Dr. Hahm Promoted to Full Professor with Tenure

Hyeouk (Chris) Hahm has been promoted to full professor, the first Asian American faculty member to achieve this title at BUSSW. Hahm has emerged as a leader through her groundbreaking research dedicated to reducing health disparities among Asian American populations with a particular emphasis on building empirical evidence of health risk behaviors (e.g., self-harm, suicide and HIV risk behaviors).

Hahm’s most recent work launching ‘CARES’: Covid-19 Resilience Study for Young Adults has been covered in numerous media stories, while her ongoing research project, Epi AWARE, continues to investigate the relationship between stress and physical health in Asian American women. Hahm is also on the frontlines of the battle against Asian American racism, addressing disparities not only through her research but also in community settings.

Funded by NIMH grants (K01 and R34), Hahm has developed and tested theoretical framework that explains suicide behaviors among Asian American women. The culturally grounded interventions she has developed, including AWARE (Asian American Women’s Actions in Resilience and Empowerment) and Youth AWARE, have been implemented in colleges and high schools. Hahm has also received the research mentor award at Boston University and the Innovator’s Award from Asian Women for Health.

Hahm’s many accomplishments are reflected through her authorship of more than 60 peer-reviewed journal publications and over 200 professional talks locally, nationally and internationally. She is an editorial board member for the Journal of Youth and Adolescence in the U.S. and the Journal of Korean Mental Health in South Korea, and a fellow of the Society for Social Work and Research (SSWR) where she currently serves on the nominating committee.