Yessenia Castro
Biographic Data
| ID | 909987 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Yessenia Castro |
| GIVEN NAMES | Yessenia |
| FAMILY NAME | Castro |
| SIGNATURE | CASTRO Y |
| AFFILIATIONS | The University of Texas at Austin |
| ORCID | 0000-0003-0994-908X |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 30 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 87 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 30 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2008 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 6 |
Parental views of higher education among later-generation, marginalized Latinx parents
Sustained mental health impacts of Covid-19 among people living with and without HIV in the Dominican Republic
Mental health impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic are clearly documented, particularly in marginalized populations, but longer-term impacts are unknown. This study explored the sustained mental health of the COVID-19 pandemic among people living with HIV (PLHIV) and people without HIV receiving care at a primary care center in La Romana, Dominican Republic from November 2021 to February 2022. Using stratified random sampling, we recruited PLHIV and …
Evaluation of a patient educational brochure to increase knowledge of cervical cancer screening among women living with HIV in La Romana
Cervical cancer is among the most preventable human malignancies, yet it’s the second leading cause of cancer death among women in the Dominican Republic. Among those who are most at risk for cervical cancer are women living with HIV (WLH) who face a six-fold increased risk compared to the general population. Given patient barriers to uptake of cervical cancer screening, we created a patient-facing brochure on cervical cancer to be distributed wi…
Inflammation and minority stress
Evaluation of an HIV-related Education Intervention Scale-up
Smoking Social Norms Among Spanish-Speaking Mexican-Origin Persons Who Smoke
In the United States, smoking rates increase with greater acculturation among Mexican-origin women, but not among men. Conversely, greater acculturation is associated with higher likelihood of quitting among Mexican-origin men who smoke, but not among women who smoke. Long-standing speculation is that adoption of smoking social norms in the U.S. that are less restrictive for women and more restrictive for men compared to smoking social norms in M…
Social Inequalities in Multiple Chronic Disease Risk Factors among a population-based Sample of Latinas in California
Data from 1,248 Latina mothers who participated in the Geographic Research on Wellbeing (GROW) study were used to examine associations between SES, neighborhood-level Latinx concentration, neighborhood-level poverty and having two or more modifiable behavioral risk factors (e.g., smoking, drinking) for chronic disease. Logistic regression models were estimated stratified by nativity and adjusted for age and marital status. Among immigrants, low S…
Associations of Acculturation and Gender with Obesity and Physical Activity among Latinos
Objective: Latinos disproportionately experience overweight/obesity (OWOB) and insufficient physical activity (PA), which are risk factors for numerous health conditions. Whereas numerous studies investigate acculturation as a determinant of OWOB and PA, few have examined acculturation multidimensionally, and none has examined its interaction with gender. Methods: Participants were 140 Latino adults. Primary outcomes were status as OWOB and endor…
Reasons and obstacles for changing risky drinking behavior among Latinas at risk of an alcohol-exposed pregnancy
This study examined reasons and obstacles for changing risky alcohol use behavior among Latina adults at risk of an alcohol-exposed pregnancy. Using qualitative methods, data from CHOICES Plus intervention sessions of Latinas ( N = 59) were analyzed. Reasons for wanting to change risky alcohol use centered on health, parenting, interpersonal conflict, control, and risk of harm. Obstacles included social obstacles, belief that drinking was not ris…
Women’s Barriers to Specialty Substance Abuse Treatment
Associations of multiple acculturation domains with smoking status among Latino adults
Few efficacious interventions for tobacco use exist for Latinos. Identification of cultural factors relevant to smoking among Latinos can inform the development of efficacious interventions for Latino smokers. Acculturation is associated with smoking, especially among Latinas, but extant research is limited by operationalization of acculturation with unidirectional, single-domain proxies. We examined associations of multiple domains of acculturat…
Sociodemographics, But not Acculturation Proxies, Account for Differences in Lifetime Cessation between White and Hispanic Smokers
