Sarah Lindstrom Johnson

Associate Professor of Family and Human Dynamics, Arizona State University-Tempe

Areas of Expertise:

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About Sarah

Dr. Lindstrom Johnson takes a positive youth development approach towards identifying ways to prevent youth involvement in risk behaviors, which focuses on supporting development assets and improving the environments in which youth learn and grow. Much of this work involves partnerships with youth serving organizations such as schools, primary care clinics, and community organizations. She has a particular interest in understanding and mitigating the consequences of exposure to and involvement in violence. Dr. Lindstrom Johnson is an Associate Editor for Prevention Science and serves on the Interdisciplinary Committee for the Society of Research on Adolescence.

Contributions | No Jargon Podcast | Member Spotlight | In the News | Publications

Contributions

Don’t End This Program That Supports Students

Commentary, May 2025

A National Public Health Week Call to Action: Let’s Use a Public Health Approach to Address Gun Violence

Commentary, April 2025

In the News

Guest on Good Morning America, September 10, 2024.

Guest on Talking About Kids, March 11, 2022.

Interviewed in "How to Discuss the Aftermath of a School Shooting with Kids," KJZZ, January 13, 2022.

Publications

"School-Family Partnerships to Support Attendance: Advancing an Equity-Centered Theoretical Framework" (with Nita Kulkarni, Sue A. Rodríguez De Jesús, Stephanie Cottam, Marianne Fillhouer, and Ana M. Guevara). Journal of School Health 94, no. 8 (2024): 777-785.

Presents a theoretical framework advocating for the importance of engaging families to address the root causes of the attendance crisis.

"Estimating the Cost of School Mental Health Programming to Increase Adoption and Scale-up of Evidence-Based Programs and Practices" (with A. Brooks Bowden and Catherine P. Bradshaw ) in Handbook of School Mental Health: Innovations in Science and Practice, edited by Steven W. Evans, Julie Sarno Owens, Catherine P. Bradshaw, Mark D. Weist, (Springer, 2023), 547–558.

Summarizes the current literature on the cost of school-based prevention interventions to support students mental health. Finds that compared to the societal costs of chronic mental health conditions, early interventions are cost efficient.

"Investigating Effects of Mentoring for Youth with Assault Injuries: Results of a Randomized-Controlled Trial" (with V. Jones, L. Ryan, D. L. DuBois, J. A. Fein, and T. L. Cheng). Prevention Science 23, no. 8 (2022): 1414-1425.

Presents the effects of a collaboration with Big Brothers Big Sisters of America to provide mentoring to youth treated for an assault injury. Finds that those youth who were matched with a mentor had improvements related to injury-risk as well as academic and social well-being indicators.

"Scaling-up Behavioral Health Promotion Efforts in Maryland: The Economic Benefit of Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports" (with Catherine P. Bradshaw, Yifan Zhu, and Elise T. Pas). School Psychology Review (2020).

Examines the economic benefit of implementation of a school-wide preventative intervention across a state. Finds significant cost savings driven primarily by improved academic outcomes.

"Surveillance or Safekeeping? How School Security Officer and Camera Presence Influence Students’ Perceptions of Safety, Equity, and Support" (with Jessika Bottiani, Tracy E. Waasdorp, and Catherine P. Bradshaw). Journal of Adolescent Health 63, no. 6 (2018): 732-738.

Uses observations of the school physical environment to examine how security measures impacted students' feeling of safety, equity, and support. Identifies aspects of security, specifically cameras inside the school building, as negatively related to students broad perceptions of school climate.

"A Meta-Analysis of Parenting Practices and Child Psychosocial Outcomes in Trauma-Informed Parenting Interventions after Violence Exposure" (with Kit Elam, Adam A. Rogers, and Chanler Hilley ). Prevention Science 19 (2018): 927–938.

Examines the effectiveness of trauma-informed parenting interventions for supporting parents and children affected by violence-related trauma.

"Challenges and Priorities for Practitioners and Policymakers" (with Sabina Low and Catherine P. Bradshaw) in Handbook of Child and Adolescent Aggression, edited by Tina Malti, Kenneth H. Rubin, (The Guilford Press, 2018), 432–448.

Presents a conceptual model of the multiple ways in which problem behaviors for adolescents co-exist and the value of shared prevention strategies. Highlights opportunities for cross-sector collaboration.

"Assessing the Association between Observed School Disorganization and School Violence: Implications for School Climate Interventions" (with Tracy Evian Waasdorp, Anne Henry Cash, Katrina J. Debnam, Adam J. Milam, and Catherine P. Bradshaw). Psychology of Violence 7, no. 2 (2017): 181–191.

Investigates how various features of the school environment (both physical and social) influence students' perceptions of their school climate, and how these perceptions, in turn, relate to their involvement in violence.