Empowering Youth Voices in Community Health Research, Part 3

In the final section of our interview, Prof. Gonzalez shares her thoughts on how research can translate into policy change and the steps youth can take to advocate for better health outcomes. Missed the earlier parts? Catch up here: Part 1 and Part 2.

7. What advice would you give to other researchers interested in addressing health inequities in underrepresented communities?

As scientists, unfortunately, we're rewarded for very splashy, attention-grabbing news. Institutions care about two main things in terms of your productivity as a scientist: how much money you're bringing to the university through grants and how much science you're producing that is highly visible and appealing. And what creates that visibility? Unfortunately, it’s the catchy headlines that make it into the news.

But when you look at the news—I don’t know if you ever watch regular news, whether it’s on your feed or something like ABC or CBS—it’s always exaggerated headlines about something horrible happening. And that’s just kind of like a train wreck—you can’t stop watching. People are naturally drawn to it. Unfortunately, that’s how science operates as well. They want those attention-grabbing headlines. They think people will pay attention when you say, “Oh my gosh, there’s this huge disparity between white populations and brown populations in X.” But when you think about the actual implications—how that information will change outcomes and help disadvantaged people—there often isn’t much there.

This is a timely question. Just the other day, I was reminded that we now have a paper in press. I’m going to put it in the chat. It was literally posted online just a day ago. This paper makes recommendations to researchers who want to study health disparities, particularly using large adolescent data sets in diverse populations. We make very specific recommendations regarding equity and authentic engagement with communities. One key point we emphasize is not to be a “health equity tourist.”

That’s because, again, as scientists, we are rewarded for publishing the latest, most groundbreaking research. People tend to jump on trending topics and say, “Well, I’m going to do that study because it’s a hot topic right now.” But we argue that researchers shouldn’t just pick up health disparities or health equity research because it’s trending. If you're going to invest time in investigating health disparities, you really have to care about the communities you're studying.

And that’s really the message—because there’s so much to consider in just that one sentence. What does it mean to care about the community you’re studying? It means you don’t want to let them down. It means you care about whether the research you publish might harm them. It means thinking about sustainability—what happens after you leave? Are you leaving them in a better situation? We make a lot of these recommendations in our paper. The director of the Center for Community Health, Blanca Melendres, was instrumental in shaping some of these ideas. In this paper, we also highlight the Community-Led Transformation Principles—which I highly recommend as a starting point.

Ask yourself: Can I commit to these principles? If you’re saying yes to every single one, then I think you’re in the right space to do health disparities research. I have colleagues who are very high-profile and claim to be health disparities researchers. And those of us who have been doing real health disparities research look at them and think, "Since when did they become a health disparities researcher?" But again, because it’s a hot topic, scientists will just pick it up. So the real question is: Do you genuinely care about the communities you’re studying? That’s what truly matters in this work.

The other thing I’ll say is that we are now at a point in research where we no longer think it’s necessary to keep simply reporting health disparities. We already know they exist. We know there are differences due to systemic and historical racism. What we don’t fully understand is how to intervene. What is the mechanism we need to stop to prevent these disparities from continuing?

Many researchers who have been studying health disparities for a long time are now saying, “We’re done just reporting the differences. We already know they exist. Now, let’s shift to intervention and prevention.” Instead of just documenting disparities, we need to focus on how to change them. And those are the researchers I look up to—the ones doing the work I aspire to model in my own research.

8. How can youth themselves be empowered to advocate for better conditions in their neighborhoods and for their well-being?

That is also a great question. I think it’s a question that, on the back end, Victoria and I have discussed—both between ourselves and with Blanca. Some of the ideas we’ve had revolve around giving you the space to learn and equipping you with the tools to create messages that are not only representative of your perspective but also appealing to other youth.

We’ve talked about this before, right? If I create an infographic, I don’t think youth are going to be reading it. People my age might look at it and say, "That’s so cool!" But if I show it to you all, you might think, "Oh, that’s interesting, but I wouldn’t actually read it."

That’s why we’ve chosen the format of creating a PSA and an infographic—to give you the space to develop ideas and craft your own messaging. The next step, as we discussed a few weeks ago, is that we are in a position to advocate for you by amplifying that message through our networks and resources.

