Health Achievement Award, Georgia State University (2016)Scarlet Key Honor Society, Boston University (2008)
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Publications
Publications
Mothers recovering from substance abuse and child maltreatment
AbstractStrong, L. E., Lutzker, J. R., Jabaley, J. J., Shanley, J. R., Self-Brown, S., & Guastaferro, K. M. (n.d.). In Children and Childhood (1–).Publication year
2016Page(s)
133-146AbstractParents with a history of substance abuse are at high-risk for child maltreatment, including the neglect of their child’s health (medical neglect). Additionally, these parents are likely to have low health literacy levels, possibly further jeopardizing risk to their child’s health. This research examined the effectiveness of the SafeCare® Health Module for mothers in a residential recovery facility. Two mothers with children under age five were trained to 1) identify child health symptoms and illnesses and 2) to determine the most appropriate course of care. Using a multiple-baseline, single-case research design, mothers were evaluated in their ability to select the most appropriate care setting using decision-making behaviors in response to a prompted child health scenario. The mothers showed steady improvement in skill acquisition. Future research directions and intervention implementation implications are discussed.Using a Technological Augmentation to Enhance Parent-Infant Interactions With Parents at Risk
AbstractGuastaferro, K. M., Lutzker, J. R., & Graham, M. L. (n.d.).Publication year
2016Journal title
Child and Family Behavior TherapyVolume
38Issue
1Page(s)
15-31AbstractEffective parent training programs may need to be tailored for at-risk parents by using simple language, presenting concrete concepts, and simple technologies. We present four single-case research-design studies examining if the use of digital frames enhances parent-infant interactions with a diverse range of mothers with varied levels of risk for maltreatment. Based on self-modeling, the frames contain photographs of mother-infant dyads in posed interactions representing desired criterion behaviors from the parent-infant interaction (PII) module of SafeCare®. Results indicate that the use of inexpensive digital frames appears to enhance already good outcomes of the SafeCare PII module.An exploratory study of grandparents raising grandchildren and the criminal justice system: A research note
AbstractGuastaferro, W. P., Guastaferro, K. M., & Stuart, D. (n.d.).Publication year
2015Journal title
Journal of Crime and JusticeVolume
38Issue
1Page(s)
137-161AbstractThere are nearly one million grandparents living with their grandchildren without either parent present in the household according to the 2010 US Census. Furthermore, approximately 10% of these grandparents are the primary caregivers of their grandchildren due to a parent's incarceration. Yet, our understanding of grandparents raising grandchildren in relation to the criminal justice system is limited. The present research is an exploratory qualitative study of five grandparents raising grandchildren in these circumstances. Each grandparent was interviewed individually and all participated in a focus group. We first sought to shed light on the context in which the grandparent gained caregiving responsibilities. The findings indicate that the arrest of the parent was not the initiating event. We then examined the networks and services accessed when attempting to meet the multiple health, behavioral health, and financial needs of their grandchildren. Findings indicate that both formal and informal networks were utilized. There were several missed opportunities for intervention and coordinated service delivery by the social services and criminal justice systems. Research and policy implications are also discussed.MoreWork needed to protect children but promising trend data on exposure to violence
Lutzker, J. R., Guastaferro, K., & Whitaker, D. J. (n.d.).Publication year
2014Journal title
JAMA PediatricsVolume
168Issue
6Page(s)
512-514Teaching young mothers to identify developmental milestones
AbstractGuastaferro, K. M., Lutzker, J. R., Jabaley, J. J., Shanley, J. R., & Crimmins, D. B. (n.d.). In Disability and Chronic Disease (1–).Publication year
2013Page(s)
9-22AbstractEarly identification of a developmental delay may allow for early intervention, a strategy shown to improve child outcomes. Often, pediatricians rely on parent observations to share concerns about development. The purpose of this research was to examine whether a combination of line-art drawings and discussion framed within SafeCare® increases a mothers' identification of developmental milestones. Thus, we examined the tDevelop, a tool designed to increase parent identification of developmental milestones and ageappropriate activities. Two high-risk families with children approximately 24-months of age were recruited from a residential program for young mothers. The mothers were presented with the tDevelop along with standard SafeCare® Parent-Child Interaction (PCI) information, including Planned Activities Training and age-appropriate activities. Data from a multiple-probe, single-case experimental design, suggest that mothers are able to recognize developmental milestones with increased accuracy upon intervention with the tDevelop. The enhanced PCI protocol may enhance parental identification of developmental milestones and may have significant implications for the early identification of developmental delays.SafeCare®: Historical perspective and dynamic development of an evidence-based scaled-up model for the prevention of child maltreatment
AbstractGuastaferro, K. M., Lutzker, J. R., Graham, M. L., Shanley, J. R., & Whitaker, D. J. (n.d.).Publication year
2012Journal title
Psychosocial InterventionVolume
21Issue
2Page(s)
171-180AbstractSafeCare is an evidence-based parent-training program that reduces child maltreatment, particularly neglect. The risk of child maltreatment, a public health issue affecting millions of U.S. children each year, can be markedly reduced by interventions such as SafeCare that deliver in-home services. Drawing from applied behavioral analysis roots, SafeCare focuses on providing parents with concrete skills in three areas: health, home safety, and parent-child/-infant interaction. This paper will include an overview of the SafeCare model, an historical perspective of its history and dynamic development, description of the theoretical underpinnings of the model, a description of the program targets and content by describing its modules and delivery, an overview of program outcomes, and data discussion of dissemination and implementation.