Doctoral student invited to present research at National Hispanic Science Network conference
Marcos Martinez, a doctoral candidate in the School of Social Work, was recently selected to present his research at the National Hispanic Science Network (NHSN) International Conference in El Paso, Texas.
His paper abstract, titled “Acculturation and substance use among Hispanic/Latino adolescents: Protective effects of biculturalism and ecodevelopmental factors,” was selected as one of the most outstanding national abstracts submitted to the conference. As a result, he was invited to present his research along with three other individuals as part of NHSN’s New Investigators in Hispanic Drug Abuse Research Panel.
Organized by NHSN’s Early Career Leadership Committee, the new investigators panel gives priority to submissions from early career scientists who have begun to work independently.
NHSN is dedicated to increasing the quality of Hispanic health equity through interdisciplinary and translational research. It cultivates the development and advancement of up-and-coming Hispanic scientists in order to promote future leaders, making this a particularly prestigious achievement for Martinez early in his research career.
Working with authors from the University of Miami’s Center for Family Studies and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Martinez’s paper fell in line with NHSN’s conference theme of resiliency among vulnerable populations.
The data for their analysis came from studies funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and the CDC; they found that bicultural youth (youth who endorse both American and Hispanic culture) had greater family functioning and lower substance use compared to youth at other acculturation stages. As well, the school and peer contexts were also protective for bicultural youth from past 90-day drug use.
Due to the continued and projected increase in the Hispanic population, the negative public health consequences associated with youth substance use, and mixed findings on acculturation as a risk or protective factor, Martinez’s study provides important insight for clinicians and prevention programming targeting Hispanic youth, into how acculturation effects Hispanic youth development.