College of Education and Human Development

Center for Applied Research and Educational Improvement

Christopher Mehus

  • Research Faculty

Christopher Mehus
Biography

I am a Prevention Scientist with a background in family science, family therapy, parenting interventions, primary care research, and psychological trauma. My overarching goal is to improve public health by supporting parents in raising healthy children. I am pursing this goal through research to foster engagement in and create sustainable access to effective parenting interventions and support, with an emphasis on highly stressed families. This research agenda includes gaining a better understanding of parenting behaviors and the role of parent-child relationships in developmental pathways; understanding the intersection of trauma and parent-child interactions; engaging parents in adolescent health and healthcare; and evaluating the effectiveness and implementation of parenting programs delivered through primary care settings. Learn more at my personal website. 

Publications

Mehus, C. J., Buchanan, G., & Unell, B (In Press) Feasibility of a novel, brief parenting intervention in primary care clinics. Families, Systems, and Health.

Mehus, C. J., Aldrin, S., Steiner, R., Brar, P., Gewirtz O’Brien, J., Gorzkowski, J., Grilo, S., Klein, J., McRee, AL., Ross, C., Santelli, J., & Sieving, R. (In Press) Parents’ sources of adolescent sexual health information and the role of primary care. Academic Pediatrics. DOI: 10.1016/j.acap.2021.09.007 

Sieving, R., McRee, AL., Mehus, C. J., Gewirtz O’Brien, J., Wang, S., Brar, P., Catallozzi, M., Gorzkowski, J., Grilo, S., Kaseeska, K., Santelli, J., Steiner, R., & Klein, J. (In Press) Sexual and reproductive health discussions during preventive visits. Pediatrics.

Mehus, C. J., Lyden, G., Bonar, E., Gunlicks-Stoessel, M., Morrell, N., Parks, M., Wagner, A., & Patrick, M. (In Press) Association between COVID-19-related loneliness or worry and symptoms of anxiety and depression among first-year college students. Journal of American College Health. DOI: 10.1080/07448481.2021.1942009

Mehus, C. J., & Patrick, M. E. (2020). Trends in Spanking: Prevalence in U.S. National Samples of 35-Year-Old Parents from 1993 to 2017. JAMA Pediatrics. DOI: 10.1001/jamapediatrics.2020.2197

Mehus, C. J., & Patrick, M. E. (2020). Alcohol use among 10th-graders: Distinguishing between high-intensity drinking and other levels of use. Journal of Adolescence. DOI: 10.1016/j.adolescence.2020.07.004

Patrick, M. E., Evans-Polce, R. J., Wagner, A. C., & Mehus, C. J. (2020). High-intensity drinking by parental status: Differences by age and sex. Addictive Behaviors. DOI: 10.1016/j.addbeh.2019.106180

Sieving, R. E., Mehus, C. J., ... Santelli, J. (2020). Understanding primary care providers’ perceptions and practices in implementing confidential adolescent sexual and reproductive health services. Journal of Adolescent Health. DOI: 10.1016/j.jadohealth.2020.03.035

Forster, M., Grigsby, T. J., Gower, A. L., Mehus, C. J., & McMorris, B. J. (2020). The role of social support in the association between childhood adversity and adolescent self-injury and suicide: Findings from a statewide sample of high school students. Journal of Youth and Adolescence. DOI: 10.1007/s10964-020-01235-9

Mehus, C. J., Wieling, E., Oloya, O.T., Achan, L., & Ertl, V. (2020). The impact of alcohol misuse on fathering in northern Uganda: An ethnographic study of fathers. Transcultural Psychiatry. DOI: 10.1177/1363461520943315

Mehus, C. J., Kazlauskaite, V., Colianni, S., & Borowsky, I. (2019). Parent interest in resources to address their child’s behavioral health through primary care. Families, Systems, and Health. DOI: 10.1037/fsh0000429

Mehus, C. J., Forster, M., Chan, G., Hemphill, S., Toumbourou, J., & McMorris, B. (2018). Longitudinal, reciprocal relationships between parental monitoring and antisocial peer associations. Journal of Adolescence. DOI: 10.1016/j.adolescence.2018.07.015

Mehus, C. J., Doty, J., Chan, G., Kelly, A., Hemphill, S., Toumbourou, J., & McMorris, B. (2018). Testing the Social Interaction Learning Model’s applicability to adolescent substance misuse in an Australian context. Substance Use and Misuse. DOI: 10.1080/10826084.2018.1441307

Mehus, C. J., Wieling, E., Achan, L., & Oloya, T. (2018). Identifying the roles of fathers in post-war northern Uganda: Groundwork for a parenting intervention. African Studies. DOI: 10.1080/00020184.2018.1496593

Doty, J., Weiler, L., Mehus, C. J. & McMorris, B. (2017). Youth mentors’ relationship capacity: Parent-child connectedness, attitudes toward mentees, empathy, and match quality. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships. DOI: 10.1177/0265407517740002

Eisenberg, M., Mehus, C. J., Saewyc, E., Corliss, H., Gower, A., Sullivan, T. R., & Porta, C. (2017). Community resources and supports for LGBTQ youth in the U.S. and Canada. Journal of Homosexuality. DOI: 10.1080/00918369.2017.1364944

Mehus, C. J., Watson, R., Eisenberg, M., Corliss, H., & Porta, C. (2017). Living as an LGBTQ adolescent and a parent’s child: Overlapping or separate experiences. Journal of Family Nursing. DOI: 10.1177/1074840717696924

Wieling, E., Mehus, C. J., Möllerherm, J., Neuner, F., Achan, L., & Catani, C. (2017). Preparing the field for feasibility testing of a parenting intervention for war-affected mothers in northern Uganda. Family Process. DOI: 10.1111/famp.12189

Leslie, L., Mehus, C. J., Hawkins, J. D., Boat, T., McCabe, M. A., Barkin, S., Perrin, E., Metzler, C., Prado, G., Tait, V. F., & Beardslee, W. (2016). Primary health care: Potential home for family-focused preventive interventions. American Journal of Preventive Medicine. DOI: 10.1016/j.amepre.2016.05.014

Mehus, C. J., & Becher, E. (2016). Compassion fatigue, burn out, and compassion satisfaction in spoken-language interpreters. Traumatology. DOI: 10.1037/trm0000023

Wieling, E., Mehus, C. J., Moellerherm, J., Neuner, F., Catani, C., & Achan, L. (2015). Assessing the feasibility of a parenting intervention for war-affected families in Northern Uganda. Family and Community Health. DOI: 10.1097/FCH.0000000000000064