Marcia Van Riper, PhD, RN, FAAN, is a Professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (USA). Dr. Van Riper’s research focuses on the family experience of being tested for and/or living with a genetic condition. Her primary goal is to improve understanding of why some families of individuals with Down syndrome (as well as other genetic conditions) are resilient and thrive, while others are vulnerable, and some deteriorate.
Much of Dr. Van Riper’s scientific inquiry has been with families of individuals with Down syndrome. Her collaborators circle the earth and include family researchers from Brazil, Ecuador, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Korea, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Thailand, United Kingdom, and United States. Many of Dr. Van Riper’s collaborators are, have been, or will be members of IFNA. Key collaborators include Kathleen Knafl, George Knafl, Louise Fleming, Beth Skelton, Maria do Ceu Barbieri Figueiredo, Elysangela Dittz Duarte, Junko Honda, Hyunkyung Choi, Maria Caples, Maria Joao Silvia, Aline Santos, Sivia Barnoy, Elena Marta, Wannee Deoisres, and Margareth Angelo. She and her team recently completed a cross-cultural study of adaptation and resilience in families of individuals with Down syndrome. This broad-reaching study included over 3,000 parents from more than 50 countries. Recently, Dr. Van Riper and her team received funding to explore social determinants of health, quality of life, and family adaptation in three groups of families: families of children with congenital heart disease, families of children with Down syndrome and families of children with both conditions. They also received funding for a study in which they will examine family management of sleep issues in children with Down syndrome.
New publication: Van Riper, M., Knafl, G. J., Barbieri-Figueiredo, M. C., Caples, M., Choi, H., de Graff, G., Duarte, E. D., Honda, J., Marta, E., Phetrasuwan, S., Alfieri, S., Angelo, M., Deoisres, W., Fleming, L., dos Santos, A. S., Roacha da Silva, M. J., Skelton, B., van der Veek, S., & Knafl, K. (2021). Measurement of family management in families of individuals with Down syndrome: A cross-cultural investigation. Journal of Family Nursing, 27(1), 8-22. https://doi.org/10.1177/1074840720975167
The two main frameworks Dr. Van Riper uses are: The Resiliency Model of Family Stress, Adjustment, and Adaptation; and the Family Management Style Framework. She uses a variety of measures including the Family Management Measure (FaMM), the Family Index of Regenerativity and Adaptation, the Family Hardiness Scale, the Family Problem Solving Communication Index, and the Family Assessment Measure.
In Spring 2020, Dr. Van Riper was a Visiting Professor at the University of Navarra in Pamplona Spain. At the IFNC14 conference, Dr. Van Riper received a 2019 IFNA Excellence in Family Nursing Award. In 2015, she was a Fulbright Specialist at the University of Navarra in Spain, and in 2012, she was a Fulbright Scholar at University College Cork in Ireland in 2012.
For more information, contact Dr. Van Riper at [email protected]
Follow Dr. Van Riper on Twitter @MarciaVanRiper and connect with her on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcia-van-riper-74440b7b/
