Melinda Gonzales-Backen

Education

PhD, Arizona State University

Research

Dr. Gonzales Backen’s work focuses on the interface of ethnicity and adolescent development within cultural and family contexts. Her research is centered on the collective roles of cultural, contextual, and familial processes in the well-being of Latino adolescents and emerging adults. Specifically, she is interested in how adolescents learn about and engage in their ethnic-racial and cultural background and the role of family in that process. She also studies issues of social stratification including ethnic-racial discrimination and acculturative stress.

Currently, Dr. Gonzales Backen’s lab is primarily working with data collected from 198 Latinx adolescents from farmworker communities in south Georgia and north Florida. With these data we are examining contextual, familial, and cultural factors in adolescent health behaviors and well-being.

If you are interested in joining Dr. Gonzales Backen’s lab please reach out to her!

Recent Publications

Cruz, B., Meca, A., Wright, A., Veniegas, T. K., Allison, K. K., Santibanez, L., Scurry, M., & Gonzales-Backen, M. (2024). Examining the role of identity development and cultural stressors in the establishment of a U.S. identity among Hispanic/Latinx emerging adult college students. Journal of Latinx Psychology, 12(3), 245–260. https://doi.org/10.1037/lat0000252

Gonzales-Backen, M., Bámaca, M., Bermudez, D. L., & Iturriaga, V. F. (2023). The role of autonomy granting and ethnic racial socialization in Mexican-origin girls’ ethnic-racial identity trajectories. Developmental Psychology, 59, 1921-1932.  

Bermudez, D. L., Iturriaga, V. F., Marroquin, C., Garza, R., & Gonzales-Backen, M. (2023). The role of familism in food insecurity, role overload, and depressive symptoms among Latinx youth. Journal of Latinx Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1037/lat0000231

Zhang, J., & Gonzales-Backen, M. (2023). The association of acculturative stress and rule-breaking behaviors among Latino youth from farmworker communities: A moderated mediation analysis. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology.

Meca, A., Cruz, B., Veniegas, T. K., Allison, K. K., Santibanez, L., & Gonzales-Backen, M. A. (2023). Cultural Identity Configurations: A Latent Profile Analysis of Ethnic/Racial and US Identity Process and Content. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 52(1), 105-121.

Rodil, J. C., Meca, A., Allison, K. K., Martinez-Fuentes, S., Cowan, I. K., & Gonzales-Backen, M. A. (2022). Measurement invariance testing for the United States Identity Scale (USIS) across Black, White, Hispanic, and Asian American college students. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 86, 134-144. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijintrel.2021.12.001

Carlos Chavez, F. L., Gonzales-Backen, M., & Perez Rueda, A. M. (2022). International migration, work, and cultural values: A mixed-method exploration among Latino adolescents in U.S. agriculture. Family Relations, 71 (1), 325-35. doi: 10.1111/fare.12603

Grzywacz, J. G., Gonzales-Backen, M., Liebman, A., Trejo, M., Ordaz Gudino, C.,… Tovar-Aguilar, J. A. (2022). Comparative effectiveness of training alternatives for the EPA’s worker protection standard regulation among immigrant Latino farmworkers. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 64 (2), 140-145. doi: 10.1097/jom.0000000000002368

Meca, A., Gonzales-Backen, M., Rodil, J., Cowan, I., Sharma, S., & Webb, T., (2021). The Ethnic Identity Scale: Affirmation, really? Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology.

Carlos Chavez, F. L., Gonzales-Backen, M., & Grzywacz, J. G. (2021). The work-life experiences, stressors, and psychosocial adjustment of Latino adolescents in U.S. agriculture. Journal of Research on Adolescence.doi: 10.1111/jora.12640

Meca, A., Moreno, O., Cobb, C., Lorenzo-Blanco, E. I., Schwartz, S. J., Cano, M. A., Zamboanga, B. L., Gonzales-Backen, M., Szapocznik, J., Unger, J. B., Baezconde-Garbanati, L., & Soto, D. W. (2021). Directional effects in cultural identity: A family system approach for immigrant Latina/o families. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 50, 965-977. doi: 10.1007/s10964-021-01406-2

Rayburn, A. D., Gonzales-Backen, M. A., & McWey, L.(2021). Living under the shadows: Experiences of Latino immigrant families at risk for deportation. Family Relations, 70, 359-373. doi: 10.1111/fare.12534

Chung, G. H., Lee, J., & Gonzales-Backen, M. (2020). Context of biethnic acceptance, biethnic identity affirmation, and life satisfaction among biethnic adolescents in South Korea. Journal of Adolescence, 80, 242-253. doi: 10.1016/j.adolescence.2020.03.004

Gonzales-Backen, M. A., Holcomb, J. E., & McWey, L. (2020). Cross-ethnic Measurement Equivalence of the Children’s Depression Inventory among Youth in Foster Care.  Journal of Emotional and Behavioral Disorders, 28, 144-155. doi: 10.1177/1063426619838539

Killoren, S. E., Monk, J. K., Gonzales-Backen, M. A., Kline, G. C., & Jones, S. K. (2020). Perceived Experiences of Discrimination and Latino/a Young Adults’ Personal and Relational Well-being. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 49(5), 1017-1029.

Lee, T. K., Meca, A., Unger, J. B., Zamboanga, B. L., Baezconde-Garbanati, L., Gonzales-Backen, M. A.,…& Schwartz, S. J. (2020). Dynamic transition patterns in acculturation among Hispanic adolescents. Child Development, 91, 78-95. doi: 10.1111/cdev.13148

Meca, A., Gonzales-Backen, M., Davis, R., Rodil, J., Soto, D. W., & Unger, J. B. (2020). Discrimination and ethnic identity across the transition to adulthood: Establishing directionality among Latino/a Youth. Developmental Psychology, 56, 982-992. doi: 10.1037/dev0000908

Meca, A., Gonzales-Backen, M. A., Hassell, T. (2020). Development of the United States Identity Scale: Unpacking Affirmation and Commitment. Journal of Latinx Psychology, 8, 127-141. doi: 10.1037/lat0000135.

Gonzales-Backen, M. (2019). Parenting Practices and Adjustment Profiles among Latino Youth in Rural Areas of the United States. Social Sciences, 8(6), 184.

Grzywacz, J., Gonzales-Backen, M., Liebman, A., Marin, A. J., Trejo, M.,…& Tovar-Aguilar, J. A. (2019). Attending to pesticide exposure and heat illness among farmworkers: Results from an attention placebo-controlled evaluation design. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 16, 735-742. doi: 10.1097/JOM.0000000000001650

Meca, A., Zamboanga, B. L., Lui, P., Schwartz, S. J., Lorenzo-Blanco, E. I., Gonzales-Backen, M. A.,…& Lizzi, K. M. (2019). Alcohol initiation among recently immigrated Hispanic adolescents: Roles of acculturation and sociocultural stress. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry. doi: 10.1037/ort0000352

Meca, A., Rodil, J. C., Paulson, J. F., Kelley, M., Schwartz, S. J., Unger, J. B., Des Rosiers, S. E., Gonzales-Backen, M., Baezconde-Garbanati, L., & Zamboanga, B. L. (2019). Examining the Directionality Between Identity Development and Depressive Symptoms Among Recently Immigrated Hispanic Adolescents. Journal of Youth and Adolescence.