Benjamin Bayly

Benjamin Bayly, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Family Studies, Child, and Youth Development in the Department of Agricultural Economics, Sociology, and Education at The Pennsylvania State University. He directs Penn State Better Kid Care, holds research and Extension appointments, and serves as academic lead for the program. Bayly earned his Ph.D. in Prevention Science from Washington State University in 2017 and completed a postdoctoral fellowship in the Prevention and Methodology Training Program at Penn State University in 2019. His work as a prevention scientist employs bioecological frameworks and person-centered quantitative analyses, such as latent variable models and time-varying effect models, to examine child and adolescent development. Core research areas include prevention science, risk and protective factors in childhood and adolescence, early childhood education, program implementation and evaluation, social and emotional learning in childcare, school readiness interventions, child self-regulation, family risk and poverty-related adversity, positive youth development, and Head Start program effects. These efforts align with UN Sustainable Development Goals for good health and well-being, quality education, gender equality, and peace, justice, and strong institutions.

Bayly has published extensively in peer-reviewed journals on these topics. Key publications include "Patterns of early childhood adversity and neighborhood deprivation predict challenges in adolescence: A UK birth cohort study" (The Journal of Development and Psychopathology, 2024, with Z.Z. Zhang); "Supporting SEL in childcare centers with curriculum enrichment and an adapted professional development model" (Social and Emotional Learning: Research, Practice, and Policy, 2024, with J.A. Welsh et al.); "Head Start’s impact on long-term school success: Assessing variation across latent classes of family risk" (Child & Youth Care Forum, 2023); "Who benefits and when: Understanding differential treatment effects of an online professional development program" (Journal of Professional Development, Learners and Learning, 2023); "Profiles of dysregulation moderate the impact of preschool teacher–student relationships on elementary school functioning" (Early Education and Development, 2022); and "Leveraging self-determination theory to understand which preschool teachers benefit most from a professional development intervention" (Journal of Early Childhood Teacher Education, 2022). As principal investigator, he has received funding from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (R03HD098445-01), the William Penn Foundation, and the Pottstown Health and Wellness Foundation for projects on self-regulation in early education, peer coaching for infant-toddler providers, and physical activity interventions for preschool children with autism spectrum disorder. Bayly recruits master's and Ph.D. students for the Education, Development, and Community Engagement graduate program starting Fall 2026.

Professional Email: blb339@psu.edu