Assistant Professor, Educational Psychology, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign

Affiliate, Center for Social and Behavioral Science, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign

Association for Psychological Science "Rising Star", 2019

Hoff, K., Van Egdom, D., Napolitano, C., Hanna, A., & Rounds, J. (Accepted/In press). Dream Jobs and Employment Realities: How Adolescents’ Career Aspirations Compare to Labor Demands and Automation Risks. Journal of Career Assessment. https://doi.org/10.1177/10690727211026183  link >

Napolitano, C. M., Sewell, M. N., Yoon, H. J., Soto, C. J., & Roberts, B. W. (2021). Social, Emotional, and Behavioral Skills: An Integrative Model of the Skills Associated With Success During Adolescence and Across the Life Span. Frontiers in Education, 6, [679561]. https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2021.679561  link >

Napolitano, C. M., Kern, J. L., & Freund, A. M. (Accepted/In press). The Backup Planning Scale (BUPS): A Brief, Self-Reported Measure of a Person’s Tendency to Develop, Reserve, and Use Backup Plans. Journal of Personality Assessment. https://doi.org/10.1080/00223891.2021.1966021  link >

Soto, C. J., Napolitano, C. M., & Roberts, B. W. (2021). Taking Skills Seriously: Toward an Integrative Model and Agenda for Social, Emotional, and Behavioral Skills. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 30(1), 26-33. https://doi.org/10.1177/0963721420978613  link >

Napolitano, C. M., Hoff, K. A., Ming, C. W. J., Tu, N., & Rounds, J. (2020). Great expectations: Adolescents' intentional self-regulation predicts career aspiration and expectation consistency. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 120, [103423]. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2020.103423  link >

Freund, A. M., Napolitano, C. M., & Rutt, J. L. (2019). Personality Development in Adulthood: A Goal Perspective. In D. P. McAdams, R. L. Shiner, & J. L. Tackett (Eds.), Handbook of Personality Development Guilford Press.

Napolitano, C. M., & Freund, A. M. (2019). Adding life to one’s added years: Self-regulatory balancing of life domains across old age. Advances in Life Course Research, 41, [100278]. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.alcr.2019.04.008  link >

Tomasik, M. J., Napolitano, C. M., & Moser, U. (2019). Trajectories of Academic Performance Across Compulsory Schooling and Thriving in Young Adulthood. Child development, 90(6), e745-e762. https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.13150  link >

Napolitano, C. M., & Job, V. (2018). Assessing the implicit theory of willpower for strenuous mental activities scale: Multigroup, across-gender, and cross-cultural measurement invariance and convergent and divergent validity. Psychological assessment, 30(8), 1049-1064. https://doi.org/10.1037/pas0000557  link >

Napolitano, C. M. (2018). Serendipity as an Example for a New Four-tiered Model of the Study of Intentional Self-regulation. Research in Human Development, 15(3-4), 265-279. https://doi.org/10.1080/15427609.2018.1489097  link >

Napolitano, C. M., & Freund, A. M. (2017). First evidence for "the backup plan paradox". Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 146(8), 1189-1203. https://doi.org/10.1037/xge0000331  link >

Napolitano, C. M., & Freund, A. M. (2016). On the Use and Usefulness of Backup Plans. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 11(1), 56-73. https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691615596991  link >

Freund, A. M., Napolitano, C. M., & Knecht, M. (2015). Life Management Through Selection, Optimization, and Compensation. In N. A. Pachana (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Geropsychology (pp. 1-9). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-287-080-3_130-1  link >

Geldhof, G. J., Bowers, E. P., Gestsdóttir, S., Napolitano, C. M., & Lerner, R. M. (2015). Self-Regulation Across Adolescence: Exploring the Structure of Selection, Optimization, and Compensation. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 25(2), 214-228. https://doi.org/10.1111/jora.12131  link >

Geldhof, G. J., Bowers, E. P., Boyd, M. J., Mueller, M. K., Napolitano, C. M., Schmid, K. L., Lerner, J. V., & Lerner, R. M. (2014). Creation of short and very short measures of the five Cs of positive youth development. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 24(1), 163-176. https://doi.org/10.1111/jora.12039  link >

Geldhof, G. J., Bowers, E. P., Mueller, M. K., Napolitano, C. M., Callina, K. S., & Lerner, R. M. (2014). Longitudinal Analysis of a Very Short Measure of Positive Youth Development. Journal of youth and adolescence, 43(6), 933-949. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-014-0093-z  link >

Lerner, R. M., Napolitano, C. M., Boyd, M. J., Mueller, M. K., & Callina, K. S. (2014). Mentoring and positive youth development. In D. L. DuBois, & M. J. Karcher (Eds.), Handbook of Youth Mentoring (2 ed., pp. 17-28). SAGE Publishing. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781412996907.n2  link >

Napolitano, C. M., Bowers, E. P., Arbeit, M. R., Chase, P., Geldhof, G. J., Lerner, J. V., & Lerner, R. M. (2014). The GPS to Success Growth Grids: Measurement Properties of a Tool to Promote Intentional Self-Regulation in Mentoring Programs. Applied Developmental Science, 18(1), 46-58. https://doi.org/10.1080/10888691.2014.866768  link >

