Francisco Antonio Calderón Alfaro
I am a doctoral student at the Department of Social Policy and Intervention and a Data Manager for the Global Parenting Initiative based at in the same Department. As part of my doctoral studies and work I research differential effects of parenting interventions on reductions of child maltreatment using harmonised pooled data from randomised controlled trials. Through a longitudinal lens, I look at participants characteristics that make a difference as well as how mechanisms of change of interventions are working. Previously in my work at the Department of Social Policy and Intervention, I assisted research projects on parenting interventions from diverse countries like South Africa, Uganda, Thailand, Malaysia, Philippines, and others, on most things data related.
My past ten years of research experience has mostly focused on violence prevention, improving mental health of young people, and improving quantitative research methods. I hold a Bachelor’s in psychology by Universidad Centroamericana José Simeón Cañas and a MSc. on Psychological Research by The University of Edinburgh. I previously worked on violence prevention projects at El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala, working with Universidad Centroamericana José Simeón Cañas in collaboration with USAID and John Jay College of Criminal Justice which looked to further strengthen the countries Criminal Justice System. I also worked with the IOM in partnership with think tanks and town halls in El Salvador to better reintegrate returned migrants to the regions they live in.
I have collaborated in other research projects involving organizations such as World Vision, UNFPA, Tilburg University, The University of Edinburgh and the Spotlight Initiative. I also worked as a lecturer for Violence Prevention for the Universidad Centroamericana José Simeón Cañas, before moving to the UK in 2021.
I believe that research should empower those who are not heard.
You can find Francisco on LinkedIn and ORCID (ID:Â 0000-0002-8854-9377).
Publications:
- Murray, A. L., Russell, A., & Calderón Alfaro, F. A. (2024). Early emotion regulation developmental trajectories and ADHD, internalizing, and conduct problems symptoms in childhood. Development and Psychopathology, 1–8. doi:10.1017/S0954579424001263
- Han, Q., Jocson, R., Kunovski, I., Raleva M., Juhari, R., Okop, K., Oppler, A., Wilson K., Cirovic, T., Gwebu H., Alampay, L., Eagling-Peche, S., Calderon, F., Vallance, I., Muharam, F., Chen, Y. & Lachman, J. (2024). The bidirectional temporal relationship between parenting stress and child maltreatment: A cross-lagged study based on intervention and cohort data, Journal of Affective Disorders, 354, 302-308.
- Ambrosio M, Lachman J, Zinzer P, Gwebu H, Vyas S, Vallance I, Calderon F, Gardner F, Markle L, Stern D, Facciola C, Schley A, Danisa N, Brukwe K, Melendez-Torres G. (2024). A Factorial Randomized Controlled Trial to Optimize User Engagement With a Chatbot-Led Parenting Intervention: Protocol for the ParentText Optimisation Trial. JMIR Res Protoc. DOI: 10.2196/52145
- Cooper H, Nadzri F, Vyas S, Juhari R, Ismail N, Arshat Z, Rajandiran D, Markle L, Calderon F, Vallance I, Melendez-Torres G, Facciolà C, Senesathith V, Gardner F, Lachman J. (2024). A Hybrid Digital Parenting Program Delivered Within the Malaysian Preschool System: Protocol for a Feasibility Study of a Small-Scale Factorial Cluster Randomized Trial. JMIR Res Protoc. DOI: 10.2196/55491
- Lachman, J., Wamoyi, J., Martin, M., Han, Q., Calderon, F., Mgunga, S., … Shenderovich, Y. (2024, February 28). Reducing family and school-based violence at scale in Tanzania: Results from a large-scale pre-post study of the Furaha Teens parenting programme.
- Baerecke, L., Ornellas, A., Wamoyi, J., Wambura, M., Klapwijk, J., Chetty, A. N., Simpson, A., Janowski, R., De Graaf, K., Stern, D., Clements, L., Te Winkel, E., Christine, L., Mbosoli, G., Nyalali, K., Onduru, O. G., Booij, A., Mjwara, S. N., Tsoanyane, S., … Cluver, L. D. (2024). A hybrid digital parenting programme to prevent abuse of adolescents in Tanzania: Study protocol for a pragmatic cluster-randomised controlled trial. Trials, 25(1), 119.
- Jocson, R. M., Alampay, L. P., Lachman, J. M., Reyes, J. C., Mamauag, B. L., Maramba, D. H. A., Eagling-Peche, S., Han, Q., & Calderon, F. (2024). Feasibility and acceptability of a digital parent group chat intervention to prevent child and adolescent maltreatment in the Philippines. International journal of psychology : Journal international de psychologie, 10.1002/ijop.13148. Advance online publication.
- Schafer, M., Lachman, J. M., Gardner, F., Zinser, P., Calderon, F., Han, Q., Facciola, C., & Clements, L. (2023). Integrating intimate partner violence prevention content into a digital parenting chatbot intervention during COVID-19: Intervention development and remote data collection. BMC Public Health, 23(1), 1708.
- Calderón Alfaro, F. A., Li, Y. & Okely, J. (2023). Symptoms of depression and anxiety in young people in El Salvador: Associations with peer and family relationships, artistic activities and health behaviours during the COVID-19 pandemic. Journal of Affective Disorders, 339, 838-846.
- Mena, F. Calderón, F. (2022). Propiedades psicométricas de la escala atenas de insomnio en población salvadoreña. Liberabit, 28(2).
- Calderón Alfaro, F. A., Chávez Alfaro, S. C., Iraheta Iraheta, R. E. (2020). El accionar prosocial desde la potencialidad humana en jóvenes adolescentes con factores de riesgo en El Salvador. Estudios Centroamericanos, 75(760), 79-108. 10.51378/eca.v75i760.3294
