About

The provided page text does not contain specific information about Professor Mardelle McCuskey Shepley's research focus, background, or key contributions. It primarily describes the activities, support, and events of the Bronfenbrenner Center for Translational Research at Cornell University, without detailed biographical or research content related to this individual.

Research topics

• Sociology
• Computer Science
• Psychology
• Social Science
• Artificial Intelligence
• Geography
• Architectural engineering
• Engineering
• Medicine
• Environmental science
• Economic growth
• Economics
• Environmental economics
• Human–computer interaction
• Computer graphics (images)
• Nursing
• Multimedia
• Civil engineering
• Simulation
• Medical education
• Public economics
• Cognitive psychology

Selected publications

• Environmental Design for Health

  2026-01-22

  book
  PublisherDOI

• Non-verbal communication in neonatal intensive care units

  Journal of Neonatal Nursing · 2026-03-30 · 1 citations

  articleCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Development and psychometric testing of the Healthcare Garden Assessment Tool for Evaluators (GATE)

  Journal of Environmental Psychology · 2026-02-19

  article
  PublisherDOI

• Design for Environmental Justice

  2026-01-22

  book-chapter1st authorCorresponding

  This chapter describes environmental justice as a subset within the social justice movement. Issues discussed include the environmental justice tenets of distribution, participation and procedure, recognition, and capabilities. The current status of environmental justice programs is summarized. While the topics associated with environmental justice are wide-ranging, the authors focus on three concepts: health and safety (e.g., access to healing greenspace and healthy food), mental health (e.g., potential psychologically challenging urban environments), and sustainability (e.g., adequate and appropriately priced infrastructure and the role of climate change). These three topics overlap significantly, and developments in one topic impact the others. Examples of best practice projects are provided, including Tom Lee Park in Memphis, Tennessee, US; the Sankofa Food Market in Chicago, Illinois, US; and the Detroit People’s Food Market in Detroit, Michigan, US. This chapter concludes with a matrix of themes, design expressions, and illustrations in support of health and safety, mental health, and sustainability.

  PublisherDOI

• Design for Mental and Behavioral Health

  2026-01-22

  book-chapter1st authorCorresponding

  This chapter summarizes the current literature on design for mental and behavioral health (MBH) environments and provides examples of best practices. Limited research on the impact of design on MBH impedes our ability to promote positive experiences and outcomes in various settings and develop appropriate design guidelines. A brief discussion of general environments (e.g., education and retail) is provided, followed by materials on the design of specialized MBH facilities. To illustrate trends in MBH facilities, this chapter addresses Emergency Psychiatric Assessment Treatment and Healing (EmPATH) units and environments designed to support people who have experienced trauma. Trauma-informed design is introduced as an emerging field that aims to apply the principles of trauma-informed care to the built environment. This chapter concludes with six design concepts in support of MBH.

  PublisherDOI

• Design for Social Health

  2026-01-22

  book-chapter1st authorCorresponding

  Social health is moderated by the degree to which people receive and give social support. When social health is not achieved, outcomes can impact both personal and community wellness. Communities that lack support for social health often struggle to achieve resilience. Although the study of social health is often considered the domain of sociologists and psychologists, appropriate physical environments for social connection and community cohesion are fundamental to successful human interactions. Among the theories discussed in this chapter are third place theory and the evidence-based PANACHe concept (i.e., Sense of place, Accessibility, Nature, Activation, Choice, and Human scale). Examples of various scaled environments that support social health are provided. This chapter concludes with suggested design goals such as ensuring accessibility, walkability, inclusivity, variety, control, distinctiveness, and access to nature.

  PublisherDOI

• Workplace barriers to time outdoors in nature to support staff well-being: A comparative case study

  Journal of Environmental Psychology · 2026-02-14

  articleSenior author
  PublisherDOI

• PM&R and Outpatient Settings

  2025-10-10

  book-chapterSenior author

  Outpatient therapy settings provide services to individuals who seek to address mobility concerns through non-surgical solutions, or patients who are in post-operative recovery stage. Aging, injury, chronic pain, surgery recovery, or health disorders are the most common causes of mobility challenges for these groups. Core services provided in an outpatient setting can include medical consultation followed by planning and implementation of a treatment plan. The treatment plans can be dynamic and address the mobility, vocational, and societal health needs of the individual. Chapter 4 will provide an overview of PM&R services usually provided in outpatient settings, the conditions they address, current trends shaping the practice, and design and planning considerations for these spaces.

  PublisherDOI

• Therapeutic landscapes

  Elsevier eBooks · 2025-01-01 · 7 citations

  book-chapterSenior author
  PublisherDOI

• Establishing Consensus on Standardized Survey Measures of Time Outdoors in Nature

  SSRN Electronic Journal · 2025-01-01

  preprintOpen access
  PublisherDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Susan Rodiek

  Texas A&M University

  21 shared

• Hessam Sadatsafavi

  17 shared

• Samira Pasha

  14 shared

• Naomi A. Sachs

  University of Maryland, College Park

  12 shared

• Louis G. Tassinary

  Texas A&M University

  9 shared

• James W. Varni

  Texas A&M University

  9 shared

• Adeleh Nejati

  Akron Children's Hospital

  8 shared

• Kelly Na'amah Zimmerman

  Mitchell Institute

  8 shared

Education

• B.A.

  not specified

• Other

  not specified

• M.A.

  not specified

• Other

  not specified

Awards & honors

• Emerita fellow in the American Institute of Architects
• Emerita fellow in the American College of Healthcare Archite…
• AIA Upjohn Grant (2007)