Darlene A Kertes
Biographic Data
| ID | 4787609 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Darlene A Kertes |
| GIVEN NAMES | Darlene A |
| FAMILY NAME | Kertes |
| SIGNATURE | KERTES D A |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Florida |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-4365-6611 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 8 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 20 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 8 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2015 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2025 |
| H-INDEX | 3 |
Breaking down silos and echo chambers: Adolescence through an interdisciplinary lens
Research on adolescence occurs across a variety of disciplines, including education, psychology, sociology, public health, biology, and medicine, among other fields, each with its own definition of the most pressing problems, levels of analysis, and proposed solutions. There is widespread recognition that human development occurs across levels simultaneously from molecular changes to broader cultural systems. Yet it remains challenging to integra…
The Social Environment Matters for Telomere Length and Internalizing Problems During Adolescence
Depression and anxiety symptoms are on the rise among adolescents. With increasing evidence that cellular aging may be associated with depressive and anxiety symptoms, there is an urgent need to identify the social environment context that may moderate this link. This study addresses this research gap by investigating the moderating role of the social environment on the relation between telomere length and emotional health among adolescents. Part…
Pet ownership is associated with harmful alcohol use among a cohort of people with HIV: A brief research report
Research suggests that people with HIV (PWH), who are at high risk for alcohol and substance use, may rely on relationships with pets for companionship and stress relief. There may be common mechanisms underlying both substance use and attachment to pets. The purpose of this brief research report was to compare alcohol and substance use behaviors between pet owners and non-owners among a cohort of PWH. Participants ( n = 735) in a survey study of…
Discrimination and Health: Fostering Better Health for Black American Youth
The Black Lives Matter movement has heightened US cultural awareness of the disproportionate burden of racial discrimination for Black Americans. With a special emphasis on Black youth, this review describes the health consequences of discrimination, including depression, anxiety, suicide, stress biology, immune system dysfunction, and cellular aging. However, as evidence documents, ethnic-racial socialization (ERS) reduces the mental, academic, …
DNA methylation of methylation complex genes in relation to stress and genome‐wide methylation in mother–newborn dyads
OBJECTIVES: Early life stress is known to have enduring biological effects, particularly with respect to health. Epigenetic modifications, such as DNA methylation, are a possible mechanism to mediate the biological effect of stress. We previously found correlations between maternal stress, newborn birthweight, and genome-wide measures of DNA methylation. Here we investigate ten genes related to the methylation/demethylation complex in order to be…
Effect of Pet Dogs on Children's Perceived Stress and Cortisol Stress Response
The present study tested whether pet dogs have stress-buffering effects for children during a validated laboratory-based protocol, the Trier Social Stress Test for Children (TSST-C). Participants were 101 children aged 7-12 years with their primary caregivers and pet dogs. Children were randomly assigned in the TSST-C to a pet present condition or one of two comparison conditions: parent present or no support figure present. Baseline, response, a…
Behavioral and Self-report Measures Influencing Children's Reported Attachment to Their Dog
Despite the prevalence of dogs as family pets and increased scientific interest in canine behavior, few studies have investigated characteristics of the child or dog that influence the child-dog relationship. In the present study, we explored how behavioral and self-report measures influence a child's reported feelings of attachment to their dog, as assessed by the Lexington Attachment to Pets Scale (LAPS). We tested specifically whether children…
Effect of Environmental Risk and Externalizing Comorbidity on Internalizing Problems Among Economically Disadvantaged A frican A merican Youth
This study examined effects of racial discrimination, community violence, and stressful life events on internalizing problems among African American youth from high poverty neighborhoods ( N = 607; 293 boys; M age = 16.0 years, SD = 1.44 years). Mediated effects via externalizing problems on these relations were also examined, given the high comorbidity rate between internalizing and externalizing problems. Externalizing problems partially mediat…
Effect of Pet Dogs on Children's Perceived Stress and Cortisol Stress Response
The present study tested whether pet dogs have stress-buffering effects for children during a validated laboratory-based protocol, the Trier Social Stress Test for Children (TSST-C). Participants were 101 children aged 7-12 years with their primary caregivers and pet dogs. Children were randomly assigned in the TSST-C to a pet present condition or one of two comparison conditions: parent present or no support figure present. Baseline, response, a…
Behavioral and Self-report Measures Influencing Children's Reported Attachment to Their Dog
Despite the prevalence of dogs as family pets and increased scientific interest in canine behavior, few studies have investigated characteristics of the child or dog that influence the child-dog relationship. In the present study, we explored how behavioral and self-report measures influence a child's reported feelings of attachment to their dog, as assessed by the Lexington Attachment to Pets Scale (LAPS). We tested specifically whether children…
