After receiving her Ph.D., Dr. Fegley worked as a data manager and research analyst for the Temple University site of the NICHD study of early childcare. From 2000-2009 she was a research associate at the Center for Health Achievement Neighborhood Growth and Ethnic Studies (CHANGES) at Penn’s Graduate School of Education where she worked on research and evaluation projects looking at resiliency, coping and, identity processes of diverse children, adolescents, and adults from predominantly low income backgrounds. She has also co-developed and delivered training workshops and training materials designed to help organizations and schools better understand and integrate human developmental knowledge into their work with children, youth, and families.

Research Interests and Current Projects

Dr. Fegley’s research interests include self, identity, personality, resiliency, coping, and perceptions of skin tone and skin tone bias.

Publications

Selected Publications

Spencer, M. B., Dupree, D., Tinsley, B., McGee, E. O., Hall, J., Fegley, S. G., & Elmore, T. G. (2012). Resistance and resiliency in a color-conscious society: Implications for learning and teaching. In K. R. Harris, S. Graham, T. Urdan (eds.), C. B. McCormick, G. M. Sinatra, & J. Sweller (Associate Editors), APA Educational Psychology Handbook: Vol. 1. Theories, constructs, and critical issues. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

Fegley, S. G., Spencer, M. B., Goss, T. N., Harpalani, V., & Charles, N. (2008). Colorism embodied: Skin tone and psychosocial well-being in adolescence. In W. Overton & U. Mueller (eds.), Body in Mind, Mind in Body: Developmental Perspectives on Embodiment and Consciousness. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.

Spencer, M. B., Dupree, D. & Fegley, S. (2007). Identity as coping in diverse levels of context: Adolescents’ developmental challenges and opportunities. In Rainer K. Silbereisen & Richard M. Lerner (eds.), Approaches to Positive Youth Development. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications.

Spencer, M. B., Fegley, S. & Dupree, D. (2006). Investigating and linking social conditions of African-American children and adolescents with emotional well being. Ethnicity & Disease, 16, 67-70.

Spencer, M. B., Fegley, S. G., Seaton, G., & Harpalani, V. (2004). Understanding hypermasculinity in context: A theory-driven analysis of urban adolescent males' coping responses. Research in Human Development, 1, 229-257.

Hart, D., Atkins, R., & Fegley, S. (2003). Personality and development in childhood: A person- centered approach. Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development, 68, i-vii, 1-109.