Research & Initiatives
Thank you for your interest in our work at the IMPACT lab. Our research focuses on immigrant families with adolescents and children, largely focused on Latinx families.
Current-Future Research Projects
![Continuar Pa'lante Circle (Orange)[15]_edited.jpg](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/360fdc_e6d52e82ad04417fa0d07f0af249f4a4~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_264,h_294,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_avif,quality_auto/Continuar%20Pa'lante%20Circle%20(Orange)%5B15%5D_edited.jpg)
The Continuar Pa'Lante project is guded by our earlier work on a cross-sectional study that focused on the mental health and coping mechanisms of college Latinx students in Merced, CA. We will ask students about their family responsibilities, how they are doing in terms of their mental health, how they cope with the stress in their day to day life, their cultural norms, and how their academics interact with other aspects of their lives.
3G: Tres Generaciones Project examines the interconnectedness of well-being outcomes between and among family members (grandchild, parent, and grandparent). Specifically, we consider the role of contextual factors on family dynamics and their implications on family and individual health. A couple of the research questions guiding the study are: (1) Is there an intergenerational transmission effect of adverse childhood experiences across familial generations, and (2) do grandparent generative acts (e.g., caregiving & cultural socialization) towards their grandchildren predict grandparents' physical and mental health?
The aims of the current study are to qualitatively explore the current state of the relationship between Latine grandparents and young-adult grandchildren. Given the documented role of grandparents in the lives of grandchildren, it is surprising that this relationship is still understudied compared to other family relationships (Mansson et. al, 2017), and almost ignored in the study of Latino family dynamics. The following exploratory questions guided the current study: 1) What aspects of the intergenerational relationship motivate young adult grandchildren to provide support to their grandparents? 2) What type of caregiving, if any, exists between adult grandchildren and their grandparents?
Previous Projects
The Pa'lante/Foward College Project focused on the mental health and coping mechanisms of college Latinx students in Merced, CA. We asked about their family responsibilities, how they are doing in terms of their mental health, and how they cope with the stress in their day to day life. We completed the pilot at UC Merced.
The TIES-ENLACES project focused on Latinx teens and their parents' daily experiences in Harrisburg, PA. We asked parents and adolescents' about their values and reports on daily behaviors and experiences with peers and within their neighborhoods. We completed the pilot in Harrisburg and plan to conduct a similar study at UC Merced.
In 2016, the PLACES-LUGARES study was conducted from April to December. This study focused on understanding how place (i.e., residential neighborhood and where families go [Activity Space]) and culture shape the links between parenting and youth behaviors. For parenting, we examined the caregiver-adolescent relationship, racial-ethnic socialization, and parental monitoring strategies. For youth outcomes, we examined academic outcomes, identity, and problem behaviors. We were particularly interested in (1) how Latino families acculturate in new environments where they are the ethnic minority, and (2) how these environments shape parenting and youth outcomes.
In Spring 2007, the Latina Girls Study commenced. The purpose of this study was to examine the concurrent and prospective associations among cultural, individual, and interpersonal factors and their contribution to the adjustment of a group of Mexican-origin girls. At the beginning of the study Latina girls were in 7th and 10th grade, and data were collected when the girls were in 9th and 12th grade, and the final time point which was 10th grade and post-high school. This study took place in a large city in the southwest and has provided findings that have furthered the significant research on Latino youth. See the selected publications section of the website for published studies using this data.