Theodore Wachs, Ph.D.

Theodore Wachs is a professor in the Department of Psychological Sciences at Purdue University (in the lovely state of Indiana) and a fellow in the Center for Behavioral and Social Sciences.

Wachs' main research interests focus on the "determinants" of infant and child development. As noted on his personal webpage, his research emphasizes the role of physical and socialenvironmental influences, and the moderation of these influences by individualdifference characteristics such as temperament. He also studies the influence ofchronic mild malnutrition upon development, as well as interactions andcovariances between malnutrition and environmental risk factors and buffers.In addition to these areas, he also has an interest in behavioral genetics, with specific reference togenotype-environment interaction and covariance. Some of Wach's prior research has examined the influence of chaos (physical home disorganization) on children (see Purdue News).


Most Cited Publication (12 cites):

Wachs, T., Francis, J., & McQuiston, S. (1979). Psychological dimensions of the infant's physical environment. Infant
            Behavior & Development, 2(2), 155 - 161. 

Recent Publications:

Asbury, K., Wachs, T, & Plomin, R. (2005). Environmentalmoderators of genetic influence on verbal and nonverbal abilities in earlychildhood. Intelligence, 33(6),643-661.

 Wachs, T.,Pollitt, E., & Cueto, S. (2005). Relation of neonatal iron status to individual variability in neonatal temperament. Developmental Psychobiology, 46(2), 141-153.

Wachs, T. (2004). Linkingnutrition, brain and environment to children's development: The functionalisolation hypothesis. International Journal of Psychology, 39,40.

Wachs, T.,Gurkas, P., & Kontos, S. (2004). Predictors of preschool children's comliance behavior in early childhood classroom settings. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 25(4),439-457

 Wachs, T.,Pollitt, E., & Cueto, S. (2004). Structure and cross-contextual stability of neonatal temperament. InfantBehavior & Development, 27(3), 382-396.