Bonita Klein-Tasman

Professor, Associate Dean in the Graduate School and the Office of Research

Psychology

Dr. Klein-Tasman will recruit a new graduate student for Fall 2025 admission to the Clinical PhD program.

Lab Site: https://sites.uwm.edu/bklein

Degree:

Ph.D., Emory University, 2000

Research Interests:

In my research with children with rare neurogenetic conditions I seek to: 1) improve our understanding of the cognitive, emotional, and behavioral characteristics of children with neurogenetic conditions (specifically Williams syndrome or neurofibromatosis type 1) using questionnaire, interview, experimental, and observational methods; and 2) develop, adapt, and/or evaluate interventions for use with children with rare neurogenetic conditions.

Current research projects in the Child Neurodevelopment Research Lab related to Williams syndrome include development and dissemination of a manualized developmentally-informed cognitive-behavior therapy intervention for the treatment of anxiety and fear in young children with Williams syndrome. Current research related to neurofibromatosis type 1 includes longitudinal examination of cognitive and psychosocial functioning beginning in the preschool years, social, cognitive, and academic outcomes in school-age children with NF1, the reliability and validity of measures of attention in the preschool years, the effectiveness of a telehealth group intervention to improve the social functioning of teens with NF1, and neural indicators of attention difficulties in children with NF1. More information about the Child Neurodevelopment Research Lab can be found at my website.

Teaching Interests:

My teaching interests are in the area of developmental and neuropsychological assessment, child psychology, developmental psychopathology, autism spectrum disorders, and assessment and cognitive behavioral interventions for children with intellectual disabilities.

I also serve as faculty in the Wisconsin LEND: Milwaukee Link program that provides interdisciplinary leadership training to graduate trainees and practitioners from the areas of occupational therapy, physical therapy, speech language pathology, nursing, exceptional education, and psychology.

Courses Taught:

Psych 260: Child Psychology
Psych 414: Psychological Testing
Psych 660: Experimental Child Psychology
Psych 831: Assessment I
Psych 912: Developmental Psychopathology

Selected Publications

Klein-Tasman, B. P., & Mervis, C. B. (2018) Autism Spectrum Symptomatology Among Children with Duplication 7q11.23 Syndrome. Journal of autism and developmental disorders .

Casnar, C. L., & Klein-Tasman, B. P. (2017) Parent and Teacher Perspectives on Emerging Executive Functioning in Preschoolers With Neurofibromatosis Type 1: Comparison to Unaffected Children and Lab-Based Measures. JOURNAL OF PEDIATRIC PSYCHOLOGY , 42(2), 198-207.

Klein-Tasman, B. P., Lira, E. , Li-Barber, K. , Gallo, F. J., & Brei, N. G. (2015) Parent and teacher perspectives on problem behavior in children with Williams syndrome. American Journal on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities , 120(1), 72-86.

Morris, C. A., Mervis, C. B., Paciorkowski, A. P., Abdul-Rahman, O. , Dugan, S. L., Rope, A. F., Bader, P. , Hendon, L. G., Velleman, S. L., Klein-Tasman, B. P., & Osborne, L. R. (2015) 7q11.23 Duplication syndrome: Physical characteristics and natural history. American journal of medical genetics. Part A , 167(12), 2916-35.

Mervis, C. B., Klein-Tasman, B. P., Huffman, M. J., Velleman, S. L., Pitts, C. H., Henderson, D. R., Woodruff-Borden, J. , Morris, C. A., & Osborne, L. R. (2015) Children with 7q11.23 duplication syndrome: psychological characteristics. American journal of medical genetics. Part A , 167(7), 1436-50.

Klein-Tasman, B. P., Janke, K. M., Luo, W. , Casnar, C. L., Hunter, S. J., Tonsgard, J. , Trapane, P. , van der Fluit, F. , & Kais, L. A. (2014) Cognitive and psychosocial phenotype of young children with neurofibromatosis-1. Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society , 20, 88-98.

Janke, K. M., Klein-Tasman, B. P., Holman, K. S., Garwood, M. , Davies, W. , & Trapane, P. (2014) Contributions of executive functioning to academic performance in adolescents with neurofibromatosis-1. 431-450.

Casnar, C. L., Janke, K. M., van der Fluit, F. , Brei, N. G., & Klein-Tasman, B. P. (2014) Relations between fine motor skill and parental reports of attention in young children with neurofibromatosis-1. Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology .

Klein-Tasman, B. P., Colon, A. M., Brei, N. G., van der Fluit, F. , Casnar, C. L., Janke, K. M., Basel, D. , Siegel, D. , & Walker, J. A. (2013) Adaptive behavior in young children with neurofibromatosis – 1. International Journal of Pediatrics , 7 pages.

Janke, K. , & Klein-Tasman, B. P. (2012) Executive functions in intellectual disability syndromes. Hunter, S. J., & Sparrow, E. P. (Eds). Executive Function and Dysfunction: Identification, Assessment and Treatment. , 109-122.

van der Fluit, F. , Gaffrey, M. , & (2012) Social cognition in Williams syndrome: Relations between performance on the Social Attribution Task and cognitive and behavioral characteristics. Klein-Tasman, B. P. (Ed). Frontiers in Developmental Psychology , 3, 197.

Klein-Tasman, B. P., Li-Barber, K. , & Erin, M. (2011) Honing in on the social phenotype in Williams syndrome using multiple measures and multiple raters. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders , 41(3), 341-351.

Klein-Tasman, B. P., Phillips, K. D., Lord, C. , Mervis, C. B., & Gallo, F. J. (2009) Overlap with the autism spectrum in young children with Williams syndrome. Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics , 30, 289-299.