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Peer and Family Adversity, Neuroendocrine Regulation, and School Readiness Across the Transition to Kindergarten (FRIENDS)

The FRIENDS Project is a study of preschoolers’ social development and school readiness as children transition to kindergarten. The FRIENDS project examines how family and peer relationships impact school readiness, which is broadly defined to include academic and social-emotional domains of development. In addition, the project examines the influence of the stress hormone cortisol. The FRIENDS Project is funded (R01HD095832-01A1) by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), which is part of the National Institute of Health (NIH).  For a formal abstract click here.  

Please also read a press release and other press associated with the project found under the Media Coverage tab!

FRIENDS data collection began in the fall of 2019. We are so grateful to the parents who have participated so far! We are actively recruiting participants for FRIENDS. If you are the parent of a child who may enter kindergarten next year and are interested in participating, please reach out to us at devlab@buffalo.edu – we look forward to hearing from you soon!

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Parents, if you are looking for at-home saliva and fingernail collection materials, please click here or search under this tab!