There have been recent increases in mental health problems in the United States, especially among youth and young adults. Evidence suggests that stigma is a barrier to mental health treatment. Our lab is working on understanding how mental illness stigma develops, changes over time, and ultimately relates to mental health treatment.

Current Projects

With funding from the National Institute on Mental Illness (R01MH126196), we are collaborating with Dr. Annie Fox on a study of how mental illness stigma develops, evolves, and impacts treatment outcomes during emerging adulthood. Findings from this three-year longitudinal study of emerging adults will inform the ideal timing of stigma interventions among emerging adults, identify which emerging adults are most vulnerable to the impact of stigma, which stigma mechanisms should be targeted in interventions, and how to combine stigma-reduction tools for subgroups of emerging adults.