Carolyn T. Halpern, PhD
Professor and Chair Department of Maternal and Child Health
Dr. Halpern is professor and chair of the Department of Maternal and Child Health (MCH) in the Gillings School of Global Public Health. She is also a developmental psychologist and deputy director/co-investigator of the Waves IV and V National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health) program project.
Dr. Halpern’s research interests center on improving understanding of healthy sexual development and the implications of adolescent experiences for developmental and demographic processes into adulthood, particularly as these relate to sexual and romantic relationships.
Dr. Halpern has nearly 30 years of research experience in the study of adolescent and young adult sexuality and risk-taking in both U.S. and global settings, and more than 100 peer-reviewed publications on these topics. She has received multiple university-wide and national awards for mentoring and academic leadership.
Honors and Awards
Recipient John E. Larsh Jr. Student Mentorship Award
2916, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Recipient Loretta Lacey Academic Leadership Award
2010, National Association of Teachers of Maternal and Child Health
Recipient Graduate School Faculty Award for Excellence in Doctoral Mentoring
2009, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Delta Omega
2007, Honorary Public Health Society
Representative Courses
Human Sexuality | Syllabus
Teaching Interests
Theoretical Foundations of Maternal and Child Health (taught 1999-2013)Adolescent Health (taught 1999-2005)Research Activities
Dr. Halpern’s research interests center on improving understanding of healthy sexual development and the implications of adolescent experiences for developmental and demographic processes into adulthood. Her early research focused on the hormonal underpinnings of pubertal change and how the interactions of physical, psychological and social changes contribute to adolescent sexual initiation and behavior. Her current research examines comprehensive sexual initiation patterns among youth, and the implications of those patterns for later sexual behavior and adult health. Most of her research uses data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health), for which Dr. Halpern serves as Deputy Director.Service Activities
Member Data and Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB) for NIDDK funded clinical consortium titled Adolescent Bariatrics: Assessing Health Benefits and Risks (Teen-LABS) study. 2016 - present
Associate Editor for Public Health and Policy, Journal of Adolescent Health (2015 – present)
Invited member, NICHD Contraceptive Research Review Panel; Chair of “Accomplishments” and “Behavior” sub-committees (2014-2015)
Associate Editor, Journal of Research on Adolescence (2013 - 2015)
Chair Multi-Disciplinary Membership Committee, Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine (2010 - 2013)
Member UNC Graduate School Administrative BoardVolunteer Guardian, Guardian ad Litem Program, Wake County, NC; court-appointed advocate for abused and neglected children (1983 - 1999)
Practice Activities
Advisory Board Member, Future of Sex Education (FoSE) Collaboration (2013 - present)
Member, Board of Directors, Sexual Health Initiatives for Teens, North Carolina (SHIFT NC) [Formerly Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Campaign of North Carolina] (2013 - Present)
Key Publications
Attachment to conventional institutions and adolescent rapid repeat pregnancy: A longitudinal national study among adolescents in the United States. Reese BM, Halpern CT (2016). Maternal & Child Health Journal.
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Description and evaluation of a measurement technique for assessment of performing gender. Fleming PJ, Harris KM, Halpern CT (2016). Sex Roles.
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Teen Pregnancy Among Sexual Minority Women: Results from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health. Goldberg SK, Reese BM, Halpern CT (2016). Journal of Adolescent Health, 59.
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The enduring significance of skin tone: Linking skin tone to union formation attitudes and sexual behavior. Landor AM, Halpern CT (2016). Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 45(5), 986-1002.
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Directions of the relationship between substance use and depressive symptoms from adolescence to young adulthood. Wilkinson A, Halpern CT, Herring AH (2016). Addictive Behaviors, 60.
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Associations between patterns of sexual initiation, sexual partnering, and reproductive health outcomes from adolescence to early adulthood. Kahn N, Halpern CT. (2018). Archives of Sexual Behavior.
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Our buddies, ourselves: The role of sexual homophily in adolescent friendship networks. Trinh S, Lee J, Halpern CT, Moody J. Child Development.
Variability in self-rated health trajectories from adolescence to young adulthood by demographic factors. Sokol RL, Ennett ST, Gottfredson NC, Halpern CT Preventive Medicine.
The effect of schooling on partner age difference and number of sexual partners among young women in rural South Africa enrolled in HPTN 068. Stoner MCD, Edwards J, Miller WC, Aiello A, Halpern CT, Suarez A, Selin A, Hughes J, Wang J, Gomez-Olive XF, Wagner RW, MacPhail C, Kahn K, Pettifor A. JAIDS.
Experiences of vaginal, oral, and anal sex from adolescence to early adulthood among populations with physical disabilities in the United States. Kahn N, Halpern CT. (2018). Journal of Adolescent Health., 62(3), 294-302.
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School support as structural HIV prevention for adolescent orphans in western Kenya. Cho H, Mbai I, Luseno W, Hobbs M, Halpern C, Hallfors DD (2018). Journal of Adolescent Health., 62(1), 44-51.
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Education
PhD, Developmental Psychology, University of Houston, 1982
MA, Developmental Psychology, University of Houston, 1979
BS, Psychology, University of Houston, 1976