Suzanne (Suzy) Aguirre is a first-year doctoral student in the Psychological Sciences program at UC Merced, working in Dr. Alexandra Main's Family Development Lab. Her research examines how cultural values shape emotion socialization practices and adolescent mental health outcomes in Latinx American families. Prior to UC Merced, Suzy gained extensive research experience as a McNair Scholar conducting qualitative research on trauma and relationships, and through the University of Notre Dame's Summer Research Opportunities Program, where she worked with Latinx families and solidified her commitment to culturally grounded developmental research.
Currently, Suzy is helping launch the Latinx Parent Adolescent Meal Preparation Study, a mixed-methods investigation examining emotion socialization and autonomy development through an observational paradigm where parent-adolescent dyads prepare a meal together. The study aims to examine cultural nuances among emotion socialization practices, adolescent helping behaviors, and autonomy development. Additionally, Suzy helps lead the Parents as Teachers Home Visiting Project, a collaboration between UC Merced, Merced County Office of Education, and Merced County Department of Public Health. This project examines how parenting influences children's developmental outcomes over two years of participation in a home visiting program.
