Due to the increase in anti-immigration policies that have promoted a sharp rise in xenophobia in recent years, experiences of discrimination have become a pervasive and salient stressor for Latinx youth, which puts them at greater risk for the development of psychopathology. In particular, interpersonal discriminatory experiences have been found to negatively impact youth of colors’ biological functioning and their mental health. Yet research to date has examined how different experiences of discrimination (i.e., personal vs. vicarious) impact Latinx youths’ mental health, specifically through biological dysregulation. Furthermore, past and present literature tend to treat Latinx identities as homogenous and fails to consider the complex phenotypic variations across Latinx subgroups resulting from a long history of admixture between Africans, Indigenous and Europeans. Ultimately, this research has the potential to further our understanding of factors that contribute to the rates of discrimination that Latinx youths experience in their day-to-day lives, and the negative impact it has on their biological functioning and psychological wellbeing.

There is little knowledge about the causes of loneliness in Cambodian Americans. Cambodian Americans have high rates of trauma due to the Khmer Rouge Genocide and intergenerational conflict due to acculturative family distancing, which are risk factors for loneliness in other populations. For my dissertation project, I will conduct a mixed-methods study that will include a sample of first-generation and second-generation Cambodian Americans residing in New England. Participants will complete questionnaires on demographics, loneliness, and trauma. Next, participants will complete semi-structured interviews (approximately 8-10 participants per generational cohort) and/or focus groups (approximately 4-6 participants per group; two focus groups per cohort).  

Cambodian Americans underutilize mental health services partly due to a lack of culturally informed social services and interventions. Indeed, there is a limited behavioral health workforce trained to meet the needs of Cambodian Americans. The results of this study will produce evidence that can be used to educate clinicians about factors contributing to Cambodian Americans’ loneliness. Thus, results will help practitioners improve culturally informed services and interventions to target risks for loneliness.