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As a cultural and medical anthropologist, Lauren Gulbas has a long-standing interest in understanding how social change in local contexts shapes cultural meanings and experiences of distress. She is particularly interested in documenting how distress, broadly defined, becomes articulated across individual, cultural, and institutional levels. Gulbas’ research contributes to theoretical paradigms that explore the complex linkages between macro-level processes, such as culture change, and individual experiences of distress, including depression and attempted suicide. As her research has become increasingly interdisciplinary, she has appreciated the important synergies that exist between anthropology and social work. Both disciplines are concerned with confronting important social problems and effecting change. To this end, she has engaged in several collaborative projects that examine the interface among immigration, culture change, and psychosocial distress among Hispanic youth and their families.
Professional Interests
Culture and Mental Health, Suicidal Behavior, Immigration, Family Systems, Race and Gender Studies, Latin America