Doran French

Department of Human Development and Family Science Research Area(s)

• Culture and Diversity
• Interpersonal Relations

Biography

Dr. French’s research focuses on social and emotional development of children and adolescents. He has conducted research on peer relationships, friendship, conflict, psychopathology, and adjustment (e.g., delinquency, substance use, school dropout). Over the past 20 years, he has been increasingly concerned with understanding how children develop within the context of culture. Much of his research has been in Indonesia and China with other projects in Thailand and South Korea.

Current projects include culture and the development of child and adolescent social competence. Some of the projects in Indonesia and China focus on child and adolescent peer relationships, social networks, bullying and victimization, conflict, and romance. research involving children in different cultures (in particular, adolescent friendships in an additional line of research is understanding how Islam is associated with social competence in Indonesia.  In particular he is studying how involvement with religious peers is associated with adjustment including substance use and delinquency.

He is the author of:

• Chen, X., French, D. C., & Schneider, B. (Eds.) (2006). Child and adolescent peer relationships in cultural context. Cambridge University Press.
• Lansford, J. E., French, D. C., & Gauvin, M. (2021). Child and adolescent development in cultural context.  American Psychology Association.

Not accepting graduate student applications for the December 1, 2025 deadline

Education

• Ph.D, 1980 University of Minnesota

Current Courses

• HDFS 346 - Research Design and Program Evaluation
• HDFS 313 - Adolescent Development
• HDFS 685 - Culture and Human Development

Selected Publications

• Shen, M., Purwono, U., & French, D. C. (2020). Romance, religion, and problem behavior in Indonesian Muslim adolescents. Journal of Adolescence, 81, 87-95.
• French, D. C., Purwono, U., & Shen, M. (2020). Religiosity and positive religious coping as predictors of Indonesian Muslim adolescents’ externalizing behavior and loneliness. Psychology of Religion and Spirituality
• Lu, T., Jin, S., Li, L., Niu, L., Chen, X., & French, D. C. (2019). Longitudinal associations between popularity and aggression in Chinese middle and high school adolescents. Developmental Psychology, 54, 2291-2301.
• Wei, L., Marceau, K., Chen, X., Gest, S., Liu, J., Li, D., & French, D. C. (2024) Children's friendship stability in the United States, China, and Indonesia: Associations with individual attributes and dyadic similarity. Child Development, 591-605
• Zhang, K., Duan, J., Gest, S., Chen, X., Liu, J., Li, D., & French, D.C. (2023). Peer relationships mediate the pathways from behavioral qualities to United States and Chinese children's loneliness. Child Development, 95, e21-e34.

Selected Grants

• 9/22 to 9/25 French, D.C. (PI)); Schmitt, S (co-PI) Support of ELM at Purdue. Development of the Early Learning Matters (ELM) Website. National Institute of Food and Agriculture. Total Funding ($3,988,862)
• 12/19 to 9/25 French, D. C. (PI), Schmitt, S. (co-PI); Powell, D. Department of Defense Non-Appropriated Funding. Total funding ($10,942,755)
• Co-PI,. Development of the Early Learning Matters (ELM) Website. National Institute of Food and Agriculture. Sara Schmitt (Co-PI). Period 9/1/21 to present. Total: $965,911