Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

Sociology
Michigan State University
2016

Master of Arts (M.A.)

Sociology
National ChengChi University, Taiwan
2007

Bachelor of Arts (B.A.)

Sociology and English
National ChengChi University, Taiwan
2003

Marriage, Intimate Partnership and Health

Aging, Health and Life Course

Social Inequalities in Health

Health and Retirement Study

National Health Interview Survey

Quantitative Data Analysis

SOCI 310: Sociological Research Methods I

SOCI 311: Sociological Research Methods II

SOCI 284: Seminar on Mental Health

SOCI 184: Sociology of Mental Health

SOCI 280: Sociology of the Family

SOCI 219: Advanced Statistics I

SOCI 319: Advanced Statistics II

SOCI 314: Social Inequalities in Health

Summer Research Fellowship, Howard University, $10,000; 2019

Dissertation Completion Fellowship, the Graduate School, Michigan State University, $6,500; 2015

Disparities by race/ethnicity and immigration status in perceived importance of and access to culturally competent health care in the United States

Disparities by race/ethnicity and immigration status in perceived importance of and access to culturally competent health care in the United States in Journal of Racial & Ethnic Health Disparities, 11, (pp. 1829-1841).

While cultural competence has been proposed as an important framework for enhancing health care equity, how members of different racial/ethnic groups consider the importance of cultural competence and their access to culturally competent health care are insufficiently understood. Despite continuously increasing immigrants into the US, it is unclear how immigration status intersects with race/ethnicity to shape individuals' perception of and access to culturally competent care in the US health care system. To fill this research gap, this study examined how the intersection of race/ethnicity and immigration status is associated with people's perception of and access to culturally competent health care and among immigrants, whether their length of stay matters, using data from the 2017 National Health Interview Survey.

Spousal Synchrony in Allostatic Load among Older Partnered Couples in the Health and Retirement Study

Spousal Synchrony in Allostatic Load among Older Partnered Couples in the Health and Retirement Study in Psychosomatic Medicine, 85(8): (pp. 716-726).

Using national data from the Health and Retirement Study, this study examined interpartner associations of allostatic load (AL) among 2338 different-sex couples (N = 4676 individuals) over a 4-year period among older American couples from a dyadic approach.

Current Marital Status and Epigenetic Clocks: Evidence from the Health and Retirement Study

Current Marital Status and Epigenetic Clocks: Evidence from the Health and Retirement Study in Journal of Aging & Health, 35(1-2) (pp. 71-92).

This study examines how current marital status is associated with epigenetic aging.

Marital Quality and Salivary Telomere Length among Older Men and Women in the United States

Marital Quality and Salivary Telomere Length among Older Men and Women in the United States in Journal of Aging & Health 33(5-6) (pp. 300-309). 

The link between marital quality and cellular aging remains underexplored. This study examined how both positive and negative marital quality were associated with salivary telomere length among partnered adults in the United States over the age of 50 years.

Novel Information Processing at Work across Time is Associated with Cognitive Change in Later Life: A 14-Year Longitudinal Study

Novel Information Processing at Work across Time is Associated with Cognitive Change in Later Life: A 14-Year Longitudinal Study in Psychology and Aging 35(6) (pp. 793-805). 

This study examined whether the degree of novel information processing at work (NPW) attenuates cognitive aging across 14 years for adults 50+ in the United States and how NPW links with job complexity. To answer these questions, we used data (N = 4,252) from the Health and Retirement Study. Detailed information on occupational characteristics from O*Net between 2000 and 2014 was used to assess NPW and matched with participants' occupational codes across time. Multilevel transition models were employed to estimate the relationship between NPW and cognitive functioning across time and to explore the moderating effect of cognitive level.

Yu, Yan-Liang and Zhenmei Zhang. 2020. "Relationship Quality and Functional Limitations among US Older Adults with Cardiovascular Disease in the United States of America" Ageing and Society 40(8): 1694-1717.

Relationship Quality and Functional Limitations among US Older Adults with Cardiovascular Disease in the United States of America in Ageing and Society 40(8) (pp. 1694-1717).

Informed by the disablement process model and the lifecourse perspective, this study examines the association between relationship quality and functional limitations among partnered older adults aged 50 years and older diagnosed with cardiovascular disease in the USA. Data are from the Health and Retirement Study, 2006–2012 (N = 1,355).

Interracial Marriage and Self-Reported Health of Whites and Blacks in the United States

Interracial Marriage and Self-Reported Health of Whites and Blacks in the United States in Population Research and Policy Review 36(6) (pp. 851-870).

This study examines the self-reported health of 180,291 married non-Hispanic blacks and whites in interracial versus endogamous marriages. Data are from the National Health Interview Survey pooled over the period 1997–2013. The results from ordinal logistic regressions show that non-Hispanic whites intermarried with non-Hispanic blacks, non-Hispanic whites intermarried with non-Hispanic other races, and non-Hispanic white women with Hispanic husbands report significantly poorer health than their endogamous counterparts.