Researchers have long studied the impact of alcohol use on adolescents. But medical treatment for Latinx, LGBTQ+ youth struggling with substance abuse has been insufficient, according to Robert Rosales, an assistant professor of behavioral and social sciences at the School of Public Health.
Rosales directs the Latinx in Vibrant Environments Lab, hoping to better understand the impact of unique social pressures on alcohol use in Latinx and LGBTQ+ adolescents.
Originally conducting research on the broader Latinx community, Rosales narrowed his focus to LGBTQ+ adolescents, as he realized that this intersection of the population was experiencing more severe consequences of discrimination.
But the fate of the work remains somewhat unclear due to administrative changes in the National Institutes of Health and the new presidency, Rosales said.
“Every presidency has had negative impacts on Latinx and sexual minority populations … in some way or another,” Rosales said, adding that now it is difficult for him and other researchers to study “the topics that we want to and that light up our fire.”
Because of uncertainty in the future of research, Rosales has had to find “creative” solutions to continue his work. These solutions include watering down the language used, switching “racism,” “xenophobia” and “homophobia” for more general terms like “discrimination.”
“And now we’re gonna have to dial it down to even terms that are not as evocative and (don’t) explain the experience well,” he added.
Rosales said that his personal experience allows him to empathize with study participants, while also motivating him to take a stand in a climate of medical injustice.
In the LIVE Lab, the researchers are currently collecting survey and interview data from adolescents. Participants fill out questionnaires on their phones about six times a day, describing stresses connected to their racial, ethnic and sexual minority identities, Rosales explained.
Rosales and his team will later analyze this data to see what it can reveal about participants’ mental health, as well as future alcohol and cannabis use. The lab has interviewed 27 participants so far.
This data will allow the researchers to see the intersection of mental health, substance use and discrimination. Based on the current data, Rosales has noticed most participants turning to alcohol as a coping mechanism.
“Minority stress and how much it exacerbates over time, and how chronic it is over time … you just run out of coping maneuvers,” he said.
Many respondents have said they drink “just to have fun,” Rosales added, but many others have also attributed their drinking to an attempt to “forget about” experiences of discrimination.
The ultimate goal of the LIVE Lab is to design a treatment and alternatives, according to Rosales. Part of the interview process for the candidates includes asking if they would be open to determining a solution that didn’t involve substances.
Paloma Garcia Radice MD’26 assists with research in the LIVE Lab, interviewing many of the participants. Garcia Radice explained that her Hispanic background provides her with a unique perspective on the experiences described by participants, beyond just the ability to conduct and translate interviews in Spanish or English.
“I’m able to connect with our participants, hear from them what’s going on and just hear those personal stories,” she said, adding that these experiences will enable her to sufficiently care for patients of different identities in her future medical career.
“It is really helpful to get an overall view of what’s happening, paying attention to things that (medical professionals) might not pay attention for other populations,” Garcia Radice added.
She pointed to three key risk factors that contribute to higher drinking rates among the studied Latinx participants: discrimination, spirituality and acculturation.
Reflecting on her preliminary research findings, “I was surprised that the more … Americanized people are, the higher their drinking rates,” Garcia Radice said.
Cristy Roso ’27 also works in the LIVE Lab, recruiting participants by contacting Hispanic-serving institutions to place flyers.
Roso found the chance to research the Latinx and LGBTQ+ community exciting, pointing to her Latina background as an inspiring factor.
“To be able to understand the other aspects of their social stressors and life that contributes to overall how young adults can go about their daily lives and their activities was something that really intrigued me,” Roso said.
