Faculty
Cindy S. Bergeman
Professor and Chair, Department of Psychology
Ph.D., The Pennsylvania State University
Profile
Cindy S. Bergeman, Ph.D. is Professor of Psychology and Chair of the Department. She is a lifespan developmental psychologist with research interests in resiliency and aging, behavioral genetics, and the theory-method interface. Her research focuses on investigating patterns of variability and change in physical and psychological health across the lifespan and identifying the genetic and environmental factors that may importantly influence that process. Her current research project uses multiple lenses (yearly questionnaires, in-depth interviews and daily assessments) to identify and describe the various pathways through which converging behavioral, psychological, environmental, and social processes contribute to resilience and optimal functioning in later life. Unique to her perspective is the innovation in data assessment and analysis that facilitate more comprehensive understanding of the multidimensional and multilevel pathways that underlie the relations among stress and uplifts (e.g, in areas of work, family, friends, health, finances), resilience mechanisms (e.g., hardiness, control, social support) and health and well-being outcomes.
Recent Papers
Bergeman, C. S. (1997). Aging: Genetic and environmental influences. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Bergeman, C. S. & Wallace, K. A. (1999). Resiliency and aging. In T. Whitman, T. Merluzzi, & R. White (Eds.), Psychology and medicine. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum. (pp. 207-225)
Ong, A. & Bergeman, C. S. (2004). Emotional complexity in later life. Journal of Gerontology, 59:B, P117-P122.
Bisconti, T.L., Bergeman, C. S. & Boker, S. (2004). Emotion Regulation in Recently Bereaved Widows: A Dynamical Systems Approach. Journal of Gerontology, 59:B, P168-176.
Ong, A. & Bergeman, C. S. (2005). Resilience and adaptation to stress in later life: Empirical perspectives and conceptual implications. Invited paper for Ageing International, 29, 219-246.
Bergeman, C. S. & Boker, S. M., Eds. (2006) Quantitative Methodology in Aging Research. Proceedings from the Notre Dame Series on Quantitative Methodology: Quantitative Methodology in Aging Research. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
Bergeman, C. S., & Wallace, K. A. (2006). The theory-methods interface. In C. S. Bergeman & S. M. Boker (Eds.) Quantitative Methodology in Aging Research. (pp. 19-42) Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
Bergeman, C. S. & Ong, A., (2007). Natural Experiments: What Behavioral Genetic Approaches Can Tell Us About Human Potential. To appear in Ong, A. D. & vanDulmen, M. (Eds.), Handbook of methods in positive psychology, (pp 266-281) Oxford Press
Bergeman, C. S. & Ong, A. (2007). Behavioral Genetics. In J. E. Birren (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Gerontology, 2 nd Ed., (pp. 149-159) Oxford: Elsevier.
Ong, A. & Bergeman, C.S. (2007). Psychosocial theories of aging. In K. S. Markides, D. Blazer, L. G. Branch & S. Sudenski (Eds.) Encyclopedia of Health and Aging, (pp. 480-483), Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
Bisconti, T.L., Bergeman, C. S., & Boker, S. M. (2006). Social support as a predictor of intraindividual variability in the adjustment to widowhood: A dynamical systems analysis. Psychology and Aging, 21, 590-599.
Ong, A., Bergeman, C. S., Bisconti, T. L., & Wallace, K. A. (2006). The contours of resilience and the complexity of emotions in later life. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 91, 730-749.
Contact Information
Office: 114 Haggar Hall
Notre Dame, Indiana 46556
Phone: (574) 631-4515
Email: cbergema@nd.edu