Dr. Maria S. Wong’s scholarship spans three core areas: higher education leadership, inclusive pedagogy, and developmental psychology. Her most recent work centers on equity-minded leadership and the experiences of BIPOC administrators, drawing from her own identity as a first-generation Chinese American woman in academic leadership. She has contributed extensively to faculty development and inclusive teaching, including co-editing a widely used two-volume eBook on incorporating diversity in psychology classrooms. Trained as a developmental psychologist, her research focused on children’s social-emotional development, with publications in journals such as Child Development and Developmental Psychology. Selected publications and presentations appear below.
Leadership in Higher Education
Selected Publications:
Quay, S., Wong, M.S., & Alexander, S. (Invited submission). Our past is always present: Strategies for intentionally navigating a new leadership role. The Department Chair: A Resource for Academic Administrators.
Wong, M.S., Chung, C., Warren, G., & Chan, E. (2025, May). Voices from the margin: BIPOC administrators’ reflections on leadership. ACAD Leader.
Selected Conference Presentations:
Quay, S., Alexander, S., & Wong, M.S. (2025, February). Our past is always present: Strategies for intentionally navigating a new leadership role. Panel presented at ACAD Annual Conference. Phoenix, AZ.
Wong, M.S., Chan, E., Chung, C., & Warren, G. (2025, February). Voices from the margin: BIPOC administrators’ reflections on leadership. Panel presented at ACAD Annual Conference. Phoenix, AZ.
Wong, M.S. (2024, December). Reflections on work-life balance. Changemakers Conference, Women in Leadership (WIL). Endicott College.
Wong, M.S. (2024, October). The path to administration: Unveiling the whys, opportunities, and challenges. Annual Conference on Teaching, Society for the Teaching of Psychology, Louisville, KY.
Inclusive Pedagogy
Selected Publications:
Wong, M.S., Ochs, J., & Salahi, L. (2026). Addressing health disparities through culturally responsive care. In Buchbinder, S.B., Shanks, N.H., & Rogers, R.K. (Eds). Introduction to Health Care Management, 5th Edition. Jones & Bartlett.
Cerniak, J., Wong, M.S., & Rosen, L.H. (Eds.) (2021). Teaching psychology online. Society for the Teaching of Psychology. http://teachpsych.org/ebooks/teachpsychonline
Wong, M.S., Weiner, L., Cerniak, J., & Yee, L.T.S. (Eds.). (2021). Incorporating diversity in classroom settings: Real and engaging examples for various psychology courses. (Vol 1: Ability, age, culture, ethnicity/race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, and socioeconomic status). Society for the Teaching of Psychology. http://teachpsych.org/ebooks/diverse1
Wong, M.S., Weiner, L., Cerniak, J., & Yee, L.T.S. (Eds.). (2021). Incorporating diversity in classroom settings: Real and engaging examples for various psychology courses. (Vol 2: Intersectionality). Society for the Teaching of Psychology. http://teachpsych.org/ebooks/diverse2
Wong, M.S. (2021). Making the numbers real: A service-learning experience with an underprivileged population. In Wong, M.S., Weiner, L., Cerniak, J., & Yee, L.T.S. (Eds.), Incorporating diversity in classroom settings: Real and engaging examples for various psychology courses. (Vol 1: Ability, age, culture, ethnicity/race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, and socioeconomic status) (pp. 276-284). Society for the Teaching of Psychology. http://teachpsych.org/ebooks/diverse1
Wong, M.S. (2021). Using personal storytelling in the classroom setting: Perspectives from a female, non-white immigrant instructor. In Wong, M.S., Weiner, L., Cerniak, J., & Yee, L.T.S. (Eds.), Incorporating diversity in classroom settings: Real and engaging examples for various psychology courses. (Vol 2: Intersectionality) (pp. 24-26). Society for the Teaching of Psychology. http://teachpsych.org/ebooks/diverse2
Wong, M.S. (2019, July). Six tips for teaching writing in psychology. Society for the Teaching of Psychology (STP) E-xcellence in Teaching. http://teachpsych.org/E-xcellence-in-Teaching-Blog/7720649
Wong, M.S. (2019, May). Instructors with multicultural backgrounds: We have so much to offer! Invited essay published on Graduate Student Teaching Blog (Association of American Psychological Association Division 2). https://teachpsych.org/page-1784686/7328320
Selected Conference Presentations:
Alvarez, L.D.C., Hakala, C., Masland, L.C., Troisi, J.D., Gurung, R.A.R., Hammer, E.Y., & Wong, M.S. (2021, October). Different hats, new horizons: From psychology department to center for teaching and learning (Moderator). Annual Conference on Teaching.
