faculty

Jill Trumbell

Associate Professor
Jill Trumbell
Contact
Jill.Trumbell@unh.edu
Pettee Hall, Durham, NH 03824
(603) 862-5499
Related Links

faculty Bio

Jill Trumbell, PhD, is an Assistant Professor at the 91ÖÆƬ³§'s Department of Human Development and Family Studies. Her research focuses on the quality and impact of parent-child relationships in early childhood and young children's social-emotional development, largely using observational methodology in her work. Her research has been widely published in top peer-reviewed journals like Child Development, Family Relations, and the Journal of Family Psychology. She is actively engaged as a member of the Society for Research in Child Development, National Council on Family Relations, and Board of Directors for the New Hampshire Toy Library Network. She is also dedicated to maintaining strong research collaborations with community partners (e.g., the Children's Museum of New Hampshire) and frequently engages in interdisciplinary work that focuses on the well-being of parents and young children. In sum, her work contributes to advancing knowledge on children's development and strengthening family well-being through evidence-based research and practice.

Courses Taught

  • HDFS 525: Human Development
  • HDFS 623: Infant and Child Development
  • HDFS 695: Independent Study
  • HDFS 743: Families, Schools, & Community
  • HDFS 743/843: Families, Schools, & Community
  • INCO 590: Student Research Experience

Education

  • Ph.D., Human Development&Family Study, Purdue University
  • M.A., Human Development&Family Study, Central Michigan University
  • B.S., Developmental&Child Psychology, Central Michigan University

Research Interests

  • Children/Youth
  • Early Childhood Development
  • Family Services
  • Parent Involvement
  • Quantitative analysis
  • Parent Education
  • Emotional/Mental Health--Child/Adolescent
  • Women, work and motherhood
  • Child Psychology/Development

Selected Publications

  • Trumbell, J. M., Nesbitt, K., Merchant, C., & Thorson, J. C. (2026). Assessing Preschooler?Parent Attachment Relationships in a Children's Museum: Preliminary Evidence Supporting the Sensitivity?Security Link in an Ecologically Relevant Context. Social Development, 35(2). doi:

  • O'Brien, J. E., Trumbell, J. M., O'Brien, A. J., & Fischer, C. (2025). Pivots and Partnerships: Successes, Challenges, and Lessons Learned From Conducting Research During a Global Pandemic.. Violence Against Women, 31(5), 1365-1380. doi:

  • Trumbell, J. M., Posada, G., Anaya, L., Kim, G., & Liu, M. (2025). Child-father and child-mother attachment relationships in naturalistic settings.. Child Dev, 96(1), 375-388. doi:

  • Thorson, J. C., Trumbell, J. M., & Nesbitt, K. (2024). Caregiver and child question types during a museum interaction.. Front Psychol, 15, 1401772. doi:

  • Trumbell, J. M., Posada, G., & Anaya, L. (2022). Interparental conflict predicts developmental trajectories of maternal sensitivity across early childhood. FAMILY RELATIONS. doi:

  • Jones, L. M., Nolte, K., O'Brien, A. J., Trumbell, J. M., & Mitchell, K. J. (2021). Factors Related to Providers Screening Children for Behavioral Health Risks in Primary Care Settings. JOURNAL OF PEDIATRIC NURSING-NURSING CARE OF CHILDREN & FAMILIES, 59, 37-44. doi:

  • Posada, G., Vaughn, B. E., Verissimo, M., Lu, T., Nichols, O. I., El-Sheikh, M., . . . Kaloustian, G. (2019). Preschoolers' secure base script representations predict teachers' ratings of social competence in two independent samples. ATTACHMENT & HUMAN DEVELOPMENT, 21(3), 238-252. doi:

  • Hibel, L. C., Buhler-Wassmann, A. C., Trumbell, J. M., & Liu, S. (2019). Marital conflict sensitizes mothers to infant irritability: A randomized controlled experiment. INFANT AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT, 28(3). doi:

  • Posada, G. E., Trumbell, J. M., Lu, T., & Kaloustian, G. (2018). III. THE ORGANIZATION OF ATTACHMENT BEHAVIOR IN EARLY CHILDHOOD: LINKS WITH MATERNAL SENSITIVITY AND CHILD ATTACHMENT REPRESENTATIONS. MONOGRAPHS OF THE SOCIETY FOR RESEARCH IN CHILD DEVELOPMENT, 83(4), 35-59. doi:

  • Hibel, L. C., Trumbell, J. M., Valentino, K., & Buhler-Wassmann, A. C. (2018). Ecologically salient stressors and supports and the coordination of cortisol and salivary alpha-amylase in mothers and infants. PHYSIOLOGY & BEHAVIOR, 195, 48-57. doi:

  • Trumbell, J. M., Hibel, L. C., Mercado, E., & Posada, G. (2018). The Impact of Marital Withdrawal and Secure Base Script Knowledge on Mothers' and Fathers' Parenting. JOURNAL OF FAMILY PSYCHOLOGY, 32(6), 699-709. doi:

  • Posada, G., & Trumbell, J. (2017). Applying attachment theory across cultures: What is general and what is specific.. In C. Herreman, S. Gojman-de-Millan, & L. A. Sroufe (Eds.), Attachment across clinical and cultural perspectives: A relational psychoanalytic approach.. Routledge.

  • Posada, G., Trumbell, J., Noblega, M., Plata, S., Peña, P., Carbonell, O. A., & Lu, T. (2016). Maternal Sensitivity and Child Secure Base Use in Early Childhood: Studies in Different Cultural Contexts.. Child Dev, 87(1), 297-311. doi:

  • Hibel, L. C., Trumbell, J. M., & Mercado, E. (2014). Work/non-workday differences in mother, child, and mother-child morning cortisol in a sample of working mothers and their children. EARLY HUMAN DEVELOPMENT, 90(1), 1-7. doi:

  • Sarigiani, P., Trumbell, J. M., & Camarena, P. (2013). Electronic communications technologies and the transition to college: Links to parent-child attachment and adjustment.. Journal of the First-Year Experience and Students in Transition, 25.

  • Posada, G., Lu, T., Trumbell, J., Kaloustian, G., Trudel, M., Plata, S. J., . . . Lay, K. -L. (2013). Is the secure base phenomenon evident here, there, and anywhere? A cross-cultural study of child behavior and experts' definitions.. Child Dev, 84(6), 1896-1905. doi:

  • Hibel, L. C., Mercado, E., & Trumbell, J. M. (2012). Parenting Stressors and Morning Cortisol in a Sample of Working Mothers. JOURNAL OF FAMILY PSYCHOLOGY, 26(5), 738-746. doi: