Kim Lab @ SPU – Paul Youngbin Kim, Ph.D.

Current Projects

Cultural and psychological influence on attitudes toward seeking psychological help. In this project, we are examining emotion socialization among Asian Americans in the family context and how it interacts with help-seeking attitudes and mental health stigma. Given the cultural complexities surrounding emotional expression in the Asian American context, we believe that this study will yield interesting, novel results. This project is currently in data analysis and manuscript write up phase.
Attitudes about LGBTQ persons among South Asian college students. In this study, we aim to assess views of South Asian students’ attitudes towards LGBTQ individuals at a Christian university. It is important to understand the culture and religious specific influences on sexual identity beliefs to expand our understanding of intersectional identities. Through semi-structured interviews, we expect new insights for an unstudied area of research. This project is currently in conceptualization phase.
Views of Jesus’s race and implicit bias. In this study, we aimed to examine how Asian American college students viewed Jesus’s race. We assessed both explicit and implicit bias regarding Jesus’s race, and found evidence for implicit bias (e.g., images of non-White Jesus perceived negatively). Additionally, there was a correlation between endorsement of racial colorblindness and implicit bias. This project is currently under review in a peer-reviewed journal.

Current Members

Joo Hwan Lee

I am a 4th year at SPU, majoring in Psychology with a concentration in Clinical -Counseling Psychology. I am interested in engaging with the cultural/inter-sectional nuances involved as a psychologist. After graduation I am interested in seeking out a Masters in a Mental Health Counselor program.

Marcella Locke

I am currently in the third and final year at SPU and am majoring in Psychology with a Developmental concentration and minoring in Sociology. After graduation, I am planning on pursuing a career in Speech Language Pathology. My research interests include how cultural and developmental processes interact and influence different psychological processes. Apart from this lab, I am also involved with Active Minds and the Dickinson Fellowship here on campus.

Esal Shakil

I am in my third year at SPU, majoring in Psychology with a concentration in Behavioral Neuroscience and minoring in Data Analytics. I enjoy learning the details of the brain, but I am particularly interested in researching how culture influences everyday psychological processes. I am also involved with the Honors program and Active Minds.