SJC Long Island Alumna Quoted in CNN Article

SJC Long Island alumna Mary Buckingham ’12, Ph.D., who earned her degree at St. Joseph’s in psychology, was quoted extensively in a CNN article about how teens’ relationships at home lead to how they empathize with others.

Dr. Buckingham, a research assistant professor at Tufts University in the Institute for Applied Research in Youth Development, noted in the article that teenagers who grow up in a secure home with strong familial relationships are more likely to be empathic.

“Empathy plays an important role in young people’s lives, and it plays an important role in their positive development, such as how they contribute to their communities,” explained Dr. Buckingham, who earned a Ph.D. in Child Study and Human Development from Tufts University in 2019.

“Empathy motivates youth to feel concern for others, and it also motivates them to demonstrate that concern through their positive social actions,” added Dr. Buckingham, whose own research focuses on positive youth development, specifically on empathy development.

To read the CNN article, click here.

For more of Dr. Buckingham’s research, check out the links below.

• My Most Important Characteristic Is “My Empathy:” Exploring the Connection Between Empathy and Identity in Adolescence
• Perspective Taking and Decision-Making in Educational Game Play: A Mixed-Methods Study
• Adolescents’ Character Role Models: Exploring Who Young People Look Up to as Examples of How to Be a Good Person