Impact of multiple levels of racism on polysubstance use
Chantel Ebrahimi, a doctoral candidate in the Department of Psychology at The New School for Social Research in New York City and former research assistant for The Center of Alcohol and Substance Use Studies has been highlighted in a spotlight article in the Health Psychology and Medicine topic area on the American Psychological Association website. Ebrahimi’s contributions to research focus on racism-related experiences and how these experiences influence observed disparities in substance use among members of the Black community. This research is being conducted to tailor prevention and intervention strategies that are more culturally response. Ebrahimi and team investigated the differential influences of historical trauma and contemporary racism-related experiences on past-year polysubstance use among black young adults. Data was gathered from 163 young black adults between the ages of 18 and 35 years old and found that only contemporary racism-related experiences significantly predicted past-year polysubstance use, while historical trauma was not a significant predictor. This study extends the extant literature on racism and polysubstance use while offering new knowledge that disentangle the way that historical trauma may influence substance use behaviors.
Let’s congratulate Chantel Ebrahimi on an outstanding achievement!
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