Welcome

The first years of life lay the foundation for all domains of human development. The basic building blocks of healthy development include the capacities to love, feel, adapt, and develop a sense of self. This is why sound infant and early childhood mental health are critical for the social and emotional well-being of not only young children but also the adults they become. The field of Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health is exciting and highly rewarding. It is naturally multidisciplinary in structure, involving mental health, psychology, social services professionals as well as educators and policy makers. The Fielding PhD in Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health and Development (IECD) is a degree serving multiple disciplines as they apply their work using the lens of infant mental health (IMH) and development. The program was initiated by Stanley Greenspan, MD and Serena Weider, PhD, to promote research around relationships, individual differences, and development (DIR®) in working with infants, children, and their families. Through Fielding’s progressive doctoral program, professionals broaden their knowledge, and study multiple factors affecting an infant’s and family’s well-being, to include culture, policy, and advocacy as well as neurodevelopmental, medical, biological, sensorimotor, language, and family systems variables. Graduates from this research-focused PhD program will be prepared for several careers in research, clinical, and educational settings. Thank you for your interest in IECD. I hope you find this book helpful. However, if your questions are not addressed in these pages, please contact our admissions advisors directly (805-898-4026).

Jenene W. Craig, PhD, MBA, OTR/L, CNT Program Director Infant & Early Childhood Mental Health School of Psychology Fielding Graduate University

Mother of six grown children, (and a relatively recent “empty-nester,”) Dr. Craig credits her own experience bearing and raising children for the initial spark and longtime work within the NICU world. Since 1985, she has worked with multiple groups and hospitals advancing NICU work in Developmentally Supportive and Neuroprotective Caregiving.

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