Hurd, N., Brown, C. S., Horn, S., Wong, M.S., Mistry, R., & Kiang, L. (Accepted to present in 2020, August but withdrew because of COVID-19). Equity and justice on the college campus: A professional development workshop for teacher-scholars. Symposium to be presented at the American Psychological Association Annual Convention. Washington DC.
Wong, M.S. (2019, December). A service learning project for PSY 136 Statistics for Behavioral and Social Sciences. Poster presented at the Stevenson University Psychology Student Research Showcase. Owings Mills, MD.
Wong, M.S., Elliott, J.D., & Charney, S. (2019, December). Students’ perceptions of instructor and course based on their reading of the syllabus. Poster presented at the Stevenson University Psychology Student Research Showcase. Owings Mills, MD.
Wong, M.S. (2019, October). Using children's drawings to teach child development. Poster presented at the Society for the Teaching of Psychology’s 18th Annual Conference on Teaching (ACT). Denver, CO.
Wong, M.S. (2019, March). A roundtable discussion on teaching writing. Presented at the Teaching Institute of the Society for Research in Child Development. Baltimore, MD.
Attachment & Social-Emotional
Development Research
Selected Publications (*Student Co-author):
Dagan, O., Schuengel, C., Verhage, M.L., Madigan, S., Roisman, G.I., Van IJzendoorn, M., Bakermans-Kranenburg, M., Duschinsky, R., Sagi-Schwartz, A., Bureau, J., Eiden, R.D., Volling, B.L., Wong, M.S., Schoppe-Sullivan, S., Aviezer, O., Brown, G.L., Reiker, J., Mangelsdorf, S., Fearon, P., Bernard, K., Oosterman, M., & the Collaboration on Attachment to Multiple Parents and Outcomes Synthesis. (2024). Attachment relationship quality with mothers and fathers and child temperament: An individual participant data meta-analysis. Developmental Psychology.
Dagan, O., Schuengel, C., Verhage, M.L., Madigan, S., Roisman, G.I., Bernard, K., Duschinsky, R., Bakermans-Kranenburg, M., Bureau, J., Sagi-Schwartz, A., Eiden, R.D., Wong, M.S., Brown, G.L., Soares, I., Oosterman, M., Fearon, R.M.P., Steele, H., Martins, C., Aviezer, O., & the Collaboration on Attachment to Multiple Parents and Outcomes Synthesis. (2023). Configurations of mother-child and father-child attachment relations as predictors of child language competence: An individual participant data meta-analysis. Child Development. https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.13998
Verhage, M.L., Schuengel, C., Holopainen, A., Bakermans-Kranenburg, M.J., Bernier, A., Brown, G.L., Madigan, S., Roisman, G., Vaever, M.S., Wong, M.S., and the Collaboration on Attachment Transmission Synthesis (CATS). (2022). Conceptual comparison of constructs as first step in data harmonization: Parental sensitivity, child temperament, and social support as illustrations. MethodsX, 9. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mex.2022.101889
Joo, S.*, Fung, J., Wong, M.S., & Ping, Y. (2022). The moderating effects of growth mindset on perceived discrimination and behavior problems among Chinese migrant children. Asian American Journal of Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1037/aap0000288
Fung, J., Lin, C., Joo, S., & Wong, M.S. (2021). Factors associated with burnout, marital conflict, and life satisfaction among Chinese American church leaders. Journal of Psychology and Theology, 50. https://doi.org/10.1177/00916471211011594
Wong, M.S., Mangelsdorf, S.C., & Charney, S.* (2020). Independence and Dependence. In J.B. Benson (Ed.) Encyclopedia of Infant and Early Childhood Development (2nd Edition).
