Kate Guastaferro
Kate Guastaferro
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Assistant Professor of Social and Behavioral Sciences
Co-Director of the Center for the Advancement and Dissemination of Intervention Optimization
Director of the Doctor of Public Health (DrPH) Program
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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
Braiding two evidenced-based models: Parents as Teachers and SafeCare®
AbstractLutzker, J. R., Miller, K., Guastaferro, K., & Walsh, J. (n.d.).Publication year
2014Abstract~Evidence-Based Programs and Child Maltreatment: How can we get the “most juice for the squeeze”?
AbstractLutzker, J. R., & Guastaferro, K. (n.d.).Publication year
2014Abstract~Improving family functioning of adult drug court clients.
AbstractWhitaker, D. J., Guastaferro, W. P., Klotz, A., Roby, S. J., Guastaferro, K., & Holleran, D. (n.d.).Publication year
2014Abstract~Improving outcomes for adult drug court clients and their children.
AbstractGuastaferro, W. P., Guastaferro, K., Roby, S. J., Holleran, D., & Whitaker, D. J. (n.d.).Publication year
2014Abstract~Meeting the needs of families at high-risk for child maltreatment: The braiding of two evidence-based curricula.
AbstractLutzker, J. R., Guastaferro, K., Whitaker, D. J., & Graham, M. L. (n.d.).Publication year
2014Abstract~Meeting the Needs of High Risk Families: A systematic approach to braiding of two evidence-based parenting programs to best meet the needs of high-risk parents and highlight interim results of a current randomized controlled trial.
AbstractLutzker, J. R., & Guastaferro, K. (n.d.).Publication year
2014Abstract~Mobile Phones and the Prevention of Child Maltreatment: Innovation & Implications.
AbstractJackson, M. C., Guastaferro, K., Self-Brown, S., & Lutzker, J. R. (n.d.).Publication year
2014Abstract~More work needed to protect children but promising trend data on exposure to violence
AbstractLutzker, J. R., Guastaferro, K., Whitaker, D. J., & Guastaferro, K. (n.d.).Publication year
2014Journal title
JAMA PediatricsVolume
168Issue
6Page(s)
512-514Abstract~Mothers with Intellectual Disability: Experiences and Implications for Service Delivery.
AbstractGuastaferro, K., Lutzker, J. R., & Graham, M. L. (n.d.).Publication year
2014Abstract~Reaching Families in an Adult Felony-Level Drug Court.
AbstractGuastaferro, K., Guastaferro, W. P., Brown, J. R., & Graves, S. (n.d.).Publication year
2014Abstract~The Effect of Parent-Infant Interaction Training on Maternal Utterances: Language Environment Analysis Opportunities and Implications
AbstractGuastaferro, K. (n.d.).Publication year
2014Abstract~The Evaluation and Dissemination of Parents as Teachers (PAT) + SafeCare® to Improve Outcomes for High-Risk Families.
AbstractLutzker, J. R., Guastaferro, K., & Graham, M. L. (n.d.).Publication year
2014Abstract~We're lucky for Temple Grandin's brain
AbstractLutzker, J. R., & Guastaferro, K. (n.d.).Publication year
2014Journal title
PsycCritiquesVolume
59Issue
16Page(s)
6Abstract~Braiding Two Evidence-Based Parenting Programs: Research Design and Implementation
AbstractGuastaferro, K., Graham, M. L., Lutzker, J. R., & Whitaker, D. J. (n.d.).Publication year
2013Abstract~Creating sustainable partnerships to meet the needs of high-risk families.
AbstractGuastaferro, K., Graham, M. L., & Lutzker, J. R. (n.d.).Publication year
2013Abstract~Developmental Milestone Identification as a Child Maltreatment Prevention Technique for Teen Mothers.
AbstractGuastaferro, K., & Lutzker, J. R. (n.d.).Publication year
2013Abstract~Enhancing parent-infant interactions with high-risk parents
AbstractLutzker, J. R., Guastaferro, K., Graham, M. L., Morales, Y., & Aguilar, M. (n.d.).Publication year
2013Abstract~SafeCare®: From development to innovative sustainability strategies.
AbstractLutzker, J. R., & Guastaferro, K. (n.d.).Publication year
2013Abstract~Teaching young mothers to identify developmental milestones
AbstractGuastaferro, K. M., Lutzker, J. R., Jabaley, J. J., Shanley, J. R., Crimmins, D. B., & Guastaferro, K. (n.d.).Publication year
2013Journal title
International Journal of Child Health and Human DevelopmentVolume
6Issue
2Page(s)
223-233AbstractEarly 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.Using digital picture frame technology as an enhancement to the parent-infant interaction module of SafeCare®.
AbstractGuastaferro, K., Graham, M. L., & Lutzker, J. R. (n.d.).Publication year
2013Abstract~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., & Guastaferro, K. (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.A quasi-experimental study of a universal parent-focused child sexual abuse prevention program
AbstractGuastaferro, K., Abourjaily, E., Torney, I., Abuchaibe, V., McElwee, K., Connell, C. M., & Dahlen, A. (n.d.).Journal title
Journal of Youth and AdolescenceAbstract~Acceptability, appropriateness, and feasibility of the Floreciendo sexual and reproductive health intervention: Mixed-methods findings from a pilot optimization trial
AbstractCarney, J. R., Chu, W., Juarez, M. D., Silva, J., Salgado, S., Romero, G., Melgoza, V., Gabino, B., Sedeno, A., Guastaferro, K., & Merrill, K. G. (n.d.).Journal title
Translational Behavioral MedicineAbstract~Adding a parent-focused child sexual abuse prevention module to home visiting: A provider cohort study protocol
AbstractAbourjaily, E., Abuchaibe, V., Dahlen, A., Self-Brown, S. R., Jones, R., Kemner, A., & Guastaferro, K. (n.d.).Journal title
Frontiers in Public HealthAbstract~Addressing Pediatric Behavioral and Mental Health Concerns using Community Health Workers in a Primary Care Clinic: An Analysis of Goals and Progression toward Completion
AbstractGuastaferro, K., Scarpaci, M. M., Barnard, E., Menon, N., Nunez-Pepen, R., Much-Hichos, M., Lo, A., Sheldrick, R. C., & Feinberg, E. (n.d.).Journal title
Journal of Ambulatory Care ManagementAbstract~