Dionne Smith Coker-Appiah, PhD is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at Georgetown University Medical Center. Dr. Coker-Appiah has engaged in a focused program of research and training experiences over the past decade. Each research phase has consistently and strategically informed subsequent phases in an effort to build a comprehensive ADV research program. Dr. Coker-Appiah’s research program focuses on using community-based participatory research (CBPR) approaches to study adolescent health, more specifically, adolescent dating violence, adolescent mental health, and adolescent sexual health among rural African Americans. She has collaborated on several federally and non-federally funded research projects. It has been well documented that there are ADV disparities among rural African Americans, therefore, a thorough understanding regarding how to design, conduct, and evaluate culturally and geographically appropriate interventions for this population is critical. Further, with an understanding of the intersecting public health disparities that often co-exist with ADV, Dr. Coker-Appiah has chosen to also focus on appropriate and effective ways to integrate health implications into ADV prevention interventions. Overall, her research program is designed to (a) prevent adolescent dating violence and the associated health implications among rural African Americans, (b) build effective and sustainable community partnerships that build rural communities’ capacity to address these issues, (c) reduce health disparities and promote health equity among rural youth of Color. In addition, Dr. Coker-Appiah has received NIH training in adolescent neuropsychology in the Section on Affective and Cognitive Neuroscience at NIMH (Mentor: Dr. James Blair). She is specifically interested in exploring the neuropsychology of both adolescent perpetrators and victims of dating violence.
Areas of Research: Adolescent dating violence, Adolescent mental health, Adolescent sexual health, Child/Adolescent exposure to interpersonal violence, Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR), Low income and minority populations, Adolescent Neuropsychology