Effect of Environmental Risk and Externalizing Comorbidity on Internalizing Problems Among Economically Disadvantaged A frican A merican Youth
This study examined effects of racial discrimination, community violence, and stressful life events on internalizing problems among African American youth from high poverty neighborhoods ( N = 607; 293 boys; M age = 16.0 years, SD = 1.44 years). Mediated effects via externalizing problems on these relations were also examined, given the high comorbidity rate between internalizing and externalizing problems. Externalizing problems partially mediat…
DNA methylation of methylation complex genes in relation to stress and genome‐wide methylation in mother–newborn dyads
OBJECTIVES: Early life stress is known to have enduring biological effects, particularly with respect to health. Epigenetic modifications, such as DNA methylation, are a possible mechanism to mediate the biological effect of stress. We previously found correlations between maternal stress, newborn birthweight, and genome-wide measures of DNA methylation. Here we investigate ten genes related to the methylation/demethylation complex in order to be…
Effect of Environmental Risk and Externalizing Comorbidity on Internalizing Problems Among Economically Disadvantaged A frican A merican Youth
This study examined effects of racial discrimination, community violence, and stressful life events on internalizing problems among African American youth from high poverty neighborhoods ( N = 607; 293 boys; M age = 16.0 years, SD = 1.44 years). Mediated effects via externalizing problems on these relations were also examined, given the high comorbidity rate between internalizing and externalizing problems. Externalizing problems partially mediat…
Effect of Pet Dogs on Children's Perceived Stress and Cortisol Stress Response
The present study tested whether pet dogs have stress-buffering effects for children during a validated laboratory-based protocol, the Trier Social Stress Test for Children (TSST-C). Participants were 101 children aged 7-12 years with their primary caregivers and pet dogs. Children were randomly assigned in the TSST-C to a pet present condition or one of two comparison conditions: parent present or no support figure present. Baseline, response, a…
Behavioral and Self-report Measures Influencing Children's Reported Attachment to Their Dog
Despite the prevalence of dogs as family pets and increased scientific interest in canine behavior, few studies have investigated characteristics of the child or dog that influence the child-dog relationship. In the present study, we explored how behavioral and self-report measures influence a child's reported feelings of attachment to their dog, as assessed by the Lexington Attachment to Pets Scale (LAPS). We tested specifically whether children…
DNA methylation of methylation complex genes in relation to stress and genome‐wide methylation in mother–newborn dyads
OBJECTIVES: Early life stress is known to have enduring biological effects, particularly with respect to health. Epigenetic modifications, such as DNA methylation, are a possible mechanism to mediate the biological effect of stress. We previously found correlations between maternal stress, newborn birthweight, and genome-wide measures of DNA methylation. Here we investigate ten genes related to the methylation/demethylation complex in order to be…
Discrimination and Health: Fostering Better Health for Black American Youth
The Black Lives Matter movement has heightened US cultural awareness of the disproportionate burden of racial discrimination for Black Americans. With a special emphasis on Black youth, this review describes the health consequences of discrimination, including depression, anxiety, suicide, stress biology, immune system dysfunction, and cellular aging. However, as evidence documents, ethnic-racial socialization (ERS) reduces the mental, academic, …
Pet ownership is associated with harmful alcohol use among a cohort of people with HIV: A brief research report
Research suggests that people with HIV (PWH), who are at high risk for alcohol and substance use, may rely on relationships with pets for companionship and stress relief. There may be common mechanisms underlying both substance use and attachment to pets. The purpose of this brief research report was to compare alcohol and substance use behaviors between pet owners and non-owners among a cohort of PWH. Participants ( n = 735) in a survey study of…
The Social Environment Matters for Telomere Length and Internalizing Problems During Adolescence
Depression and anxiety symptoms are on the rise among adolescents. With increasing evidence that cellular aging may be associated with depressive and anxiety symptoms, there is an urgent need to identify the social environment context that may moderate this link. This study addresses this research gap by investigating the moderating role of the social environment on the relation between telomere length and emotional health among adolescents. Part…
Breaking down silos and echo chambers: Adolescence through an interdisciplinary lens
Research on adolescence occurs across a variety of disciplines, including education, psychology, sociology, public health, biology, and medicine, among other fields, each with its own definition of the most pressing problems, levels of analysis, and proposed solutions. There is widespread recognition that human development occurs across levels simultaneously from molecular changes to broader cultural systems. Yet it remains challenging to integra…
Psychology (7 works) · Developmental psychology (5 works) · Clinical Psychology (4 works) · Clinical Psychology (4 works) · Medicine (4 works) · Psychiatry (4 works) · Early Childhood Education and Development (3 works) · Human-Animal Interaction Studies (3 works) · Anxiety (2 works) · Internal Medicine (2 works)