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Diversity Science Spotlight

SoAP Box: 
Diversity Science Spotlight

Summer 2024

Christina Tam, PhD, MSW

How would you describe your research interests?
Broadly, my research investigates multiple socioecological levels that contribute to racial and ethnic disparities in substance use behaviors and criminal legal involvement.  My current scholarship, all of which apply a lifecourse perspective, comprises three areas: 1) Asian American health, 2) Neighborhood determinants and mechanisms of health and behavioral health risks, and 3) Intersections of substance use with the criminal legal system.  

How did you become interested in racial and ethnic disparities in substance use?
My interest in racial and ethnic disparities began with my dissertation work at UCLA, which investigated neighborhood contexts of juvenile offending across Asian American ethnicity groups (e.g., Chinese, Cambodians) in Los Angeles County.  This project used a sociohistorical lens to recognize the diverse lived experiences and social identities among subgroups, and this naturally segued into my work as a T32 postdoctoral fellow with the Alcohol Research Group (ARG) and UC Berkeley. The ARG Center has a dedicated focus on racial and ethnic disparities in alcohol use patterns and related harms, and it was in this environment that I expanded my interest in disparities research to Black and Latinx/Hispanic populations.

A common theme in my work concerns examining within-group heterogeneity.  The current paper, a product of my R21 study, aimed to assess changes in drinking patterns by race and ethnicity from adolescence to early midlife (ages 12-41). We further disaggregated our analyses by gender and ethnicity groups to the extent possible. Similarly, my current R01 study examines lifecourse pathways to criminal legal involvement; we focus on racial and ethnic differences in trauma exposures during a critical developmental period (emerging adulthood or ages 18-25) and how cannabis use may (or may not) relate to later criminal legal involvement. 

Congratulations on your work published in ACER, titled, “Drinking patterns among US men and women: Racial and ethnic differences from adolescence to early midlife.” What do you view as the key takeaways from this work that are important for Division 50 members to know?
At the time of this study, there were few other research studies that examined racial and ethnic differences, especially by gender group, in drinking patterns beyond young adulthood (i.e., the 20s). Given the risk of alcohol use for many health conditions that are diagnosed around midlife, along with stark racial and ethnic disparities in these conditions and other alcohol-related harms, it is important to identify peak ages of hazardous use to mitigate drinking risk. 

There were two main takeaways from this study.  First, we observed that peak drinking did not occur for some racial and ethnic minoritized groups until their 30s. This is an important contribution to the literature since many drinking interventions are implemented during the college years (e.g., approximately ages 18-25) when the highest rates of drinking have been observed in non-Hispanic white (NHW) populations compared with their racial and ethnic minoritized counterparts. While NHW groups typically have the highest rates of drinking across age periods, we also see that there are timepoints when there are no significant differences in drinking between this group and minoritized groups’ peak drinking ages—suggesting timing of interventions that may have a greater reach for US men and women.

Second, and as expected, we found variations in drinking pattern by gender and ethnic groups among Asian and Hispanic/Latinx Americans. This suggests there could be differential factors that influence drinking in particular life stages, including those related to culture, social roles, and life transitions. This finding further underscores the need for the scientific community to consider within-group heterogeneity when possible. I strongly believe that overlooking diverse population groups’ lived experiences, social identities, and their intersections precludes us from advancing health equity.  

What are the implications of this work?
In addition to informing intervention timing to reduce risk of drinking among population groups, our findings set the stage for future inquiry that incorporates relevant cultural and social factors that could influence drinking patterns among racial and ethnic minoritized groups. These include but are not limited to structural racism, neighborhood context, and family processes. Importantly, reframing these analyses from a resiliency perspective to investigate predictors of abstinence or less drinking could lend further insight into designing effective, yet tailored, interventions.

Where are you hoping to take this line of research in the future? 
The overarching goal of my research agenda is to bridge the gap between health equity research and intervention development with underserved race and ethnicity populations. In recognizing intersections of lived experiences and social identities that make up the US population, I hope to use my work to inform intervention development in partnership with communities for health and social equity. Substantively, I would like to pursue urgent questions on mental health and substance use among Asian Americans. By uplifting the diversity within Asian Americans, I hope to contribute to a shift in the model minority narrative (or that this group has low risk for problems).

What would you like to share with someone in the field of addictive behaviors who is interested in examining racial and ethnic disparities in substance use?
I encourage folks to establish cross-disciplinary relationships and collaborations with others who are engaging in similar research. My work and its products did not occur in isolation; I attribute much of this to the synergy of ideas among colleagues with diverse perspectives, lived experiences, and training backgrounds, valuable mentorship experiences, and leaning on them as sources of social support during the more challenging aspects of this work. 

 

Tam, C. C., Li, L., Lui, C. K., & Cook, W. K. (2024). Drinking patterns among US men and women: Racial and ethnic differences from adolescence to early midlife. Alcohol: Clinical and Experimental Research. 48(6), 1076–1087. https://doi.org/10.1111/acer.15308

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