Anisa Zvonkovic to head Virginia Tech's Department of Human Development
Anisa Zvonkovic, who studies the intersection of work and personal life, has been named head of the Department of Human Development at Virginia Tech.
“Anisa brings strong vision for the future of the department along with extensive experience in leadership positions at other major universities,” said Sue Ott Rowlands, dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences. “Along with members of the Department of Human Development, I am thrilled that she has chosen to come to Virginia Tech at this point in her career.” Ott Rowlands notes that Zvonkovic is one of 27 new faculty hires in the college for 2011-2012, and one of three holding the rank of professor.
Previously, Zvonkovic served as professor and chair of the Department of Human Development and Family Studies at Texas Tech University. From 1985 to 2005, she worked on the faculty at Oregon State University.
Zvonkovic’s research examines the effects of job demands on individual and interpersonal lives, specifically, how work travel affects family life. She has studied the families of commercial fishermen and long-haul truckers, as well as those of women who are employed in jobs requiring travel, including adoption agency workers and flight attendants. Her most recent project, funded by the National Institute of Health (NIH) for $1.5 million, involves a multimethod procedure in which data are gathered from all family members over the age of eight; the information includes daily diary reports of behavior while the travelling family member is away and at home.
Widely published, Zvonkovic’s work has appeared in Family Relations; Pastoral Counseling; Journal of Family Issues; Work, Employment, and Society; Journal of Vocational Development; Journal of Divorce and Remarriage; and Journal of GLBT Family Studies. She is also a member of the editorial boards of several professional journals.
Zvonkovic has held leadership positions with the National Council on Family Relations, the International Association of Relationship Researchers, and the Society of Occupational Health Psychology. She is president-elect of the Groves Conference on Marriage and Family and a founding member of the Society for Work and Family Research. She also serves on the NIH’s Community Influences on Health and Behavior Scientific Review Group. Most recently, she participated in a forum on workplace flexibility for the White House Council on Women and Girls and the United States Department of Labor Women’s Bureau.
Zvonkovic received her Ph.D. and master’s degree from The Pennsylvania State University, and her bachelor’s degree from the University of Virginia.
