Prof. Liat Hamama

Liat is an Associate Professor at the Bob Shapell School of Social Work at Tel Aviv University. She received her three degrees (B.S.W., M.S.W., and Ph.D.) from the School of Social Work at Tel Aviv University. Prof. Hamama's research primarily focuses on exploring the links between stressful/ traumatic situations, personal and environmental resources, and subjective well-being. Her work is grounded in theoretical models derived from stress and coping theories, which she extends by exploring salutogenic questions related to three main target populations: children, adolescents, and the individuals who support or surround them (such as parents, social workers, teachers, and healthcare providers).

The main courses she teaches include intervention skills with children and adolescents, clinical practicum focused on children and adolescents, health and illness issues in children, emotional and behavioral problems in children, cognitive-behavioral therapy, and other related topics. In addition, she supervises students in the research track, focusing on the subjects she explores in her research and academic work.

Prof. Hamama has been included in the "Club 100”: One of the 100 outstanding lecturers at Tel Aviv University since 2010. Between 2010 and 2023, she was selected four times as the "Rector's Award for Excellence in Teaching”.

In September 2021, Prof. Hamama was appointed Head of the Renata Adler Memorial Research Center for Child Welfare and Protection. The center serves as a hub for research, training, and the development of policies and programs in the field of child welfare, both in Israel and internationally.

Selected Publications 

Hamama, L., Sarid, O., & Hamama-Raz, Y. (2025).  Psychological distress, resources, and coping strategies among evacuees and non-evacuees from armed conflict zone: A network analysis. Stress and Health, 41, e3525. DOI: 10.1002/smi.3525

Hamama, L., Finklestein, M., & Hamama-Raz, Y. (2024). Adolescents' posttraumatic growth during the COVID-19 pandemic: The links between differentiation of self, parents' posttraumatic growth, and adolescents' gender. Children and Youth Services Review, 167, 108022. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2024.108022

Hamama, L. (2024). Perceived social support, normalization, and subjective well-being among family members of a child with autism spectrum disorder. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 54, 1468–1

Hamama, L., & Levi S. (2024). Adolescent siblings of children with cancer: Resource-based profiles, normalization, and search for meaning in life. Journal of Adolescence, 96(2), 221-234. DOI: 10.1002/jad.12269

Hamama, L. (2022). Modeling linkages between self-efficacy, normalization, and well-being factors among Israeli mothers of children with neurodevelopmental disorders. Research in Developmental Disabilities, 128, 104295. DOI: 10.1016/j.ridd.2022.104295

Hamama, L., & Levin-Dagan, N. (2022) People who contracted COVID-19: The mediating role of shame and guilt in the link between threatening illness perception and mental health measures. Anxiety, Stress and Coping, 35(1), 72–85. DOI: 10.1080/10615806.2021.1964073

Hamama, L., & Gaber, S. (2021). Seeing the siblings: Gender differences in emerging-adult siblings of individuals with Autism. Research in Developmental Disabilities, 108, 1038

DOI: 10.1016/J.RIDD.2020.103829

Hamama, L., & Hamama-Raz, Y. (2021). Meaning in life, self-control, positive and negative affect: Exploring gender differences among adolescents. Youth & Society, 53(5), 699-722

DOI: 10.1177/0044118X19883736

Hamama, L., & Alshech, M. (2018). Children with Epilepsy: Assessing state anxiety through drawings and a self-report questionnaire. Arts & Health, 12(2), 139–153

DOI: 10.1080/17533015.2018.1534250

Hamama, L., & Sahron, M. (2013). Posttraumatic growth and subjective well-being among caregivers of chronic patients: A preliminary study. Journal of Happiness Studies, 14(6), 1717–1737. DOI: 10.1007/S10902-012-9405-8

Katz, C. & Hamama, L. (2013). "Draw me everything that happened to you": Exploring children's drawings of sexual abuse. Children and Youth Services Review, 35(5), 877–882.

DOI: 10.1016/J.CHILDYOUTH.2013.02.007

Hamama, L. (2012). Differences between children's social workers and adult social workers in the sense of burnout, work conditions, and organizational social support. British Journal of Social Work, 1–21. DOI: 10.1093/BJSW/BCR135

Prof. Hamama's full list of publications.

• Children, Adolescent and their Surrounds (i.e., parents, teachers, practitioners, healthcare providers)
• Subjective well-being and Meaning in life
• Coping and the contributions of personal and environmental resources in relate to stressful/ traumatic situations
• Coping with physical illness in the family and/or Developmental disorders in children
• Posttraumatic growth

• Integrative Clinical Practicum in the Field of Children and Youth
• Direct Intervention Skills with Children
• Emotional and Behavioral Problems in Children
• Issues Related to Physical Illness in Children
• Children in Traumatic Situations
• Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT)
• Quantitative Research

Over the years, Prof. Hamama has provided consultation to the ultra-orthodox department supporting cancer patients at the "Ezer Mitzion" NGO. Her work includes offering psychosocial guidance to families in which a child or parent has been diagnosed with cancer, as well as advising on responses to the psychosocial needs of family members within the framework of the NGO's service offerings.

Beginning in January 2024, Prof. Hamama has been working at the clinic of the National Center for Trauma and Resilience at Tel Aviv University. The clinic serves as the therapeutic arm of the center, integrating research, specialization training, and treatment in the fields of post-trauma and mental health.