Sheila Brachfeld-Child, Ph.D.

Senior Lecturer, Psychology Department

Department of Psychology
Wellesley College
106 Central Street
Wellesley, MA 02481-8203
Phone: 781-283-3009
Email: sbrachfel@wellesley.edu
Office: Science Center 482

I joined the faculty of the Psychology Department at Wellesley College in 1981. I came to Wellesley from Brandeis University where I received a Ph.D. in Psychology, concentrating in Developmental Psychology. Initially I studied infant social development, looking at mothers and fathers interacting with their infants. Taking advantage of the research opportunities here at Wellesley offered by the Child Study Center, I looked at friendship among preschool children, comparing friends and acquaintances in a variety of situations. More recently, I have become interested in peer interactions in adolescence with a focus on social aggression. I have supervised students’ explorations of the representation of social aggression on television and in the movies. I teach Adolescence and Introduction to Psychology. In addition, since 1998, I have been Director of Medical Professions Advising for the college, dividing my time between teaching and advising/administration.