SBS Department Newsletter
Spring1, 2024
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| Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences
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Welcome
Dear SBS Community,
I recently came across an article by Martin Luther King (MLK) entitled “The Crisis in America’s Cities” that was published in the Atlantic in 1967. In this article MLK provided insightful commentary on the “long hot summer” of 1967 – a summer in which there were more than 150 riots in American cites as Black Americans and their sympathizers expressed their frustration and rebelled against the suffocating yoke of racism and oppression. He said:
“A million words will be written and spoken to dissect the ghetto outbreaks, but for a perceptive and vivid expression of culpability I would submit two sentences written a century ago by Victor Hugo: ‘If the soul is left in darkness, sins will be committed. The guilty one is not he who commits the sin, but he who causes the darkness.’ ”
He then continued with the next two paragraphs:
“The policy makers of the white society have caused the darkness; they created discrimination; they created slums; they perpetuate unemployment, ignorance and poverty. It is incontestable and deplorable that Negroes have committed crimes; but they are derivative crimes. They are born of the greater crimes of the white society. When we ask Negroes to abide by the law, let us also declare that the white man does not abide by law in the ghettos. Day in and day out he violates welfare laws to deprive the poor of their meager allotments; he flagrantly violates building codes and regulations; his police make a mockery of law; he violates laws on equal employment and education and the provisions for civic services. The slums are the handiwork of a vicious system of the white society; Negroes live in them but do not make them any more than a prisoner makes a prison.”
“Let us say it boldly that if the total slum violations of law by the white man over the years were calculated and were compared with the lawbreaking of a few days of riots, the hardened criminal would be the white man.”
MLK’s words still ring powerfully true to me today. Instructively, he did not approve of the riots or the related violence. He viewed them as “deplorable” and as “crimes.” But he also eloquently described them as a class of crimes that he called “derivative crimes” – crimes that occur as a reaction to even larger injustices and exploitation. In other words, bad behavior exists that is an unfortunate response to even greater, systemic oppressive policies and behavior. As we continue to advocate and work for justice and equity in every corner of our world, I believe that it is still essential to condemn all forms of violence. However, it is also important to step back and clearly identify which crimes are derivative ones -- crimes that are a response to even larger crimes created by oppressive social systems. And let us, too, re-commit ourselves to working to create a better world – a future that embodies equal opportunity and justice for all, and in which crimes will exist only in history books.
David Williams
Florence Sprague Norman and Laura Smart Norman Professor of Public Health
Chair, Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences
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In Memory of Annette Özaltin, SM '07
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It is with great sadness that we write to inform the SBS community of the tragic passing of our friend and classmate, Annette Habegger Martin Özaltin, SBS SM ‘07 (April 4, 1979 – October 21, 2023). Annette was a student with us in SBS’s Master of Science program from 2005 to 2007. She was an invaluable and engaged contributor across her classes and beyond the classroom, bringing perspective and experience from living in countries around the world as a child. Annette was an extremely kind and caring friend, a good listener, and a motivating presence with a contagious desire for fun and adventure.
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Meet Some HSB 65 Students!
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I am interested in LGBTQ+, migrant, refugee, and Indigenous health access in low-resource settings; collective memory, emotional coping mechanisms, trauma-informed care; intergenerational support, traditional methods, plant medicine, survival adaptations, decolonization; Third Spaces, mutual aid, and grassroots public health!
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My interest lies in shaping interventions and regulations that facilitate positive behavior change through the application of behavioral economics principles, particularly in the areas of maternal and child health, and nutrition in the global health context.
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Dave Esons is joining SBS as a new faculty staff assistant. He earned his BFA in Communications at Adelphi University, and a Graduate Certificate in Public Health from New York University. Prior to joining HSPH, he was a temp employee at the Northeastern University College of Engineering and the Harvard Ed Portal and worked in Hollywood before that. In his free time, David is an antiquities collector, hiker, violinist, writer and amateur carpenter. He was born in Guatemala and is of indigenous Maya descent. David is thrilled to be part of the SBS and the larger School of Public Health community.
