Office: B349V
Phone: 403-440-8753
E-mail: cmcdonaldharker@mtroyal.ca

EDUCATION:
Ph.D. Sociology, University of Alberta (Awarded SSHRC Doctoral Fellowship)
M.A. Sociology, McGill University
B.A.H. Sociology, Queen’s University

Dr. Caroline McDonald-Harker is a Sociologist and Associate Professor in the
Department of Sociology & Anthropology. She is also the Director of the Centre for
Community Disaster Research (CCDR) at Mount Royal University.

 

 

 

AREAS OF EXPERTISE:
Dr. Caroline McDonald-Harker’s areas of expertise and research include: the
sociology of disasters; families; parenthood/parenting; children and youth; trauma
and resilience; mental health; gender; domestic violence/abuse; and quantitative
and qualitative research methods (mixed methods). Over the last several years Dr.
McDonald-Harker has conducted several large-scale research studies funded by
external research grants totaling over 1.9 million dollars. Dr. McDonald-Harker is
regularly interviewed by local, national, and international media including CBC, CTV,
Global News, The National, The Globe and Mail, and Huffington Post, among others,
to provide her expert opinion on sociological topics in her areas of expertise.

COURSES TAUGHT:
SLGY 1101: Introduction to Sociology
SLGY 2233: Sociology of Gender
SLGY 2271: Sociology of Families
SLGY 3323: Qualitative Research Methods
SLGY 3335: Gender and Work
SLGY 5110: Honours Research I
SLGY 5120: Honours Research II

SELECTED PUBLICATIONS:

Books:

McDonald-Harker, Caroline. 2016. Mothering in Marginalized Contexts: Narratives
of Women Who Mother in and Through Domestic Violence. Bradford, ON: Demeter
Press, 294 pages.

Book Chapters:

Drolet, Julie, Nasreen Lalani, and Caroline McDonald-Harker. 2022. “Using Creative
Art Research Approaches to Assess Arts Based Interventions with Children in Post-
Disaster Contexts.” Pp. 117-126 in Social Work Research Using Arts-Based Methods,
edited by Ephrat Huss and Eltje Bos. Policy Press.

McDonald-Harker, Caroline. 2019. “Making the Invisible Visible: Abused Women’s
Mothering Experiences.” Pp. 255–265 in Routledge Companion to Motherhood,
edited by Lynn O’Brien Hallstein, Andrea O’Reilly and Melinda Vandenbeld Giles.
New York, NY: Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group.

McDonald-Harker, Caroline. 2015. “Mothering in the Context of Domestic Abuse and
Encounters with Child Protection Services: From Victimized to “Criminalized”
Mothers.” Pp. 323–354 in Criminalized Mothers: Criminalizing Motherhood edited by
Joanne Minaker and Bryan Hogeveen. Toronto, ON: Demeter Press.

Journal Articles:

Bogdan, Eva, Caroline McDonald-Harker, Emilie M. Bassi, and Timothy J. Haney.
2023. “Holding Together After Disaster: The Role of Life Skills in Strengthening
Family Cohesion and Resilience.” Family Relations 72(4):2194-2214.  
https://doi.org/10.1111/fare.12791

Pazderka, Hannah, Matthew R. G. Brown, Caroline McDonald-Harker, Andrew James
Greenshaw, Vincent I. O. Agyapong, Shannon Noble, Monica Mankowski, Bonnie Lee,
Joy Omeje, Pamela Brett-MacLean, Deborah Terry Kitching, Leslie A. Hayduk, and
Peter H. Silverstone. 2021. “Model of Post-Traumatic Growth in Newly Traumatized
vs. Retraumatized Adolescents.” Frontiers in Psychiatry 12:682055:1-14.
https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2021.682055

McDonald-Harker, Caroline, Julie L. Drolet, Anika Sehgal, Matthew R. G. Brown, and
Peter H. Silverstone. 2021. “Social-Ecological Factors Associated with Higher Levels
of Resilience in Children and Youth After Disaster: The Importance of Caregiver and
Peer Support.” Frontiers in Public Health 9:682634:1-13.
https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2021.682634

McDonald-Harker, Caroline, Julie L. Drolet, Anika Sehgal. 2021. “A Strength-Based
Approach to Exploring Factors that Contribute to Resilience Among Children and
Youth Impacted by Disaster.” The British Journal of Social Work 51(5):1897-1916.
https://doi.org/10.1093/bjsw/bcab109

