
Aline Hitti
Assistant Professor
Biography
Aline Hitti is an associate professor in the Psychology Department at the University of San Francisco. She completed her doctoral degree in Human Development and Quantitative Methodology from the University of Maryland. Her research focuses on children’s and adolescents’ social and moral development in intergroup contexts. This research informs interventions that promote inclusive environments for children and adolescents of all cultural backgrounds. She has authored and co-authored several chapters on social exclusion and intergroup peer relations, highlighting how morality is applied in these social contexts and across development. Her research has been funded by grants from the Society for Research on Adolescence (SRA) and the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues (SPSSI). Publications of her work can be found in several journals, including Child Development, Social Development, Journal of Educational Psychology, and Developmental Psychology.
Expertise
- Quantitative and qualitative methods
- Developmental sciences
- Minoritized youth
Research Areas
- Social and moral development
- Development of intergroup attitudes
- Peer relationships in childhood and adolescence
Appointments
- Policy Board Member, University of San Francisco Faculty Association
- Editorial Board Member, Journal of Social Issues
- Board Member, Middle Eastern Studies Program, USF
Education
- University of Maryland College Park, PhD in Human Development and Quantitative Methodology
- Johns Hopkins University, MS in Mathematical Sciences
- Johns Hopkins University, BS in Mathematical Sciences
Prior Experience
- Assistant Research Professor in African American Studies, University of Maryland, College Park
- Visiting Scholar and Adjunct Faculty in Psychology, Tulane University
- Faculty Adjunct Lecturer and Research Associate in Human Development and Quantitative Methodology, University of Maryland, College Park
Awards & Distinctions
- Open Education Resource for Social Justice Grant, Loyola Marymount University, 2023
- Open Education Resource Grant at Gleeson Library, University of San Francisco, 2020
- Fellow at the Psychology Summer Institute, Minority Fellowship Program, American Psychological Association, 2015
Selected Publications
- Hitti, A., Gönültaş, S., & Mulvey, K. L. (2023). What motivates adolescent bystanders to intervene when immigrant youth are bullied? Journal of Research on Adolescence, 00, 1– 15.
- Hitti, A., & Killen, M. (2022). Adolescents’ evaluations of those who challenge exclusive and inclusive peer norms. Journal of Community & Applied Social Psychology.
- Merritt, S., Hitti, A., Van Camp, A.R., Shaffer, E., Sanchez, M. & O’Brien, L.T. (2021). Maximizing the impact of exposure to science role models: Testing an intervention to increase science identity among adolescent girls. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 51(7), 667-682.
- Hitti, A., Melki, J., Sahakian, T., & Killen, M. (2021). Lebanese adolescents' expectations about social inclusion of peers in intergroup contexts. The British Journal of Developmental Psychology, 39(3), 424–441.
- Hitti, A., & Mulvey, K. L. (2021). The consequences of outgroup helping: Children’s and adolescents’ reasoning. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 203, 105013.