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Dr. Erika Sabbath has been appointed as an adjunct associate professor in the SBS department, from which she earned her ScM in 2009 and her ScD in 2012. She is an associate professor at the Boston College School of Social Work and is a Co-Director of the Center for Work, Health, and Well-being at SBS. Her research focuses on the occupational health and well-being impacts of stressful working conditions, organizational policies and practices, and public policy changes, particularly among healthcare workers and other helping professionals. Within the Center, Erika also leads a longitudinal cohort study of Boston-area hospital workers, looking at ways that working conditions impact worker health and disparities.
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Elissa Scherer is excited to be joining the Center for Health Communication as a Communications Coordinator. She is currently finishing her MPH in the SBS department and will be graduating in May of this year. Before moving to Boston to attend Harvard Chan, Elissa lived in North Carolina for her childhood and got her undergraduate degree in Psychology and Global Studies from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. After graduating from UNC, she worked for three years as a public health analyst at RTI International, mostly on projects related to the application of emerging technologies to public health challenges. She is very excited to contribute to the SBS department in this new role!
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Dr. Maren Wright Voss has joined the SBS Center for Work, Health, & Well-being as a Research Associate, working on the World Trade Center Non-Traditional Responders' Employment and Mental Health Study. Maren has earned two doctoral degrees – in Occupational Science from Townson University in 2017, and in Rehabilitation Science from the University of Utah in 2021. Maren has most recently been at Utah State University Cooperative Extension as an Associate Professional Practice Professor of Health and Wellness. She recently relocated to the Boston area and is an avid hiker and yoga enthusiast.
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Lallo Yadeta is a new research assistant in the Harvard Catalyst Lab. She is a recent graduate of Emory University's Rollins School of Public Health, where she received her Master of Public Health (MPH) in May 2023, and earned a Bachelor of Arts in Public Health from Elon University (‘20). As a part of the global health department, her previous research focused on adapting qualitative methods to assess sexual and reproductive health needs in humanitarian emergency settings. Originally from Silver Spring, Maryland, Lallo is eager to explore what Boston has to offer!
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WGH Winter Social at MFA
Thursday, February 1, 5:30-7:00 pm,
New American Cafe at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts
Gather with WGH faculty, staff, and students to kick off the semester and learn how you can be involved, plan events, and complete the concentration. Appetizers and a beverage provided. We will be limiting sign-ups to 35 individuals and will also maintain a waitlist for this event.
Student–Faculty Afternoon Tea
Monday, Feb 5, 3 – 4 pm
Kresge 110
Join in for an afternoon tea break with faculty. Swing by before or after class or stay for the entire hour!
WGH International Women's Day Celebration
Friday, March 8, 1:00-1:50 pm
Kresge G2
Join WGH for our annual International Women's Day Celebration! This year's event will feature guest speaker Dr. Lisa Bowleg, Professor of Applied Social Psychology at George Washington University and leading scholar of the application of intersectionality to social and behavioral sciences health equity research. Lunch will be provided!
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Ivan Hsiao was named an Adrian Cheng Fellow from the Harvard Kennedy School and the H2A Fellow at the Harvard HealthLab Accelerator for their work on Trans Health HQ - a social enterprise that aims to address health disparities in the transgender and gender-diverse population. Ivan was also selected as a Semi-Finalist in the President's Innovation Challenge, which is the startup competition across all Harvard schools hosted by the Harvard Innovation Lab.
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| Hamad, R. Safety Net Policies to Address Pandemic-Era Health Inequities: Impacts and Challenges Harvard School of Public Health. Tenure Track Research Seminar | February 2024
Hamad, R. The 2021 Child Tax Credit Expansion: Impacts on Health Equity and Challenges
NYU Cash Transfer Lab. Invited Presentation | March 2024
Kubzansky, LD. Aging with Well-Being: The Contributions of Psychosocial Assets and Deficits. QSS and CLS Seminar Series, University College London. Invited talk | London, UK | February 28, 2024
Krieger N. Populations, communities, places: embodied relationships, not things. Exploratory workshop on defining community for climate resilience and energy transition. Center for Population and Development Studies, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA. January 19, 2024.
