Texas Tech University

Emma Willis-Grossmann, M.S.

Graduate Part-Time Instructor
Human Development and Family Sciences

Email: Emma.Willis@ttu.edu

Office: HS 302

Advisor: Dr. Sylvia Niehuis

Emma Willis, B.S. Child Development

Education

  • B.S. Child Development, California State University
  • M.S. Human Development & Family Sciences, Texas Tech University 

Research Interests

  • Teen/premarital pregnancy
  • At-risk couples
  • Self-reliance, resilience, and support systems
  • Interpersonal relationships
  • Disillusionment
  • Marital quality and stability

Current Projects

  • Similarity of Romantic Partners' Courtship Trajectories and Newlywed Marital Disillusionment: Comparing Premaritally Pregnant Couples and Demographically Matched Nonpregnant Controls 

Grants

  • Recipient, 2021 Marriage Strengthening Research & Dissemination (MAST) Center Small Grant Award.

Recent Conference Presentations

  • Niehuis, S., Reifman, A., Oldham, C. R., Willis-Grossman, E., Ireland, M., Flora, J., Luempert, A., Head, J., & Ogolsky, B. (2021, November, accepted). Interpersonal cognitive and linguistic markers of romantic partners' sense of consensus in an experimental design. Paper to be presented at the National Communication Association, Seattle, WA.
  • Niehuis, S., Reifman, A., Oldham, C. R., Willis-Grossman, E., Ireland, M., Flora, J., Luempert, A., Head, J., & Ogolsky, B. (2021, November, accepted). Interpersonal cognitive and linguistic markers of romantic partners' sense of consensus in an experimental design. Paper to be presented at the National Communication Association, Seattle, WA.

Publications

  • Willis, E., & Niehuis, S. (in-press). Premarital pregnancy. In J. L. Hartenstein (Ed.), Marriage and Divorce in America: Issues, Trends, and Controversies. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO.
  • Niehuis, S., Adamczyk, K., Trepanowski, R., Celejewska, A., Frydrysiak, A., Reifman, A., & Willis-Grossmann, E. (in press). Development of the Polish-language Relationship Disillusionment Scale and its validation. Personal Relationships.
  • Reifman, A., Ursua-Benitez, M., Niehuis, S., Willis-Grossmann, E., & Thacker, M. (2020). #HappyAnniversary: Gender and age differences in spouses' and partners' Twitter greetings. Interpersonal, 14, 54-68.  
  • Mckenzie, J., Rooney, J., Stewart, C., Castellón, R., Landeros, C., & Willis, E. (2019). Brokering culture and power in a media-driven world: Parents of adolescents in Northern Thailand. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 50, 972–990.  

About Me

Hometown: Fresno, CA

Professional Goal(s): I hope to become a professor on a tenure track. I would love to continue to do research on the pregnant teen experience and how we can as researchers and as a society better support them to create better outcomes.

“Words of Wisdom” for Prospective Students: You won't be an expert on syllabus day. Accept that you are learning and it is okay to not know.

Leisure Interests: I love hiking but I have yet to find a good hiking spot in Texas so if you know of one, let me know!