Tina Malti

Based on this work and a humanistic approach to child development, Dr. Malti creates and tests interventions that help children reach their full potential, overcome the negative effects of trauma, adversity, and violence, and cultivates kindness and ethical strengths.

Over the past two decades, Dr. Malti has directed multidisciplinary research, training, and policy efforts on positive child development, kindness, and mental health in children from all walks of life.

She works closely with local and international communities and agencies to provide and act on evidence to improve the development of all children and reduce exposure to trauma and violence across diverse contexts.

Tina Malti earned a Ph.D. in developmental psychology from the Max Planck Institute for Human Development and Free University of Berlin, under the supervision of Wolfgang Edelstein.

Tina’s research focuses on social-emotional development and mental health in children experiencing varying levels of adversity.

[1][2][3][4][5][6][7] Based on this work and a humanistic approach to child development, she creates and tests interventions that help children cultivate kindness and overcome the negative effects of exposure to violence, war, and trauma.

[8] To achieve these goals, Tina conducts and directs multidisciplinary research, training, and policy efforts that capitalize on inclusive principles and technological innovations to reach every child.

She and her team work closely with local and international communities and agencies to provide research-informed knowledge that can help nurture the development, wellbeing, and potential for kindness in children from all walks of life.

In 2019, Tina created and established the Centre for Child Development, Mental Health, and Policy at the University of Toronto Mississauga, and she became its founding director.

The warm glow of kindness: Developmental insight into children’s moral pride across cultures and its associations with prosocial behavior.

A process model linking physiological arousal and fear recognition to aggression via guilt in middle childhood.