Research presentations and projects
Addressing real-world problems to create the change needed to improve our communities and the lives of others.
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A pathway to improvement
Kent School remains at the forefront of research as our faculty and staff support the mission “to make the world a better place for all.” We study real-world problems that individuals, groups and communities face daily. Our research is collaborative. We work with members from our UofL community, students, researchers from other universities and practitioners. We seek community engagement as we work to address social problems in the contexts in which they occur.
We continue to lead research in the fields of social work and family therapy and disseminate our findings to advocate for impactful change.
Explore our research projects
2025 SSWR conference presentations
The Impact of Adverse Childhood Experiences on Socioeconomic Status in Adulthood: A Scoping Review
Yuqing Chen, doctoral student; Lixia Zhang, PhD
Understanding the Path from Dementia Knowledge to Screening Intention: The Impact of Self-Efficacy Among American Indians in the Northern Plains
Heehyul Moon, PhD; Yeon-Shim Lee, PhD; Soonhee Roh, PhD; Sasheen Stone, realty director
Black Fathers As Key Change Agents: A Qualitative Exploration of Youth Violence Prevention in Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Shawndaya S. Thrasher, PhD; Keith J. Watts, PhD, MSW; Janet Otachi, PhD, CSW, MSW; DeKeitra Griffin, MSW, MPA, LCSW, PhD student; Latrice Rollins, PhD; Brianna P. Lemmons, PhD
Addressing Food Insecurity in the United States: A Systematic
Review of Interventions for Randomized Controlled Trials
Kathryn Williams Sites, MSW; Lixia Zhang, PhD; Clare Santas, BA; Ellen Williams, BS
Identifying Subgroups of High-Risk Youth Based on
Psychosocial Functioning upon Entry into out-of-home Care
Camie Tomlinson, PhD; Lizzie Minton, DSW; Andrew Winters, PhD; Crystal Collins-Camargo, PhD
Dyadic Pathways in Caregiving Demands and Depression:
The Mediating Role of Sleep Disturbances
Heehyul Moon, PhD; Sunshine Rote, PhD; Kathryn Williams Sites, MSW; Ann Folker, PhD; Sophia Lee; Lillian Chung
Sleep Health As a Mediator between Food Insecurity and Depression Among American Indians in South Dakota
Kathryn Williams Sites, MSW; Heehyul Moon, PhD; Yeon-Shim Lee, PhD; Soonhee Roh, PhD; Sasheen Stone, realty director; Sunshine Rote, PhD
Listening to the Workforce: Demographic Variation in
Staff Experiences of Trauma-Informed Social Service Settings
Jennifer Middleton, PhD; Kathryn Tillett, MSSW; Becky Antle, PhD; Ashley Logsdon, PhD; Andreana Bridges, MSSW; Garrett Hardy, BA; Mackenzie Antle
A Place to Belong: Building Capacity for Intimate Partner
Violence (IPV) Organizations to Nurture Inclusion & Belonging Among LGBT+ Identified Youth Survivors
Liz Utterback, MA; Heather Storer, PhD; Eva Nyerges, MSW, PhD
Built on Division: A Regression Analysis of County
Segregation and Food Insecurity As a Structural Outcome
Kathryn Williams Sites, MSW
Dialectical Behavior Therapy Skills on College Campuses
Scoping Review: State of the Evidence
Bridget Bailey, PhD; Kathryn Williams Sites, MSW; Savannah Zink, MSW; Carrie Rishel, PhD
Rural Behavioral Health: A SWOT Analysis from the Special Interest Group
Jamey Lister, PhD, MSW; Addie Weaver, PhD; Jayme Walters, PhD; Keeneya Glenn, MSW; Mark van der Maas, PhD; Veronica Timbers, PhD; Kelley Cook, PhD, MSW; Molly Calhoun, PhD; Alexis Harrison, child and family therapist; Isolynn Massey, BA; Luciana Giorgio, PhD, MSW; Angela Perone, PhD, MSW, JD, MA; Kathryn Williams Sites, MSW; Hannah Shanks, MSW
Beyond Health: How Do Adverse Childhood Experiences
Impact Young Adults’ Family Planning Decisions
Lixia Zhang, PhD; Shuying Sha, PhD; Xin Quan, PhD
Examining the Impact of Adverse Childhood Experiences on Criminal Behavior in Young Adulthood: The Mediating Role of Impulsivity
Yuqing Chen, doctoral student; Lixia Zhang, PhD
Risky Substance Use Behavior and Polyvictimization Among Adults Who Inject Drugs in Rural Kentucky
Janet Otachi, PhD, CSW, MSW; Shawndaya S. Thrasher, PhD, LMSW, MSW; Leah Munroe, MSW; Hilary Surratt, PhD
Centering Identity and Connection: Exploring Motivations for Participation in a Psychosocial Intervention Among Black and African American Cancer Survivors
Chiara Acquati, PhD, LMSW, FAOSW; Sadaf Sedaghatshoar, doctoral student; Jennifer Bires, MSW, LCSW, OSW-C; Karlynn BrintzenhofeSzoc, PhD, MSW, FAOSW; Tianja Grant, patient advocate; Natasha Raja, regulatory specialist; Teletia Taylor, PhD; Michelle Ferretti, LCSW, OSW-C
Differences in Internalizing and Externalizing Symptoms Based on Latent Classes of Sleep Disturbances Among Child Welfare-Involved Adolescents
Camie Tomlinson, PhD
Evaluation of a Workforce Intervention Designed to Build Resilience and Supervisor Support in Public Child Welfare Organizations
Anita Barbee, PhD; Andrew Winters, PhD; Lisa Purdy, PhD; Becky Antle, PhD; Michael Cunningham, PhD
Secondary Traumatic Stress and the Child Welfare Workforce: A Case Study on Resilience
Andrew Winters, PhD; Anita Barbee, PhD; Liz Utterback, MA