Jane R.L. Leer, Ph.D.

I am a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Lynch School of Education and Human Development, Boston College, and a Research Affiliate at the Center for Child and Family Policy, Duke University. 

Beginning Fall 2024, I will be an Assistant Professor in Developmental Psychology (focused on Developomental Diversity Science) at San Diego State University. 

My research examines contextual, cultural, and policy influences on mental health, academic engagement, and social cognition (e.g., intergroup relations, beliefs about inequality). In December 2022 I completed a dual degree Ph.D. in Public Policy and Psychology at Duke University. 

I draw on my interdisciplinary academic training and 10+ years of applied research experience working with policymakers, NGOs, teachers, and social workers in Latin America, West Africa, and the United States to evaluate social policies and programs. My research has been published in 10 peer-reviewed articles (5 first-authored) in journals including Child Development, Developmental Psychology, and the Journal of Early Adolescence, and I have received generous funding from the American Psychological Association, the Society for Research in Child Development, the William T. Grant Foundation, and the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues, as well as multiple internal grants and fellowships. 

I grew up in rural northern California and will gladly talk to anyone willing to listen about my beloved (and very wacky) hometown in the redwoods (Arcata). I have lived in the California Bay Area (5 years), Chile (1 year), Nicaragua (3 years), Washington, D.C. (4 years), Durham, North Carolina ( 4 years), and now Boston (1 year). I am bilingual (English/Spanish). Outside of work, I enjoy attempting to become a better cook, getting outside with my husband, Roberto, daughter, Flora, and dog, Lupe, and re-connecting with friends and family scattered across the globe.