Not accounting for demographics may suppress ethnic differences in likelihood of smoking cessation. Among Hispanics, demographics may be more important determinants of lifetime quitting than acculturation-related characteristics
Abdominal Wall Defects Among Mexican American Infants
US-born Mexican American women have nearly a two-fold greater rate of delivering an infant with an abdominal wall defect than their Mexico-born counterparts. This phenomenon is only partially explained by traditional risk factors and highlights a detrimental impact of lifelong residence in the United States, or something closely related to it, on the pregnancy outcome of Mexican American women
The Relation of Drug Trafficking Fears and Cultural Identity to Attitudes Toward Mexican Immigrants in Five South Texas Communities
This paper reports the findings of research investigating the relationship of spill-over fears related to drug trafficking and of cultural identity to Mexican Americans' attitudes toward recent immigrants from Mexico in five non-metropolitan communities in the US-Mexico borderlands of South Texas. A mixed methods design was used to collect data from 91 participants (30 intact families with two parents and at least one young adult). Quantitative f…
Associations of ethnic discrimination with symptoms of anxiety and depression among Hispanic emerging adults
Findings suggest that the mediating effects of self-esteem linking ethnic discrimination with symptoms of anxiety and depression vary between genders
Cultural adaptation of a brief motivational intervention for heavy drinking among Hispanics in a medical setting
Trial registration clinicaltrials.gov identifier NCT02429401; Registration date: April 28, 2015
Social and Environmental Factors Related to Smoking Cessation among Mothers
Black women demonstrated a notable disparity compared with white women in smoking status, accounted for by psychosocial/environmental factors. Immigrant Latinas demonstrated notable success in ever quitting smoking. Social networks may be important barriers to smoking cessation among women
Alcohol Use Severity Among Hispanic Emerging Adults in Higher Education
This was the first known study to examine the association of cultural congruity with alcohol use. Findings highlight the value of examining contextual factors of culture and moving beyond reductive measures of cultural orientation
Alcohol use severity and depressive symptoms among late adolescent Hispanics
The influence of discrimination on smoking cessation among Latinos
Design of a randomized controlled trial for multiple cancer risk behaviors among Spanish-speaking Mexican-origin smokers
National Institutes of Health Clinical Trials Registry # NCT01504919
Mechanisms Linking Socioeconomic Disadvantage and BMI in Smokers
Findings indicate the need for interventions that target obesity among socioeconomically disadvantaged smokers and provide potential intervention targets for the prevention and treatment of obesity
Shelter Proximity and Affect among Homeless Smokers Making a Quit Attempt
Among homeless smokers trying to quit, the shelter may be associated with unexpected negative affect/stress. Potential intervention applications are suggested
Acculturative Stress and Depressive Symptomatology Among Mexican and Mexican American Students in the U.S
The influence of gender role on the prediction of antisocial behaviour and somatization
BACKGROUND: Previous research has demonstrated a sex-differentiated relationship between antisocial behaviour and somatization. One explanation posited is that societal expectations about male and female behaviour may influence a sex-differentiated expression of a common diathesis, but this idea has not been directly tested. AIMS: The current study examined the potential contribution of gender role in the prediction of antisocial and somatic symp…
Cultural body shape ideals and eating disorder symptoms among White, Latina, and Black college women
Previous studies have reported inconsistent relationships between body image, eating disorder symptoms, and acculturation-relevant variables. The current study examined these variables in a sample of White, Latina, and Black college women (N = 276). White and Latina participants selected slimmer personal body shape ideals than Black women. Among Black women, the discrepancy between perceived body shape and perceived ideal body shape for the Unite…
Associations of ethnic discrimination with symptoms of anxiety and depression among Hispanic emerging adults
Findings suggest that the mediating effects of self-esteem linking ethnic discrimination with symptoms of anxiety and depression vary between genders
Alcohol use severity and depressive symptoms among late adolescent Hispanics
Financial Strain and Smoking Cessation Among Racially/Ethnically Diverse Smokers
