Dr. Jacqueline Lerner studies the positive development of children and adolescents in the contexts of family, school and community, and the embedded relationships in these contexts that contribute to overall development. Her research includes the first national longitudinal study of youth development, “Doing the Right Thing: Character Development in Adolescence.” She has published widely in the leading journals in the field such as Child Development, Developmental Psychology, Journal of Research on Adolescence.

Dr. Lerner is currently collaborating on a multi-year, international research study on the positive development of the world's poorest youth.