Christine W. St. Laurent

Current Research

Dr. St. Laurent's research focuses on the interactions of movement behaviors and sleep on physical, social-emotional, and cognitive health during the developmental years. Her research approaches include 1) observational studies to identify associations of time-use patterns and daily activity profiles on brain and physical health outcomes, 2) experimental studies to explore acute effects of altered time-use patterns or behaviors on cognitive and psycho-social measures, and 3) the design and implementation of behavior change and policy intervention studies delivered in school and childcare settings. Integral to this work is exploring biometric ambulatory monitors that capture a range of movement behaviors across childhood groups in translational settings.

Currently, Dr. St. Laurent's active projects seek to address the following aims in preschool children: 1) determine what happens to sleep quality and cognitive performance when a child is more active throughout the day, 2) contribute to international surveillance data on physical activity, sedentary behavior, sleep, and cognitive/motor development, and 3) determine what home and family child care providers know about children's sleep and physical activity, what they currently do with the children in their care, and what challenges and barriers are present for them in relation to these behaviors.

Learn more at https://www.umass.edu/public-health-sciences/about/directory/christine-st-laurent

Learn more at https://www.mooveandsnoozelab.com/

Academic Background

• Postdoctoral Research Fellow, 2019-2023, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Psychological and Brain Sciences
• PhD, 2019, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Kinesiology
• MPH, 2019, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Epidemiology
• MS, 2005, James Madison University, Kinesiology
• BS, 2003, James Madison University, Kinesiology