Objectives. We evaluated the influence of financial strain on smoking cessation among Latino, African American, and Caucasian smokers of predominantly low socioeconomic status. Methods. Smokers enrolled in a smoking cessation study (N = 424) were followed from 1 week prequit through 26 weeks postquit. We conducted a logistic regression analysis to evaluate the association between baseline financial strain and smoking abstinence at 26 weeks postqu…
Alcohol Use Severity Among Hispanic Emerging Adults in Higher Education
This was the first known study to examine the association of cultural congruity with alcohol use. Findings highlight the value of examining contextual factors of culture and moving beyond reductive measures of cultural orientation
Individual- and area-level unemployment influence smoking cessation among African Americans participating in a randomized clinical trial
The influence of discrimination on smoking cessation among Latinos
The Impact of a Leader Model on High Dominant Women’s Self-Selection for Leadership
The Relation of Drug Trafficking Fears and Cultural Identity to Attitudes Toward Mexican Immigrants in Five South Texas Communities
This paper reports the findings of research investigating the relationship of spill-over fears related to drug trafficking and of cultural identity to Mexican Americans' attitudes toward recent immigrants from Mexico in five non-metropolitan communities in the US-Mexico borderlands of South Texas. A mixed methods design was used to collect data from 91 participants (30 intact families with two parents and at least one young adult). Quantitative f…
The Impact of a Leader Model on High Dominant Women’s Self-Selection for Leadership
Cultural body shape ideals and eating disorder symptoms among White, Latina, and Black college women
Previous studies have reported inconsistent relationships between body image, eating disorder symptoms, and acculturation-relevant variables. The current study examined these variables in a sample of White, Latina, and Black college women (N = 276). White and Latina participants selected slimmer personal body shape ideals than Black women. Among Black women, the discrepancy between perceived body shape and perceived ideal body shape for the Unite…
Financial Strain and Smoking Cessation Among Racially/Ethnically Diverse Smokers
Objectives. We evaluated the influence of financial strain on smoking cessation among Latino, African American, and Caucasian smokers of predominantly low socioeconomic status. Methods. Smokers enrolled in a smoking cessation study (N = 424) were followed from 1 week prequit through 26 weeks postquit. We conducted a logistic regression analysis to evaluate the association between baseline financial strain and smoking abstinence at 26 weeks postqu…
Subjective social status predicts long-term smoking abstinence
The relationship between subjective social status (SSS), a person's perception of his/her relative position in the social hierarchy, and the ability to achieve long-term smoking abstinence during a specific quit attempt is unknown. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between SSS and long-term smoking abstinence among 421 racially/ethnically diverse smokers undergoing a specific quit attempt, as well as the interactive effect…
The influence of gender role on the prediction of antisocial behaviour and somatization
BACKGROUND: Previous research has demonstrated a sex-differentiated relationship between antisocial behaviour and somatization. One explanation posited is that societal expectations about male and female behaviour may influence a sex-differentiated expression of a common diathesis, but this idea has not been directly tested. AIMS: The current study examined the potential contribution of gender role in the prediction of antisocial and somatic symp…
Individual- and area-level unemployment influence smoking cessation among African Americans participating in a randomized clinical trial
Design of a randomized controlled trial for multiple cancer risk behaviors among Spanish-speaking Mexican-origin smokers
National Institutes of Health Clinical Trials Registry # NCT01504919
Mechanisms Linking Socioeconomic Disadvantage and BMI in Smokers
Findings indicate the need for interventions that target obesity among socioeconomically disadvantaged smokers and provide potential intervention targets for the prevention and treatment of obesity
Shelter Proximity and Affect among Homeless Smokers Making a Quit Attempt
Among homeless smokers trying to quit, the shelter may be associated with unexpected negative affect/stress. Potential intervention applications are suggested
Acculturative Stress and Depressive Symptomatology Among Mexican and Mexican American Students in the U.S
The influence of discrimination on smoking cessation among Latinos
Cultural adaptation of a brief motivational intervention for heavy drinking among Hispanics in a medical setting
Trial registration clinicaltrials.gov identifier NCT02429401; Registration date: April 28, 2015
Social and Environmental Factors Related to Smoking Cessation among Mothers
