Laurel Raffington

Leader of the Max Planck Research Group
Biosocial – Biology, Social Disparities, and Development

Publications

Contact:
E-Mail: raffington@mpib-berlin.mpg.de

Phone: +49 30 82406-354

CV:

Since 2022: Research Group Leader MPRG Biosocial, MPI for Human Development
2019–2022: Postdoctoral researcher, University of Texas at Austin, Population Research Center
2018–2019: Postdoctoral researcher, MPI for Human Development, Center for Lifespan Psychology
2013-2018: Dr. rer. nat. (PhD) in Psychology, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, MPI for Human Development
2011–2013: MSc in Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, Freie Universität Berlin, Psychology
2007-2010: BSc in Experimental Psychology, University of Bristol, School of Psychological Science

Research Interests:

Laurel Raffington is the founder and leader of the independent Max Planck Research Group Biosocial – Biology, Social Disparities, and Development, at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development in Berlin, Germany. Her research focuses on the intersection of genetic influences and social inequality, examining how these factors combine to shape differential outcomes of education and health across the lifespan. Her future plans include developing innovative genomic biomarkers, primarily based on DNA methylation, that are particularly sensitive to the interplay between genes and the environment in childhood and may have persistent effects on later life well-being.

Selected Literature:

• Raffington, L. (2024). Utilizing epigenetics to study the shared nature of development and biological aging across the lifespan. npj Science of Learning, 9, Article 24. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41539-024-00239-5
• Aikins, M. A. N., Willems, Y. E., Fraemke, D., & Raffington, L. (2024). Beyond a shared history: A biosocial perspective on sociogenomics and racism in Germany. Kölner Zeitschrift für Soziologie und Sozialpsychologie. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11577-024-00934-6
• Raffington, L., Schneper, L., Mallard, T., Fisher, J., Vinnik, L., Hollis-Hansen, K., Notterman, D. A., Tucker-Drob, E. M., Mitchell, C., & Harden, K. P. (2023). Salivary epigenetic measures of body mass index and social determinants of health across childhood and adolescence. JAMA Pediatrics, 177(10), 1047–1054. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapediatrics.2023.3017
• Raffington, L., Tanksley, P. T., Sabhlok, A., Vinnik, L., Mallard, T., King, L. S., Goosby, B., Harden, K. P., & Tucker-Drob, E. M. (2023). Socially stratified epigenetic profiles are associated with cognitive functioning in children and adolescents. Psychological Science, 34(2), 170–185. https://doi.org/10.1177/09567976221122760
• Raffington, L., Belsky, D. W., Kothari, M., Malanchini, M., Tucker-Drob, E. M., & Harden, K. P. (2021). Socioeconomic disadvantage and the pace of biological aging in children. Pediatrics, 147(6). https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2020-024406
• Raffington, L., Mallard, T., & Harden, P. K. (2020). Polygenic scores in developmental psychology: Invite genetics in, leave biodeterminism behind. Annual Review of Developmental Psychology, 2(1), 389-411. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-devpsych-051820-123945