Monica A. Ghabrial, Ph.D.
(she/her)
Contact and Scholarly Records
Email: monica.ghabrial@uwo.ca
Twitter: @MonicaGhabrial
My Google Scholar Profile
My Research Gate Profile
My LinkedIn Profile
About me
I am a research psychologist, currently working as a CIHR-funded Research Scientist at Western University with Dr. Greta Bauer on two national studies of trans and non-binary health: Trans Youth CAN! and Trans PULSE Canada.
I obtained my M.A. and Ph.D. in Psychology from University of Toronto. My dissertation research involved mixed methods (content analysis, qualitative analysis, psychometrics, psychophysiology) and focused on stress, resilience, and cardiovascular activity/reactivity among queer and trans (QT) Black people, Indigenous people, and people of Colour (BIPOC).
In this work, I developed and validated the first measure of positive identity among Queer BIPOC, the Queer People of Color Identity Affirmation Scale. I also led the first study of autonomic resilience in this population, by conducting a laboratory stress task and comparing metrics of cardiovascular activity (e.g., heart rate) to performance on psychosocial measures (e.g., the scale I had previously developed).
This dissertation was selected to represent University of Toronto in the Social Sciences, Humanities, and Arts division of the 2021 CAGS-ProQuest Distinguished Dissertation Award competition.
In addition to continuing strengths-based research with QTBIPOC, I am interested in examining experiences of LGBTQ+ newcomer and refugee people - in particular, the barriers that LGBTQ+ people face in immigration/refugee services.
I also enjoy and have experience with advocacy, education, and knowledge translation. With funding from CIHR, I run an education website on LGBTQ+ health, www.queercarekit.com. If you are seeking consultation in developing educational materials or are in need of a speaker for an event related to stigma and health, equity in academia, or issues concerning LGBTQ and/or BIPOC populations, please feel welcome to contact me.
In my free time, I enjoy art history, reading memoirs, lifting weights, and, if I'm fortunate enough, travelling (as pictured throughout this website!).
Current Positions
CIHR Postdoctoral Fellow | Epidemiology & Biostatistics
Health Equity in Epidemiology Research Group
Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry
Western University
Member | Harvard SOGIE Health Equity Research Collaborative
T.H. Chan School of Public Health
Harvard University
Collaborator | Re:searching for LGBTQI2S+ Health
Dalla Lana School of Public Health
University of Toronto
Chair | Awards Committee
Society for the Psychology of Women: Sexual & Gender Diversity
American Psychological Association
Languages
English (native speaker) Arabic (intermediate)
Education
2020 Ph.D. in Health and Social Experimental Psychology
University of Toronto
Thesis: Identity Affirmation, Minority Stress, and Cardiovascular Health Among Sexual and Gender Minority People of Colour; Advisor: Dr. Judith Andersen
2014 M.A. in Social & Community Psychology
University of Toronto
Thesis: “Trying to Figure Out Where We Belong”: Narratives of Racialized Sexual Minorities on Community, Identity, Discrimination, and Health; Advisor: Dr. Judith Andersen
2010 Bachelor of Science (Hons) in Psychology: Brain & Cognition
University of Guelph
Thesis: Factors Influencing Housing-Seeking Difficulty for Battered Women: An Investigation of Racial Discrimination and Attitudes Held By Landlords; Advisor: Dr. Paula Barata