Black women demonstrated a notable disparity compared with white women in smoking status, accounted for by psychosocial/environmental factors. Immigrant Latinas demonstrated notable success in ever quitting smoking. Social networks may be important barriers to smoking cessation among women
Alcohol Use Severity Among Hispanic Emerging Adults in Higher Education
This was the first known study to examine the association of cultural congruity with alcohol use. Findings highlight the value of examining contextual factors of culture and moving beyond reductive measures of cultural orientation
Alcohol use severity and depressive symptoms among late adolescent Hispanics
Abdominal Wall Defects Among Mexican American Infants
US-born Mexican American women have nearly a two-fold greater rate of delivering an infant with an abdominal wall defect than their Mexico-born counterparts. This phenomenon is only partially explained by traditional risk factors and highlights a detrimental impact of lifelong residence in the United States, or something closely related to it, on the pregnancy outcome of Mexican American women
The Relation of Drug Trafficking Fears and Cultural Identity to Attitudes Toward Mexican Immigrants in Five South Texas Communities
This paper reports the findings of research investigating the relationship of spill-over fears related to drug trafficking and of cultural identity to Mexican Americans' attitudes toward recent immigrants from Mexico in five non-metropolitan communities in the US-Mexico borderlands of South Texas. A mixed methods design was used to collect data from 91 participants (30 intact families with two parents and at least one young adult). Quantitative f…
Associations of ethnic discrimination with symptoms of anxiety and depression among Hispanic emerging adults
Findings suggest that the mediating effects of self-esteem linking ethnic discrimination with symptoms of anxiety and depression vary between genders
Associations of multiple acculturation domains with smoking status among Latino adults
Few efficacious interventions for tobacco use exist for Latinos. Identification of cultural factors relevant to smoking among Latinos can inform the development of efficacious interventions for Latino smokers. Acculturation is associated with smoking, especially among Latinas, but extant research is limited by operationalization of acculturation with unidirectional, single-domain proxies. We examined associations of multiple domains of acculturat…
Sociodemographics, But not Acculturation Proxies, Account for Differences in Lifetime Cessation between White and Hispanic Smokers
Not accounting for demographics may suppress ethnic differences in likelihood of smoking cessation. Among Hispanics, demographics may be more important determinants of lifetime quitting than acculturation-related characteristics
Women’s Barriers to Specialty Substance Abuse Treatment
Reasons and obstacles for changing risky drinking behavior among Latinas at risk of an alcohol-exposed pregnancy
This study examined reasons and obstacles for changing risky alcohol use behavior among Latina adults at risk of an alcohol-exposed pregnancy. Using qualitative methods, data from CHOICES Plus intervention sessions of Latinas ( N = 59) were analyzed. Reasons for wanting to change risky alcohol use centered on health, parenting, interpersonal conflict, control, and risk of harm. Obstacles included social obstacles, belief that drinking was not ris…
Associations of Acculturation and Gender with Obesity and Physical Activity among Latinos
Objective: Latinos disproportionately experience overweight/obesity (OWOB) and insufficient physical activity (PA), which are risk factors for numerous health conditions. Whereas numerous studies investigate acculturation as a determinant of OWOB and PA, few have examined acculturation multidimensionally, and none has examined its interaction with gender. Methods: Participants were 140 Latino adults. Primary outcomes were status as OWOB and endor…
Social Inequalities in Multiple Chronic Disease Risk Factors among a population-based Sample of Latinas in California
Data from 1,248 Latina mothers who participated in the Geographic Research on Wellbeing (GROW) study were used to examine associations between SES, neighborhood-level Latinx concentration, neighborhood-level poverty and having two or more modifiable behavioral risk factors (e.g., smoking, drinking) for chronic disease. Logistic regression models were estimated stratified by nativity and adjusted for age and marital status. Among immigrants, low S…
Evaluation of an HIV-related Education Intervention Scale-up
Medicine (20 works) · Psychology (20 works) · Ethnic group (17 works) · Psychiatry (17 works) · Demography (13 works) · Clinical Psychology (11 works) · Demography (11 works) · Environmental health (11 works) · Acculturation (10 works) · Smoking Behavior and Cessation (10 works)