Iulia Mihaila, PhD | Morse Scholar Alumni
Morse Scholar Alumni 2015–2017
Current Position
Visiting Research Assistant Professor
B.E.S.T. Study Project Director
Department of Pediatrics
College of Medicine, University of Illinois
Contact
About
Iulia Mihaila’s research interests are in utilizing biopsychosocial models to understand the impacts of participation on health outcomes and healthy aging in adolescents and young, middle-aged, and older adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). In particular, Dr. Mihaila is interested in physical/mental health promotion and inclusion for people with IDD across the lifespan. Dr. Mihaila received my PhD in Human Ecology from the University of Wisconsin Madison in 2018. Dr. Mihaila completed the postdoctoral training as a Leadership Education Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities Training at the University of Illinois Chicago in 2020. Dr. Mihaila is currently the Project Director of the B.E.S.T. Study (BEhavioral Health Stratified Treatment to Optimize Transition to Adulthood in Youth with IDD), a two-arm randomized clinic trial that seeks to examine the impact of care coordination models on the depressive and anxiety symptomatology and transition outcomes of youth with IDD. The study explores whether a care coordination model that integrates mental health programming promotes greater health and well-being among youth with IDD as compared to the existing care coordination model that provides youth with IDD referrals to outside mental health care as needed.
Education
| 2012 | BA | Pscyhology | UC Santa Barbara |
| 2014 | MS | Human Development and Family Studies | University of Wisconsin-Madison |
| 2018 | PhD | Human Ecology, Human Development and Family Studies | University of Wisconsin-Madison |
| 2013–2016 | Morse Scholar | Major Professor: Sigan Hartley, PhD | Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison |
| 2020 | Postdoctoral Fellow | IL LEND | University of Illinois Chicago |
In the News
Videos
Selected Publications
van Heumen, L., Krueger, C., & Mihaila, I. (2024). The development of a co-researcher training with and for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Journal of applied research in intellectual disabilities : JARID, 37(3), e13200. https://doi.org/10.1111/jar.13200
Gussin, H. A., Shiu, C. S., Danguilan, C., Mihaila, I., Acharya, K., & Berg, K. L. (2024). Impact of Adverse Childhood Experiences and Mental Health on School Success in Autistic Children: Findings from the 2016-2021 National Survey of Children’s Health. Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 10.1007/s10803-024-06338-x. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-024-06338-x
Mihaila, I., Hsieh, K., & Acharya, K. (2024). Correlates of Social Participation of Adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. Journal of intellectual disabilities : JOID, 28(1), 3–16. https://doi.org/10.1177/17446295221130556
Berg, K. L., Mihaila, I., Feinstein, R. T., Shiu, C. S., Gussin, H., Acharya, K., Gladstone, T. R. G., Bernard, L., Best, M., Renz, E., Abdallah, G., Weldy, S., Herrman, D., Lynch, E., Gerges, M., Perez, P., Buchholz, K. R., Msall, M., Aaron, S., Mutti, M., … Van Voorhees, B. W. (2024). BEhavioral Health Stratified Treatment (B.E.S.T.) to optimize transition to adulthood for youth with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities. Contemporary clinical trials, 136, 107374. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cct.2023.107374
Mihaila, I., Berg, K., & Acharya, K. (2021). Associations Between Participation and Mental Health for Vulnerable Youth with Special Healthcare Needs. Maternal and child health journal, 25(9), 1482–1490. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-021-03186-4
Mihaila, I., Handen, B. L., Christian, B. T., & Hartley, S. L. (2020). Leisure activity in middle-aged adults with Down syndrome: Initiators, social partners, settings and barriers. Journal of applied research in intellectual disabilities : JARID, 33(5), 865–875. https://doi.org/10.1111/jar.12706
Mihaila I, Handen BL, Christian BT, Lao PJ, Cody KA, Klunk WE, Tudorascu DL, Cohen AD, Okonkwo OC, Hartley SL. (2019). Leisure Activity, Brain β-amyloid, and Episodic Memory in Adults with Down Syndrome. Developmental Neurobiology, 79(7):738-749. doi: 10.1002/dneu.22677.
St John B, Mihaila I, Dorrance K, DaWalt LS, Ausderau KK. (2018). Reflections From Co-Researchers With Intellectual Disability: Benefits to Inclusion in a Research Study Team. Intellectual & Developmental Disabilies, 56(4):251-262. doi: 10.1352/1934-9556-56.5.251.