Raby, K.L., Verhage, M.L., Fearon, R.M.P., Fraley, R.C., Roisman, G.I., Schuengel, C., Bakermans-Kranenburg, M.J., Bernier, A., Ensink, K., Hautamaki, A., Madigan, S., Mangelsdorf, S., Oosterman, M., Priddis, L. E., Wong, M.S., and the Collaboration on Attachment Transmission Synthesis. (2020). The latent structure of the Adult Attachment Interview: Large sample evidence from the collaboration on attachment transmission synthesis. Development and Psychopathology. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0954579420000978
Goranson, S.*, Wong, M.S., & Fung, J. (2020). The influence of cultural and generational differences on the ministry experience of Chinese American church leaders. Pastoral Psychology, 69, 11-28. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11089-019-00890-5
Song, R.*, Fung, J., Wong, M.S., & Yao, P. (2019). Attachment security as a moderator of perceived discrimination on behavioral outcomes among Chinese migrant children. The Journal of Early Adolescence. https://doi.org/10.1177/0272431619870604
Wong, M.S., & Alexander, A.* (2019). Adult attachment. In J.J. Ponzetti, M. Blankemeyer, S.M. Horan, H. Lyons, and A. Shigeto (Eds.), Macmillan Encyclopedia of Families, Marriages, and Intimate Relationships (1st Ed.), 48-53.
Brown, G.L., Mangelsdorf, S.C., Shigeto, A., & Wong, M.S. (2018). Associations between father involvement and father-child attachment security: Variations based on timing and type of involvement. Journal of Family Psychology, 32, 1015-1024. https://doi.org/10.1037/fam0000472
Conference Presentations:
Dagan, O., Schuengel, C., Verhage, M.L., Madigan, S., …, Wong, M.S., … & the Collaboration on Attachment to Multiple Parents and Outcomes Synthesis. (2024, July). Attachment relationship quality with mothers and fathers and child temperament: An individual participant data meta-analysis. Paper to be presented at International Attachment Conference. Rouen, France.
Maingot, S., Verhage, M.L., Schuengel, C., Waters, T.E.A., …, Wong, M.S., … & the Attachment Secondary Processing and Analysis Network of the Collaboration on Attachment Transmission Synthesis. (2024, July). An alternative attachment: A thematic analysis of schema-like representations antithetical to the secure base script. Paper to be presented at International Attachment Conference. Rouen, France.
Meijer, E.E.J., Verhage, M.L., Schuengel, C., Waters, T.E.A., Maingot, S., …, Wong, M.S., … & the Attachment Secondary Processing and Analysis Network of the Collaboration on Attachment Transmission Synthesis. (2024, July). Automated assessment of transcript suitability for scoring secure base script knowledge in Adult Attachment Interviews. Paper to be presented at International Attachment Conference. Rouen, France.
Dagan, O., Schuengel, C., Verhage, M.L., Sagi-Schwartz, A., …, Wong, M.S., … & the Collaboration on Attachment to Multiple Parents and Outcomes Synthesis. (2022, July). Early Caregiving and the Development of Language Competence: A View from Meta-Analyses - PART 2: Attachment networks with mothers and fathers as predictors of language competence: An individual participant data (IPD) meta-analysis. Paper presented at the International Attachment Conference. Lisbon, Portugal.
Cheung, C. & Wong, M.S. (2019, March). Family dynamics and adolescents’ socioemotional adjustment across cultural contexts. Co-Chairs of symposium presented at the Biennial Meeting of the Society for Research in Child Development. Baltimore, MD.
Lee, R., Verhage, M.L., Fearon, P., Fraley, C., Roisman, G., van Ijzendoorn, M.H., Schuengel, C., … & Wong, M.S. (2019, March). The latent structure of the Adult Attachment Interview: Large sample evidence from consortium data. Paper presented at the Biennial Meeting of the Society for Research in Child Development, Baltimore, MD.
Song, R.*, Fung, J., Wong, M.S., & Yao, P. (2019, March). Attachment security as moderator of perceived discrimination on behavioral outcomes among Chinese migrant children. Paper presented at the Biennial Meeting of the Society for Research in Child Development, Baltimore, MD.