Melissa Radey is a professor and Agnes Flaherty Stoops Professor in Child Welfare with the College of Social Work and is a faculty affiliate of the Florida Institute for Child Welfare. Her policy-driven research focuses on low-income families and understanding barriers to economic, social, and physical well-being. She examines disparities for those involved in public service delivery by 1.) investigating the role of informal and formal support systems in families’ survival and wellbeing, and, 2.) considering the demands and well-being of frontline workers who serve them.

AREAS OF FOCUS

• Child Welfare
• Community Engagement
• Health/Health Disparities
• Homelessness
• Poverty
• Resilience
• Social Work Policy
• Trauma
• Well-being

EDUCATION

• PhD, 2005, University of Texas at Austin, Social Work
• MA, 2003, University of Texas at Austin, Sociology
• MSSW, 2002, University of Texas at Austin, Social Work
• BA, 1998, University of Notre Dame, Sociology and Computer Applications

SELECTED PUBLICATIONS

Radey, M. (in press). Network financial transfers and psychological distress among unmarried mothers. Journal of Family Issues, 29 pages.

Radey, M., Langenderfer-Magruder, L., & Schelbe, L. (2022). "Business as usual": Child protective services workers' perceptions and experiences of and responses to client-perpetrated violence. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 37, NP2101–NP2125.

Radey, M., Langenderfer‐Magruder, L., & Brown Speights, J. (2021). “I don't have much of a choice”: Low‐income single mothers' COVID‐19 school and care decisions. Family Relations, 70, 1312-1326.

  Radey, M., & McWey, L. (2019). Informal networks of low-income mothers: Support, burden, and change. Journal of Marriage and Family, 81, 953-967.

SELECTED GRANTS

Principal Investigator. Maternity Group Homes for Young Mothers in Florida: A Mixed Methods Examination. Funded by Florida Institute of Child Welfare. Total award $50,000 for the period of June 2021–May 2022.

Principal Investigator. Influence of Social Support on Parenting and Child Outcomes. Funded by National Institute of Health (NIH): National Institute of Child Health & Development (NICHD) R03 5R03HD092706-02. Total award $153,416 for the period of May 2018–Apr 2020.

Co-Principal Investigator. Florida Study of Professionals for Safe Families. Funded by Florida Institute for Child Welfare. Total award $500,000 for the period of Sept 2015–Aug 2020. Principal Investigator: Dina Wilke.

Pending:

Principal Investigator. Longitudinal Trajectories of Workplace Violence and Worker Health Among Child Protective Services Workers. Submitted to Centers for Disease Control (CDC): National Institute of Occupational Safety & Health (NIOSH) R03 Impact Score: 10 (perfect score), Percentile: 1% Projected total award $154,000 for the period of May 2022–Apr 2024.