Krieger N. Women, Gender, and Health: directing an interdisciplinary concentration. Population Health Science Scholars Program Integrative Seminar. Dept of Population Health, NYU Langone Health, NYC, NY. February 1, 2024.
Krieger N. Embodied truths, scientific integrity, & health justice: rhetoric, racism, and reality. Inaugural Health Equity and Social Justice Lecture. Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, NYC, NY. March 1, 2024.
Todd, K.P., Ranker, L.R, Gordon, A., Nelson, K.M., Xuan, Z., Katz-Wise, S.L. Comparing gender expressions in adolescents and young adults by gender identity. Society for Research on Adolescents (SRA) Annual Meeting. Chicago, IL, April 18 - 20, 2024
Williams, D.R. Keynote. “Reducing Racial Inequities in Health: The Fierce Urgency of Now” 2024 Health Equity Symposium, Stanford Medicine and The Martin Luther King Jr. Institute, Stanford University, Stanford California, January 17, 2024.
January 11, 2024
Williams, D.R. Keynote. “Understanding and Effectively Addressing Inequities in Health” Brown University School of Public Health in partnership with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Rhode Island. Brown University, Providence, RI. November 29, 2023
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| Lee MM, Barrett JL, Kenney EL, Gouck J, Whetstone L, McCulloch SM, Cradock AL, Long MW, Ward ZJ, Rohrer B, Williams DR, Gortmaker SL. A Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Excise Tax in California: Projected Benefits for Population Obesity and Health Equity. American Journal of Preventive Medicine | Vol. 66, 94-103 | 2024
Beyer L, Keen R, Ertel K, Pintro K, Okuzono SS, Delaney S, Slopen N. Comparing two measures of neighborhood quality and internalizing and externalizing behaviors in the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Study. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology. In press.
Pulvera R, Jackson K, Gosliner W, Hamad R, Fernald L. “The association of safety net program participation with government perceptions, welfare stigma, and discrimination.” Health Affairs Scholar. 2024. qxad084
Krieger N. Standing up for the people’s health: the rainbow approach to fighting for health justice.
J Public Health Policy (in press)
Ramanadhan, S., Aleman, R., Bradley, C., Cruz, J., Safaeinili, N., Simonds, V., & Aveling, E. L. (2023). Using participatory implementation science to advance health equity. Annual Reviews of Public Health, 45.
Sabbath EL, McKetchnie SM, Arora KS, Buchbinder M. US Obstetrician-Gynecologists' Perceived Impacts of Post–Dobbs v Jackson State Abortion Bans. JAMA Netw Open. 2024;7(1):e2352109. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2023.52109
Aram J, Dallal CM, Cosgrove C, Arria A, Liu H, Slopen N. The risk of drug overdose death among adults with select types of disabilities in the United States–A longitudinal study using nationally representative data. Preventive Medicine. 2024, Jan 1;178:107799.
Stelson, E. A., Dash, D., McCorkell, L., Wilson, C., Assaf, G., Re’em, Y., & Wei, H. (2023). Return-to-work with long COVID: An Episodic Disability and Total WorkerHealth® analysis. Social Science & Medicine, 338, 116336. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2023.116336
Maclin, B. J., Peitzmeier, S., Krammer, N. K., Todd, K. P., Bonar, E. E., & Gamarel, K. E. (2023). Toward the conceptualization and measurement of transphobia-driven intimate partner violence. Social Science & Medicine, 116532.
Volume 341, Available online 19 December 2023, Version of Record 30 December 2023.
Priest, N., Esler, M., Ransome, Y., Williams, D.R., Perry, R. “A “Dark Side” of religion? Associations between religious involvement, identity, and domestic violence determinants in Australia.” Australian Journal of Social Issues, 2023, 00:1-20.
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