Pauline Ho
Visiting Assistant Professor of Psychology
Developmental psychology, educational psychology, adolescent development, identity development, and mixed methods research
2024 Ph.D. in Educational Psychology – Human Development, University of Wisconsin-Madison
2020 M.S. in Educational Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Madison
2017 B.A. in Education Science, University of California-Irvine
2017 B.A. in Social Policy & Public Service, University of California-Irvine
Research
I am an identity researcher whose primary goals are to understand when, why, and how identity develops; identify aspects that are both common and unique across different identities; and map connections among aspects of identity and educational experiences. Taking a lifespan perspective, I am especially interested in how adolescents and young adults, particularly members of ethnic and racial minorities, become who they are. My work is characterized by the integration of developmental science and personality psychology. I employ developmental contextualism (person ↔ context relation; Lerner, 1986) and narrative identity (an individual’s life story of self; McAdams, 2008) to better understand how individuals change and maintain their uniqueness over time. This interdisciplinary approach enriches our understanding of developmental changes in identity and allows for the introduction of developmental science to other disciplines.