Michael Trujillo
Assistant Professor of Psychology
Areas of Expertise
Health Psychology, Public Health, Social Psychology
Bio
My research is rooted in both the social psychology of stigma and an understanding of the psychobiological pathways linking social stress and health. I have bridged these areas of expertise to create a program of theoretical and empirical work dedicated to understanding and improving the health of stigmatized populations.
Guided largely by social stress theory, intersectionality, and ecological models that view stigma (i.e., intrapersonal, interpersonal, structural) as a fundamental cause of health outcomes, my research draws upon social and health psychology to address two complementary questions: (1) What are the social, interpersonal, and health consequences of stigma and its underlying mechanisms? (2) What social and personal factors facilitate resilience to stigma?
To accomplish this, my research utilizes experimental and non-experimental approaches, including ecological momentary assessment and theory-driven analyses of population health datasets. These approaches as well as my use of prospective and longitudinal methods aid in investigating physiological, affective, and behavioral pathways as mechanisms linking stigma and health, primarily among LGBTQ individuals and individuals from other minorities backgrounds.
Education
- B.A. in Psychology, California State University, Long Beach
- Ph.D. in Health Psychology, Virginia Commonwealth University
- Postdoc in Psychology and Medicine, University of California, San Francisco
Research
Dr. Trujillo's current projects and prior work can be found at the Stigma, Health Equity, and Resilience (SHER) Lab website.
Publications
Current Course Offerings
- Social Psychology
- Health Psychology