Isabel Bradburn

Isabel has long been interested in the intersections between culture, personality and development. Through field work in Africa with hunter-gatherers, she became interested in attachment, families and child development, which she pursued in graduate work examining links between mental models of early attachment relationships and current intimate relationships. After practicing as a clinical psychologist for several years, she moved to Virginia Tech as the inaugural Research Director for the newly minted Child Development Center, a full-time early care and education center on campus. She has garnered federal, state and foundation funding to work with a range of state and local partners evaluating early childhood education and family support initiatives, and helped develop researcher supports for using Virginia's state longitudinal system (VLDS). Recent research partnerships include examining educational trajectories predicting college matriculation into engineering, social-emotional assessment in preschool, and the role of gesture in teaching and learning. In 2018 Isabel became a Fellow at Virginia Tech's social sciences institute, the Institute for Society, Culture and Environment (ISCE), where she is now half-time as Associate Director of Strategic and Faculty Initiatives. In that role, she assists faculty with grant writing, team-building and other supports to enhance the social sciences at Virginia Tech.