photo of the Center on Human Development and Disability Institute on Human Development and Disability
University of Washington
Seattle, Washington
Dr. Michael Guralnick

Michael J. Guralnick, Ph.D.
Professor of Psychology and Pediatrics
Research Affiliate, Institute on Human Development and Disability
University of Washington
Seattle, Washington

IHDD - Box 357920
University of Washington
Seattle, WA 98195-7920
email: mjgural@uw.edu

     Michael J. Guralnick, Ph.D., is Professor of Psychology and Pediatrics and a Research Affiliate of the Institute on Human Development and Disability at the University of Washington. Guralnick has directed numerous research, professional training, and development projects in the fields of early childhood development and intervention, with a special interest in the design and effectiveness of early intervention programs, peer-related social competence, and early childhood inclusion. He has published over 160 articles and book chapters spanning a range of topics and disciplines. In addition to 8 edited volumes, his 2019 authored volume integrated developmental, intervention, and implementation science in the field of early childhood intervention in the context of the Developmental Systems Approach. Major research has included a randomized clinical trial to determine the effectiveness of a comprehensive early intervention program to promote the peer-related social competence of young children with developmental delays, and a multi-context investigation of the factors influencing the peer interactions and peer social networks of children with Down syndrome. Current projects focus on the further development and application of the Developmental Systems Approach to early intervention and international activities designed to integrate research and practice in the field of early intervention.

     From 1986-2023, Guralnick served as Director of the Institute on Human Development and Disability (IHDD). The IHDD is comprised of both a University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities and a Eunice Kennedy Shriver Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center, and is one of the largest interdisciplinary research, training, and service centers in the United States addressing issues directly related to developmental disabilities. Over 600 faculty, staff, and doctoral and post-doctoral students operate within the four IHDD buildings on the campus of the University of Washington and in other university and community sites to conduct basic and translational research, to provide clinical services to individuals and their families, to provide interdisciplinary clinical and research training, and to provide technical assistance and outreach training to practitioners and community agencies. Involvement in advocacy and systems change are also core features of the IHDD.

     Guralnick received the 1994 Research Award from the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, the 1997 Distinguished Research Award from the Arc of the United States, the 2008 Edgar A. Doll award from Division 33 of the American Psychological Association for outstanding scientific contributions to the field of intellectual and developmental disabilities, and the 2022 Division for Early Childhood Executive Board Award for Service to the Field of Early Childhood Intervention. He is a past President of the Association of University Centers on Disabilities, the Council for Exceptional Children's Division for Early Childhood, and the Academy on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, and a former Chair of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center Directors. He served as editor of the journal Infants and Young Children from 2003 – 2009 and is the founder and former Chair of the International Society on Early Intervention.

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