Grant: Undergraduate Student Research Awards (USRA)

While mental health stressors facing SOGIE refugees are well known, the links between stress and physical health outcomes are not. Our objective is to develop a "stress process" framework to explain and predict the effects of stress experienced by SOGIE refugees on present and future health outcomes. For example, 'allostatic load' refers to the wear and tear on the body that results from having to respond physiologically to stressors which may be psychological, physical, or environmental in nature. It's conceptualized as the cumulative toll on the body from having to respond to prolonged or repeated stress over time. Higher allostatic loads are predictive of future declines in health, including increased risk of cardiovascular, metabolic and immune system disregulation, cognitive and physical decline, and mortality. Contextual factors that may influence the effects of stressor exposure on health include individual-level characteristics such as demographic factors, the physical and social environment in which one lives, current and past stressor exposures, and protective factors that contribute to resilience. Along with habitual processes, psychological and physiological responses to acute and daily stressors are experienced, perceived and assigned meaning within the context of a person's life. These responses, if dysregulated, are thought to lead to allostatic load and ultimately biological aging and early disease.