Rong Huang

Dr. Huang joined the Department of Psychological Science and Counseling team at APSU in Fall 2024. She completed bachelors’ and master’s degree in China before embarking on her journey to the United States. She earned her PhD in Educational Psychology at the University at Albany, State University of New York, which laid a foundation for her research interests in early childhood development. Following her doctorate, she worked as a postdoctoral research associate at the University of Connecticut for two years.

Dr. Huang is actively accepting undergraduate students who are interested in gaining research experience in child development. She mentors students from diverse backgrounds. If you are interested, don’t hesitate to email Dr. Huang at huangr@apsu.edu.

1. Impacts of disadvantaged environments (e.g. poverty exposure) on young children's cognitive and social development (e.g. executive function, theory of mind, social skills, aggression) and children's adaptations in disadvantaged environments

2. Interplay between bilingualism and social cognition (e.g. theory of mind)

3. Evaluation and improvement of program services for families with young children, including home visiting and Early Head Start.

4. Wellbeing of early childhood workforce (e.g., home visitors, childcare teachers)

• Huang, R., Yang, P., Chazan-Cohen, R., & Brooks-Gunn, J. (2026). Joint parenting profiles in young children from low-income families. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 76, 314-324.

• Huang, R., & Liu, Q. (2025). Early family adversity trajectories and mental health in emerging adulthood: Differential impacts of contextual insecurity and relational adversity. Development and Psychopathology, 1–14.

• Huang, R., Rosca, O., Liu, Q., Battista, C., & Baker, E. R. (2025). Associations between father incarceration and Head Start children’s academic and social competence. Early Child Development and Care, 1–21.

• Huang, R. & Chazan-Cohen, R. (2025). Household spanking and Early Head Start children’s subsequent externalizing behaviors: Role of maternal supportive parenting. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 34, 1447-1461.

• Barnes, Z. T., Boedeker, P., & Huang, R. (2025). Parent education, not income-to-needs ratio, relates to preschool Home Executive Function Environment. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 258, 106292.

• Warnell, K. R., Weimer, A., Huang, R., & Kuri, D. (2025). Exploring advanced theory of mind development across sociocultural contexts: An evaluation of the Strange Stories in children from Mexico and U.S.-Mexico border communities. Infant and Child Development, 34(3), e70011.

• Weimer, A., Huang, R., Rojo, L., & Warnell, K. R. (2025). Language dominance moderates links between theory of mind and children’s externalizing behaviors in a multilingual community. Cognitive Development, 73(1), 101540.

• Huang, R., Chazan-Cohen, R., & Carlson, D. (2024). Early family conflict and behavioral outcomes in children from low-income families: The indirect effects of parental depression and parenting practices. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 21(12). 1664.

• Huang, R., & Wang, T. (2024). Novel word learning ability in 24-month-olds: The interactive role of mother’s work status and education level. Journal of Child Language, firstview, 1-22.

• Gahtan, J., Baker, E. R., Huang, R., Salim, S., & Park, S. (2024). Multidimensional profiles of Head Start preschoolers’ moral self-concept predict subsequent, but not concurrent, aggression. Development and Psychopathology, online, 1-12.

• Baker, E. R., Huang, R., Liu, Q., Battista, C., & Gahtan, J. (2024). Preschool children’s evaluations of prototypic and accidental moral transgressions differ by economic strata. Early Education and Development, 35 (2), 220-233.

• Huang, R., Baker, E. R. & Wang, T. (2023). Early bilingualism enhances low-income children’s theory of mind via executive function skills. Cognitive Development, 68 (4), 101389.

• Huang, R., Baker, E. R., & Schneider. J. M. (2023). Executive function skills account for a bilingual advantage in English novel word learning among low-income preschoolers. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 235 (11), 105714.

• Baker, E. R., Gahtan, J., Salim, S. A., & Huang, R. (2023). Multidimensional profiles of Head Start children's social behaviors predict their interpretations of physical aggression. Aggressive Behavior, early view.

• Baker, E. R., Huang, R., & Battista, C., & Liu, Q. (2023). Head Start children’s moral reasoning predicts aggressive forms and functions. Early Childhood Education Journal, 51, 443-455.

• Wang, T., Yu, C-Y., Huang, R., & Lany, J. (2023). Acoustic cues to phrase and clause boundaries in infant-directed speech: Evidence from LENA recordings. Journal of Child Language, firstview, 1-20.

• Huang, R., Baker, E. R., Battista, C., & Liu, Q. (2022). Executive function and theory of mind in children living in poverty: A short-term longitudinal study. Journal of Cognition and Development, 23(5), 751-775.

• Baker, E. R., Huang, R., Battista, C., & Liu, Q. (2021). Theory of mind development in impoverished U.S. children and six cross-cultural comparisons. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 76, 101314.

• Baker, E. R., Huang, R., Liu, Q., & Battista, C. (2021). Children’s poverty exposure and hot and cool executive functions: Differential Impacts of parental financial strain. Journal of Cognition and Development, 22(1), 1-21.

• Baker, E. R., Liu, Q., & Huang, R. (2019). A view from the start: A review of inhibitory control training in early childhood. In S. Palermo & M. Bartoli (Eds.), Inhibitory control training: A multidisciplinary approach (pp. 1-13). IntechOpen.