Miami University

Doris Bergen

4/14/09

Doris Bergen, Distinguished Professor of Educational Psychology, is as comfortable talking to a journalist about nurturing a toddler’s sense of humor as she is addressing a scholarly gathering or mentoring students.

It is her scholarly contributions that took front row when she was officially inducted as an inaugural Fellow of the American Education Research Association, an organization that encourages inquiry about educational topics that serve the public good, at AERA’s national meeting April 14 in San Diego.

“Miami is indeed fortunate to have a scholar of Doris Bergen’s caliber,” said Carine Feyten, dean of the School of Education, Health and Society

The AERA recognition is the most recent honor of many in Bergen’s career. In 2007 she was awarded the title of Distinguished Professor by Miami’s board of trustees, one of only 10 professors on campus to have that distinction.

She is co-director of Miami's Center for Human Development, Learning and Technology, and in that role has received numerous grants herself, as well as facilitated external grants for center faculty associates.

She teaches a range of courses related to learning, human development, assessment and educational psychology. Her research interests have focused on cross-cultural programs for young children, play and humor in early and middle childhood, effects of technology-enhanced toys, adult memories of childhood play, social interactions of children with special needs, effects of early phonological awareness levels on later reading, and gifted children's humor development.

Bergen has been the author of six books and edited five others. She has published more than 40 refereed articles and 25 book chapters.

She also received a national award as Outstanding Early Childhood Teacher Educator from the National Association of Early Childhood Teacher Educators and was selected as a National Academy of Science visiting scholar to China.