Lalani, Nasreen, Julie L. Drolet, Caroline McDonald-Harker, Matthew R. G. Brown,
Pamela Brett-MacLean, Vincent I. O. Agyapong, Andrew James Greenshaw, and Peter
H. Silverstone. 2021. “Nurturing Spiritual Resilience to Promote Post-Disaster
Community Recovery: The 2016 Alberta Wildfire in Canada.” Frontiers in Public
Health 9:682558:1-12. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2021.682558

Pazderka, Hannah, Matthew R. G. Brown, Vincent I. O. Agyapong, Andrew James
Greenshaw, Caroline McDonald-Harker, Shannon Noble, Monica Mankowski, Bonnie
Lee, Julie L. Drolet, Joy Omeje, Pamela Brett-MacLean, Deborah Terry Kitching, and
Peter H. Silverstone. 2021. “Collective Trauma and Mental Health in Adolescents: A
Retrospective Cohort Study of the Effects of Retraumatization.” Frontiers in
Psychiatry 12:682041:1-11. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2021.682041

Drolet, Julie L., Caroline McDonald-Harker, Nasreen Lalani, Sarah McGreer, Matthew
R. G. Brown, and Peter H. Silverstone. 2021. “Early Childhood Development in the
Aftermath of the 2016 Wildfire in Alberta, Canada.” Journal on Education in
Emergencies 7(1):53-79. https://doi.org/10.33682/u3ar-wwzm

Brown, Matthew R. G., Hannah Pazderka, Vincent I. O. Agyapong, Andrew J.
Greenshaw, Ivor Cribben, Pamela Brett-MacLean, Julie L. Drolet, Caroline McDonald-
Harker, Joy Omeje, Bonnie Lee, Monica Mankowski, Shannon Noble, Deborah T.
Kitching, and Peter H. Silverstone. 2021. “Mental Health Symptoms Unexpectedly
Increased in Students Aged 11–19 years During the 3.5 Years After the 2016 Fort
McMurray Wildfire: Findings from 9,376 Survey Responses.” Frontiers in Psychiatry
12:676256:1-17. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2021.676256

McDonald-Harker, Caroline, Julie L. Drolet, and Sean Colvin. 2021. “The Role of
Sport in Building Resilience Among Children and Youth Impacted by Disaster.” The
International Journal of Sport and Society 12(1):33-51.
https://doi.org/10.18848/2152-7857/CGP/v12i01/33-51

Drolet, Julie L., Caroline McDonald-Harker, Nasreen Lalani, Meagan McNichol,
Matthew R. G. Brown, and Peter H. Silverstone. 2020. “Social, Economic, and Health
Effects of the 2016 Alberta Wildfires: Pediatric Resilience.” Journal of Disaster
Research 15(7):833-844. https://doi.org/10.20965/jdr.2020.p0833

McDonald-Harker, Caroline, Emilie M. Bassi, and Timothy J. Haney. 2020. “‘We Need
to Do Something About This’: Children and Youth’s Post-Disaster Views on Climate
Change and Environmental Crisis.” Sociological Inquiry 92(1):5-33.
https://doi.org/10.1111/soin.12381

Drolet, Julie L., Caroline McDonald-Harker, Nasreen Lalani, and Julia Tran. 2020.
“Impacts of the 2013 Flood on Immigrant Children, Youth, and Families in Alberta,
Canada.” International Journal of Social Work 7(1):57-74.
https://doi.org/10.5296/ijsw.v7i1.16872

Brown, Matthew R. G., Vincent Agyapong, Andrew J. Greenshaw, Ivor Cribben,
Pamela Brett-MacLean, Julie Drolet, Caroline McDonald-Harker, Joy Omeje, Monica
Mankowsi, Shannon Noble, Deborah T. Kitching, and Peter H. Silverstone. 2019.
“Significant PTSD and Other Mental Health Effects Present 18 Months After the Fort
McMurray Wildfire: Findings from 3,070 Grades 7-12 Students.” Frontiers Psychiatry
10(623):1-14. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2019.00623

