Professional Bio

Eunkyung (Lucy) is an assistant research professor in the Cognition, Affect, and Temperament Lab directed by Dr. Koraly Pérez-Edgar at Penn State. Eunkyung worked for national education curriculum and policy at the Korean Institute of Child Care and Education in South Korea after receiving an MA in Child and Family Studies from Yonsei University. Working under the supervision of Dr. Cindy Smith, she received a PhD in Human Development from Virginia Tech in 2020. She studied maternal influences on infant neurobehavioral development through an interdisciplinary lens during her postdoctoral training in Dr. Brittany Howell’s laboratory at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at Virginia Tech Carilion. Her research focuses on individual and environmental factors that contribute to the socio-emotional development of children, particularly parent–child interactions in early childhood, and their impacts on children’s optimal development and adjustment. Her research incorporates behavioral and biological markers, including behavioral observation, interviews, survey-based assessments, and neuroimaging. Eunkyung’s ultimate goal is to translate her research into practical strategies and policies for children’s healthy development and families’ well-being.