Napolitano, C. M., Callina, K. S., & Mueller, M. K. (2013). Comparing Alternate Approaches to Calculating Reliability for Dichotomous Data: The Sample Case of Adolescent Selection, Optimization, and Compensation. Applied Developmental Science, 17(3), 148-151. https://doi.org/10.1080/10888691.2013.804372  link >

Napolitano, C. M. (2013). More than just a simple twist of fate: Serendipitous relations in developmental science. Human Development, 56(5), 291-318. https://doi.org/10.1159/000355022  link >

Bowers, E. P., Geldhof, G. J., Schmid, K. L., Napolitano, C. M., Minor, K., & Lerner, J. V. (2012). Relationships With Important Nonparental Adults and Positive Youth Development: An Examination of Youth Self-Regulatory Strengths as Mediators. Research in Human Development, 9(4), 298-316. https://doi.org/10.1080/15427609.2012.729911  link >

Lerner, R. M., Wiatrowski, M. D., Mueller, M. K., Napolitano, C. M., Schmid, K. L., & Pritchard, A. (2011). A Vision for the American Juvenile Justice System: The Positive Youth Development Perspective. In Juvenile Justice: Advancing Research, Policy, and Practice (pp. 92-108). John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118093375.ch5  link >

Lerner, R. M., Lerner, J. V., Lewin-Bizan, S., Bowers, E. P., Boyd, M. J., Mueller, M. K., Schmid, K. L., & Napolitano, C. M. (2011). Positive Youth Development: Processes, Programs, and Problematics. Journal of Youth Development, 6(3), 38-62. https://doi.org/10.5195/JYD.2011.174  link >

Lerner, R. M., Boyd, M. J., Kiely, M. K., Napolitano, C. M., Schmid, K. L., & Steinberg, L. (2011). The History of the Study of Adolescence. In Encyclopedia of Adolescence (Vol. 1, pp. 169-176). Elsevier Inc.. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-373951-3.00019-3  link >

Napolitano, C. M., Bowers, E. P., Gestsdóttir, S., & Chase, P. A. (2011). The development of intentional self-regulation in adolescence. Describing, explaining, and optimizing its link to positive youth development. In Advances in Child Development and Behavior (pp. 19-38). (Advances in Child Development and Behavior; Vol. 41). Academic Press Inc.. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-386492-5.00002-6  link >

Napolitano, C. M., Bowers, E. P., Gestsdottir, S., Depping, M., von Eye, A., Chase, P., & Lerner, J. V. (2011). The role of parenting and goal selection in positive youth development: A person-centered approach. Journal of Adolescence, 34(6), 1137-1149. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.adolescence.2011.07.008  link >

Schmid, K. L., Phelps, E., Kiely, M. K., Napolitano, C. M., Boyd, M. J., & Lerner, R. M. (2011). The role of adolescents' hopeful futures in predicting positive and negative developmental trajectories: Findings from the 4-H study of positive youth development. Journal of Positive Psychology, 6(1), 45-56. https://doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2010.536777  link >

Gestsdottir, S., Bowers, E., von Eye, A., Napolitano, C. M., & Lerner, R. M. (2010). Intentional self regulation in middle adolescence: The emerging role of loss-based selection in positive youth development. Journal of youth and adolescence, 39(7), 764-782. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-010-9537-2  link >

Lerner, R. M., Boyd, M. J., Kiely, M. K., Napolitano, C. M., & Schmid, K. L. (2010). Applications of Developmental Systems Theory to Benefit Human Development: On the Contributions of Gilbert Gottlieb to Individuals, Families, and Communities. In Handbook of Developmental Science, Behavior, and Genetics (pp. 339-354). Wiley-Blackwell. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781444327632.ch21  link >

Napolitano, C. M. (2010). "MXing it up": how African adolescents may affect social change through mobile phone use. New directions for youth development, 2010(128), 105-113.

Undergraduate Open Seminar (EPSY 199) TITLE: Understanding Adolescent Development through Literature.

Undergraduate Open Seminar (EPSY 199) Synchronous attendance required. Moodle LMS. TITLE: Understanding Adolescent Development through Literature.

Early Adolescent Development (EPSY 430) Examines early adolescent development, covering biological, cognitive, and social transitions. Topics include identity, autonomy, peer and family relationships and the role of schooling and the media.

Developments in Educ Psyc (EPSY 490) Foundational theories and practices of educational psychology, including learning and development. Title: Self Regulation and Self Control Across the Life Span

Developments in Educ Psyc (EPSY 490) Foundational theories and practices of educational psychology, including learning and development. Synchronous attendance required. Moodle LMS. Title: Self Regulation and Self Control Across the Life Span

Special Topics in Couns Psych (EPSY 590) Seminar in educational psychology; topics relate to the areas of specialization represented by the various divisions within the department. Counseling Psychology Brownbag

Dev Sciences Division Brownbag (EPSY 590) Seminar in educational psychology; topics relate to the areas of specialization represented by the various divisions within the department.

Special Topics in Couns Psyc (EPSY 590) Seminar in educational psychology; topics relate to the areas of specialization represented by the various divisions within the department. Membership in the Counseling Psychology Division or consent of instructor required.

Special Topics in Couns Psych (EPSY 590) Seminar in educational psychology; topics relate to the areas of specialization represented by the various divisions within the department.

Dev Sciences Division Brownbag (EPSY 590) Seminar in educational psychology; topics relate to the areas of specialization represented by the various divisions within the department. Dev. Sciences Brownbag