Christian Vazquez

Dr. Christian Vazquez is an Assistant Professor at The University of Texas at Arlington’s School of Social Work, where he conducts research aimed at reducing health disparities among Latino/a populations. His work spans public health, social work, and digital health, with a focus on obesity, diabetes, and eHealth literacy across the lifespan. He holds a PhD in Social Work from The University of Texas at Austin, an MSW from the University of Michigan, and a BA in Sociology from UC Santa Barbara.

• PhD, Social Work, The University of Texas at Austin (2021)
• MSW, Social Work, University of Michigan (2016)
• BA, Sociology, University of California, Santa Barbara (2012)

Dr. Vazquez’s research interests include health disparities, Latino health, eHealth interventions, and social determinants of health. He employs quantitative and mixed methods to study how socioeconomic, cultural, and environmental factors influence health outcomes. His recent work explores eHealth literacy among older Latino adults and cardiometabolic health in underserved populations. He is particularly committed to developing culturally relevant, community-engaged interventions.

His 15 most recent publications reflect a strong trend in population health, with recurring themes of health equity, social determinants, and behavioral health. Articles frequently analyze national datasets and focus on vulnerable groups, including children, adolescents, and older adults. Key subfields include adverse childhood experiences, substance use, mental health, and digital health access, often with a focus on Latino communities.

Dr. Vazquez has received significant recognition, including:

• K01 Career Development Award (NIH/NIA)
• NIH Loan Repayment Program Award
• LAUNCHED Travel and Small Grant
• RISE 100 Postdoctoral Fellow Hire
• Publication Initiative Awardee (UT Austin)

He actively mentors students at undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral levels, supervising research in areas such as substance abuse, eHealth, and mental health. He leads multiple NIH-funded research projects and has secured grants from the University of Michigan and Pennington Biomedical Research Center. His service includes committee leadership in aging, curriculum development, and diversity initiatives. He is affiliated with the Center for Mexican American Studies and serves on editorial boards and grant review panels for NIH and professional journals.

Dr. Vazquez is also involved in interdisciplinary teams, including collaborations with researchers at Baylor Scott & White Research Institute and the University of Michigan. His lab emphasizes community-based participatory research and methodological innovation in longitudinal aging studies.