Additional Information
Biography
Interest Areas
Race and Ethnicity, Migration, Language, Family, Mixed Methods
I am a graduate student pursuing a joint PhD in the departments of Sociology and Civil Society & Community Studies. My primary research interest centers on contemporary racial ideologies in the U.S. In addition, I care about well-being and sense of belonging among immigrants and immigrant families, which I have studied by examining the link between heritage language use patterns and parent-child relationship quality in U.S. immigrant families. I also assist in research on racial inequality in disciplinary action in K-12 education, as well as perceptions of school safety amidst the proliferation of school security technology in U.S. schools. Alongside quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methodologies, I aim to incorporate community-based participatory research principles in all aspects of my work and its potential impact.
Publications
Wang, Alice Nuo-Yi, Niwako Yamawaki, Jane Green, Yuki Nohagi, Rachel Umphress, and Catalina Valdez. 2025. “Economic Abuse, Compared to Emotional Abuse and Physical Abuse, is Minimized More, Victims are Blamed More, and Victims are Provided With Less Legal Advice.” Psychology, 16(11), 1372-1396. https://doi.org/10.4236/psych.2025.1611079
Valdez, Catalina, Benjamin W. Fisher, and Abigail J. Beneke. 2025. “Decriminalizing or Reassembling Schools? Implications of Removing Police from Schools for Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Criminal Justice System Contact.” Social Problems, (00), 1-20. https://doi.org/10.1093/socpro/spaf066
Valdez, Catalina, John P. Hoffmann, and Melissa S. Jones. 2024. “Shared Households in the U.S.: A New Perspective on Family Structure and Adolescent Substance Use.” Crime & Delinquency 0(0):1-31. https://doi.org/10.1177/00111287241295659
Valdez, Catalina. 2023. “Helpful or Harmful? The Effect of Heritage Language Use on Perceived Maternal Closeness in United States Immigrant Families.” Theses and Dissertations. 10115. https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/10115
López, Jane Lilly, Genevra Munoa, Catalina Valdez, and Nadia Terron Ayala. 2021. “Shades of Belonging: The Intersection of Race and Religion in Utah Immigrants’ Social Integration.” Social Sciences, 10(7), 246-254. https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci10070246