Sperber Knott, Jessica

Curriculum Vitae:

• 2026-Present: Postdoctoral Fellow at Max Planck Institute for Human Development
• 2020-2026: PhD in Developmental Psychology at Teachers College, Columbia University
• 2018-2020: Research Coordinator at New York University
• 2017-2018: Research Assistant at Indiana University-Bloomington
• 2013-2017: Bachelors in Psychology at Muhlenberg College

Selected Publications:

*denotes equal contribution

• Sperber, J.F., Hart, E.H., Troller-Renfree, S.V., Watts, T.W., Miller, M., Bellatin, A., Meyer, J., Dettmer, A.M., Champagne, F.A., Noble, K.G. (2025). Associations among prenatal stress, socioeconomic status, and infant epigenetic aging. Psychoneuroendocrinology. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2025.107575
• Sperber, J.F., Vandell, D., Duncan, G.J., & Watts T.W. (2024). Gratification delay and adult outcomes: The Marshmallow Test does not reliably predict adult functioning. Child Development. http://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.14129  
• Hart, E. R., Sperber, J. F., Troller-Renfree, S. V., Ortells-Faci, P., Halpern-Meekin, S., Sandre, A., & Noble, K. G. (2024). Mothers with low incomes view both individual and structural interventions as potentially helpful for supporting early child development. Scientific Reports, 14, 1-19. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-68762-4
• Hart, E.R., Gennetian, L., Sperber, J.F., Penalva, R., Magnuson, K., Duncan, G., Halpern-Meekin, S., Yoshikawa, H., Fox, N., Noble, K.G. (2024). The effect of unconditional cash transfers on maternal assessments of children’s early language and socioemotional development: Experimental evidence among U.S. families residing in poverty. Developmental Psychology.
• Sperber, J. F., Gennetian, L. A., Hart, E. R., Kunin-Batson, A., Magnuson, K., Duncan, G. J., Yoshikawa, H., Fox, N. A., Halpern-Meekin, S., & Noble, K. G. (2023). Unconditional cash transfers and maternal assessments of children’s health, nutrition, and sleep: A randomized clinical trial. JAMA Network Open, 6(9). https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2023.35237
• Sperber, J.F., Hart, E.R., Troller-Renfree, S.V., Watts, T.W., Noble, K.G. (2023). The effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on infant development and maternal mental health in the first two years of life. Infancy, 28(1), 107-135. https://doi.org/10.1111/infa.12511  
• **One of the top 10 most-cited papers published in Infancy in 2022-2023
• Sperber, J.F., McQuillan, M.E., Hoyniak, C.H., Staples, A.D., Rudasill, K. M, Molfese, V., Bates, J. E. (2022). Sleep and negative affect across toddlerhood in the context of stress. Affective Science, 3(2), 370–382. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42761-021-00094-2
• Noble, K.G., Sperber, J.F.,* Hart., E.R.* (2022). Socioeconomic disparities and neuroplasticity: Moving toward adaptation, intersectionality, and inclusion. American Psychologist, 76(9), 1486-1495. https://doi.org/10.1037/amp0000934.

Awards:

• F31 NRSA Predoctoral Fellowship (NICHD)
• Sandra G. Weiner Student Investigator Award (Int Soc for Dev Psychobiology)
• Provost’s Dissertation Research Award (Teachers College, Columbia University)
• Education Policy & Social Analysis Dissertation Award (Teachers College, Columbia University)
• Ball-Stick-Bird Fund (Berkshire Taconic Foundation)
• Dean's Grant for Student Research (Teachers College, Columbia University)