Brown, Matthew R. G., Vincent Agyapong, Andrew J. Greenshaw, Ivor Cribben,
Pamela Brett-MacLean, Julie Drolet, Caroline McDonald-Harker, Joy Omeje, Monica
Mankowsi, Shannon Noble, Deborah T. Kitching, and Peter H. Silverstone. 2019.
“After the Fort McMurray Wildfire There Are Significant Increases in Mental Health
Symptoms in Grade 7-12 Students Compared to Controls.” BMC Psychiatry 19(18):1-
11. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-018-2007-1

Drolet, Julie, Caroline McDonald-Harker, Amy Fulton, and Anna Iliscupidez. 2018.
“Art-Informed Research with Children and Youth in a Post-flood Community.” The
International Journal of Social, Political and Community Agendas in the Arts 13(1):39-
50. https://doi.org/10.18848/2326-9960/CGP/v13i03/39-50

Haney, Timothy J. and Caroline McDonald-Harker. 2017. “‘The River Is Not the Same
Anymore’: Environmental Risk and Uncertainty in the Aftermath of the High River,
Alberta Flood.” Social Currents 4(6):594-612.
https://doi.org/10.1177/2329496516669351

SELECTED RESEARCH GRANT FUNDING:

2024–2025, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC),
Connection Grant. “Social Work Knowledge Mobilization to Support Vulnerable and
Marginalized Nova Scotians in Disaster Settings.” Role: Co-Investigator. In
collaboration with Dr. Judy E. MacDonald, Dalhousie University (Principal
Investigator) and other Co-Investigators. $25,000.

2016–2020, Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), Operating Grant:
Health Effects of the Alberta Wildfires – Pediatric Resiliency. “The Health
Effects of the Alberta Wildfire and Evacuation: Pediatric Resiliency.” Role: Principal
Investigator. In collaboration with Dr. Peter Silverstone, University of Alberta
(Nominated Principal Investigator); Dr. Vincent Agyapong, University of Alberta
(Principal Investigator); and Dr. Julie Drolet, University of Calgary (Principal
Investigator). $500,000.

2016–2017, Centre for Community Disaster Research (CCDR), Mount Royal
University, Quick Response Grant. “A Peer Support and Mentoring Pilot Project for
Community Service Providers and Children/Youth in Fort McMurray, Alberta:
Developing Collaborative Support for Community Resilience and Disaster Recovery.”
Role: Principal Investigator. In collaboration with Dr. Julie Drolet, University of
Calgary (Co-Researcher); and Dr. Robin Cox, Royal Roads University (Co-
Researcher). $15,000.

2015–2019, Alberta Innovates Health Solutions (AIHS), Collaborative
Research and Innovation Opportunities (CRIO). “Alberta Resilient Communities
Research Project: Engaging Children and Youth in Community Resilience Post-flood in
Southern Alberta.” Role: Collaborative Co-Lead. In collaboration with Dr. Julie
Drolet, University of Calgary (Collaborative Lead); and Dr. Robin Cox, Royal Roads
University. $1,059,716.

2015–2019, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC),
Partnership Development Grant - Community and College Social Innovation
Fund. “Social Innovation on the Ground: Accessible and Evidence-Based Tools for
Social Innovators.” Role: Collaborator. In collaboration with Russ Wilde, Bow Valley
College (Principal Investigator); Augusto V.C. Legaspi, Bow Valley College (Co-
Researcher); Scott H. Henwood, Bow Valley College (Co-Researcher); Timothy J.
Loblaw, Bow Valley College (Co-Researcher); Corinne Finnie, Bow Valley College
(Collaborator); Lisa Reinders, Town of High River (Collaborator); Tricia Donovan,
eCampus Alberta (Collaborator). $198,245.

2014–2018, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC),
Partnership Development Grant. “The Effects of Environmental Disasters on the
Family: Communicating, Coping, and Caring Among Families Impacted by the 2013
High River Alberta Floods.” Role: Principal Investigator. In collaboration with Dr.
Timothy Haney, Mount Royal University (Co-Researcher). $165,336.

2014–2015, Institute for Environmental Sustainability (IES), Mount Royal
University, Environmental Sustainability Research Grant. “The Effects and
Implications of Environmental Disasters on the Family and Communities, and Ensuring
Environmental and Social Sustainability: Communicating, Coping, and Caring Among
Families Impacted by the 2013 High River Alberta Floods.” Role: Principal
Investigator. In collaboration with Dr. Timothy Haney, Mount Royal University (Co-
Researcher). $19,800.