It’s really about elevating your perspective in a way that you might not have access to otherwise. At the same time, we’re providing representation, a platform, and a space where you can share your ideas.

9. In what ways do you believe your lab’s research can shape public policies or interventions to improve health equity?

So, I can tell you what I think needs to change, right? But what I’m learning more and more is the importance of asking communities what change they want to see.

I can share anecdotal insights—things I’ve heard from communities regarding health disparities—but, again, this is just my opinion. If you ask a community member, their perspective might be different.

One disparity that I believe we are seeing in communities of color is increased rates of obesity among children and youth, as well as higher levels of mental health distress, including anxiety and depression. These issues are on the rise. To me, these are not just individual challenges but systemic ones—shaped by the environments children and youth are exposed to, rather than solely what they experience at home. Of course, home life plays a role, but I always come back to the fact that youth and children spend a significant amount of time in school.

They are expected to get good grades, pay attention, complete assignments, and handle a large workload. I think we are starting to bring back electives, but there was a time when students spent much more time engaged in creative activities like art, home economics, woodshop, or other hands-on projects. Over time, we have stripped many of these creative outlets from school curriculums and replaced them with an overwhelming focus on academics.

I believe this academic pressure is contributing to rising anxiety and depression among youth. There is so much stress placed on performance in subjects like math, social studies, and English—each taught in long, back-to-back sessions with little room for creative or physical breaks. Maybe students get one elective, but that’s often not enough.

I would love to see a shift in our curriculum—one that reduces the overemphasis on academics and reintroduces arts, music, and physical exercise. Right now, most people aren’t getting enough physical activity, myself included, since I spend so much time on the computer. This is something I would love to change.

If we look at other countries, some do not require children to attend school for such long hours. In some places, students aren’t even taught to read until age seven. If you told someone in the U.S. that, they might panic and say, “That’s way behind!” But now, we expect kindergarteners (five-year-olds!) to already be reading before they leave kindergarten.

Again, this highlights the intense pressure we place on academics. I’d love to see more extracurricular opportunities focused on creativity and expression. I think this would lead to a more balanced, fulfilling life for youth.

Time and time again, research shows that people learn best when they are ready to learn. So, we need to ask ourselves: What does it mean to be ready to learn? I don’t think it means sitting through back-to-back academic courses all day.

That’s my personal take on what policy I’d like to change. But, of course, if you ask different people, you’ll get different answers.

10. What changes would you like to see in local or national policies that could help address the disparities your lab has uncovered?

Another great question! Yeah, that’s why I wanted to go over these questions—because they were so spot-on. And they weren’t written by me; they were written by one of your peers who is part of this research internship. Again, they want to include this in their blog, so we’re answering these questions to help them write it up.

So, how will the research we’re doing in my lab shape or change policy? That’s something I’ve thought about for a long time. Going back to what I was saying earlier about science—you produce it, publish it in a research journal, present it at a conference, and then what? How does it actually lead to change?

For my research program, the path I’m finding—though this may not be the approach other researchers take—is through partnerships with community organizations. One such organization I work with is Coach, based in City Heights, and I really see them as the agents of change. My job is to support them in making that change.

It’s actually not my role to single-handedly bring solutions or drive change. Instead, I see my role as a researcher as one of empowerment—whether that’s through funding, supporting their programs, or scientifically validating the impact of their work. By applying scientific methods, I can help demonstrate the effectiveness of their interventions for families and communities.

I see this as a key way to influence change because these organizations know their communities best. My role is to bring knowledge, networks, and connections that help elevate their voices. This is how we can begin to influence policy change—not by imposing solutions, but by amplifying the work already happening within these communities.

This also ties into what Nate was saying about co-design—did we identify the problem together? Did we develop the solution together? Did we think about how to solve it together? If we’re not collaborating with the community, then we’re missing the point.

People often say that policy work takes a long time, and that’s true. For something to become law or policy, it has to go through multiple stages—whether at the district, state, or federal level—and it must fit within budget priorities. So yes, it takes time. But as a scientist, my role is to provide data and evidence that others can use to advocate for policy change.

That’s how I see our research contributing to real change.