Kelly Harding

• Ph.D. Interdisciplinary Rural and Northern Health
• Master of Arts (Human Development)
• Bachelor of Arts (Sport Psychology)

Adjunct Professor, Psychology

I study issues related to rural and Northern health in Ontario, Canada. My primary area of research surrounds fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). Presently, I am interested in three programs of research: (1) the professional training of care providers and their knowledge, attitudes, and self-efficacy working with individuals who have developmental disabilities/FASD; (2) family adaptation to childhood disability; and (3) social constructions of popular culture narratives regarding alcohol use during pregnancy and their implications for health promotion and FASD.

Governor General's Gold Medal (2018)
Dr. Sterling Clarren FASD Research Award (2017)

Aspler, J., Harding, K. D., & Cascio, M. A. (in press). Representation matters: Race, gender, class, and intersectional representations of autistic and disabled characters on television. Studies in Social Justice, 16(2). 

Flannigan, K., McMorris, C., Ewasiuk, A., Badry, D., Mela, M., Gibbard, W. B., Unsworth, K., Cook, J., & Harding, K. D. (2021). Suicidality and associated factors among individuals assessed for fetal alcohol spectrum disorder across the lifespan in Canada. The Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 1-10. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1177/07067437211053288

Flannigan, K., Wrath, A., Ritter, C., McLachlan, K., Harding, K. D., Campbell, A., Reid, D., & Pei, J. (2021). Balancing the story of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder: A narrative review of the literature on strengths. Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, 1-17. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1111/acer.1473

Harding, K. D., Whittingham, L., & McGannon, K. (2021). #sendwine: An analysis of motherhood, alcohol use, and #winemom culture on Instagram. Substance Abuse: Research and Treatment, 15, 1-9. https://doi.org/10.1177/11782218211015195

Burns, J., Badry, D. E., Harding, K. D., Roberts, N., Unsworth, K., & Cook, J. L. (2021). Comparing outcomes of children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) in the child welfare system to those in other living situations in Canada: Results from the Canadian National FASD Database. Child: Care, Health and Development, 47(1), 77-84. https://doi.org/10.1111/cch.12817

Whittingham, L. M., & Coons-Harding, K. D. (2021). Connecting people with people: Diagnosing persons with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder using telehealth. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 51(4), 1067-1080. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-020-04607-z

Flannigan, K.*, Coons-Harding, K. D.*, Turner, O., Symes, B., Morrison, K., & Burns, C. (2020). A survey of measures used to assess brain function at FASD clinics in Canada. Canadian Psychology. Advance online publication. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/cap0000245

Coons-Harding, K. D., Azulai, A., & McFarlane, A. (2019). State-of-the-art review of transition planning tools for youth with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder in Canada. Journal on Developmental Disabilities, 24(1), 81-97.

Pepper, J. M., Watson, S. L., & Coons-Harding, K. D. (2019). "Well where's he supposed to live?": Experiences of adoptive parents of emerging adult children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder in Ontario. Journal on Developmental Disabilities, 24(1), 66-80.

Mela, M., Coons-Harding, K. D., & Anderson, T. (2019). Recent advances in fetal alcohol spectrum disorder for mental health professionals. Current Opinion in Psychiatry, 32(4), 328-335.

Coons-Harding, K. D., Flannigan, K., Burns, C., Rajani, H., & Symes, B. (2019). Assessing for fetal alcohol spectrum disorder: A survey of assessment measures used in Alberta, Canada. The Journal of Population Therapeutics and Clinical Pharmacology, 26(1), e39-e55. doi: 10.22374/1710-6222.26.1.4

Pepper, J. M., Coons-Harding, K. D., Bibr, C., & Watson, S. L. (2018). Waving a magic wand: Supports for families raising school-aged children with autism spectrum disorder and fetal alcohol spectrum disorder in Ontario. Journal of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Risk and Prevention, 1(1), e2-e16. doi: 10.22374/jfasrp.v1i1.2 

Coons, K. D., Watson, S. L., Yantzi, N., & Schinke, R. (2018). Adaptation in families raising children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder part II: What would help. Journal of Intellectual and Developmental Disability, 43(2), 137-151. doi: 10.3109/13668250.2016.1267718 

Coons, K. D., Watson, S. L., Yantzi, N. M., Lightfoot, N. E., & Larocque, S. (2017). Health care students’ attitudes about alcohol consumption during pregnancy: Responses to narrative vignettes. Global Qualitative Nursing Research, 4, 1-18. doi: 10.1177/2333393617740463

Coons, K. D., Watson, S. L.. Yantzi, N. M., Lightfoot, N. E., & Larocque, S. (2017). “No alcohol is recommended, but…”: Health care students’ attitudes about alcohol consumption during pregnancy. Global Qualitative Nursing Research, 3, 1-12. doi: 10.1177/2333393617707663

Coons, K. D., Clement, A. L., & Watson, S. L. (2017). Are rural and urban Ontario health care professionals aware of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder? A secondary data analysis of the fetal alcohol syndrome survey for health professionals. Journal on Developmental Disabilities, 23(1), 76-91.

Coons, K. D., Watson, S. L., Schinke, R., & Yantzi, N. (2016) Adaptation in families raising children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder part I: What has helped. Journal of Intellectual and Developmental Disability, 41(2), 150-165.

Coons, K. D., & Watson, S. L. (2013). Conducting research with individuals who have intellectual disabilities: Ethical and practical implications for qualitative research. Journal on Developmental Disabilities, 19(2), 14-24.