Dr. Wilson Figueroa (he/him/his)
Research Scientist
3/24/2023
I am originally from Los Angeles, CA (born and raised), I came to Ohio for my PhD program in Psychology (in 2011), then to OSU (in 2017) after graduating to add to my experiences is public health and community engaged research.
What drew you to a public health education?
My work examining stress and health in sexual and gender minorities had previously focused on small, lab-based studies. In order to better understand how stress may lead to the poor health outcomes we see in this population, I needed to examine this phenomenon at the population level.
What makes you passionate about addressing health disparities in your research?
Sexual and gender minorities, especially racially minoritized transgender and gender diverse individuals, are at the highest risk for poor mental and physical health outcomes. Examining factors that may be leading to these poor health outcomes, such as minority stress, as well as factors that bolster health and well-being and therefore may inform future intervention work is what drives my passion for health disparities research.
What are your goals for the future?
To conduct research that lays the groundwork for interventions aimed at improving the health and wellbeing of sexual and gender minorities, particularly racially minoritized transgender and gender diverse individuals.
How do you spend your time outside of academia?
I spend my time having test kitchen nights with my chosen family and friends. I also enjoy the art of drag; I have many close friends who are drag performers and attend as many shows as I can. I have also found a community among other queer bodybuilders and have begun my journey in competitive bodybuilding and hope to compete soon.